1st Earl of Portland (1633-1635)
Lord Treasurer (1628-1635)
Born 1577 Died 1635
Sir Richard Weston, according to Clarendon "a gentleman of very ancient extraction by father and mother", was the son and heir of Sir Jerome Weston (c.1550-1603) of Skreens, in Roxwell, Essex, his grandfather being Richard Weston (d. 1572) justice of the common pleas.
A member of parliament during the reigns of James I and Charles I, Sir Richard was sent abroad by James on two occasions to negotiate on behalf of the elector palatine Frederick V; after the murder of the Duke of Buckingham, he became the principal counsellor of Charles I. In 1628 he was created Baron Weston of Neyland and in 1633 Earl of Portland.
Having in 1625 and 1626 had experience in the difficult task of obtaining money for the royal needs from the House of Commons, Weston was made Lord High Treasurer in 1628. His own inclinations and the obstacles in the way of raising money made him an advocate of a policy of peace and neutrality. His conduct was frequently attacked in parliament, but he retained both his office and the confidence of the king until his death on the 13th of March 1635.
Extracted from the entry for PORTLAND, EARL OF in the 1911 Encyclopedia Britannica, the text of which lies within the public domain.