William Byron, 5th Baron Byron William Byron, 5th Baron Byron William Byron, 5th Baron Byron (5 November 1722 – 19 May 1798), was a British nobleman, peer, politician, and great uncle of the poet George Gordon Byron, 6th Baron Byron who succeeded him . As a result of a number of stories that arose after a duel, and then because of his financial difficulties, he became known as "the Wicked Lord" and "the Devil Byron". Byron was the son of William Byron, 4th Baron Byron and his wife Hon. Frances Berkeley, a descendant of John Berkeley, 1st Baron Berkeley of Stratton. He inherited his title
William Byron (MP) with his cousin Juliana Elizabeth Byron, daughter of Admiral John Byron. Byron contested Morpeth at the 1774 general election on the Carlisle interest. He was defeated, but seated as Member of Parliament on petition on 28 January 1775. There is no record of any vote or speech by him in the eighteen months he was in Parliament. Byron as heir was due to inherit the Barony, but he died on 22 June 1776. His son was killed by cannon fire in 1794 while fighting in Corsica and the barony ultimately went to the poet Lord Byron. William Byron (MP) Hon.