Baptist Hicks, 1st Viscount Campden (1551 – 18 October 1629) was an English
cloth merchant
In the Middle Ages or 16th and 17th centuries, a cloth merchant was one who owned or ran a cloth (often wool) manufacturing or wholesale import or export business. A cloth merchant might additionally own a number of draper's shops. Cloth was ext ...
and politician who sat in the
House of Commons
The House of Commons is the name for the elected lower house of the bicameral parliaments of the United Kingdom and Canada. In both of these countries, the Commons holds much more legislative power than the nominally upper house of parliament. ...
between 1621 and 1628. King James I knighted Hicks in 1603 and in 1620 he was created a
baronet
A baronet ( or ; abbreviated Bart or Bt) or the female equivalent, a baronetess (, , or ; abbreviation Btss), is the holder of a baronetcy, a hereditary title awarded by the British Crown. The title of baronet is mentioned as early as the 14th ...
.
He was MP for
Tavistock
Tavistock ( ) is an ancient stannary and market town within West Devon, England. It is situated on the River Tavy from which its name derives. At the 2011 census the three electoral wards (North, South and South West) had a population of 13,028 ...
in the House of Commons of 1621 and for
Tewkesbury
Tewkesbury ( ) is a medieval market town and civil parish in the north of Gloucestershire, England. The town has significant history in the Wars of the Roses and grew since the building of Tewkesbury Abbey. It stands at the confluence of the Riv ...
in the parliaments of 1624, 1625, 1626 and 1628. In 1628, he was elevated to the peerage as Baron Hicks, of
Ilmington
Ilmington is a village and civil parish about north-west of Shipston-on-Stour and south of Stratford-upon-Avon in the Cotswolds in Warwickshire, England. The population of the civil parish taken at the 2011 census was 712. Ilmington is the hi ...
in the
County of Warwick
Warwickshire (; abbreviated Warks) is a county in the West Midlands region of England. The county town is Warwick, and the largest town is Nuneaton. The county is famous for being the birthplace of William Shakespeare at Stratford-upon-Avon and ...
, and Viscount Campden, of
Campden
Chipping Campden is a market town in the Cotswold district of Gloucestershire, England. It is notable for its terraced High Street, dating from the 14th century to the 17th century. ("Chipping" is from Old English ''cēping'', 'market', 'market- ...
in the
County of Gloucester
Gloucestershire ( abbreviated Glos) is a county in South West England. The county comprises part of the Cotswold Hills, part of the flat fertile valley of the River Severn and the entire Forest of Dean.
The county town is the city of Glouce ...
, with remainder to his son-in-law, Edward Noel, husband of his daughter Juliana.
Early life
Hicks was the youngest of six sons born to Robert and
Juliana Hicks, and the grandson of John Hicks of
Tortworth
Tortworth is a small village and civil parish, near Thornbury, South Gloucestershire, Thornbury in Gloucestershire, England. It has a population of 147 as of 2011. It lies on the B4509 road, which crosses the M5 motorway to the west of Tortworth. ...
. His father died while Baptist was only a child. His mother was a moneylender and he was one of three sons who survived childhood. The others were Clement and Michael Hickes.
Baptist Hicks matriculated at
Trinity College, Cambridge
Trinity College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. Founded in 1546 by Henry VIII, King Henry VIII, Trinity is one of the largest Cambridge colleges, with the largest financial endowment of any college at either Cambridge ...
, in 1568 and was admitted to the
Inner Temple
The Honourable Society of the Inner Temple, commonly known as the Inner Temple, is one of the four Inns of Court and is a professional associations for barristers and judges. To be called to the Bar and practise as a barrister in England and Wal ...
in 1573.
Career
Hicks was brought up in his father's business and took over the business from his mother, who died in 1592. He imported rich silks from Italy and other foreign places. Through the influence of his brother
Michael
Michael may refer to:
People
* Michael (given name), a given name
* Michael (surname), including a list of people with the surname Michael
Given name "Michael"
* Michael (archangel), ''first'' of God's archangels in the Jewish, Christian an ...
he contracted a large amount of business with the
court
A court is any person or institution, often as a government institution, with the authority to adjudicate legal disputes between parties and carry out the administration of justice in civil, criminal, and administrative matters in accordance ...
and amassed a large fortune. By 1596 he was appointed
Mercer
Mercer may refer to:
Business
* Mercer (car), a defunct American automobile manufacturer (1909–1925)
* Mercer (consulting firm), a large human resources consulting firm headquartered in New York City
* Mercer (occupation), a merchant or trader ...
to
Queen Elizabeth I
Elizabeth I (7 September 153324 March 1603) was Queen of England and Ireland from 17 November 1558 until her death in 1603. Elizabeth was the last of the five House of Tudor monarchs and is sometimes referred to as the "Virgin Queen".
