Arthur Haselrig
Encyclopedia
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
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...
between 1640 and 1659. He was one of the five members of Parliament whom King 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...
tried to arrest in 1642, an event which led to the start of the English Civil War
English Civil War
The English Civil War was a series of armed conflicts and political machinations between Parliamentarians and Royalists...
. He fought for the Parliamentarian cause in the Civil War and later tried to uphold the republic against Cromwell's autocracy, Lambert's attempt at military control and Monck's Royalist conversion in favour of the Restoration.
Early life
Haselrig was the eldest son of Sir Thomas Hesilrige, 1st BaronetSir Thomas Hesilrige, 1st Baronet
Sir Thomas Hesilrige, 1st Baronet was an English politician who sat in the House of Commons in 1614 and 1624.Hesilrige was the son of Thomas Hesilrige of Noseley Hall, Noseley, Leicestershire and his wife Ursula Andrews daughter of Sir Thomas Andrews of Charwelton, Northamptonshire and his wife...
(alternative spellings "Heselrig" and "Haselrigge"), of Noseley Hall
Noseley Hall
Noseley Hall is a privately owned 18th century country house situated at Noseley, Billesden, Leicestershire. It is a Grade II* listed buildingAnciently held by the Marteval family, it has been the seat of the Hazlerigg family since 1419 when the Marteval heiress married Thomas Hasilrige .The house...
, Noseley
Noseley
Noseley is a village and civil parish in the Harborough district of Leicestershire, England. It is the seat of the Hazlerigg family, whose members include Sir Arthur Hesilrige, who was one of the five Members of Parliament whom Charles I unsuccessfully sought to arrest.In 2004 the parish had an...
, Leicestershire
Leicestershire
Leicestershire is a landlocked county in the English Midlands. It takes its name from the heavily populated City of Leicester, traditionally its administrative centre, although the City of Leicester unitary authority is today administered separately from the rest of Leicestershire...
, and of Frances Gorges, daughter of Sir William Gorges, of Alderton
Alderton, Northamptonshire
Alderton is an English village and civil parish about south of Northampton, and north of Milton Keynes, along a road between the A5 and A508 main roads in the southwest and northeast respectively. The nearest large town is Towcester, about north...
, Northamptonshire
Northamptonshire
Northamptonshire is a landlocked county in the English East Midlands, with a population of 629,676 as at the 2001 census. It has boundaries with the ceremonial counties of Warwickshire to the west, Leicestershire and Rutland to the north, Cambridgeshire to the east, Bedfordshire to the south-east,...
. From an early age he imbibed strong puritanical principles and showed a special antagonism towards Archbishop Laud
William Laud
William Laud was Archbishop of Canterbury from 1633 to 1645. One of the High Church Caroline divines, he opposed radical forms of Puritanism...
.
Short and Long Parliaments
In April 1640, Haselrig was elected Member of ParliamentMember 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 Leicestershire
Leicestershire (UK Parliament constituency)
Leicestershire was a county constituency in Leicestershire, represented in the House of Commons. It elected two Members of Parliament , traditionally called Knights of the Shire, by the bloc vote system of election, to the Parliament of England until 1707, to the Parliament of Great Britain from...
in 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....
He was re-elected MP for Leicestershire 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...
in November 1640. He was heavily involved in the Act of Attainder against Thomas Wentworth, Earl of Strafford, the Root and Branch Bill and the Militia Bill of 7 December 1641. Charles I tried to arrest him for treason on 3 January 1642, along with 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)...
, Denzil Holles, John Pym
John Pym
John Pym was an English parliamentarian, leader of the Long Parliament and a prominent critic of James I and then Charles I.- Early life and education :...
and William Strode
William Strode
William Strode was an English politician who sat in the House of Commons of England variously between 1624 and 1645. He was one of the five members impeached by King Charles and fought on the Parliamentarian side in the English Civil War.-Life:...
. However the "Five Members", together with the Earl of Manchester
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:...
who was also due to be arrested, were tipped off by the Earl of Essex
Robert Devereux, 3rd Earl of Essex
Robert Devereux, 3rd Earl of Essex was an English Parliamentarian and soldier during the first half of the seventeenth century. With the start of the English Civil War in 1642 he became the first Captain-General and Chief Commander of the Parliamentarian army, also known as the Roundheads...
