Roger Ratcliffe (died 1537) was an English courtier.

Career

Ratcliffe was in the service of

Margaret, Countess of Richmond Lady Margaret Beaufort (usually pronounced: or ; 31 May 1441/43 – 29 June 1509) was a major figure in the Wars of the Roses of the late fifteenth century, and mother of King Henry VII of England, the first Tudor monarch. A descendant of ...

, and in February 1510 was rewarded with the office of Bailiff of Fremington in Devon. He had joined the household of

Catherine of Aragon Catherine of Aragon (also spelt as Katherine, ; 16 December 1485 – 7 January 1536) was Queen of England as the first wife of King Henry VIII from their marriage on 11 June 1509 until their annulment on 23 May 1533. She was previously ...

as a gentleman usher of her chamber, with George Fraunces. He was granted the lands of

Withcote Withcote is a small parish currently comprising a number of scattered dwellings in Harborough, a local government district of Leicestershire. The population is included in the civil parish of Braunston-in-Rutland. Buildings Withcote Hall is ...

and Sewey, the properties of his wife's first husband, and made Ranger of Rutland Forest. In 1520 he attended her at the

Field of the Cloth of Gold The Field of the Cloth of Gold (french: Camp du Drap d'Or, ) was a summit meeting between King Henry VIII of England and King Francis I of France from 7 to 24 June 1520. Held at Balinghem, between Ardres in France and Guînes in the English P ...

as a gentleman usher. By 1522 his brother Geoffrey Ratcliffe held lands at Rockingham. Roger Ratciffe was described as a gentleman usher of the privy chamber to

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 ...

with Anthony Knyvett in the Eltham Ordinance of 1526. He went to Scotland in 1524 with Doctor Magnus to meet the king's sister

Margaret Tudor Margaret Tudor (28 November 1489 – 18 October 1541) was Queen of Scotland from 1503 until 1513 by marriage to King James IV. She then served as regent of Scotland during her son's minority, and successfully fought to extend her regency. Marg ...

. Ratcliffe's role was to amuse her son, the young

James V of Scotland James V (10 April 1512 – 14 December 1542) was List of Scottish monarchs, King of Scotland from 9 September 1513 until his death in 1542. He was crowned on 21 September 1513 at the age of seventeen months. James was the son of James IV of Sco ...

. They brought Henry's gift to Margaret, a length of cloth of gold, and a sword for James. They saw the king dance, sing, ride, run with a spear, and his other excellent "princely actes and doinggs". The mission was managed by

Cardinal Wolsey Thomas Wolsey ( – 29 November 1530) was an English statesman and Catholic bishop. When Henry VIII became King of England in 1509, Wolsey became the king's almoner. Wolsey's affairs prospered and by 1514 he had become the controlling figur ...

. Ratcliffe was Sheriff of Leicestershire and Warwickshire in 1529. He died in 1537.

Family

Ratcliffe married Catherine, widow of William Smith ''alias'' Heriz, and daughter of William Ashby. She brought him the property of

, where her first husband had commenced building a mansion and chapel. After his death, Withcote was inherited by his stepson John Smith and his son Roger, and Ratcliffe left him his bed of velvet and chamlet silk paned. It is thought that

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 ...

stopped at Withcote, then owned by Henry Smith, a son of Roger Smith's younger brother, the London mercer and silkman

Ambrose Smith Ambrose Smith or Smythe (died 1584) was a London Worshipful Company of Mercers, mercer in Cheapside and silkman who supplied Elizabeth I Smith was a son of John Smith (died 1545) of Withcote, near Oakham, in Leicestershire, and Dorothy Cave, a sist ...

, on her way to

Fotheringhay Castle Fotheringhay Castle, also known as ''Fotheringay Castle'', was a High Middle Age Norman Motte-and-bailey castle in the village of Fotheringhay to the north of the market town of Oundle, Northamptonshire, England (). It was probably founded a ...

. Ambrose Smith had supplied velvet, satin, and taffeta to

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 ...

