Richard Salwey
Encyclopedia
Richard Salwey was an English politician who sat in the House of Commons
variously between 1645 and 1659. He was a republican in politics and fought on the Parliamentary side in the English Civil War
.
of Stanford Court at Stanford-on-Teme
, Worcestershire
and his wife Anne Littleton, daughter of Sir Edward Littleton and Mary Fisher of Pillaton Hall
, Staffordshire
. His father was a lawyer and MP for Worcesteshire. Salwey became a grocer and merchant in London.
Salwey's father was active in the parliamentary cause, and Salwey became a major in the Parliamentarian army. In 1645, he was elected Member of Parliament
for Appleby
. He made his name in parliamentary affairs as member of the commissions on Irish matters. In 1647 he travelled with Sir Thomas Wharton, Sir Robert King, Sir John Clotworthy
, and Sir Robert Meredith to negotiate with the Duke of Ormond
. He was a commissioner for the Tender of Union
in 1651. The beginning of the First Anglo-Dutch War
saw a shake-up of the naval organisation, after defeat at the Battle of Dungeness
, and with Henry Vane
and George Thomson
, Salwey and his ally John Carew
made up the group of four effectively overseeing the Navy for Parliament.
Salwey was a supporter of Oliver Cromwell
, but broke with him at the end of the Rump Parliament
, together with Francis Allen. He was a member of Barebone's Parliament, nominated for Worcestershire
. He clashed with Cromwell in April 1653; and he lost his Navy position at the end of the year in a general Admiralty change. He was appointed to the new Council of State
formed after the Rump was dissolved, but boycotted its meetings.
From 1654 he was out of the country as English ambassador in Constantinople
.
In 1659 Salwey active again in parliament as a member of the restored Rump parliament. He became a member of committee of the Committee of Safety
and Council of State, in May of that year, and a commissioner for the Navy. The Committee sent him with Sir Henry Vane as heads of a delegation to John Lawson
, a refractory republican Vice-Admiral, without success. On 16 January 1660 he with William Sydenham was expelled from Parliament; he was sent to the Tower of London
.
After the Restoration
he was suspected of complicity in the Farnley Wood Plot, in 1663-4. .
Salwey married in 1641 Anne Waring, the daughter of Richard Waring, grocer and a London alderman involved in the Levant Company. He had the resources to build a country house at Haye Park in Shropshire
, and his residence is often given as the neighbouring Richard’s Castle, over the county boundary in Herefordshire
; his son of the same name then built nearby at Moor Park.
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...
variously between 1645 and 1659. He was a republican in politics and fought on the Parliamentary side in the English Civil War
English Civil War
The English Civil War was a series of armed conflicts and political machinations between Parliamentarians and Royalists...
.
Life
Salwey was the son of Humphrey SalweyHumphrey Salwey
Humphrey Salwey was an English politician who sat in the House of Commons from 1640 to 1652. He supported the Parliamentary side in the English Civil War....
of Stanford Court at Stanford-on-Teme
Stanford-on-Teme
Stanford-on-Teme is a village and, with the village of Orleton just under one mile away, also a civil parish in the Malvern Hills District in the county of Worcestershire, England.-External links:*...
, Worcestershire
Worcestershire
Worcestershire is a non-metropolitan county, established in antiquity, located in the West Midlands region of England. For Eurostat purposes it is a NUTS 3 region and is one of three counties that comprise the "Herefordshire, Worcestershire and Warwickshire" NUTS 2 region...
and his wife Anne Littleton, daughter of Sir Edward Littleton and Mary Fisher of Pillaton Hall
Pillaton Hall Gatehouse
Pillaton Hall Gatehouse is a 15th century gatehouse and all that remains standing of medieval Pillaton Hall, near Penkridge, Staffordshire. It is a Scheduled Ancient Monument and a Grade II* listed building....
, Staffordshire
Staffordshire
Staffordshire is a landlocked 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. Part of the National Forest lies within its borders...
. His father was a lawyer and MP for Worcesteshire. Salwey became a grocer and merchant in London.
Salwey's father was active in the parliamentary cause, and Salwey became a major in the Parliamentarian army. In 1645, he 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 Appleby
Appleby (UK Parliament constituency)
Appleby was a parliamentary constituency in the former county of Westmorland in England. It existed for two separate periods: from 1295 to 1832, and from 1885 to 1918....
. He made his name in parliamentary affairs as member of the commissions on Irish matters. In 1647 he travelled with Sir Thomas Wharton, Sir Robert King, Sir John Clotworthy
John Clotworthy, 1st Viscount Massereene
John Clotworthy, 1st Viscount Massereene was an Anglo-Irish politician.-Life:He was a son of Sir Hugh Clotworthy, sheriff of county Antrim....
