Justinian Isham

Sir Justinian Isham, 2nd Baronet
Sir Justinian Isham I by Peter Lely
Born	1610
Died	2 March 1675(1675-03-02)
Academic background
Alma mater	Christ's College, Cambridge
Academic work
Notable works	Royal Society
Influenced	Alexander Ross.<

Sir Justinian Isham, 2nd Baronet (1610 – 2 March 1675) was an English scholar and royalist politician. He was also a Member of Parliament and an early member of the Royal Society.

He was admitted a fellow-commoner at Christ's College, Cambridge, on 18 April 1627. Isham was a man of culture, building a library at Lamport Hall, Northamptonshire. Brian Duppa was a frequent correspondent of his; and he kept in touch with Seth Ward in Oxford. He was a patron of Alexander Ross.

Loans to the king as well as fines to the parliament had greatly injured the Isham estates, when in 1651, Sir Justinian succeeded to the Isham baronetcy. He had been in prison for a short time during 1649, as a delinquent, and he was now forced to compound for the estate of Shangton in Leicestershire. After the Restoration he was elected M.P. for Northamptonshire in the parliament which met in 1661. Gilbert Clerke dedicated to him a 1662 work of natural philosophy. With Henry Power he was elected to the Royal Society, shortly after its 1663 charter came into force.

He died at Oxford, on 2 March 1675, and is buried in the family burial place on the north side of the chancel in Lamport Church, where there is a Latin inscription to his memory.

He was only son of Sir John Isham (1582–1651), by his wife Judith, daughter of William Lewin, of Otterden, Kent. When he was baptised on 3 February 1610, he took his Christian name from his mother's brother, Sir Justinian Lewin, knt. Elizabeth Isham, known for her autobiography, was his sister.