Nicholas Hyde

Hyde was born at Wardour, in Wiltshire, a son of Lawrence Hyde (d. 1590) of West Hatch, Wiltshire, MP for Heytesbury in 1584, by his second wife Anne Sibell, daughter of Nicholas Sibell of Farningham, Kent, and widow of Matthew Colthurst of Claverton, Somerset.

Before long, however, he deserted the popular party and in 1626 was employed by George Villiers, 1st Duke of Buckingham, to defend him against impeachment by the House of Commons.

In the following year be was appointed a Serjeant-at-law and Chief Justice of the King's Bench, in which office it fell to him to give judgment in the celebrated case of Sir Thomas Darnell and others who had been committed to prison on warrants signed by members of the Privy Council, and which contained no statement of the nature of the charge against the prisoners.

In answer to the writ of habeas corpus the Attorney General relied on the Royal Prerogative, supported by a precedent of Queen Elizabeth's reign.

[4] On 25 August 1631 he died of gaol fever at his home in Hinton Daubney, Catherington, Hampshire.