William Crofts, 1st Baron Crofts
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William Crofts, 1st Baron Crofts
William Crofts, 1st Baron Crofts (c.1611–1677) was an English baron and Gentleman of the Bedchamber to Charles II. Life He was the son of Sir Henry Crofts, MP, of Little Saxham, Suffolk. He moved to court c.1630 as a servant of Queen Henrietta Maria, the consort of Charles I. The lady in waiting to Elizabeth Stuart, Queen of Bohemia known as "Margaret Crofts" has sometimes been identified as his sister. However, the will of Margaret Croft from Herefordshire seems to identify her as this royal servant. William Crofts carried letters to the court of Elizabeth of Bohemia. In 1644 his brother was shot in the head by the queen's court dwarf Jeffrey Hudson. Henrietta Maria wrote to Cardinal Mazarin to intercede for Hudson's life. During the Civil War he remained loyal to the king and queen, and was rewarded by the grant of several manors in Essex and Suffolk. He followed Charles II into exile in France and in 1651-52 was sent on diplomatic missions to Eastern Europe, primar ...
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Gentleman Of The Bedchamber
Gentleman of the Bedchamber was a title in the royal household of the Kingdom of England from the 11th century, later used also in the Kingdom of Great Britain. A Lord of the Bedchamber was a courtier in the Royal Household; the term being first used in 1718. The duties of the Lords and Gentleman of the Bedchamber originally consisted of assisting the monarch with dressing, waiting on him when he ate, guarding access to his bedchamber and closet and providing companionship. Such functions became less important over time, but provided proximity to the monarch; the holders were thus trusted confidants and often extremely powerful. The offices were in the gift of The Crown and were originally sworn by Royal Warrant directed to the Lord Chamberlain. This is an ''incomplete'' list of noblemen who have served as Lord of the Bedchamber or Gentleman of the Bedchamber: Description and functions There were always several holders of the office, who were invariably gentlemen and almost ...
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English Civil War
The English Civil War (1642–1651) was a series of civil wars and political machinations between Parliamentarians (" Roundheads") and Royalists led by Charles I ("Cavaliers"), mainly over the manner of England's governance and issues of religious freedom. It was part of the wider Wars of the Three Kingdoms. The first (1642–1646) and second (1648–1649) wars pitted the supporters of King Charles I against the supporters of the Long Parliament, while the third (1649–1651) saw fighting between supporters of King Charles II and supporters of the Rump Parliament. The wars also involved the Scottish Covenanters and Irish Confederates. The war ended with Parliamentarian victory at the Battle of Worcester on 3 September 1651. Unlike other civil wars in England, which were mainly fought over who should rule, these conflicts were also concerned with how the three Kingdoms of England, Scotland and Ireland should be governed. The outcome was threefold: the trial of and ...
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Barons In The Peerage Of England
Baron is a rank of nobility or title of honour, often hereditary, in various European countries, either current or historical. The female equivalent is baroness. Typically, the title denotes an aristocrat who ranks higher than a lord or knight, but lower than a viscount or count. Often, barons hold their fief – their lands and income – directly from the monarch. Barons are less often the vassals of other nobles. In many kingdoms, they were entitled to wear a smaller form of a crown called a ''coronet''. The term originates from the Latin term , via Old French. The use of the title ''baron'' came to England via the Norman Conquest of 1066, then the Normans brought the title to Scotland and Italy. It later spread to Scandinavia and Slavic lands. Etymology The word '' baron'' comes from the Old French , from a Late Latin "man; servant, soldier, mercenary" (so used in Salic law; Alemannic law has in the same sense). The scholar Isidore of Seville in the 7th century ...
