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Sir Arthur Mainwaring (c. 1580 – 1648) was an English politician who sat in the House of Commons from 1624 to 1626.
His financial position was improved when he became heir to Francis Wolley who died in 1609, despite litigation from family members.[1] He became notorious as the lover of Anne Turner, hanged in 1615 for her part in the murder case of Sir Thomas Overbury.[7] The relationship, seemingly tolerated by Anne's husband Dr. George Turner who died in 1610, led to children but no marriage.[8]Arthur Wilson claimed that she bought powders from Simon Forman to try to bring him to wed her.[9]
In 1624, Mainwaring was elected member of parliament for Huntingdon for the Happy Parliament. He was re-elected MP for Huntingdon in 1625 and 1626.[10] From 1628 to around 1642 he served as Lieutenant of Windsor Forest. In 1641 the forest was the scene of disorder and poaching of the deer, and he recommended firm action around Egham, which was however thwarted by local sympathies.[11] He had objected at the beginning of the reign of Charles I to the East India Company's gunpowder mills on the edge of Windsor Forest;[12] later, in 1635, he was himself in the gunpowder business with Andrew Pitcairn.[13]
