Sir Roger Cholmeley (c. 1485 – 21 June 1565) was Lord Chief Justice of the Court of King's Bench from 1552 to 1553. From 1535 to 1545 he was Recorder of London and served in the House of Commons. He is possibly best remembered for his endowment to found a free grammar school,

Highgate School Highgate School, formally Sir Roger Cholmeley's School at Highgate, is an English co-educational, fee-charging, independent day school, founded in 1565 in Highgate, London, England. It educates over 1,400 pupils in three sections – Highgate ...

, at London.

Background and early life

Cholmeley (sometimes spelled "Cholmley" or "Cholmondeley; all pronounced "ˈtʃʌmli", "CHUM-lee") was the illegitimate son of Sir Richard Cholmeley of Yorkshire (c. 1460 – 1521), who served as Lieutenant of the Tower of London from 1513 to 1520. Cholmeley's family can be traced back to the 12th-century Robert de Chelmundelegh, second son of William le Belward, who inherited parts of the Barony of Malpas (for which Malpas, Cheshire, is named), including Cholmondeley, Cheshire, previously held by Robert Fitzhugh. Over the centuries, the family name was spelt in many variants as Middle English developed away from French influences. Different branches of the family still spell the name differently, and Cholmeley's most famous cousins, of Cholmondeley, Cheshire, spell it "Cholmondeley".Genealogy of this branch of Cholmeley family
/ref> The pronunciation and spelling are neither counterintuitive nor phonetic, but as used down the ages. Roger Cholmeley was educated to the law at

Lincoln's Inn The Honourable Society of Lincoln's Inn is one of the four Inns of Court in London to which barristers of England and Wales belong and where they are called to the Bar. (The other three are Middle Temple, Inner Temple and Gray's Inn.) Lincoln ...

from 1506. Despite thrice being expelled from the Inn, he entered the legal profession.Will and probate for Sir Richard Cholmeley, National Archives Records: Consistory Court of Canterbury, Wills and Probates 1383-1558 vol. 1 & 2 (J. G. Challenor Smith) December 1521 and March 1522, available online at www.nationalarchives.gov.uk

Career

Most of Cholmeley's career as a lawyer was spent in the City of London, but he lived at Highgate in Middlesex. In 1520 he was called as a bencher of

, in 1531 became a serjeant-at-law, and in November 1534 was knighted. From 1535 to 1545 he was Recorder of London, during which time he was one of the

city A city is a human settlement of notable size.Goodall, B. (1987) ''The Penguin Dictionary of Human Geography''. London: Penguin.Kuper, A. and Kuper, J., eds (1996) ''The Social Science Encyclopedia''. 2nd edition. London: Routledge. It can be def ...

's Members of Parliament in four Parliaments. In November 1545 Cholmeley became Chief Baron of the Exchequer, and in May 1552 was appointed

Chief Justice of the King's Bench Chief may refer to: Title or rank Military and law enforcement * Chief master sergeant, the ninth, and highest, enlisted rank in the U.S. Air Force and U.S. Space Force * Chief of police, the head of a police department * Chief of the boa ...

. He was Lord Chief Justice for only a year as Queen Mary I would not reappoint him. The same year, he was imprisoned for a month and fined for signing

Lady Jane Grey Lady Jane Grey ( 1537 – 12 February 1554), later known as Lady Jane Dudley (after her marriage) and as the "Nine Days' Queen", was an English noblewoman who claimed the throne of England and Ireland from 10 July until 19 July 1553. Jane was ...

's instrument of succession as Queen. He returned to work as a

barrister A barrister is a type of lawyer in common law jurisdictions. Barristers mostly specialise in courtroom advocacy and litigation. Their tasks include taking cases in superior courts and tribunals, drafting legal pleadings, researching law and ...

and was a Member of Parliament for Middlesex from 1554 to 1559. Princess (later Queen) Elizabeth I stayed the night of 15 Feb 1555 with Cholmeleys in Highgate.

Highgate School

Cholmeley founded

, which was established by royal charter in 1565. Former pupils of the school are known as ''Old Cholmeleians'' in his memory. The school has gone on to become a leading independent school (sometimes referred to as a public school). Old Cholmeleians include John Venn, the creator of Venn diagrams, poets

Gerard Manley Hopkins Gerard Manley Hopkins (28 July 1844 – 8 June 1889) was an English poet and Jesuit priest, whose posthumous fame placed him among leading Victorian poets. His prosody – notably his concept of sprung rhythm – established him as an innovato ...

and

John Betjeman Sir John Betjeman (; 28 August 190619 May 1984) was an English poet, writer, and broadcaster. He was Poet Laureate from 1972 until his death. He was a founding member of The Victorian Society and a passionate defender of Victorian architecture, ...

, and musicians John Tavener and John Rutter.

Death

Cholmeley died in London on 21 June 1565. He was buried at St Martin, Ludgate. He willed property to nephew Jasper.

Family

He married Christine Hurst, who died in 1558. They had two daughters: *Elizabeth, married first to Sir Leonard Beckwith of Selby, Yorkshire, and secondly (1559) to Christopher Kern of Kern, Somersetshire; *Frances, the other daughter, was married to Sir Thomas Russell of Strensham, Worcestershire.

Background and early life

Career

Highgate School

Death

Family

References

Further reading