Sir Henry Montagu, 1st Earl of Manchester (ca. 1563 – 7 November 1642) was an English judge, politician and peer.

Life

He was the grandson of Sir Edward Montagu, Lord Chief Justice of the King's Bench

King's Bench

The Queen's Bench is the superior court in a number of jurisdictions within some of the Commonwealth realms...

 from 1539 to 1545, who was named by King Henry VIII

Henry VIII of England

Henry VIII was King of England from 21 April 1509 until his death. He was Lord, and later King, of Ireland, as well as continuing the nominal claim by the English monarchs to the Kingdom of France...

 one of the executors of his will, and governor to his son, Edward VI

Edward VI of England

Edward VI was the King of England and Ireland from 28 January 1547 until his death. He was crowned on 20 February at the age of nine. The son of Henry VIII and Jane Seymour, Edward was the third monarch of the Tudor dynasty and England's first monarch who was raised as a Protestant...

.

Born at Boughton, Northamptonshire

Boughton, Northamptonshire

Boughton is a village and civil parish in the Daventry district of Northamptonshire, England, about from Northampton town centre along the A508 road between Northampton and Market Harborough. The parish area straddles both side of the road but the main part of the village is east...

, about 1563, Henry was educated at Christ's College, Cambridge

Christ's College, Cambridge

Christ's College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge.With a reputation for high academic standards, Christ's College averaged top place in the Tompkins Table from 1980-2000 . In 2011, Christ's was placed sixth.-College history:...

, and, having been called to the bar, was elected recorder of London

London

London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...

 in 1603, and in 1616 was made Chief Justice of the King's Bench, in which office it fell to him to pass sentence on Sir Walter Raleigh

Walter Raleigh

Sir Walter Raleigh was an English aristocrat, writer, poet, soldier, courtier, spy, and explorer. He is also well known for popularising tobacco in England....

 in October 1618.

In 1620 he was appointed Lord High Treasurer, being raised to the peerage as Baron Montagu of Kimbolton, Huntingdon

Huntingdon

Huntingdon is a market town in Cambridgeshire, England. The town was chartered by King John in 1205. It is the traditional county town of Huntingdonshire, and is currently the seat of the Huntingdonshire district council. It is known as the birthplace in 1599 of Oliver Cromwell.-History:Huntingdon...

shire, and Viscount Mandeville. He became President of the Council

Lord President of the Council

The Lord President of the Council is the fourth of the Great Officers of State of the United Kingdom, ranking beneath the Lord High Treasurer and above the Lord Privy Seal. The Lord President usually attends each meeting of the Privy Council, presenting business for the monarch's approval...

 in 1621, in which office he was continued by 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 created him Earl of Manchester in 1626. In 1628 he became Lord Privy Seal

Lord Privy Seal

The Lord Privy Seal is the fifth of the Great Officers of State in the United Kingdom, ranking beneath the Lord President of the Council and above the Lord Great Chamberlain. The office is one of the traditional sinecure offices of state...

, and in 1635 a commissioner of the treasury. Although from the beginning of his public life in 1601, when he first entered Parliament, Manchester had inclined to the popular side in politics, he managed to retain to the end the favour of the King. He was a judge of 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...

, and one of the most trusted councillors of Charles I. His loyalty, ability, and honesty were warmly praised by Clarendon

Edward Hyde, 1st Earl of Clarendon

Edward Hyde, 1st Earl of Clarendon was an English historian and statesman, and grandfather of two English monarchs, Mary II and Queen Anne.-Early life:...

. In conjunction with Coventry

Thomas Coventry, 1st Baron Coventry

Thomas Coventry, 1st Baron Coventry was a prominent English lawyer, politician and judge during the early 17th century.-Education and early legal career:...

, the Lord Keeper, he pronounced an opinion in favour of the legality of 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...

 in 1634. He died on 7 November 1642.

Family

Manchester was married three times, firstly to Catherine Spencer. He was succeeded by his eldest son, Edward Montagu, Viscount Mandeville

Edward Montagu, 2nd Earl of Manchester

Edward Montagu, 2nd Earl of Manchester KG, KB, FRS was an important commander of Parliamentary forces in the First English Civil War, and for a time Oliver Cromwell's superior.-Life:...

, from this marriage. The second son of Henry and Catherine was Walter Montagu

Walter Montagu

Walter Montagu was an English courtier, secret agent and Benedictine abbot.-Life:He was the second son of Henry Montagu, 1st Earl of Manchester, by his first wife Catherine Spencer. He was born in the parish of St. Botolph Without, Aldersgate, London, and educated at Sidney Sussex College,...

, the courtier and abbot.

One of his sons by his third wife, Margaret Crouch, was George Montagu, father of Charles Montagu

Charles Montagu, 1st Earl of Halifax

Charles Montagu, 1st Earl of Halifax, KG, PC, FRS was an English poet and statesman.-Early life:Charles Montagu was born in Horton, Northamptonshire, the son of George Montagu, fifth son of 1st Earl of Manchester...

, created Earl of Halifax in 1699, and James Montagu, Attorney General from 1708 to 1710.