John Asgill (25 March 1659 – 10 November 1738) was an eccentric English writer and politician.

Life

Asgill attended

Nonconformist (Protestantism) Nonconformists are Protestant Christians who do not "conform" to the governance and usages of the established church in England, and in Wales until 1914, the Church of England. Use of the term ''Nonconformist'' in England and Wales was prec ...

services in his youth. He studied law at 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 ...

, 1686, and was called to the bar in 1692. He founded the first land bank in 1695 with

Nicholas Barbon Nicholas Barbon ( 1640 – 1698) was an English economist, physician, and financial speculator. Historians of mercantilism consider him to be one of the first proponents of the free market. In the aftermath of the Great Fire of London, he b ...

, which, after proving to be a profitable venture, merged with the land bank of John Briscoe in 1696. However, after profits dropped, the bank closed in 1699. He was then elected that year as Member of Parliament for

Bramber Bramber is a former Manorialism, manor, village and civil parish in the Horsham (district), Horsham District of West Sussex, England. It has a ruined mediaeval castle which was the ''caput'' of a large English feudal barony, feudal barony. B ...

.. In 1700 Asgill had published ''An Argument Proving, that … Man may be Translated'', a

pamphlet A pamphlet is an unbound book (that is, without a Hardcover, hard cover or Bookbinding, binding). Pamphlets may consist of a single sheet of paper that is printed on both sides and folded in half, in thirds, or in fourths, called a ''leaflet'' ...

aiming to prove that

death Death is the end of life; the irreversible cessation of all biological functions that sustain a living organism. Death eventually and inevitably occurs in all organisms. The remains of a former organism normally begin to decompose sh ...

was not obligatory upon

Christians A Christian () is a person who follows or adheres to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. Christians form the largest religious community in the world. The words '' Christ'' and ''C ...

, which, much to his surprise, caused a public outcry and led to his expulsion from the

Irish House of Commons The Irish House of Commons was the lower house of the Parliament of Ireland that existed from 1297 until the end of 1800. The upper house was the Irish House of Lords, House of Lords. The membership of the House of Commons was directly elected, ...

in 1703, only a short time after he had stood successfully for

Enniscorthy Enniscorthy () is the second-largest town in County Wexford, Republic of Ireland, Ireland. The town is located on the picturesque River Slaney and in close proximity to the Blackstairs Mountains and Ireland's longest beach, Curracloe. The Plac ...

. He had moved to Ireland where the act for returning the forfeited estates which had been given away by William was providing work for lawyers. Whilst in Ireland he had been re-elected to the

English House of Commons The House of Commons of England was the lower house of the Parliament of England (which incorporated Wales) 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 ...

for

in 1702 and so returned to England. On 12 June 1707 he was arrested and imprisoned at

Fleet Prison Fleet Prison was a notorious London prison by the side of the River Fleet. The prison was built in 1197, was rebuilt several times, and was in use until 1844. It was demolished in 1846. History The prison was built in 1197 off what is now ...

for debt; he claimed

parliamentary immunity Parliamentary immunity, also known as legislative immunity, is a system in which politicians or other political leaders are granted full immunity from legal prosecution, both civil prosecution and criminal prosecution, in the course of the exe ...

as a member of a current parliament despite the confusion whether the last English parliament and the

first Parliament of Great Britain The first Parliament of the Kingdom of Great Britain was established in 1707 after the merger of the Kingdom of England and the Kingdom of Scotland. It was in fact the 4th and last session of the 2nd Parliament of Queen Anne suitably renamed: n ...

were the same body, and in December the House of Commons agreed. Nevertheless, two days after ordering his release from prison, he was expelled from the Commons for authoring a blasphemous book. He fell on hard times, and passed the rest of his life between the

Fleet prison Fleet Prison was a notorious London prison by the side of the River Fleet. The prison was built in 1197, was rebuilt several times, and was in use until 1844. It was demolished in 1846. History The prison was built in 1197 off what is now ...

and the King's Bench, but his zeal as a pamphleteer continued unabated.

Notes

;Attribution

External links

*
Entry at History of Parliament Online
{{DEFAULTSORT:Asgill, John 1659 births 1738 deaths English male writers English MPs 1702–1705 English MPs 1705–1707 British MPs 1707–1708 Irish MPs 1703–1713 Members of the Parliament of Ireland (pre-1801) for County Wexford constituencies Inmates of Fleet Prison English pamphleteers 18th-century English people English lawyers 17th-century English lawyers 17th-century English male writers 17th-century English writers Members of the Middle Temple People imprisoned for debt Expelled members of the Parliament of Great Britain People from Worcestershire (before 1974)