Sir Gervase Clifton, 1st Baronet, K.B. (25 November 1587 – 28 June 1666) 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 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 parliament. ...

at various times between 1614 and 1666. He supported the

Royalist A royalist supports a particular monarch as head of state for a particular kingdom, or of a particular dynastic claim. In the abstract, this position is royalism. It is distinct from monarchism, which advocates a monarchical system of governme ...

cause in the

English Civil War The English Civil War (1642–1651) was a series of civil wars and political machinations between Parliamentarians (" Roundheads") and Royalists led by Charles I ("Cavaliers"), mainly over the manner of England's governance and issues of re ...

. He was educated at

St John's College, Cambridge St John's College is a Colleges of the University of Cambridge, constituent college of the University of Cambridge founded by the House of Tudor, Tudor matriarch Lady Margaret Beaufort. In constitutional terms, the college is a charitable corpo ...

Political career

In 1603, at the English coronation of King

James I James I may refer to: People *James I of Aragon (1208–1276) *James I of Sicily or James II of Aragon (1267–1327) *James I, Count of La Marche (1319–1362), Count of Ponthieu *James I, Count of Urgell (1321–1347) *James I of Cyprus (1334–13 ...

, Clifton was made a Knight of the

Order of the Bath The Most Honourable Order of the Bath is a British order of chivalry founded by George I of Great Britain, George I on 18 May 1725. The name derives from the elaborate medieval ceremony for appointing a knight, which involved Bathing#Medieval ...

. He became a

Justice of the Peace A justice of the peace (JP) is a judicial officer of a lower or ''puisne'' court, elected or appointed by means of a commission ( letters patent) to keep the peace. In past centuries the term commissioner of the peace was often used with the sa ...

for Nottinghamshire in 1609, remaining until 1646. In 1611, he was third on the list of creations for the new order of

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 ...

. He was active in local Nottinghamshire and national politics in both the reign of James I and

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 ...

. He was

High Sheriff of Nottinghamshire This is a list of the High Sheriffs of the English county of Nottinghamshire. 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 centuri ...

in 1610 and High Steward of East Retford from 1616 to 1647. During the reign of King James he was elected

Member of Parliament A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house members of ...

for

Nottinghamshire Nottinghamshire (; abbreviated Notts.) is a landlocked county in the East Midlands region of England, bordering South Yorkshire to the north-west, Lincolnshire to the east, Leicestershire to the south, and Derbyshire to the west. The traditi ...

in 1614, 1621, 1624 and 1625. He was County Treasurer from 1625 to 1626, and Deputy Lieutenant from 1626 to 1642. In 1626, he was elected MP for

Nottingham Nottingham ( , East Midlands English, locally ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, city and Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area in Nottinghamshire, East Midlands, England. It is located north-west of London, south-east ...

and in 1628, he was re-elected MP for Nottinghamshire in 1628. He sat until 1629 when King Charles decided to rule without parliament for eleven years. In November 1640, Clifton was elected MP for

East Retford East or Orient is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from west and is the direction from which the Sun rises on the Earth. Etymology As in other languages, the word is formed from the fac ...

in the

Long Parliament The Long Parliament was an English Parliament which lasted from 1640 until 1660. It followed the fiasco of the Short Parliament, which had convened for only three weeks during the spring of 1640 after an 11-year parliamentary absence. In Septem ...

. He took up arms in the King's cause in the Civil War. He was a Commissioner for the King at Newark and Oxford, and a Commissioner of Array for Lincolnshire and Nottinghamshire in 1642. When King Charles called for members of the Long Parliament loyal to him to meet in session Oxford Clifton did so and was disabled from sitting in parliament at Westminster. With the defeat of the Royalist cause in 1646 and the capture of the King, Clifton lost his political influence both nationally and locally. He was declared a "

delinquent Delinquent or delinquents may refer to: * A person who commits a felony * A juvenile delinquent, often shortened as delinquent is a young person (under 18) who fails to do that which is required by law; see juvenile delinquency * A person who fai ...

