Constituency : St Michael 1826-30, Taunton 1830-59
Henry was of Huguenot merchant stock and connected to the Barings through his mother and then wife. He was educated at Winchester and Oxford. There was a suggestion that his first marriage to his cousin Frances Baring was part of a deal to merge the bank of which he was a director with Barings,He was first elected as a Whig in 1830. He switched to Taunton in 1830 and trounced Disraeli there in 1835. In 1832 Grey made him a Civil Lord of the Admiralty. Melbourne promoted him to Vice-President of the Board of Trade in 1835 and he progressed to President and Cabinet rank in 1839. In 1846 Russell made Henry Chief Secretary for Ireland where he promoted public works to reduce distress but he returned to his previous post after a year and made his name by abolishing the Navigation Laws. He did not join Aberdeen's government occupying himself with the Royal Commission for the City of London between 1854 and 1855. He then served as Colonial Secretary in Palmerston's first ministry.
Henry was described by Lord Campbell as "a very pretty speaker " and "such a perfect gentleman that in the House of Commons he is heard with peculiar favour". He was also one of the richest MPs in the Commons.
Immediately after the 1859 election Henry was raised to the peerage as Baron Taunton gifting the Tories an early by-election gain.
He died in 1869 aged 70. His nephew and namesake became a prominent Radical in the party.
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