Lawshall - Notable Residents

Notable Residents

• John Brereton - appointed curate of Lawshall in 1598 but became a gentleman adventurer and chronicler of the 1602 voyage to the New World led by Bartholomew Gosnold. Brereton recorded the first European exploration of Cape Cod and its environs. His account, published in 1602, helped promote the possibilities of English colonization in what was then known as "the North part of Virginia" and would later become known as New England.

• John Stearne - was an associate of Matthew Hopkins, a witch-hunter active during the English Civil War. Stearne was known at various times as the witch–hunter and "witch pricker". As a result of Stearne's accusations, a trial was held in Chelmsford in July 1645 for 29 people accused of witchcraft and sorcery. Of these 4 died in prison prior to the trial and 15 or 16 were subsequently hanged. A family man and land owner from Lawshall, on retirement he wrote A Confirmation and Discovery of Witchcraft.

The following residents lived at the Coldham Hall estate which is partly within Lawshall parish:

• Ambrose Rookwood - a member of the failed 1605 Gunpowder Plot, a conspiracy to replace the Protestant King James I with a Catholic monarch.
• David Hart - an adviser to Margaret Thatcher, a British writer and businessman who lived at Coldham Hall and Chadacre Hall.

The current residents are:

• Matthew Vaughn - an English film producer and director.
• Claudia Schiffer - a German "supermodel" and occasional actress.