John Pym, English politician (born 1583)

John Pym, 20 May 1584 to 8 December 1643, was a politician from Somerset who played a key role in establishing the modern English Parliamentary system. One of the Five Members whose attempted arrest in January 1642 was a major step in sparking the First English Civil War, his use of procedure to outmanoeuvre opponents was unusual for the period. Though this meant he was respected by contemporaries rather than admired, in 1895 historian Goldwin Smith described him as "the greatest member of Parliament that ever lived".