Sir Thomas Myddelton (1550 – 12 August 1631) was a Welsh merchant who was

Lord Mayor of London The Lord Mayor of London is the mayor of the City of London and the leader of the City of London Corporation. Within the City, the Lord Mayor is accorded precedence over all individuals except the sovereign and retains various traditional pow ...

before becoming a

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

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

Early life

He was the fourth son of Richard Myddelton, Governor of

Denbigh Castle Denbigh Castle and town walls (; cy, Castell Dinbych a waliau tref; ) were a set of fortifications built to control the lordship of Denbigh after the conquest of Wales by Norman King Edward I in 1282. The King granted the lands to Henry de ...

, and Jane Dryhurst. Among his siblings were William Myddelton, a poet and seaman, Sir Hugh Myddelton, 1st Baronet, a merchant and clothmaker, and Robert Myddelton, MP for Weymouth and Melcombe Regis and the

City of London The City of London is a city, ceremonial county and local government district that contains the historic centre and constitutes, alongside Canary Wharf, the primary central business district (CBD) of London. It constituted most of London f ...

Career

As a youth, he was apprenticed to a grocer in

, and made his fortune in trade. He divided his time between London and Wales, and purchased

Chirk Castle Chirk Castle ( cy, Castell y Waun) is a Grade I listed castle located in Chirk, Wrexham County Borough, Wales. History The castle was built in 1295 by Roger Mortimer de Chirk, uncle of Roger Mortimer, 1st Earl of March as part of King Ed ...

in 1595 for £5,000. He was a member of the Grocers' Company, a

for the

and a founder member of the

East India Company The East India Company (EIC) was an English, and later British, joint-stock company founded in 1600 and dissolved in 1874. It was formed to trade in the Indian Ocean region, initially with the East Indies (the Indian subcontinent and South ...

Sheriff of London Two sheriffs are elected annually for the City of London by the Liverymen of the City livery companies. Today's sheriffs have only nominal duties, but the historical officeholders had important judicial responsibilities. They have attended the ju ...

in 1604 and

in 1613. His brother, Sir

Hugh Myddleton Sir Hugh Myddelton (or Middleton), 1st Baronet (1560 – 10 December 1631) was a Welsh clothmaker, entrepreneur, mine-owner, goldsmith, banker and self-taught engineer. The spelling of his name is inconsistently reproduced, but Myddelton appea ...

, was instrumental in the creation of the New River which supplied London with fresh water from 1613. He was knighted in July 1603. Along with

Rowland Heylyn Rowland Heylyn (or Heilin or Heylin) (1562–1631) was a successful London merchant, sheriff of London in 1624–1625 and publisher of a Welsh bible in 1630. Life Heylyn was the son of David Heylyn of the historical Heylyn family of Pentreheylin ...

, Myddelton financed the publication of a

Welsh language Welsh ( or ) is a Celtic language of the Brittonic subgroup that is native to the Welsh people. Welsh is spoken natively in Wales, by some in England, and in Y Wladfa (the Welsh colony in Chubut Province, Argentina). Historically, it has ...

Bible suitable for everyday use.

Personal life

Robert Walker (1599-1658) (style of) - Sir Thomas Myddelton II (1586–1666) - 1171159 - National Trust

Myddelton was married four times. His first marriage was on 18 February 1584 to Hester Saltonstall (1555–1587), a daughter of Sir Richard Saltonstall, also a Lord Mayor of London who served as MP for London and as Sheriff of the City of London. Her sister, Eleanor Saltonstall, married Myddelton's brother

Robert The name Robert is an ancient Germanic given name, from Proto-Germanic "fame" and "bright" (''Hrōþiberhtaz''). Compare Old Dutch ''Robrecht'' and Old High German ''Hrodebert'' (a compound of '' Hruod'' ( non, Hróðr) "fame, glory, honou ...

, in 1612. Before her death in July 1587, they were the parents of two sons: * Thomas Myddelton of

(–1666), who married twice: first to Margaret Savile, daughter of George Savile of

Wakefield Wakefield is a cathedral city in West Yorkshire, England located on the River Calder. The city had a population of 99,251 in the 2011 census.https://www.nomisweb.co.uk/census/2011/ks101ew Census 2011 table KS101EW Usual resident population, ...

Yorkshire Yorkshire ( ; abbreviated Yorks), formally known as the County of York, is a historic county in northern England and by far the largest in the United Kingdom. Because of its large area in comparison with other English counties, functions have ...

, and secondly to Mary Napier, a daughter of Sir Robert Napier, 1st Baronet, of Luton Hoo,

Bedfordshire Bedfordshire (; abbreviated Beds) is a ceremonial county in the East of England. The county has been administered by three unitary authorities, Borough of Bedford, Central Bedfordshire and Borough of Luton, since Bedfordshire County Council ...

