Henry Montagu, 1st Earl of Manchester (7 November 1642) was an English judge, politician and peer.

Life

He was the 3rd son of Edward Montagu of Boughton and grandson of Sir Edward Montagu,

Lord Chief Justice Lord is an appellation for a person or deity who has authority, control, or power over others, acting as a master, chief, or ruler. The appellation can also denote certain persons who hold a title of the peerage in the United Kingdom, or are ...

of the King's Bench from 1539 to 1545, who was named by King Henry VIII one of the executors of his will, and governor to his son,

Edward VI Edward VI (12 October 1537 – 6 July 1553) was King of England and Ireland from 28 January 1547 until his death in 1553. He was crowned on 20 February 1547 at the age of nine. Edward was the son of Henry VIII and Jane Seymour and the first E ...

. Henry was born at

Boughton, Northamptonshire Boughton is a village and civil parish in West Northamptonshire, England. It is situated approximately from Northampton town centre along the A508 road between Northampton and Market Harborough. The parish area straddles both sides of the r ...

, about 1563. He was educated at Christ's College, Cambridge, was admitted to

Middle Temple The Honourable Society of the Middle Temple, commonly known simply as Middle Temple, is one of the four Inns of Court exclusively entitled to call their members to the English Bar as barristers, the others being the Inner Temple, Gray's Inn ...

on 6 November 1585 and was Called to the Bar on 9 June 1592. He was elected

recorder of London The Recorder of London is an ancient legal office in the City of London. The Recorder of London is the senior circuit judge at the Central Criminal Court (the Old Bailey), hearing trials of criminal offences. The Recorder is appointed by the Cr ...

in 1603, and in 1616 was made Chief Justice of the King's Bench, in which office it fell to him to pass sentence on Sir

Walter Raleigh Sir Walter Raleigh (; – 29 October 1618) was an English statesman, soldier, writer and explorer. One of the most notable figures of the Elizabethan era, he played a leading part in English colonisation of North America, suppressed rebelli ...

in October 1618. In 1620, he was appointed

Lord High Treasurer The post of Lord High Treasurer or Lord Treasurer was an English government position and has been a British government position since the Acts of Union of 1707. A holder of the post would be the third-highest-ranked Great Officer of State in ...

, being raised to the peerage as Viscount Mandeville and Baron Montagu of Kimbolton,

Huntingdon Huntingdon is a market town in the Huntingdonshire district in Cambridgeshire, England. The town was given its town charter by King John in 1205. It was the county town of the historic county of Huntingdonshire. Oliver Cromwell was born there ...

shire. He became President of the Council in 1621, in which office he was continued by

Charles I Charles I may refer to: Kings and emperors * Charlemagne (742–814), numbered Charles I in the lists of Holy Roman Emperors and French kings * Charles I of Anjou (1226–1285), also king of Albania, Jerusalem, Naples and Sicily * Charles I of ...

, who created him Earl of Manchester in 1626. In 1628, he became Lord Privy Seal, and in 1635 a commissioner of the treasury. Although from the beginning of his public life in 1601, when he first entered Parliament, Manchester had inclined to the popular side in politics, he managed to retain to the end the favour of the King. He was a judge of the Star Chamber, and one of the most trusted councillors of Charles I. His loyalty, ability, and honesty were warmly praised by Clarendon. In conjunction with

Coventry Coventry ( or ) is a city in the West Midlands, England. It is on the River Sherbourne. Coventry has been a large settlement for centuries, although it was not founded and given its city status until the Middle Ages. The city is governed b ...

, the Lord Keeper, he pronounced an opinion in favour of the legality of

ship money Ship money was a tax of medieval origin levied intermittently in the Kingdom of England until the middle of the 17th century. Assessed typically on the inhabitants of coastal areas of England, it was one of several taxes that English monarchs co ...

in 1634.

Family

Manchester was married three times: first, Catherine Spencer, daughter of Sir William Spencer of Yarnton, Oxfordshire; second, Anne Holliday (née Wincot), in 1613, daughter of William Wincot of Langham, Suffolk, and widow of Sir

Leonard Holliday :''Note: dates are given using the New Style calendar.'' Sir Leonard Holliday (also spelled Hollyday and Halliday) (c. 1550 – 9 January 1612) was a founder of the East India Company, and a Lord Mayor of London. Life He was born, perhaps ci ...

, third, Margaret Crouch, on 26 April 1620, daughter of John Crouch of Cornbury, Hertfordshire, who died in 1653. He was succeeded by his eldest son, Edward Montagu, Viscount Mandeville, from his first marriage. The second son of Henry and Catherine was

Walter Montagu Walter Montagu (c. 1603–1677) was an English courtier, secret agent (a.k.a. David Cutler) and Benedictine abbot. Life He was the second son of Henry Montagu, 1st Earl of Manchester, by his first wife Catherine Spencer. He was born in the par ...

, the courtier and abbot. One of his sons by his third wife, Margaret Crouch, was George Montagu, father of Charles Montagu, created Earl of Halifax in 1699, and James Montagu, Attorney General from 1708 to 1710.

Notes

External links

Record for ''Henry Montagu, 1st Earl of Manchester'' on ''thepeerage''UK Parliamentary Archives, Papers of the Earls of Manchester
, - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Manchester, Henry Montagu, 1st Earl Of 1560s births 1642 deaths Lord High Treasurers Lord-Lieutenants of Huntingdonshire Lord chief justices of England and Wales

Henry Montagu, 1st Earl of Manchester Henry Montagu, 1st Earl of Manchester (7 November 1642) was an English judge, politician and peer. Life He was the 3rd son of Edward Montagu of Boughton and grandson of Sir Edward Montagu, Lord Chief Justice of the King's Bench from 1539 to ...

People from West Northamptonshire District Alumni of Christ's College, Cambridge English MPs 1593 English MPs 1597–1598 English MPs 1601 English MPs 1604–1611 English MPs 1614 Members of the Parliament of England for the City of London 16th-century English judges 16th-century English lawyers Recorders of London Earls of Manchester