Charles Cecil, Viscount Cranborne (1619–1660) was an English 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...

 from 1640 to 1648.

Cranbourne was the son of William Cecil, 2nd Earl of Salisbury

William Cecil, 2nd Earl of Salisbury

William Cecil, 2nd Earl of Salisbury, KG , known as Viscount Cranborne from 1605 to 1612, was an English peer and politician.-Early years, 1591-1612:...

 and his wife Lady Catherine Howard, a daughter of the 1st Earl of Suffolk

Thomas Howard, 1st Earl of Suffolk

Admiral Thomas Howard, 1st Earl of Suffolk, KG, PC was a son of Thomas Howard, 4th Duke of Norfolk by his second wife Margaret Audley, Duchess of Norfolk, the daughter and heiress of the 1st Baron Audley of Walden....

. He bore the courtesy title Viscount Cranbourne. He was educated at St John's College, Cambridge

St John's College, Cambridge

St John's College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. The college's alumni include nine Nobel Prize winners, six Prime Ministers, three archbishops, at least two princes, and three Saints....

.

In April 1640, Cranbourne 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 Hertford

Hertford (UK Parliament constituency)

Hertford was the name of a parliamentary constituency in Hertfordshire, which elected Members of Parliament from 1298 until 1974. It was represented in the House of Commons of England from 1298 to 1707, then of the House of Commons of Great Britain from 1707 to 1800, and finally in the House of...

 for 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 he was re-elected in November 1640 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...

. He was Lord Lieutenant of Hertfordshire

Lord Lieutenant of Hertfordshire

This is an incomplete list of people who have served as Lord Lieutenant of Hertfordshire.*Sir Ralph Sadleir 1570–?*Henry Carey, 1st Baron Hunsdon 1583–1585*Robert Dudley, 1st Earl of Leicester 3 July 1585 – 4 September 1588...

 from 1640 to 1642. Although not specifically 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...

, he is not recorded as sitting subsequently.

Cranbourne died at the age of 40 without inheriting the Earldom

Marquess of Salisbury

Marquess of Salisbury is a title in the Peerage of Great Britain. It was created in 1789 for the 7th Earl of Salisbury. Most of the holders of the title have been prominent in British political life over the last two centuries, particularly the 3rd Marquess, who served three times as Prime Minister...

.

Cranbourne married Lady Diana Maxwell. Their son James

James Cecil, 3rd Earl of Salisbury

James Cecil, 3rd Earl of Salisbury, KG, PC , known as Viscount Cranborne from 1660 to 1668, was an English nobleman....

succeeded his grandfather as Earl of Salisbury.