. Henry Smith's sister was

Dorothy, Lady Pakington Dorothy, Lady Pakington (1623 – 10 May 1679) was an English friend and supporter of learned clergymen, and a writer of religious works. She was for many years reputed to be the author of ''The Whole Duty of Man''. She enjoyed the esteem and frie ...

, in 1586 Mrs Barnham. She later married a Scottish courtier, the

Earl of Kellie The title Earl of Kellie or Kelly is a title in the Peerage of Scotland, created in 1619 for Sir Thomas Erskine, who was Captain of the Guard and Groom of the Stool for James VI. It is named after Barony of Kellie in Fife, Scotland. Since 1875 ...

. The preacher and author Henry Smith (1560-1591) was a son of Erasmus Smith of

Husbands Bosworth Husbands Bosworth is a large crossroads village in South Leicestershire on the A5199 road from Leicester city to Northampton and the A4304 road from Junction 20 of the M1 motorway to Market Harborough. The population of the village was 1,027 a ...

, and a nephew of Ambrose Smith. His nephew was the merchant

Erasmus Smith Erasmus Smith (1611–1691) was an English merchant and a landowner with possessions in England and Ireland. Having acquired significant wealth through trade and land transactions, he became a philanthropist in the sphere of education, treading ...

(1611–1691).

Withcote Hall and Chapel

Ratcliffe completed building work at Withcote Hall in Leicestershire, near

Oakham Oakham is the county town of Rutland in the East Midlands of England, east of Leicester, south-east of Nottingham and west of Peterborough. It had a population of 10,922 in the 2011 census, estimated at 11,191 in 2019. Oakham is to the west o ...

, now demolished. Around the year 1534 Henry VIII allowed him to bring building materials from

Rockingham Castle Rockingham Castle is a former royal castle and hunting lodge in Rockingham Forest approximately two miles north from the town centre of Corby, Northamptonshire. History 11th – 14th centuries The site on which the castle stands was used in t ...

, where his brother Geoffrey had a lease of the site. This was recorded in a family memorial of Edward Watson, who acquired Rockingham in 1544. John Leland mentioned "Mr Radeclif's right goodly house" at Withcote in 1539, "one of the fairest houses in Leicestershire", occupied by John Smith who had married Dorothy Cave, a sister of

Ambrose Cave Sir Ambrose Cave (died 2 April 1568) was an English politician. Life Ambrose Cave was the son of Richard Cave (see Cave-Browne-Cave baronets) and Margaret Saxby of Stanford, Northamptonshire. He was educated at Cambridge University. He was knigh ...

and Bryan Cave. The famous

stained glass Stained glass is coloured glass as a material or works created from it. Throughout its thousand-year history, the term has been applied almost exclusively to the windows of churches and other significant religious buildings. Although tradition ...

windows in the chapel at Withcote have been attributed to the Flemish glazier

Galyon Hone Galyon Hone (died 1552) was a glazier from Bruges who worked for Henry VIII of England at Hampton Court and in other houses making stained glass windows. His work involved replacing the heraldry and ciphers of Henry VIII's wives in windows when th ...

. They include the phoenix and castle badge of

Jane Seymour Jane Seymour (c. 150824 October 1537) was List of English consorts, Queen of England as the third wife of King Henry VIII of England from their Wives of Henry VIII, marriage on 30 May 1536 until her death the next year. She became queen followi ...

and the heraldry of Ratcliffe and his family. It used to be thought that Ratcliffe had acquired the glass from Owston or Osulveston Priory, but it seems more likely that he employed the court glazier to complete the chapel. Ratcliffe's will lists textile furnishings for the parish church of Withcote.Christopher Woodforde, 'The Painted Glass in Withcote Church', ''Burlington Magazine for Connoisseurs'', 75:436 (July 1939), pp. 17-22. After Ratcliffe's death, in 1538 Owston Abbey was granted to John Harington, esquire of the king's body.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ratcliffe, Roger 1537 deaths Court of Henry VIII Ambassadors of England to Scotland 16th-century English diplomats Household of Catherine of Aragon Year of birth unknown