1636, and one daughter Cicely, who married Sir Thomas D'Arcy, 1st Baronet. He was knighted by Charles I on 6 December 1626. He took a house at Islington, where he pursued his studies. In 1632 he retired to Bury St. Edmunds, in belated obedience to the King's proclamation to the gentry to quit London and live at home. His father, who died in 1631, had purchased Stowlangtoft Hall nearby, and Simonds took up residence there in 1633. Political career In 1639, d'Ewes was High Sheriff of Suffolk, and in 1640, he was elected as member for Sudbury, sitting in the Long Parliament. Although he opposed the King's arbitrary rule, his views were moderate; he was given a baronetcy by the king in 1641, possibly as an attempt to buy allegiance, in July. Since his beloved younger brother was an officer in the King's army, this is plausible. But it cannot be confirmed because the King's desperate need for money had led to a resumption of the sale of honours such as baronetcies at this time. Simonds' pleasure in the honour was destroyed almost at once by the death of his beloved first wife Anne. On the outbreak of the First English Civil War in 1642, d'Ewes joined the Parliamentarians. He remained in Parliament until 1648, when he was expelled in Pride's Purge. After 1648, d'Ewes took no further part in politics, and devoted himself to literary studies. He died on 18 April 1650, having married again, to Elizabeth Willoughby, daughter of Sir Henry Willoughby, 1st Baronet of Risley, Derbyshire and his first wife Elizabeth Knollys, daughter of Sir Henry Knollys. By Elizabeth, he had his second and only surviving son and heir, Willoughby, who succeeded as second baronet. Antiquarian Simonds d'Ewes is perhaps best known for his work as an antiquarian, and particularly for his transcriptions of important historical documents, originals of which do not survive today, and the Journals of all the Parliaments during the Reign of Queen Elizabeth. Although d'Ewes was ambitious in this field, he lacked the ability to generalise or construct effectively, and died without publishing any major work, except The Primitive Practice for Preserving Truth (1645) and a few speeches. The Journals were published posthumously in 1682 by his nephew, the lawyer and antiquary Paul Bowes. Legacy Simonds d'Ewes, although known for the events in parliament during the 1640s, is best known for his contribution