Christopher Wray (MP)
Encyclopedia
Sir Christopher Wray was an English politician who sat in the House of Commons
at various times between 1614 and 1646. He supported the Parliamentary cause in the English Civil War
.
of Ashby
and Barlings
, Lincolnshire
, the Lord Chief Justice. In 1621 he was elected Member of Parliament
for Grimsby. He was knighted on 12 November 1623. He was re-elected MP for Grimsby in 1624 and 1625. He was elected again in 1628 and sat until 1629 when King Charles decided to rule without parliament for eleven years. He successfully resisted the levy of ship money
in 1636.
In April 1640, Wray was elected MP for Grimsby in the Short Parliament
and was re-elected for the Long Parliament
in November 1640. He was Deputy Lieutenant
of Lincolnshire under the militia ordinance. During the First English Civil War
he co-operated in the field with John Hotham
. He was appointed on 15 April 1645 commissioner of the admiralty, and on 5 December following commissioner resident with the Scottish forces before Newark. He died on 8 February 1646.
on 3 August 1623. They had six sons and six daughters. The eldest son, Sir William Wray, bart. (so created in June 1660), died in October 1669, leaving, with other issue by his wife Olympia, second daughter of Sir Humphrey Tufton, of The Mote, Kent
, a son, Sir Christopher Wray, who on the extinction of the male line of the elder branch of the family succeeded in 1672 to the Glentworth baronetcy
, and died without issue in August 1679. On the death about March 1685–6 of his only surviving brother and successor in title, Sir William Wray, the junior baronetcy became extinct.
House of Commons of England
The House of Commons of England was the lower house of the Parliament of England from its development in the 14th century to the union of England and Scotland in 1707, when it was replaced by the House of Commons of Great Britain...
at various times between 1614 and 1646. He supported the Parliamentary cause in the English Civil War
English Civil War
The English Civil War was a series of armed conflicts and political machinations between Parliamentarians and Royalists...
.
Life
Wray was the son of Christopher WrayChristopher Wray
Sir Christopher Wray was an English judge and Chief Justice of the King’s Bench.-Early life and career:Wray, the third son of Thomas Wray, seneschal in 1535 of Coverham Abbey, Yorkshire, by Joan, daughter of Robert Jackson of Gatenby, Bedale, in the same county, was born at Bedale in 1524...
of Ashby
Ashby
-Surname:* Alan Ashby , American baseball player* Alexander Essebiensis , English theologian and poet* Andy Ashby , American baseball player* Carl Ashby , American abstract expressionist artist...
and Barlings
Barlings
Barlings and Low Barlings are two small hamlets lying south off the A158 road at Langworth, in the West Lindsey district of Lincolnshire, England. Low Barlings is a scattered collection of homes, situated along a trackway south from Barlings towards boggy ground near the River Witham...
, Lincolnshire
Lincolnshire
Lincolnshire is a county in the east of England. It borders Norfolk to the south east, Cambridgeshire to the south, Rutland to the south west, Leicestershire and Nottinghamshire to the west, South Yorkshire to the north west, and the East Riding of Yorkshire to the north. It also borders...
, the Lord Chief Justice. In 1621 he was elected Member of Parliament
Member of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...
for Grimsby. He was knighted on 12 November 1623. He was re-elected MP for Grimsby in 1624 and 1625. He was elected again in 1628 and sat until 1629 when King Charles decided to rule without parliament for eleven years. He successfully resisted the levy of ship money
Ship money
Ship money refers to a tax that Charles I of England tried to levy without the consent of Parliament. This tax, which was only applied to coastal towns during a time of war, was intended to offset the cost of defending that part of the coast, and could be paid in actual ships or the equivalent value...
in 1636.
In April 1640, Wray was elected MP for Grimsby in the Short Parliament
Short Parliament
The Short Parliament was a Parliament of England that sat from 13 April to 5 May 1640 during the reign of King Charles I of England, so called because it lasted only three weeks....
and was re-elected for the Long Parliament
Long Parliament
The Long Parliament was made on 3 November 1640, following the Bishops' Wars. It received its name from the fact that through an Act of Parliament, it could only be dissolved with the agreement of the members, and those members did not agree to its dissolution until after the English Civil War and...
in November 1640. He was Deputy Lieutenant
Deputy Lieutenant
In the United Kingdom, a Deputy Lieutenant is one of several deputies to the Lord Lieutenant of a lieutenancy area; an English ceremonial county, Welsh preserved county, Scottish lieutenancy area, or Northern Irish county borough or county....
of Lincolnshire under the militia ordinance. During the First English Civil War
First English Civil War
The First English Civil War began the series of three wars known as the English Civil War . "The English Civil War" was a series of armed conflicts and political machinations that took place between Parliamentarians and Royalists from 1642 until 1651, and includes the Second English Civil War and...
he co-operated in the field with John Hotham
John Hotham
Sir John Hotham, 1st Baronet, of Scorborough , English parliamentarian, belonged to a Yorkshire family, and fought on the continent of Europe during the early part of the Thirty Years' War....
. He was appointed on 15 April 1645 commissioner of the admiralty, and on 5 December following commissioner resident with the Scottish forces before Newark. He died on 8 February 1646.
Family
Wray married Albinia Cecil, daughter of Sir Edward CecilEdward Cecil, 1st Viscount Wimbledon
Edward Cecil, 1st Viscount Wimbledon was an English military and naval commander.-Life:The third son of Thomas Cecil, 1st Earl of Exeter and grandson of Queen Elizabeth's great minister Lord Burghley, Cecil served with the English forces in the Netherlands between 1596 and 1610, becoming a captain...
on 3 August 1623. They had six sons and six daughters. The eldest son, Sir William Wray, bart. (so created in June 1660), died in October 1669, leaving, with other issue by his wife Olympia, second daughter of Sir Humphrey Tufton, of The Mote, Kent
Mote Park
Mote Park is a 180 hectare multi-use public park in Maidstone, Kent. Previously a country estate it was converted to landscaped park land at the end of the 18th century before becoming a municipal park. It includes the former stately home Mote House together with a miniature railway, pitch and putt...
, a son, Sir Christopher Wray, who on the extinction of the male line of the elder branch of the family succeeded in 1672 to the Glentworth baronetcy
Wray Baronets
There have been two Wray Baronetcies, both created in the Baronetage of England. The first was created on 25 November 1611 for William Wray of Glentworth, Lincolnshire, and became extinct upon the death of the 15th Baronet in 1809. The second was created on 27 June 1660 for William Wray of Ashby,...
, and died without issue in August 1679. On the death about March 1685–6 of his only surviving brother and successor in title, Sir William Wray, the junior baronetcy became extinct.