John Damer

{{Short description|Anglo-Irish politician (1744–1776)}} {{about||his cousin, the English landowner and politician|John Damer (1720–1783)}} {{Use dmy dates|date=May 2025}} {{Use British English|date=July 2017}} {{Infobox officeholder | honorific_prefix = Hon. | name = John Damer | honorific_suffix = MP | image =Batoni, Pompeo - The Hon. John Damer.jpg | caption=portrait by Pompeo Batoni | image_size = | order1 = Member of Parliament for Gatton | term_start1 = 21 March 1768 | term_end1 = 7 October 1774 | predecessor1 = | successor1 = | birth_date = {{birth date text|25 June 1744}} | birth_place = Shronell, County Tipperary | death_date = {{death date and age text|15 August 1776|25 June 1744}} | death_place = Covent Garden, London | party = Whig | alma_mater = Trinity College, Cambridge | spouse = Anne Seymour Conway (m. 14 June 1767, d. 1828) }}

'''John Damer''' (25 June 1744 – 15 August 1776) was an Anglo-Irish Whig politician.

==Family== John was the first of three sons of Joseph Damer, 1st Earl of Dorchester by the Lady Caroline Sackville. His mother was the daughter of Lionel Cranfield Sackville, 1st Duke of Dorset and his wife Elizabeth Colyear. His maternal grandmother was the daughter of Lieutenant-General Walter Philip Colyear, and the niece of David Colyear, 1st Earl of Portmore.<ref>Mosley, Charles, editor. Burke's Peerage, Baronetage & Knightage, 107th edition, 3 volumes. Wilmington, Delaware, U.S.A.: Burke's Peerage (Genealogical Books) Ltd, 2003.</ref> His younger brothers were the Hon. Lionel Damer and the George Damer, 2nd Earl of Dorchester.

==Education== Damer was educated at Eton (1755–61) and Trinity College, Cambridge (1762).<ref>{{acad|id=DMR762J|name=Damer, the Hon. John}}</ref>

==Marriage==

He married the future sculptor Anne Seymour Conway, daughter of Field Marshal Rt. Hon. Henry Seymour Conway and Lady Caroline Campbell, on 14 June 1767; she separated from him seven years later.<ref>{{cite web |url= https://www.londonremembers.com/subjects/anne-seymour-damer |title= Anne Seymour Damer |author= |date= |website= London Remembers |publisher= |access-date= July 22, 2025 |quote=}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url= https://collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O8865/mrs-freeman-as-isis-bust-damer-anne-seymour/ |title= Mrs Freeman as Isis |author= |date= |website= V&A Museum |publisher= |access-date= July 22, 2025 |quote=}}</ref>

==Political career== Damer was the member of parliament for Gatton (1768–1774).<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.historyofparliamentonline.org/volume/1754-1790/member/damer-hon-john-1744-76#offices-held|title=Damer, Hon. John (1744-76)|website=historyofparliamentonline.org|accessdate=20 January 2023}}</ref>

==Death== Damer got heavily into debt and his father refused to help him financially. He shot himself on 15 August 1776 at the Bedford Arms, Covent Garden.<ref>Thornbury, Walter. [http://www.british-history.ac.uk/old-new-london/vol3/pp255-269 "Covent Garden: Part 2 of 3.", Old and New London: Volume 3. London: Cassell, Petter & Galpin, 1878, pp. 255-269. British History Online.] Accessed 25 January 2023.</ref><ref>Alison Yarrington, "Damer, Anne Seymour (1749–1828)", ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'', Oxford University Press, 2004; online edn, January 2008 [http://www.oxforddnb.com/view/article/7084 Subscription site]</ref>

==Legacy== Damer is mentioned in the lyrics of the traditional Irish song "Limerick Rake".<ref>{{cite web |url= https://www.irish-folk-songs.com/the-limerick-rake-lyrics-and-chords.html |title= The Limerick Rake, lyrics and chords |author= |date= |website= Irish Folk Songs |publisher= |access-date= July 22, 2025 |quote=}}</ref>

==References== {{Reflist}}

{{S-start}} {{S-par|gb}} {{Succession box | title = Member of Parliament for Gatton | years = 1768–1774 | with = Joseph Martin | before = Thomas Brand | before2 = Lieutenant-Colonel Edward Harvey | after = Sir William Mayne | after2 = Robert Scott }} {{S-end}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Damer, John}} Category:1744 births Category:People educated at Eton College Category:Whig (British political party) MPs Category:1776 deaths Category:Alumni of Trinity College, Cambridge Category:Members of the Parliament of Great Britain for English constituencies Category:British MPs 1768–1774 Category:Heirs apparent who never acceded John Category:Suicides by firearm in England