Sir Edward Coke was an English judge. He was born in 1552 and died in 1634. He was known as the greatest common lawyer of all time. He was a member of parliament in 1589 and Attorney-General in 1594. In 1603 he conducted the Raleigh trial and in 1605 the Gunpowder Plot trial. In 1606 he was appointed Chief Justice. Coke upheld the common law against the Crown, the Church, and the Admiralty. Research Edward Coke