John Pym

John Pym (1584–1643) was an English parliamentarian and leader of the parliamentary opposition to King Charles I in the buildup to the English Civil War. Educated at Broadgates Hall (Pembroke College), Oxford, and the Middle Temple, Pym was elected to Parliament in 1614, establishing himself as a formidable orator and defender of Protestantism and common law liberties.

When Charles I summoned the Long Parliament in 1640 after eleven years of personal rule, Pym assumed leadership of the House of Commons. He orchestrated the impeachment of the King's chief ministers, the Earl of Strafford and Archbishop William Laud, and authored the Grand Remonstrance (1641) detailing royal abuses. In January 1642, Charles I entered the Commons chamber with armed troops to arrest Pym and four others, sparking the armed conflict that established parliamentary democracy.