Sir Henry Neville (
baptised
Baptism (from grc-x-koine, βάπτισμα, váptisma) is a form of ritual purification—a characteristic of many religions throughout time and geography. In Christianity, it is a Christian sacrament of initiation and adoption, almost inv ...
20 May 1564 – 10 July 1615) was an English
courtier
A courtier () is a person who attends the royal court of a monarch or other royalty. The earliest historical examples of courtiers were part of the retinues of rulers. Historically the court was the centre of government as well as the official ...
, politician and diplomat, noted for his role as ambassador to France and his unsuccessful attempts to negotiate between
James I of England
James VI and I (James Charles Stuart; 19 June 1566 – 27 March 1625) was King of Scotland as James VI from 24 July 1567 and King of England and Ireland as James I from the union of the Scottish and English crowns on 24 March 1603 until ...
and the Houses of Parliament. In 2005, Neville was put forward as a candidate for the
authorship of Shakespeare's works.
Family
Neville was the elder son of Sir
Henry Neville (died 1593) and his second wife, Elizabeth Gresham (died 6 November 1573), granddaughter of Sir
Richard Gresham
Sir Richard Gresham (c. 1485 – 21 February 1549) was an English mercer, Merchant Adventurer, Lord Mayor of London, and Member of Parliament. He was the father of Sir Thomas Gresham.
Biography
The Gresham family had been settled in the Norfo ...
,
Lord Mayor of London
The Lord Mayor of London is the mayor of the City of London and the leader of the City of London Corporation. Within the City, the Lord Mayor is accorded precedence over all individuals except the sovereign and retains various traditional pow ...
, and only daughter and heir of the latter's elder son, John Gresham (died 1560), by Frances Thwaytes, the daughter and coheir of Sir Henry Thwaytes of
Lund, Yorkshire.
[.]
Neville's father had earlier married, between 1551 and 1555, Winifred Losse (died in or before 1561), daughter of a property speculator, Hugh Losse (died 1555) of
Whitchurch, London, by whom he had no children.
After the death of his second wife, Neville's father married thirdly, about May 1578,
Elizabeth Bacon (c. 1541 – 3 May 1621), widow of Sir Robert Doyley (died between 21 and 29 July 1577) of
Chislehampton, Oxfordshire, and
Greenlands in
Hambleden
Hambleden is a small village and civil parish in south-west Buckinghamshire, England. The village is around west of Marlow, and around north-east of Henley-on-Thames in Oxfordshire.
The civil parish also includes the villages of Fingest and ...
, Buckinghamshire. Elizabeth Bacon was the eldest daughter of
Queen Elizabeth's Lord Keeper of the Great Seal
The Lord Keeper of the Great Seal of England, and later of Great Britain, was formerly an officer of the English Crown charged with physical custody of the Great Seal of England. This position evolved into that of one of the Great Officers of S ...
, Sir
Nicholas Bacon (1510–1579), by his first wife, Jane Ferneley (died 1552), the daughter of William Ferneley of
Suffolk. After Neville's death, his widow, Elizabeth, married, before the end of September 1595, Sir
William Peryam
Sir William Peryam (15349 October 1604) of Little Fulford, near Crediton in Devon, was an English judge who rose to the position of Lord Chief Baron of the Exchequer in 1593, and was knighted by Queen Elizabeth I.
Origins
Peryam was born in ...
(died 9 October 1604). She made her last will on 12 November 1618 and died on 3 May 1621. There is a monument to her in the church of St Mary's
Henley-on-Thames.
Neville's father was a great-great-grandson of
Ralph Neville, 1st Earl of Westmorland
Ralph Neville, 1st Earl of Westmorland Earl Marshal (c. 136421 October 1425), was an English nobleman of the House of Neville.
Origins
Ralph Neville was born about 1364, the son of John Neville, 3rd Baron Neville by his wife Maud Percy (d. ...
and
Joan Beaufort, Countess of Westmoreland Joan may refer to:
People and fictional characters
* Joan (given name), including a list of women, men and fictional characters
*:Joan of Arc, a French military heroine
* Joan (surname)
Weather events
* Tropical Storm Joan (disambiguation), multi ...
, the daughter of
John of Gaunt, 1st Duke of Lancaster
John of Gaunt, Duke of Lancaster (6 March 1340 – 3 February 1399) was an English royal prince, military leader, and statesman. He was the fourth son (third to survive infancy as William of Hatfield died shortly after birth) of King Edward ...
, by
Katherine Swynford.
Career
Neville grew up at
Billingbear House
Billingbear House was situated in the parish of Waltham St. Lawrence in Berkshire, England, about six miles from Windsor.
