John Glynn
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John Glynn Serjeant-at-law of Glynn (1722–1779) 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 politician who sat 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 ...
from 1768 to 1779. Glynn was born to a family of Cornish
gentry Gentry (from Old French , from ) are "well-born, genteel and well-bred people" of high social class, especially in the past. ''Gentry'', in its widest connotation, refers to people of good social position connected to Landed property, landed es ...
. He inherited his father's estate at Glynn in the parish of
Cardinham Cardinham () (the spelling 'Cardynham' is almost obsolete) is a civil parishes in England, civil parish and a village in mid Cornwall, England. The village is approximately three-and-a-half miles (6 km) east-northeast of Bodmin. The hamlet ...
,
Cornwall Cornwall (; or ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is also one of the Celtic nations and the homeland of the Cornish people. The county is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, ...
, on the deaths of his elder brother and his nephew. Glynn was admitted to the
Middle Temple The Honourable Society of the Middle Temple, commonly known simply as Middle Temple, is one of the four Inns of Court entitled to Call to the bar, call their members to the English Bar as barristers, the others being the Inner Temple (with whi ...
on 21 January 1740–1741. On 28 January 1747/8, he was called to the Bar. In 1763, Glynn became serjeant-at-law, and in the following year
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 newsp ...
of
Exeter Exeter ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and the county town of Devon in South West England. It is situated on the River Exe, approximately northeast of Plymouth and southwest of Bristol. In Roman Britain, Exeter w ...
. Known for his skill as a pleader, Glynn was engaged in many celebrated cases. Elected to
Parliament In modern politics and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: Representation (politics), representing the Election#Suffrage, electorate, making laws, and overseeing ...
for
Middlesex Middlesex (; abbreviation: Middx) is a Historic counties of England, former county in South East England, now mainly within Greater London. Its boundaries largely followed three rivers: the River Thames, Thames in the south, the River Lea, Le ...
in 1768, Glynn served in Parliament until his death. In 1772, he was elected
Recorder of London The recorder of London is an ancient legal office in the City of London. The recorder of London is the senior circuit judge at the Central Criminal Court (the Old Bailey), hearing trials of criminal offences. The recorder is appointed by the Cr ...
. Glynn's speeches in Parliament were highly praised.
Glynn County, Georgia Glynn County is located in the Southeast Georgia, southeastern part of the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 84,499. The county seat is Brunswick, Georgia, Brunswic ...
was named after John Glynn in recognition for his support for the cause of
American independence The American Revolution (1765–1783) was a colonial rebellion and war of independence in which the Thirteen Colonies broke from British rule to form the United States of America. The revolution culminated in the American Revolutionary War ...
in Parliament.


Early life

The second son of William Glynn of Glynn House in Cardinham, Cornwall, who married Rose, daughter of John Prideaux of Prideaux Place,
Padstow Padstow (; ) is a town, civil parishes in England, civil parish and fishing port on the north coast of Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. The town is situated on the west bank of the River Camel estuary, approximately northwest of Wadebridge, ...
, he was baptised at Cardinham on 3 August 1722. He matriculated at
Exeter College, Oxford Exeter College (in full: The Rector and Scholars of Exeter College in the University of Oxford) is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England, and the fourth-oldest college of the university. The college was founde ...
, on 17 May 1738, but did not proceed to a degree. He was called to the bar at the Middle Temple in 1748. His elder brother died in June 1744, leaving an only son of weak intellect, against whom his uncle took out a commission in lunacy, and was appointed receiver of the family estates. The youth's mother was so much incensed that she left all her own property to distant connections. The lunatic died in December 1762, and Glynn came into the possession of his nephew's property.


Legal career

On 24 January 1763 Glynn was created a serjeant-at-law, but as a result of his opinions in opposition to the court, he was never promoted to the rank of king's serjeant. In 1764 he was appointed recorder of Exeter. His position at the bar and his opinions brought Glynn to take the lead in the cases connected with
John Wilkes John Wilkes (17 October 1725 – 26 December 1797) was an English Radicalism (historical), radical journalist and politician, as well as a magistrate, essayist and soldier. He was first elected a Member of Parliament in 1757. In the Middlese ...
. They were in close consultation throughout the summer of 1763. He then acted for Wilkes in his application for a writ of
habeas corpus ''Habeas corpus'' (; from Medieval Latin, ) is a legal procedure invoking the jurisdiction of a court to review the unlawful detention or imprisonment of an individual, and request the individual's custodian (usually a prison official) to ...
in May 1763, in the action against
George Montagu-Dunk, 2nd Earl of Halifax George Montagu-Dunk, 2nd Earl of Halifax (6 October 1716 – 8 June 1771) was a British statesman of the Georgian era. Due to his success in extending commerce in the Americas, he became known as the "father of the colonies". President of the B ...
, and in the trial which took place in 1764 on the republication of ''
The North Briton ''The North Briton'' was a radical newspaper published in 18th-century London. The North Briton also served as the pseudonym of the newspaper's author, used in advertisements, letters to other publications, and handbills. Although written ano ...
'' in volumes. He was the advocate of
John Almon John Almon (17 December 1737 – 12 December 1805) was an English journalist and writer on political subjects, notable for his efforts to secure the right to publish reports on the debates in Parliament. Life and career He was born in Liverpool, ...
in 1765, pleaded in the king's bench against the outlawry of Wilkes in 1768, and was counsel for Alderman James Townsend in his action in June 1772 against the collector of
land tax A land value tax (LVT) is a levy on the value of land without regard to buildings, personal property and other improvements upon it. Some economists favor LVT, arguing it does not cause economic inefficiency, and helps reduce economic inequali ...
, which Townsend had refused to pay, urging the nullity of Parliament through the irregularity of the Middlesex election. Glynn represented Woodfall before
Mansfield Mansfield is a market town and the administrative centre of the Mansfield District in Nottinghamshire, England. It is the largest town in the wider Mansfield Urban Area and the second largest settlement in Nottinghamshire (following the city ...
in the case of the
Letters of Junius ''Letters of Junius'' (or Junius: ''Stat nominis umbra'') is a collection of private and open letters critical of the government of King George III from an anonymous polemicist ( Junius) claimed by some to be Philip Francis (although Junius' real ...
, of which a subset were alleged to constitute
seditious libel Seditious libel is a criminal offence under common law of printing written material with seditious purposethat is, the purpose of bringing contempt upon a political authority. It remains an offence in Canada but has been abolished in England and ...
. The verdict was mistrial; the Crown decided against further pursuit. Glynn also enjoyed a large share of general business. His advocacy secured the acquittal of Miss Butterfield, accused of poisoning William Scawen.


