Henry Rich, 1st Earl of Holland
JP | |
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Chancellor of the University of Cambridge | |
In office 1628–1649 | |
Governor of Windsor Castle and Landguard Fort | |
In office 1628–1648 | |
Lord Lieutenant of Berkshire & Middlesex | |
In office 1628–1643 | |
Groom of the Stool | |
In office 1636–1643 | |
Privy Council of England | |
In office 1624–1642 | |
Member of Parliament for Leicester | |
In office April 1614 – June 1614 | |
Personal details | |
Born | 15 August 1590 (baptised) |
Henry Rich, 1st Earl of Holland
A close friend of Charles I and his favourite the Duke of Buckingham, Rich performed various diplomatic errands, including negotiations for Charles' marriage to Henrietta Maria of France in 1625. He took part in the unsuccessful attack on Saint-Martin-de-Ré in 1627 and held a number of important positions at court during the 1630s. When the First English Civil War began in August 1642, Rich remained in London rather than joining the Royalists, but like other moderates became disillusioned with the war. He defected in July 1643 after failing to persuade his cousin and commander-in-chief of the Parliamentarian army, Robert Devereux, 3rd Earl of Essex, to negotiate peace terms.
When Charles agreed a truce with the
Early life
Henry Rich, later Lord Holland, was the second son and youngest of four children born to
He had two sisters, Essex (1585–1658) and Lettice (1587–1619) and a brother Robert Rich, 2nd Earl of Warwick (1587–1658). He also had a number of half brothers and sisters, including Penelope (b. 1592), Isabella, Mountjoy Blount, 1st Earl of Newport (1597–1666), and Charles (1605–1627). Almost certainly fathered by Charles Mountjoy, these children were brought up within the Rich family and appear in its pedigree, with the exception of Mountjoy, who was legitimised after his father's death.[4]
His father Robert was the wealthiest landowner in
In 1612, he married Isabel Cope, whose dowry included Cope House in Kensington. This was greatly expanded by Rich in 1624 to 1625 and renamed Holland House; largely destroyed in 1940, parts of the original house still remain.[5] They had numerous children, including Frances (1617–1672), Robert (1619–1675), Henry (1620–1669), Isabella (1623–1670), Susannah (1628–1649), Diana (d. 1659), Charles (d. 1645), Cope (1635–1676) and Mary (1636–1666).[6] Several of the family tombs are at St Mary Abbots Church, Kensington.[7]
Career; pre-1639
Rich was educated at
As was then common, Rich completed his education by studying law at the Inner Temple in 1611 and was re-elected for Leicester in the short-lived Addled Parliament of 1614. Clarendon later wrote he was ideally suited to the Jacobean era court, being "a very handsome man, of a lovely and winning presence".[10] However, wealth was also a prerequisite; his father-in-law Sir Walter Cope died in 1614 with debts of over £27,000, greatly impacting Rich's ability to advance.[11]
Rich became close to
In 1627, Rich was involved in the disastrous Siege of Saint-Martin-de-Ré, which led to Buckingham's impeachment by Parliament; although this failed, he was assassinated on 23 August 1628. The next day, Rich wrote to Charles claiming he had been promised the position Governor of Windsor Castle.[12] This request was granted, along with an appointment as Governor of Landguard Fort, and he benefited from his relationship with Henrietta Maria, who had replaced Buckingham as Charles' closest advisor. Over the next few months, he was made Lord Lieutenant of Berkshire and Middlesex, Chancellor of the University of Cambridge, and numerous other offices.[13]
Although he failed to become First Lord of the Admiralty, the 1630s was the highpoint of his career as a courtier; as a Privy councillor, he was frequently consulted on foreign affairs, although his anti-Spanish policy was at odds with that pursued by Charles. In 1636, he was appointed Groom of the Stool; by this stage the term indicated proximity to the monarch rather than function, and the officeholder was an important part of the Royal household.[14]
Career; Wars of the Three Kingdoms
Despite his close links to the court and reputation for extravagance and ambition, Lord Conway described Rich and his brother Warwick as the "temporal and spiritual heads of the Puritans".[3] This shows the danger of conflating "Roundhead" and "Puritan", which often implied a political outlook as much as a moral one. While the majority supported Parliament during the civil war, men like Sir William Savile were equally opposed to Catholicism but became Royalists out of a sense of personal loyalty.[15]
Rich used his patronage to appoint "Godly" clergy, while opposing Laudianism and "Popery", causing a breach with Henrietta Maria, who was a devout Catholic.[16] In addition, he supported two causes central to the Puritan movement, the first being the restoration of Charles' Protestant nephew, Charles I Louis, Elector Palatine, to his hereditary lands in the Electoral Palatinate.[16]
The second was participation in the colonial movement, which sought to establish English possessions in the West Indies and North America, then dominated by Spain. Rich supported colonies in Virginia and Bermuda and from 1630 to 1642 was governor of the Providence Island Company. While his attendance at company meetings was irregular, he helped secure funding and support for its activities, including Privateer attacks on Spanish merchant ships.[17] Many of his colleagues were leaders of the Parliamentarian opposition in 1641, including John Pym, John Hampden, Lord Saye and Lord Brooke.[18]
The Wars of the Three Kingdoms began in 1639 with the first of the two Bishops' Wars against the Scots Covenanters; Rich served as General of Horse in a chaotic campaign that ended without significant action. A second defeat in 1640 forced Charles to recall Parliament in November, which impeached both Archbishop Laud and the Earl of Strafford. A long-time opponent of Strafford, Rich gave evidence against him but abstained from the vote which led to his execution in May 1641.[3]
