Lieutenant Colonel Sir William Morton KS (1605 – 23 September 1672) was an English judge 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 1640 and from 1663 to 1665. He fought on 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 ...

side in 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 ...

Life

Morton was born in Newcastle, Northumberland, the son of James Morton of Clifton-on-Severn, Worcestershire and his wife Jane Cookes. He was admitted at

Sidney Sussex College, Cambridge Sidney Sussex College (historically known as "Sussex College" and today referred to informally as "Sidney") is a Colleges of the University of Cambridge, constituent college of the University of Cambridge in England. The College was founded in 1 ...

on 30 June 1618 and matriculated 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 ...

in October 1621 aged 15.W R Williams ''The Parliamentary History of the County of Worcester''
/ref> He was awarded BA from Cambridge in 1622. He was admitted at

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 ...

on 22 October 1622. He received MA in 1625 and was called to the bar on 28 November 1630, beginning his career as a barrister. Morton married Anne Smyth daughter of John Smyth of Kidlington, Oxfordshire. In April 1640, Morton was elected Member of Parliament for

Evesham Evesham () is a market town and Civil parishes in England, parish in the Wychavon district of Worcestershire, in the West Midlands (region), West Midlands region of England. It is located roughly equidistant between Worcester, England, Worceste ...

in the

Short Parliament The Short Parliament was a Parliament of England that was summoned by King Charles I of England on 20 February 1640 and sat from 13 April to 5 May 1640. It was so called because of its short session of only three weeks. After 11 years of per ...

. After the outbreak of the

he became a ferverent supporter of the Royalists, being described at the time as Serving as

High Sheriff of Gloucestershire This is a list of Sheriffs and High Sheriffs of Gloucestershire, who should not be confused with the Sheriffs of the City of Gloucester. The High Sheriff is the oldest secular office under the Crown (in England and Wales the office previously kn ...

and in Lord Chandos's Regiment of Horse, Morton was knighted by

Charles I Charles I may refer to: Kings and emperors * Charlemagne (742–814), numbered Charles I in the lists of Holy Roman Emperors and French kings * Charles I of Anjou (1226–1285), also king of Albania, Jerusalem, Naples and Sicily * Charles I of ...

on 8 September 1643, and later promoted to Lieutenant Colonel and made commander of the garrison of

Sudeley Castle Sudeley Castle is a Grade I listed castle in the parish of Sudeley, in the Cotswolds, near to the medieval market town of Winchcombe, Gloucestershire, England. The castle has 10 notable gardens covering some within a estate nestled within th ...

. The castle fell on 8 June 1644, after one of his officers betrayed the Royalists, and Morton and 300 of his men were taken to the

Tower of London The Tower of London, officially His Majesty's Royal Palace and Fortress of the Tower of London, is a historic citadel and castle on the north bank of the River Thames in central London, England. It lies within the London Borough of Tower Hamle ...

. On 1 October 1647, he was ordered to be removed to Peter House. He was eventually released, becoming a

Bencher A bencher or Master of the Bench is a senior member of an Inn of Court in England and Wales or the Inns of Court in Northern Ireland, or the Honorable Society of King's Inns in Ireland. Benchers hold office for life once elected. A bencher c ...

of the Inner Temple on 24 November 1659. At the Restoration, Morton became Serjeant-at-Law on 6 July 1660,

Recorder Recorder or The Recorder may refer to: Newspapers * ''Indianapolis Recorder'', a weekly newspaper * ''The Recorder'' (Massachusetts newspaper), a daily newspaper published in Greenfield, Massachusetts, US * ''The Recorder'' (Port Pirie), a newsp ...

of Gloucester on 18 April 1662 and King's Serjeant on 1 July 1663. In 1663, he was elected MP for

Haverfordwest Haverfordwest ( , ; ) is the county town of Pembrokeshire, Wales, and the most populous urban area in Pembrokeshire with a population of 14,596 in 2011. It is also a Community (Wales), community consisting of 12,042 people, making it the secon ...

, serving on 12 committees, and sat until 1665. He served as a

Justice of the King's Bench Justice of the King's Bench, or Justice of the Queen's Bench during the reign of a female monarch, was a puisne judicial position within the Court of King's Bench, under the Chief Justice. The King's Bench was a court of common law which modern ...

under

Sir Matthew Hale Sir Matthew Hale (1 November 1609 – 25 December 1676) was an influential English barrister, judge and jurist most noted for his treatise ''Historia Placitorum Coronæ'', or ''The History of the Pleas of the Crown''. Born to a barrister and ...

from 23 November 1665 until his death on 23 September 1672. Morton died aged 68 and was buried in the

Temple Church The Temple Church, a royal peculiar in the Church of England, is a church in the Inner Temple, Inner and Middle Temple, Middle Temple, London, Temples located between Fleet Street and the River Thames, built by the Knights Templar for their En ...

, London on 1 October 1672 where there is a monument.

References

, - {{DEFAULTSORT:Morton, William 1605 births 1672 deaths 17th-century English judges Justices of the King's Bench Members of the Parliament of England (pre-1707) for constituencies in Wales Politicians from Worcestershire English MPs 1640 (April) English MPs 1661–1679