Edmund Hickeringill (1631–1708) was an English churchman, soldier and author. He was separately convicted of forgery, slander and trespass.

Education and career

Hickeringill was admitted to

St John's College, Cambridge St John's College is a Colleges of the University of Cambridge, constituent college of the University of Cambridge founded by the House of Tudor, Tudor matriarch Lady Margaret Beaufort. In constitutional terms, the college is a charitable corpo ...

in 1647, graduated BA in 1650/1 and was junior fellow at

Caius College, Cambridge Gonville and Caius College, often referred to simply as Caius ( ), is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1348, it is the fourth-oldest of the University of Cambridge's 31 colleges and one of th ...

in 1651–1652. During the

First English Civil War The First English Civil War took place in England and Wales from 1642 to 1646, and forms part of the 1639 to 1653 Wars of the Three Kingdoms. They include the Bishops' Wars, the Irish Confederate Wars, the Second English Civil War, the Anglo ...

he fought on the side of the

Roundheads Roundheads were the supporters of the Parliament of England during the English Civil War (1642–1651). Also known as Parliamentarians, they fought against King Charles I of England and his supporters, known as the Cavaliers or Royalists, who ...

, serving in

Robert Lilburne Robert Lilburne (1613–1665) was an English Parliamentarian soldier, the older brother of John Lilburne, the well known Leveller. Unlike his brother, who severed his relationship with Oliver Cromwell, Robert Lilburne remained in the army. He i ...

's regiment as a chaplain, as a soldier in

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...

and in the

Swedish Swedish or ' may refer to: Anything from or related to Sweden, a country in Northern Europe. Or, specifically: * Swedish language, a North Germanic language spoken primarily in Sweden and Finland ** Swedish alphabet, the official alphabet used by ...

service, ultimately becoming a captain in

Charles Fleetwood Charles Fleetwood (c. 1618 – 4 October 1692) was an English Parliamentarian soldier and politician, Lord Deputy of Ireland in 1652–1655, where he enforced the Cromwellian Settlement. Named Cromwell's Lieutenant General for the Third Englis ...

's regiment. He then lived for a time in

Jamaica Jamaica (; ) is an island country situated in the Caribbean Sea. Spanning in area, it is the third-largest island of the Greater Antilles and the Caribbean (after Cuba and Hispaniola). Jamaica lies about south of Cuba, and west of His ...

. In 1661 he was ordained by Robert Sanderson,

Bishop of Lincoln The Bishop of Lincoln is the ordinary (diocesan bishop) of the Church of England Diocese of Lincoln in the Province of Canterbury. The present diocese covers the county of Lincolnshire and the unitary authority areas of North Lincolnshire and ...

, having already changed his beliefs several times and been a

Baptist Baptists form a major branch of Protestantism distinguished by baptizing professing Christian believers only (believer's baptism), and doing so by complete immersion. Baptist churches also generally subscribe to the doctrines of soul compete ...

Quaker Quakers are people who belong to a historically Protestant Christian set of Christian denomination, denominations known formally as the Religious Society of Friends. Members of these movements ("theFriends") are generally united by a belie ...

and

Deist Deism ( or ; derived from the Latin '' deus'', meaning "god") is the philosophical position and rationalistic theology that generally rejects revelation as a source of divine knowledge, and asserts that empirical reason and observation ...

. In 1661 he also published a pamphlet, 'Jamaica Viewed' that combined a selective version of the English occupation of the island with enthusiastic descriptions to lure English settlers to 'The Paradise of the World'. For two or three generations of English Jamaicans, the pamphlet continued to support and confirm their own self-image. From 1662 until his death in 1708 he was

vicar A vicar (; Latin: ''vicarius'') is a representative, deputy or substitute; anyone acting "in the person of" or agent for a superior (compare "vicarious" in the sense of "at second hand"). Linguistically, ''vicar'' is cognate with the English pref ...

of All Saints' in

Colchester Colchester ( ) is a city in Essex, in the East of England. It had a population of 122,000 in 2011. The demonym is Colcestrian. Colchester occupies the site of Camulodunum, the first major city in Roman Britain and its first capital. Colches ...

Controversy

In 1682, Hickeringill published his ''History of Whiggism''. According to the ''Encyclopædia Britannica'' Eleventh Edition, Hickeringill was "a vigorous pamphleteer, and came into collision with Henry Compton,

Bishop of London A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is ca ...

, to whom he had to pay heavy damages for

slander Defamation is the act of communicating to a third party false statements about a person, place or thing that results in damage to its reputation. It can be spoken (slander) or written (libel). It constitutes a tort or a crime. The legal defini ...

in 1682. He made a public recantation in 1684, was excluded from his living in 1685–1688, and ended his career by being convicted of

forgery Forgery is a white-collar crime that generally refers to the false making or material alteration of a legal instrument with the specific intent to defraud anyone (other than themself). Tampering with a certain legal instrument may be forbidd ...

in 1707." Hickeringill was involved in an important English legal case,

Keeble v Hickeringill ''Keeble v Hickeringill'' (1707) 103 ER 1127 is a famous English property law and tort law case about rights to wild animals. Facts Samuel Keeble (the plaintiff) owned property called Minott's Meadow, which contained a pond outfitted with nets ...

(1707) 103 ER 1127. A neighbour had set up a duck decoy and Hickeringill was shooting at the ducks from his own property in order to scare them away. He was fined £20 for trespass, even though he did not set foot on his neighbours land.

References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Hickeringill, Edmund 1631 births 1708 deaths Parliamentarian military personnel of the English Civil War 17th-century English Anglican priests Anglican chaplains English military chaplains Alumni of St John's College, Cambridge Alumni of Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge English Civil War chaplains