Sir Thomas Holt (1616 – 28 July 1686) was an English lawyer and 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. ...

in 1654 and 1656. Holt was the son of Rowland Holt, merchant of London, and his wife Mary Bucknor, daughter of Thomas Bucknor of London.Visitation of Berkshire 1664–66
/ref> He matriculated at

Magdalen Hall, Oxford Hertford College ( ), previously known as Magdalen Hall, is a constituent college of the University of Oxford in England. It is located on Catte Street in the centre of Oxford, directly opposite the main gate to the Bodleian Library. The colleg ...

on 23 November 1632, aged 16. He was called to the bar at

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 1648. He became

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 ...

of Abingdon.'Alumni Oxonienses, 1500–1714: Hieron-Horridge', Alumni Oxonienses 1500–1714: Abannan-Kyte (1891), pp. 706–747. Date accessed: 7 August 2011
Note: Alumni Oxonienses gives his father's name as Ralph. In 1654, Holt 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 Abingdon for the

First Protectorate Parliament The First Protectorate Parliament was summoned by the Lord Protector Oliver Cromwell under the terms of the Instrument of Government. It sat for one term from 3 September 1654 until 22 January 1655 with William Lenthall as the Speaker of the Hou ...

. He was re-elected MP for Abingdon in 1656 for the

Second Protectorate Parliament The Second Protectorate Parliament in England sat for two sessions from 17 September 1656 until 4 February 1658, with Thomas Widdrington as the Speaker of the House of Commons. In its first session, the House of Commons was its only chamber; in t ...

. Holt was a J.P. for Berkshire. He became a bencher of his Inn in 1671 and was appointed

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 1677. He was knighted on 16 April 1679. In 1686 he became King's Serjeant. Holt died at the age of 70 and was buried at St. James's, Clerkenwell. Holt married Susan Peacock, daughter of John Peacock of Cumnor, Berkshire.Pedigree of Sir John Holt, LeNeve's Pedigrees of the Knights Made by King Charles II, Peter LeNeve, George Marshall, 1873
/ref> They had children

John John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Second ...

who became Lord Chief Justice, Rowland, Mary, who married Edward Leman, son of

Sir William Leman, 1st Baronet Sir William Leman, 1st Baronet (died 1667) was an English politician who sat in the House of Commons at various times between 1645 and 1660. Leman was the son of William Leman of Beccles and his wife Alice. He was a woollen draper and a member ...

and Susan who married Francis Levett. University of Nottingham – Manuscripts and Special Collections
/ref>

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Holt, Thomas 1616 births 1686 deaths Alumni of Magdalen Hall, Oxford Members of Gray's Inn People from Abingdon-on-Thames Serjeants-at-law (England) English MPs 1654–1655 English MPs 1656–1658