Constituency : Denbigh Boroughs 1830-2, Denbighshire 1832-5, 1852-68
Robert was the owner of the Chirk Castle estate after his father had married a co-heiress. His father was a Foxite Whig and a previous MP for Denbigh Boroughs. He tried to stand in the 1826 election against his uncle by marriage but was denied by a bit of sharp practice from the returning officer. In 1830 and 1831 he was unopposed. He could not speak Welsh and relied on friends when canvassing in the county constituency in 1832. That was a hotly contested seat and Robert was accused of inactivity by his Conservative opponents ( he never spoke in the House ). His excuse of inflammation of the eyes meaning he had to spend long periods in a dark room was rejected by his constituents who unseated him in 1835. He contested the seat again in 1847 basing his campaign on opposition to the Maynooth grant but lost.
He won the seat in 1852 but gradually lost the support of the Liberal electors due to his support of the established church, reluctance to condemn politically motivated evictions and association with the Adullamites. He was ousted by the more advanced Liberal , George Morgan in 1868.
Robert's wife Fanny was the childhood sweetheart of Charles Darwin.
Robert was Colonel of the Denbigh militia from 1840 and became aide-de-camp to Queen Victoria in 1869.
Robert died in 1872 aged 66.
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