He became High Steward of Newbury, and was about to stand for Parliament for Berkshire when his brother William's death in 1739 brought him the Barony of Craven.

[citation needed] He was famously fond of racing and hunting, hunting on his Berkshire estates at Hamstead Marshall and Ashdown Park, keeping his own stud of racehorses and founding a racecourse at Lambourn.

[citation needed] When not hunting, Craven resided at Coombe Abbey, near Coventry in Warwickshire.

He continued to hunt until his death at old Benham Park in 1764 after a long illness.

He was buried at Hamstead Marshall, and being unmarried and childless, was succeeded by his nephew William.