Shield of Arms of the Lord Arundell of Wardour

Sir Thomas Arundell of

Wardour Castle Wardour Castle is a ruined 14th-century castle at Wardour, on the boundaries of the civil parishes of Tisbury and Donhead St Andrew in the English county of Wiltshire, about west of Salisbury. The castle was built in the 1390s, came into th ...

Wiltshire Wiltshire (; abbreviated Wilts) is a historic and ceremonial county in South West England with an area of . It is landlocked and borders the counties of Dorset to the southwest, Somerset to the west, Hampshire to the southeast, Gloucestershire ...

(c. 150226 February 1552) was a Cornish administrator and alleged conspirator. Arundell was connected by birth and marriage to the crown and to several of the most important families in England, and by the time of the death of King

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 ...

was one of the most experienced government officers in England. Those in power had concerns about his influence and his family's devotion to the old religion. Vague and unproven allegations of complicity in the southwestern rebellion in 1549 were made against him. In late 1551 he temporarily aligned himself with the

Protector Somerset Edward Seymour, 1st Duke of Somerset (150022 January 1552) (also 1st Earl of Hertford, 1st Viscount Beauchamp), also known as Edward Semel, was the eldest surviving brother of Queen Jane Seymour (d. 1537), the third wife of King Henry V ...

, thereby putting himself in conflict with

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 Ja ...

. He was arrested and charged with conspiring to overthrow the government and murder the Earl. He was convicted, and beheaded on

Tower Hill Tower Hill is the area surrounding the Tower of London in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. It is infamous for the public execution of high status prisoners from the late 14th to the mid 18th century. The execution site on the higher grou ...

on 26 February 1552. His property was confiscated, but in June 1552 the Crown began restoring it to his widow and, from 1553, to his son.

Biography

Thomas Arundell, born about 1502, was the younger of the two sons of Sir John Arundell (1474–1545) of Lanherne, St. Mawgan-in-Pyder,

Cornwall Cornwall (; kw, Kernow ) is a historic county and ceremonial county in South West England. It is recognised as one of the Celtic nations, and is the homeland of the Cornish people. Cornwall is bordered to the north and west by the Atlantic ...

, Receiver General of the

Duchy of Cornwall The Duchy of Cornwall ( kw, Duketh Kernow) is one of two royal duchies in England, the other being the Duchy of Lancaster. The eldest son of the reigning British monarch obtains possession of the duchy and the title of 'Duke of Cornwall' at ...

and "the most important man in the county", by his first wife, Lady

Eleanor Grey Lady Eleanor Arundell (died before December 1503), was an English noblewoman, and the first wife of Sir John Arundell of Lanherne in Cornwall, "the most important man in the county", being Receiver-General of the Duchy of Cornwall. Their monumen ...

(d. by December 1503), the daughter of

Thomas Grey, 1st Marquess of Dorset Thomas Grey, 1st Marquess of Dorset, 1st Earl of Huntingdon, 7th Baron Ferrers of Groby, (145520 September 1501) was an English nobleman, courtier and the eldest son of Elizabeth Woodville and her first husband Sir John Grey of Groby. Her secon ...

. Arundell was educated 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 ...

, and began his career in the household of 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 figure ...

, where he was a contemporary of

Thomas Cromwell Thomas Cromwell (; 1485 – 28 July 1540), briefly Earl of Essex, was an English lawyer and statesman who served as chief minister to King Henry VIII from 1534 to 1540, when he was beheaded on orders of the king, who later blamed false charge ...

. He was knighted at the coronation of

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 f ...

."Arundell, Sir Thomas (c.1502–52)", The History of Parliament
/ref> Arundell held a number of administrative positions, principally in the

West Country The West Country (occasionally Westcountry) is a loosely defined area of South West England, usually taken to include all, some, or parts of the counties of Cornwall, Devon, Dorset, Somerset, Bristol, and, less commonly, Wiltshire, Gloucesters ...

. He was the first receiver of the

Court of Augmentations Thomas Cromwell established the Court of Augmentations, also called Augmentation Court or simply The Augmentation in 1536, during the reign of King Henry VIII of England. It operated alongside three lesser courts (those of General Surveyors (1540 ...

for

Devon Devon ( , historically known as Devonshire , ) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in South West England. The most populous settlement in Devon is the city of Plymouth, followed by Devon's county town, the city of Exeter. Devon is ...

Somerset ( en, All The People of Somerset) , locator_map = , coordinates = , region = South West England , established_date = Ancient , established_by = , preceded_by = , origin = , lord_lieutenant_office =Lord Lieutenant of Somerset , lord_ ...

and

Dorset Dorset ( ; archaically: Dorsetshire , ) is a county in South West England on the English Channel coast. The ceremonial county comprises the unitary authority areas of Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole and Dorset (unitary authority), Dors ...