, and Sir Robert Meredith to negotiate with the Duke of Ormond
James Butler, 1st Duke of Ormonde
James Butler, 1st Duke of Ormonde PC was an Irish statesman and soldier. He was the second of the Kilcash branch of the family to inherit the earldom. He was the friend of Thomas Wentworth, 1st Earl of Strafford, who appointeed him commander of the Cavalier forces in Ireland. From 1641 to 1647, he...
. He was a commissioner for the Tender of Union
Tender of Union
The Tender of Union was a declaration of the Parliament of England during the Interregnum following the War of the Three Kingdoms stating that Scotland would cease to have an independent parliament and would join England in its emerging Commonwealth republic....
in 1651. The beginning of the First Anglo-Dutch War
First Anglo-Dutch War
The First Anglo–Dutch War was the first of the four Anglo–Dutch Wars. It was fought entirely at sea between the navies of the Commonwealth of England and the United Provinces of the Netherlands. Caused by disputes over trade, the war began with English attacks on Dutch merchant shipping, but...
saw a shake-up of the naval organisation, after defeat at the Battle of Dungeness
Battle of Dungeness
The naval Battle of Dungeness took place on 10 December 1652 during the First Anglo-Dutch War near the cape of Dungeness in Kent.- Background :...
, and with Henry Vane
Henry Vane the Younger
Sir Henry Vane , son of Henry Vane the Elder , was an English politician, statesman, and colonial governor...
and George Thomson
George Thomson
George Thomson , born at Limekilns, Fife, Scotland, was a noted collector of the music of Scotland, a music publisher, and a friend of Robert Burns. He was clerk to the Board of Trustees in Edinburgh for sixty years...
, Salwey and his ally John Carew
John Carew (regicide)
John Carew , from Antony, Cornwall, was one of the regicides of King Charles I.Elected MP for Tregony in 1647, he was a prominent member of the Fifth Monarchy Men who saw the overthrow of Charles I as a divine sign of the second coming of Jesus and the establishment of the millennium a thousand...
made up the group of four effectively overseeing the Navy for Parliament.
Salwey was a supporter of 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....
, but broke with him at the end of the Rump Parliament
Rump 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....
, together with Francis Allen. He was a member of Barebone's Parliament, nominated for Worcestershire
Worcestershire (UK Parliament constituency)
Worcestershire was a county constituency of the House of Commons of the Parliament of England then of the Parliament of Great Britain from 1707 to 1800 and of the Parliament of the United Kingdom from 1801 to 1832. It was represented until 1832 by two Members of Parliament, traditionally referred...
. He clashed with Cromwell in April 1653; and he lost his Navy position at the end of the year in a general Admiralty change. He was appointed to the new Council of State
English Council of State
The English Council of State, later also known as the Protector's Privy Council, was first appointed by the Rump Parliament on 14 February 1649 after the execution of King Charles I....
formed after the Rump was dissolved, but boycotted its meetings.
From 1654 he was out of the country as English ambassador in Constantinople
Constantinople
Constantinople was the capital of the Roman, Eastern Roman, Byzantine, Latin, and Ottoman Empires. Throughout most of the Middle Ages, Constantinople was Europe's largest and wealthiest city.-Names:...
.
In 1659 Salwey active again in parliament as a member of the restored Rump parliament. He became a member of committee of the Committee of Safety
English Committee of Safety
The Committee of Safety, established by the Parliamentarians in July 1642, was the first of a number of successive committees set up to oversee the English Civil War against King Charles I, and the Interregnum.-1642–1644:...
and Council of State, in May of that year, and a commissioner for the Navy. The Committee sent him with Sir Henry Vane as heads of a delegation to John Lawson
John Lawson (Naval officer)
Sir John Lawson was an English Naval Officer and Republican.Lawson was in command of ships in the parliament's service during and after the English Civil War, 1642-6, 1651-3, 1654-6. He was dismissed from the public service, apparently on political grounds in 1656...
, a refractory republican Vice-Admiral, without success. On 16 January 1660 he with William Sydenham was expelled from Parliament; he was sent to 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...
.
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...
he was suspected of complicity in the Farnley Wood Plot, in 1663-4. .
Salwey married in 1641 Anne Waring, the daughter of Richard Waring, grocer and a London alderman involved in the Levant Company. He had the resources to build a country house at Haye Park 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...
, and his residence is often given as the neighbouring Richard’s Castle, over the county boundary in Herefordshire
Herefordshire
Herefordshire is a historic and ceremonial county in the West Midlands region of England. For Eurostat purposes it is a NUTS 3 region and is one of three counties that comprise the "Herefordshire, Worcestershire and Gloucestershire" NUTS 2 region. It also forms a unitary district known as the...
; his son of the same name then built nearby at Moor Park.
Further reading
- Stephen K. Roberts, Richard Salwey, member of the Long Parliament and commissioner for the navy, History Today, Vol. 53, May 2003.