John Hampden MP (abt. 1595 - 1643)

Born about 1595 in London, England

Ancestors

Husband of Elizabeth (Symeon) Hampden — married 24 Jun 1619 (to Aug 1634) in Oxfordshire, England

Descendants

Died 24 Jun 1643 at about age 48 in Thame, Oxfordshire, England

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Biography

John Hampden was a member of the aristocracy in England.

John Hampden was an English politician who was one of the leading parliamentarians involved in challenging the authority of CharlesI of England. in the run up to the English Civil War. He stood trial in 1637 for his refusal to be taxed for ship money, and was one of the Five Members whose attempted unconstitutional arrest by King Charles in the House of Commons in 1642 sparked the Civil War. He has often been referred to as 'The Patriot',

Family and Education

b. 1595, 1st s. of William Hampden† of Great Hampden in Buckinghamshire, and Elizabeth, second dau. of Sir Henry Cromwell alias Williams† of Hinchingbrooke, Hunts. bro. of Richard*. educ. Thame g.s. (Richard Bourchier); Magdalen, Oxf. 1610; I. Temple 1613. m. (1) 24 June 1619, Elizabeth (bur. 1634), da. of Edmund Symeon of Pyrton, Oxon., 3s., 6da.; (2) 5 June 1640, Letitia (bur. 29 Mar.1666), da. of Sir Francis Knollys I* of Abbey House, Reading, Berks. and wid. of Sir Thomas Vachell of Coley, Berks., s.p. suc. fa. 1597. d. 24 June 1643. sig. Jo[hn]/John Hampden.^[1]

Death

On the night of 17 June 1643, Prince Rupert sortied on a raid out of Oxford to capture the Parliamentarian army's paymaster, but while that failed, did succeed the next morning in overwhelming two of Essex's small garrison outposts at Postcombe and Chinnor. Hampden rode as a volunteer with 1,100 cavalry and dragoons commanded by Sir Philip Stapleton in pursuit of Rupert, with the intention of delaying him long enough for a larger force from Essex's main army to cut off his retreat. Rupert halted his own cavalry at Chalgrove to ambush the pursuit and allow 800 less mobile troops to escape. During the ensuing Battle of Chalgrove Field, Hampden was mortally wounded in the shoulder (some sources claim by two carbine balls, others by shrapnel from his own pistol exploding[5]) which shattered the bone and forced him to leave the field. He reached Thame, survived six days, and died on 24 June.^[2]

Legacy

John Hampden is the namesake of entities including Hampden County, Massachusetts;^[3] Hampden-Sydney College, Virginia;^[4] and the town of Hamden, Connecticut.^[5]

Sources

1. ↑ The History of Parliament: the House of Commons 1604-1629, ed. Andrew Thrush and John P. Ferris, 2010 [1]
2. ↑ Wikipedia [2]
3. ↑ Hampden County, Massachusetts in Wikipedia.
4. ↑ Hampden-Sydney College in Wikipedia.
5. ↑ Hamden, Connecticut in Wikipedia.

• Waters, R.E.C., Genealogical Memoirs of the Extinct Family of Chester of Chicheley: Their Ancestors and Descendants, v. 1 Robson & Sons 1878, pp.49,89-90
• Oxford Dictionary of National Biography: Hampden, John (1595–1643)
• https://www.johnhampden.org/