Sir Thomas Twisden, 1st Baronet (2 January 1602 – 2 January 1683) was an English lawyer and politician who sat in the

House of Commons of England The House of Commons of England was the lower house of the Parliament of England (which incorporated Wales) from its development in the 14th century to the union of England and Scotland in 1707, when it was replaced by the House of Commons of ...

in two periods between 1646 and 1660. He was a High Court judge who presided at the trial of the regicides.

Biography

Twisden was the second son of

Sir William Twysden, 1st Baronet Sir William Twysden, 1st Baronet (1566–1628) was an English politician who sat in the House of Commons of England, House of Commons at various times between 1593 and 1628. Life Twysden was the son of Roger Twysden, of Roydon Hall, East Peckham, ...

of Roydon,

East Peckham East Peckham is a village and civil parish in Kent, England on the River Medway. The parish covers the main village as well as Hale Street and Beltring. History The Domesday entry for East and West Peckham reads:- :'' The Archbishop himself ...

Kent Kent is a county in South East England and one of the home counties. It borders Greater London to the north-west, Surrey to the west and East Sussex to the south-west, and Essex to the north across the estuary of the River Thames; it faces ...

and his wife Lady Anne Finch, daughter of Sir Moyle Finch.

John Debrett John Debrett (8 January 1753 – 15 November 1822) was an English publisher and compiler. His name has become associated with reference books. Life Debrett took over the business of John Almon, opposite Burlington House in Piccadilly, in 1781. His ...

, William Courthope
''Debrett's Baronetage of England: with alphabetical lists of such baronetcies''
/ref> He was admitted at

Emmanuel College, Cambridge Emmanuel College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. The college was founded in 1584 by Sir Walter Mildmay, Chancellor of the Exchequer to Elizabeth I. The site on which the college sits was once a priory for Dominican mon ...

in 1614. He was admitted at the

Inner Temple The Honourable Society of the Inner Temple, commonly known as the Inner Temple, is one of the four Inns of Court and is a professional associations for barristers and judges. To be called to the Bar and practise as a barrister in England and Wal ...

in November 1617 and called to the Bar in 1626. In 1646 he became a Bencher. He changed the spelling of his surname to Twisden. Twisden was

Recorder Recorder or The Recorder may refer to: Newspapers * ''Indianapolis Recorder'', a weekly newspaper * ''The Recorder'' (Massachusetts newspaper), a daily newspaper published in Greenfield, Massachusetts, US * ''The Recorder'' (Port Pirie), a news ...

Maidstone Maidstone is the largest Town status in the United Kingdom, town in Kent, England, of which it is the county town. Maidstone is historically important and lies 32 miles (51 km) east-south-east of London. The River Medway runs through the c ...

, and in 1646, 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

in the latter part of 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 ...

but was excluded in 1648 under

Pride's Purge Pride's Purge is the name commonly given to an event that took place on 6 December 1648, when soldiers prevented members of Parliament considered hostile to the New Model Army from entering the House of Commons of England. Despite defeat in the ...

.History of Parliament Online - Twisden, Thomas
/ref> Jane Lady Twysden by Mary Beale Twisden became

Serjeant at Law A Serjeant-at-Law (SL), commonly known simply as a Serjeant, was a member of an order of barristers at the English and Irish Bar. The position of Serjeant-at-Law (''servientes ad legem''), or Sergeant-Counter, was centuries old; there are writ ...

in 1654 and purchased the manor of Bradbourne House.

East Malling East Malling is a village in the borough of Tonbridge and Malling, Kent, in the part of the civil parish of East Malling and Larkfield lying south of the A20 road. In 2019 the ward had an estimated population of 5478. History The earliest rec ...

, Kent in 1656. After the

Restoration of Charles II The Restoration of the Stuart monarchy in the kingdoms of England, Scotland and Ireland took place in 1660 when King Charles II returned from exile in continental Europe. The preceding period of the Protectorate and the civil wars came to be ...

, he was MP for Maidstone again in 1660. He became a judge of the

Court of King's Bench The King's Bench (), or, during the reign of a female monarch, the Queen's Bench ('), refers to several contemporary and historical courts in some Commonwealth jurisdictions. * Court of King's Bench (England), a historic court court of common ...

, and was

knighted A knight is a person granted an honorary title of knighthood by a head of state (including the Pope) or representative for service to the monarch, the Christian denomination, church or the country, especially in a military capacity. Knighthood ...

in 1660. He presided at the trials of the

regicides Regicide is the purposeful killing of a monarch or sovereign of a polity and is often associated with the usurpation of power. A regicide can also be the person responsible for the killing. The word comes from the Latin roots of ''regis'' ...

, and later those of

Sir Henry Vane the Younger Sir Henry Vane (baptised 26 March 161314 June 1662), often referred to as Harry Vane and Henry Vane the Younger to distinguish him from his father, Henry Vane the Elder, was an England, English politician, statesman, and colonial governor. He ...

for

treason Treason is the crime of attacking a state authority to which one owes allegiance. This typically includes acts such as participating in a war against one's native country, attempting to overthrow its government, spying on its military, its diplo ...

, and of

John Bunyan John Bunyan (; baptised 30 November 162831 August 1688) was an English writer and Puritan preacher best remembered as the author of the Christian allegory ''The Pilgrim's Progress,'' which also became an influential literary model. In addition ...

and George Fox. Despite his persecution of leading Quakers like Bunyan and Fox he was, by the standards of the age he lived in, generally considered a mild enough man in religious matters. He was created a

baronet A baronet ( or ; abbreviated Bart or Bt) or the female equivalent, a baronetess (, , or ; abbreviation Btss), is the holder of a baronetcy, a hereditary title awarded by the British Crown. The title of baronet is mentioned as early as the 14th ...

, of Twisden of Bradbourne, Kent, on 13 June 1666. He retired from the Bench in 1678, pleading age and ill health.

Family

Twisden married Jane Tomlinson, daughter of John Tomlinson, of St Michael's-le-Belfry, York, and Eleanor Dodsworth, and sister of the regicide

Matthew Tomlinson Matthew Thomlinson (1617–1681) was an English soldier who fought for Parliament in the English Civil War. He was a regicide of Charles I. Tomlinson was a colonel of horse (cavalry) in the New Model Army and was one of the officers presenting the ...

(whose life was spared at the Restoration), and had eleven children. His son

Roger Roger is a given name, usually masculine, and a surname. The given name is derived from the Old French personal names ' and '. These names are of Germanic origin, derived from the elements ', ''χrōþi'' ("fame", "renown", "honour") and ', ' ( ...

succeeded to the baronetcy and his daughter Margaret married

Sir Thomas Style, 2nd Baronet Sir Thomas Style, 2nd Baronet (1624–1702) was an English politician who sat in the House of Commons between 1656 and 1659. Style was the son of Sir Thomas Style, 1st Baronet of Wateringbury, Kent and his wife Elizabeth Foulkes daughter of Robe ...

. His brother was the baronet under the original spelling

Sir Roger Twysden, 2nd Baronet Sir Roger Twysden, 2nd Baronet (21 August 1597 – 27 June 1672), of Roydon Hall near East Peckham in Kent, was an English historian and politician who sat in the House of Commons at various times between 1625 and 1640. Life Twysden was the son ...

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Twisden, Thomas 1602 births 1683 deaths Members of the Inner Temple Alumni of Emmanuel College, Cambridge Justices of the King's Bench 17th-century English lawyers English MPs 1640–1648 English MPs 1660 Baronets in the Baronetage of England People from East Peckham