Samuel Wightwick 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 ...

in 1659. Wightwick was the younger son of Francis Wightwick of Great Bloxham, Staffordshire. He was admitted a student of the

Inner Temple The Honourable Society of the Inner Temple, commonly known as the Inner Temple, is one of the four Inns of Court and is a professional association for barristers and judges. To be called to the Bar and practice as a barrister in England and Wa ...

in November 1629 (then styled as of

Clifford's Inn Clifford's Inn is the name of both a former Inn of Chancery in London and a present mansion block on the same site. It is located between Fetter Lane and Clifford's Inn Passage (which runs between Fleet Street and Chancery Lane) in the City of ...

). In 1638, he was called to be "an Associate of the Bench" but was not chosen a Bencher, though he was so erroneously described in 1652. He was Prothonotary of the Upper Bench under the Commonwealth, and petitioned the Committee for the Advance of Money on 12 January 1646, as follows

" I am joint patentee with Robert Henley (who was assessed at £2000 on 18 October 1643) in the office of Prothonotary of the King's Bench, and I agreed that he should have the profits of the office except 1/12 for me, and I gave a bond for £20,000 to his executors, if he should die, and he did the same as to my 1/12. I have always been forward for Parliament in co. Berks, in the committee for the associated counties, and have had my house and goods plundered, and my eldest son carried from his house prisoner, and most cruelly used, almost to death, and I have 8 children. I beg that if Mr. Henley be adjudged incapable of the office for delinquency, the whole office then being mine by right, you will consider my interest and care, and add something to my 1/12".

He bought from the Treason Trustees some houses in

Drury Lane Drury Lane is a street on the boundary between the Covent Garden and Holborn areas of London, running between Aldwych and High Holborn. The northern part is in the borough of London Borough of Camden, Camden and the southern part in the City o ...

forfeited by William Lord Craven, which were discharged from sequestration on 17 March 1646. On 29 May 1655, he appears to have been acting on some commission for the Council of State when his name is mentioned in Cal. State Papers. In 1659, he was elected Member of Parliament for

Brecon Brecon (; ; ), archaically known as Brecknock, is a market town in Powys, mid Wales. In 1841, it had a population of 5,701. The population in 2001 was 7,901, increasing to 8,250 at the 2011 census. Historically it was the county town of Breck ...

. In 1662, he was Joint Chief Clerk with Robert Henley for enrolling pleas in the King's Bench.W R Williams ''The Parliamentary History of the Principality of Wales''
/ref> Wightwick married Abigail Wright of Brookset, Essex, and his four sons, Samuel, Peter, George and Francis, were all admitted as members of the Inner Temple.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Wightwick, Samuel Year of birth unknown Year of death unknown Members of the Parliament of England (pre-1707) for constituencies in Wales Members of the Inner Temple People from Brecon English MPs 1659