. The king marched with his guards into the chamber of the House of Commons chamber only to find that the Five Members had fled.
Civil War
Haselrig was very active in the First English Civil WarFirst English Civil War
The First English Civil War began the series of three wars known as the English Civil War . "The English Civil War" was a series of armed conflicts and political machinations that took place between Parliamentarians and Royalists from 1642 until 1651, and includes the Second English Civil War and...
on the Parliamentarian
Roundhead
"Roundhead" was the nickname given to the supporters of the Parliament during the English Civil War. Also known as Parliamentarians, they fought against King Charles I and his supporters, the Cavaliers , who claimed absolute power and the divine right of kings...
side. He raised a troop of horse for the Earl of Essex and fought at the Battle of Edgehill
Battle of Edgehill
The Battle of Edgehill was the first pitched battle of the First English Civil War. It was fought near Edge Hill and Kineton in southern Warwickshire on Sunday, 23 October 1642....
. He was a commander in the West under William Waller
William Waller
Sir William Waller was an English soldier during the English Civil War. He received his education at Magdalen Hall, Oxford, and served in the Venetian army and in the Thirty Years' War...
, being nicknamed his fidus Achates, and was led his cuirassiers, who were known as the London lobsters
London lobsters
The London lobsters, Haselrig's Lobsters or just "Lobsters" were the name given to the cavalry unit of Sir Arthur Haselrig, a Parliamentarian who fought in the English Civil War.-Background:...
. He and his troops distinguished themselves at the at the Battle of Lansdowne
Battle of Lansdowne
The English Civil War battle of Lansdowne was fought on 5 July 1643, near Bath, southwest England. Although the Royalists under Lord Hopton forced the Parliamentarians under Sir William Waller to retreat from their hilltop position, they suffered so many casualties themselves and were left so...
on 5 July 1643 where his men defeated Sir Beville Grenville
Bevil Grenville
Sir Bevil Grenville was an English politician who sat in the House of Commons of England between 1621 and 1642. He was a Royalist soldier in the English Civil War and was killed in action at the Battle of Lansdowne.-Backgound:...
's Pikemen and then at the Battle of Roundway Down
Battle of Roundway Down
The Battle of Roundway Down was fought on 13 July 1643, during the First English Civil War. A Royalist cavalry force under Lord Wilmot won a crushing victory over the Parliamentarians under Sir William Waller who were besieging Devizes in central Wiltshire, which was defended by Lord Hopton...
on 13 July. At both of these battles he was wounded. At the battle of Cheriton, his men defeated Sir Henry Bard's cavalry charge, seriously weakening Hopton's army in the west. This battle was a turning point in the war and the kings secretary Sir Edward Walker said that after Cheriton, instead of an offensive war they were forced to make a defensive war.
Governor of Newcastle
Haselrig supported Oliver CromwellOliver 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....
in his dispute with the Earl of Manchester and the Earl of Essex. When the Self-denying Ordinance
Self-denying Ordinance
The first Self-denying Ordinance was a bill moved on 9 December 1644 to deprive members of the Parliament of England from holding command in the army or the navy during the English Civil War. It failed to pass the House of Lords. A second Self-denying Ordinance was agreed to on 3 April 1645,...
was approved by Parliament he gave up his commission and became one of the leaders of the Independent party in Parliament. On 30 December 1647 he was appointed governor of Newcastle
Newcastle upon Tyne
Newcastle upon Tyne is a city and metropolitan borough of Tyne and Wear, in North East England. Historically a part of Northumberland, it is situated on the north bank of the River Tyne...
, which he successfully defended, besides defeating the Royalists on 2 July 1648 and regaining Tynemouth
Tynemouth
Tynemouth is a town and a historic borough in Tyne and Wear, England, at the mouth of the River Tyne, between North Shields and Cullercoats . It is administered as part of the borough of North Tyneside, but until 1974 was an independent county borough in its own right...
