Daily entries from the 17th century London diary
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Wikipedia
Colonel John Downes (1609 – c. 1666) was a commissioner who signed the death warrant of Charles I of England. After the English Restoration he was found guilty of regicide and was imprisoned until he died.
He was a businessman who did not fight in the English Civil War but amassed a fortune dealing in the confiscated Royalist estates. In 1641, he was elected Member of Parliament for Arundel. He was a close friend of Cromwell and received substantial land grants in Ireland and England.
On being found guilty of regicide, he received the relatively light sentence of life imprisonment, rather than the usual traitor's punishment of being hanged, drawn and quartered, because he tried to intervene on the King's behalf and only signed the death warrant after being intimidated by the other commissioners. Originally the Downes family came from Cheshire but moved southwards to Warwickshire. The Downes of Cheshire were an ancient Forester family. Roger Downes, a friend of Lord Rochester was killed in a London brawl and his head sent to the family home Wardley Hall. The Hall is supposed to be haunted by his ghost. The family were well known for their adherence to the Catholic faith though in later centuries they were Anglican. It was Francis Downes who retrieved the head of his martyred cousin Ambrose Barlow OSB.
[edit] External links
- The Trial of King Charles I - Defining Moment for Our Constitutional Liberties, by The Hon Justice Michael Kirby AC CMG
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| Name | Downes, John |
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| Short description | British politician |
| Date of birth | 1609 |
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A short biography of Downes can be found at http://www.british-civil-wars.co.uk/biog/index_d.htm
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“John Downes — Barrister of the Inner Temple and MP for Arundel, Sussex. During the King’s trial, he was moved by the King’s words and rose to protest, “Have we hearts of stone?” for which he was furiously rebuked by Cromwell, though he later served on the Council of State. He was arrested at the Restoration and condemned to death, then reprieved because of his defence that Cromwell had intimidated him into signing the death warrant against his better judgement. Spent the rest of his life a prisoner in the Tower”…. lifted from
http://www.azoz.com/family/castle/1625/1660.html