Sir Robert Foster (1589–1663) was an English judge and

Chief Justice of the King's Bench Chief may refer to: Title or rank Military and law enforcement * Chief master sergeant, the ninth, and highest, enlisted rank in the U.S. Air Force and U.S. Space Force * Chief of police, the head of a police department * Chief of the bo ...

Early career

Foster was the youngest son of Sir Thomas Foster, a judge of the common pleas in the time of

James I James I may refer to: People *James I of Aragon (1208–1276) * James I of Sicily or James II of Aragon (1267–1327) * James I, Count of La Marche (1319–1362), Count of Ponthieu * James I, Count of Urgell (1321–1347) *James I of Cyprus (1334� ...

. He was born in 1589, admitted a member of the

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in 1604, and called to the bar in January 1610. He was reader in the autumn of 1631, and with ten others received the degree of

serjeant-at-law A Serjeant-at-Law (SL), commonly known simply as a Serjeant, was a member of an order of barristers at the English and Irish Bar. The position of Serjeant-at-Law (''servientes ad legem''), or Sergeant-Counter, was centuries old; there are w ...

on 30 May 1636. On 27 January 1640 he succeeded Sir George Vernon as a justice of the

Common Pleas A court of common pleas is a common kind of court structure found in various common law jurisdictions. The form originated with the Court of Common Pleas at Westminster, which was created to permit individuals to press civil grievances against one ...

and was knighted.

Conduct during the Civil War and Protectorate

He was an ardent royalist, is supposed to have defended

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and billeting of troops, and joined king

Charles I of England Charles I (19 November 1600 – 30 January 1649) was King of England, Scotland, and Ireland from 27 March 1625 until his execution in 1649. He was born into the House of Stuart as the second son of King James VI of Scotland, but after ...

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on his retreat thither, but he was one of those judges for whose continuance in office the British House of Commons petitioned in 1643. At

he attempted without success to hold a

Court of Common Pleas A court of common pleas is a common kind of court structure found in various common law jurisdictions. The form originated with the Court of Common Pleas at Westminster, which was created to permit individuals to press civil grievances against one ...

. On 31 January 1643 he received the degree of D.C.L. He was one of the judges who tried and condemned Captain Turpin in 1644, and although the House of Commons ordered Serjeant Glanville, his colleague in that case, to be impeached for high treason, Foster was only removed, and with the four other judges of the

disabled from his office "as if dead", for adherence to the

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. He compounded for his estates by paying a large fine. After the death of Charles I, Foster lived in retirement, and, being a deep

black letter law In common law legal systems, black letter laws are the well-established legal rules that are no longer subject to reasonable dispute. Some examples are the "black-letter law" that the formation of a contract requires consideration, or the "black- ...

yer, practised in the Temple as a chamber counsel and conveyancer. He had received on 14 October 1656 a license from

Oliver Cromwell Oliver Cromwell (25 April 15993 September 1658) was an English politician and military officer who is widely regarded as one of the most important statesmen in English history. He came to prominence during the 1639 to 1651 Wars of the Three K ...

and council to come to London on private business and stay there, notwithstanding the late proclamation.

Chief Justice

At the

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he was at once restored to the bench, 31 May 1660, and, having shown zeal on the trials of the

regicides Regicide is the purposeful killing of a monarch or sovereign of a polity and is often associated with the usurpation of power. A regicide can also be the person responsible for the killing. The word comes from the Latin roots of ''regis'' ...

, was presently (21 October 1660) appointed to the chief-justiceship of the King's Bench, which had remained vacant for want of a suitable person to fill it. He dealt sternly with political prisoners. Many Fifth-monarchy men and the

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, John Crook, Grey, Bolton, and Tonge, accused of a plot against the king's life, were tried by him, and in the case of Sir Harry Vane he not only browbeat the prisoner on the trial, but induced the

to sanction the execution against his inclination and word and the petition of both houses of parliament. On 1 July 1663 he tried Sir

Charles Sedley Sir Charles Sedley, 5th Baronet (March 1639 – 20 August 1701), was an English noble, dramatist and politician. He was principally remembered for his wit and profligacy.. Life He was the son of Sir John Sedley, 2nd Baronet, of Aylesford in Ke ...

for indecent behaviour, and 'rebuked him severely.' He died on circuit, 4 October 1663, and was buried under a tomb bearing a bust of him in robes, at

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, Surrey.

Private life

Foster married Elizabeth, the daughter of Sir Edward Burton of Bourne, Sussex. He left a son Thomas, afterwards a knight, to whom his house, Great Foster House,

, descended.

References

;Attribution * Quote: FOSTER, Sir ROBERT (1589-1663), lord chief-justice, 1660–3; barrister, Inner Temple, 1610; serjeant-at-law, 1636; justice of common pleas, 1640-3; D.C.L. Oxford, 1643; removed after trial of Captain Turpin, 1644; during Commonwealth practised as chamber counsel; restored, 1660, and made chief-justice for zeal in trial of regicides; procured execution, of Sir Harry Vane. x. 61 {{DEFAULTSORT:Foster, Robert 1589 births 1663 deaths Lord chief justices of England and Wales Justices of the Common Pleas Members of the Inner Temple English knights 17th-century English judges