John Roberts, 2nd Baron Roberts
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

John Robartes, 1st Earl of Radnor (160617 July 1685) was an English politician, peer and military officer who fought for the Parliamentary cause during the
English Civil War The English Civil War or Great Rebellion was a series of civil wars and political machinations between Cavaliers, Royalists and Roundhead, Parliamentarians in the Kingdom of England from 1642 to 1651. Part of the wider 1639 to 1653 Wars of th ...
. He retired from public life before the trial and
execution of Charles I Charles_I_of_England, Charles I, King of Kingdom of England, England, Kingdom of Scotland, Scotland, and Kingdom of Ireland, Ireland, was executed on Tuesday, 30 January 1649 outside the Banqueting House on Whitehall, London. The execution was ...
(1649) and did not take an active part in politics until after the Restoration in 1660. During the reign of Charles II he opposed the Cavalier party (because he wished for more tolerance of non-Anglican religious sects). Toward the end of his life he opposed the more extreme Protestant groups, led by
Anthony Ashley Cooper, 1st Earl of Shaftesbury Anthony Ashley Cooper, 1st Earl of Shaftesbury PC, FRS (22 July 1621 – 21 January 1683), was an English statesman and peer. He held senior political office under both the Commonwealth of England and Charles II, serving as Chancellor of the ...
, who refused to accept the succession of James because he was a self-declared Catholic.


Early life

John Robartes was born in
Truro Truro (; ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and civil parish in Cornwall, England; it is the southernmost city in the United Kingdom, just under west-south-west of Charing Cross in London. It is Cornwall's county town, s ...
, where his father Richard Robartes was knighted in 1616, created a baronet in 1621 and raised to the peerage as Baron Robartes of Truro in 1625. The family had amassed wealth by trading in tin, wood and gorse (furze) used by the tin smelters, and in 1620 bought and began extending
Lanhydrock House Lanhydrock House, commonly known simply as Lanhydrock, is a country house and estate in the parish of Lanhydrock, Cornwall, UK. The house stands in extensive grounds (360 hectares or 890 acres) above the River Fowey, and has been owned and man ...
near Bodmin as the family seat. Richard became a baronet, and the baronet's hand on the shields engraved on the principal door of Lanhydrock House bear testimony to this. The barony was purchased for £10,000 in 1625. This ennoblement was claimed, by the opponents of the Duke of Buckingham, to have been purchased under compulsion. His son, John, was the first of the family to receive a university education, being educated 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 ...
. His father became the friend of
Robert Rich, 2nd Earl of Warwick 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'' () "fame, glory, honour, praise, reno ...
, and succeeded in arranging the marriage of his son to the Earl's younger daughter Lucy, thereby cementing an alliance that would bring John into contact with influential radical preachers of the time. Convinced of the more
Calvinist Reformed Christianity, also called Calvinism, is a major branch of Protestantism that began during the 16th-century Protestant Reformation. In the modern day, it is largely represented by the Continental Reformed Protestantism, Continenta ...
doctrines of the Church of England, John became alarmed at the
Arminian Arminianism is a movement of Protestantism initiated in the early 17th century, based on the Christian theology, theological ideas of the Dutch Reformed Church, Dutch Reformed theologian Jacobus Arminius and his historic supporters known as Remo ...
slant of King
Charles I Charles I may refer to: Kings and emperors * Charlemagne (742–814), numbered Charles I in the lists of Holy Roman Emperors and French kings * Charles I of Anjou (1226–1285), also king of Albania, Jerusalem, Naples and Sicily * Charles I of ...
's religious policy and his increasingly autocratic rule; he believed the King had been misled by evil councillors. For this reason John Robartes fought on the side of the
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 ...
and, according to his view of things, also the King, during the
Civil War A civil war is a war between organized groups within the same Sovereign state, state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies.J ...
. He fought with valour at the
Battle of Edgehill The Battle of Edgehill (or Edge Hill) was a pitched battle of the First English Civil War. It was fought near Edge Hill, Warwickshire, Edge Hill and Kineton in southern Warwickshire on Sunday, 23 October 1642. All attempts at constitution ...
on 23 October 1642, and at the
First Battle of Newbury The First Battle of Newbury was a battle of the First English Civil War that was fought on 20 September 1643 between a Royalist army, under the personal command of King Charles, and a Parliamentarian force led by the Earl of Essex. Following ...
, on 20 September 1643. He became a member of the Committee of Both Kingdoms. This Committee, on which his mentors, the Earls of Warwick and Essex, also sat, allowed him to appreciate Scottish Presbyterianism. He always relied on his own interpretation of the Bible; annotations he made in his books show that he sympathised with those who put faith above ritual. He had succeeded his father, Richard Robartes, as ''Baron Robartes'' in May 1634. He is said by some, especially
William Sanderson William Sanderson (born January 10, 1944) is a retired American actor. He played J. F. Sebastian in the feature film ''Blade Runner'' (1982), and had regular roles on several television series, playing Larry on ''Newhart'' (1982–1990), E. B ...
, to have persuaded the
Earl of Essex Earl of Essex is a title in the Peerage of England which was first created in the 12th century by King Stephen of England. The title has been recreated eight times from its original inception, beginning with a new first Earl upon each new cre ...
to make his ill-fated march into
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, ...
in 1644; he escaped with the earl from
Fowey Fowey ( ; , meaning ''beech trees'') is a port town and civil parishes in England, civil parish at the mouth of the River Fowey in south Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. The town has been in existence since well before the Norman invasion, ...
after the defeat of the parliamentary army in the first days of September 1644. Having reached
Plymouth Plymouth ( ) is a port city status in the United Kingdom, city and unitary authority in Devon, South West England. It is located on Devon's south coast between the rivers River Plym, Plym and River Tamar, Tamar, about southwest of Exeter and ...
safely, he became its Governor and defended the city from the besieging Royalists. With the
Self-Denying Ordinance The Self-denying Ordinance was passed by the Parliament of England, English Parliament on 3 April 1645. All members of the House of Commons or Lords who were also officers in the Parliamentary army or navy were required to resign one or the ot ...
of April 1645 he lost his command in Plymouth and was obliged like his brother-in-law, the
Earl of Manchester Duke of Manchester is a title in the Peerage of Great Britain, and the current senior title of the House of Montagu. It was created in 1719 for the politician Charles Montagu, 4th Earl of Manchester. Manchester Parish in Jamaica was named aft ...
, to watch the successes of Cromwell's
New Model Army The New Model Army or New Modelled Army was a standing army formed in 1645 by the Parliamentarians during the First English Civil War, then disbanded after the Stuart Restoration in 1660. It differed from other armies employed in the 1639 t ...
from the sidelines. He, like other Lords who had sided with Parliament, was marginalised by the so-called Independents who saw no future in continuing negotiations with King Charles. The execution of the King would have appalled him.