Politician

On a by-vacancy in the representation of
Middlesex Middlesex (; abbreviation: Middx) is a Historic counties of England, former county in South East England, now mainly within Greater London. Its boundaries largely followed three rivers: the River Thames, Thames in the south, the River Lea, Le ...
in 1768, Glynn was named by Wilkes, at the request of the majority of its freeholders, as the candidate in the "Wilkes and liberty" interest.
John Horne Tooke John Horne Tooke (25 June 1736 – 18 March 1812), known as John Horne until 1782 when he added the surname of his friend William Tooke to his own, was an English clergyman, politician and Philology, philologist. Associated with radical proponen ...
was active in raising subscriptions to defray the election expenses. The ministerial candidate was Sir William Beauchamp Proctor, who had been ousted by Wilkes in March 1768. On the first day of polling (8 December), armed ruffians with "Liberty" and "Proctor" in their hats stormed the polling booth at
Brentford Brentford is a suburban town in West (London sub region), West London, England and part of the London Borough of Hounslow. It lies at the confluence of the River Brent and the River Thames, Thames, west of Charing Cross. Its economy has dive ...
and one man was killed. This affair was the subject of popular engravings. After six days' polling, Glynn won by 1,542 votes to 1,278. When 1,565 freeholders of Middlesex addressed George III against the illegal act of the majority in the House of Commons, Glynn presented their petition, and in three cartoons at least he is represented on his knees presenting their address to the monarch (24 May 1769). At the dissolution in 1774 he was re-elected without opposition. In the winter of 1770 Glynn, influenced by
Lord Shelburne William Petty Fitzmaurice, 1st Marquess of Lansdowne (2 May 17377 May 1805), known as the Earl of Shelburne between 1761 and 1784, by which title he is generally known to history, was an Anglo-Irish Whig statesman who was the first home secr ...
, moved for a committee to inquire into the administration of justice in cases relating to the press, and to settle the power of juries. He argued the question with John Dunning and Alexander Wedderburne. About the same time he was associated with
Charles James Fox Charles James Fox (24 January 1749 – 13 September 1806), styled ''The Honourable'' from 1762, was a British British Whig Party, Whig politician and statesman whose parliamentary career spanned 38 years of the late 18th and early 19th centurie ...
, Sir William Meredith and others in a committee on the modification of the criminal law. They deliberated for two years, and on their report a bill was introduced for the repeal of eight or ten statutes, but it was thrown out in the Lords. After meeting Glynn in 1770,
Lord Chatham Earl of Chatham, of Chatham, Kent, Chatham in the County of Kent, was a title in the Peerage of Great Britain. It was created in 1766 for William Pitt, 1st Earl of Chatham, William Pitt the Elder on his appointment as Lord Privy Seal, along with ...
wrote, "I find him a most ingenious, solid, pleasing man, and the spirit of the constitution itself. I never was more taken by a first conversation in my life. Glynn was one of the leading members of the Society of the Bill of Rights, which at the end of 1770 addressed a provocative letter to the American colonies. On 17 November 1772 Glynn was elected Recorder of London to replace James Eyre.The votes were Glynn, 13; Edward Bearcroft K.C., later chief justice of Chester, 12; and Hyde, the senior city counsel, 1.


Family and death

Glynn was married on 21 July 1763 to Susanna Margaret, third daughter of Sir John Oglander of Nunwell in the
Isle of Wight The Isle of Wight (Help:IPA/English, /waɪt/ Help:Pronunciation respelling key, ''WYTE'') is an island off the south coast of England which, together with its surrounding uninhabited islets and Skerry, skerries, is also a ceremonial county. T ...
. She had been born on 1 September 1744 and died at Catherine Place, Bath, on 20 May 1816. They had three sons and a daughter. Glynn suffered from
gout Gout ( ) is a form of inflammatory arthritis characterized by recurrent attacks of pain in a red, tender, hot, and Joint effusion, swollen joint, caused by the deposition of needle-like crystals of uric acid known as monosodium urate crysta ...
and had to be carried into the House in April 1769 to vote against the motion for seating Henry Luttrell for Middlesex. In 1778 a deputy was allowed on account of his illness to act for him as recorder. On 16 September 1779 he died, and was buried at Cardinham on 23 September.


Works

Glynn edited in 1775–1776 eight numbers of ''The Whole Proceedings on the King's Commission of the Peace for the City of London.''


References

;Attribution {{DEFAULTSORT:Glynn, John 1722 births 1779 deaths Politicians from Cornwall Members of the Middle Temple Members of the Parliament of Great Britain for English constituencies British MPs 1768–1774 British MPs 1774–1780 Whig (British political party) MPs Serjeants-at-law (England) Recorders of London