Parliamentary Career
He stood for Parliament in the Appleby division of Westmorland in the general elections in 1885 and 1886. He was elected as Member of Parliament for Leicester in the general election in 1892. He was a Liberal and supported William Ewart Gladstone. He was in favour of Irish home rule, reform of the House of Lords, and disestablishment of the Church of England. He served only two years as MP, resigning by becoming Steward of the Manor of Northstead in 1894.
He was also a Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries, the Royal Historical Society, the Royal Statistical Society, and a member of the International Peace Association and the Reform Club
Two of his sons, Sir George Whitehead, 2nd Baronet, and Sir Rowland Whitehead, 3rd Baronet, inherited the baronetcy.
His papers are held by the archives of the Houses of Parliament.
Read more about this topic: Sir James Whitehead, 1st Baronet
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