Alexander Bence (born ca. 1590) was an English merchant and politician who sat in the

House of Commons of England The House of Commons of England was the lower house of the Parliament of England (which incorporated Wales) from its development in the 14th century to the union of England and Scotland in 1707, when it was replaced by the House of Commons of ...

from 1640 to 1648 and in 1654. He supported the Parliamentarian side in the

English Civil War The English Civil War (1642–1651) was a series of civil wars and political machinations between Parliamentarians (" Roundheads") and Royalists led by Charles I ("Cavaliers"), mainly over the manner of England's governance and issues of re ...

. Bence was the son of Alexander Bence and his wife Marie Squier daughter of Thomas Squier. John Burke ''A genealogical and heraldic history of the commoners of Great ..., Volume 3''"> John Burke ''A genealogical and heraldic history of the commoners of Great ..., Volume 3''
/ref> In November 1640, Bence was elected

Member of Parliament A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house members of ...

for

Aldeburgh Aldeburgh ( ) is a coastal town in the English county, county of Suffolk, England. Located to the north of the River Alde. Its estimated population was 2,276 in 2019. It was home to the composer Benjamin Britten and remains the centre of the int ...

in the

Long Parliament The Long Parliament was an English Parliament which lasted from 1640 until 1660. It followed the fiasco of the Short Parliament, which had convened for only three weeks during the spring of 1640 after an 11-year parliamentary absence. In Septem ...

and sat until he was excluded under

Pride's Purge Pride's Purge is the name commonly given to an event that took place on 6 December 1648, when soldiers prevented members of Parliament considered hostile to the New Model Army from entering the House of Commons of England. Despite defeat in the ...

. In 1642 he was appointed by parliament as one of the Commissioners for the Affairs of (His Majesty's) Navy, the King having prevented all his principal officers of the navy from performing their duties. Bence was a member of the

Worshipful Company of Grocers The Worshipful Company of Grocers is one of the 110 Livery Companies of the City of London and ranks second in order of precedence. The Grocers' Company was established in 1345 for merchants occupied in the trade of grocer and is one of the Gr ...

in the

City of London The City of London is a city, ceremonial county and local government district that contains the historic centre and constitutes, alongside Canary Wharf, the primary central business district (CBD) of London. It constituted most of London fr ...

and became an Alderman for

Walbrook Walbrook is a City ward and a minor street in its vicinity. The ward is named after a river of the same name. The ward of Walbrook contains two of the City's most notable landmarks: the Bank of England and the Mansion House. The street runs ...

ward in May, 1653.''Chronological list of aldermen: 1651-1700'', The Aldermen of the City of London: Temp. Henry III - 1912 (1908), pp. 75-119. Date accessed: 13 January 2011
/ref> In 1654 he was elected MP for

Suffolk Suffolk () is a ceremonial county of England in East Anglia. It borders Norfolk to the north, Cambridgeshire to the west and Essex to the south; the North Sea lies to the east. The county town is Ipswich; other important towns include Lowes ...

in the

First Protectorate Parliament The First Protectorate Parliament was summoned by the Lord Protector Oliver Cromwell under the terms of the Instrument of Government. It sat for one term from 3 September 1654 until 22 January 1655 with William Lenthall as the Speaker of the Hou ...

. He was master of

Trinity House "Three In One" , formation = , founding_location = Deptford, London, England , status = Royal Charter corporation and registered charity , purpose = Maintenance of lighthouses, buoys and beacons , he ...

from 1659 to 1660. Bence married as his first wife Anne Aylett of Rendham Suffolk and his son by her, John Bence was later also MP for Aldeburgh.Basil Duke Henning ''The House of Commons, 1660-1690''
/ref> Bence's brother

Squire Bence Squire Bence (15 May 1597 – 27 November 1648) was an English merchant, seafarer and politician who sat in the House of Commons of England from 1640 to 1648. Bence was the son of Alexander Bence and his wife Marie Squier daughter of Thomas Squi ...

was also MP for Aldeburgh during the

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bence, Squire 1590s births Year of death missing Members of Trinity House English MPs 1640–1648 English MPs 1654–1655 People from Aldeburgh 17th-century English businesspeople