Edward Littleton, 1st Baron Lyttleton of Mounslow

Edward, Baron Littleton (also Lyttelton) (1589 – 27 August 1645), from Munslow in Shropshire

Shropshire

Shropshire is a county in the West Midlands region of England. For Eurostat purposes, the county is a NUTS 3 region and is one of four counties or unitary districts that comprise the "Shropshire and Staffordshire" NUTS 2 region. It borders Wales to the west...

, was a Chief Justice of North Wales

North Wales

North Wales is the northernmost unofficial region of Wales. It is bordered to the south by the counties of Ceredigion and Powys in Mid Wales and to the east by the counties of Shropshire in the West Midlands and Cheshire in North West England...

. He was descended from the judge and legal scholar, Thomas de Littleton

Thomas de Littleton

Sir Thomas de Littleton was an English judge and legal writer.-Early life:He was born, it is supposed, at Frankley Manor House, Worcestershire, England in about 1407. Littleton’s surname was that of his mother, who was the sole daughter and heiress of Thomas de Littleton, Lord of Frankley. She...

. His father, also Edward, had been Chief Justice of North Wales before him.

Education and career

He was educated at Oxford

Oxford

The city of Oxford is the county town of Oxfordshire, England. The city, made prominent by its medieval university, has a population of just under 165,000, with 153,900 living within the district boundary. It lies about 50 miles north-west of London. The rivers Cherwell and Thames run through...

before becoming a lawyer. In 1614 he became an MP

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 Bishop's Castle

Bishop's Castle (UK Parliament constituency)

Bishop's Castle was a borough constituency in Shropshire represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom.It was founded in 1584 and was a constituency of the House of Commons of the Parliament of England until 1707, then of the Parliament of Great Britain from 1707 to...

, Shropshire in the Addled Parliament

Addled Parliament

The Addled Parliament was the second Parliament of England of the reign of James I of England , which sat between 5 April and 7 June 1614...

. In 1625 he was again returned to Parliament for Leominster

Leominster (UK Parliament constituency)

Leominster was, until 2010, a parliamentary constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom.From 1295 to 1868, it was a parliamentary borough which elected two Members of Parliament by the bloc vote system of election. Under the Reform Act 1867 its...

and Caernarfon borough

Caernarfon (UK Parliament constituency)

Caernarfon was a parliamentary constituency centred on the town of Caernarfon in Wales. It elected one Member of Parliament by the first past the post system....

. In 1628 he was chairman of the Committee of Grievances upon whose report the Petition of Right

Petition of right

In English law, a petition of right was a remedy available to subjects to recover property from the Crown.Before the Crown Proceedings Act 1947, the British Crown could not be sued in contract...

was based.

As a member of the party opposed to the arbitrary measures of 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...

, Littleton had shown more moderation than some of his colleagues, and in 1634, three years after he had been chosen Recorder of London, the king attached him to his own side by appointing him Solicitor General

Solicitor General for England and Wales

Her Majesty's Solicitor General for England and Wales, often known as the Solicitor General, is one of the Law Officers of the Crown, and the deputy of the Attorney General, whose duty is to advise the Crown and Cabinet on the law...

. In the famous case about 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...

, Sir Edward argued against John Hampden

John Hampden

John Hampden was an English politician, the eldest son of William Hampden, of Hampden House, Great Hampden in Buckinghamshire, John Hampden (ca. 15951643) was an English politician, the eldest son of William Hampden, of Hampden House, Great Hampden in Buckinghamshire, John Hampden (ca. 15951643)...

. In 1640, he was made Chief Justice of the Common Pleas

Chief Justice of the Common Pleas

The Court of Common Pleas, also known as the Common Bench or Common Place, was the second highest common law court in the English legal system until 1880, when it was dissolved. As such, the Chief Justice of the Common Pleas was one of the highest judicial officials in England, behind only the Lord...

The Great Seal

In 1641, when the previous keeper, John Finch

John Finch

John Finch, 1st Baron Finch was an English judge, and politician who sat in the House of Commons at various times between 1614 and 1629. He was Speaker of the House of Commons.-Early life:...

