CULLEN, William (1605-78), of Dover, Kent.

Cullen was raised in a godly family from Northbourne in Kent, some six miles north of Dover, the younger son of Thomas Cullen. At his marriage to Julian Harvie of Folkestone in 1601, Cullen’s father was described as a yeoman, but at his death in 1645 as a gentleman.16Cant. Cathedral Archives, PRC16/245/605. It is not clear what connection, if any, he had to a namesake (d.1653) who was a jurat and port official in Dover, and its mayor in 1641.17CSP Dom. 1635-6, p. 190; 1637, p. 65, 426; Add. 29625, f. 78v; PROB11/230/641. Cullen senior’s pious will contained bequests totalling £300, and in addition to property in Northbourne he owned a house in Sandwich, which William inherited.18Cant. Cathedral Archives, PRC16/245/605. Thomas Cullen was probably the man referred to on 19 March 1640 by the bailiff of Sandwich when he informed secretary of state Edward Nicholas† that ‘factious non-conformists’ were planning to elect to Parliament ‘Mr Cullen and Mr Partridg’ [Sir Edward Parterich*], ‘that adher to their confederacy, but [are] mere strangers to the corporation’. That party, it was claimed, had ‘bruited a great scandal of [Nicholas’s] inclination to popery’.19SP16/448, f. 70.

William Cullen was sent by his father to the godly seminary of Emmanuel College, Cambridge, from where he proceeded MA in 1629.20Cant. Cathedral Archives, PRC16/245/605. He was recorded as living in Blackfriars, London, at the time of his marriage to Hannah Verplanken at St Clement Sandwich in August 1640. She was the widow of Bartholomew Verplanken (bur. 10 June 1640), a local cooper, whom she had married in 1619.21Canterbury Mar. Lics. 1619-1660, cols. 259, 1016. Through her, Cullen acquired property in Dover, and was resident in the town from at least February 1644.22Cant. Cathedral Archives, PRC16/245/605. He is not known to have played a prominent role during the civil wars, and was not named to any local commissions before 1653. It is not clear in what capacity he signed a warrant to the constables of Thanet in July 1644, since he was not then a member of the county bench.23Eg. 2087, f. 60. Cullen was made a common councilman and jurat of Dover on 11 September 1648, and a week later a freeman, by virtue of holding the freehold of a messuage in St James’ Street during his wife’s life.24Eg. 2096, ff. 157v, 158v; Add. 29625, f. 80v. From December 1648 until August 1651, Cullen regularly attended meetings at Dover in his capacity as jurat, and on 22 August 1650 he received a commission as captain of militia foot in Kent.25Eg. 2096, ff. 158v-167v; CSP Dom. 1650, p. 510.

Cullen was chosen as mayor of Dover in September 1651, and held the post for two successive years.26Eg. 2096, ff. 166, 168, 173v. His growing status led to his appointment to the commission of the peace in 1653. During this period, Dover’s importance was enhanced by its proximity to the naval battles of the Dutch war, and Cullen led the corporation’s campaign to secure money from the council of state for the repair of the harbour. His correspondence with the council reveals his involvement in enlisting seamen, overseeing the distribution of money for local volunteers and wounded during the Dutch war, and the treatment of Dutch prisoners. It also reveals his concern for the welfare of local sailors in service under Robert Blake*.27CSP Dom. 1650, p. 195; 1651-2, pp. 86, 605, 612-13, 616-17, 621; 1652-3, pp. 32, 63, 187, 491, 426, 505; 1653-4, pp. 462, 472; 1657-8, p. 137. That Cullen was zealous in supporting the commonwealth cause is evident from his willingness to work alongside Thomas Kelsey* in taking examinations, but more especially from his role in the removal of the royal arms from civic buildings.28Add. 29747, ff. 20-23v; Jones, Annals of Dover, 306. Nevertheless, he displayed humanity towards members of the royal family and court when the duke of Gloucester passed through Kent in early 1653, and he manifested a pragmatic attitude towards seamen who deserted and were imprisoned for drinking the health of Charles Stuart in June 1653, by releasing them on condition that they promised to return to their posts.29CSP Dom. 1652-3, pp. 164, 372.

Cullen was chosen as Member of Parliament for Kent in the Nominated Assembly in 1653. It is not known if he was selected by local Congregational churches, although his correspondence with Kelsey regarding the Dutch fleet in June 1653 certainly reveals a godly mind, since he claimed that ‘the Lord is with us and will be our refuge’.30CSP Dom. 1652-3, pp. 370-1; SP18/37, f. 6. Cullen made only a slight impression on the records of the assembly, being named to just one committee, for prisons and prisoners (20 July), and he was granted leave of absence for two weeks on 13 September 1653, perhaps to return to his local duties.31CJ vii. 287b, 317b.

After his term of office as mayor of Dover came to an end that month, Cullen remained active in the town’s business, and in 1654 was returned to the first protectorate Parliament as its representative.32Eg. 2096, f. 176; CSP Dom. 1653-4, p. 221; 1654, p. 533; Add. 29623, f. 158. Although he made no recorded impression on the proceedings, his attendance at Westminster can be deduced from his absence from Dover, and from the town’s later decision to pay him 5s per day for his service.33Eg. 2096, ff. 178, 180; Add. 29623, f. 160. After the dissolution of Parliament, Cullen returned to active service as jurat of Dover.34Eg. 2096, ff. 179-211v; CSP Dom. 1655, p. 355. He was chosen as bailiff to attend the Cinque Ports meeting at Yarmouth in July 1656, but he was fined £20 for failing to appear, although he subsequently apologised, and his fine was paid by the corporation.35Eg. 2096, ff. 188-9, 197; Add. 29622, f. 222

Cullen was not returned to Parliament in 1656, when Thomas Kelsey served as MP for Dover, but he continued to play a prominent part in the county and at Westminster. He was appointed to the Committee of Trade in November 1655, made a commissioner for examining all persons passing through the port of Dover, and for the security of the protector in November 1656.36CSP Dom. 1655-6, p. 1; 1656-7, p. 153; A. and O. Upon the death of the incumbent, Cullen assumed the role of mayor once again in 1658, and was subsequently re-elected in September of that year.37CSP Dom. 1658-9, p. 153; Add. 29623, f. 172; Eg. 2096, f. 198v. During the summer of 1659 he resumed his military duties as a captain of the Kent militia, and in August was ordered to assist in the defence of Dover Castle.38CSP Dom. 1659-60, p. 71; 1659-60, p. 77. In January 1660, he was appointed deputy lieutenant of Dover Castle, in which capacity he presided over a meeting of the admiralty court of the Cinque Ports in early April.39CSP Dom. 1659-60, p. 302; 1659-60, p. 310; Eg. 2119, f. 104. He remained active within the corporation until the first week of May 1660, but in the immediate aftermath of the Restoration absented himself from town meetings (June-Aug.), although he resumed his place as a jurat later in the year (Sept.-Nov.).40Eg. 2096, ff. 203v-11v; CSP Dom. 1659-60, pp. 435, 554. Thereafter, Cullen’s name disappears from the town records, and he was almost certainly removed from the corporation. In November 1662 he provided information about an attempt by two men to secure illicit passage from Dover, but thereafter he disappeared from public life.41CSP Dom. 1661-2, p. 575. Cullen was buried at St James, Dover, on 18 April 1678.42Dover St James par. reg.