" and fined £7,625 (equivalent to £ in ) . By the time sequestration of his estates was ended in 1650 he had paid off about half of the money. He was not active in politics again until after the restoration of the monarchy in 1660. After the Restoration he regained his influence in Nottinghamshire and, from 1660, served Justice of the Peace for Nottinghamshire, High Steward of East Retford and Deputy Lieutenant. He was re-elected MP for Nottinghamshire in 1661 for the

Cavalier Parliament The Cavalier Parliament of England lasted from 8 May 1661 until 24 January 1679. It was the longest English Parliament, and longer than any Great British or UK Parliament to date, enduring for nearly 18 years of the quarter-century reign of C ...

. He held all these positions until his death, aged 78, in 1666.

Family

Clifton was born to his mother Lady Winifred Thorold three months after the death of his father Sir George Clifton, in 1587. The next year, with the death of his grandfather, Sir Gervase Clifton, he inherited the Clifton estates in Nottinghamshire.Nottingham University His guardians were his uncle, William Thorold, and Lord Burghley, although his early care fell to his maternal grandmother Lady Anne Thorold.Bruce Later he was educated at

St. John's College, Cambridge St John's College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge founded by the Tudor matriarch Lady Margaret Beaufort. In constitutional terms, the college is a charitable corporation established by a charter dated 9 April 1511. The ...

, and 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 associations for barristers and judges. To be called to the Bar and practise as a barrister in England and Wal ...

. Clifton was married seven times and had thirteen children. He married Lady Penelope Rich (died 26 October 1613), daughter of

Robert Rich, 1st Earl of Warwick Robert Rich, 3rd Baron Rich, 1st Earl of Warwick (December 1559 – 24 March 1619), was an English nobleman, known as Baron Rich between 1581 and 1618, when he was created Earl of Warwick. He was the first husband of Penelope Devereux, whom he d ...

, and Lady Penelope Devereux. This marriage produced one son: * Sir Gervase Clifton, 2nd Baronet (ca.1612–1676) He married Lady Frances Clifford (died 1627), daughter of

Francis Clifford, 4th Earl of Cumberland Francis Clifford, 4th Earl of Cumberland (15594 January 1641) was a member of the Clifford family which held the seat of Skipton from 1310 to 1676. He was the second son of Henry Clifford, 2nd Earl of Cumberland and Anne Dacre and inherited his ...

, and Grisold Hughes. This marriage produced six children *Margaret Clifton (d. Feb 1697/98) *Frances Clifton *Anne Clifton *Lettice Clifton (d. 1659) *Elizabeth Clifton *

Clifford Clifton Sir Clifford Clifton (1626 - June 1670) was an English landowner and politician who sat in the House of Commons from 1659. Early life Clifford was baptised on 22 June 1626. He was the son of Sir Gervase Clifton, 1st Baronet of Clifton-on Trent, N ...

(1626–1670) He married Mary Egioke (died 1630), daughter of John Egioke of Egioke Manor,

Inkberrow Inkberrow is a village in Worcestershire, England, often thought to be the model for Ambridge, the setting of BBC Radio 4's long-running series ''The Archers''. In particular, The Bull, the fictional Ambridge pub, is supposed to be based on The ...

, Worcestershire, by his wife Anne, daughter of Nicholas Huband, of

Ipsley Redditch is a town and local government district in north-east Worcestershire, England. The town is divided into separate districts. All street-name signs in Redditch have the street name in white lettering on a blue background and the district n ...

, Warwickshire.Phillimore, W.P.W., MA, BCL, (editor)''The Visitation of Worcestershire 1569'', London, 1888, p.52. He married Isobel Meek (died 1637). He married Anne South (died 1639), daughter of Sir Francis South of Kelstern, Lincolnshire. He married Jane Eyre (died 1655), daughter of Anthony Eyre of

Laughton-en-le-Morthen Laughton en le Morthen is a village and civil parish in the Metropolitan Borough of Rotherham lying to the south of Rotherham, South Yorkshire, England, and its main attraction is the All Saints Church with its tower and spire of 185 feet. The ...

