Sir John Luttrell (c. 1518/19 – 10 July 1551)

feudal baron of Dunster Feudalism, also known as the feudal system, was the combination of the legal, economic, military, cultural and political customs that flourished in medieval Europe between the 9th and 15th centuries. Broadly defined, it was a way of structur ...

in Somerset, of

Dunster Castle Dunster Castle is a former motte and bailey castle, now a English country house, country house, in the village of Dunster, Somerset, England. The castle lies on the top of a steep hill called the Tor, and has been fortified since the late Anglo- ...

, was an English soldier, diplomat, and

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 ...

under

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 ...

and

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 ...

. He served under Edward Seymour, Earl of Hertford (later

Duke of Somerset Duke is a male title either of a monarch ruling over a duchy, or of a member of royalty, or nobility. As rulers, dukes are ranked below emperors, kings, grand princes, grand dukes, and sovereign princes. As royalty or nobility, they are rank ...

and

Lord Protector Lord Protector (plural: ''Lords Protector'') was a title that has been used in British constitutional law for the head of state. It was also a particular title for the British heads of state in respect to the established church. It was sometimes ...

) in Scotland and France. His service is commemorated in an allegorical portrait by

Hans Eworth Hans Eworth (or Ewouts; ) was a Flemish painter active in England in the mid-16th century. Along with other exiled Flemings, he made a career in Tudor London, painting allegorical images as well as portraits of the gentry and nobility.''Concis ...

Life and military career

John Luttrell was the eldest son of Sir Andrew Luttrell of

, Somerset by his wife, Margaret, daughter of Sir Thomas Wyndham. He married Mary, daughter of Sir Griffith Ryce and Katherine Edgcumbe, by whom he had three daughters, Catherine, Dorothy, and Mary. John Luttrell, his younger brother, and his uncle Thomas Wyndham served as boy pages in the household of Cardinal Wolsey during his embassy to France in July 1527. Luttrell accompanied Edward Seymour, Earl of Hertford in the first stages of the military expeditions to Scotland known as the

Rough Wooing The Rough Wooing (December 1543 – March 1551), also known as the Eight Years' War, was part of the Anglo-Scottish Wars of the 16th century. Following its break with the Roman Catholic Church, England attacked Scotland, partly to break the ...

and was present at the taking of

Edinburgh Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian ...

and

Leith Leith (; gd, Lìte) is a port area in the north of the city of Edinburgh, Scotland, founded at the mouth of the Water of Leith. In 2021, it was ranked by '' Time Out'' as one of the top five neighbourhoods to live in the world. The earliest ...

. 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 at Leith by Hertford on 11 May 1544, immediately following the capture and burning of Edinburgh. In 1546, as the border wars in Scotland dragged on, Luttrell accompanied Hertford to France where the earl had been appointed commander of the English forces at the captured port of

Boulogne Boulogne-sur-Mer (; pcd, Boulonne-su-Mér; nl, Bonen; la, Gesoriacum or ''Bononia''), often called just Boulogne (, ), is a coastal city in Northern France. It is a sub-prefecture of the department of Pas-de-Calais. Boulogne lies on the ...

. Luttrell commanded a force of 100 men during five months of "fast moving raids, vicious skirmishes, and ambushes" between Hertford's army and the French. After the death of Henry VIII on 28 January 1547, Hertford, elevated to Duke of Somerset and Lord Protector to his nephew Edward VI, pursued Henry's goal of forcibly allying Scotland to England by marrying Edward to the young

Mary, Queen of Scots Mary, Queen of Scots (8 December 1542 – 8 February 1587), also known as Mary Stuart or Mary I of Scotland, was Queen of Scotland from 14 December 1542 until her forced abdication in 1567. The only surviving legitimate child of James V of Scot ...

