James Tomkins (c. 1569 – 7 October 1636) was an English 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 1624 and 1629. Tomkins was the eldest son of Richard Tomkins of

Monnington on Wye Monnington on Wye is a village in western Herefordshire, England, located between Hereford and Hay-on-Wye. The place-name 'Monnington' is first attested in the Domesday Book of 1086, where it appears as ''Manitune''. The name means 'Manna's town ...

, Herefordshire, educated at

Gloucester Hall, Oxford Gloucester ( ) is a cathedral city and the county town of Gloucestershire in the South West of England. Gloucester lies on the River Severn, between the Cotswolds to the east and the Forest of Dean to the west, east of Monmouth and east of the ...

(1583) and trained in the law at the

New Inn New Inn - ( cy, Y Dafarn Newydd) - is a village and community directly south east of Pontypool, within the County Borough of Torfaen in Wales, within the historic boundaries of Monmouthshire. It had a population of 5,986 at the 2011 Census. L ...

and the

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(1589). He succeeded his father in 1603, inheriting the manors of Monnington and Garnestone, a considerable domain south of

Weobley Weobley ( ) is an ancient settlement and civil parish in Herefordshire, England. Formerly a market town, the market is long defunct and the settlement is today promoted as one of the county's black and white villages owing to its abundance of ...

.Timothy Lathrop Miller ''History of Hereford cattle, proven conclusively the oldest of improved breeds''
/ref> He was appointed for life to the Herefordshire bench in 1605 as a

Justice of the Peace A justice of the peace (JP) is a judicial officer of a lower or ''puisne'' court, elected or appointed by means of a commission ( letters patent) to keep the peace. In past centuries the term commissioner of the peace was often used with the sa ...

and as

High Sheriff of Herefordshire This is a list of Sheriffs and, since 1998, High Sheriffs of Herefordshire The position of Sheriff is the oldest secular office under the Crown. Formerly the Sheriff was the principal law enforcement officer in each county, but over the centurie ...

for 1606–07. In 1624, he 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

Leominster Leominster ( ) is a market town in Herefordshire, England, at the confluence of the River Lugg and its tributary the River Kenwater. The town is north of Hereford and south of Ludlow in Shropshire. With a population of 11,700, Leominster is t ...

and was re-elected in 1625 and 1626. Tomkins was instrumental in restoring the franchise to the borough of

in 1628, when his son

William William is a male given name of Germanic origin.Hanks, Hardcastle and Hodges, ''Oxford Dictionary of First Names'', Oxford University Press, 2nd edition, , p. 276. It became very popular in the English language after the Norman conquest of Engl ...

was returned.Archenfield Archaeology
/ref> Tomkins himself was re-elected MP for Leominster in 1628 and sat until 1629 when

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decided to rule without parliament for eleven years. Tomkins was much esteemed as a country gentleman and noted debater in the House of Commons. He married Anne, the daughter and co-heiress of James Boyle of

Hereford Hereford () is a cathedral city, civil parish and the county town of Herefordshire, England. It lies on the River Wye, approximately east of the border with Wales, south-west of Worcester and north-west of Gloucester. With a population ...

; they had five sons (three of whom predeceased him) and a daughter.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Tomkins, James 1569 births 1636 deaths People from Leominster People from Weobley Politicians from Herefordshire Year of birth uncertain High Sheriffs of Herefordshire English MPs 1624–1625 English MPs 1625 English MPs 1626 English MPs 1628–1629