Charles le Grosse

Sir Charles Le Grosse was an English politician who sat in the House of Commons at various times between 1628 and 1653.

Le Grosse was of Crostwick near Norwich and was knighted on 6 December 1616.^[1] In 1628, Le Gross was elected Member of Parliament for Orford and sat until 1629 when King Charles decided to rule without parliament for eleven years.^[2]

Le Grosse acquired by marriage a moiety of the manor of Eccles, which allowed him to hold court there.^[3] In 1637 he and Dr. Thomas Lushington were instrumental in persuading the physician and philosopher Thomas Browne, to re-locatte to Norwich.^[4] In 1658 Browne dedicated his Hydriotaphia, Urn Burial to Le Grosse's eldest son, Thomas .

In April 1640, Le Grosse was re-elected MP for Orford in the Short Parliament. He was re-elected MP for Orford for the Long Parliament in November 1640 and retained his seat until 1653.^[2]

Le Grosse died before 1660.

Le Grosse married Murrial Knevet, daughter of Sir Thomas Knevet and his wife Elizabeth^[3] and had a son Charles. The poet Ralph Knevet dedicated the following poem to him.^[5]

The King of Pyrrhus shewd the Muses nine

And Phoebus portraited by sculpture fine:

But thou faire Knight-hoods fairer ornament

Conspicuously dost to our eyes present

Phoebus, the Muses nine, the Graces three,

Mercurie, and Mars, yea more Gods then bee

In Homers Iliads; or at least much greater:

For thy mind's a Pantheon, or a Theater,

Wherein all vertues, and all graces stand,

In decent order link'd, with hand in hand.

The[e] 'mongst the chiefest of the Arts few friends

I list: and so adore thy noble ends,

That if my Quill to vertue can life give,

Thy honourd fame shall Nestors age outlive.

References

1. ^ Knighs of England
2. ^ ^{a b} Browne Willis Notitia parliamentaria, or, An history of the counties, cities, and boroughs in England and Wales: ... The whole extracted from mss. and printed evidences 1750 pp229-239
3. ^ ^{a b} 'Hundred of Shropham: Eccles', An Essay towards a Topographical History of the County of Norfolk: volume 1 (1805), pp. 405-411. Date accessed: 30 May 2011
4. ^ The Life of Sir Thomas Browne Kt
5. ^ The Shorter Poems of Ralph Knevet

Parliament of England
Preceded by Robert Hitcham	Member of Parliament for Orford 1628-1629 With: Sir Lionel Tollemache, 2nd Baronet	Succeeded by Parliament suspended until 1640
Preceded by Parliament suspended since 1629	Member of Parliament for Orford 1640-1653 With: Sir Edward Duke, 1st Baronet 1640 Sir William Playters, 2nd Baronet 1640-1648	Succeeded by Not represented in Barebones Parliament

Persondata
Name	Le Grosse, Charles
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