Sir John Norreys (c. 1481 – 21 October 1564) was an important member of the English court during the reign of the House of Tudor.

Family

Probably born at

Yattendon Castle Yattendon Castle was a fortified manor house located in the civil parish of Yattendon, in the hundred of Faircross, in the English county of Berkshire. History The site upon which Yattendon castle stood was originally occupied by a moat ...

, John was the eldest son of Sir Edward Norreys (d. 1487) and Lady Frideswide Lovell, sister and heiress of Lord Lovell. He was named after his great grandfather Sir John Norreys, who had established this branch of the

Norreys Norreys (also spelt Norris) may refer to various members of, or estates belonging to, a landed family chiefly seated in the English counties of Berkshire and Lancashire and the Irish county of Cork. Famous family members * Baron Norreys of Rycote ...

family as extensive landowners in the county of Berkshire. The

family members often held positions of importantance at the English court. John's father Edward, the eldest son and heir of

Sir William Norreys Sir William Norreys (c. 1441 – before 10 January 1507) was a famous Lancastrian soldier, and later an Esquire of the Body to King Edward IV. Probably born at Yattendon Castle, William was the eldest son of Sir John Norreys of Ockwells an ...

, had taken part in the Battle of Stoke Field in 1487, dying shortly afterwards. John was then his grandfather's heir, and succeeded to the

family estates upon the old man's death in 1507. The estates included major residences such as

and

Ockwells Ockwells Manor is a timber-framed 15th century manor house in the civil parish of Cox Green, adjoining Maidenhead, in the English county of Berkshire. It was previously in the parish of Bray. The manor used to own most of the land that is n ...

and minor lands like Norreys Manor in

Wokingham Wokingham is a market town in Berkshire, England, west of London, southeast of Reading, north of Camberley and west of Bracknell. History Wokingham means 'Wocca's people's home'. Wocca was apparently a Saxon chieftain who may ...

Murderer

In 1517, John murdered one John Enhold of

Nettlebed Nettlebed is a village and civil parish in Oxfordshire in the Chiltern Hills about northwest of Henley-on-Thames and southeast of Wallingford. The parish includes the hamlet of Crocker End, about east of the village. The 2011 Census recor ...

in unknown circumstances. He was fined 1,000 marks and had to surrender

. In return by his brother,

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, ...

, obtained a pardon for him. His uncle, Sir Thomas

Fettiplace Fettiplace is an English family name, allegedly of Norman descent, originating with a landed gentry family chiefly of Berkshire and Oxfordshire, from which came a baronetical line, extinct. English family The first recorded member of the Fett ...

, took possession of Ockwells.

Marriage

John married Elizabeth Braye (born c. 1490), daughter of John Braye of

Eaton Bray Eaton Bray is a village and civil parish in Bedfordshire, England. It is situated about three miles south-west of the town of Dunstable and is part of a semi-rural area which extends into the parish of Edlesborough. In the 2011 United Kingdom ...

, whose family was as important in

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

as the

family. Elizabeth's brother, Edmund Braye (d. 1539), was the 1st

Baron Braye Baron Braye, of Eaton Bray in the County of Bedford, is a title in the Peerage of England. It was created in 1529 for Edmund Braye, 1st Baron Braye. However, the family originally originate from Normandy, they are direct descendants of Chevalier ...

, a title created for him in 1529. Her brother, Edward Braye (d. 1558), was a

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 o ...

. The couple was childless.

Royal associations

John rose in favour at Court, perhaps with the help of his mother, and became the Esquire of the body of

King Henry VII Henry VII (28 January 1457 – 21 April 1509) was King of England and Lord of Ireland from his seizure of the crown on 22 August 1485 until his death in 1509. He was the first monarch of the House of Tudor. Henry's mother, Margaret Beaufo ...

, and later the usher of the outer chamber to both King Henry VIII and

King Edward VI Edward VI (12 October 1537 – 6 July 1553) was King of England and Ireland from 28 January 1547 until his death in 1553. He was crowned on 20 February 1547 at the age of nine. Edward was the son of Henry VIII and Jane Seymour and the first E ...

. Described as "a rank

papist The words Popery (adjective Popish) and Papism (adjective Papist, also used to refer to an individual) are mainly historical pejorative words in the English language for Roman Catholicism, once frequently used by Protestants and Eastern Orthodo ...

", he was later promoted to be chief usher of the

privy chamber A privy chamber was the private apartment of a royal residence in England. The Gentlemen of the Privy Chamber were noble-born servants to the Crown who would wait and attend on the King in private, as well as during various court activities, f ...

to Queen Mary Tudor. He retired to Ashampstead upon the accession of Queen Elizabeth. In 1520, John entertained King Henry VIII and his Queen Catherine of Aragon at

Later life

When John's younger brother, Sir Henry Norreys, was

beheaded Decapitation or beheading is the total separation of the head from the body. Such an injury is invariably fatal to humans and most other animals, since it deprives the brain of oxygenated blood, while all other organs are deprived of the ...

in 1536 for his supposed

adultery Adultery (from Latin ''adulterium'') is extramarital sex that is considered objectionable on social, religious, moral, or legal grounds. Although the sexual activities that constitute adultery vary, as well as the social, religious, and legal ...

with the queen,

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 ...

, John and his wife, Elizabeth, took over the care of Henry's orphaned children

and Mary. Having no legitimate children of his own, John was licensed to settle his estates in reversion on his nephew in December 1542.

References

David Nash Ford's Royal Berkshire History: Sir John Norreys (d. 1563)

External links

Sir John Norreys
Family tree {{DEFAULTSORT:Norreys, John 1480s births 1564 deaths People from Bray, Berkshire People from Yattendon English people convicted of murder 16th-century English people Recipients of English royal pardons