John Wilkes

1725 - 1797  (72 years)

• Name	John Wilkes
  Born	17 Oct 1725	London, England
  Gender	Male
  Died	26 Dec 1797	London, England
  Record Change	12 Apr 2009
  Occupation	Noted Politician
  Buried	Grosvenor Chapel in London, Eng.
  Person ID	I60485	120k
  Last Modified	28 Jul 2015

  
  

  Father	Israel Wilkes,   b. of London, England
  Relationship	Natural
  Mother	Mrs Israel Wilkes,   b. of London, England
  Relationship	Natural
  Married	of London, England
  Family ID	F26101	Group Sheet  |  Family Chart

  
  

  Family 1	Mary Meade, Polly,   b. of London, England
  Married	of London, England
  Children	1. Mary Wilkes, Polly,   b. of London, England  [Natural]
  Last Modified	28 Jul 2015
  Family ID	F26099	Group Sheet  |  Family Chart

  
  

  Family 2	Catherine Smith,   b. of London, England
  Married	Not Married (John's Misstress)London, England
  Children	1. John Wilkes, II.,   b. of Birmingham, England ,   d. Birmingham, England  [Natural]
  Last Modified	28 Jul 2015
  Family ID	F26100	Group Sheet  |  Family Chart

  
  

• Notes

  He was elected Member of Parliment (M.P.) for Aylesbury, England in 1757. In 1762 he established "The North Briton", a newpaper in which he severely attacked King George III and the Prime Minister Butte. In 1763 he was arrested for his attacks on the King in his newspaper, but the charges were dismissed. However the dismissal was later overturned and John Wilkes fled to Paris before he could be arrested. He returned to England in 1768 and was subsequently arrested and jailed. This resulted in a riot in St. George's Fields on 10 May, 1768 in which seven protesters were killed, this led to disturbances throughout London. John Wilkes was sentenced to 22 months in prison, fined, and expelled from the House of Commons. He was released from prison in April 1770. He then campaigned for freedom of the press. In 1774 he was elected Lord Mayor of London and M.P. of Middlesex. During this term in the House of Commons he campaigned for Parliamentary Reform, and condemned the British Government's policy during the Amerian War of Independence. He resigned from politics in 1790. He was described at having been an arrogant scoundrel and an extremely ugly man, but in spite of this, he is given credit for achieving freedom of the press and freedom of individuals from arbitrary arrest. He is the namesake of the city of Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania and of Wilkes University located there. Wilkes University erected a statue of John Wilkes in August 1995.