Robert Wallop (20 July 1601 – 19 November 1667) 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. T ...

at various times from 1621 to 1660. He supported the

Parliamentary A parliamentary system, or parliamentarian democracy, is a system of democratic governance of a state (or subordinate entity) where the executive derives its democratic legitimacy from its ability to command the support ("confidence") of the ...

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 one of the

regicide 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'' ...

s of King

Charles I of England Charles I (19 November 1600 – 30 January 1649) was King of England, Scotland, and Ireland from 27 March 1625 until his execution in 1649. He was born into the House of Stuart as the second son of King James VI of Scotland, but after hi ...

Early life

Wallop was the only son of

Sir Henry Wallop Sir Henry Wallop (c. 1540 – 14 April 1599) was an English statesman. Biography Henry Wallop was the eldest son of Sir Oliver Wallop (d. 1566) of Farleigh Wallop in Hampshire. Having inherited the estates of his father and of his uncle, Sir Joh ...

of Farleigh Wallop, Hampshire, and his wife, Elizabeth Corbet, daughter of

Robert Corbet Captain Robert Corbet RN (died 13 September 1810), often spelled Corbett, was an officer of the British Royal Navy during the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars who was killed in action in highly controversial circumstances. Corbet was ...

Moreton Corbet Moreton Corbet is a village in the civil parish of Moreton Corbet and Lee Brockhurst in Shropshire, England. The village's toponym refers to the Corbet baronets, the local landowners. It is just north of the larger village of Shawbury near Sta ...

, Shropshire.

Career

Wallop held demesne lands in both

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

and

Shropshire Shropshire (; alternatively Salop; abbreviated in print only as Shrops; demonym Salopian ) is a landlocked historic county in the West Midlands region of England. It is bordered by Wales to the west and the English counties of Cheshire to ...

, including a manor called "Fitch" which has not been identified by historians, but was potentially located in Shropshire. In 1621, Wallop 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 o ...

for Andover and re-elected in 1624. In 1625, he was elected MP for Hampshire and re-elected in 1626. He was elected MP for Andover again in 1628 and sat until 1629, when King Charles decided to rule without parliament for eleven years.History of Parliament Online – Wallop, Robert
/ref> Wallop refused to contribute towards the Bishops' War of 1639–40 out of antipathy to the king. In April 1640, he was elected MP for Andover for the Short Parliament and was re-elected for 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 ...

in November 1640. He supported parliament in the Civil War, joining in all the subsequent votes against the king. Nevertheless, the king had such confidence in Wallop's honour that in 1645 he said to Parliament he should be willing to put the

militia A militia () is generally an army or some other fighting organization of non-professional soldiers, citizens of a country, or subjects of a state, who may perform military service during a time of need, as opposed to a professional force of r ...

into Wallop's hands with many noblemen and others upon such terms as his commissioners at Uxbridge had agreed upon; however, this proposal was rejected.Noble, pp. 301,302 Wallop survived

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 ...

to sit in the

Rump Parliament The Rump Parliament was the English Parliament after Colonel Thomas Pride commanded soldiers to purge the Long Parliament, on 6 December 1648, of those members hostile to the Grandees' intention to try King Charles I for high treason. "Rump" ...

and was named by the army grandees as one of the 59 commissioners who sat in judgement at the trial of Charles I. He attended the trial and sat in the Painted Chamber 15 and 22 January and in

Westminster Hall The Palace of Westminster serves as the meeting place for both the House of Commons and the House of Lords, the two houses of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Informally known as the Houses of Parliament, the Palace lies on the north bank ...

22 and 23 January, but he did not sign the

death warrant An execution warrant (also called death warrant or black warrant) is a writ that authorizes the execution of a condemned person. An execution warrant is not to be confused with a " license to kill", which operates like an arrest warrant bu ...

.Noble
p. 302
/ref> Under the Commonwealth, Wallop was elected one of the

Council of State A Council of State is a governmental body in a country, or a subdivision of a country, with a function that varies by jurisdiction. It may be the formal name for the cabinet or it may refer to a non-executive advisory body associated with a head o ...

in 1649 and 1650; however, he submitted to Cromwell's government with very great reluctance, having a determined preference for a republic. He was willing to work against the Cromwellian interest to restore his preferred parliament as a proof of his sentiments and courage. For example, when Cromwell wished to form 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 Ho ...

to help in the government of the Protectorate, Cromwell wished to keep Sir Henry Vane out of the parliament. He prevented Vane being returned at

Kingston upon Hull Kingston upon Hull, usually abbreviated to Hull, is a port city and unitary authority in the East Riding of Yorkshire, England. It lies upon the River Hull at its confluence with the Humber Estuary, inland from the North Sea and south-ea ...

and

Bristol Bristol () is a city, ceremonial county and unitary authority in England. Situated on the River Avon, it is bordered by the ceremonial counties of Gloucestershire to the north and Somerset to the south. Bristol is the most populous city in ...