, Nottinghamshire, and

Rampton, Nottinghamshire Rampton is a village in the civil parish of Rampton and Woodbeck, about east of Retford in the Bassetlaw district, in the county of Nottinghamshire, England. The parish is long and thin, extending about east–west but only about north–so ...

. This marriage produced four children: *Jane Clifton *Charles Clifton *Mary Clifton *Robert Clifton (b. 1641) – eldest son became

Sir Gervase Clifton, 4th Baronet Two unrelated baronetcies have been created in the surname of Clifton. The Clifton Baronetcy, of Clifton in the County of Nottinghamshire, was created in the Baronetage of England on 22 May 1611 for Sir Gervas Clifton, of Clifton Hall, Nottingh ...

Lastly, he married Lady Alice Hastings, daughter of

Henry Hastings, 5th Earl of Huntingdon Henry Hastings, 5th Earl of Huntingdon (24 April 1586 – 14 November 1643), was a prominent English nobleman and literary patron in England during the first half of the seventeenth century. Life He was born at Ashby-de-la-Zouch, Leicesters ...

, and Lady Elizabeth Stanley, on 17 December 1656 at

St. Andrew Undershaft St Andrew Undershaft is a Church of England church in the City of London, the historic nucleus and modern financial centre of London. It is located on St Mary Axe, within the Aldgate ward, and is a rare example of a City church that survived both ...

, London.

Notes

References

*Bruce, Rosslyn (1906).
The Clifton Book
Retrieved 31 August 2009
Biography of Sir Gervase Clifton, 1st Baronet (1587-1666)Manuscripts & Special Collections

University of Nottingham The University of Nottingham is a public university, public research university in Nottingham, United Kingdom. It was founded as University College Nottingham in 1881, and was granted a royal charter in 1948. The University of Nottingham belongs t ...

. Retrieved 31 August 2009. Sources used: ** P. R. Seddon, 'Sir Gervase Clifton and the Government of Nottinghamshire 1609-1640', in Transactions of the Thoroton Society, vol. XCVII, 1993, 88-98 ** Basil Duke Henning (ed), 'Sir Gervase Clifton', in The House of Commons, 1660-1690 (London: Published for the History of Parliament Trust by Secker & Warburg, 1983) ** P. R. Seddon, 'Marriage and Inheritance in the Clifton Family during the 17th century', in Transactions of the Thoroton Society, vol. LXXXIV, 1980, 33-43 ** A. H. Tricomi, 'Identifying Sir Gervase Clifton, The Addressee of

ohn Ohn is a Burmese name, used by people from Myanmar. Notable people with the name include: * Daw Ohn (1913–2003), Burmese professor in Pali * Ohn Gyaw (born 1932), Burmese Minister of Foreign Affairs from 1991 to 1998 * Ohn Kyaing (born 1944), Bur ...

Marston's Letter, 1607', in Notes and Queries, 222 (1977), 202-203 ** W. H. G. Flood, 'A John Marston Letter' o Sir Gervase Clifton in The Review of English Studies 4 (1928), 887-88 ** F. W. Dobson, 'Note on a Letter of Cardinal Richelieu in the Clifton MSS', in Transactions of the Thoroton Society 16 (1912), 155-158 ** Lady E. M. Bruce, 'Ancient Documents and Letters f Sir Gervase Cliftonat Clifton Hall', in Transactions of the Thoroton Society 15 (1911), 161-173 {{DEFAULTSORT:Clifton, Gervase 1587 births 1666 deaths Cavaliers Knights of the Bath Alumni of St John's College, Cambridge Baronets in the Baronetage of England People from Nottinghamshire High Sheriffs of Nottinghamshire Deputy Lieutenants of Nottinghamshire English MPs 1661–1679 English MPs 1614 English MPs 1621–1622 English MPs 1624–1625 English MPs 1625 English MPs 1626 English MPs 1628–1629 English MPs 1640–1648 English knights

Gervase Gervase is a masculine given name which may refer to: Pre-modern era :''Ordered chronologically'' * Gervase of Besançon (died 685), saint and a bishop of Besançon * Gervase of Bazoches (died 1108), Prince of Galilee * Gervase of Blois (died c ...