Heneage Finch, 1st Earl of Aylesford, PC, KC (22 July 1719) was an English

lawyer A lawyer is a person who is qualified to offer advice about the law, draft legal documents, or represent individuals in legal matters. The exact nature of a lawyer's work varies depending on the legal jurisdiction and the legal system, as w ...

and

statesman A statesman or stateswoman is a politician or a leader in an organization who has had a long and respected career at the national or international level, or in a given field. Statesman or statesmen may also refer to: Newspapers United States ...

Early life

Finch was second son of

Heneage Finch, 1st Earl of Nottingham Heneage Finch, 1st Earl of Nottingham, Privy Council of England, PC (23 December 162018 December 1682), Lord Chancellor of England, was descended from the old family of Earl of Winchilsea, Finch, many of whose members had attained high legal emi ...

and the former Elizabeth Hervey (eldest daughter of Daniel Hervey). His paternal grandparents were Hon. Sir Heneage Finch, Speaker of the House of Commons (third son of Sir Moyle Finch, 1st Baronet and Elizabeth Finch, 1st Countess of Winchilsea) and Frances Bell (daughter of Sir Edmond Bell of Beaupré Hall). He was educated at

Westminster School Westminster School is a Public school (United Kingdom), public school in Westminster, London, England, in the precincts of Westminster Abbey. It descends from a charity school founded by Westminster Benedictines before the Norman Conquest, as do ...

and at

Christ Church, Oxford Christ Church (, the temple or house, ''wikt:aedes, ædes'', of Christ, and thus sometimes known as "The House") is a Colleges of the University of Oxford, constituent college of the University of Oxford in England. Founded in 1546 by Henry V ...

, where he matriculated on 18 November 1664.

Career

In 1673, he became a

barrister A barrister is a type of lawyer in common law jurisdiction (area), jurisdictions. Barristers mostly specialise in courtroom advocacy and litigation. Their tasks include arguing cases in courts and tribunals, drafting legal pleadings, jurisprud ...

of 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 association for barristers and judges. To be called to the Bar and practice as a barrister in England and Wa ...

;

king's counsel A King's Counsel (Post-nominal letters, post-nominal initials KC) is a senior lawyer appointed by the monarch (or their Viceroy, viceregal representative) of some Commonwealth realms as a "Counsel learned in the law". When the reigning monarc ...

and bencher in 1677; and in 1679, during the chancellorship of his father, was appointed

Solicitor General A solicitor general is a government official who serves as the chief representative of the government in courtroom proceedings. In systems based on the English common law that have an attorney general or equivalent position, the solicitor general ...

, being returned to parliament for

Oxford University The University of Oxford is a collegiate research university in Oxford, England. There is evidence of teaching as early as 1096, making it the oldest university in the English-speaking world and the second-oldest continuously operating u ...

, and in 1685 for

Guildford Guildford () is a town in west Surrey, England, around south-west of central London. As of the 2011 census, the town has a population of about 77,000 and is the seat of the wider Borough of Guildford, which had around inhabitants in . The nam ...

. In 1682, he represented the crown in the attack upon the Corporation of London, and next year in the prosecution of Lord Russell, when, according to

Gilbert Burnet Gilbert Burnet (18 September 1643 – 17 March 1715) was a Scottish people, Scottish philosopher and historian, and Bishop of Salisbury. He was fluent in Dutch language, Dutch, French language, French, Latin language, Latin, Greek language, Gree ...

, and in several other trials afterwards, he showed more of a vicious eloquence in turning matters with some subtlety against the prisoners than of strict or sincere reasoning. He does not, however, appear to have exceeded the duties of prosecutor for the crown as they were then understood. In 1684, in the trial of

Algernon Sidney Algernon Sidney or Sydney (15 January 1623 – 7 December 1683) was an English politician, republican political theorist and colonel. A member of the middle part of the Long Parliament and commissioner of the trial of King Charles I of Englan ...

, he argued that the unpublished treatise of the accused was an overt act, and supported the opinion of

Jeffreys Jeffreys is a surname that may refer to the following notable people: * Alec Jeffreys (born 1950), British biologist and discoverer of DNA fingerprinting * Anne Jeffreys (1923–2017), American actress and singer * Arthur Frederick Jeffreys ( ...

that ''scribere est agere'' (to write is to act). The same year he was counsel for James II in his successful action against Titus Oates for

libel Defamation is a communication that injures a third party's reputation and causes a legally redressable injury. The precise legal definition of defamation varies from country to country. It is not necessarily restricted to making assertions ...

, and in 1685 prosecuted Oates for the crown for

perjury Perjury (also known as forswearing) is the intentional act of swearing a false oath or falsifying an affirmation to tell the truth, whether spoken or in writing, concerning matters material to an official proceeding."Perjury The act or an insta ...

. Finch, however, though a

Tory A Tory () is an individual who supports a political philosophy known as Toryism, based on a British version of traditionalist conservatism which upholds the established social order as it has evolved through the history of Great Britain. The To ...

and a crown lawyer, was a staunch churchman, and on his refusal in 1686 to defend the royal dispensing power he was summarily dismissed by James. He was the leading counsel in June 1688 for the

Seven Bishops The Seven Bishops were members of the Church of England tried and acquitted for seditious libel in the Court of Kings Bench in June 1688. The very unpopular prosecution of the bishops is viewed as a significant event contributing to the Novemb ...

