GORE, Charles (?1711-68), of Tring, Herts.

In 1754 Gore stood for Hertfordshire on a joint interest with Paggen Hale, and was returned after a contest. There was another contest in 1761, when Gore stood jointly with Jacob Houblon, but having lost the support of the Dissenters, he was beaten.

In May 1762 Newcastle, then in his last days at the Treasury, recommended Gore, apparently against the King’s inclination, to Nathaniel Ryder for a seat at Tiverton. ‘His Majesty talked very oddly about the borough of Tiverton’, wrote Newcastle to Hardwicke on 10 May,Add. 35421, ff. 259-60. ‘that it was a court borough. But thank God, that is over, and I hope Mr. Gore chose.’ Yet if Newcastle expected Gore to follow him into Opposition he was disappointed: in December 1762 Gore’s name is in Fox’s list of Members in favour of the peace preliminaries, and it appears in none of the minority division lists of 1763 or 1764. On 17 Dec. 1763 Newcastle wrote to Ryder:‘Tiverton Letters and Papers, 1724-1843’, N. Q. clxx. 171. ‘I have an account from good hands that Mr. Charles Gore ... is in a very bad state of health and not likely to hold out long’; and went on to recommend his successor. Gore spent the winter of 1764-5 in France, returned to England in May,Ibid. 189. and in Rockingham’s list of July 1765 was classed ‘pro’. He does not appear in the division lists 1765-8 and his political conduct at this period is not clear: Rockingham in November 1766 classed him ‘doubtful’, Townshend in January 1767 ‘Bedford’ (there is no evidence that he was ever claimed by the Bedfords as one of their group), and Newcastle in March 1767 ‘Administration’. He is not known to have spoken in the House. He died 15 Feb. 1768.