, though it was said Vane had the majority of votes in those two cities. Wallop supported Vane and used his influence to have Vane chosen by the borough of Whitchurch, Hampshire, which so enraged the Cromwellian faction that they sent a menacing letter to Wallop which was signed by most of the

justices of the peace A justice of the peace (JP) is a judicial officer of a lower or ''puisne'' court, elected or appointed by means of a commission ( letters patent) to keep the peace. In past centuries the term commissioner of the peace was often used with the sa ...

for the county. The letter stated that if Wallop continued to support Vane, they would oppose Wallop's attempt to become an MP. Wallop ignored them, assisted Vane and was elected MP for Hampshire in 1654 in spite of the opposition of the justices of the peace.Noble
p. 303
/ref> Wallop was re-elected in 1656 and 1659. After the fall of the Cromwellian interest, Wallop showed his sincere zeal for the Long Parliament as the support of the republic, and they procured him a seat in 1659 in their council of state. In the following December, having assisted with others in securing

Portsmouth Portsmouth ( ) is a port and city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. The city of Portsmouth has been a unitary authority since 1 April 1997 and is administered by Portsmouth City Council. Portsmouth is the most dens ...

, he received their thanks for the good and important services he had rendered them. In April 1660, he was elected MP for Whitchurch in the Convention Parliament, but did not take part in its proceedings and was disabled from sitting on 11 June. At the restoration of the monarchy, Wallop was excepted from receiving any benefit of his estate under the Act of Indemnity and subjected to further punishment. He was brought up to the bar of the House of Commons with Lord Monson and Sir

Henry Mildmay Sir Henry Mildmay (ca. 1593–1668) was an English politician who sat in the House of Commons at various times between 1621 and 1659. He supported the Parliamentarian cause in the English Civil War and was one of the Regicides of Charles I of ...

. After being required to confess his guilt, he was sentenced to be degraded from his gentility, drawn upon a sledge to and under the gallows at Tyburn with a halter around his neck and to be imprisoned for life. This sentence was solemnly executed upon him on 30 January 1662, which was the anniversary of the king's execution. He died on 19 November 1667 and his body was sent to Farleigh Wallop to be interred with his ancestors.Noble
p. 304
/ref>

Family life

Wallop married Ann Wriothesley, daughter of

Henry Wriothesley, 3rd Earl of Southampton Henry Wriothesley, 3rd Earl of Southampton, (pronunciation uncertain: "Rezley", "Rizely" (archaic), (present-day) and have been suggested; 6 October 1573 – 10 November 1624) was the only son of Henry Wriothesley, 2nd Earl of S ...

, by whom he had a son,

Henry Wallop Sir Henry Wallop (c. 1540 – 14 April 1599) was an English statesman. Biography Henry Wallop was the eldest son of Sir Oliver Wallop (d. 1566) of Farleigh Wallop in Hampshire. Having inherited the estates of his father and of his uncle, Sir Joh ...

, his only child. Henry, through the interest of the then

Lord High Treasurer The post of Lord High Treasurer or Lord Treasurer was an English government position and has been a British government position since the Acts of Union of 1707. A holder of the post would be the third-highest-ranked Great Officer of State in ...

, his maternal uncle

Thomas Wriothesley Sir Thomas Wriothesley ( ; died 24 November 1534) was a long serving officer of arms at the College of Arms in London. He was the son of Garter King of Arms, John Writhe, and he succeeded his father in this office. Personal life Wriothesley wa ...

, was permitted to enjoy those estates which his father's treason had forfeited. The biographer

Mark Noble Mark James Noble (born 8 May 1987) is an English former professional footballer who played as a central midfielder and is well remembered for his time at English club West Ham United, spending eighteen years with the club. Apart from two sh ...

suggests that it was most probable on account of his family connection to Wallop that Thomas Wriothesley was so extremely strenuous in favour of those regicides who had surrendered. Henry married Dorothy Bluet, youngest daughter of John Bluet, and had four sons: Robert, who died in his father's lifetime; Henry, who became heir to his father, but died unmarried; John, who next enjoyed the estate; and Charles, who died unmarried before his father.Noble
p. 305
/ref> On 11 June 1720, King

George I George I or 1 may refer to: People * Patriarch George I of Alexandria (fl. 621–631) * George I of Constantinople (d. 686) * George I of Antioch (d. 790) * George I of Abkhazia (ruled 872/3–878/9) * George I of Georgia (d. 1027) * Yuri Dolgor ...

created Wallop's grandson,

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 * Secon ...

, who became heir to the great estates of the family, Baron Wallop of Farley Wallop and

Viscount Lymington A viscount ( , for male) or viscountess (, for female) is a title used in certain European countries for a noble of varying status. In many countries a viscount, and its historical equivalents, was a non-hereditary, administrative or judicial ...

, both in the county of Southampton.

References

;Attribution * {{DEFAULTSORT:Wallop, Robert 1601 births 1667 deaths Regicides of Charles I English MPs 1621–1622 English MPs 1624–1625 English MPs 1625 English MPs 1626 English MPs 1628–1629 English MPs 1640 (April) English MPs 1640–1648 English MPs 1654–1655 English MPs 1656–1658 English MPs 1659 English MPs 1660 Prisoners in the Tower of London

Robert The name Robert is an ancient Germanic given name, from Proto-Germanic "fame" and "bright" (''Hrōþiberhtaz''). Compare Old Dutch ''Robrecht'' and Old High German ''Hrodebert'' (a compound of '' Hruod'' ( non, Hróðr) "fame, glory, honou ...

English politicians convicted of crimes