Background
Born John Sawbridge, he was the son of Samuel Elias Sawbridge, of Olantigh, and grandson of John Sawbridge, Lord Mayor of London in 1775. John married Jane Frances Erle-Drax-Grosvenor, daughter of Richard Erle-Drax-Grosvenor, in 1827.
Member of Parliament in the United Kingdom
Born John Sawbridge, he was the son of Samuel Elias Sawbridge, of Olantigh, and grandson of John Sawbridge, Lord Mayor of London in 1775. John married Jane Frances Erle-Drax-Grosvenor, daughter of Richard Erle-Drax-Grosvenor, in 1827.
Wareham was a pocket borough with just 342 electors, controlled jointly by Erle-Drax and John Hales Calcraft, who arranged for one or the other of them to be returned at each election. Immediately prior to the opening of the polls at one election, he made the following statement to the electors of Wareham: "I understand that some evil-disposed person has been circulating a report that I wish my tenants, and other persons dependent upon me, to vote according to their conscience. This is a dastardly lie, calculated to injure medical
I have no wish of the sort.
I wish, and intend, that these people should vote for medical "
During his tenure in the House of Commons, Erle-Drax was known as the "Silent Member of Parliament". He made only one known statement in the House, which was a request that the Speaker of the House have a window opened.
14th United Kingdom. 15th United Kingdom. 16th United Kingdom.
18th United Kingdom. 20th United Kingdom. 21st United Kingdom
After serving a term as High Sheriff of Dorset in 1840 Erle-Drax was the Conservative (Tory) Member of for Wareham for three periods between 1841 and 1880.
Erle-Drax"s descendant, Richard Plunkett-Ernle-Erle-Drax, was elected as Member of for South Dorset in the United Kingdom general election, 2010 using the "truncated" name Richard Drax.