Sir John Gladstone, 1st Baronet

Sir John Gladstone Bt FRSE
Gladstone c. 1843-48
Member of Parliament for Lancaster
In office 1818–1820
Preceded by	John Fenton-Cawthorne
Succeeded by	John Fenton-Cawthorne
Member of Parliament for Woodstock
In office 1820–1826
Preceded by	Sir Henry Dashwood
Succeeded by	Marquess of Blandford
Member of Parliament for Berwick-upon-Tweed
In office 1826–1827
Preceded by	Sir Francis Blake
Succeeded by	Sir Francis Blake
Personal details
Born	John Gladstones (1764-12-11)11 December 1764 Leith, Midlothian
Died	7 December 1851(1851-12-07) (aged 86) Fasque House, Kincardineshire
Resting place	St. Andrew's Chapel, Kincardineshire
Political party	Tory
Spouse(s)	Jane Hall (m. 1792–1798) Anne MacKenzie Robertson (m. 1801–1835)
Children	Anne Thomas Robertson John William Helen
Parents	Thomas Gladstones (father) Helen (Nelly) Neilson (mother)

Sir John Gladstone, 1st Baronet, FRSE (11 December 1764 – 7 December 1851) was a Scottish merchant, planter and Tory politician best known for being the father of British Prime Minister William Ewart Gladstone. Born in Leith, Midlothian, through his commercial activities he acquired ownership over several slave plantations in the British colonies of Jamaica and Demerara-Essequibo; the Demerara rebellion of 1823, one of the most significant slave rebellions in the British Empire, was started on one of Gladstone's plantations.

After the passage of the Slavery Abolition Act 1833 by the Parliament of the United Kingdom, he received the largest of all compensated emancipation payments made via the Slave Compensation Act 1837 for the loss of his slaves. Gladstone proceeded to expel the majority of the newly emancipated freedmen from his plantations and imported large numbers of indentured servants from British India as part of the Indian indenture system. During this period, he also sat in Parliament from 1818 to 1827. Dying in 1851, Gladstone's involvement in slavery heavily influenced the proslavery thought of his son during his early political career.