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Biography
Sir Charles Whitworth (c. 1721 – 22 August 1778) was a British Member of Parliament, known for his expertise in statistics and finance.
He represented the constituencies of Minehead from 1747 until 1761, and Bletchingley until 1768, in which year he was knighted. He then represented Minehead until 1774, East Looe until 1775 and Saltash until his death in 1778. He had three sons and four daughters, and his heir was his eldest son, Charles Whitworth, 1st Earl Whitworth. The major contribution made by Sir Charles Whitworth to the statistics of Great Britain, consisted of the production of the first complete Balance of Trade (Visible trade) for the country together with individual commercial accounts of Great Britain and all known countries during the period 1697–1773, a major task he completed two years before his death.