John Ashburnham
Encyclopedia
John Ashburnham was an English
courtier, diplomat and politician who sat in the House of Commons
at various times between 1640 and 1667. He supported the Royalist cause in the English Civil War
and was an attendant on the King.
, daughter of Sir Thomas Beaumont. His father was a wastrel and died in 1620, but his mother was related to Lady Villiers, mother of George Villiers, 1st Duke of Buckingham
. Under Buckingham's patronage Ashburnham became well known to the king Charles I
, who styled him 'Jack Ashburnham' in his letters. In 1628 Ashburnham became groom of the bedchamber.
Ashburnham became wealthy and lent money to the king: in 1638 the Star-chamber fine on Sir Walter Long, 1st Baronet
and his brother, was assigned to Ashburnham. The next year a warrant under the privy seal enabled him to regain his ancestral estate of Ashburnham
. He sat as a Member of Parliament
for Hastings
in the Long Parliament
in 1640. As a partisan of the king, he began to absent himself, and he was proceeded against for contempt (6 May 1642). The king wrote a letter to the Commons in his justification but the house maintained its prior right to the obedience of its member. Ashburnham was 'discharged and disabled' (5 February 1643), and his estate was sequestrated (14 September).
, and became the treasurer and paymaster of the king's army. His name occurs in seven negotiations for peace. He was one of the commissioners at the Treaty of Uxbridge
(1644), and one of the four appointed to lay the king's proposals before parliament (December 1645). When Thomas Fairfax
prepared to besiege Oxford, and Charles determined upon flight, Ashburnham and Michael Hudson were the sole attendants to the king in his journey in 1646 to the Scottish camp. Hudson was released, while Ashburnham was positively commanded by the king to flee before confirmation of the order to send him up to London as a delinquent could be received. He got safely to Holland, and thence to Queen Henrietta Maria at Paris.
In 1647 the army had the king in custody at Holmby, and allowed him his choice of servants. Ashburnham resumed his attendance on his master at Hampton Court, where Charles was in constant fear of assassination. At Ashburnham's suggestion he made proposals to the Scottish commissioners for his sudden journey to London and personal treaty with the parliament. But the arrangement fell through. Charles was then impatient to be gone, commanded Ashburnham and his other confidants, Sir John Berkeley and William Legge
, to propose some place for him to go to. Ashburnham mentioned Sir John Oglander's house in the Isle of Wight
as a place where the king might be concealed. The plan was to sound out the governor of the island, Colonel Robert Hammond
. If Hammond were not to be trusted, the fugitive Charles could secretly take ship for France. In the end Berkeley revealed the hiding-place to Hammond; Charles refused the desperate offer of Ashburnham to kill Hammond, and again became virtually a prisoner.
authorities detained Ashburnham in the Tower of London
and three times banished him to the Channel Islands
. Ashburnham was parted from his master Charles by order of the parliament, 1 January 1648, was imprisoned in Windsor Castle
(May), and when the Second English Civil War
broke out was exchanged for Sir William Masham. He was not allowed to attend the king during the Treaty of Newport
(August), and was included among the delinquents who were to expect no pardon (13 October). He was constantly harassed. He had acquired an estate by his second marriage with the Dowager Lady Poulett (1649), and Charles II gave him permission to stay in England to preserve it. Royalists, however, suspected his fidelity, and (March 1650) in a memorial to the king asked whether they might trust him. He was sued for debts contracted for the late Charles I. He was forced to compound for one half of his estate, was bound in heavy securities to appear, when required, before the council of state
, and his private journeys were licensed by a pass from the council. For three years he was asked by committees to discover who had lent the king money during the wars. His three banishments to Guernsey Castle were for sending money to the king.
Ashburnham served Charles II
as a diplomat; and he was Member of Parliament
for Sussex
between 1661 and 1667 in the Cavalier Parliament
. In September 1661, he was the head of a commission to inquire into the abuses in the post office. His house at Chiswick
, with its contents, was purchased by the king for the Duke of Monmouth, of whom (January 1665) he was made one of the guardians. His loans to Charles I were paid by grants of crown leases. He and his brother William Ashburnham
shared in an enterprise for reviving the manufacture of tapestry
at Mortlake (March and April 1667).
of Long Ashton
. His grandson John was ennobled as Baron Ashburnham in 1689, and his great-grandson as Earl of Ashburnham
, a title that became extinct in 1924. Charles Cornwallis, 2nd Baron Cornwallis
was another grandson.
