John Browne
Clerk of the Parliaments
c1608-1691
A Roundhead of flexible persuasion
The son of a London grocer, John Browne had property in Twickenham by 1636 and occupied the Manor House and 58 acres of land from about 1640 until 1672. He married first the daughter of Sir Thomas Crewe, Speaker of the House of Commons and secondly, in 1636, Elizabeth daughter of John Packer, Clerk of the Privy Council and a Twickenham resident. Both these marriages may have assisted his advancement. By 1638 he had received a grant for life as Clerk of the Parliaments. At this time he described himself as a Roundhead and was instrumental in securing the removal of Dr Soame Vicar of St Mary's since 1640.
In August 1649, as a Justice of the Peace, Browne was ordered by the Parliamentary Council of State to go to Twickenham Park to disarm the Royalist Sir Francis Nott whose wife had apparently fomented a riot in Twickenham. However, he appears to have been of flexible persuasion, swearing loyalty to Charles II at the Restoration and achieving reinstatement.
Further reading:
A C B Urwin, The Manor House Twickenham, Borough of Twickenham Local History Society Paper no 60, 1987
The Vicars of Twickenham 1640-1661, Borough of Twickenham Local History Society Paper no 18, 1970