William John Bankes

William John Bankes FRS
Portrait by George Sandars, 1812
Member of Parliament for Truro
In office 1810–1810
Preceded by	Charles Powlett, 2nd Baron Bayning
Succeeded by	Sir George Warrender, 4th Baronet
Member of Parliament for Cambridge University
In office 1822–1826
Preceded by	John Henry Smyth
Succeeded by	John Copley, 1st Baron Lyndhurst
Member of Parliament for Marlborough
In office 1829–1832
Preceded by	James Brudenell, 7th Earl of Cardigan
Succeeded by	Henry Bingham Baring
Member of Parliament for Dorset
In office 1832–1835
Preceded by	Edward Portman, 1st Viscount Portman
Succeeded by	Anthony Ashley-Cooper, 7th Earl of Shaftesbury
Personal details
Born	(1786-12-11)11 December 1786
Died	15 April 1855(1855-04-15) (aged 68) Venice, Kingdom of Lombardy–Venetia
Nationality	British
Political party	Tory
Relations	Henry Bankes (father), Frances Woodley (mother)
Alma mater	Trinity College, Cambridge
Occupation	Explorer, egyptologist and adventurer
Military service
Allegiance	United Kingdom
Branch/service	British Army
Rank	aide-de-camp

William John Bankes (11 December 1786 – 15 April 1855) was an English politician, explorer, Egyptologist and adventurer.

The second, but first surviving, son of Henry Bankes MP, he was a member of the Bankes family of Dorset and he had Sir Charles Barry recase Kingston Lacy in stone as it is today. He travelled extensively to the Near East and Egypt and made an extensive individual collection of Egyptian artefacts.^[1] His work on Egypt, though not acknowledged until the 21st century, is regarded as important. He was a good friend of Lord Byron, Samuel Rogers and Sir Charles Barry. He sat as Tory Member of Parliament (MP) for Truro in 1810, for Cambridge University from 1822 to 1826, for Marlborough (the UK parliamentary constituency that his maternal grandfather, William Woodley, for whom he was named, had held from 1780 to 1784) from 1829 to 1832, and finally for Dorset from 1832 to 1835.