, a conflict now known as the

. In September 1547, Luttrell accompanied Somerset's army into Scotland, and led the vanguard of 300 men at the

Battle of Pinkie The Battle of Pinkie, also known as the Battle of Pinkie Cleugh ( , ), took place on 10 September 1547 on the banks of the River Esk near Musselburgh, Scotland. The last pitched battle between Scotland and England before the Union of the Cro ...

, where the Scots were resoundingly defeated. In the aftermath of Pinkie, Luttrell was appointed captain of the English base at the island Abbey of

Inchcolm Inchcolm (from the Scottish Gaelic "Innis Choluim", meaning Columba's Island) is an island in the Firth of Forth in Scotland. It was repeatedly attacked by English raiders during the Wars of Scottish Independence, and was fortified during both Wo ...

in the

Firth of Forth The Firth of Forth () is the estuary, or firth, of several Scottish rivers including the River Forth. It meets the North Sea with Fife on the north coast and Lothian on the south. Name ''Firth'' is a cognate of ''fjord'', a Norse word meani ...

, from whence he harassed Scottish shipping with little success. His uncle Thomas Wyndham visited in December with two warships. on 28 December 1547 he raided Burntisland and burnt ships and buildings at the pier, and

Rossend Castle Rossend Castle is a historic building in Burntisland, a town on the south coast of Fife, Scotland. History A keep, known as the Tower of Kingorne Wester, was in existence on the site from 1119. It was later referred to as Burntisland Castle, a ...

surrendered to him. Eventually Inchcolm was abandoned, and Luttrell was sent north in March 1548 to captain

Broughty Castle Broughty Castle is a historic castle on the banks of the River Tay in Broughty Ferry, Dundee, Scotland. It was completed around 1495, although the site was earlier fortified in 1454, when George Douglas, 4th Earl of Angus, received permission t ...

which dominated the

Tay Tay may refer to: People and languages * Tay (name), including lists of people with the given name, surname and nickname * Tay people, an ethnic group of Vietnam ** Tày language *Atayal language, an Austronesian language spoken in Taiwan (ISO 639 ...

and

Dundee Dundee (; sco, Dundee; gd, Dùn Dè or ) is Scotland's fourth-largest city and the 51st-most-populous built-up area in the United Kingdom. The mid-year population estimate for 2016 was , giving Dundee a population density of 2,478/km2 or ...

. In August 1548 Luttrell was troubled by rumours that he had mismanged royal funds, and he declared "though I be not so rich as others are, nor have not so profitable and easy entertainments (employment), yet I trust it shall not appear I esteem any of the King's Majesty's money above the duty of a humble true subject". One of Luttrell's brothers was killed in Dundee in November 1548. Early in 1549 he was joined at Broughty by

Pedro de Negro Pedro de Negro or Pedro Negro (died 1551) was a Spanish soldier who fought for Henry VIII of England and Edward VI of England in France and Scotland. Career and knighthood Pedro de Negro commanded calvalrymen armed with muskets during the war betw ...

and his band of Spanish soldiers. Luttrell was trusted as a diplomatist no less than as a soldier, and, in March 1549, he was appointed one of the two English commissioners to treat with the Earls of Argyll, Athol and Errol and others, with a view to the expulsion of the French (who were allied with the Scots against the English) from Scotland, and a marriage between Edward and Mary. The negotiation, however, came to nothing. Some of Luttrell's correspondence at this time was captured by the French, and still survives, but perhaps the most remarkable survival is his 'letter of defiance' written to James Doig of Dunrobin besieging him at

in November 1548. The tide was already turning in Scotland's favour, and at midnight on 12 February 1550 Luttrell and the garrison at Broughty surrendered to a joint French and Scottish force.Tabitha Barber in Hearn, pp. 65–66 Luttrell was held for ransom as a prisoner of James Doig of Dunrobin. On the day the peace of the

Treaty of Boulogne The Rough Wooing (December 1543 – March 1551), also known as the Eight Years' War, was part of the Anglo-Scottish Wars of the 16th century. Following its break with the Roman Catholic Church, England attacked Scotland, partly to break the ...

