Sir Richard Harrison (31 August 1583 – 5 May 1655) was an

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

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. ...

variously between 1621 and 1640. 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 ...

side 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 ...

. Harrison was the son of Richard Harrison of

Hurst Hurst may refer to: Places England * Hurst, Berkshire, a village * Hurst, North Yorkshire, a hamlet * Hurst, a settlement within the village of Martock, Somerset * Hurst, West Sussex, a hamlet * Hurst Spit, a shingle spit in Hampshire ** Hurs ...

Berkshire Berkshire ( ; in the 17th century sometimes spelt phonetically as Barkeshire; abbreviated Berks.) is a historic county in South East England. One of the home counties, Berkshire was recognised by Queen Elizabeth II as the Royal County of Berk ...

and his wife Elizabeth, daughter of Thomas Anton of

Stratfield Saye Stratfield Saye is a small village and civil parish in the Borough of Basingstoke and Deane and the English county of Hampshire. The parish includes the hamlets of West End Green, Fair Oak Green and Fair Cross. Etymology The name means 'Street-F ...

Hampshire Hampshire (, ; abbreviated to Hants) is a ceremonial county, ceremonial and non-metropolitan county, non-metropolitan counties of England, county in western South East England on the coast of the English Channel. Home to two major English citi ...

, the Clerk of the Court of Wards and Liveries. His father died in 1587 and his mother remarried to Robert Marsh of

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Middlesex Middlesex (; abbreviation: Middx) is a Historic counties of England, historic county in South East England, southeast England. Its area is almost entirely within the wider urbanised area of London and mostly within the Ceremonial counties of ...

and

Finchampstead Finchampstead is a village and civil parish in the Wokingham Borough in the shire of Berkshire, England. Its northern extremity is south of Wokingham, west of Bracknell, south-east of Reading, and west of Central London. It is an affluent ar ...

in Berkshire. Harrison matriculated at

St Mary Hall, Oxford St Mary Hall was a medieval academic hall of the University of Oxford. It was associated with Oriel College from 1326 to 1545, but functioned independently from 1545 until it was incorporated into Oriel College in 1902. History In 1320, ...

on 1 July 1603 aged 19. 'Alumni Oxonienses, 1500-1714: Harmar-Hawtayne', Alumni Oxonienses 1500-1714: Abannan-Kyte (1891), pp. 652-678. Date accessed: 24 February 2011
/ref> He inherited the estates of Hurst and East Court at Finchampstead from a grand uncle Richard Warde (the son of Richard Warde Senior MP). ''Parishes: Hurst'', A History of the County of Berkshire: Volume 3 (1923), pp. 247-260. Date accessed: 27 February 2011
/ref> He was knighted on 31 August 1621. In 1621 Harrison 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 ...

(MP) for

Wootton Bassett Royal Wootton Bassett , formerly Wootton Bassett, is a market town and civil parish in Wiltshire, England, with a population of 11,043 in 2001, increasing to 11,385 in 2011. Situated in the north of the county, it lies to the west of the major ...

. He was elected MP for

in 1624 and again in 1628 and sat until 1629 when King Charles decided to rule without parliament for eleven years. Harrison lived at his manor-house at Hurst, and was a friend of

Archbishop Laud William Laud (; 7 October 1573 – 10 January 1645) was a bishop in the Church of England. Appointed Archbishop of Canterbury by Charles I in 1633, Laud was a key advocate of Charles I's religious reforms, he was arrested by Parliament in 1640 ...

, who referred to him in his diary in 1625 and 1626 when Laud visited

Sir Francis Windebank Sir Francis Windebank (1582 – 1 September 1646) was an English politician who was Secretary of State under Charles I. Biography Francis was the only son of Sir Thomas Windebank of Hougham, Lincolnshire, who owed his advancement to the Cecil ...

at Haines Hill in Hurst. He is said to have been created a baronet but the patent was lost. He was

High Sheriff of Berkshire The High Sheriff of Berkshire, in common with other counties, was originally the King's representative on taxation upholding the law in Saxon times. The word Sheriff evolved from 'shire-reeve'. The title of High Sheriff is therefore much older ...

in 1636. In April 1640, Harrison was elected MP for

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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 ...

. In the civil war, his son Richard fought on the Royalist side and the family suffered in the royal cause. Harrison married Frances, the daughter of George Garrard, of

Dorney Dorney is a village and civil parish in the Unitary Authority of Buckinghamshire, England, bordering on the River Thames to the west and south, and bisected by the Jubilee River. In 2011 it had a population of 752. It is west of neighbouring E ...

Buckinghamshire Buckinghamshire (), abbreviated Bucks, is a ceremonial county in South East England that borders Greater London to the south-east, Berkshire to the south, Oxfordshire to the west, Northamptonshire to the north, Bedfordshire to the north-ea ...

, and his wife, Margaret Dacres. John Burke ''A genealogical and heraldic history of the commoners of Great Britain and Ireland''"> John Burke ''A genealogical and heraldic history of the commoners of Great Britain and Ireland''
/ref> They had two sons and three daughters. Harrison died at the age of 72 and was buried in Hurst parish church.
/ref>

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Harrison, Richard 1583 births 1655 deaths High Sheriffs of Berkshire People from Hurst, Berkshire People from Finchampstead Cavaliers Members of the Parliament of England for Berkshire English MPs 1621–1622 English MPs 1624–1625 English MPs 1628–1629 English MPs 1640 (April) Alumni of St Mary Hall, Oxford