Henry Labouchere was Secretary of State for the Colonies from
21 November 1855 to February 1858.
He was born on
15 August 1798 and was educated at Winchester and Christ Church, Oxford, earning a BA in
1821 and MA in
1828. He was admitted to Lincoln's Inn on
30 April 1817 but was
never called to the bar. In
April 1826, Labouchere was elected to the House of Commons, representing Michael Borough; in
1830 he was elected for Taunton, which he represented until his retirement from the Commons
in
1852.
He joined the
Admiralty in June 1832 and in 1835 became Master of the Mint. On
6 May 1835,
he was admitted to the
Privy Council and became vice president and, on
29 August, 1830 president
of the Board of Trade. From
February to August 1839, he served as undersecretary of war and the colonies. After
Lord Melbourne's resignation in
September 1841, Labouchere retired from office, but on
22 July 1847,
he was again appointed president of the Board of Trade, remaining until
February 1852.
In
August 1859, he was created Baron Taunton, and took a seat in the House of Lords in
January 1860. He died in
London on 13 July 1869.