Sir John Northcote, 1st Baronet (1599 – 24 June 1676) 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 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 ...

at various times between 1640 and 1676. He supported the Parliamentarian cause in 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 ...

Origins

Northcote was the eldest surviving son of John Northcote (1570–1632) of Hayne, Newton St Cyres, near

Crediton Crediton is a town and civil parishes in England, civil parish in the Mid Devon district of Devon, England. It stands on the A377 road, A377 Exeter to Barnstaple road at the junction with the A3072 road to Tiverton, Devon, Tiverton, north w ...

, Devon, (whose splendid monument he erected in Newton St Cyres Church) by his second wife Susanna Pollard, daughter of Sir Hugh II Pollard of King's Nympton. The family of Northcote originated in Devon at the

Domesday Book Domesday Book ( ; the Middle English spelling of "Doomsday Book") is a manuscript record of the Great Survey of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086 at the behest of William the Conqueror. The manuscript was originally known by ...

manor of Northcote in the parish of East Down in North Devon. The

Heraldic Visitation Heraldic visitations were tours of inspection undertaken by Kings of Arms (or alternatively by heralds, or junior officers of arms, acting as the kings' deputies) throughout England, Wales and Ireland. Their purpose was to register and regulat ...

s of Devon lists the founder of the family as ''Galfridus de Northcote, Miles'' ("knight"), living in 1103. The family later in the 16th century made its fortune as cloth merchants at

Education

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 9 May 1617, aged 16 and was a student of

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 ...

in 1618. 'Alumni Oxonienses, 1500–1714: Nabbes-Nykke', Alumni Oxonienses 1500–1714 (1891), pp. 1050–1083. Date accessed: 23 June 2012
/ref>

Career

In November 1640 he was elected Member of Parliament for the newly re-established borough of Ashburton in the

Long Parliament The Long Parliament was an Parliament of England, English Parliament which lasted from 1640 until 1660, making it the longest-lasting Parliament in English and British history. It followed the fiasco of the Short Parliament, which had convened f ...

. On 16 July 1641, he was created a

baronet A baronet ( or ; abbreviated Bart or Bt) or the female equivalent, a baronetess (, , or ; abbreviation Btss), is the holder of a baronetcy, a hereditary title awarded by the British Crown. The title of baronet is mentioned as early as the 14th ...

.History of Parliament Online – Northcote, Sir John
/ref> Having Presbyterian sympathies, on the outbreak of 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 declared for

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 used his considerable wealth and influence to aid the cause. In 1642 he provided £450 to finance military action in

Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...

, and in June promised more money and troops for the war in England. His actions were sufficiently notable for him to be excluded by name from the general pardon issued in November 1642 by King Charles I. Having begun the war commanding a regiment of the

Devon Trained Bands The Devon Trained Bands were a part-time militia force recruited from Devonshire in South West England, first organised in 1558. They were periodically embodied for home defence and internal security, including the Spanish Armada campaign in 158 ...

, by 1643 Sir John was leading a regiment of 1,200 men in Devon, and was taken prisoner by royal forces after the surrender 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 ...

in September 1643. Northcote was kept captive until the autumn of 1644, when he was exchanged, and resumed his Parliamentary seat in May 1645. He subscribed to the Covenant, and was excluded from Parliament in

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 ...

in December 1648, but returned to the House of Commons once more as Member for

Devon Devon ( ; historically also known as Devonshire , ) is a ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by the Bristol Channel to the north, Somerset and Dorset to the east, the English Channel to the south, and Cornwall to the west ...

in all three Parliaments of the Protectorate. In the last of these, during

Richard Cromwell Richard Cromwell (4 October 162612 July 1712) was an English statesman who served as Lord Protector of the Commonwealth of England, Scotland and Ireland from 1658 to 1659. He was the son of Lord Protector Oliver Cromwell. Following his father ...

's rule, he was a frequent speaker, and after the restoration of the

Rump Parliament The Rump Parliament describes the members of the Long Parliament who remained in session after Colonel Thomas Pride, on 6 December 1648, commanded his soldiers to Pride's Purge, purge the House of Commons of those Members of Parliament, members ...

he took a leading role in organising a petition from Devon to the Speaker that the vacant seats should be filled. In the Convention Parliament of 1660 he was elected both for Devon and for

Helston Helston () is a town and civil parish in Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. It is situated at the northern end of the The Lizard, Lizard Peninsula approximately east of Penzance and south-west of Falmouth, Cornwall, Falmouth.Ordnance Survey: ...

