Thomas Leigh, 1st Baron Leigh (1595 – 22 February 1672) was an English 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. ...

from 1628 to 1629. 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 ...

and was created a baron in 1643. Leigh was the son of Sir John Leigh and his first wife Ursula Hoddesdon, daughter of Sir Christopher Hoddesdon, of

Leighton Buzzard Leighton Buzzard ( ) is a market town in Bedfordshire, England, in the southwest of the county and close to the Buckinghamshire border. It lies between Aylesbury, Tring, Luton/Dunstable and Milton Keynes, near the Chiltern Hills. It is northwes ...

, Bedfordshire. George Edward Cokayne ''Complete Baronetage Volume 1'' 1900
/ref> He matriculated at

Magdalen College, Oxford Magdalen College (, ) is a constituent college of the University of Oxford. It was founded in 1458 by William of Waynflete. Today, it is the fourth wealthiest college, with a financial endowment of £332.1 million as of 2019 and one of the s ...

, under entry dated 4 November 1608, aged 13.'Alumni Oxonienses, 1500-1714: Lee-Llewellin', Alumni Oxonienses 1500-1714 (1891), pp. 892-921. Date accessed: 3 June 2012
/ref> He succeeded to the

baronetcy 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 ...

on the death of his grandfather, Sir Thomas Leigh, 1st Baronet, of

Stoneleigh, Warwickshire Stoneleigh is a small village in Warwickshire, England, on the River Sowe, situated 4.5 miles (7.25 km) south of Coventry and 5.5 miles (9 km) north of Leamington Spa. The population taken at the 2011 census was 3,636. The ...

on 1 February 1626. In 1628, 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

Warwickshire Warwickshire (; abbreviated Warks) is a county in the West Midlands region of England. The county town is Warwick, and the largest town is Nuneaton. The county is famous for being the birthplace of William Shakespeare at Stratford-upon-Avon an ...

and sat until 1629 when King Charles decided to rule without parliament for eleven years. He was

Sheriff of Warwickshire This is a list of sheriffs and high sheriffs of the English county of Warwickshire. The High Sheriff, Sheriff is the oldest secular office under the Crown. Formerly the Sheriff was the principal law enforcement officer in the county but over the c ...

from 1636 to 1637. During the Civil War, Leigh showed intrepid loyalty to the king whom he entertained at Stoneleigh when the gates of

Coventry Coventry ( or ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city in the West Midlands (county), West Midlands, England. It is on the River Sherbourne. Coventry has been a large settlement for centuries, although it was not founded and given its ...

were shut against him. He was created

Baron Leigh Baron Leigh has been created twice as a hereditary title, once in the Peerage of England and once in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. The first creation came in the Peerage of England 1643 when Sir Thomas Leigh, 2nd Baronet, was created Ba ...

of Stoneleigh on 1 July 1643. Leigh died at the age of about 77. Leigh married in about 1615 Mary Egerton, daughter of

Sir Thomas Egerton Thomas Egerton, 1st Viscount Brackley, (1540 – 15 March 1617), known as 1st Baron Ellesmere from 1603 to 1616, was an English nobleman, judge and statesman from the Egerton family who served as Lord Keeper and Lord Chancellor for twenty-on ...

, who was the son of

Thomas Egerton, 1st Viscount Brackley Thomas Egerton, 1st Viscount Brackley, (1540 – 15 March 1617), known as 1st Baron Ellesmere from 1603 to 1616, was an English nobleman, judge and statesman from the Egerton family who served as Lord Keeper and Lord Chancellor for twenty-o ...

, and his wife Elizabeth Venables. Leigh and Mary had at least seven children, five sons and two daughters. Thomas, the eldest son, predeceased his father, and the title passed to the eldest grandson, also named Thomas.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Leigh, Thomas 1595 births 1672 deaths Cavaliers English MPs 1628–1629 1 Alumni of Magdalen College, Oxford High Sheriffs of Warwickshire Sheriffs of Warwickshire People from Warwick District