. In October he accompanied Cromwell to Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
, and gave him valuable support in the Scottish expedition in 1650. Between 1647 and 1650 Haselrig and his son brought a large amount of property in the north east which included the manors of Bishop#s Auckland, Middleham, Easingwoodborough and Wolsingham at a total cost of over £22,500.
Parliamentary career under Cromwell
Haselrig approved of the king's execution but declined to act as a judge at his trial. He was one of the leading men in the Commonwealth, but he was antagonised by Cromwell's expulsion of the Rump ParliamentRump Parliament
The Rump Parliament is the name of the English Parliament after Colonel Pride purged the Long Parliament on 6 December 1648 of those members hostile to the Grandees' intention to try King Charles I for high treason....
, and he opposed the Protectorate
Protectorate
In history, the term protectorate has two different meanings. In its earliest inception, which has been adopted by modern international law, it is an autonomous territory that is protected diplomatically or militarily against third parties by a stronger state or entity...
and refused to pay taxes. Haselrig considered Cromwell to be a traitor to the cause after this as he was a staunch republican and opposed to all rule by a single person whether by hereditary succession or military might. Ludlow one of his opponents admitted "to do him justice .. I must acknowledge that I am under no manner of doubt concerning the rectitude and sincerity of his intentions. For he made it his buseness to prevent arbitrary powerwherever he knew it to be affected,and to keep the sword subserviant to the civil magistrate"
In 1654, Haselrig was elected MP for Leicester
Leicester (UK Parliament constituency)
Leicester was a parliamentary borough in Leicestershire, which elected two Members of Parliament to the House of Commons from 1295 until 1918, when it was split into three single-member divisions.-History:...
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....
and in 1656 for the Second Protectorate Parliament
Second Protectorate Parliament
The Second Protectorate Parliament in England sat for two sessions from 17 September 1656 until 4 February 1658, with Thomas Widdrington as the Speaker of the House of Commons...
, but he was excluded from them both. He refused a seat, offered to him by Cromwell, in the Protectorate House of Lords.
Parliament against Lambert
On Cromwell's death Haselrig refused support to Richard CromwellRichard Cromwell
At the same time, the officers of the New Model Army became increasingly wary about the government's commitment to the military cause. The fact that Richard Cromwell lacked military credentials grated with men who had fought on the battlefields of the English Civil War to secure their nation's...
, and was instrumental in his downfall. He was elected MP for Leicester 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 1659 and became one of the most influential men in both the Council of State
Council of State
The Council of State is a unique governmental body in a country or subdivision thereoff, though its nature may range from the formal name for the cabinet to a non-executive advisory body surrounding a head of state. It is sometimes regarded as the equivalent of a privy council.-Modern:*Belgian...
and Parliament. He tried to keep a republican Parliamentary administration, "to keep the sword subservient to the civil magistrate". He opposed the schemes of John Lambert
John Lambert (general)
John Lambert was an English Parliamentary general and politician. He fought during the English Civil War and then in Oliver Cromwell's Scottish campaign , becoming thereafter active in civilian politics until his dismissal by Cromwell in 1657...
who was resisting parliamentary control over the military. One noted altercation has Lambert complaining that the army was being held at mercy...
Hesilrige replied that "You are only at the mercy of Parliament who are your friends"
To which Lambert replied "I know not why they should not be at our mercy as well as we at theirs"
Anger at the independence of the army resulted in nine leading officers, including Lambert, beinge cashiered. Lambert reacted by calling out the army and blocking all routes to parliament and put guards upon its doors.
After Lambert had halted Parliament, Haselrig decided to restore Parliament. The strength of the army in London called for another location, and for a variety of reasons Portsmouth was chosen. Portsmouth had strong parliamentary traditions and had always maintained independence from the army, it benefitted from defensible fortifications on its land side and the support of Admiral Lawson ensured that the city would not fall easily to a protracted siege, Hesilrage also knew the area well having campaigned around Hampshire during the civil war. The newly appointed governor Whetham was a republican who had declared that his men would support him. Whetham was a friend of General Monck
George Monck, 1st Duke of Albemarle
George Monck, 1st Duke of Albemarle, KG was an English soldier and politician and a key figure in the restoration of Charles II.-Early life and career:...
