Sir John Wray, 2nd Baronet (27 November 1586 – 31 December 1655) 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 1614 and 1648. He supported the

Parliamentary 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 ...

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 ...

Life

Wray was the eldest surviving son of

Sir William Wray, 1st Baronet, of Glentworth Sir William Wray, 1st Baronet, of Glentworth, Lincolnshire (c. 1555 – 13 August 1617) was an English Member of Parliament. He represented the constituency of Grimsby from 1584 to 1585, Lincolnshire in 1601 and Grimsby again from 1604 to Novemb ...

, by his first wife, Lucy Montagu, eldest daughter of Sir Edward Montagu of Boughton. He spent the last three years of his minority in foreign travel. He was knighted at Whitehall on 7 June 1612. In 1614, he was elected Member of Parliament for

Grimsby Grimsby or Great Grimsby is a port town in Lincolnshire, England with a population of 86,138 (as of 2021). It is located near the mouth on the south bank of the Humber that flows to the North Sea. Grimsby adjoins the town of Cleethorpes dir ...

. He succeeded to the baronetcy on the death of his father on 13 August 1617. In 1625 he was elected MP for

Lincolnshire Lincolnshire (), abbreviated ''Lincs'', is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the East Midlands and Yorkshire and the Humber regions of England. It is bordered by the East Riding of Yorkshire across the Humber estuary to th ...

. In 1627, Wray was

High Sheriff of Lincolnshire This is a list of High Sheriffs of Lincolnshire. The High Sheriff is the oldest secular office under the Crown. Formerly the High Sheriff was the principal law enforcement officer in the county but over the centuries most of the responsibilit ...

, and on 15 February 1627 was placed on the commission for raising the forced loan in the county. He declined to act under the commission, to contribute to the loan, or to give security for his appearance before the council, and suffered in consequence a term of imprisonment in the

Gatehouse Prison Gatehouse Prison was a prison in Westminster, built in 1370 as the gatehouse of Westminster Abbey. It was first used as a prison by the Abbot, a powerful churchman who held considerable power over the precincts and sanctuary. It was one of the pr ...

. In 1628 he was re-elected MP for Lincolnshire and sat until 1629 when King Charles decided to rule without parliament for eleven years. In March 1636 Wray defaulted in payment of shipmoney. In April 1640 he was re-elected MP for Lincolnshire in the

Short Parliament The Short Parliament was a Parliament of England that was summoned by King Charles I of England on 20 February 1640 and sat from 13 April to 5 May 1640. It was so called because of its short session of only three weeks. After 11 years of per ...

, when he was prominent as a zealous Presbyterian. He was re-elected MP for Lincolnshire for 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 ...

in November 1640. He moved the "protestation" on 3 May 1641, subscribed £600 to the war fund on 9 April 1642, and took the covenant on 22 September 1643. He was a man of weight in the "eastern association" and in the propositions submitted to the king in July 1646 was nominated one of the conservators of the peace with Scotland. On their rejection he retired from political life and was excluded from Parliament after

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 1648. Wray was one of the early patrons of

Edward Rainbowe Edward Rainbowe or Rainbow (1608–1684) was an English academic, Church of England clergyman and a noted preacher. He was Master of Magdalene College, Cambridge, Vice-Chancellor of the University of Cambridge and Bishop of Carlisle. Li ...

. Wray was not a republican. He approved the executions of

Thomas Wentworth, 1st Earl of Strafford Thomas Wentworth, 1st Earl of Strafford (13 April 1593 (New Style, N.S.)12 May 1641), was an English people, English statesman and a major figure in the period leading up to the English Civil War. He served in Parliament of England, Parliament ...

and

William Laud William Laud (; 7 October 1573 – 10 January 1645) was a bishop in the Church of England. Appointed Archbishop of Canterbury by Charles I of England, Charles I in 1633, Laud was a key advocate of Caroline era#Religion, Charles I's religious re ...

, but not of the king.

Family

By his wife (married in September 1607) Grisilla, only daughter of Sir Hugh Bethell of Ellerton, Yorkshire, he had eight daughters and four sons: *Frances Wray (born December 1611), married on 13 January 1631 (N.S.) Capt. John Hotham *William Wray (October 1613 – November 1613) (''d.s.p.'')Burke, Messrs., John & John Bernard, ''The Extinct and Dormant Baronetcies of England, Ireland, and Scotland'', Second edition, London, 1841, p.585. *Elizabeth Wray (August 1615 – February/March 1617 N.S.) *Anne Wray (April 1617 – June/July 1621) *

Sir John Wray, 3rd Baronet Sir John Wray, 3rd Baronet (21 September 1619 – October 1664) was an English politician who sat in the House of Commons in 1654. Wray was the son of Sir John Wray, 2nd Baronet and his wife Grisella Bethell, daughter of Sir Hugh Bethell of El ...

(1619–1664) *Theophilus Wray (June/July 1624 – 21 November 1664) (''d.s.p.'')Burkes, 1841, p.585. *William Wray (b. July 1626) (''d.s.p.'') *Theodosia Wray (born January 1631 N.S.), married Sir Richard Barker in 1660. *Bethell Wray (''d.s.p.'') *Grisilla Wray, married on 19 December 1654 Anthony Thorold of Marston, Lincs. (died 1670) and had issue. His heir,

, captain in the parliamentary army, and member for Lincolnshire in the parliament of 1654–5, died in 1664, having married, first, Elizabeth, widow of

Sir Simonds D'Ewes Sir Simonds d'Ewes, 1st Baronet (18 December 1602 – 18 April 1650) was an English antiquary and politician. He was bred for the bar, was a member of the Long Parliament and left notes on its transactions. D'Ewes took the Puritan side in the Civ ...

; and, secondly, in 1661, Sarah, daughter of Sir John Evelyn of

West Dean, Wiltshire West Dean is a village and Civil parishes in England, civil parish in southeast Wiltshire, England; the Wiltshire/Hampshire border runs through the eastern part of the village. The village is on the River Dun (River Test), River Dun, about east ...

. His sole surviving issue was a daughter by his second wife, Elizabeth, wife of Nicholas Saunderson, eldest son of George Saunderson, 5th Viscount Castleton. On her death without surviving issue the Glentworth estates passed by entail to her next heir male, Sir Cecil Wray, 11th Baronet.

References

, - {{DEFAULTSORT:Wray, John 1586 births 1655 deaths Members of the Parliament of England for Great Grimsby Baronets in the Baronetage of England 16th-century English people High sheriffs of Lincolnshire English MPs 1614 English MPs 1625 English MPs 1628–1629 English MPs 1640 (April) English MPs 1640–1648