, when he strangely exposed and very boldly ran down the dispensing power, but his mistaken tactics were nearly the cause of his clients losing their case. He sat again for Oxford University in the convention parliament, which constituency he represented in all the following assemblies except that of 1698, until his elevation to the peerage. He was, however, no supporter of the

House of Orange The House of Orange-Nassau (, ), also known as the House of Orange because of the prestige of the princely title of Orange, also referred to as the Fourth House of Orange in comparison with the other noble houses that held the Principality of O ...

, advocated a regency in James's name, and was one of the few who in the

House of Commons The House of Commons is the name for the elected lower house of the Bicameralism, 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 ...

opposed the famous vote that James had broken the contract between king and people and left the throne vacant. He held no office during William's reign, and is described by John Macky as always a great opposer of the administration. In 1689, he joined in voting for the reversal of Lord Russell's attainder, and endeavoured to defend his conduct in the trial, but was refused a hearing by the House. He opposed the Triennial Bill of 1692, but in 1696, spoke against the bill of association and test, which was voted for the king's protection, on the ground that though William was to be obeyed as sovereign he could not be acknowledged rightful and lawful king. In 1694, he argued against the crown in the bankers case. In 1703, he was created Baron Guernsey and a privy councillor, and after the accession of George I in 1714, Earl of Aylesford, being reappointed a privy councillor and made

Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster The Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster is a ministerial office in the Government of the United Kingdom. Excluding the prime minister, the chancellor is the highest ranking minister in the Cabinet Office, immediately after the prime minister ...

, which office he retained until February 1716.

Works

According to John Macky (''Memoirs'', p. 71; published by Roxburghe Club, 1895) he was accounted one of the greatest orators in England and a good common lawyer; a firm asserter of the prerogative of the crown and jurisdiction of the church; a tall, thin black man. He was eloquent, industrious, and judicious, with inflexible integrity. Many of his legal arguments are printed in ''State Trials'' (see esp. viii. 694, 1087, ix. 625, 880, 996, X. 126, 319, 405, 1199, xii. 183, 353, 365). Wood attributes to him on the faith of common rumour the authorship of ''An Antidote against Poison . . .Remarks upon a Paper printed by Lady (Rachel) Russel'' (1683), ascribed in ''State Trials'' (ix. 710) to Sir Bartholomew Shower; but see the latter's allusion to it on p. 753. In ''Hist. of His Own Times'', i. 556. Swift has appended a note, an arrant rascal, but Finch's great offence with the dean was probably his advancement by George I. rather than his conduct of state trials as here described.

Personal life

On 16 May 1678, he was married to Elizabeth Banks, daughter and co-heiress of Sir John Banks of

Aylesford Aylesford is a village and civil parish on the River Medway in Kent, England, northwest of Maidstone. Originally a small riverside settlement, the old village comprises around 60 houses, many of which were formerly shops. Two pubs, a villa ...

. Together, Elizabeth and Heneage were the parents of three sons and six daughters, including: * Lady Elizabeth Finch (1679–1757), who married

Robert Benson, 1st Baron Bingley Robert Benson, 1st Baron Bingley, (9 April 1731) was an English Tory politician who sat in the English and British House of Commons from 1702 until 1713 when he was raised to the peerage as Baron Bingley and sat in the House of Lords. He serve ...

. * Heneage Finch, 2nd Earl of Aylesford (1683–1757), who married Mary Fisher, daughter of Sir Clement Fisher, 3rd Baronet. * Lady Anne Finch (d. 1751), who married William Legge, 1st Earl of Dartmouth. * Hon. John Finch (d. 1739/40), who married his cousin Elizabeth Savile in 1726. * Lady Frances Finch (d. 1759), who married Sir John Bland, 5th Baronet. He died on 22 July 1719. Upon his death, his eldest son Heneage succeeded him as 2nd Earl of Aylesford. The 2nd Earl died in 1757, and since this date the earldom has been held by his direct descendants, six of whom in succession have borne the Christian name of Heneage.

References

External links

Heneage Finch, 1st Earl of Aylesford (1647?-1719), Lord Chancellor
{{DEFAULTSORT:Aylesford, Heneage Finch, 1st Earl of 1640s births 1719 deaths Alumni of Christ Church, Oxford Chancellors of the Duchy of Lancaster 1 Finch, Heneage Members of the Privy Council of Great Britain Members of the Privy Council of Ireland People educated at Westminster School, London Finch, Heneage Finch, Heneage Heneage Members of the Inner Temple 17th-century King's Counsel English King's Counsel English MPs 1679 English MPs 1685–1687 English MPs 1689–1690 English MPs 1690–1695 English MPs 1695–1698 English MPs 1701 English MPs 1701–1702 English MPs 1702–1705 Peers of England created by Queen Anne People from Aylesford 18th-century King's Counsel