THOROLD, John (d.1700), of Grantham, Lincs.

Thorold appears to have played no part in public life until the deaths of his elder brothers and his octogenarian father left him the effective head of the family during his nephews’ minorities. He was an Anglican and a court supporter, remaining on the commission of the peace during the exclusion crisis, and was nominated to the Grantham corporation under the new charter of 1685. On the accession of James II he presented the loyal address from Grantham, and was returned for the borough a few weeks later. But he took no known part in Parliament, and probably never stood again, though he accepted the Revolution, and remained an active magistrate. His nephew, the fourth baronet, sat either for the borough or the county as a Tory in seven Parliaments between 1697 and 1714. Thorold was buried at Grantham on 17 Jan. 1700. His will mentions freehold and leasehold property in and around the town, including the manor of Grayingham. Both his sons succeeded to the baronetcy, and his great-grandson represented Lincolnshire as an independent from 1794 to 1796.C5/190/18; London Gaz. 23 Mar. 1685; Lincs. AO, Grantham bishops’ transcripts; Lincoln consistory court wills 1700/171 (information from Mr C. M. Lloyd, Lincs. County Archivist).