El ...
regarding the purchase of fabrics.
[https://www.chippingcampdenhistory.org.uk/content/history/people-2/sir_baptist_hicks, Sir Baptist Hicks]
Hicks wrote to
James VI of Scotland
James VI and I (James Charles Stuart; 19 June 1566 – 27 March 1625) was King of Scotland as James VI from 24 July 1567 and King of England and Ireland as James I from the union of the Scottish and English crowns on 24 March 1603 until hi ...
on 1 March 1600 hoping for repayment of sums due to him by
Robert Jousie
Robert Jousie (or Joussie or Jowsie or Jossie; died 1626) was a Scottish merchant, financier, and courtier.
Life
Jousie was a cloth merchant based in Edinburgh with a house on the High Street or Royal Mile. He became an exclusive supplier of fa ...
, a bankrupted textile merchant working on the king's behalf. He had written twice before to the king, and was disappointed to hear from the Scottish ambassador that he would not be paid from the
annuity awarded by Queen Elizabeth. Hicks employed
Humphrey Dethick
Humphrey Dethick (born 1577) was an English merchant in Italy who killed a man in Scotland in 1602 during a royal christening.
Career
He was the son of William Dethick and his wife Helen, of Smithston in Derbyshire. He went to school in Ashbourne ...
as his factor in Florence buying fabrics, until he left in 1602.
Having made large loans to the Crown and prominent courtiers, he was knighted on 23 July 1603, soon after the accession of
James I James I may refer to:
People
*James I of Aragon (1208–1276)
*James I of Sicily or James II of Aragon (1267–1327)
*James I, Count of La Marche (1319–1362), Count of Ponthieu
*James I, Count of Urgell (1321–1347)
*James I of Cyprus (1334–13 ...
. He was one of the first citizens who kept a shop to continue in trade once knighted. He was in dispute with the
Court of Aldermen
The Court of Aldermen forms part of the senior governance of the City of London Corporation. It comprises twenty-five aldermen of the City of London, presided over by the Lord Mayor (becoming senior alderman during his year of office). The Cou ...
of 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 ...
because he was unwilling to serve as an alderman; however the king directed that he be excused as a "king's servant". Hicks supplied King James Court with silks and "rich mercery ware".
He purchased the manor of Campden soon after 1608 and built a large manor house there near the church, around 1612. The property included gardens, a very early example of a
garden canal
In the history of gardening and landscaping, a canal is a relatively large piece of water that has a very regular shape, usually long, thin and rectangular. The peak period for garden canals was the 17th and 18th centuries, by the end of which le ...
, water gardens and terraces.
The house was burned down by Royalists in the Civil War. He founded and endowed an almshouse in 1612 for 12 pensioners in
Chipping Campden
Chipping Campden is a market town in the Cotswold district of Gloucestershire, England. It is notable for its terraced High Street, dating from the 14th century to the 17th century. ("Chipping" is from Old English ''cēping'', 'market', 'market- ...
; the Grade I listed Almshouses on Church Street still remains in use for that purpose.
Hicks and Thomas Woodward provided the fabrics supplied to
Princess Elizabeth for her
wedding to Frederick V of the Palatinate in February 1613.
In 1627, he built a market hall at the centre of town as a shelter for the vendors; the Grade I listed building is still in use. He performed many other charitable acts, in his life-giving £100,000 for charity. He was created a
baronet
A baronet ( or ; abbreviated Bart or Bt) or the female equivalent, a baronetess (, , or ; abbreviation Btss), is the holder of a baronetcy, a hereditary title awarded by the British Crown. The title of baronet is mentioned as early as the 14th ...
on 1 July 1620.