, and in 1533 succeeded his father as

Receiver-General A receiver general (or receiver-general) is an officer responsible for accepting payments on behalf of a government, and for making payments to a government on behalf of other parties. See also * Treasurer * Receiver General for Canada * Rec ...

of the

. He was a

Justice of the Peace A justice of the peace (JP) is a judicial officer of a lower or ''puisne'' court, elected or appointed by means of a commission ( letters patent) to keep the peace. In past centuries the term commissioner of the peace was often used with the sa ...

for Cornwall, Dorset and Somerset during the reigns of

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 ...

, and was appointed to commissions for gaol delivery,

oyer and terminer In English law, oyer and terminer (; a partial translation of the Anglo-French ''oyer et terminer'', which literally means "to hear and to determine") was one of the commissions by which a judge of assize sat. Apart from its Law French name, the ...

, and the defence of the counties of the south-west coastline. He commanded the Dorset

militia A militia () is generally an army or some other fighting organization of non-professional soldiers, citizens of a country, or subjects of a state, who may perform military service during a time of need, as opposed to a professional force of r ...

during both the

Pilgrimage of Grace The Pilgrimage of Grace was a popular revolt beginning in Yorkshire in October 1536, before spreading to other parts of Northern England including Cumberland, Northumberland, and north Lancashire, under the leadership of Robert Aske. The "most ...

in 1536–7, and King Henry VIII's expedition to France in 1544. He was twice

High Sheriff of Dorset The High Sheriff of Dorset is an ancient high sheriff title which has been in existence for over one thousand years. Until 1567 the Sheriff of Somerset was also the Sheriff of Dorset. On 1 April 1974, under the provisions of the Local Government ...

and

(1531), was keeper of the royal parks in Dorset, and in 1539 sat on the

Council of the West The Council of the West was a short-lived administrative body established by Henry VIII of England for the government of the western counties of England (Cornwall, Devonshire, Dorset, and Somerset). It was analogous in form to the Council of the No ...

with his father. He was elected

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 of ...

for

in 1545 and 1547. Both his cousin, Henry Grey, 3rd Marquess of Dorset, and

Henry Percy, 6th Earl of Northumberland Henry Percy, 6th Earl of Northumberland, KG (c. 1502 – 1537) was an English nobleman, active as a military officer in the north. He is now primarily remembered as the betrothed of Anne Boleyn, whom he was forced to give up before she became ...

, employed Arundell in the management of their estates. He also served as receiver to Queen Anne of Cleves, and Chancellor of the Household to Queen

Catherine Parr Catherine Parr (sometimes alternatively spelled Katherine, Katheryn, Kateryn, or Katharine; 1512 – 5 September 1548) was Queen of England and Ireland as the last of the six wives of King Henry VIII from their marriage on 12 July 1543 until ...

.. Arundell's role as one of the commissioners for the dissolution of the monasteries in the West Country enabled him to acquire a number of properties formerly belonging to religious houses. In 1547 he purchased

. Arundell was connected by birth and marriage to the crown and to several of the most important families in England, and by the time of the death of King Henry VIII was one of the most experienced government officers in England. However, those in power at the beginning of the reign of King Edward VI removed his name from the late King's list of proposed honours, reflecting their concern with his influence and his family's devotion to the old religion. Vague and unproven allegations of complicity in the south-western rebellion in 1549 were made against him and against his brother, Sir John Arundell (c.1550–1557), leading to their imprisonment in 1550 and again in 1551, and marking the end of Sir Thomas Arundell's career. In late 1551 he temporarily aligned himself with the

, thereby putting himself in conflict with

. He was arrested and charged with conspiring to overthrow the government and murder the Earl. Arundell consistently protested his innocence, but was convicted, beheaded on

on 26 February 1552, and buried in the

Church of St Peter ad Vincula The Chapel Royal of St Peter ad Vincula ("St Peter in chains") is the former parish church of the Tower of London. It is situated within the Tower's Inner Ward, and the current building dates from 1520, although the church was established sever ...

. His property was confiscated, although in June 1552 the Crown began restoring it to his widow and, from 1553, to his son

Matthew Arundell Sir Matthew Arundell of Wardour Castle in Wiltshire (c. 1532-34 – 24 December 1598), known between 1552 and 1554 as Matthew Howard and after his death sometimes called Matthew Arundell-Howard, was an English gentleman, landowner, and member ...

. His widow, Margaret, died on 10 October 1571, and was buried at

Tisbury, Wiltshire Tisbury is a large village and civil parish approximately west of Salisbury in the English county of Wiltshire. With a population at the 2011 census of 2,253 it is a centre for communities around the upper River Nadder and Vale of Wardour. The ...

Marriage and issue

By settlement dated 20 November 1530 Arundell married Margaret Howard (c. 1515 – 10 October 1571), the daughter of

Lord Edmund Howard Lord Edmund Howard ( – 19 March 1539) was the third son of Thomas Howard, 2nd Duke of Norfolk, and his first wife, Elizabeth Tilney. His sister, Elizabeth, was the mother of Henry VIII's second wife, Anne Boleyn, and he was the father of th ...