Attribution
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
courtier, diplomat and politician who sat in the House of Commons
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 1640 and 1667. He supported the Royalist 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...
and was an attendant on the King.
Background
Ashburnham was the eldest son of Sir John Ashburnham by ElizabethElizabeth Richardson, 1st Lady Cramond
Elizabeth Richardson, 1st Lady Cramond was an English writer and peeress.Born Elizabeth Beaumont, she was the eldest child of Sir Thomas Beaumont and his wife, Catherine...
, daughter of Sir Thomas Beaumont. His father was a wastrel and died in 1620, but his mother was related to Lady Villiers, mother of George Villiers, 1st Duke of Buckingham
George Villiers, 1st Duke of Buckingham
George Villiers, 1st Duke of Buckingham KG was the favourite, claimed by some to be the lover, of King James I of England. Despite a very patchy political and military record, he remained at the height of royal favour for the first two years of the reign of Charles I, until he was assassinated...
. Under Buckingham's patronage Ashburnham became well known to the king Charles I
Charles I of England
Charles I was King of England, King of Scotland, and King of Ireland from 27 March 1625 until his execution in 1649. Charles engaged in a struggle for power with the Parliament of England, attempting to obtain royal revenue whilst Parliament sought to curb his Royal prerogative which Charles...
, who styled him 'Jack Ashburnham' in his letters. In 1628 Ashburnham became groom of the bedchamber.
Ashburnham became wealthy and lent money to the king: in 1638 the Star-chamber fine on Sir Walter Long, 1st Baronet
Sir Walter Long, 1st Baronet
Sir Walter Long, 1st Baronet of Whaddon was an English politician.The second son of Henry Long and Rebecca Bailey, Long was Educated at Lincoln's Inn...
and his brother, was assigned to Ashburnham. The next year a warrant under the privy seal enabled him to regain his ancestral estate of Ashburnham
Ashburnham and Penhurst
Ashburnham and Penhurst are civil parishes in the Rother district of East Sussex, England, situated to the west of Battle. The two parishes share a joint parish council which also covers the settlements of Brownbread Street, Ponts Green and Ashburnham Forge...
. He sat as a 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 Hastings
Hastings (UK Parliament constituency)
Hastings was a parliamentary constituency in Sussex. It returned two Members of Parliament to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom until the 1885 general election, when its representation was reduced to one member....
in 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 1640. As a partisan of the king, he began to absent himself, and he was proceeded against for contempt (6 May 1642). The king wrote a letter to the Commons in his justification but the house maintained its prior right to the obedience of its member. Ashburnham was 'discharged and disabled' (5 February 1643), and his estate was sequestrated (14 September).
Civil War
Ashburnham was a faithful adherent and attendant to Charles I in the First English Civil WarFirst 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...
, and became the treasurer and paymaster of the king's army. His name occurs in seven negotiations for peace. He was one of the commissioners at the Treaty of Uxbridge
Treaty of Uxbridge
The Treaty of Uxbridge of early 1645 was a significant but abortive negotiation to try to end the First English Civil War.-Background:Parliament drew up 27 articles in November 1644 and presented them to Charles I of England at Oxford. Much input into these Propositions of Uxbridge was from...
(1644), and one of the four appointed to lay the king's proposals before parliament (December 1645). When Thomas Fairfax
Thomas Fairfax, 3rd Lord Fairfax of Cameron
Thomas Fairfax, 3rd Lord Fairfax of Cameron was a general and parliamentary commander-in-chief during the English Civil War...
prepared to besiege Oxford, and Charles determined upon flight, Ashburnham and Michael Hudson were the sole attendants to the king in his journey in 1646 to the Scottish camp. Hudson was released, while Ashburnham was positively commanded by the king to flee before confirmation of the order to send him up to London as a delinquent could be received. He got safely to Holland, and thence to Queen Henrietta Maria at Paris.