, with whom he had seven sons and six daughters. * Richard Myddelton (1586–),Matthew H.C.G., editor, ''Dictionary of National Biography'' (Oxford, U.K.:

Oxford University Press Oxford University Press (OUP) is the university press of the University of Oxford. It is the largest university press in the world, and its printing history dates back to the 1480s. Having been officially granted the legal right to print books ...

, 1995). who married Katherine Herne, widow of Henry Herne, in 1604. After her death, he married Elizabeth Olmstead, widow of John Olmstead of Ingatestone, Essex, by 25 March 1588. They were the parents of two sons and two daughters: * Henry Myddelton, who died young. *

Timothy Myddelton Timothy is a masculine name. It comes from the Greek name ( Timόtheos) meaning "honouring God", "in God's honour", or "honoured by God". Timothy (and its variations) is a common name in several countries. People Given name * Timothy (given name) ...

(–1655), who inherited his estates in Essex; he married Martha Johnson, a daughter of Robert Johnson, alderman of London. * Hester Myddelton (d. 1614), who married Sir Henry Salusbury, 1st Baronet, the grandson of Catherine of Berain and a cousin of

Elizabeth I Elizabeth I (7 September 153324 March 1603) was List of English monarchs, Queen of England and List of Irish monarchs, Ireland from 17 November 1558 until her death in 1603. Elizabeth was the last of the five House of Tudor monarchs and is ...

. * Mary Myddelton (d. ), who married Sir John Maynard, the second son of Sir

Henry Maynard Sir Henry Maynard (1547–1610) was an English politician and secretary to Lord Burghley, and became (by steady accretion) a substantial landowner. Origins Maynard was the son of John Maynard, who had been MP for St Albans in the first Parl ...

, of Estaines Parva. His third marriage was in 1604 to Elizabeth ( Brooke) Thorpe Hobart (d. 1619/20), a daughter of Richard Brooke, a goldsmith of London. She was twice a widow, having been married to Richard Thorpe (d. 1591), a vintner of London and Miles Hobart (d. 1604), a clothworker of London. By his third marriage he gained a stepson, Miles Hobart. She died in 1619. His fourth marriage was to Anna ( Vanaker) Wittewronge, a daughter of Garrard Vanaker of Antwerp, widow of Jacob Wittewronge, a brewer of London. By his fourth marriage, he gained another stepson, John Wittewrong, Myddelton died on 12 August 1631. His younger son, Timothy, inherited his estates in Essex.''Puritanism and Theatre'' by Margot Heinemann,

Cambridge University Press Cambridge University Press is the university press of the University of Cambridge. Granted letters patent by King Henry VIII in 1534, it is the oldest university press in the world. It is also the King's Printer. Cambridge University Pre ...

, 1982

Descendants

Through his eldest son Thomas, he was a grandfather of Sir Thomas Myddelton, 1st Baronet, who was created a baronet in 1660, and Ann Myddelton, wife of Edward Herbert, 3rd Baron Herbert of Chirbury. Through his daughter Hester, he was a grandfather of

Sir Thomas Salusbury, 2nd Baronet Sir Thomas Salusbury, 2nd Baronet (March 1612 – 1643) was a Welsh poet, politician and soldier, who supported King Charles I in English Civil War and was a colonel of a Royalist regiment. Life Salusbury was born in March 1612, the eldest son ...

, MP for

Denbighshire Denbighshire ( ; cy, Sir Ddinbych; ) is a county in the north-east of Wales. Its borders differ from the historic county of the same name. This part of Wales contains the country's oldest known evidence of habitation – Pontnewydd (Bontnewy ...

in the Short Parliament and served on

Charles I Charles I may refer to: Kings and emperors * Charlemagne (742–814), numbered Charles I in the lists of Holy Roman Emperors and French kings * Charles I of Anjou (1226–1285), also king of Albania, Jerusalem, Naples and Sicily * Charles I of ...

’s council of war at the

Battle of Edgehill The Battle of Edgehill (or Edge Hill) was a pitched battle of the First English Civil War. It was fought near Edge Hill and Kineton in southern Warwickshire on Sunday, 23 October 1642. All attempts at constitutional compromise between ...

References

External links

Sir Thomas I Myddelton (1550-1631) as Lord Mayor of London, 1613
at

{{DEFAULTSORT:Myddelton, Thomas 1550 births 1631 deaths Myddelton family Sheriffs of the City of London 17th-century lord mayors of London English businesspeople Members of the Parliament of England for the City of London British East India Company people English MPs 1597–1598 English MPs 1624–1625 English MPs 1625 English MPs 1626 Members of the Parliament of England (pre-1707) for constituencies in Wales