John Symmons (1745-1831)

John Symmons was born in 1745, elder son of John Symmons and his wife Maria Philipps. John Symmons senior was from Llanstinan, Pembrokeshire and was MP for Cardigan Boroughs from 1746 to 1761.

The younger John made his home in London and was well connected in London society: he was a member of the Noblemen and Gentlemen’s Catch Club, whose select membership included the Prince of Wales and a number of the royal dukes. He was also a cultivated man with a great passion for science, for the arts and for books. The breadth of his interests (and patronage) can be seen in the learned societies of which he was a member. He was a Fellow of the Royal Society, a founder member of the Royal Institution and of the Linnean Society, and a member of numerous other societies including the Horticultural Society, the Literary Society and the Society of Antiquaries. He assembled a renowned collection of over 4,000 plants at his home in Paddington House, the catalogue of which was published in 1797. He was a friend of the eminent surgeons John Hunter and Anthony Carlisle (the latter married his daughter) and he corresponded with them regarding various experiments. His library comprised upwards of 30,000 volumes, including many rare and early printed books.

He married four times, the last occasion being in 1828 at the age of 83. Towards the end of his life, Symmons went bankrupt, perhaps in part because of the generosity for which he was known, including to his younger brother Charles. In order to avoid imprisonment, John fled the country, and his book and art collections were auctioned in 1828. John resided in the Low Countries or northern France until his death in 1831.

Symmons had family connections to several literary figures of his day including Lord Byron. His brother, Charles, was noted as a poet, as was his niece, Caroline, though her death at the age of 16 curtailed her early promise. It has also been suggested that Symmons’ son-in-law, Anthony Carlisle, was in fact the author of the seminal gothic novel The horrors of Oakendale Abbey (published anonymously but attributed to “Mrs. Carver”) and that many details concerning the main character, Lord Oakendale, were loosely based on John Symmons.