Sir Henry Knyvet (1537–1598) of

Charlton Park, Wiltshire Charlton Park is a English country house, country house and estate in Wiltshire, England, northeast of the town of Malmesbury. Charlton Park House is a Grade I listed building and a leading example of the prodigy house. Malmesbury Abbey held Ch ...

, was an English Member of Parliament. Charlton House 04

He was the eldest son of Sir Henry Knyvet, by his wife Anne, daughter and heiress of Sir Christopher Pickering of

Killington, Cumbria Killington is a village and civil parish in the South Lakeland district of the county of Cumbria, England. It had a population of 152 in 2001, At the 2011 census Killington was grouped with Firbank giving a total population of 261. Killingto ...

, and widow of

Sir Francis Weston Sir Francis Weston KB (1511 – 17 May 1536) was a gentleman of the Privy Chamber at the court of King Henry VIII of England. He became a friend of the king but was later accused of high treason and adultery with Anne Boleyn, the king's second ...

. Sir Henry Knyvet was the grandson of

Sir Thomas Knyvet Sir Thomas Knyvett (also Knevitt or Knivet or Knevet), of Buckenham, Norfolk (c. 1485 – 10 August 1512) was a young English nobleman who was a close associate of King Henry VIII shortly after that monarch came to the throne. According to Hall ...

and the brother of Thomas Knyvet. He succeeded his father in 1546. He held a number of public offices and was appointed

High Sheriff of Wiltshire This is a list of the Sheriffs and (after 1 April 1974) High Sheriffs of Wiltshire. Until the 14th century, the shrievalty was held ''ex officio'' by the castellans of Old Sarum Castle. On 1 April 1974, under the provisions of the Local Go ...

(1578–79) and a deputy-lieutenant of Wiltshire. He was elected Member of Parliament for

Wootton Bassett Royal Wootton Bassett , formerly Wootton Bassett, is a market town and civil parish in Wiltshire, England, with a population of 11,043 in 2001, increasing to 11,385 in 2011. Situated in the north of the county, it lies to the west of the major ...

in 1571 and 1572, for

Malmesbury Malmesbury () is a town and civil parish in north Wiltshire, England, which lies approximately west of Swindon, northeast of Bristol, and north of Chippenham. The older part of the town is on a hilltop which is almost surrounded by the upp ...

in 1584 and 1586, Wootton Bassett again in 1589 and finally Malmesbury again in 1593 and 1597. He was knighted in 1574. He married firstly in 1563, Elizabeth, the daughter and sole heiress of wealthy clothier Sir

James Stumpe Sir James Stumpe (by 1519 – 29 April 1563), of Malmesbury and Bromham, Wiltshire, was an English clothier and Member of Parliament. He was the eldest son of wealthy clothier and MP, William Stumpe. He was knighted 1549 or later and succeeded h ...

of Malmesbury, with whom he had two sons and four daughters. She brought him the manor of Charlton Park, where he commenced the building of Charlton House. He married secondly, by June 1595, Mary, the daughter of Sir John Sydenham of Brinton, Somerset and the widow of John Fitz of Fitzford, Devon. He was succeeded by his surviving three daughters,

Katherine Katherine, also spelled Catherine, and Catherina, other variations are feminine Given name, names. They are popular in Christian countries because of their derivation from the name of one of the first Christian saints, Catherine of Alexandria ...

(who inherited Charlton Park and eventually became Countess of Suffolk),

Elizabeth Elizabeth or Elisabeth may refer to: People * Elizabeth (given name), a female given name (including people with that name) * Elizabeth (biblical figure), mother of John the Baptist Ships * HMS ''Elizabeth'', several ships * ''Elisabeth'' (sch ...

and Frances. All three married earls.

Frances Knyvet

His daughter,

Frances Knyvet Frances Knyvet or Knyvett (1583–1605) was an English courtier who performed in masques. Career She was a daughter of Henry Knyvet (1537–1598) of Charlton Park, Wiltshire, and Elizabeth Stumpe (died 1585), the daughter of a wealthy clothier, Ja ...

(died 1605) first married Sir William Bevill, and secondly, in 1602,

Francis Manners, 6th Earl of Rutland Francis Manners, 6th Earl of Rutland, KG (1578–1632) was an English nobleman. Despite a brief imprisonment for his involvement in the Essex Rebellion of 1601, he became prominent at the court of James I. He lived at Belvoir Castle in Leices ...

. She danced in masques at the court of

Anne of Denmark Anne of Denmark (; 12 December 1574 – 2 March 1619) was the wife of King James VI and I; as such, she was Queen of Scotland The monarchy of the United Kingdom, commonly referred to as the British monarchy, is the constitutional fo ...

, including ''

The Masque of Blackness ''The Masque of Blackness'' was an early Jacobean era masque, first performed at the Stuart Court in the Banqueting Hall of Whitehall Palace on Twelfth Night, 6 January 1605. It was written by Ben Jonson at the request of Anne of Denmark, the ...

'' as Notis on 6 January 1605. Her sister, Catherine, Countess of Suffolk, portrayed Kathare. Her daughter,

Katherine Manners Katherine Manners is an English actress, screenwriter, and playwright. She is best known for her lead role as Vera Brittain in the 2008 BBC One teleivison documentary '' A Woman in Love and War: Vera Brittain'' and for portraying Jane Corby Wigh ...

married the royal favourite,

George Villiers, 1st Duke of Buckingham George Villiers, 1st Duke of Buckingham, 28 August 1592 – 23 August 1628), was an English courtier, statesman, and patron of the arts. He was a favourite and possibly also a lover of King James I of England. Buckingham remained at the ...

, in 1620. Frances Knyvet died of smallpox in the summer of 1605.''Memorials of Affairs of State from the papers of Ralph Winwood'', vol. 2 (London, 1725), p. 141.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Knyvet, Henry 1537 births 1598 deaths English MPs 1571 English MPs 1572–1583 English MPs 1584–1585 English MPs 1586–1587 English MPs 1589 English MPs 1593 English MPs 1597–1598 Knights Bachelor High Sheriffs of Wiltshire