Edward Atkyns
Encyclopedia
Sir Edward Atkyns SL
(1587–1669) was an English judge, a baron of the exchequer of the Commonwealth period.
. Admitted on 5 February 1601 as a student of Lincoln's Inn
, where his father and grandfather had both attained legal honours, he was called to the bar 25 January 1614, became governor of the society in 1630, and was two years later nominated Autumn Reader.
On 7 February 1623 Atkyns appeared before the Star Chamber
as counsel for William Prynne
, charged with libelling the queen Henrietta Maria in his Histriomastix, and defended his client's character from his personal acquaintance with him. He may have given similar help to Henry Burton
and John Bastwick
when brought before the same tribunal in 1637; in 1640 Burton and Bastwick, while petitioning the Long Parliament
to reconsider their sentence of imprisonment, requested permission to obtain Atkyns's legal assistance in stating their case.
Atkyns was promoted to a serjeanty
by the king on 19 May 1640 (a fortnight after the dissolution of the Short Parliament
). Atkyns accepted the honour, and made no change in his pro-Parliament conduct. But a royal patent, issued on 7 October 1640, appointing Atkyns a baron of the exchequer, did not take effect. In 1643, when the House of Commons entered into negotiations with Charles I, they demanded that ‘Mr. Serjeant Atkyns should be made justice of the King's Bench’, and on 28 October 1645, despairing of any settlement with the crown, they created him, by their own order, baron of the exchequer. This post Atkyns held till 4 August 1648, when, by an order of the Lords, he was removed to the Court of Common Pleas
. After the king's death, Atkyns, according to Foss, refused to accept a commission from the provisional council of state continuing him in his office, but on 9 December 1650 he was nominated, without protest on his part, one of the judges to try disturbers of the peace in the eastern counties, and was consulted by Oliver Cromwell
on legal business. On 16 January 1654, he delivered before the protector and his council the opinion of the judges stating the liability of an alien, Don Pantaleone, the brother of the Portuguese ambassador, to be tried in an English court of law on a charge of murder alleged to have been committed during a riot in the New Exchange, London, and at Pantaleone's trial Atkyns was one of the presiding judges. The only instance in which Atkyns openly refused to act with the Commonwealth authorities was in June 1654 at the trial, by special commission, of John Gerard and others for conspiracy to murder Cromwell. An ordinance of the council had in the previous January brought the crime within the legal definition of treason
, and before the trial commenced, Atkyns, with the other judges, was requested to bind himself by oath to give the ordinance effect. But this he declined to do: ‘By the law,’ he said, ‘no man indicted for treason but ought to be tried by a jury; by this ordinance it is otherwise; and therefore this oath [seems] contrary to the other oaths I have taken.’
This episode did not affect Atkyns's position. He was renominated a judge on the first return of the Long Parliament to Westminster in May 1659, but on its second return in the following year his name was omitted from the list of duly appointed judges. After the Restoration
, in May 1660, Atkyns, however, was created anew (23 June) a baron of the exchequer and knighted. On 9 October following, he was one of the presiding judges at the trial of the regicides, but took no prominent part in the proceedings. On 9 March 1661 he fell seriously ill on the Midland circuit; on 20 April 1661 he arranged, with others, the procedure to be followed at the trial of Lord Morley for murder; and on 1 April 1668 he took part in an important trial of certain rioters charged with high treason. He died 9 October 1669, at Albury Hall, Hertfordshire
, an estate that he had purchased in 1661.
, by whom he had two sons, Robert
and Edward
, who both became judges of eminence, and three daughters; and (2) Frances, daughter of John Berry, of Lydd, Kent, by whom he had no issue. His first wife died 26 June 1644, and was buried in Cheshunt Church, Hertfordshire. His second wife, whom Atkyns married 16 September 1645, long survived him, and died 2 March 1704, at the reputed age of 100.
Serjeant-at-law
The Serjeants-at-Law was an order of barristers at the English bar. The position of Serjeant-at-Law , or Sergeant-Counter, was centuries old; there are writs dating to 1300 which identify them as descended from figures in France prior to the Norman Conquest...
(1587–1669) was an English judge, a baron of the exchequer of the Commonwealth period.
Life
He was the third son of Richard Atkyns, and was born in 1587, apparently at Bensington in OxfordshireOxfordshire
Oxfordshire is a county in the South East region of England, bordering on Warwickshire and Northamptonshire , Buckinghamshire , Berkshire , Wiltshire and Gloucestershire ....
. Admitted on 5 February 1601 as a student of 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...
, where his father and grandfather had both attained legal honours, he was called to the bar 25 January 1614, became governor of the society in 1630, and was two years later nominated Autumn Reader.
On 7 February 1623 Atkyns appeared before the Star Chamber
Star Chamber
The Star Chamber was an English court of law that sat at the royal Palace of Westminster until 1641. It was made up of Privy Counsellors, as well as common-law judges and supplemented the activities of the common-law and equity courts in both civil and criminal matters...
as counsel for William Prynne
William Prynne
William Prynne was an English lawyer, author, polemicist, and political figure. He was a prominent Puritan opponent of the church policy of the Archbishop of Canterbury, William Laud. Although his views on church polity were presbyterian, he became known in the 1640s as an Erastian, arguing for...
