Thomas Duncombe (died 1779)
Thomas Duncombe (baptised 27 August 1724 – 23 November 1779) was a British politician who sat in the House of Commons between 1751 and 1779. He was the eldest son of Thomas Duncombe of Duncombe Park, North Yorkshire, and Mary Slingsby. He went to Westminster School from 1732 and studied at Christ Church, Oxford in 1742. He inherited Duncombe Park in 1746 and was known as Thomas Duncombe III.
He entered Parliament in 1751 as MP for Downton and in 1754 became MP for Morpeth. In 1759 the Militia was reformed, and he was made Colonel of the Cleveland and Bulmer Battalion, North York Militia. After his cousin Lord Feversham died in 1763, he gained an interest at Downton and was returned there unopposed in 1768. In 1774 his control of Downton was challenged and he was unseated on petition. He was returned unopposed for Downton again in 1779, but died a few weeks later. There is no record of him speaking in Parliament. Duncombe Bay on Norfolk Island is named after him.
He married three times. First, to Lady Diana Howard in 1749; their daughter Anne married Robert Shafto. Second, to Anne Jennings Clerke in 1772; their daughter Frances (1775–1861) married George Henry Rose and was the mother of Hugh Rose, 1st Baron Strathnairn, Sir William Rose, and the Countess of Morton. Third, to Charlotte Hale in 1778. Having no sons, his estates at Barford near Downton and Duncombe Park passed to his younger brother Charles Slingsby Duncombe and then to his nephew Charles Duncombe, 1st Baron Feversham.
This page was last edited on 2 February 2026, at 19:15 (CET).