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People From The Borough Of St Edmundsbury
A person ( : people) is a being that has certain capacities or attributes such as reason, morality, consciousness or self-consciousness, and being a part of a culturally established form of social relations such as kinship, ownership of property, or legal responsibility. The defining features of personhood and, consequently, what makes a person count as a person, differ widely among cultures and contexts. In addition to the question of personhood, of what makes a being count as a person to begin with, there are further questions about personal identity and self: both about what makes any particular person that particular person instead of another, and about what makes a person at one time the same person as they were or will be at another time despite any intervening changes. The plural form "people" is often used to refer to an entire nation or ethnic group (as in "a people"), and this was the original meaning of the word; it subsequently acquired its use as a plural form of ...
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1677 Deaths
Events January–March * January 1 – Jean Racine's tragedy ''Phèdre'' is first performed, in Paris. * January 21 – The first medical publication in America (a pamphlet on smallpox) is produced in Boston. * February 15 – Four members of the English House of Lords embarrass King Charles II at the opening of the latest session of the "Cavalier Parliament" by proclaiming that the session is not legitimate because it hadn't met in more than a year. The Duke of Buckingham, backed by Lord Shaftesbury, Lord Salisbury and Baron Wharton, makes an unsuccessful motion to end the session. When the four Lords refuse to apologize, they are arrested and imprisoned in the Tower of London. * February 26 – ** The first arrests are made in the case that will develop into the "Affair of the Poisons" in France, as Magdelaine de La Grange and her accused accomplice, Father Nail, are detained on suspicion of poisoning her lover, a Messr. Faurie. While in prison i ...
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1610s Births
Year 161 ( CLXI) was a common year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Caesar and Aurelius (or, less frequently, year 914 ''Ab urbe condita''). The denomination 161 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar era became the prevalent method in Europe for naming years. Events By place Roman Empire * March 7 – Emperor Antoninus Pius dies, and is succeeded by Marcus Aurelius, who shares imperial power with Lucius Verus, although Marcus retains the title Pontifex Maximus. * Marcus Aurelius, a Spaniard like Trajan and Hadrian, is a stoical disciple of Epictetus, and an energetic man of action. He pursues the policy of his predecessor and maintains good relations with the Senate. As a legislator, he endeavors to create new principles of morality and humanity, particularly favoring women and slaves. * Aurelius reduces ...
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Baron Crofts
Baron is a rank of nobility or title of honour, often hereditary, in various European countries, either current or historical. The female equivalent is baroness. Typically, the title denotes an aristocrat who ranks higher than a lord or knight, but lower than a viscount or count. Often, barons hold their fief – their lands and income – directly from the monarch. Barons are less often the vassals of other nobles. In many kingdoms, they were entitled to wear a smaller form of a crown called a ''coronet''. The term originates from the Latin term , via Old French. The use of the title ''baron'' came to England via the Norman Conquest of 1066, then the Normans brought the title to Scotland and Italy. It later spread to Scandinavia and Slavic lands. Etymology The word ''baron'' comes from the Old French , from a Late Latin "man; servant, soldier, mercenary" (so used in Salic law; Alemannic law has in the same sense). The scholar Isidore of Seville in the 7th century thoug ...
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Wormleighton Manor
Wormleighton Manor is a manor house in the civil parish of Wormleighton in the historic county of Warwickshire, England. It belonged to the wealthy Spencer family during the 16th and 17th century. Much of the house was burned down by Royalists during the English Civil War in 1645 and abandoned by the Spencers in favour of Althorp in Northamptonshire, which contains some materials salvaged from Wormleighton to this day. Today, all that is left of the manor, which was once four times the size of Althorp, is the Wormleighton Manor Gatehouse and Tower Cottage which is a Grade II listed building, and the northern range of the manor. History Wormleighton Manor is a fine example of the Tudor architecture that appeared during the reign of Henry VIII. The wealthy Spencer family, who built their fortune on the production of wool in Warwickshire in the 15th century, first became linked to Wormleighton in 1469, when John Spencer became feoffee (feudal lord) and a tenant at Althorp in 1486. Jo ...
