Sir Francis Winnington (7 November 1634 – 1 May 1700) was an English lawyer and politician who sat in the

House of Commons The House of Commons is the name for the elected lower house of the Bicameralism, bicameral parliaments of the United Kingdom and Canada. In both of these countries, the Commons holds much more legislative power than the nominally upper house of ...

at various times between 1677 and 1698. He became

Solicitor-General A solicitor general is a government official who serves as the chief representative of the government in courtroom proceedings. In systems based on the English common law that have an attorney general or equivalent position, the solicitor general ...

to King Charles II.

Biography

Winnington entered the

Middle Temple The Honourable Society of the Middle Temple, commonly known simply as Middle Temple, is one of the four Inns of Court entitled to Call to the bar, call their members to the English Bar as barristers, the others being the Inner Temple (with whi ...

in 1656 and was called to the bar in 1660 and rose steadily, serving as counsel in various

Parliament In modern politics and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: Representation (politics), representing the Election#Suffrage, electorate, making laws, and overseeing ...

ary

impeachment Impeachment is a process by which a legislative body or other legally constituted tribunal initiates charges against a public official for misconduct. It may be understood as a unique process involving both political and legal elements. In Eur ...

s. In January 1672, he became attorney-general to the king's brother, the Duke of York and was knighted on 16 December 1672. He was appointed as Solicitor General in 1675 and chosen as MP for Windsor at a by-election to the

Cavalier Parliament The Cavalier Parliament of England lasted from 8 May 1661 until 24 January 1679. With the exception of the Long Parliament, it was the longest-lasting English Parliament, and longer than any Great British or UK Parliament to date, enduring ...

in 1677 on the King's recommendation. During the hysteria of the

Popish Plot The Popish Plot was a fictitious conspiracy invented by Titus Oates that between 1678 and 1681 gripped the kingdoms of England and Scotland in anti-Catholic hysteria. Oates alleged that there was an extensive Catholic conspiracy to assassinat ...

, Winnington's allegiances changed, and he participated in impeaching the Lord Danby. This led to his dismissal as Solicitor General. However he was elected as MP for

Worcester Worcester may refer to: Places United Kingdom * Worcester, England, a city and the county town of Worcestershire in England ** Worcester (UK Parliament constituency), an area represented by a Member of Parliament * Worcester Park, London, Engl ...

in 1679 (twice) and again in 1681. While Parliament was not sitting, he defended political allies in the court and also the city he represented when its corporation was attacked by

Quo warranto In the English-American common law, ''quo warranto'' (Medieval Latin for "by what warrant?") is a prerogative writ issued by a court which orders someone to show what authority they have for exercising some right, power, or franchise they clai ...

proceedings, as well as

Oxford Oxford () is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and non-metropolitan district in Oxfordshire, England, of which it is the county town. The city is home to the University of Oxford, the List of oldest universities in continuou ...

. His legal services remained in demand in the reign of

James II of England James II and VII (14 October 1633 – 16 September 1701) was King of England and Monarchy of Ireland, Ireland as James II and King of Scotland as James VII from the death of his elder brother, Charles II of England, Charles II, on 6 February 1 ...

. He was elected as MP for

Tewkesbury Tewkesbury ( ) is a market town and civil parish in the north of Gloucestershire, England. The town grew following the construction of Tewkesbury Abbey in the twelfth century and played a significant role in the Wars of the Roses. It stands at ...

in 1689, 1692 and 1695, though he had not initially sought the seat.

Family

Winnington married first Elizabeth Herbert of Powick, he had a daughter Elizabeth who married in 1676 Richard Dowdeswell of Bushbury MP, his colleague in the representation of Tewkesbury. Winnington second and last marriage was to Elizabeth, daughter of Edward Salwey and third and youngest sister and coheir of Edward Salwey, who brought him Stanford Court at Stanford-on-Teme,

Worcestershire Worcestershire ( , ; written abbreviation: Worcs) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the West Midlands (region), West Midlands of England. It is bordered by Shropshire, Staffordshire, and the West Midlands (county), West ...

to add to property he had already bought there with his considerable earnings. They had four sons and three daughters, including Salwey Winnington, Francis Winnington and Edward Winnington, later Jeffreys.

Notes

References

* * ;Attribution * {{DEFAULTSORT:Winnington, Francis 1634 births 1700 deaths English lawyers Knights Bachelor Solicitors general for England and Wales English MPs 1661–1679 Members of the Middle Temple 17th-century English lawyers English MPs 1679 English MPs 1680–1681 English MPs 1681 English MPs 1690–1695 English MPs 1695–1698 Politicians from Worcestershire Politicians from Gloucestershire

Francis Francis may refer to: People and characters *Pope Francis, head of the Catholic Church (2013–2025) *Francis (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters * Francis (surname) * Francis, a character played by YouTuber Boogie2 ...