Sir Cyril Wyche
PRS (c.1632 – 28 December 1707) was an English lawyer and politician.
Early life
He was born in
Constantinople
la, Constantinopolis ota, قسطنطينيه
, alternate_name = Byzantion (earlier Greek name), Nova Roma ("New Rome"), Miklagard/Miklagarth (Old Norse), Tsargrad ( Slavic), Qustantiniya (Arabic), Basileuousa ("Queen of Cities"), Megalopolis (" ...
,
Turkey
Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a list of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolia, Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with ...
, where his father, Sir
Peter Wyche, was the English Ambassador. He was educated at
Christ Church, Oxford
Christ Church ( la, Ædes Christi, the temple or house, '' ædēs'', of Christ, and thus sometimes known as "The House") is a constituent college of the University of Oxford in England. Founded in 1546 by King Henry VIII, the college is uniqu ...
with
Bachelor of Arts
Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four years ...
in 1653. He received his
Master of Arts
A Master of Arts ( la, Magister Artium or ''Artium Magister''; abbreviated MA, M.A., AM, or A.M.) is the holder of a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is usually contrasted with that of Master of Science. Tho ...
(MA) in 1655 and his
Doctor of Civil Law
Doctor of Civil Law (DCL; la, Legis Civilis Doctor or Juris Civilis Doctor) is a degree offered by some universities, such as the University of Oxford, instead of the more common Doctor of Laws (LLD) degrees.
At Oxford, the degree is a higher ...
(DCL) in 1665. Between the time he received his MA and his DCL, he was
knight
A knight is a person granted an honorary title of knighthood by a head of state (including the Pope) or representative for service to the monarch, the church or the country, especially in a military capacity. Knighthood finds origins in the Gr ...
ed (1660). This is so close in time to the
English Restoration
The Restoration of the Stuart monarchy in the kingdoms of England, Scotland and Ireland took place in 1660 when King Charles II returned from exile in continental Europe. The preceding period of the Protectorate and the civil wars came to be ...
that he was almost certainly a
Cavalier
The term Cavalier () was first used by Roundheads as a term of abuse for the wealthier royalist supporters of King Charles I and his son Charles II of England during the English Civil War, the Interregnum, and the Restoration (1642 – ). It ...
, and may have served in the
military
A military, also known collectively as armed forces, is a heavily armed, highly organized force primarily intended for warfare. It is typically authorized and maintained by a sovereign state, with its members identifiable by their distinct ...
for the Royalist cause.
Career
He was an original member of the
Royal Society
The Royal Society, formally The Royal Society of London for Improving Natural Knowledge, is a learned society and the United Kingdom's national academy of sciences. The society fulfils a number of roles: promoting science and its benefits, re ...
and served as
President
President most commonly refers to:
*President (corporate title)
*President (education), a leader of a college or university
*President (government title)
President may also refer to:
Automobiles
* Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ful ...
from 1683–1684.
He joined the bar in 1670 and became
Chief Secretary for Ireland
The Chief Secretary for Ireland was a key political office in the British administration in Ireland. Nominally subordinate to the Lord Lieutenant, and officially the "Chief Secretary to the Lord Lieutenant", from the early 19th century un ...
in 1692. He was a Member of
Parliament
In modern politics, and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: Representation (politics), representing the Election#Suffrage, electorate, making laws, and overseeing ...
for several constituencies at different times, (MP for
Callington
Callington ( kw, Kelliwik) is a civil parish and town in east Cornwall, England, United Kingdom about north of Saltash and south of Launceston.
Callington parish had a population of 4,783 in 2001, according to the 2001 census. This had inc ...
(1661–1678), for
East Grinstead
East Grinstead is a town in West Sussex, England, near the East Sussex, Surrey, and Kent borders, south of London, northeast of Brighton, and northeast of the county town of Chichester. Situated in the extreme northeast of the county, the civ ...
(1681–1685), for
Saltash
Saltash (Cornish: Essa) is a town and civil parish in south Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. It had a population of 16,184 in 2011 census. Saltash faces the city of Plymouth over the River Tamar and is popularly known as "the Gateway to Corn ...
(1685–1687), and for
Preston (1702–1705)
Personal life
He married three times; firstly in 1663, Elizabeth, the daughter of Sir Thomas Jermyn of Rushbrooke, Suffolk, with whom he had 2 sons (1 of whom predeceased him) and 2 daughters, secondly in 1684 Susanna, the daughter of Sir Francis Norreys of Weston on the Green, Oxfordshire and the widow of Sir Herbert Perrott of Wellington. Herefordshire and thirdly in 1692 Mary, the daughter of George Evelyn of Wotton, Surrey. Mary was the niece of
John Evelyn
John Evelyn (31 October 162027 February 1706) was an English writer, landowner, gardener, courtier and minor government official, who is now best known as a diarist. He was a founding Fellow of the Royal Society.
John Evelyn's diary, or memo ...
, the diarist.
[
Around 1690 he purchased Hockwold Hall (then called The Poynings) at ]Hockwold cum Wilton
Hockwold cum Wilton (''"Hock/mallow wood and willow-tree farm/settlement"'') is 10 miles west of Thetford, Norfolk, England and is in the borough of King's Lynn and West Norfolk. It is located near several USAF airbases, notably RAF Lakenheath a ...
, Norfolk
Norfolk () is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in East Anglia in England. It borders Lincolnshire to the north-west, Cambridgeshire to the west and south-west, and Suffolk to the south. Its northern and eastern boundaries are the No ...
. He died there and a monument to him can be found in St Peter's Church, Hockwold
St Peter's Church is a redundant Anglican church in the village of Hockwold cum Wilton in Norfolk, England. It is recorded in the National Heritage List for England as a designated Grade I listed building, and is under the care of the Chu ...
.
References
Further reading
* ''Sir Cyril Wyche and the Popish Plot, 1678-80'', Hugh Fenning, O.P., in ''Seanchas Ard Macha'' volume 19/2, pp. 53–62, 2002
* Herbert Rix, " Wyche, Cyril", ''Dictionary of National Biography'', 1885–1900, Volume 63
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Wyche, Cyril
1632 births
1707 deaths
Members of Gray's Inn
17th-century English lawyers
Original Fellows of the Royal Society
Members of the Privy Council of Ireland
Members of the Privy Council of England
Presidents of the Royal Society
Members of the pre-1707 English Parliament for constituencies in Cornwall
English MPs 1661–1679
English MPs 1681
English MPs 1685–1687
English MPs 1702–1705
Chief Secretaries for Ireland
Members of the Parliament of Ireland (pre-1801) for Dublin University
Irish MPs 1692–1693