William Knox

William Stuart Knox DL JP (11 March 1826 – 16 February 1900) was an Irish politician and public official. He was born in 1826 as the second son of Thomas Knox, 2nd Earl of Ranfurly, and Mary Juliana Stuart. Knox's family included notable siblings such as Thomas Knox, 3rd Earl of Ranfurly; Lady Mary Stuart Knox, who was married to John Page Reade; Lady Louisa Juliana Knox, wife of Henry Alexander; and Lady Juliana Caroline Frances Knox, wife of General Sir Edward Forestier-Walker.

His paternal grandparents were Thomas Knox, 1st Earl of Ranfurly, and the Hon. Diana Jane Pery, who was a daughter of the 1st Viscount Pery. His maternal grandparents were the Most Reverend William Stuart, Archbishop of Armagh, and Sophia Margaret Penn. Sophia Margaret Penn was the daughter of Thomas Penn and the granddaughter of William Penn, the founder of Pennsylvania.

In terms of education and early career, Knox was commissioned into the 51st Foot regiment and served until his retirement as a major in 1855. He was appointed as a Groom in Waiting to Queen Victoria in 1852 and 1853. Beyond his military service, he held the position of Honorary Colonel in the Mid Ulster Artillery starting from 1867. He also served in local government and public service roles, including as a Deputy Lieutenant and Justice of the Peace for County Tyrone.

Knox entered politics as a Member of Parliament for Dungannon in 1851, succeeding his elder brother Viscount Northland. He served as MP for the constituency until 1874.

In 1856, Knox married Georgiana Rooper, daughter of John Bonfoy Rooper of Ripton Hall, Huntingdon, and Abbots Ripton. The marriage produced several children, including Violet Mary Knox, who died unmarried in 1928; Florence May Knox, who married Colonel Albert George Shaw in 1889; and Thomas Granville Knox (1868–1947), who married Hon. Harriet Georgiana Lucia Agar-Ellis, daughter of Leopold Agar-Ellis, 5th Viscount Clifden, and Hon. Harriet Stonor, daughter of the 3rd Baron Camoys.

William Knox died in Cheltenham on 16 February 1900 at the age of 73. His wife survived him for another 26 years, passing away in November 1926.