William Lynch

Who was William Lynch?

William Lynch was a British diplomat and politician who sat in the House of Commons between 1762 and 1774.

Lynch was the eldest son of John Lynch, DD Dean of Canterbury and his wife Mary Wake, daughter of William Wake, Archbishop of Canterbury.

Lynch was elected Member of Parliament for Weobly in 1762, and held the seat until 1768. He was then elected MP for Canterbury and held the seat until 1774.

In September 1768 Lynch was appointed envoy extraordinary to the court of Turin and served from 1769 to 1776. He was made a Knight of the Bath, and a privy counsellor.

In 1780, he inheritted the Manor of Stalisfield, until his death.

Lynch lived at The Groves at Staple, Kent, where he made great improvements: adding two wings to the house and adding a new front of stucco. He built up a collection of pictures. He created parkland in the grounds and made extensive plantations.

Lynch died at Barèges in the south of France where he went to drink the waters and was buried at Staple in Kent.

Lynch married Mary Coke, daughter of Edward Coke of Canterbury, but had no issue.