was declared in England, 29 March 1550, Thomas Wyndham was sent to Scotland with two post horses and five Scottish hostages to exchange for Luttrell. On 16 May 1550 Archbishop Hamilton organised the payment of his ransom of £1000 for the exchange of the sons of

George Douglas of Pittendreich George Douglas of Pittendreich (died 1552) was a member of the powerful Red Douglas family who struggled for control of the young James V of Scotland in 1528. His second son became James Douglas, 4th Earl of Morton and Regent of Scotland. Initi ...

and the Master of Semple. George Douglas's son would later rule Scotland as

Regent Morton James Douglas, 4th Earl of Morton (c. 1516 – 2 June 1581, aged 65) was the last of the four regents of Scotland during the minority of King James VI. He was in some ways the most successful of the four, since he won the civil war that had b ...

. Luttrell was immediately arrested for a debt to a Dundee merchant.

Regent Arran A regent (from Latin : ruling, governing) is a person appointed to govern a state ''pro tempore'' (Latin: 'for the time being') because the monarch is a minor, absent, incapacitated or unable to discharge the powers and duties of the monarchy, ...

paid this £19-11s in September 1550. Back in England, he was rewarded with a gift of land in July 1550 by

John Dudley, Earl of Warwick John Dudley, 1st Duke of Northumberland (1504Loades 2008 – 22 August 1553) was an English general, admiral, and politician, who led the government of the young King Edward VI from 1550 until 1553, and unsuccessfully tried to install Lady J ...

, who had seized control of the Council from Somerset in 1549. Sir John Luttrell died in an epidemic of the

sweating sickness Sweating sickness, also known as the sweats, English sweating sickness, English sweat or ''sudor anglicus'' in Latin, was a mysterious and contagious disease that struck England and later continental Europe in a series of epidemics beginning ...

on 10 July 1551, while preparing for an expedition to

Morocco Morocco (),, ) officially the Kingdom of Morocco, is the westernmost country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It overlooks the Mediterranean Sea to the north and the Atlantic Ocean to the west, and has land borders with Algeria to ...

with his uncle, Thomas Wyndham. His three daughters were co-heiresses to one third part of his estates, the other two-thirds devolving, by two

entail In English common law, fee tail or entail is a form of trust established by deed or settlement which restricts the sale or inheritance of an estate in real property and prevents the property from being sold, devised by will, or otherwise alien ...

s and Sir John's will, upon his next brother, Thomas Luttrell.

Portrait

allegorical As a literary device or artistic form, an allegory is a narrative or visual representation in which a character, place, or event can be interpreted to represent a hidden meaning with moral or political significance. Authors have used allegory t ...

portrait of John Luttrell with the goddesses

Pax Pax or PAX may refer to: Peace * Peace (Latin: ''pax'') ** Pax (goddess), the Roman goddess of peace ** Pax, a truce term * Pax (liturgy), a salutation in Catholic and Lutheran religious services * Pax (liturgical object), an object formerly ki ...

Venus Venus is the second planet from the Sun. It is sometimes called Earth's "sister" or "twin" planet as it is almost as large and has a similar composition. As an interior planet to Earth, Venus (like Mercury) appears in Earth's sky never fa ...

Minerva Minerva (; ett, Menrva) is the Roman goddess of wisdom, justice, law, victory, and the sponsor of arts, trade, and strategy. Minerva is not a patron of violence such as Mars, but of strategic war. From the second century BC onward, the Roma ...