Originally owned by the Bishop of Winchester, the land was given to Sir Henry Neville (father of politician and diplomat, ...
at
Waltham St Lawrence
Waltham St Lawrence is a small village and civil parish in the English county of Berkshire.
History
The name 'Waltham' is believed to be derived from the Anglo-Saxon words ''Wealt'' and ''Ham'', meaning 'dilapidated homes'.Ford, David Nash ( ...
in Berkshire. At the age of fifteen, he matriculated from
Merton College, Oxford, on 20 December 1577. His tutor was
Henry Savile Henry Savile may refer to:
* Henry Savile (died 1558) (1498–1558), MP for Yorkshire
* Henry Savile (died 1569) (1518–1569), MP for Yorkshire and Grantham
*Henry Savile (Bible translator)
Sir Henry Savile (30 November 154919 February 1622) w ...
, later warden of Merton. In 1578 Neville accompanied Savile on a continental tour, visiting
Padua
Padua ( ; it, Padova ; vec, Pàdova) is a city and ''comune'' in Veneto, northern Italy. Padua is on the river Bacchiglione, west of Venice. It is the capital of the province of Padua. It is also the economic and communications hub of the ...
, Venice, and
Prague
Prague ( ; cs, Praha ; german: Prag, ; la, Praga) is the capital and List of cities in the Czech Republic, largest city in the Czech Republic, and the historical capital of Bohemia. On the Vltava river, Prague is home to about 1.3 milli ...
.
[.]
Neville sat in
Parliament
In modern politics, and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: representing the electorate, making laws, and overseeing the government via hearings and inquiries. Th ...
as the member for
New Windsor (1584, 1586 and 1593),
Sussex (1589),
Liskeard
Liskeard ( ; kw, Lyskerrys) is a small ancient stannary and market town in south-east Cornwall, South West England. It is situated approximately 20 miles (32 km) west of Plymouth, west of the Devon border, and 12 miles (20 km) eas ...
(1597) and
Berkshire (1604, 1614). He served as
High Sheriff of Berkshire
The High Sheriff of Berkshire, in common with other counties, was originally the King's representative on taxation upholding the law in Saxon times. The word Sheriff evolved from 'shire-reeve'.
The title of High Sheriff is therefore much older ...
in 1595. Before his father's death, he lived at the old
Archbishop's Palace at
Mayfield in
Sussex, inherited from his great-uncle
Sir Thomas Gresham
Sir Thomas Gresham the Elder (; c. 151921 November 1579), was an English merchant and financier who acted on behalf of King Edward VI (1547–1553) and Edward's half-sisters, queens Mary I (1553–1558) and Elizabeth I (1558–1603). In 1565 ...
(died 1579), where he ran a highly successful cannon manufactury. He was appointed
Deputy Lieutenant of Berkshire in 1596 and moved to Billingbear the next year. He was knighted in 1599.
In 1599, Neville was appointed Ambassador to France and attended the court of
Henri IV
Henry IV (french: Henri IV; 13 December 1553 – 14 May 1610), also known by the epithets Good King Henry or Henry the Great, was King of Navarre (as Henry III) from 1572 and King of France from 1589 to 1610. He was the first monarc ...
. Although
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 for his services in France, he was unhappy with the way he was treated by the French and in 1600, complaining of
deafness
Deafness has varying definitions in cultural and medical contexts. In medical contexts, the meaning of deafness is hearing loss that precludes a person from understanding spoken language, an audiological condition. In this context it is written ...
, he asked to be recalled to England.
After his return he became involved with the
Essex Rebellion
Essex's Rebellion was an unsuccessful rebellion led by Robert Devereux, 2nd Earl of Essex, in 1601 against Queen Elizabeth I of England and the court faction led by Sir Robert Cecil to gain further influence at court.
Background
Robert Devereux, ...
of 1601 and was imprisoned in the
Tower of London
The Tower of London, officially His Majesty's Royal Palace and Fortress of the Tower of London, is a historic castle on the north bank of the River Thames in central London. It lies within the London Borough of Tower Hamlets, which is sep ...
. His close friend
Henry Wriothesley, 3rd Earl of Southampton
Henry Wriothesley, 3rd Earl of Southampton, (pronunciation uncertain: "Rezley", "Rizely" (archaic), (present-day) and have been suggested; 6 October 1573 – 10 November 1624) was the only son of Henry Wriothesley, 2nd Earl of S ...
, was also imprisoned there at this time in connection with the plot.
He was stripped of his position and fined £5,000, which he agreed to pay in annual instalments of £1,000. After the death of
Elizabeth I of England
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".
