Thomas Glemham
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Sir Thomas Glemham (c. 1594 – 1649) was an English soldier, landowner 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 ...
between 1621 and 1625. He was a commander in the
Royalist A royalist supports a particular monarch as head of state for a particular kingdom, or of a particular dynastic claim. In the abstract, this position is royalism. It is distinct from monarchism, which advocates a monarchical system of gove ...
army during the
English Civil War The English Civil War or Great Rebellion was a series of civil wars and political machinations between Cavaliers, Royalists and Roundhead, Parliamentarians in the Kingdom of England from 1642 to 1651. Part of the wider 1639 to 1653 Wars of th ...
.


Early life and career

Glemham was the son of Sir Henry Glemham of Glemham Hall, Little Glemham in
Suffolk Suffolk ( ) is a ceremonial county in the East of England and East Anglia. It is bordered by Norfolk to the north, the North Sea to the east, Essex to the south, and Cambridgeshire to the west. Ipswich is the largest settlement and the county ...
. After studying at
Trinity College, Oxford Trinity College (full name: The College of the Holy and Undivided Trinity in the University of Oxford, of the foundation of Sir Thomas Pope (Knight)) is a Colleges of the University of Oxford, constituent college of the University of Oxford in E ...
, he "betook himself to the German wars," serving in armies in Europe from 1610 to 1617. He was knighted on 10 September 1617. 'Alumni Oxonienses, 1500-1714: Gilpin-Greenhaugh', Alumni Oxonienses 1500-1714: Abannan-Kyte (1891), pp. 569-599. Date accessed: 15 February 2012
/ref> In 1621 he was elected MP for
Reigate Reigate ( ) is a town status in the United Kingdom, town in Surrey, England, around south of central London. The settlement is recorded in Domesday Book of 1086 as ''Cherchefelle'', and first appears with its modern name in the 1190s. The ea ...
. He succeeded his father to the Little Glemham estate in 1632. He was elected MP for
Aldeburgh Aldeburgh ( ) is a coastal town and civil parish in the East Suffolk District, East Suffolk district, in the English county, county of Suffolk, England, north of the River Alde. Its estimated population was 2,276 in 2019. It was home to the comp ...
in 1625 and 1626.Browne Willis ''Notitia parliamentaria, or, An history of the counties, cities, and boroughs in England and Wales: ... The whole extracted from mss. and printed evidences'' 1750 pp176-239
/ref> He then took part as a Captain in the Duke of Buckingham's expedition to
La Rochelle La Rochelle (, , ; Poitevin-Saintongeais: ''La Rochéle'') is a city on the west coast of France and a seaport on the Bay of Biscay, a part of the Atlantic Ocean. It is the capital of the Charente-Maritime Departments of France, department. Wi ...
. He was captured by the French, but later released. He then served as JP and was involved in several lawsuits and scandals. In 1639, on the outbreak of the
Second Bishops' War The second (symbol: s) is a unit of time derived from the division of the day first into 24 hours, then to 60 minutes, and finally to 60 seconds each (24 × 60 × 60 = 86400). The current and formal definition in the International System of Un ...
Glemham was commissioned a lieutenant-colonel. After the English defeat at the
Battle of Newburn The Battle of Newburn, also known as the Battle of Newburn Ford, took place on 28 August 1640, during the Second Bishops' War. It was fought at Newburn, just outside Newcastle, where a ford crossed the River Tyne. A Scottish Covenanter ar ...
, he was Governor of Hull for several months, before returning to London in 1641.