, charged with libelling the queen Henrietta Maria in his Histriomastix, and defended his client's character from his personal acquaintance with him. He may have given similar help to Henry Burton
Henry Burton (Puritan)
Henry Burton , was an English puritan. Along with John Bastwick and William Prynne, Burton's ears were cut off in 1637 for writing pamphlets attacking the views of Archbishop Laud.-Early life:...
and John Bastwick
John Bastwick
John Bastwick was an English Puritan physician and controversial writer.-Life:He was born at Writtle, Essex. He entered Emmanuel College, Cambridge, on 19 May 1614, but remained there only a very short time, and left the university without a degree. He travelled and served for a time as a soldier,...
when brought before the same tribunal in 1637; in 1640 Burton and Bastwick, while petitioning 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...
to reconsider their sentence of imprisonment, requested permission to obtain Atkyns's legal assistance in stating their case.
Atkyns was promoted to a serjeanty
Serjeant-at-law
The Serjeants-at-Law was an order of barristers at the English bar. The position of Serjeant-at-Law , or Sergeant-Counter, was centuries old; there are writs dating to 1300 which identify them as descended from figures in France prior to the Norman Conquest...
by the king on 19 May 1640 (a fortnight after the dissolution of 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....
). Atkyns accepted the honour, and made no change in his pro-Parliament conduct. But a royal patent, issued on 7 October 1640, appointing Atkyns a baron of the exchequer, did not take effect. In 1643, when the House of Commons entered into negotiations with Charles I, they demanded that ‘Mr. Serjeant Atkyns should be made justice of the King's Bench’, and on 28 October 1645, despairing of any settlement with the crown, they created him, by their own order, baron of the exchequer. This post Atkyns held till 4 August 1648, when, by an order of the Lords, he was removed to the Court of Common Pleas
Court of Common Pleas (England)
The Court of Common Pleas, or Common Bench, was a common law court in the English legal system that covered "common pleas"; actions between subject and subject, which did not concern the king. Created in the late 12th to early 13th century after splitting from the Exchequer of Pleas, the Common...
. After the king's death, Atkyns, according to Foss, refused to accept a commission from the provisional council of state continuing him in his office, but on 9 December 1650 he was nominated, without protest on his part, one of the judges to try disturbers of the peace in the eastern counties, and was consulted by Oliver Cromwell
Oliver Cromwell
Oliver Cromwell was an English military and political leader who overthrew the English monarchy and temporarily turned England into a republican Commonwealth, and served as Lord Protector of England, Scotland, and Ireland....
on legal business. On 16 January 1654, he delivered before the protector and his council the opinion of the judges stating the liability of an alien, Don Pantaleone, the brother of the Portuguese ambassador, to be tried in an English court of law on a charge of murder alleged to have been committed during a riot in the New Exchange, London, and at Pantaleone's trial Atkyns was one of the presiding judges. The only instance in which Atkyns openly refused to act with the Commonwealth authorities was in June 1654 at the trial, by special commission, of John Gerard and others for conspiracy to murder Cromwell. An ordinance of the council had in the previous January brought the crime within the legal definition of treason
Treason
In law, treason is the crime that covers some of the more extreme acts against one's sovereign or nation. Historically, treason also covered the murder of specific social superiors, such as the murder of a husband by his wife. Treason against the king was known as high treason and treason against a...
, and before the trial commenced, Atkyns, with the other judges, was requested to bind himself by oath to give the ordinance effect. But this he declined to do: ‘By the law,’ he said, ‘no man indicted for treason but ought to be tried by a jury; by this ordinance it is otherwise; and therefore this oath [seems] contrary to the other oaths I have taken.’
This episode did not affect Atkyns's position. He was renominated a judge on the first return of the Long Parliament to Westminster in May 1659, but on its second return in the following year his name was omitted from the list of duly appointed judges. After the Restoration
English 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...
, in May 1660, Atkyns, however, was created anew (23 June) a baron of the exchequer and knighted. On 9 October following, he was one of the presiding judges at the trial of the regicides, but took no prominent part in the proceedings. On 9 March 1661 he fell seriously ill on the Midland circuit; on 20 April 1661 he arranged, with others, the procedure to be followed at the trial of Lord Morley for murder; and on 1 April 1668 he took part in an important trial of certain rioters charged with high treason. He died 9 October 1669, at Albury Hall, Hertfordshire
Hertfordshire
Hertfordshire is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the East region of England. The county town is Hertford.The county is one of the Home Counties and lies inland, bordered by Greater London , Buckinghamshire , Bedfordshire , Cambridgeshire and...
, an estate that he had purchased in 1661.
Family
Atkyns married (1) Ursula, daughter of Sir Thomas DacresThomas Dacres
Sir Thomas Dacres was an English politician who sat in the House of Commons variously between 1626 and 1660. He supported the Parliamentary cause in the English Civil War....
, by whom he had two sons, Robert
Robert Atkyns (judge)
Sir Robert Atkyns KB KS was an English Lord Chief Baron of the Exchequer, Member of parliament, and Speaker of the House of Lords.-Early life:...
and Edward
Edward Atkyns (1630-1698)
Sir Edward Atkyns , was the baron of the exchequer and younger son of Sir Edward Atkyns, who held a similar office, was born in 1630....
, who both became judges of eminence, and three daughters; and (2) Frances, daughter of John Berry, of Lydd, Kent, by whom he had no issue. His first wife died 26 June 1644, and was buried in Cheshunt Church, Hertfordshire. His second wife, whom Atkyns married 16 September 1645, long survived him, and died 2 March 1704, at the reputed age of 100.