John Finch

John Finch

Sir John Finch, Baron Finch of Fordwich (September 17, 1584 - November 27, 1660), was an English judge, and Speaker of the House of Commons.

Political career

He was called to the bar in November 1611.Louis A. Knafla, ‘Finch, John, Baron Finch of Fordwich (1584–1660)’, Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press, Sept 2004; online edn, Jan 2008] He was returned to Parliament for Canterbury in 1614, and became recorder of the same place in 1617. He attracted the notice of King Charles I in 1625, when the latter visited Canterbury and was received with an address by Finch in his capacity as recorder. The following year Charles knighted him and appointed him kings counsel and attorney-general.

In 1628 he was elected Speaker, a post which he retained until 1629 when Parliament was dissolved. He was held down in his chair by Holles and others on the occasion of Sir John Eliot's resolution on tonnage and poundage.

Judicial career

In 1634 he was appointed chief justice of the Court of Common Pleas, and distinguished himself by the active zeal with which he upheld the king's prerogative. Notable also was the brutality which characterized his conduct as chief justice, particularly in the cases of William Prynne and John Langton.

He presided over the trial of John Hampden, who resisted the payment of ship money, and was chiefly responsible for the decision of the judges that ship-money was constitutional. As a reward for his services he was, in 1640, appointed Lord Keeper of the Great Seal of England, and was also created Baron Finch of Fordwich. He had, however, become so unpopular that one of the first acts of the Long Parliament, which met in the same year was his impeachment. His estates were sequestrated and he took refuge in Holland. The Great Seal was passed to Edward Littleton.

When he was allowed to return to England is uncertain, but in 1660 he was one of the commissioners for the trial of the regicides, though he does not appear to have taken much part in the proceedings. He died on the 27th of November 1660 and was buried in St Martins church near Canterbury, his peerage becoming extinct.

ee also

* Earl of Winchilsea
* Heneage Finch, 1st Baron Finch

References

*1911


Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Поможем решить контрольную работу

Look at other dictionaries:

  • John Finch — Der selige John Finch (* 1548 in Eccleston, Lancashire; † 20. April 1584 in Lancaster) war ein katholischer Märtyrer aus England. Sein landwirtschaftlich geprägte Familie war von der Glaubensspaltung zerrissen und so bekam der junge Finch die… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • John Finch's Hotel — Finch Hotel opened in 1848 by John Finch on Lot # 2, Concession # 1 (200 acres) , Toronto owned by Thomas Johnson since the late 1790s. Finch Hotel was operated by a series of innkeepers:* Thomas Palmer 1848 1860 * John Likens 1860 1864 * John… …   Wikipedia

  • John Finch (martyr) — John Finch (b. about 1548; executed 20 April1584) was an English Roman Catholic farmer. He is a Catholic martyr, beatified in 1929.LifeHe was a yeoman of Eccleston, Lancashire, from a Catholic family, but brought up an Anglican. When he was… …   Wikipedia

  • John Finch (Ambassador) — Sir John Finch (1626 1682) was ambassador of England to the Ottoman Empire.One of the Finches of Burley on the Hill John Finch was younger brother of Lord Chancellor Sir Heneage Finch, 1st Earl of Nottingham, their half sister meanwhile was the… …   Wikipedia

  • Ven. John Finch —     Ven. John Finch     † Catholic Encyclopedia ► Ven. John Finch     A martyr, b. about 1548; d. 20 April, 1584. He was a yeoman of Eccleston, Lancashire, and a member of a well known old Catholic family, but he appears to have been brought up… …   Catholic encyclopedia

  • Finch Avenue — is a major east west principal arterial road in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. East of Toronto, it is also referred to as Durham Regional Road 37. West of Toronto, it is also referred to as Peel Regional Road 2. Like many other major roads in Toronto …   Wikipedia

  • Finch — steht für Finch (USA), eine US amerikanische Rockband Finch (Niederlande), eine Band aus den Niederlanden die Konsolenversion des Instant Messengers Pidgin Finch (Toronto Subway) eine U Bahn Station in Toronto Orte in den Vereinigten Staaten:… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • John Eliot (statesman) — Infobox Person name = Sir John Eliot residence = other names = image size = 200px caption = birth name = birth date = birth date|1592|04|11 birth place = Cuddenbeak, Port Eliot, Cornwall, England death date = death date and… …   Wikipedia

  • John Cleese — en 2008 Données clés Nom de naissance John Marwood Cleese …   Wikipédia en Français

  • John Hurt — en 2009 au Festival du film de TriBeCa. Données clés Naissance …   Wikipédia en Français

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”