Edmund Plowden facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Edmund Plowden
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| Member of the English Parliament for Wallingford |
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| In office 1553 |
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| Member of the English Parliament for Reading |
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| In office 1554 |
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| Member of the English Parliament for Wootton Bassett |
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| In office 1555 |
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| Personal details | |
| Born | 1519/20 Plowden Hall, Lydbury North, Shropshire |
| Died | 6 February 1585 London |
| Resting place | Temple Church |
| Spouse | Catherine Sheldon |
| Children | 5 |
| Occupation | lawyer, legal scholar and theorist |
Sir Edmund Plowden (born around 1519 or 1520, died 6 February 1585) was a very important English lawyer and legal thinker. He lived during the late Tudor period, a time when England was ruled by kings and queens like Henry VIII and Elizabeth I.
Contents
Early Life and Education
Edmund Plowden was born at Plowden Hall in a place called Lydbury North, which is in Shropshire, England. His father was Humphrey Plowden and his mother was Elizabeth Sturry.
He went to the University of Cambridge to study, but he didn't finish with a degree. Instead, he went to the Middle Temple in 1538 to study law. This was a special place where people learned to become lawyers. Later, he also studied at the University of Oxford. By 1552, he was qualified to work as a surgeon and a doctor.
When the Catholic Queen Mary came to power, Plowden was given a job on the Council of the Marches of Wales. This council helped govern the border areas between England and Wales.
From 1553 to 1555, he was elected as a Member of Parliament (MP) for different areas. First, he represented Wallingford, then Reading, and finally Wootton Bassett. He mostly lived in Shiplake Court in Oxfordshire and Wokefield Park in Berkshire.
Plowden had strong religious beliefs. On January 12, 1555, he left Parliament because he disagreed with some of the things happening there.
A Catholic Under Queen Elizabeth
When Queen Elizabeth I became queen, Edmund Plowden's strong Roman Catholicism stopped him from getting higher positions. He was often viewed with suspicion by the Queen's advisors, known as the Privy Council.
Early in Elizabeth's reign, he helped manage the lands of Sir Francis Englefield in Shropshire. Englefield was an important Catholic who had gone into exile. In 1567, Plowden also became a joint guardian for Englefield's nephew, Francis.
It is said that Queen Elizabeth I once wanted Plowden to become the Lord Chancellor. This was a very high legal position. However, Plowden turned it down. He didn't want to be involved in persecuting people for their religious beliefs. This offer likely happened around 1578. Even so, Plowden continued to work for the Queen as a lawyer.
He often used his legal skills to help people who shared his faith. For example, he defended Robert Horne, who was the Bishop of Winchester. In 1565, he also defended Edmund Bonner alongside other lawyers.
His Death
Sir Edmund Plowden passed away on February 6, 1585, in London. He was buried in the Temple Church in London. You can still see his monument and a statue of him lying down there today.
"The Case Is Altered"
"The case is altered" was a popular saying in the 1600s. It was even the title of a play by Ben Jonson in 1609. The saying is often linked to a story about Plowden.
In this story, Plowden was defending a man accused of attending a Catholic Mass. Plowden discovered that the religious service had been performed by an ordinary person, not a real priest. This person had only pretended to be a priest to report those who attended.
Plowden then famously exclaimed, "The case is altered; no priest, no Mass!" Because there was no real priest, he argued, it wasn't a true Mass. This clever argument helped his client get found not guilty.
His Important Works
Plowden is still remembered today for his important legal writings and ideas. His main works include:
- Les comentaries ou les reportes de Edmunde Plowden (1571): This book was written in Law French, a special language used in English law at the time. It contained his reports on legal cases. It also included his report on the legal status of the Duchy of Lancaster and how it related to the Crown.
- Quares del Monsieur Plowden: This was another of his legal writings.
Plowden also wrote A Treatise on Succession. In this book, he tried to show that Mary, Queen of Scots, should not be stopped from becoming the next queen of England, even based on Henry VIII's will.
His Family
Edmund Plowden married Catherine Sheldon. She was the daughter of William Sheldon, who was a Member of Parliament for Worcestershire. Edmund and Catherine had three sons and two daughters. Their daughters were named Anne and Mary.
Anne married Francis Perkins. Mary married Richard White and was the mother of Thomas White, who became a scholar.
Plowden's sister, Margaret, inherited some family estates. She married Richard Sandford. Plowden also helped John Cole, who was Margaret's son-in-law, to become a Member of Parliament for Bishop's Castle in 1584.
