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Sir Thomas Lovell, KG (died 1524) was an English soldier and administrator,
Speaker of the House of Commons Speaker of the House of Commons is a political leadership position found in countries that have a House of Commons, where the membership of the body elects a speaker to lead its proceedings. Systems that have such a position include: * Speaker of ...
,
Secretary to the Treasury In the United Kingdom, there are several Secretaries to the Treasury, who are Treasury ministers nominally acting as secretaries to HM Treasury. The origins of the office are unclear, although it probably originated during Lord Burghley's tenure ...
and
Chancellor of the Exchequer The chancellor of the Exchequer, often abbreviated to chancellor, is a senior minister of the Crown within the Government of the United Kingdom, and head of His Majesty's Treasury. As one of the four Great Offices of State, the Chancellor is ...
.


Early life

He was fifth son of Sir Thomas Lovell of Barton Bendish in
Norfolk Norfolk () is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in East Anglia in England. It borders Lincolnshire to the north-west, Cambridgeshire to the west and south-west, and Suffolk to the south. Its northern and eastern boundaries are the No ...
, by Anne, daughter of Robert Toppe,
alderman An alderman is a member of a Municipal government, municipal assembly or council in many Jurisdiction, jurisdictions founded upon English law. The term may be titular, denoting a high-ranking member of a borough or county council, a council membe ...
of
Norwich Norwich () is a cathedral city and district of Norfolk, England, of which it is the county town. Norwich is by the River Wensum, about north-east of London, north of Ipswich and east of Peterborough. As the seat of the See of Norwich, with ...
; his family was Lancastrian in politics. Thomas Lovell seems to have been entered 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 ...
. He adhered to
Henry Tudor, Earl of Richmond Henry VII (28 January 1457 – 21 April 1509) was King of England and Lord of Ireland from his seizure of the crown on 22 August 1485 until his death in 1509. He was the first monarch of the House of Tudor. Henry's mother, Margaret Beaufo ...
, and was
attainted In English criminal law, attainder or attinctura was the metaphorical "stain" or "corruption of blood" which arose from being condemned for a serious capital crime (felony or treason). It entailed losing not only one's life, property and hereditary ...
in the first parliament of
Richard III Richard III (2 October 145222 August 1485) was King of England and Lord of Ireland from 26 June 1483 until his death in 1485. He was the last king of the House of York and the last of the Plantagenet dynasty. His defeat and death at the Battl ...
. He returned with Henry and fought at the
battle of Bosworth The Battle of Bosworth or Bosworth Field was the last significant battle of the Wars of the Roses, the civil war between the houses of Lancaster and York that extended across England in the latter half of the 15th century. Fought on 22 Augu ...
. His attainder was reversed in Henry VII's first parliament.


