Many of the notable residents of Mickleton are perhaps best well known because of their position and influence locally rather than nationally. This would have included residents of the Manor, such as Richard Graves, Steel Graves and Richard Porter, and local entrepreneurs such as Joseph Webb. None of these were necessarily renowned nationally. Three people which have had an influence nationally were Edward Fisher (son of Sir Edward Fisher), Richard Graves (a descendant of the first Richard Graves of Mickleton Manor), and Anthony Keck. Lawrence Johnston, the creator of the garden at Hidcote Manor, is in a different category altogether; he could be said to have an international reputation. Although he is buried in the churchyard in Mickleton he was a resident of Hidcote, as was his mother, Gertrude Winthrop.
Sir Edward Fisher was Lord of The Manor in Mickleton and a beneficiary of the Enclosure Acts which gave title to what previously had been open fields and common land. However, he is perhaps most notable for failing to provide for what then became the landless poor as was required by the Acts, and it would seem rulings made in court cases which went against him. There does not appear to be anything else of note attributable to him. That cannot be said of his eldest son, also Edward Fisher, who in 1627 went to Brasenose College, Oxford as a gentleman commoner and became a noted theologian and writer, including for his knowledge of ecclesiastical history and classical languages. He is generally considered the author of The Marrow of Modern Divinity (1645), which influentially stated the doctrine of unconditional grace (also known as unconditional election and a doctrine relating to predisposition), and was at the centre of the later Marrow Controversy, a Scottish ecclesiastical dispute (enough said for this publication). He succeeded to his father's estate in Mickleton in 1654, but finding it much encumbered he sold it in 1656 to Richard Graves.
One of Richard Graves descendants, also Richard Graves and presumably his grandson, who was born in Mickleton in 1676/7 (d.1729) was said to delight in the private life. He was educated at Chipping Campden Grammer School and Oxford University. He retired to live in the Manor devoting himself to private study of subjects such as history (including local history) and classical antiquities, and collecting coins. His son - also named Richard and born in Mickleton in 1715 (d.1804) - on the other hand was an Anglican minister, poet and novelist. He went to Oxford University where he was a contemporary of George Whitefield, a Methodist and close associate of John Wesley, and William Shenstone the poet and landscape gardener who became a close friend. His major work was The Spiritual Quixote (1773), which is described as a picaresque novel - a genre of fiction that depicts the adventures of a roguish hero/heroine of low social class who lives by his or her wits. It is a satire of John Wesley, George Whitefield, and Methodism in general, and is in the form of a missionary journey which began in Mickleton in 1772. One of the characters, Geoffry Wildgoose, called amusements such as Dover's Games in Chipping Campden "Devil's Strong-holds", and in the story it was on Dover's Hill where his missionary efforts began.
Sir Anthony Keck (1630 – 1695) was a British lawyer and politician. He was called to the bar of the Inner Temple in 1659 and developed a flourishing chancery practice. He acted as council for William Howard, 1st Viscount Stafford who was executed for treason in 1680 during the Popish Plot, and made something of a name for himself in cases before the House of Lords. He was also member of Parliament for Tiverton between 1691 and 1695, and briefly Commissioner of the Great Seal. He was born in Mickleton the fifth son of Nicholas Keck and was said to have raised himself by his own wits, which suggests the family had little money or influence. It is said, however, that he died a very rich man. He was appointed a Commissioner of the Great Seal in March 1689 with Sir John Maynard and Serjeant Rawlinson by the new King William III. These commissioners replaced the notorious Judge Jeffreys as Lord Chancellor. One of the Lord Chancellor's responsibilities is to act as the custodian of the Great Seal of the Realm. In certain circumstances the office of Lord Chancellor may be exercised by a committee of individuals known as Lords Commissioners of the Great Seal. This could be, for example, when there is a delay between an outgoing Chancellor and their replacement. The seal is then said to be "in commission". Since the 19th century, however, only Lord Chancellors have been appointed.
The Great Seal of the Realm - or Great Seal of the United Kingdom - is a seal that is used to symbolise the Sovereign's approval of important state documents. The Great Seal for each successive monarch is inscribed with the monarch's names and titles on both sides of the seal. The seal, or rather an impression made in sealing wax, is attached by cord or ribbon to documents that the Monarch wishes to make official. A Great Seal was first used by Edward the Confessor sometime before A.D. 1066 casting in wax his own likeness to signify that a document carried the force of his will.