First Civil War

In early 1642, Glemham was part of King Charles's entourage in
York York is a cathedral city in North Yorkshire, England, with Roman Britain, Roman origins, sited at the confluence of the rivers River Ouse, Yorkshire, Ouse and River Foss, Foss. It has many historic buildings and other structures, such as a Yor ...
. He re-entered Hull unannounced at the head of a large and prestigious party whose purpose was to recover the arms stored there after the Bishops' Wars. The pro-Parliamentarian Governor, Sir John Hotham, thwarted them by inviting them to a lengthy and pointless reception. The impatient King demanded entry to the city and was refused. He proclaimed Hotham a traitor, and Glemham's party was forced to leave. Glemham remained in the north of England after the King moved south, and took part in the failed
Siege of Hull (1642) The first siege of Hull marked a major escalation in the conflict between King Charles I and Parliament during the build-up to the First English Civil War. Charles sought to secure the large arsenal held in Kingston upon Hull, East Riding of Y ...
. In October 1642, he was appointed Governor of York, remaining there until November 1643 when he took command in
Northumberland Northumberland ( ) is a ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in North East England, on the Anglo-Scottish border, border with Scotland. It is bordered by the North Sea to the east, Tyne and Wear and County Durham to the south, Cumb ...
to face a possible invasion by Scottish
Covenanter Covenanters were members of a 17th-century Scottish religious and political movement, who supported a Presbyterian Church of Scotland and the primacy of its leaders in religious affairs. It originated in disputes with James VI and his son C ...
s. The Scots did invade in January, 1644, in overwhelming strength, and Glemham had to retreat rapidly on the city of
Newcastle upon Tyne Newcastle upon Tyne, or simply Newcastle ( , Received Pronunciation, RP: ), is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England. It is England's northernmost metropolitan borough, located o ...
and the main Royalist army under the Marquess of Newcastle. The Marquess of Newcastle was himself forced to retreat to York when that city was threatened by Parliamentarian armies. When they arrived on 19 April, Glemham resumed his post as Governor (succeeding Sir John Belasyse, who had been captured earlier in the month). During the ensuing
Siege of York The siege of York in 1644 was a prolonged contest for York during the First English Civil War, between the Scottish Covenanter army and the Parliamentarian armies of the Northern Association and Eastern Association, and the Royalist Ar ...
, the Royalist garrison defended the city vigorously, and Glemham was credited with destroying a Parliamentarian mine under Walmgate Bar, by digging a counter-mine through which the attackers' mine was flooded. On 1 July the city was relieved by a Royalist army under
Prince Rupert of the Rhine Prince Rupert of the Rhine, Duke of Cumberland, (17 December 1619 ( O.S.) 7 December 1619 (N.S.)– 29 November 1682 (O.S.) December 1682 (N.S) was an English-German army officer, admiral, scientist, and colonial governor. He first rose to ...
. Late the following day, the forces Rupert and Newcastle were decisively defeated at the
Battle of Marston Moor The Battle of Marston Moor was fought on 2 July 1644, during the Wars of the Three Kingdoms of 1639–1653. The combined forces of the English Parliamentarians under Lord Fairfax and the Earl of Manchester and the Scottish Covenanters unde ...
. Newcastle went into exile in
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, while Rupert returned south with the survivors of his army. Glemham was left with only 1500 men to defend York. He nevertheless held out until 16 July and obtained favourable terms from the besiegers. No Scottish troops were to enter the city, and such of the garrison as wished to continue to fight were allowed to march out with all the honours of war and were given safe passage to
Skipton Skipton (also known as Skipton-in-Craven) is a market town and civil parish in North Yorkshire, England. Historically in the East Division of Staincliffe Wapentake in the West Riding of Yorkshire, it is on the River Aire and the Leeds ...
, where some men marched south to join the King's main forces while Glemham with some 200 "reformadoes" (officers from regiments which had been destroyed or disbanded) went to Carlisle. Glemham was appointed Commander-in-Chief of the four northernmost counties of England, but effectively controlled only Carlisle itself. From October 1644 to June 1645, Carlisle was closely besieged by Scots under Major General Sir David Leslie. Glemham again maintained an active defence, repeatedly raiding the besiegers' lines. He finally capitulated when all supplies had been eaten and the garrison and townsfolk faced starvation. Leslie again granted favourable terms, allowing all the honours of war and escorting the garrison to
Hereford Hereford ( ) is a cathedral city and the county town of the ceremonial county of Herefordshire, England. It is on the banks of the River Wye and lies east of the border with Wales, north-west of Gloucester and south-west of Worcester. With ...
where they might join the King. Glemham was created D.C.L. at Oxford on 22 April 1645. In October 1645, he was appointed Governor of
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 ...
, the King's wartime capital. He made extensive preparations to withstand a lengthy siege although by this time, the King had very few forces left to him. In April 1646, the Parliamentarian Commander-in-Chief, Sir
Thomas Fairfax Sir Thomas Fairfax (17 January 1612 – 12 November 1671) was an English army officer and politician who commanded the New Model Army from 1645 to 1650 during the English Civil War. Because of his dark hair, he was known as "Black Tom" to his l ...
, began the final
Siege of Oxford The siege of Oxford comprised the First English Civil War, English Civil War military campaigns waged to siege, besiege the Cavalier, Royalist controlled city of Oxford, involving three short engagements over twenty-five months, which ende ...
. The King left Oxford in disguise. Glemham maintained a defence despite pressure from some of the King's Privy Councillors who were trapped in Oxford to surrender. Both negotiations for a surrender and a furious bombardment of the siege lines were continuing when a letter was received from King Charles, now a prisoner of the Scots, commanding Glemham to cease resistance. The garrison of 3,000 marched out with all honours of war and disbanded. After paying a fine of £951/15/0 to retain his estates, Glemham went into exile.


Second Civil War

Glemham joined other prominent Royalists in
Edinburgh Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. The city is located in southeast Scotland and is bounded to the north by the Firth of Forth and to the south by the Pentland Hills. Edinburgh ...
in early 1648. In April, they crossed into England and began a Royalist uprising. Glemham once again took command at Carlisle. However, the Scots army which invaded England in their support was defeated at the Battle of Preston, and the bands of northern Royalists were soon suppressed. Glemham once again went into exile in 1648 and died in Holland in 1649.


Private life

He married twice: firstly in 1619 Catherine, daughter of London merchant Sir Peter Vanlore, with whom he had 3 sons and 3 daughters and secondly in 1630 Mary, the daughter of Thomas Perient of Birch, Essex. He acquired the manor of Burwell, Lincolnshire by his first marriage.


References


External links


The Sealed Knot website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Glemham, Thomas 1590s births 1649 deaths People from Suffolk Cavaliers English MPs 1621–1622 English MPs 1624–1625