[ W R Williams ''Parliamentary History of the County of Gloucester'']
/ref>
Hicks also built a large mansion in Kensington
Kensington is a district in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea in the West End of London, West of Central London.
The district's commercial heart is Kensington High Street, running on an east–west axis. The north-east is taken up b ...
; and paid for a new sessions house
A sessions house in the United Kingdom was historically a courthouse that served as a dedicated court of quarter sessions, where criminal trials were held four times a year on quarter days. Sessions houses were also used for other purposes to do wi ...
for the Middlesex
Middlesex (; abbreviation: Middx) is a Historic counties of England, historic county in South East England, southeast England. Its area is almost entirely within the wider urbanised area of London and mostly within the Ceremonial counties of ...
magistrates in Clerkenwell
Clerkenwell () is an area of central London, England.
Clerkenwell was an ancient parish from the mediaeval period onwards, and now forms the south-western part of the London Borough of Islington.
The well after which it was named was redisco ...
, which was named Hicks Hall
Hicks Hall, or Hickes' Hall, was a courthouse at the southern end of St John Street, Clerkenwell, London. It opened in 1612, and was closed and demolished in 1782. It was the first purpose-built sessions house for justices of the peace of the ...
in his honour.
Personal life, death, and legacy
Hicks married Elizabeth May in 1585. She was the daughter of Richard May of London and Sussex, and sister of Sir Humphrey May
Sir Humphrey May (1573 – 9 June 1630) was an English courtier and politician who sat in the House of Commons between 1605 and 1629.
Career
May was the fourth son of Richard May, Merchant Taylor of London. He matriculated from St John's Colleg ...
, Alderman of London.
His elder daughter Juliana married Edward Lord Noel, who became 2nd Viscount Campden
A viscount ( , for male) or viscountess (, for female) is a title used in certain European countries for a noble of varying status.
In many countries a viscount, and its historical equivalents, was a non-hereditary, administrative or judicial ...
.
His younger daughter Mary married:
# Sir Charles Morrison, 1st Baronet
Sir Charles Morrison, 1st Baronet (18 April 1587 – 20 August 1628) (also Moryson) of Cashiobury in Watford, Hertfordshire, was an English politician who sat in the House of Commons at various times between 1621 and 1628.
Origins
Morrison ...
of Cashiobury,
# Sir John Cooper, 1st Baronet
Sir John Cooper, 1st Baronet (died 23 March 1630), was an English landowner and politician who sat in the House of Commons from 1628 to 1629. He was the father of Anthony Ashley Cooper, 1st Earl of Shaftesbury.
Life
Cooper was the son of Sir ...
,
# Sir Edward Alford.[
Hicks died at the age of 78 and is buried under a classical monument in Chipping Campden St James church.
His will left £10,000 for charitable purposes; the funds helped to establish
Campden Charities, a non-profit organization to alleviate poverty in ]Kensington
Kensington is a district in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea in the West End of London, West of Central London.
The district's commercial heart is Kensington High Street, running on an east–west axis. The north-east is taken up b ...
.
All that now remains of Sir Baptist Hicks' once imposing estate are a gatehouse and two Jacobean banqueting houses;[https://www.cotswolds.info/famouspeople/baptist-hicks.shtml, Baptist Hicks (1551 - 1629)] the latter of which were restored by the Landmark Trust
The Landmark Trust is a British building conservation charity, founded in 1965 by Sir John and Lady Smith, that rescues buildings of historic interest or architectural merit and then makes them available for holiday rental. The Trust's headqua ...
. Afterwards, Lady Juliana Noel, Sir Baptist's daughter, her husband Edward Noel, 2nd Viscount Campden, and family lived at the converted stables near the site in Calf Lane, now called the Court House.[https://britishlistedbuildings.co.uk/101342016-court-house-chipping-campden, Court House] Her descendant still lives in that Grade II listed building.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Campden, Baptist Hick, 1st Viscount
1551 births
1629 deaths
Merchants from London
Members of the Parliament of England for Tewkesbury
17th-century merchants
English MPs 1621–1622
English MPs 1624–1625
English MPs 1625
English MPs 1626
English MPs 1628–1629
17th-century English businesspeople
Viscounts Campden
Members of the Parliament of England for Tavistock
Cloth merchants
Knights Bachelor