Edward Baber (1532–1578) was an English politician, barrister and judge; he was also a wealthy Somerset landowner. He was a

Member Member may refer to: * Military jury, referred to as "Members" in military jargon * Element (mathematics), an object that belongs to a mathematical set * In object-oriented programming, a member of a class ** Field (computer science), entries in ...

(MP) of the

Parliament of England The Parliament of England was the legislature of the Kingdom of England from the 13th century until 1707 when it was replaced by the Parliament of Great Britain. Parliament evolved from the great council of bishops and peers that advised t ...

for

Bath Bath may refer to: * Bathing, immersion in a fluid ** Bathtub, a large open container for water, in which a person may wash their body ** Public bathing, a public place where people bathe * Thermae, ancient Roman public bathing facilities Plac ...

in the Parliament of 1571 and in that of 1572–1576.

He was the younger son of John Baber and Agnes Willet, of the prominent landowning family of

Chew Magna Chew Magna is a village and civil parish within the Chew Valley in the Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority of Bath and North East Somerset, in the Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county of Somerset, England. The parish ...

Somerset ( en, All The People of Somerset) , locator_map = , coordinates = , region = South West England , established_date = Ancient , established_by = , preceded_by = , origin = , lord_lieutenant_office =Lord Lieutenant of Somerset , lord_ ...

. He was educated at

Lincoln's Inn The Honourable Society of Lincoln's Inn is one of the four Inns of Court in London to which barristers of England and Wales belong and where they are called to the Bar. (The other three are Middle Temple, Inner Temple and Gray's Inn.) Lincoln ...

and was

called to the Bar The call to the bar is a legal term of art in most common law jurisdictions where persons must be qualified to be allowed to argue in court on behalf of another party and are then said to have been "called to the bar" or to have received "call to ...

. He became

Recorder Recorder or The Recorder may refer to: Newspapers * ''Indianapolis Recorder'', a weekly newspaper * ''The Recorder'' (Massachusetts newspaper), a daily newspaper published in Greenfield, Massachusetts, US * ''The Recorder'' (Port Pirie), a news ...

of Bath in about 1571 and

Serjeant-at-law A Serjeant-at-Law (SL), commonly known simply as a Serjeant, was a member of an order of barristers at the English and Irish Bar. The position of Serjeant-at-Law (''servientes ad legem''), or Sergeant-Counter, was centuries old; there are writ ...

in 1577. His position as Recorder effectively entitled him to represent

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 ...

. During his relatively brief Parliamentary career, he seems to have been a diligent committee man, sitting mainly on those committees where legal expertise was desirable. His legal practice was extremely lucrative and enabled him to become a substantial landowner in Somerset, buying the manors of Aldwick and Regilbury,

Nempnett Thrubwell Nempnett Thrubwell is a small village and civil parish in dairying country on the western edge of Bath and North East Somerset, in the county of Somerset, England. It is about 15 km south-west of Bristol. The parish, which has a population ...

. He also bought a half-share of the family estate at Chew Magna from his elder brother. In addition, he owned houses in London and

Bristol Bristol () is a city, ceremonial county and unitary authority in England. Situated on the River Avon, it is bordered by the ceremonial counties of Gloucestershire to the north and Somerset to the south. Bristol is the most populous city in ...

. He married Katherine Leigh, daughter of Sir Thomas Leigh,

Lord Mayor of London The Lord Mayor of London is the mayor of the City of London and the leader of the City of London Corporation. Within the City, the Lord Mayor is accorded precedence over all individuals except the sovereign and retains various traditional powe ...

and Alice Barker. They had four sons, including Francis, the eldest son and heir, and three daughters, including Mary, who married firstly Sir

Roger Wilbraham Sir Roger Wilbraham (4 November 1553 – 31 July 1616) was a prominent English lawyer who served as Solicitor-General for Ireland under Elizabeth I and held a number of positions at court under James I, including Master of Requests and surve ...

Solicitor General for Ireland The Solicitor-General for Ireland was the holder of an Irish and then (from the Act of Union 1800) United Kingdom government office. The holder was a deputy to the Attorney-General for Ireland, and advised the Crown on Irish legal matters. On rar ...

, and secondly Sir Thomas Delves, 1st Baronet.

Sir Edward Baber and his wife Katherine Leigh are entombed at Saint Andrew's Anglican Parish Church in Chew Magna in the Baber Chapel. Sir Roger Wilbraham 1553-1616

References

1532 births 1578 deaths English MPs 1571 English MPs 1572–1583 Serjeants-at-law (England) Members of Lincoln's Inn Politicians from Somerset {{16thC-England-MP-stub