Later life and death

Between the execution of Charles I and the restoration of Charles II in 1660, he retired to Lanhydrock with his family and took practically no part in public life. From Lanhydrock he exercised influence in Cornwall, though he seems to have dedicated most of his time to study and to his growing family. After 1660 he became a prominent public man, with influence among the
Presbyterian Presbyterianism is a historically Reformed Protestant tradition named for its form of church government by representative assemblies of elders, known as "presbyters". Though other Reformed churches are structurally similar, the word ''Pr ...
s, and ranged himself among Lord Clarendon's enemies. Robartes was regularly attacked (not least by
Samuel Pepys Samuel Pepys ( ; 23 February 1633 – 26 May 1703) was an English writer and Tories (British political party), Tory politician. He served as an official in the Navy Board and Member of Parliament (England), Member of Parliament, but is most r ...
) for incompetence, dilatoriness, arrogance and bad temper. He was offered the post of Lord Deputy of Ireland in 1660 but was unwilling to serve, and was
Lord Lieutenant A lord-lieutenant ( ) is the British monarch's personal representative in each lieutenancy area of the United Kingdom. Historically, each lieutenant was responsible for organising the county's militia. In 1871, the lieutenant's responsibility ov ...
in 1669–1670; from 1661 to 1673 he was
Lord Privy Seal The Lord Privy Seal (or, more formally, the Lord Keeper of the Privy Seal) is the fifth of the Great Officers of State (United Kingdom), Great Officers of State in the United Kingdom, ranking beneath the Lord President of the Council and abov ...
although he did not exercise his office after his return from Ireland. He once again retired to Lanhydrock where he spent much time hunting deer and hare in his parks. He was elected a
Fellow of the Royal Society Fellowship of the Royal Society (FRS, ForMemRS and HonFRS) is an award granted by the Fellows of the Royal Society of London to individuals who have made a "substantial contribution to the improvement of natural science, natural knowledge, incl ...
in 1666. In 1679 Charles II recalled him to public office to counteract the growing power of the Whigs, at that time a faction opposed to the succession of Charles' brother, the Catholic
James, Duke of York James II and VII (14 October 1633 – 16 September 1701) was King of England and Monarchy of Ireland, Ireland as James II and King of Scotland as James VII from the death of his elder brother, Charles II of England, Charles II, on 6 February 1 ...
. In 1679, for his support of Charles's policy of making his brother his successor, John was made
Lord President of the Council The Lord President of the Council is the presiding officer of the Privy Council of the United Kingdom and the fourth of the Great Officers of State, ranking below the Lord High Treasurer but above the Lord Keeper of the Privy Seal. The Lor ...
and was created Viscount Bodmin and Earl of Radnor in the
Peerage of England The Peerage of England comprises all peerages created in the Kingdom of England before the Act of Union in 1707. From that year, the Peerages of England and Scotland were closed to new creations, and new peers were created in a single Peerag ...
. He was President until 1684 and continued to attend the House of Lords until a few weeks before his death at Chelsea on 17 July 1685. He was buried in the family crypt in Lanhydrock Church with little ceremony, as he had stipulated in his will.