Under Henry VII

On 12 October 1485 he was created
Chancellor of the Exchequer The chancellor of the Exchequer, often abbreviated to chancellor, is a senior minister of the Crown within the Government of the United Kingdom, and head of His Majesty's Treasury. As one of the four Great Offices of State, the Chancellor is ...
for life; on 27 October he became esquire of the body to Henry VII, with a pension, and he was advanced to be knight the body to the King before August 1487. He was also treasurer of the King's and Queen's chambers. In the parliament summoned for 7 November 1485 Lovell was chosen for
Northamptonshire Northamptonshire (; abbreviated Northants.) is a county in the East Midlands of England. In 2015, it had a population of 723,000. The county is administered by two unitary authorities: North Northamptonshire and West Northamptonshire. It is ...
, and on 8 November 1485 he was elected speaker. He headed the commons on 10 December 1485, when they requested the king to marry
Elizabeth of York Elizabeth of York (11 February 1466 – 11 February 1503) was Queen of England from her marriage to King Henry VII on 18 January 1486 until her death in 1503. Elizabeth married Henry after his victory at the Battle of Bosworth Field, which ma ...
, to whom he subsequently lent £500 on the security of her plate. On 3 July 1486 he was one of the commission to treat with the Scots. He probably continued to sit in parliament (such as for
Middlesex Middlesex (; abbreviation: Middx) is a Historic counties of England, historic county in South East England, southeast England. Its area is almost entirely within the wider urbanised area of London and mostly within the Ceremonial counties of ...
in 1491–92 and for
Norfolk Norfolk () is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in East Anglia in England. It borders Lincolnshire to the north-west, Cambridgeshire to the west and south-west, and Suffolk to the south. Its northern and eastern boundaries are the No ...
in 1495), though it is only certain that he was elected to that summoned for 16 January 1497. Sir John Mordaunt was chosen speaker in 1488. In 1487 Lovell sided with King Henry against
Lambert Simnel Lambert Simnel (c. 1477 – after 1534) was a pretender to the throne of England. In 1487, his claim to be Edward Plantagenet, 17th Earl of Warwick, threatened the newly established reign of Henry VII (1485–1509). Simnel became the f ...
, and he and his brothers fought at the
battle of Stoke The Battle of Stoke Field on 16 June 1487 may be considered the last battle of the Wars of the Roses, since it was the last major engagement between contenders for the throne whose claims derived from descent from the houses of Lancaster and Yo ...
, where he was
knighted 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 Christian denomination, church or the country, especially in a military capacity. Knighthood ...
(9 June). On 11 March 1489 he became constable of
Nottingham Castle Nottingham Castle is a Stuart Restoration-era ducal mansion in Nottingham, England, built on the site of a Norman castle built starting in 1068, and added to extensively through the medieval period, when it was an important royal fortress and o ...
. The services rendered by Lovell to Henry VII included an active participation in the king's policy of
extortion Extortion is the practice of obtaining benefit through coercion. In most jurisdictions it is likely to constitute a criminal offence; the bulk of this article deals with such cases. Robbery is the simplest and most common form of extortion, ...
s: numerous bonds which were made to Lovell, as well as to
Richard Empson Sir Richard Empson (c. 1450 – 17 August 1510), minister of Henry VII, was a son of Peter Empson. Educated as a lawyer, he soon attained considerable success in his profession, and in 1491 was a Knight of the shire for Northamptonshire in Par ...
and
Edmund Dudley Edmund Dudley (c. 1462Gunn 2010 or 1471/147217 August 1510) was an English administrator and a financial agent of King Henry VII. He served as a leading member of the Council Learned in the Law, Speaker of the House of Commons and Presi ...
, were cancelled early in the reign of Henry VIII. In November 1494 he was present at the tournaments celebrating the creation of
Prince Henry Prince Henry (or Prince Harry) may refer to: People *Henry the Young King (1155–1183), son of Henry II of England, who was crowned king but predeceased his father *Prince Henry the Navigator of Portugal (1394–1460) *Henry, Duke of Cornwall (Ja ...
as Duke of York, and in 1500 he accompanied the king at his meeting with the
Archduke Philip Philip the Handsome, es, Felipe, french: Philippe, nl, Filips (22 July 1478 – 25 September 1506), also called the Fair, was ruler of the Burgundian Netherlands and titular Duke of Burgundy from 1482 to 1506, as well as the first Habsburg Ki ...
near
Calais Calais ( , , traditionally , ) is a port city in the Pas-de-Calais department, of which it is a subprefecture. Although Calais is by far the largest city in Pas-de-Calais, the department's prefecture is its third-largest city of Arras. Th ...
. In 1502 he became treasurer of the household and president of the council. In 1503 he was made
Knight of the Garter The Most Noble Order of the Garter is an order of chivalry founded by Edward III of England in 1348. It is the most senior order of knighthood in the British honours system, outranked in precedence only by the Victoria Cross and the George ...
. About 1504 he appears to have been high steward of the universities of Oxford and Cambridge. He acted as an executor for Cecily, Duchess of York (died 1494), Lady Margaret, Countess of Richmond, Henry VII,
Sir Thomas Brandon Sir Thomas Brandon, of Southwark, Surrey, and of Duddington, Northamptonshire, KG (died 27 January 1510) was an English soldier, courtier and diplomat. Life He was from a Lancastrian family, the son of William Brandon (died 1491) of Sout ...
,
John de Vere, 13th Earl of Oxford John de Vere, 13th Earl of Oxford (8 September 1442 – 10 March 1513), the second son of John de Vere, 12th Earl of Oxford, and Elizabeth Howard, a first cousin of John Howard, 1st Duke of Norfolk (2nd creation), was one of the principal ...
, and Sir
Robert Sheffield Sir Robert Sheffield (before 1462 – 10 August 1518) was an English lawyer and Member of Parliament. He was Speaker of the House of Commons between 1512–1513. Family Robert Sheffield was the son of Sir Robert Sheffield of South Cave, Yorksh ...
.