(third son of

Thomas Howard, 2nd Duke of Norfolk Thomas Howard, 2nd Duke of Norfolk (144321 May 1524), styled Earl of Surrey from 1483 to 1485 and again from 1489 to 1514, was an English nobleman, soldier and statesman who served four monarchs. He was the eldest son of John Howard, 1st Duk ...

, by his first wife,

Elizabeth Tilney Elizabeth Tilney, Countess of Surrey (before 1445 – 4 April 1497) was an English heiress who became the first wife of Thomas Howard, 2nd Duke of Norfolk (when still Earl of Surrey). She served successively as a lady-in-waiting to two Queen ...

), and

Joyce Culpeper Jocasta "Joyce" Culpeper, of Oxon Hoath ( – ) was the mother of Catherine Howard, the fifth wife and Queen consort of King Henry VIII. Family Joyce Culpeper, born about 1480, was the daughter of Sir Richard Culpeper (d. 4 October 1484) and h ...

. Margaret was the sister of Queen Katherine Howard, the fifth wife of King

, and a first cousin of the King's second wife, 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 ...

. By Margaret Howard, Arundell had two sons and three daughters: * Sir Matthew Arundell of

(c.1535 – 24 December 1598), who married his second cousin Margaret Willoughby, the daughter of Sir Henry Willoughby (slain 27 August 1549 during

Kett's Rebellion Kett's Rebellion was a revolt in Norfolk, England during the reign of Edward VI, largely in response to the enclosure of land. It began at Wymondham on 8 July 1549 with a group of rebels destroying fences that had been put up by wealthy landowners ...

) of

Wollaton Wollaton is a suburb and former parish in the western part of Nottingham, England. Wollaton has two Wards in the City of Nottingham (''Wollaton East and Lenton Abbey'' and ''Wollaton West'') with a total population as at the 2011 census of 24,69 ...

Nottinghamshire Nottinghamshire (; abbreviated Notts.) is a landlocked county in the East Midlands region of England, bordering South Yorkshire to the north-west, Lincolnshire to the east, Leicestershire to the south, and Derbyshire to the west. The traditi ...

, and Anne Grey (died 1548), the daughter of

Thomas Grey, 2nd Marquess of Dorset Thomas Grey, 2nd Marquess of Dorset (22 June 1477 – 10 October 1530) was an English peer, courtier, soldier and landowner of the House of Grey. Early life Grey was the third son and heir of Thomas Grey, 1st Marquess of Dorset (1455–1501), ...

, and Margaret Wotton, and by her had two sons,

Thomas Arundell, 1st Baron Arundell of Wardour Thomas Arundell, 1st Baron Arundell of Wardour (c. 15607 November 1639) was the eldest son of Matthew Arundell, Sir Matthew Arundell of Wardour Castle in Wiltshire (ca. 1532/1534 – 24 December 1598), and Margaret Willoughby, the daughter of Sir ...

(c.1560 – 7 November 1639), and William Arundell (after 1560 – 16 February 1592), esquire. *Charles Arundell (d. 9 December 1587), who died unmarried and without issue. *Margaret Arundell. *Dorothy Arundell (c. 1535 – c. 1578), who married Sir Henry Weston. *Jane Arundell (c. 1536 - 1593), who married Sir William Bevyle or Bevill (died 1600) of Killigarth.'BEVILL, Sir William (c.1548-1600), of Killygarth', ''The History of Parliament: the House of Commons 1558-1603'', ed. P.W. Hasler, 1981
/ref> The Arundells of Lanherne, Cornwall, and of

Chideock Chideock ( ) is a village and civil parish in south west Dorset, England, situated close to the English Channel between Bridport and Lyme Regis. Dorset County Council's 2013 estimate of the parish population is 550. Chideock's economy mostly c ...

, Dorset, are descended from Sir Thomas Arundell's elder brother, Sir

John Arundell (of Lanherne, died 1557) Sir John Arundell (c. 1500 – 1557), was MP for Cornwall in 1554 He was also Sheriff of Cornwall in 1541–42 and 1554. He was the eldest son of John Arundell (1474–1545), who was termed "the most important man in the county", and his fir ...

Notes

References

* * * * *

External links

Sir Matthew Arundell (1534–1598), History of Parliament
{{DEFAULTSORT:Arundell, Thomas 1500s births 1552 deaths People executed under Edward VI of England Executed English people People acquitted of treason People associated with the Dissolution of the Monasteries Thomas, 1502 English knights High Sheriffs of Somerset High Sheriffs of Dorset Year of birth uncertain People executed by Tudor England by decapitation Executions at the Tower of London Burials at the Church of St Peter ad Vincula English politicians convicted of crimes