in Scotland who had the best forces in Britain at his disposal and who had declared himself for parliament in October. On 4 December 1659 Hesilrage met with his allies in the Red Lion Inn having arrived at 4 in the afternoon. By the next day a declaration was posted calling for citizens to "restore Parliament to their former freedom, being the peoples indubitable and undoubted birthright" Hurst Castle and the Isle of wight soon declared for Parliament. The military government, which was now named the Committee of Safety, despatched a force hoping that pro army members would open the gates. However the Commander of the army Colonel Rich entered into negotiations and his men decided to join Hesilrige. Word soon spread and soon Hull and Plymouth were recorded to be going the same way. The army council unsure of support of its troops restored the Rump Parliament by 26 December. On the 29 December Hesilrige marched to London and entering parliament still in his riding clothes. Hesilrage was at the height of his power as the major figure in a restored republic and was appointed to the Council of State on 2 January 1660. On 11 February he became a commissioner for the army.
Monck and the Restoration
However Monck had began to march south from Coldstream on the 1 January. Lambert moved to face Monck but knowing the strength of Monck's forces and the doubtful loyalty of his own troops avoided engagement. Monck avoided answering questions as to his intentions and by 3 February entered London. Hesilrage, trusting to his assurance of fidelity to the "Good Old CauseGood Old Cause
The Good Old Cause was the retrospective name given by the soldiers of the New Model Army for the complex of reasons for which they fought, on behalf of the Parliament of England....
" consented to the retirement of his regiment from London. The Rump Parliament was dissolved and Hesilrage found himself marginalised by the unfolding events. A new Convention Parliament came in on 31 April and by 8 May Charles was proclaimed King. At the Restoration Hesilrige's life was saved by Monck's intervention, but he was imprisoned in the Tower of London
Tower of London
Her Majesty's Royal Palace and Fortress, more commonly known as the Tower of London, is a historic castle on the north bank of the River Thames in central London, England. It lies within the London Borough of Tower Hamlets, separated from the eastern edge of the City of London by the open space...
where he died on the 7 January 1661.
Character
ClarendonEdward 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:...
described Haselrig as "an absurd, bold man." He was rash, "hare-brained," devoid of tact and had little claim to the title of a statesman, but his energy in the field and in parliament was often of great value to the parliamentary cause." He exposed himself to considerable obloquy by his exactions and appropriations of confiscated landed property though the accusation brought against him by John Lilburne
John Lilburne
John Lilburne , also known as Freeborn John, was an English political Leveller before, during and after English Civil Wars 1642-1650. He coined the term "freeborn rights", defining them as rights with which every human being is born, as opposed to rights bestowed by government or human law...
was examined by a parliamentary committee and adjudged to be false.
Family
Haselrig married firstly Frances Elmes, daughter of Thomas Elmes of Lilford, Northamptonshire, by whom he had two sons and two daughters. He married secondly Dorothy Greville, sister of Robert Greville 2nd Lord Brooke, by whom he had three sons and five daughters.Authorities
- Article on Hesilrige by CH FirthCharles Harding FirthSir Charles Harding Firth was a British historian.Born in Sheffield, he was educated at Clifton College and at Balliol College, Oxford...
in the Dict. of Nat. Biography, and authorities there quoted; Early History of the Family of Hesilrige, by WGD Fletcher; - Cat. of State Papers Domestic, 1631—1664, where there are a large number of important references, as also in Hist. manuscripts, Comm. Series Manuscripts of Earl Cozoper, Duke of Leeds and Duke of Portland;
- also SR GardinerSamuel Rawson GardinerSamuel Rawson Gardiner was an English historian.The son of Rawson Boddam Gardiner, he was born near Alresford, Hampshire. He was educated at Winchester College and Christ Church, Oxford, where he obtained a first class in literae humaniores. He was subsequently elected to fellowships at All Souls ...
, Hist. of England Hist. of the Great Civil War and Commonwealth; - Clarendon's History State Papers and Cal. of State Papers, JL Sanford's Studies of the Great Rebellion. His life is written by Noble in the House of Cromwell,