Sir Thomas Twisden, 1st Baronet (2 January 1602 – 2 January 1683) was an English lawyer and politician who sat in the

House of Commons of England The House of Commons of England was the lower house of the Parliament of England (which Laws in Wales Acts 1535 and 1542, incorporated Wales) from its development in the 14th century to the union of England and Scotland in 1707, when it was re ...

in two periods between 1646 and 1660. He was a High Court judge who presided at the trial of the regicides.

Biography

Twisden was the second son of Sir William Twysden, 1st Baronet of Roydon,

East Peckham East Peckham is a village and civil parish in Kent, England on the River Medway. The parish covers the main village as well as Hale Street and Beltring. History The Domesday entry for East and West Peckham reads:- :'' The Archbishop himse ...

Kent Kent is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Essex across the Thames Estuary to the north, the Strait of Dover to the south-east, East Sussex to the south-west, Surrey to the west, and Gr ...

and his wife Lady Anne Finch, daughter of Sir Moyle Finch. John Debrett, William Courthope
''Debrett's Baronetage of England: with alphabetical lists of such baronetcies''
/ref> He was admitted at Emmanuel College, Cambridge in 1614. He was admitted at 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 ...

in November 1617 and called to the Bar in 1626. In 1646 he became a Bencher. He changed the spelling of his surname to Twisden. Twisden was Recorder of

Maidstone Maidstone is the largest Town status in the United Kingdom, town in Kent, England, of which it is the county town. Maidstone is historically important and lies east-south-east of London. The River Medway runs through the centre of the town, l ...

, and in 1646, he was elected Member of Parliament for

in the latter part of the Long Parliament but was excluded in 1648 under Pride's Purge.History of Parliament Online - Twisden, Thomas
/ref> Jane Lady Twysden by Mary Beale Twisden became Serjeant at Law in 1654 and purchased the manor of Bradbourne House. East Malling, Kent in 1656. After the Restoration of Charles II, he was MP for Maidstone again in 1660. He became a judge of the Court of King's Bench, and was knighted in 1660. He presided at the trials of the regicides, and later those of Sir Henry Vane the Younger for

treason Treason is the crime of attacking a state (polity), state authority to which one owes allegiance. This typically includes acts such as participating in a war against one's native country, attempting to Coup d'état, overthrow its government, spy ...

, and of John Bunyan and

George Fox George Fox (July 1624 Old Style and New Style dates, O.S. – 13 January 1691 Old Style and New Style dates, O.S.) was an English Dissenters, English Dissenter, who was a founder of the Quakers, Religious Society of Friends, commonly known as t ...

. Despite his persecution of leading Quakers like Bunyan and Fox he was, by the standards of the age he lived in, generally considered a mild enough man in religious matters. 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 ...

, of Twisden of Bradbourne, Kent, on 13 June 1666. He retired from the Bench in 1678, pleading age and ill health.

Family

Twisden married Jane Tomlinson, daughter of John Tomlinson, of St Michael's-le-Belfry, York, and Eleanor Dodsworth, and sister of the regicide Matthew Tomlinson (whose life was spared at the Restoration), and had eleven children. His son

Roger Roger is a masculine given name, and a surname. The given name is derived from the Old French personal names ' and '. These names are of Germanic languages">Germanic origin, derived from the elements ', ''χrōþi'' ("fame", "renown", "honour") ...

succeeded to the baronetcy and his daughter Margaret married Sir Thomas Style, 2nd Baronet. His brother was the baronet under the original spelling Sir Roger Twysden, 2nd Baronet.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Twisden, Thomas 1602 births 1683 deaths Members of the Inner Temple Alumni of Emmanuel College, Cambridge Justices of the King's Bench 17th-century English lawyers English MPs 1640–1648 English MPs 1660 Baronets in the Baronetage of England People from East Peckham