William Ashton (1575–1646) was the English Member of Parliament for

Hertford Hertford ( ) is the county town of Hertfordshire, England, and is also a civil parish in the East Hertfordshire district of the county. The parish had a population of 26,783 at the 2011 census. The town grew around a ford on the River Lea, ne ...

in 1621–1625 and Appleby in 1626 and 1628. He had considerable court connections, including Robert Cecil, the Treasurer, and his son William Cecil. In retirement he purchased the grant of a large part of the

Royal forest A royal forest, occasionally known as a kingswood (), is an area of land with different definitions in England, Wales, Scotland and Ireland. The term ''forest'' in the ordinary modern understanding refers to an area of wooded land; however, the ...

Feckenham Feckenham is a village and civil parish in the Borough of Redditch in Worcestershire, England. It lies some south-west of the town of Redditch and some east of the city of Worcester. It had a population of 670 in the 2001 census and its immedi ...

as it was disafforestedP. Large, 'From Swanimote to disafforestation: Feckenham Forest in the early 17th century' in R. Hoyle (ed.), ''The estates of the English Crown, 1558-1640'' (Cambridge University Press, 1992), p409-13. and an estate in Hertfordshire.ASHTON, William I (1575-1646), of Swan Close, St. Martin's Lane, Westminster and Tingrith, Beds.
Published in ''The History of Parliament: the House of Commons'' 1604-1629, ed. Andrew Thrush and John P. Ferris, 2010 Despite his court connections, he was active in support of Parliament 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 ...

, especially in the Middlesex County Committee. He also became a Presbyterian Elder.

References

1575 births 1646 deaths English courtiers Roundheads English MPs 1621–1622 English MPs 1624–1625 English MPs 1625 English MPs 1628–1629 {{17thC-England-MP-stub