Although Charles appointed him commander of the
He resumed his seat in the House of Lords, while an attempt to impeach him for treason was blocked by Denzil Holles, head of the "Peace" faction in Parliament.[20] Rich was one of ten lords appointed to the Westminster Assembly, a body established with Scottish representatives to agree reforms for the Church of England.[21] By the time Charles surrendered in June 1646, his opponents were divided between moderates led by Holles who dominated Parliament and radicals within the New Model Army, headed by Oliver Cromwell. After negotiations between the king and Parliament broke down in late 1647, the Scots, English moderates and Royalists created an alliance to restore Charles to the throne. The Second English Civil War began in April 1648.[22]
On 4 July, a petition was presented to Parliament demanding the resumption of negotiations with Charles, and on the same day, Rich and George Villiers, 2nd Duke of Buckingham raised 400 cavalry in an attempt to seize London. This was insufficient for the task and the Royalists retreated through Surrey, before being intercepted and scattered outside Surbiton by Sir Michael Livesey. Rich and 200 men reached St Neots on Sunday 9 July, along with Colonel John Dalbier, an experienced German mercenary who served with him in the 1627 Saint-Martin-de-Ré expedition.[23]
The next day, they were attacked by a detachment from the New Model under Colonel Adrian Scrope; Dalbier was killed, Buckingham escaped to France and Rich taken prisoner to Windsor Castle.[24] The war ended with Parliamentarian victory at Preston in August, followed by the Execution of Charles I on 30 January 1649. On 27 February, Rich was taken to London for trial; many felt he should have been punished in 1643 and despite pleas from his brother Warwick, he was executed on 9 March along with Lord Capell and the Duke of Hamilton.[25]
Shortly before his death, Rich composed a statement arguing he had always been faithful to Parliament, a "remarkable claim for someone who had deserted them twice".[2] However, the suggestion he never changed the "principles that ever I professed" and was more consistent than those responsible for executing Charles was a view shared by many Parliamentarian moderates.[2]
References
- ^ a b Donagan 1976, p. 317.
- ^ a b c Hopper 2010, p. 242.
- ^ a b c d Smut 2004.
- ^ Usher 2004.
- ^ Historic England. "Holland House (Grade II) (1267135)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 23 February 2021.
- ^ Cracrofts Peerage.
- ^ Lysons, Daniel. "Kensington Pages 170-230 The Environs of London: Volume 3, County of Middlesex". British History Online. Retrieved 7 November 2021.
- ^ a b Watson & Coates 2010.
- ^ Parker 1997, pp. 28–29.
- ^ Clarendon 1704, p. 49.
- ^ Donagan 1976, p. 322.
- ^ Donagan 1976, p. 324.
- ^ Donagan 1976, p. 325.
- ^ Bucholz 2006, pp. 13–14.
- ^ Hardacre 1956, p. 10.
- ^ a b Donagan 1976, p. 342.
- ^ Donagan 1976, p. 343.
- ^ Van Duinen 2007, p. 531.
- ^ BCW.
- ^ Palmer 1982, pp. 24–25.
- ^ Van Dixhoorn 2007.
- ^ Royle 2004, pp. 424–425.
- ^ Porter 2004.
- ^ Royle 2004, pp. 452–453.
- ^ Royle 2004, p. 470.
Sources
- BCW. "The Cessation of Arms". BCW Project. Retrieved 26 February 2021.
- Bucholz, RO (2006). The Bedchamber; Groom of the Stole in "Office-Holders in Modern Britain: Volume 11" (Revised), Court Officers, 1660-1837. London University. Retrieved 25 February 2021.
- Clarendon, Earl of (1704). The History of the Rebellion and Civil Wars in England; Volume I (2019 ed.). Wentworth Press. ISBN 978-0469445765.
- Cracrofts Peerage. "Henry [Rich], 1st Baron Kensington later 1st Earl of Holland, KG PC". Cracrofts Peerage. Retrieved 24 February 2021.
- Donagan, Barbara (1976). "A Courtier's Progress: Greed and Consistency in the Life of the Earl of Holland". The Historical Journal. 19 (2): 317–353. S2CID 159941462.
- Hardacre, Paul (1956). The Royalists during the Puritan Revolution. Springer. ISBN 978-9401745635.
- Hopper, Andrew (2010). "The Self-Fashioning of Gentry Turncoats during the English Civil Wars". British History. 49 (2): 236–257. JSTOR 23265201.
- Palmer, William (1982). "Oliver St. John and the Middle Group in the Long Parliament, 1643-1645: A Reappraisal". Albion: A Quarterly Journal Concerned with British Studies. 14 (1): 20–26. JSTOR 4048483.
- ISBN 978-0415128834.
- Porter, Stephen (2004). "Dalbier, John (d. 1648)". doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/7010. (Subscription or UK public library membershiprequired.)
- Royle, Trevor (2004). Civil War: The Wars of the Three Kingdoms 1638–1660 (2006 ed.). Abacus. ISBN 978-0-349-11564-1.
- Smut, R Malcolm (2004). "Rich, Henry, first earl of Holland (1598-1649)". doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/23484. (Subscription or UK public library membershiprequired.)
- Usher, Brett (2004). "Rich, Robert, first earl of Warwick". doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/61021. (Subscription or UK public library membershiprequired.)
- Van Dixhoorn, Chad (2007). "Westminster assembly (act. 1643–1652)". doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/92780. (Subscription or UK public library membershiprequired.)
- Van Duinen, Jared (2007). The Nature of Puritan Opposition in 1630s England in "Prosopography Approaches" and Applications: A Handbook. University of Oxford Linacre College Unit for Prosopographical Research. ISBN 978-1900934121.
- Watson, Paula; Coates, Ben (2010). RICH, Henry (1590-1649), of Smithfield, London and Kensington, Mdx in "The House of Commons 1604-1629". Cambridge University Press.
External links
- Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). . Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 13 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 586.