Ralph Goodwin (died ca. 1658) was an English politician who sat in the House of Commons variously between 1624 and 1644. He supported the

Royalist A royalist supports a particular monarch as head of state for a particular kingdom, or of a particular dynastic claim. In the abstract, this position is royalism. It is distinct from monarchism, which advocates a monarchical system of governme ...

cause in the

English Civil War The English Civil War (1642–1651) was a series of civil wars and political machinations between Parliamentarians (" Roundheads") and Royalists led by Charles I ("Cavaliers"), mainly over the manner of England's governance and issues of re ...

Biography

Goodwin matriculated at

Trinity College, Cambridge Trinity College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. Founded in 1546 by Henry VIII, King Henry VIII, Trinity is one of the largest Cambridge colleges, with the largest financial endowment of any college at either Cambridge ...

in Spring 1608. In 1611 he was a scholar and was awarded BA in 1612 and MA in 1615. He was incorporated at

Oxford University Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...

in 1615. He was described as a learned author and an excellent poet. John Burke ''A genealogical and heraldic history of the commoners of Great Britain, Volume 3''"> John Burke ''A genealogical and heraldic history of the commoners of Great Britain, Volume 3''
/ref> In 1624 Goodwin 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 Ludlow and was re-elected in 1625, 1626 and 1628. He sat until 1629 when King Charles decided to rule without parliament for eleven years. In April 1640, Goodwin was re-elected MP for Ludlow in the

Short Parliament The Short Parliament was a Parliament of England that was summoned by King Charles I of England on the 20th of February 1640 and sat from 13th of April to the 5th of May 1640. It was so called because of its short life of only three weeks. Aft ...

and was re-elected for the

Long Parliament The Long Parliament was an English Parliament which lasted from 1640 until 1660. It followed the fiasco of the Short Parliament, which had convened for only three weeks during the spring of 1640 after an 11-year parliamentary absence. In Septem ...

in November 1640. He supported the King and was disabled from sitting in February 1644.

Family

Goodwin married Dorothy Long, daughter of Sir Walter Long. In 1630 he settled his property at Cowarne on his wife Dorothy. In 1646 he married a second time to Elizabeth Brabazon, daughter of Wallop Brabazon. Fourteen years after his death there was a dispute over his inheritance. In his will he left Cowarne to his brothers John and Thomas Smith. He also mentions his brother Sir Thurston Smith and the nephew of his tutor at Trinity Dr Samuel Heron. The allegation was made that he was illegitimate and that the estate at Cowarne defaulted to the crown. A marginal note states that he was legitimate and born at Ipswich.The Kyre Park charters p 185
/ref>

References

, - {{DEFAULTSORT:Goodwin, Ralph Year of birth missing 1650s deaths Alumni of Trinity College, Cambridge Alumni of the University of Oxford English MPs 1624–1625 English MPs 1625 English MPs 1626 English MPs 1628–1629 English MPs 1640 (April) English MPs 1640–1648 Cavaliers