, and the Three Graces by

is thought to commemorate Luttrell's service with English armed forces and the subsequent

of 24 March 1550 which formally ended England's long war with Scotland and France. John remained a prisoner in Scotland after the treaty until his debts and ransom were paid in September 1550. His brother Captain Hugh Luttrell had fought at Boulogne, but he deserted and was thought to have tried to betray the town to the French. The painting's complex allusions to Luttrell's military service and to the role of sea power in the war with Scotland and France were expounded by Dame

Frances Yates Dame Frances Amelia Yates (28 November 1899 – 29 September 1981) was an English historian of the Renaissance, who wrote books on esoteric history. After attaining an MA in French at University College London, she began to publish her resear ...

in 1967. The inscription on the rock in the foreground reads;

More than the Rock Amydys the Raging Seas,
The Constant Hert no Danger Dreddys nor Fearys
S. I. L. (Sir John Luttrell), 1550 HE (Hans Eworth)"

His right bracelet reads, "Nec Fregit Lucrum 1550", and the left "Nec Fingit Discrimen." The first appears to mean; "Not in Cold Profit", the second, "Not to Discriminate," apparently deriving from the ''

Meditations ''Meditations'' () is a series of personal writings by Marcus Aurelius, Roman Emperor from AD 161 to 180, recording his private notes to himself and ideas on Stoic philosophy. Marcus Aurelius wrote the 12 books of the ''Meditations'' in Koine ...

'' of

Marcus Aurelius Marcus Aurelius Antoninus (Latin: áːɾkus̠ auɾέːli.us̠ antɔ́ːni.us̠ English: ; 26 April 121 – 17 March 180) was Roman emperor from 161 to 180 AD and a Stoic philosopher. He was the last of the rulers known as the Five Good ...

.Aurelius, Marcus, ''Meditations'', Book 5, para. 12, "Sic etiam vulgus animo sibi fingit hoc discrimen", – Even the vulgar mind may discern this difference. The original – signed with Eworth's "HE" monogram – was donated to the Courtauld Institute of Art by Lord Lee of Farnham in 1932. The painting was in "badly damaged" condition when given to the Institute, but has subsequently been conserved and restored.Van Claerbergen, 2000, 1. A well-preserved copy made by George Luttrell in 1591 and which now hangs at Dunster Castle was the source of much of Dame Frances Yates' research.

Notes

References

:''This article contains text from ''A Genealogical and Heraldic History of the Commoners of Great Britain and Ireland Enjoying Territorial Possessions Or High Official Rank: But Uninvested with Heritable Honours'' by John Burke, 1835, a document now in the

public domain The public domain (PD) consists of all the creative work A creative work is a manifestation of creative effort including fine artwork (sculpture, paintings, drawing, sketching, performance art), dance, writing (literature), filmmaking, ...

.'' :''This article also contains text from ''A History of Dunster and of the Families of Mohun and Luttrell'' by H. C. Maxwell-Lyte, 1909, a document now in the

.'' *van Claerbergen, Ernst Vegelin, ''The Portrait of Sir John Luttrell: A Tudor Mystery,'' London: Jistlynn Ltd., 2000, 1. *Cooper, Tanya, ''A Guide to Tudor & Jacobean Portraits'', National Portrait Gallery, London, 2008, *Hearn, Karen, ed. ''Dynasties: Painting in Tudor and Jacobean England 1530–1630''. New York: Rizzoli, 1995. *Maxwell-Lyte, Sir H. C., ''A History of Dunster and of the Families of Mohun and Luttrell'', 1909, quoted at *Phillips, Gervase, ''The Anglo-Scots Wars 1513–1550'', Boydell Press, * *Strong, Roy, ''The English Icon: Elizabethan and Jacobean Portraiture'', 1969, Routledge & Kegan Paul, London *Waterhouse, Ellis, ''Painting in Britain, 1530–1790'', 4th Edn, 1978, Penguin Books (now Yale History of Art series) {{DEFAULTSORT:Luttrell, Sir John 1510s births 1551 deaths English army officers English people of the Rough Wooing 16th-century English soldiers Year of birth uncertain 16th-century English diplomats

John John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Secon ...

Deaths from sweating sickness