John Langston was an English merchant banker and politician.
Background
Langston was the oldest son of James Haughton Langston and his wife Sarah, of Sarsden House in Oxfordshire. In 1784 he married Sarah Goddard, daughter of John Goddard of Woodford Hall, Essex. He had a generous inheritance from his father, who died in 1795.
Career
He sat in the House of Commons of Great Britain and its successor the House of Commons of the United Kingdom for most of the years between 1784 and 1807. Langston was probably educated at Eton. Langston was a director of the Sun Fire Office from 1794 until his death.
He aimed to buy himself a place in Parliament, but never found a safe seat.
At the next election, in 1790, he contested Bridgwater in the interest of the 4th Earl Poulett. Having joined the opposition, Langston was no longer acceptable to Poulett, so he turned instead to Minehead, where opposition was mounting to the "overbearing conduct" of the borough"s patron John Fownes Luttrell, whose Dunster Castle-based family had dominated the borough for most of the period since its 16th-century enfranchisement.
Langston bought some building land in Alcombe, within the borough, from a Quaker William Davis who had advertised for a wealthy challenger. There he rapidly built some houses to register voters, and nominated himself and his wife"s brother-in-law Admiral Charles Morice Pole.
An election petition was prepared, but after a period of negotiations, Langston sold all his Minehead interests to Fownes Luttrell.
Out of Parliament, Langston was Sheriff of Oxfordshire in 1804-1805. He was returned to the Commons in March 1806 for the Irish rotten borough of Portarlington, whose patron the 2nd Earl of Portarlington accommodated Langston as a favour to the Prince of Wales. However, by 1807 the earl had disowned his brother"s politics, and Langston withdrew.
Langston never returned to Parliament, and died in 1811, aged about 54.
Membership
1st United Kingdom Parliament. 2nd United Kingdom Parliament. 3rd United Kingdom Parliament.
16th Parliament of Great Britain.
17th Parliament of Great Britain. 18th Parliament of Great Britain]
At the 1784 election he was returned after a contest as a Member of Parliament (Member of Parliament) for Sudbury, an open borough with a reputation for venality where the government backed his candidacy.