Under Henry VIII

Henry VIII continued to employ Lovell. He was reappointed chancellor of the exchequer, and at Michaelmas 1512 was appointed
Constable of the Tower The Constable of the Tower is the most senior appointment at the Tower of London. In the Middle Ages a constable was the person in charge of a castle when the owner—the king or a nobleman—was not in residence. The Constable of the Tower had a ...
of London. From 14 June 1513 he served as Master of the Wards. He was steward and marshal of the household. On 3 September 1513 he was commissioned by
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 ...
to levy men in the Midlands for service against the Scots, and on 12 May 1514 either he or his nephew Thomas, who had been knighted at Tournai in 1513, landed at Calais with a hundred men, and was shortly afterwards joined by three hundred more. The rise of
Thomas 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 ...
's power seems to have affected his position. Ambassador Sebastiano Giustiniani wrote on 17 July 1516 that Lovell had withdrawn himself from public affairs. On Ascension day 1516 Margaret, queen-dowager of Scotland visited him at
Elsyng Palace Elsyng Palace (variously also Elsynge, Elsing, Elsings) was a Tudor palace on the site of what are now the grounds of Forty Hall in Enfield, north London. Its exact location was lost for many years until excavations were carried out in the 1960s. ...
, near
Enfield Enfield may refer to: Places Australia * Enfield, New South Wales * Enfield, South Australia ** Electoral district of Enfield, a state electoral district in South Australia, corresponding to the suburb ** Enfield High School (South Australia) ...
, in
Middlesex Middlesex (; abbreviation: Middx) is a Historic counties of England, historic county in South East England, southeast England. Its area is almost entirely within the wider urbanised area of London and mostly within the Ceremonial counties of ...
, a house he had inherited from his brother-in-law,
Edmund de Ros, 10th Baron de Ros Edmund Ros or Roos, 10th Baron Ros of Helmsley (c. 1455 – 23 October 1508) was a follower of the House of Lancaster during the Wars of the Roses. He regained his family title after the accession of King Henry VII of England. Family Edmund de R ...
, in 1508. In 1520 he travelled to France with the other Garter Knights to take part in the meeting between Henry VIII and
Francis I of France Francis I (french: François Ier; frm, Francoys; 12 September 1494 – 31 March 1547) was King of France from 1515 until his death in 1547. He was the son of Charles, Count of Angoulême, and Louise of Savoy. He succeeded his first cousin once ...
now known as 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 ...
. On 14 May 1523 he was reported to be very ill, and he died at Elsing on 25 May 1524. He was buried in a
chantry chapel A chantry is an ecclesiastical term that may have either of two related meanings: # a chantry service, a Christian liturgy of prayers for the dead, which historically was an obiit, or # a chantry chapel, a building on private land, or an area in ...
he had built at
Holywell Priory Holywell Priory or Haliwell, Halliwell, or Halywell (various spellings), was a religious house in Shoreditch, formerly in the historical county of Middlesex and now in the London Borough of Hackney. Its formal name was the Priory of St John the B ...
,
Shoreditch Shoreditch is a district in the East End of London in England, and forms the southern part of the London Borough of Hackney. Neighbouring parts of Tower Hamlets are also perceived as part of the area. In the 16th century, Shoreditch was an impor ...
, a religious house of which he was regarded as a second founder. His funeral was very magnificent. His portrait was formerly in a stained-glass window in
Malvern Priory Great Malvern Priory in Malvern, Worcestershire, England, was a Benedictine monastery (c. 1075 – 1540) and is now an Anglican parish church. In 1949 it was designated a Grade I listed building. It is a dominant building in the Great Malver ...
.


