John Parker (''fl''. 1655) was an English judge during the
Interregnum
An interregnum (plural interregna or interregnums) is a period of discontinuity or "gap" in a government, organization, or social order. Archetypally, it was the period of time between the reign of one monarch and the next (coming from Latin '' ...
.
Biography
Parker came from
, and was admitted a student of
Gray's Inn
The Honourable Society of Gray's Inn, commonly known as Gray's Inn, is one of the four Inns of Court (professional associations for barristers and judges) in London. To be called to the bar in order to practise as a barrister in England and Wale ...
in 1611. He was called to the bar on 26 June 1617, and became successively an
ancient
Ancient history is a time period from the History of writing, beginning of writing and recorded human history to as far as late antiquity. The span of recorded history is roughly 5,000 years, beginning with the Sumerian language, Sumerian c ...
of his inn in 1638, a
bencher
A bencher or Master of the Bench is a senior member of an Inn of Court in England and Wales or the Inns of Court in Northern Ireland, or the Honorable Society of King's Inns in Ireland. Benchers hold office for life once elected. A bencher can ...
in 1640, and
reader
A reader is a person who reads. It may also refer to:
Computing and technology
* Adobe Reader (now Adobe Acrobat), a PDF reader
* Bible Reader for Palm, a discontinued PDA application
* A card reader, for extracting data from various forms of ...
in 1642.
On 20 March 1647 he was appointed a Welsh judge, and in the following year (12 May) received the commons' commission to try rioters in Wales. He seems to have found favour with Parliament, which made him a serjeant on 30 October 1648 and confirmed him in his Welsh judgeship on 5 March 1649. On 18 July of the same year he was granted a patent for a registrarship in the prerogative court. He was one of the assistant committee men in Northamptonshire. In 1649 he sat on the High Court of Justice that tried
Lord Capel
Arthur Capell, 1st Baron Capell (20 February 16089 March 1649), of Hadham Hall and Cassiobury House, Watford, both in Hertfordshire, was an English politician who sat in the House of Commons from 1640 until 1641 when he was raised to the peerage ...
,
Earl of Holland
Earl of Holland was a title in the Peerage of England. It was created in 1624 for Henry Rich, 1st Baron Kensington. He was the younger son of Robert Rich, 1st Earl of Warwick, and had already been created Baron Kensington in 1623, also in the Pe ...
,
Duke of Hamilton
Duke of Hamilton is a title in the Peerage of Scotland, created in April 1643. It is the senior dukedom in that peerage (except for the Dukedom of Rothesay held by the Sovereign's eldest son), and as such its holder is the premier peer of Sco ...
and found them guilty of treason for taking up arms against Parliament in the
Second English Civil War
The Second English Civil War took place between February to August 1648 in Kingdom of England, England and Wales. It forms part of the series of conflicts known collectively as the 1639-1651 Wars of the Three Kingdoms, which include the 1641†...
. He remained in Northamptonshire as a prominent member of the parliamentary commissions of the county. On 22 June 1655 was sworn serjeant-at-law, "being a member of one of the Temples". Records in Northamptonshire show that he was dead by June 1658.
Works
Whether this Parker or his namesake
John Parker (MP for Rochester)
John Parker (''fl.'' 1631–1680) was an English judge and an MP for Rochester (UK Parliament constituency), Rochester during the Interregnum (England), Interregnum.
Biography
Parker was the son and heir of Richard Parker, of Shorne, Northfleet, ...
issued in 1650 a book entitled ''Government of the People of England, precedent and present'' remains unknown.
[ notes: a small tract in the Thomason Collection at the British Museum.]
Family
Parker's eldest son, Dr.
Samuel Parker, was a bishop of Oxford.
Notes
References
*
Attribution
* Endnotes:
**Foss's ''Judges of England''
** Whitelocke's ''Memorials'', pp. 305, 346, 386, 414, 678, 693; Parl. Hist. iii. 1430, 1480, 1519
**Godwin's ''History'', ii. 235, iii. 527;
**Wood's ''Athenæ'', iv. 225
**Hardre's ''Reports'';
**Inderwick's ''Interregnum'';
**Marvell's ''Rehearsal Transprosed'', ed. 1674, pt. ii. p. 67.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Parker, John
17th-century English judges
People from Buckinghamshire