the first earl of Bristol in the Hervey line, son of Sir Thomas Hervey (d. 1694) and nephew of John Hervey (1616–79), treasurer to Catherine of Braganza, queen consort of Charles II.

He was educated at Clare Hall, Cambridge, and became member of Parliament for Bury St. Edmunds (March 1694). He was created Baron Hervey of Ickworth in March 1703 and earl of Bristol in October 1714, through the influence of Sarah, duchess of Marlborough, who advertised his support of the Hanoverian succession. By his first marriage he had only one son, Carr, who died unmarried on Nov. 14, 1723, and who is thought by some to have been the father of Horace Walpole (1717–97). His eldest son by his second marriage, John Hervey (Hervey, John Hervey, Baron), gained some renown as a writer and politician.