Arthur Owen was a Welsh 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 1645 and 1678. He fought in the Parliamentary army 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...

.

Owen was the son of John Owen of Orielton and his wife Dorothy Laugharne, and was brother of Sir Hugh Owen, 1st Baronet

Sir Hugh Owen, 1st Baronet

Sir Hugh Owen, 1st Baronet was a Welsh politician who sat in the House of Commons variously between 1626 and 1660. He sided originally with the Parliamentarian side in the English Civil War, but the strength of his allegiance was in doubt.Owen was the son of John Owen and his wife Dorothy...

  He matriculated at Hart Hall, Oxford on 18 February 1626 and was called to the bar at Lincoln's Inn

Lincoln's Inn

The Honourable Society of Lincoln's Inn is one of four Inns of Court in London to which barristers of England and Wales belong and where they are called to the Bar. The other three are Middle Temple, Inner Temple and Gray's Inn. Although Lincoln's Inn is able to trace its official records beyond...

 in 1633. He was J.P.

Justice of the Peace

A justice of the peace is a puisne judicial officer elected or appointed by means of a commission to keep the peace. Depending on the jurisdiction, they might dispense summary justice or merely deal with local administrative applications in common law jurisdictions...

 for Anglesea in 1642 and was made a Commissioner of Militia for Parliament in Pembrokeshire in 1642. He was a Major in the army of Col. Laugharne

Rowland Laugharne

Major General Rowland Laugharne was a soldier in the English Civil War.His family came from St. Brides House, Pembrokeshire, Wales.Major-General Laugharne, Parliament's commander in south Wales during the First Civil War, sided with the insurgents and took command of the rebel army...

 at the defeat of the Royalists in Pembrokeshire in 1643. He became a Colonel and was added to the Commissioners for Pembrokeshire, Cardiganshire and Carmarthenshire on 26 July 1644.

In 1645, Owen 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 Pembrokeshire

Pembrokeshire (UK Parliament constituency)

Pembrokeshire was a parliamentary constituency based on the county of Pembrokeshire in Wales. It returned one Member of Parliament to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, elected by the first past the post system.- History :...

 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...

. He sat until 1648 when he was excluded under Pride's Purge

Pride's Purge

Pride’s Purge is an event in December 1648, during the Second English Civil War, when troops under the command of Colonel Thomas Pride forcibly removed from the Long Parliament all those who were not supporters of the Grandees in the New Model Army and the Independents...

. In 1654, he was elected MP for Pembrokeshire again in the First Protectorate Parliament

First Protectorate Parliament

The First Protectorate Parliament was summoned by the Lord Protector Oliver Cromwell under the terms of the Instrument of Government. It sat for one term from 3 September 1654 until 22 January 1655 with William Lenthall as the Speaker of the House....

. He was appointed one of the committee for examining the petition of the "well affected of Haverfordwest" on 27 Nov. 1655. He was elected MP for Pembroke

Pembroke (UK Parliament constituency)

Pembroke was a parliamentary constituency centred on the town of Pembroke in West Wales. It returned one Member of Parliament to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, elected by the first past the post system.-History:For the creation and early history of the seat, see...

 in 1659 for the Third Protectorate Parliament

Third Protectorate Parliament

The Third Protectorate Parliament sat for one session, from 27 January 1659 until 22 April 1659, with Chaloner Chute and Thomas Bampfylde as the Speakers of the House of Commons...

 in a double return which was never resolved.

In 1660, Owen was elected MP for Pembrokeshire in the Convention Parliament. He was re-elected MP for Pembrokeshire in 1661 for 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...

and sat until his death in 1678.