Dictionary of National Biography, 1885-1900/Mitch, Richard
MITCH, RICHARD (fl. 1557), lawyer, of an Essex family, was educated at Cambridge (B.A. 1542, M.A. 1544). He was admitted a fellow of St. John's College 14 March 1542-3, but subsequently removed to Trinity Hall. Mitch was an active opponent at Cambridge of the growth of the reformed religion. On 27 Jan. 1547 he was constituted one of Gardiner's proctors to produce evidence on the examination and trial of that bishop. On the accession of Queen Mary he organised a curious attack in the regent house on Dr. Sandys, the vice-chancellor, who had exhibited sympathy for Lady Jane Grey (Foxe, Acts and Monuments, viii. 592). In 1556 Mitch was one of the examiners of John Hullier, preacher, of Lynn, on the charge of heresy, for which the latter was subsequently burnt, and the same year he gave active assistance to Cardinal Pole's delegates during the visitation of the university of Cambridge. He was among the lawyers and heads of houses who, in January 1556-7, were called and sworn to give evidence against the heresies of Bucer and Fagius before the exhumation and burning of the bodies of those reformers.
Mitch commenced LL.D. 1557, and was admitted an advocate at Doctors' Commons 26 April 1559, and an advocate of the court of arches about the same date (Strype, Life of Parker, i. 87). Subsequently, owing doubtless to his religious opinions, he left the country, and his name occurs in a list of recusants from Essex, who were fugitives over seas (Strype, Annals, vol. ii. pt. ii. p. 596).
[Lamb's Coll. of Doc. from Corpus Christi Coll.; Strype's Annals; Baker's History of St. John's Coll.; Cooper's Annals of Cambridge; Cooper's Athenæ Cantabrigienses; Coote's Civilians; Foxe's Acts and Monuments; Fuller's Hist. of Univ. of Cambridge.]