1594-1643. English politician. His refusal in
1636 to pay ship money, a compulsory tax
levied to suport the navy, made him a
national figure. In the Short and Long
Parliaments he proved himself a skilful
debater and Parliamentary strategist. King
Charles's attempt to arrest him and four
other leading MPs made the Civil War
inevitable. He raised his own regiment on the
outbreak of hostilities, and on 18 June 1643
was mortally wounded at the skirmish of
Chalgrove Field in Oxfordshire.