Eli ...
and the accession of
James I James I may refer to:
People
*James I of Aragon (1208–1276)
*James I of Sicily or James II of Aragon (1267–1327)
*James I, Count of La Marche (1319–1362), Count of Ponthieu
*James I, Count of Urgell (1321–1347)
*James I of Cyprus (1334–13 ...
a
Royal Warrant was issued for his release.
After his release, he played a greater role in the political life of the nation, but earned the antagonism of King James by advocating the King surrender to the demands of the
House of Commons
The House of Commons is the name for the elected lower house of the bicameral parliaments of the United Kingdom and Canada. In both of these countries, the Commons holds much more legislative power than the nominally upper house of parliament. T ...
.
In the first session of 1610, and again in 1612, he advised the king to give way to the demands of the House of Commons. It was these actions that, on the death of
Robert Cecil, 1st Earl of Salisbury, in May 1612, lost him the possibility of becoming the
Secretary of State. Although offered the position of
Treasurer of the Chamber The Treasurer of the Chamber was at various points a position in the British royal household.
13th century
The post of Treasurer of the Chamber first arose in the early 13th century. As part of the evolutionary changes that saw the Treasurer of th ...
he turned it down.
Neville died in 1615 and was buried at the church of
St Lawrence
Saint Lawrence or Laurence ( la, Laurentius, lit. " laurelled"; 31 December AD 225 – 10 August 258) was one of the seven deacons of the city of Rome under Pope Sixtus II who were martyred in the persecution of the Christians that the Roman ...
in Waltham St Lawrence.
Shakespeare authorship
In 2005, Neville was proposed as the actual author of Shakespeare's works. The attribution is rejected by almost all academic Shakespeareans who have responded to the claim.
Marriage and issue
In December 1584, Neville married Anne Killigrew (died 1632), the daughter of
Sir Henry Killigrew (died 1603) and
Catherine Cooke, sister-in-law of
William Cecil, 1st Baron Burghley
William Cecil, 1st Baron Burghley (13 September 15204 August 1598) was an English statesman, the chief adviser of Queen Elizabeth I for most of her reign, twice Secretary of State (1550–1553 and 1558–1572) and Lord High Treasurer from 1 ...
, by whom he had five sons and six daughters:
[
* Sir Henry Neville (II), 1588–29 June 1629, married Elizabeth Smyth; among his children were ]Richard Neville (soldier)
Richard Neville DL (30 May 1615 – 7 October 1676) served in the English Civil War as a Royalist. He came to prominence as commander at the First Battle of Newbury in 1643 when he commanded the Royalist troops.
Biography
Neville was born at B ...
and Henry Neville.
* Catherine Neville, c. 1590–1650, married Sir Richard Brooke.[
* Frances Neville, 1592–1659, married Sir Richard Worsley, 1st Baronet then Jerome Brett.][
* Mary Neville, NK – 28 October 1642, married Sir Edward Lewknor.][
* William Neville, 1596–1640, second son, married Catherine Billingley, issue unknown.
* Edward Neville, 1602–1632, married Alice Pryor, issue.
* Robert Neville, 1604-NK
* Dorothy Neville, 1605–1673, married Richard Catlin.][
* Charles Neville, 1607–1626, probably unmarried.
* Richard Neville, 1608–1644, married unknown, issue.
* Elizabeth Neville, NK – 4 January 1657, married William Glover, then Sir Henry Berkeley, then Thomas Duke.][
* Anne Neville, 1610-NK.
]
Notes
References
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External links
Henry Neville - History of Parliament Online
Henry Neville - Dictionary of National Biography
Retrieved 25 March 2013
Bacon, Sir Nicholas (1510–1579), History of Parliament
Retrieved 25 March 2013
Sir Henry Neville of Billingbere
{{DEFAULTSORT:Neville, Henry
1564 births
1615 deaths
Alumni of Merton College, Oxford
16th-century English diplomats
Ambassadors of England to France
English rebels
People from Waltham St Lawrence
Henry
Henry may refer to:
People
*Henry (given name)
* Henry (surname)
* Henry Lau, Canadian singer and musician who performs under the mononym Henry
Royalty
* Portuguese royalty
** King-Cardinal Henry, King of Portugal
** Henry, Count of Portugal, ...
High Sheriffs of Berkshire
British businesspeople in the armaments industry
Prisoners in the Tower of London
Deputy Lieutenants of Berkshire
Knights Bachelor
English knights
English MPs 1584–1585
English MPs 1586–1587
English MPs 1589
English MPs 1593
English MPs 1604–1611
English MPs 1614
Members of the Parliament of England (pre-1707) for New Windsor
Members of Parliament for Sussex
Members of the Parliament of England (pre-1707) for Liskeard
Members of the Parliament of England for Berkshire
People from Mayfield, East Sussex