Thompson was the son of Edward Thompson of
Long Marston (1670–1734) and Lucy Tindall, and the grandson of
Henry Thompson, a wine merchant of
York who established the prominence of the Thompson family. His sister, Henrietta, married Colonel
Edward Wolfe and became the mother of
James Wolfe. He was educated at
Queen Elizabeth Grammar School, Wakefield. In 1722, Thompson was elected
Member of Parliament for
York, a seat he held for the remainder of his life. Employed as a Commissioner of the Land Revenue in Ireland, he issued a pamphlet justifying the introduction of a general
excise there. This, and the pomp with which he carried out his office, aroused the scorn of
Jonathan Swift in 1733 in a polemic against holders of civil office. From 1729 until 1733, he was
Grand Master of the Grand
Lodge of York. ==Family==