1585 William Burnyeat

Constituency : Whitehaven  1906-10

William  took  Whitehaven  from  the  Tories.

William  was  the  son  of  a  local  ironmaster. He  was educated  at  Rugby  and  Oxford.He  became  a  barrister.

In  1908  William  married  a  German  woman , Hildegard  Retlazz, who  he  met  on  holiday  in  Sicily.

Apart  from  a  couple  of  questions  William  made  no  parliamentary  contribution.

William  stood  down  in  January  1910.

In  August   1915  a  German  U-boat  shelled  the  works  at  Lowca  near  William's  home. There  were  rumours  of  bright  lights  flashing  near  his  house  before  the  attack  and  suspicion  fell  on  Hildegard  who  had  unwisely  defended  her  countrymen  in  public. She  was  interned  under  the  Defence  of  the  Realm  Act, as  much  for  her  protection  as  anything  else.

He  died  in  1916  aged  42. Hildegard  was  allowed  out  to  be  at  his  bedside.