Widdrington was born on 11 July 1610, the son and heir of
Sir Henry Widdrington of
Widdrington, Northumberland and his wife Mary Curwen, daughter of Sir Nicholas Curwen. Knighted in 1632, he was appointed
High Sheriff of Northumberland in 1636. He was then elected
Member of Parliament for
Northumberland in both the
Short and the
Long Parliaments of 1640 to 1642, but in August 1642 he was expelled for taking up arms in support of
Charles I. During the
Civil War he fought for the King chiefly in
Yorkshire and
Lincolnshire and on 9 July 1642 was rewarded for his loyalty to the Crown by creation as 1st Baronet Widdrington of Widdrington. He served as governor of
Lincoln in 1643, and on 2 November 1643 was elevated to the Peerage as 1st
Baron Widdrington of Blankney. In 1644, after helping to defend
York, and the Kings defeat at
Marston Moor he left England with the
Duke of Newcastle for exile in
Hamburg. In 1648, he was condemned to death in his absence by the
House of Commons and his estates were confiscated. He returned in 1650 when he accompanied
Charles II to
Scotland and in 1651 he was mortally wounded while fighting for him at
Wigan. ==Family==