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William Spencer, 2nd Baron Spencer Of Wormleighton
William Spencer, 2nd Baron Spencer of Wormleighton (christened 4 January 1591 – 19 December 1636) was an English nobleman, politician, and peer from the Spencer family. Life Spencer was the son of Robert Spencer, 1st Baron Spencer of Wormleighton, and his wife, Margaret Willoughby, and was baptised on 4 January 1591 at Brington, Northamptonshire. He attended Magdalen College, Oxford, and became a Member of Parliament for Brackley in 1614, for Northamptonshire (1620–1622 & 1624–1627). From 6 May 1618 to 1621, Spencer held the office of Deputy Lieutenant of Northamptonshire. On 25 October 1627, he succeeded to the title of 2nd Baron Spencer of Wormleighton. Family Lord Spencer married Lady Penelope Wriothesley, daughter of Henry Wriothesley, 3rd Earl of Southampton and Elizabeth Vernon in 1615, by whom he had three sons and three daughters. He died in December 1636, aged 45, and was succeeded by his eldest son, Henry, who was created Earl of Sunderland in 1643. Lord Spe ...
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Lucy Walter
Lucy Walter (c. 1630 – 1658), also known as Lucy Barlow, was a Welsh noblewoman, the first mistress of King Charles II of England and mother of James, Duke of Monmouth. During the Exclusion Crisis, a Protestant faction wanted to make her son heir to the throne, fuelled by the rumour that the king might have married Lucy, a claim which he denied. Life Ancestry and early life Lucy Walter was born into Welsh gentry as the daughter of William Walter (died 1650) and his wife, born Elizabeth Prothero (died 1652), daughter of John Prothero and niece of John Vaughan, 1st Earl of Carbery. She was probably born in 1630 at her family's home, Roch Castle near Haverfordwest in Pembrokeshire, Wales, and had two brothers, Richard and Justus. She received no formal education but learned etiquette. As her parents had a strained relationship, they separated in 1640 when Walter was 10 years old. She, her mother and her brothers went to live with her maternal grandmother in London. She may hav ...
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James Scott, 1st Duke Of Monmouth
James Scott, 1st Duke of Monmouth, 1st Duke of Buccleuch, KG, PC (9 April 1649 – 15 July 1685) was a Dutch-born English nobleman and military officer. Originally called James Crofts or James Fitzroy, he was born in Rotterdam in the Netherlands, the eldest illegitimate son of Charles II of England, Scotland, and Ireland with his mistress Lucy Walter. The Duke of Monmouth served in the Second Anglo-Dutch War and commanded English troops taking part in the Third Anglo-Dutch War before commanding the Anglo-Dutch brigade fighting in the Franco-Dutch War. He led the unsuccessful Monmouth Rebellion in 1685, an attempt to depose his uncle King James II and VII. After one of his officers declared Monmouth the legitimate king in the town of Taunton in Somerset, Monmouth attempted to capitalise on his Protestantism and his position as the son of Charles II, in opposition to James, who had become a Roman Catholic. The rebellion failed, and Monmouth was beheaded for treason on 15 July 1 ...
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Mary Anne Everett Green
Mary Anne Everett Green ( Wood; 19 July 1818 – 1 November 1895) was an English historian. After establishing a reputation for scholarship with two multi-volume books on royal ladies and noblewomen, she was invited to assist in preparing calendars (abstracts) of hitherto disorganised historical state papers. In this role of "calendars editor", she participated in the mid-19th-century initiative to establish a centralised national archive. She was one of the most respected female historians in Victorian Britain. Family and early career Mary Anne Everett Wood was born in Sheffield to a Wesleyan Methodist minister, Robert Wood, and his wife Sarah ( Bateson; born Wortley, Leeds, youngest daughter of Matthew Bateson, clothier). Her father was responsible for her education, offering an extensive knowledge of history and languages, and she benefited from mixing with her parents' intellectual friends including James Everett, the minister and writer, for whom she was named. When th ...
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