, fled into exile, Littleton was appointed Lord Keeper of the Great Seal

Lord Keeper of the Great Seal

The Lord Keeper of the Great Seal of England, and later of Great Britain, was formerly an officer of the English Crown charged with physical custody of the Great Seal of England. This evolved into one of the Great Officers of State....

. He was raised to the Peerage

Peerage of England

The Peerage of England comprises all peerages created in the Kingdom of England before the Act of Union in 1707. In that year, the Peerages of England and Scotland were replaced by one Peerage of Great Britain....

as Baron Lyttelton

Baron Lyttelton

Lord Lyttelton, Baron of Frankley, in the County of Worcester, is a title in the Peerage of Great Britain, created in 1794. Since 1889 it is a subsidiary title of the viscountcy of Cobham....

.

As the Lord Keeper Littleton had begun to display a certain amount of indifference to the royal cause. In January 1642, he refused to put the Great Seal

Great Seal of the Realm

The Great Seal of the Realm or Great Seal of the United Kingdom is a seal that is used to symbolise the Sovereign's approval of important state documents...

to the proclamation for the arrest of five members and he also incurred the displeasure of Charles by voting for the Militia ordinance

Militia Ordinance

The Militia Ordinance was a piece of legislation passed by the Long Parliament of England in March 1642, which was a major step towards the Civil War between the King and Parliament of England. Previously the King had the sole right to appoint the Lord Lieutenants, who were in charge of the county...

. However, he assured his friend Edward Hyde

Edward Hyde

Edward Hyde may refer to:* Edward Hyde, 1st Earl of Clarendon , English historian and statesman* Edward Hyde , British MP* Edward Hyde, 3rd Earl of Clarendon , Governor of New York and New Jersey* Edward Hyde Edward Hyde may refer to:* Edward Hyde, 1st Earl of Clarendon (1609–1674), English...

, afterwards Earl of Clarendon

Earl of Clarendon

Earl of Clarendon is a title that has been created twice in British history, in 1661 and 1776. The title was created for the first time in the Peerage of England in 1661 for the statesman Edward Hyde, 1st Baron Hyde...

, that he had only taken this step to allay the suspicions of the parliamentary party who contemplated depriving him of the seal, and he undertook to send this to the King. He fulfilled his promise, and in May 1642, he himself joined Charles at York

York

York is a walled city, situated at the confluence of the Rivers Ouse and Foss in North Yorkshire, England. The city has a rich heritage and has provided the backdrop to major political events throughout much of its two millennia of existence...

, but it was some time before he regained the favour of the king and the custody of the seal.

Death

Littleton died at Oxford

Oxford

on 27 August 1645; he left no sons and his barony became extinct. His only daughter, Anne, married her cousin

Cousin marriage

Cousin marriage is marriage between two cousins. In various jurisdictions and cultures, such marriages range from being considered ideal and actively encouraged, to being uncommon but still legal, to being seen as incest and legally prohibited....

, Sir Thomas Littleton, 2nd Baronet

Sir Thomas Littleton, 2nd Baronet

Sir Thomas Littleton, 2nd Baronet was an English politician who sat in the House of Commons variously between 1640 and 1681....

. Their son, Sir Thomas Littleton

Sir Thomas Littleton, 3rd Baronet

Sir Thomas Littleton, 3rd Baronet , often Thomas de Littleton, was a British statesman. He was the son of Sir Thomas Littleton, 2nd Baronet and his wife and cousin Anne Littleton....

(ca. 1647-1710), was Speaker of the House of Commons

Speaker of the British House of Commons

The Speaker of the House of Commons is the presiding officer of the House of Commons, the United Kingdom's lower chamber of Parliament. The current Speaker is John Bercow, who was elected on 22 June 2009, following the resignation of Michael Martin...

from 1698 to 1700, and Treasurer of the Navy from 1700 to 1710.

Education and career

The Great Seal

Death

Further reading