Sir Edward Carne (c. 1500 – 19 January 1561) was a

Welsh Welsh may refer to: Related to Wales * Welsh, referring or related to Wales * Welsh language, a Brittonic Celtic language spoken in Wales * Welsh people People * Welsh (surname) * Sometimes used as a synonym for the ancient Britons (Celtic peop ...

Renaissance The Renaissance ( , ) , from , with the same meanings. is a period in European history marking the transition from the Middle Ages to modernity and covering the 15th and 16th centuries, characterized by an effort to revive and surpass ideas ...

scholar, diplomat and English

Member of Parliament A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house members of ...

Life history

Carne was born around 1500, the second son of Howell Carne of

Cowbridge Cowbridge ( cy, Y Bont-faen) is a market town in the Vale of Glamorgan, Wales, approximately west of the centre of Cardiff. The Cowbridge with Llanblethian community and civil parish elect a town council. A Cowbridge electoral ward exists for e ...

Glamorgan , HQ = Cardiff , Government = Glamorgan County Council (1889–1974) , Origin= , Code = GLA , CodeName = Chapman code , Replace = * West Glamorgan * Mid Glamorgan * South Glamorgan , Motto ...

, and his wife Cicily, the daughter of William Kemys. Carne was descended from Thomas Le Carne, who was the second son of Ithyn, King of Gwent. He was educated at

Oxford University Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...

, and became principal of Greek Hall. He was made Doctor of Civil Law in 1524. His wife was Anne, a daughter of Sir Edward Mansel of Margam. He had one legitimate son, William, and four daughters. Carne became known as an erudite and eloquent speaker and became attached to the court of

Henry VIII Henry VIII (28 June 149128 January 1547) was King of England from 22 April 1509 until his death in 1547. Henry is best known for his six marriages, and for his efforts to have his first marriage (to Catherine of Aragon) annulled. His disa ...

. In 1530 he was selected in a legal capacity to represent the embassy of the Earl of Wiltshire,

Anne Boleyn Anne Boleyn (; 1501 or 1507 – 19 May 1536) was Queen of England from 1533 to 1536, as the second wife of King Henry VIII. The circumstances of her marriage and of her execution by beheading for treason and other charges made her a key ...

's father. Carne profited from the Dissolution of the Monasteries in Glamorgan, where he purchased Ewenny Priory, building a

house A house is a single-unit residential building. It may range in complexity from a rudimentary hut to a complex structure of wood, masonry, concrete or other material, outfitted with plumbing, electrical, and heating, ventilation, and air condi ...

there after 1545. In 1539 he obtained the lease of

Gaunt's Hospital St Mark's Church is an ancient church on the north-east side of College Green, Bristol, England, built c. 1230. Better known to mediaeval and Tudor historians as the Gaunt's Chapel, it has also been known within Bristol since 1722 as the L ...

, Bristol, and acted as its treasurer. He was due to go abroad to arrange the ill-fated marriage of

Anne of Cleves Anne of Cleves (german: Anna von Kleve; 1515 – 16 July 1557) was Queen of England from 6 January to 12 July 1540 as the fourth wife of King Henry VIII. Not much is known about Anne before 1527, when she became betrothed to Francis, Duke of ...

to King Henry VIII, and the revenue from the foundation was directed in the meantime to the support of his wife, Anne Denys, a daughter of Sir William Denys (d.1535) of Dyrham, Glos.

Bristol Corporation Bristol City Council, formerly known as The Bristol Corporation (and colloquially as "The Corporation"), is the local government authority governing the city of Bristol, England. Following the Norman conquest of England in 1066, successive royal c ...

objected, and in 1540 the church was purchased by

. He was appointed

High Sheriff of Glamorgan This page is a list of High Sheriffs of Glamorgan. Sheriffs of Glamorgan served under and were answerable to the independent Lords of Glamorgan until that lordship was merged into the crown. This is in contrast to sheriffs of the English shires wh ...

for 1543 and 1554,

Master of Requests Master of Requests, from the Latin Requestarum Magister, is an office that developed in several European systems of law and government in the late Middle Ages and the early modern period. Holders of the title had the responsibility of presenting pe ...

from 1540 to 1554 and was elected knight of the shire (MP) for Glamorgan in 1554. During Queen Mary's reign he served on embassies to

Emperor Charles V Charles V, french: Charles Quint, it, Carlo V, nl, Karel V, ca, Carles V, la, Carolus V (24 February 1500 – 21 September 1558) was Holy Roman Emperor and Archduke of Austria from 1519 to 1556, King of Spain ( Castile and Aragon) ...

and to

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus (legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

, where he chose to remain on the accession of

Elizabeth I Elizabeth I (7 September 153324 March 1603) was Queen of England and Ireland from 17 November 1558 until her death in 1603. Elizabeth was the last of the five House of Tudor monarchs and is sometimes referred to as the "Virgin Queen". El ...

and was put in charge of the English hospital of St. Thomas in the city. He is buried in the

narthex The narthex is an architectural element typical of early Christian and Byzantine basilicas and churches consisting of the entrance or lobby area, located at the west end of the nave, opposite the church's main altar. Traditionally the narthex ...

of the Church of St. Gregory on the Caelian Hill in Rome.

References

*C. J. O. Evans (1938), ''Glamorgan, its History and Topography''

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Carne, Edward 1500 births 1561 deaths Welsh diplomats People associated with the Dissolution of the Monasteries People from Cowbridge English MPs 1554–1555 Alumni of the University of Oxford 16th-century Welsh politicians High Sheriffs of Glamorgan 16th-century English diplomats Members of the Parliament of England for Glamorganshire Ambassadors of England to the Holy See