In 1647 the army had the king in custody at Holmby, and allowed him his choice of servants. Ashburnham resumed his attendance on his master at Hampton Court, where Charles was in constant fear of assassination. At Ashburnham's suggestion he made proposals to the Scottish commissioners for his sudden journey to London and personal treaty with the parliament. But the arrangement fell through. Charles was then impatient to be gone, commanded Ashburnham and his other confidants, Sir John Berkeley and William Legge
William Legge (MP)
William Legge was an English royalist army officer, a close associate of Prince Rupert of the Rhine.-Life:He was the eldest son of Edward Legge, who was vice-president of Munster by the influence of his kinsman Charles Blount, 1st Earl of Devonshire, by Mary, daughter of Percy Walsh of Moy valley,...
, to propose some place for him to go to. Ashburnham mentioned Sir John Oglander's house in the Isle of Wight
Isle of Wight
The Isle of Wight is a county and the largest island of England, located in the English Channel, on average about 2–4 miles off the south coast of the county of Hampshire, separated from the mainland by a strait called the Solent...
as a place where the king might be concealed. The plan was to sound out the governor of the island, Colonel Robert Hammond
Robert Hammond (English army officer)
Robert Hammond was an officer in the New Model Army under Oliver Cromwell during the First English Civil War and a politician who sat in the House of Commons in 1654. He is best known for his year-long role in keeping Charles I of England in custody.-Early life:Hammond was the second son of...
. If Hammond were not to be trusted, the fugitive Charles could secretly take ship for France. In the end Berkeley revealed the hiding-place to Hammond; Charles refused the desperate offer of Ashburnham to kill Hammond, and again became virtually a prisoner.
Commonwealth period
Subsequently the CommonwealthCommonwealth of England
The Commonwealth of England was the republic which ruled first England, and then Ireland and Scotland from 1649 to 1660. Between 1653–1659 it was known as the Commonwealth of England, Scotland and Ireland...
authorities detained Ashburnham in the Tower of London
Tower of London
Her Majesty's Royal Palace and Fortress, more commonly known as the Tower of London, is a historic castle on the north bank of the River Thames in central London, England. It lies within the London Borough of Tower Hamlets, separated from the eastern edge of the City of London by the open space...
and three times banished him to the Channel Islands
Channel Islands
The Channel Islands are an archipelago of British Crown Dependencies in the English Channel, off the French coast of Normandy. They include two separate bailiwicks: the Bailiwick of Guernsey and the Bailiwick of Jersey...
. Ashburnham was parted from his master Charles by order of the parliament, 1 January 1648, was imprisoned in Windsor Castle
Windsor Castle
Windsor Castle is a medieval castle and royal residence in Windsor in the English county of Berkshire, notable for its long association with the British royal family and its architecture. The original castle was built after the Norman invasion by William the Conqueror. Since the time of Henry I it...
(May), and when the Second English Civil War
Second English Civil War
The Second English Civil War was the second of three wars known as the English Civil War which refers to the series of armed conflicts and political machinations which took place between Parliamentarians and Royalists from 1642 until 1652 and also include the First English Civil War and the...
broke out was exchanged for Sir William Masham. He was not allowed to attend the king during the Treaty of Newport
Treaty of Newport
The Treaty of Newport was a failed treaty between Parliament and King Charles I of England, intended to bring an end to the hostilities of the English Civil War...
(August), and was included among the delinquents who were to expect no pardon (13 October). He was constantly harassed. He had acquired an estate by his second marriage with the Dowager Lady Poulett (1649), and Charles II gave him permission to stay in England to preserve it. Royalists, however, suspected his fidelity, and (March 1650) in a memorial to the king asked whether they might trust him. He was sued for debts contracted for the late Charles I. He was forced to compound for one half of his estate, was bound in heavy securities to appear, when required, before the council of state
English Council of State
The English Council of State, later also known as the Protector's Privy Council, was first appointed by the Rump Parliament on 14 February 1649 after the execution of King Charles I....
, and his private journeys were licensed by a pass from the council. For three years he was asked by committees to discover who had lent the king money during the wars. His three banishments to Guernsey Castle were for sending money to the king.
