Sir Thomas Freke (27 September 1563 – 5 May 1633) was an English merchant adventurer and politician who sat in the

House of Commons The House of Commons is the name for the elected lower house of the bicameral parliaments of the United Kingdom and Canada. In both of these countries, the Commons holds much more legislative power than the nominally upper house of parliament. T ...

at various times between 1584 and 1626. Freke was the eldest son of Robert Freke of

Iwerne Courtney Iwerne Courtney (), also known as Shroton, is a village and civil parish in the English county of Dorset. It lies approximately north-west of Blandford Forum. It is sited by the small River Iwerne between Hambledon Hill to the south-west and t ...

, and his wife Alice Swayne, daughter of Robert Swayne of Blandford. His father was teller of the Exchequer and surveyor for Dorset. In 1584, Freke 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 o ...

for Dorchester. He succeeded his father in 1592 and became a J.P. for Dorset. He was

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 ...

from 1597 to 1598. History of Parliament Online - Thomas Freke
/ref> Freke was knighted in 1603. He was Deputy Lieutenant of Dorset for about 30 years, and was a respected figure in the county. He and his son were owners of the ship 'Leopold' of Weymouth, which was one of the largest Dorset privateers. In 1604 he was elected MP for

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. Covering an area of , ...

. He became a member of the King's council for Virginia in 1607. He was High Sheriff of Dorset again from 1611 to 1612. In 1612 he was on the council for the Virginia Company. He was elected MP for Dorset again in 1626. Freke married Elizabeth Taylor daughter of John Taylor of Burton Bradstock and had seven sons and five daughters. She died in 1640. His son John Freke was also an MP. His daughter Alice married Sir George Hastings.Ralph Freke, John Freke A pedigree, or genealogye, of the family of the Freke's
/ref>

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Freke, Thomas 1563 births 1633 deaths High Sheriffs of Dorset English merchants 16th-century merchants 17th-century merchants Members of the Parliament of England for Dorchester English knights English MPs 1584–1585 English MPs 1604–1611 English MPs 1626