John Henderson, 5th of Fordell

Sir John Henderson, 5th of Fordell (3 November 1605, Fife, Scotland – 11 March 1650, Denmark) was a Scottish laird and mercenary, distinguished as a Cavalier in the Wars of the Three Kingdoms.

A distinguished soldier, Fordell had been enslaved by Barbary pirates when commanding on the East African coast.

[2][3] Later, Fordell was a mercenary, serving with the military for Denmark, Sweden, and elsewhere,[4] and fought on the side of the Royalists in the Civil War.

[8] On 9 October 1643 the Eastern Association army (under the command of the Earl of Manchester, Oliver Cromwell and Sir Thomas Fairfax) marched from Boston to Bolingbroke Castle.

Sir William Widdrington put together a scratch force, which included Fordell's Royalist cavalry, in an attempt to relieve the castle.