1660 Restoration
After the RestorationEnglish Restoration
The Restoration of the English monarchy began in 1660 when the English, Scottish and Irish monarchies were all restored under Charles II after the Interregnum that followed the Wars of the Three Kingdoms...
Ashburnham served Charles II
Charles II of England
Charles II was monarch of the three kingdoms of England, Scotland, and Ireland.Charles II's father, King Charles I, was executed at Whitehall on 30 January 1649, at the climax of the English Civil War...
as a diplomat; and he was 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 Sussex
Sussex (UK Parliament constituency)
Sussex was a constituency of the House of Commons of the Parliament of England then of the Parliament of Great Britain from 1707 to 1800 and of the Parliament of the United Kingdom from 1801 to 1832...
between 1661 and 1667 in the Cavalier Parliament
Cavalier Parliament
The Cavalier Parliament of England lasted from 8 May 1661 until 24 January 1679. It was the longest English Parliament, enduring for nearly 18 years of the quarter century reign of Charles II of England...
. In September 1661, he was the head of a commission to inquire into the abuses in the post office. His house at Chiswick
Chiswick
Chiswick is a large suburb of west London, England and part of the London Borough of Hounslow. It is located on a meander of the River Thames, west of Charing Cross and is one of 35 major centres identified in the London Plan. It was historically an ancient parish in the county of Middlesex, with...
, with its contents, was purchased by the king for the Duke of Monmouth, of whom (January 1665) he was made one of the guardians. His loans to Charles I were paid by grants of crown leases. He and his brother William Ashburnham
William Ashburnham (royalist)
-Biography:William Ashburnham was the younger brother of John Ashburnham.He was returned as MP for Ludgershall in both the parliaments held in 1640 but was expelled from the Long Parliament on 9 December 1641 for his part in the Army Plots of that year....
shared in an enterprise for reviving the manufacture of tapestry
Tapestry
Tapestry is a form of textile art, traditionally woven on a vertical loom, however it can also be woven on a floor loom as well. It is composed of two sets of interlaced threads, those running parallel to the length and those parallel to the width ; the warp threads are set up under tension on a...
at Mortlake (March and April 1667).
Family
Ashburnham's daughter Elizabeth married Sir Hugh Smith, 1st BaronetSir Hugh Smith, 1st Baronet
Sir Hugh Smith, 1st Baronet was an English politician who sat in the House of Commons in 1660 and 1679.Smith was the son of Thomas Smith of Long Ashton, Somerset and his wife Florence Poulett, daughter of John Poulett, 1st Baron Poulett of Hinton St George, Somerset.In 1660, Smith was elected...
of Long Ashton
Long Ashton
Long Ashton is a village and civil parish in Somerset, England. It falls within the Unitary Authority of North Somerset, a few miles south west of the city of Bristol. The parish has a population of 4,981...
. His grandson John was ennobled as Baron Ashburnham in 1689, and his great-grandson as Earl of Ashburnham
Earl of Ashburnham
The title Baron Ashburnham , of Ashburnham in the County of Sussex, was created in the Peerage of England in 1689 for John Ashburnham, grandson of the John Ashburnham who assisted King Charles I to escape from Oxford and Hampton Court Palace...
, a title that became extinct in 1924. Charles Cornwallis, 2nd Baron Cornwallis
Charles Cornwallis, 2nd Baron Cornwallis
Charles Cornwallis, 2nd Baron Cornwallis of Eye was a British nobleman, politician, and county magistrate. He served as a Member of Parliament.-Early years:...
was another grandson.
External links
- http://books.google.com/books?id=pWILAAAAYAAJ&printsec=frontcover&dq=john+ashburnham+charles&source=bl&ots=r7Ej_ZTLDk&sig=6kiA-Wp74xZnmfYRBZx53iuKt-Y&hl=en&ei=qrqiTYPzAsnfiAL3lYX7Ag&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=4&sqi=2&ved=0CCsQ6AEwAw#v=onepage&q&f=falseA Narrative by John Ashburnham of his Attendance on King Charles the First from Oxford to the Scotch Army, and from Hampton Court to Isle of Wight], John Ashburnham, George Ashburnham, Vol. II, Payne and Foss, Paternoster Row, London, 1830
Attribution