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147 
Ellesmere, but was defeated in this contest because of a de- 
cision of James brought about by Bacon. Coke was removed 
from office in 1616, but thru the marriage of his daughter 
to a brother of the Earl of Buckingham (which Bacon could 
not prevent) he was restored to the Council and was employed 
on various commissions. He was returned to Parliament in 
1621, when he began a parliamentary career. He spoke 
strongly for the remonstrance to the king, and was one of 
the managers of the impeachment of Bacon. Tho sent to the 
Tower for seven months in 1621 he was back in Parliament 
again in 1623. In the first Parliament of Charles I he op- 
posed a grant of supply without a redress of grievances, and 
in the third Parliament advocated the liberty of the subject 
and succeeded in carrying the Petition of Right. Then he 
retired and devoted the last five years of his life to writing 
his Commentary on Littleton and treatises on Magna Charta, 
Criminal Law, and Jurisdiction of Courts (His Four Insti- 
tutes). These were seized on his death-bed on the order of 
the king, and were only published seven years afterwards 
when delivered up to his son by vote of Parliament. He also 
published seven volumes of reports. Coke was cold by nature, 
and addicted to coarseness and brutality of language at the 
bar and on the bench, but he was free from corruption and 
was the outstanding champion of the common law as it had 
been. 
Bacon (1560-1626). Francis Bacon was the son of Sir Nich- 
olas Bacon, keeper of the Great Seal, and Anne Cooke Bacon, 
an accomplished mother. His legal progress was typical. He 
was sent to Trinity College, Cambridge, but left after three 
years from disgust with the system of education, and went to 
France with Ambassador Paulet, but was summoned home 
by the death of his father ; he entered Gray's Inn ; was called 
to the bar; entered Parliament; was made a reader at his 
inn on the Statute of Uses ; obtained the reversion of the reg- 
istrarship of the Star Chamber thru his uncle Burleigh, but 
no vacancy occurred for twenty years thereafter; sought ap- 
pointment as attorney-general when a vacancy occurred in 
that office, but Coke was chosen by Elizabeth and Bacon was 
not given even Coke’s position as solicitor-general, but he 
was made queen’s counsel ; took an active part in the prosecu- 
tion of the Earl of Essex, in order to curry favor with the 
