John Bradshaw (judge)

Lord President of the Council of State John Bradshaw

John Bradshaw ( July 15, 1602 , † October 31, 1659 ) was an English politician and judge . He was President of the Tribunal that sentenced King Charles I to death in 1649. From 1649 to 1651 he was Lord President of the Council of State of the Commonwealth of England .

Life

The lawyer came from a respected family in Lancaster . He was appointed Commissioner of the Great Seal by Parliament in 1646 and Chief Justice of Chester in 1647 during the English Civil War . In 1649 he was appointed President of the High Court of Justice , who was to lead the high treason trial against King Charles I. Only 68 members participated in the trial which began on January 20, 1649 at Westminster Hall . On January 26, Karl was sentenced to death and 59 members of the High Court signed the verdict. Charles was beheaded on January 30, 1649 in front of the Banqueting House in London.

Parliament appointed Bradshaw Lord President of the Council of State of the Commonwealth of England on March 12, 1649 , an office which he held until December 29, 1651. From 1649 to 1654 he was also Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster . He protested on April 20, 1653 against the dissolution of Parliament and the Council of State by Cromwell and henceforth belonged to the Republican opposition. After Oliver Cromwell's death he rejoined the State Council as Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster. He died in 1659 at the age of 57.

His body, like those of Cromwell and Henry Iretons , was excavated from Westminster Abbey on January 30, 1661 after the Restoration of Charles II , beheaded and buried under the gallows.

literature

• Richard Cust: Charles I. A Political Life. Longman, Harlow 2005. (Eng.)
• Christopher Hill: God's Englishman. Oliver Cromwell and the English Revolution. Littlehampton Book Services, London 1970. (Eng.)

Individual evidence

1. ^ The Life of Oliver Cromwell. Retrieved January 29, 2021 (UK English).