Whitelocke, Bulstrode

Whitelocke, Bulstrode

▪ English lawyer
born Aug. 6, 1605, London
died July 28, 1675, Chilton Park, near Hungerford, Berkshire, Eng.

      English republican lawyer, an influential figure in Oliver Cromwell (Cromwell, Oliver)'s Commonwealth regime.

      Whitelocke was the son of Sir James Whitelocke, a King's Bench judge, and became a barrister in 1626 and served in the Parliament of the same year. He was elected to the Long Parliament in 1640 and took a leading part in the impeachment and attainder (1641) of King Charles I's chief minister, Thomas Wentworth, Earl of Strafford. Yet he opposed the Grand Remonstrance of 1641, which John Pym had carefully engineered. At the outbreak of the Civil Wars in 1642, Whitelocke sided with Parliament against the Royalists; he was sent on three peace embassies to Charles I from 1643 to 1645.

      Whitelocke became a commissioner of the Great Seal in 1648 and was elected to the Council of State on the formation of the Commonwealth in 1649. During the next 10 years he served three additional terms as commissioner of the Great Seal. His official position enabled him to draft a new treason law and promote a bill for the use of English in legal proceedings. As ambassador to Sweden in 1653–54, he negotiated a treaty of friendship between England and Sweden. Although his resistance to Cromwell's proposed reform of the Court of Chancery led to his dismissal from the government in 1655, he headed the committee that in 1657 urged Cromwell to become king. Whitelocke's reputation for moderation—viewed by many as political vacillation—saved him from prosecution after the Restoration of King Charles II in 1660.

Additional Reading
His personal records—part memoir, part diary, part commonplace book—have been published in various forms, of which the most accessible is Ruth Spalding (ed.), The Diary of Bulstrode Whitelocke, 1605–1675 (1990). Ruth Spalding, The Improbable Puritan: A Life of Bulstrode Whitelocke, 1605–1675 (1975), is an award-winning biography.John S. Morrill

* * *


Universalium. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Поможем написать курсовую

Look at other dictionaries:

  • WHITELOCKE, BULSTRODE —    a statesman of the Commonwealth, born in London; studied law at the Middle Temple: sat in the Long Parliament, and was moderate in his zeal for the popular side; at the Restoration his name was included in the Act of Oblivion, but he took no… …   The Nuttall Encyclopaedia

  • Bulstrode — may refer to:;Places * Bulstrode Park, Gerrards Cross, Buckinghamshire, England;People * Bulstrode Whitelocke, an English lawyer * Richard Bulstrode;Fictional characters * Bulstrode (Thomas the Tank Engine), a character in the Railway Series by… …   Wikipedia

  • Whitelocke — is an English surname *Edmund Whitelocke (1565 1608), English soldier *James Whitelocke (1570–1632), English judge *Bulstrode Whitelocke (1605–1675), English lawyer and politician *John Whitelocke (1757–1833), British soldierSee also *Whitlock …   Wikipedia

  • Whitelocke — (spr. Ueillok), Bulstrode, geb. 6. Aug. 1605 in London; Rechtsgelehrter, bes. bekannt durch seine Vertheidigung Hampdeus in dessen Proceß wegen Verweigerung des von der Regierung willkürlich aufgelegten Schiffsgeldes, wurde 1640 Mitglied des… …   Pierer's Universal-Lexikon

  • Whitelocke — (Uëitlöck), Sir Bulstrode, geb. 1605 zu London, berühmter Rechtsgelehrter, unter Karl I. Haupt der presbyterianischen (oder constitutionell monarchischen) Partei, Vertheidiger Hampdens, Ankläger Straffords, unter Cromwell Gesandter in Schweden;… …   Herders Conversations-Lexikon

  • Bulstrode Whitelocke — Sir Bulstrode Whitelocke (6 August 1605 – 28 July 1675) was an English lawyer, writer, parliamentarian and Lord Keeper of the Great Seal of England. Biography He was the eldest son of Sir James Whitelocke, born in Fleet Street, London and… …   Wikipedia

  • Richard Bulstrode — Sir Richard Bulstrode (1610 1711) was an English author and soldier, a son of Edward Bulstrode (1588 1659), and educated at Pembroke College, Cambridge; after studying law in London be joined the army of Charles I on the outbreak of the Civil War …   Wikipedia

  • James Whitelocke — Sir James Whitelocke, SL (28 November 1570 – 22 June 1632) was an English judgeHe was the son of Richard Whitelocke, a London merchant. Educated at Merchant Taylors School, London, and at St John s College, Oxford, he became a fellow of his… …   Wikipedia

  • List of Acts of Parliament of the English Parliament, 1660 to 1699 — This is a list of Acts of Parliament of the English Parliament during that body s existence prior to the Act of Union of 1707. For legislation passed after that date see List of Acts of Parliament of the United Kingdom Parliament.The numbers… …   Wikipedia

  • Fawley Court — From Views of the seats of noblemen and gentlemen in England, Wales, Scotland and Ireland , Second Series, Volume III, by John Preston Neale, 1826Fawley Court stands on the banks of the River Thames at Fawley in the English county of… …   Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
… Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”