William Paston, 2nd Earl of Yarmouth

Who was William Paston, 2nd Earl of Yarmouth?

William Paston, 2nd Earl of Yarmouth was a British peer and politician.

Born in 1654, he was the son of Robert Paston, 1st Earl of Yarmouth and his wife, Rebecca, née Clayton. In 1671, he married the widowed Charlotte Howard, née FitzRoy, the illegitimate daughter of Charles II and Elizabeth Killigrew. They had four surviving children:

Charles Paston, Lord Paston

Lady Charlotte Paston, married Thomas Herne.

Lady Rebecca Paston, married Sir John Holland, 2nd Baronet.

Hon. William Paston

Paston was elected Member of Parliament for Norwich from 1678. In 1679, his father was made an earl, and William adopted the style of Lord Paston. He continued to represent Norwich until he inherited his father's title in 1683. His wife having died in 1684, he married Elizabeth Wiseman the following month and converted to Roman Catholicism soon after. In February 1687, James II appointed him Treasurer of the Household. He reconverted to Anglicanism in 1689, but refused to swear allegiance to William and Mary when they came to the throne that year, subsequently losing all his offices.