Family

Robartes was married twice: first to Lucy Rich, the second daughter of
Robert Rich, 2nd Earl of Warwick 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'' () "fame, glory, honour, praise, reno ...
, and Frances Hatton, with whom he had three sons, including
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 ''Hrōþ, Hruod'' () "fame, glory, honour, prais ...
and Hender; and secondly to Letitia Isabella (died 1714), daughter of Sir John Smith of Bidborough, Kent, with whom he had nine other children, including
Francis Francis may refer to: People and characters *Pope Francis, head of the Catholic Church (2013–2025) *Francis (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters * Francis (surname) * Francis, a character played by YouTuber Boogie2 ...
, and Araminta, who married
Ezekiel Hopkins Ezekiel Hopkins (1634–1690) was an Anglican divine in the Church of Ireland, who was Bishop of Derry from 1681 to 1690. He was born in Crediton, England. Life He was born in Devon and was educated at Merchant Taylors' School and Magdalen Colle ...
,
Bishop of Derry The Bishop of Derry is an episcopal title which takes its name after the monastic settlement originally founded at Daire Calgach and later known as Daire Colm Cille, Anglicised as Derry. In the Catholic Church it remains a separate title, but in ...
. This lady has been identified with the "Lady Robarts" mentioned in Count Hamilton's ''Mémoires du Comte de Grammont, par le C. Antoine Hamilton. Edition ornée de LXXII portraits, Graves d'apres les tableaux originaux.'', A Londres, 793(she is described by Pepys as "a great beauty indeed".) John Robartes' eldest son, Robert, Viscount Bodmin, was ambassador to Denmark in 1681, and died there in February 1682. He had married Sarah Bodvel, second daughter of
John Bodvel John Bodvel (1617 – March 1663) was a Welsh politician who sat in the House of Commons of England (and Wales) from 1640 to 1644. He was a colonel in the Royalist army in the English Civil War. Bodvel was the son of Sir John Bodvel (died 16 ...
of Bodvile Castle, North Wales, a marriage that displeased her father, whose consent had not been obtained, and led him to disinherit her in favour of a distant cousin. The title of Radnor later descended to Robert's son
Charles Charles is a masculine given name predominantly found in English language, English and French language, French speaking countries. It is from the French form ''Charles'' of the Proto-Germanic, Proto-Germanic name (in runic alphabet) or ''* ...
(1660–1723), who is mentioned by
Jonathan Swift Jonathan Swift (30 November 1667 – 19 October 1745) was an Anglo-Irish writer, essayist, satirist, and Anglican cleric. In 1713, he became the Dean (Christianity), dean of St Patrick's Cathedral, Dublin, and was given the sobriquet "Dean Swi ...
in his ''Journal to Stella'', and who managed to regain the Bodvel inheritance. The title became extinct on the death of the fourth earl, John Robartes (1686–1757), eldest son of Francis Robartes. cites ''Collins, Peerage'', ed. Brydges, ix. 405.


References

* Sanderson, William, Sir, 1586?–1676, A complete history of the life and raigne of King Charles from his cradle to his grave collected and written by William Sanderson, Esq., London : Printed for Humphrey Moseley, Richard Tomlins, and George Sawbridge, 1658. Attribution: * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Radnor, John Robartes, 1st Earl Of 1606 births 1685 deaths People from Truro Alumni of Exeter College, Oxford Lord-lieutenants of Cornwall Lord Presidents of the Council Lords Privy Seal Members of the Privy Council of England Fellows of the Royal Society Roundheads Earls of Radnor (1679 creation) Lords Lieutenant of Ireland