, though his return for the latter was ruled void. He subsequently sat also for

Barnstaple Barnstaple ( or ) is a river-port town and civil parish in the North Devon district of Devon, England. The town lies at the River Taw's lowest crossing point before the Bristol Channel. From the 14th century, it was licensed to export wool from ...

from 1667 until his death. A manuscript purporting to be the ''Notebook of Sir John Northcote, containing Memoranda of Proceedings during the first session of the Long Parliament, 1640'' was published in 1887. However, its authenticity was challenged on the grounds that it covered a period before Sir John had a seat in the House.

Marriage and children

Northcote married Grace Halswell (died 1675), a daughter and heiress of Hugh Halswell (died 1626) of Chamberlain Street,

Wells, Somerset Wells () is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and civil parishes in England, civil parish in Somerset, located on the southern edge of the Mendip Hills, south-east of Weston-super-Mare, south-west of Bath, Somerset, Bath a ...

, by his wife and cousin Elizabeth Brounkard. Hugh was the son of Richard Halswell and Cicely Reeves, and grandson of Robert Halswell (died 1570) of Halswell, Somerset. Northcote had by Grace seven sons and four daughters: * Sir Arthur Northcote, 2nd Baronet (1628–1688), eldest son and heir. *John Northcote (born 1629), 2nd son, married Catherine Foljambe. *Lewis Northcote, 3rd son, married Jane Copleston *Hugh Northcote (born 1635), apparently died young *Halswell Northcote (born 1639), 4th son, married Mary Crooke. *William I Northcote (1642–3), died young *William II Northcote (born 1648), married Alice Leigh *Susanna Northcote (born 1633), married in 1653, as his 2nd wife, Col. Robert Fortescue (1617–1677), 2nd son of Hugh Fortescue (1593–1663) of Filleigh by his wife Mary Rolle, daughter of Robert Rolle (died 1633) of Heanton Satchville, Petrockstowe.Vivian, p.354-5, pedigree of Fortescue Their only son Robert Fortescue (1633–1633), died an infant, whose mural monument exists in Newton St Cyres Church. Of their three daughters, two died as infants, but the eldest Elizabeth Fortescue (born 1659) survived and married George Horner (1646–1707) of Mells Manor in Somerset, and was the grandmother of Elizabeth Fox, Countess of Ilchester. The daughter from Robert Fortescue's first marriage to Grace Grenville, daughter of Sir Bevil Grenville was Grace Fortescue who married Sir Halswell Tynte, 1st Baronet (1649–1702), MP for

Bridgwater Bridgwater is a historic market town and civil parish in Somerset, England. The town had a population of 41,276 at the 2021 census. Bridgwater is at the edge of the Somerset Levels, in level and well-wooded country. The town lies along both sid ...

1679–1689.Victoria County History, Somerset, Volume 6, 1992, Goathurst: Manors, pp. 47–4

/ref> Tynte was a cousin of Grace Halswell, being the son of Jane Halswell (died 1650) (sole heiress of Rev. Hugh Halswell (died 1672) of Halswell), the wife of John Tynte, whose inheritance became the manor of Halswell. *Grace I Northcote (1632–1632), died young *Elizabeth Northcote (born 1638), married Thomas Pointingdon. *Grace II Northcote (1641–1660)

Sources

*Vivian, Lt.Col. J.L., (Ed.) The Visitations of the County of Devon: Comprising the Heralds' Visitations of 1531, 1564 & 1620, Exeter, 1895, p. 582, pedigree of Northcote

References

* *D. Brunton & D. H. Pennington, ''Members of the Long Parliament'' (London: George Allen & Unwin, 1954) *''Cobbett's Parliamentary history of England, from the Norman Conquest in 1066 to the year 1803'' (London: Thomas Hansard, 1808

* ''Burke's Peerage and Baronetage'' (London: Henry Colburn & Richard Bentley, 1832

* Edward Kimber & Richard Johnson, ''The Baronetage of England'' (London, 1771

External links

''Notebook of Sir John Northcote'' (Internet Archive)
, - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Northcote, John 1599 births 1676 deaths Northcote, John, 1st Baronet Alumni of Exeter College, Oxford Members of the Inner Temple High sheriffs of Devon Devon Militia officers Roundheads English MPs 1640–1648 English MPs 1654–1655 English MPs 1656–1658 English MPs 1659 English MPs 1660 English MPs 1661–1679 Members of the Parliament of England (pre-1707) for Devon Members of the Parliament of England (pre-1707) for Barnstaple Members of the Parliament of England for Ashburton

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 * Second E ...