Sir Richard Lane, Knt.

Biography

Sir Richard Lane, barrister, was the first son of Richard Lane, yeoman of Courteenhall, Northamptonshire, and his wife, Elizabeth, daughter of Clement Vincent of Harpole, Northamptonshire. He was born c. Nov 1584, baptized at Harpole on 12 November 1584. He m. Margaret (22 April 1669), at least 1s. Richard (b. 1616)

He matriculated Trinity college, Cambridge in 1602; admitted to the Middle Temple 8 Feb 1605, called to the bar 22 Nov 1611. He was a distinguished attorney to the nobility, notably as the counsel for Thomas Wentworth, 1st Earl of Strafford during his impeachment trial in 1641. Loyal to the King at the outbreak of the civil war, he was a supporter of Charles I at Oxford, who rewarded him with MA from Oxford on 1 Nov 1642. He was granted further honors from the King in 1644: knighthood 4 Jan 1644, serjeant-at-law 23 Jan 1644, chief baron of the exchequer 25 Jan 1644 and DCL from Oxford 31 Jan 1644.

The King appointed Lane as lord keeper of the great seal on 30 Aug 1645. He attempted to negotiate with Parliament to retain control of the physical seal which was ultimately destroyed 11 Aug 1646. He followed King Charles II into exile, eventually dying at Jersey 12 May 1650, buried at St. Helier.

Issue

In March 1650, Lane followed the new king into exile, landing at St Malo in a poor state of health. He wrote to Charles II, asking him to make his eldest son, another Richard Lane, a groom of the bedchamber, a request which was honoured.

Sources

• wikipedia:Richard Lane (barrister)_
• D. A. Orr, ‘Lane, Sir Richard (bap. 1584, d. 1650)’, Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press, 2004
• Richardson, Douglas, and Kimball G. Everingham. Magna Carta Ancestry: A Study in Colonial and Medieval Families. 2nd Ed v.3, [https://books.google.com/books?id=8JcbV309c5UC&lpg=RA2-PA421&dq=Mag... p. 421

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