, Bedfordshire The eldest son and heir of
Oliver, 3rd Baron St John of Bletso, by his wife Dorothy Read (died 1605), daughter and co-heiress of Sir John Read, of
Boddington, Gloucestershire, St John matriculated at
Peterhouse, Cambridge, in about 1595 being admitted to
Gray's Inn on 20 April 1597. Elected a
Member of Parliament for
Bedfordshire in 1601 when styled
the Hon. Oliver St John, being returned to parliament in 1604, and served on the
committee to discuss the
change in the royal title. St John was appointed a
Knight of the Bath on 3 June 1610 at the investiture of
Henry Frederick, Prince of Wales. Succeeding his
father to the
family title as
Baron St John of Bletso in September 1618, the following year he entertained
James I sumptuously at
Melchbourne Park, before being
introduced to the House of Lords in 1620. Lord St John was created
Earl of Bolingbroke (a
manor previously belonging to the
Beauchamps from whom he descended) on 28 December 1624, before taking his
seat on 22 June 1625. In December 1626, Lord Bolingbroke refused to contribute to the
Forced Loan levy; but in 1638–39 he contributed towards the expenses of the
Bishops' War. On 28 August 1640, he signed the petition of the twelve peers, attributing the evils of the day to the
absence of parliaments, and urging
Charles I to summon one and remained with the
Long Parliament in 1642 when Charles retired to York. In February 1642, Parliament appointed Bolingbroke as
Lord Lieutenant of Bedfordshire; in this capacity he was active in raising militia to keep the county safe. In 1643, Lord Bolingbroke took the
Solemn League and Covenant, and was called as a
lay member to the
Assembly of Divines. On 10 November he was one of the
Commissioners named to keep custody of the
Great Seal. Excused attendance from the
House of Lords in 1645, the Earl of Bolingbroke died in late June 1646. ==Family==