John 1584-1643 Pym

PYM, JOHN (1584-1643), English statesman, son and heir of Alexander Pym, of Brymore, Somersetshire, a member of an ancient family which had held this seat in direct male descent from the time of Henry III. He matriculated as a commoner at Broad gates Hall (now Pembroke College), Oxford, in 1599, and entered the Middle Temple in 1602. He became receiver-general of the king's revenue for Wilts., and was returned to parliament as mem ber for Calne in 1614 and again in 1621. To the committee ap pointed to consider the state of religion he made his first great speech on Nov. 28, 1621 ; he spoke in defence of maintaining the disabilities of Roman Catholics on political grounds, and moved for a special commission for the suppression of recusancy. Pym was a chief promoter of the petition which incurred James's violent displeasure, and of the Commons' answer defending their privi leges, which was afterwards torn from the records by the king's own hand. On the dissolution of parliament which immediately followed, Pym, with other "ill-tempered spirits," was arrested in Jan. 1622, and was confined first to his house in London, and then to Brymore. He associated himself with the party of Francis, 4th earl of Bedford, was returned for Tavistock in 1624, and represented this borough in all the ensuing parliaments.

On May 8, Pym was manager of Buckingham's impeachment. In the third parliament of Charles I., in 1628, Pym overruled Eliot in deciding that Buckingham's impeachment should now be subordinated to the struggle on general grievances. He zealously pushed on the Petition of Right, resisting the clause added by the Lords to safeguard the king's "sovereign power," declaring that "he knew not what it was." He carried up to the Lords the im peachment of Roger Manwaring, and delivered a famous speech (June 9) in which he expounded the fundamental principles which guided his policy.

His name is not mentioned as actively resisting Charles's arbi trary government during the eleven years which followed the dissolution of 1629. It has not been proved that Pym, with Hampden and Cromwell, actually embarked for New England and was prevented from sailing by orders from the government.

Pym himself was directly interested in the colonies, being patentee of Connecticut and Providence, and of the latter company also treasurer, and there can be little doubt that like other leaders of the opposition, he regarded America as a possible refuge.

Short Parliament.

On the assembly of the Short Parliament on April 13, 164o, Pym was the acknowledged leader. "Whilst men gazed upon each other," says Clarendon (Hist. ii. 68), "look ing who should begin (much the greater part having never before sat in parliament), Mr. Pym, a man of good reputation . . . who had been as long in these assemblies as any man there living, broke the ice." On April 17 he spoke for nearly two hours on the national grievances, pointed out the practical injury inflicted on commerce and every sort of enterprise including colonial expan sion by illegal and arbitrary taxation, and concluded by asking the Lords to join in finding out causes and remedies. His words made a deep impression. On April 27 he resisted the grant of supply, and when the Lords passed a resolution that supply should precede the discussion of grievances, Pym, as manager of the Commons on May 1, read them a severe lecture on the breach of privilege they had committed. Finally, on the 4th, it was resolved that Pym should next day petition the king to make terms with the Scots, to avoid which Charles summarily dissolved the parliament.

All the energies of Pym were now concentrated on obliging Charles to summon another parliament. He was the author of the petition of the twelve peers to the king for redress of griev ances and for calling a new parliament, and he was the promoter of the petition signed by f o,000 citizens of London. In company with Hampden he rode through the provinces, rousing and organ izing public opinion. Meanwhile Charles's attempt to implicate Pym in treasonable communications with the Scots failed.