Sir Harbottle Grimston, 2nd Baronet
Sir Harbottle Grimston, 2nd Baronet (27 January 1603 – 2 January 1685) was an English lawyer and politician who sat in the House of Commons at various times between 1640 and 1685 and was Speaker in 1660. During the English Civil War he remained a Parliamentarian but was sympathetic to the Royalists.
Life
Grimston was born at Bradfield Hall, near Manningtree, the son of Sir Harbottle Grimston, 1st Baronet (d. 1648). He was educated at Emmanuel College, Cambridge,[1] and became a barrister of Lincoln's Inn. He was recorder of Harwich and recorder of Colchester[2] and elected MP for Harwich in 1628.
As member for Colchester, Grimston sat in the Short Parliament of 1640, and he represented the same borough during the Long Parliament,[3] speedily becoming a leading member of the popular party. He attacked Archbishop Laud with great vigour and was a member of the important committees of the parliament, including the one appointed in consequence of the attempted seizure of the five members. He became deputy-lieutenant of Essex after the passing of the militia ordinance in January 1642.[2]
Harbottle disliked taking up arms against the king, but remained nominally an adherent of the parliamentary party during the
From this time Grimston's sympathies appear to have been with the Royalists. He was turned out of the
In 1656 Grimston was returned to the Second Protectorate Parliament as MP for Essex.[3] However he was not allowed to take his seat, and with 97 others who were similarly treated he issued a remonstrance to the public.
Grimston was among the secluded members who re-entered the restored
Grimston did not retain the office of Speaker after the dissolution of the Convention Parliament, but he was a member of the commission which tried the regicides, and in November 1660 he was appointed Master of the Rolls. Report says he paid Clarendon £8,000 for the office, while Burnet declares he obtained it without any application of his own. His friend and chaplain, Burnet, speaks very highly of his piety and impartiality, while not omitting the undoubted fact that he was much sharpened against popery.[2]
In 1661, Harbottle was re-elected MP for Colchester in the Cavalier Parliament. He was re-elected in the two elections of 1679 and in 1681.[3]
Works
Harbottle translated the law reports of his father-in-law, the judge Sir George Croke (1560–1642), which were written in Norman-French, and five editions of this work appeared. Seven of his parliamentary speeches were published, and he also wrote Strena Christiana (London, 1644, and other editions).[2]
Family
Grimston's first wife Mary, a daughter of Sir George Croke, bore him six sons and two daughters, He married secondly Anne Meautys, widow of
His son George married
Arms
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References
- ^ "Grimstone, Harbottle (GRMN619H)". A Cambridge Alumni Database. University of Cambridge.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i Chisholm 1911.
- ^ a b c d History of Parliament Grimston, Sir Harbottle (1603–85), of Gorhambury, Herts
- ^ "Charles II - volume 1: May 29-31, 1660 Pages 1-16 Calendar of State Papers Domestic: Charles II, 1660-1. Originally published by Her Majesty's Stationery Office, London, 1860". British History Online. Retrieved 13 July 2020.
- .
- ^ James Alexander Manning (1850). The Lives of the Speakers of the House of Commons. p. 354.
- This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Grimston, Sir Harbottle". Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 12 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 603.
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