Arthur Howe Holdsworth

Who was Arthur Howe Holdsworth?

Arthur Howe Holdsworth was a Devon merchant named Governor of Dartmouth Castle, a position held by his father Arthur from 1760 to 1777, in 1809. He was elected member of Parliament for Dartmouth in 1802, holding the seat until December 1819, when he vacated it in favour of Charles Milner Ricketts, a cousin of Lord Liverpool. He returned to the seat in 1829, but was defeated by John Seale in 1832, after the Reform Act partially disenfranchised the constituency.

Holdsworth was from a Devon mercantile and trading family and resided at Widdecombe House and Mount Galpin in Dartmouth located near Kingsbridge within the Stokenham Priory estate, owned by the Holdsworth family for many years. He served as the last Governor of Dartmouth.

Holdsworth was a well-known politician in Devonshire, his father Arthur having been a prominent shipowner, merchant and member of Parliament. The son, Arthur Howe Holdsworth Holdsworth, was an active businessman with interests in shipping and an inventor with many patents to his name, most relating to shipbuilding and boats. He was a shareholder in the Bristol and Exeter Railway and was a prime force behind Devon's expansive shipping interests.