Family

His eldest brother, Gregory, inherited Barton Bendish, was knighted at the
battle of Stoke The Battle of Stoke Field on 16 June 1487 may be considered the last battle of the Wars of the Roses, since it was the last major engagement between contenders for the throne whose claims derived from descent from the houses of Lancaster and Yo ...
in 1487, and was, by Margaret, sister of Sir William Brandon, standard-bearer to Henry at Bosworth Field, father of Sir Thomas Lovell of Barton Bendish and of Sir Francis Lovell (died 20 Jan 1552), who became adopted son and heir to his uncle. Another brother, Sir Robert Lovell (died 1520?), was made a
knight-banneret A knight banneret, sometimes known simply as banneret, was a medieval knight ("a commoner of rank") who led a company of troops during time of war under his own banner (which was square-shaped, in contrast to the tapering standard or the penn ...
at
Blackheath Blackheath may refer to: Places England *Blackheath, London, England ** Blackheath railway station **Hundred of Blackheath, Kent, an ancient hundred in the north west of the county of Kent, England *Blackheath, Surrey, England ** Hundred of Blackh ...
in 1497. Margaret Brandon Lovell later married Hugh Manning. Thomas Lovell married, first, Eleanor, daughter of Jeffrey Ratcliffe; and, secondly, Isabel, sister of
Edmund de Ros, 10th Baron de Ros Edmund Ros or Roos, 10th Baron Ros of Helmsley (c. 1455 – 23 October 1508) was a follower of the House of Lancaster during the Wars of the Roses. He regained his family title after the accession of King Henry VII of England. Family Edmund de R ...
, of Hamlake, a widow, but left no issue.


Legacy

By the numerous grants which he had from Henry VIII he died very rich. Lovell contributed towards the building of
Caius College, Cambridge Gonville and Caius College, often referred to simply as Caius ( ), is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1348, it is the fourth-oldest of the University of Cambridge's 31 colleges and one of th ...
, and built a gateway for Lincoln's Inn. He also built a manor-house at Harling in Norfolk. The greater part of his estates passed to his nephew Francis, whom he calls in his will his cousin. Francis was succeeded by his son, Sir Thomas Lovell (died 1567), and had another son, Gregory Lovell (1522–1597), who was cofferer to the household, and received a lease of Merton Abbey, Surrey, from Elizabeth I in 1587. Lovell had also worked with Lady
Agnes Mellers Agnes Mellers ( – 1513/4) was a benefactor and the co-founder of Nottingham High School. Life Mellers' date of birth is unknown. In the 1480s she is mentioned as married. She came to notice when her husband Richard Mellers died in 1507. He left ...
who had become a rich widow in 1507 and he assisted in her wish to found what would become
Nottingham High School , motto_translation = Praise to the end , address = Waverley Mount , city = Nottingham , county = Nottinghamshire , postcode = NG7 4ED , country = England , coordinates = , type = Independent day school , established = , closed = , religious ...
.Adrian Henstock, 'Mellers, Agnes (d. 1513/14)’, Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press, Oct 2006; online edn, May 201
Retrieved 24 May 2017
/ref>


Notes


References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Lovell, Thomas Year of birth missing 1524 deaths People from King's Lynn and West Norfolk (district) Speakers of the House of Commons of England Knights of the Garter Members of Parliament for Norfolk 16th-century English soldiers English knights Chancellors of the Exchequer of England Lieutenants of the Tower of London English MPs 1495 Knights banneret of England People from Harling, Norfolk English MPs 1485 English MPs 1497