Sir William Pierce Ashe à Court, 1st Baronet (c. 1747 – 22 July 1817) was a British soldier and Member of Parliament (MP).
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Early life
À Court was the only son of General William Ashe-à Court, MP for Heytesbury, and Anne Vernon, a daughter of Thomas Vernon.
His paternal grandparents were Pierce à Court, MP, and Elizabeth Ashe of Ivy Church, Wiltshire. His paternal uncle was Pierce A'Court-Ashe, also an MP for Heytesbury.
Career
He represented Heytesbury in the House of Commons from 1781 to 1790 and again from 1806 to 1807. In 1795 he was created a baronet, of Heytesbury in the County of Wiltshire. He was appointed Lieutenant-Colonel of the short-lived Wiltshire Supplementary Militia in 1797 and High Sheriff of Wiltshire for 1812.
Personal life
In 1769 à Court married Catherine Bradford, daughter of John Bradford. In 1777 Catherine A'Court died in Cheltenham, Gloucestershire; her memorial plaque in Cheltenham's parish church suggests this was due to her having been poisoned with arsenic by a servant. The following year à Court married Laetitia Wyndham, daughter of Henry Wyndham and sister of Henry Penruddocke Wyndham, MP for Wiltshire. Together they were the parents of six children:
