![Coat of arms of Sir William Blount, 4th Baron Mountjoy, KG](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/25/Coat_of_arms_of_Sir_William_Blount%2C_4th_Baron_Mountjoy%2C_KG.png)
William Blount, 4th Baron Mountjoy (8 November 1534),
KG, of
Barton Blount
Barton Blount is a village and civil parish in the South Derbyshire district of Derbyshire, England, between Derby and Uttoxeter. According to the 2001 census it had a population of 74. The population remained at fewer than 100 for the 2011 Cen ...
,
Derbyshire
Derbyshire ( ) is a ceremonial county in the East Midlands, England. It includes much of the Peak District National Park, the southern end of the Pennine range of hills and part of the National Forest. It borders Greater Manchester to the nor ...
, was an extremely influential English courtier, a respected humanistic scholar and patron of learning. He was one of the most influential and perhaps the wealthiest English noble courtier of his time. Mountjoy was known internationally as a humanist writer and scholar and patron of the arts.
Origins
William Blount was born circa 1478 in Barton Blount, Derbyshire, the eldest son of
John Blount, 3rd Baron Mountjoy
John Blount, 3rd Baron Mountjoy (c. 1450 – 12 October 1485) was an English peer and soldier.
Life
John Blount was born circa 1450 in Rock, Worcestershire, the second son of Walter Blount, 1st Baron Mountjoy, by his first wife, Helena Byron, th ...
(c. 14501485) by his wife Lora Berkeley (died 1501), daughter of Edward Berkeley (died 1506) of
Beverston Castle
Beverston Castle, also known as Beverstone Castle or Tetbury Castle, was constructed as a medieval stone fortress in the village of Beverston, Gloucestershire, England. The property is a mix of manor house, various small buildings, extensive ...
,
Gloucestershire
Gloucestershire ( abbreviated Glos) is a county in South West England. The county comprises part of the Cotswold Hills, part of the flat fertile valley of the River Severn and the entire Forest of Dean.
The county town is the city of Gl ...
. After her husband's death in 1485, Lora Berkeley remarried first
Sir Thomas Montgomery
''Sir'' is a formal honorific address in English for men, derived from Sire in the High Middle Ages. Both are derived from the old French "Sieur" (Lord), brought to England by the French-speaking Normans, and which now exist in French only as ...
(died 1495), and secondly
Thomas Butler, 7th Earl of Ormond
Thomas Butler, 7th Earl of Ormond PC (1426 – 3 August 1515) was the youngest son of James Butler, 4th Earl of Ormond. He was attainted, but restored by Henry VII's first Parliament in November 1485, and the statutes made at Westminster, by ...
(died 1515), grandfather of
Thomas Boleyn, 1st Earl of Wiltshire
Thomas Bolina, Earl of Wiltshire, 1st Earl of Ormond, 1st Viscount Rochford KG KB (c. 1477 – 12 March 1539), of Hever Castle in Kent, was an English diplomat and politician who was the father of Anne Boleyn, the second wife of King Henry ...
, father 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 ...
, second wife of King Henry VIII.
Biography
Blount was a pupil of
Erasmus
Desiderius Erasmus Roterodamus (; ; English: Erasmus of Rotterdam or Erasmus;''Erasmus'' was his baptismal name, given after St. Erasmus of Formiae. ''Desiderius'' was an adopted additional name, which he used from 1496. The ''Roterodamus'' wa ...
, who called him ''inter nobiles doctissimus'' ("The most learned amongst the nobles"). His friends included
John Colet
John Colet (January 1467 – 16 September 1519) was an English Catholic priest and educational pioneer.
John Colet was an English scholar, Renaissance humanist, theologian, member of the Worshipful Company of Mercers, and Dean of St Paul's Cat ...
,
Thomas More
Sir Thomas More (7 February 1478 – 6 July 1535), venerated in the Catholic Church as Saint Thomas More, was an English lawyer, judge, social philosopher, author, statesman, and noted Renaissance humanist. He also served Henry VIII as Lord ...
and
William Grocyn
William Grocyn ( 14461519) was an English scholar, a friend of Erasmus.
Life
Grocyn was born at Colerne, Wiltshire. Intended by his parents for the church, he was sent to Winchester College, and in 1465 was elected to a scholarship at New Colleg ...
.
In 1497 he commanded part of a force sent to fight and suppress the rebellion of
Perkin Warbeck
Perkin Warbeck ( 1474 – 23 November 1499) was a pretender to the English throne claiming to be Richard of Shrewsbury, Duke of York, who was the second son of Edward IV and one of the so-called "Princes in the Tower". Richard, were he alive, ...
. Mountjoy was appointed and served as
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 disag ...
's boyhood tutor. In 1509 he was appointed
Master of the Mint
Master of the Mint is a title within the Royal Mint given to the most senior person responsible for its operation. It was an important office in the governments of Scotland and England, and later Great Britain and then the United Kingdom, between ...
. In 1513 he was appointed Governor of
Tournai
Tournai or Tournay ( ; ; nl, Doornik ; pcd, Tornai; wa, Tornè ; la, Tornacum) is a city and municipality of Wallonia located in the province of Hainaut, Belgium. It lies southwest of Brussels on the river Scheldt. Tournai is part of Euromet ...
(1513–1519), and his letters to
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 figur ...
and 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 ...
describing his vigorous government of the town are preserved in the
British Library
The British Library is the national library of the United Kingdom and is one of the largest libraries in the world. It is estimated to contain between 170 and 200 million items from many countries. As a legal deposit library, the British ...
.
In 1520 he was present with Henry VIII at 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 ...
, and in 1522 at the king's meeting with
Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor
Charles V, french: Charles Quint, it, Carlo V, nl, Karel V, ca, Carles V, la, Carolus V (24 February 1500 – 21 September 1558) was Holy Roman Emperor and Archduke of Austria from 1519 to 1556, King of Spain (Crown of Castile, Castil ...
. Having served since 1512 as Chamberlain to Queen
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 ...
, it fell to him in that office to announce to her the intention of Henry VIII to
divorce
Divorce (also known as dissolution of marriage) is the process of terminating a marriage or marital union. Divorce usually entails the canceling or reorganizing of the legal duties and responsibilities of marriage, thus dissolving the ...
her. He also signed the letter to the Pope conveying the king's threat to repudiate papal supremacy unless the divorce was granted. Mountjoy was one of the most influential and perhaps the wealthiest English noble courtier of his time.
Sir William Blount, 4th Lord Mountjoy died on 8 November 1534 at Sutton-on-the-Hill, Derbyshire, England. Mountjoy was never disgraced, nor out of royal favour. His son
Charles Blount, 5th Baron Mountjoy
Charles Blount, 5th Baron Mountjoy (28 June 151610 October 1544) was an English courtier and patron of learning.
Life
Charles Blount was born on 28 June 1516 in Tournai, where his father, William Blount, 4th Baron Mountjoy, was governor. Charles ...
(1516–1544), was also a patron of learning.
Family
Mountjoy married four times:
*Firstly, in about Easter 1497, Elizabeth Saye (died before 1506), daughter and co-heiress of Sir William Saye of
Essenden
Ten Entertainment Group, formerly Essenden, is a British public company that operates ten-pin bowling centres under the Tenpin brand. It is one of the largest bowling companies in the UK, with around 17% of the market. The head office is at Aragon ...
,
Hertfordshire
Hertfordshire ( or ; often abbreviated Herts) is one of the home counties in southern England. It borders Bedfordshire and Cambridgeshire to the north, Essex to the east, Greater London to the south, and Buckinghamshire to the west. For govern ...
, by whom he had a daughter:
**
Gertrude Blount
Gertrude Courtenay, Marchioness of Exeter, (''née'' Blount ; c.1499/1502 – 25 September 1558) was an English Marchioness, married to Henry Courtenay, 1st Marquess of Exeter and a member of the court of Henry VIII of England. She was a godparent, ...
, later a
lady in waiting
A lady-in-waiting or court lady is a female personal assistant at a court, attending on a royal woman or a high-ranking noblewoman. Historically, in Europe, a lady-in-waiting was often a noblewoman but of lower rank than the woman to whom sh ...
to Queen
Mary I
Mary I (18 February 1516 – 17 November 1558), also known as Mary Tudor, and as "Bloody Mary" by her Protestant opponents, was Queen of England and Ireland from July 1553 and Queen of Spain from January 1556 until her death in 1558. Sh ...
(1553–1558), who on 25 October 1519 married
Henry Courtenay, 1st Marquess of Exeter
Henry Courtenay, 1st Marquess of Exeter, 2nd Earl of Devon (c. 1498 – 9 December 1538), KG, PC, feudal baron of Okehampton, feudal baron of Plympton, of Tiverton Castle, Okehampton Castle and Colcombe Castle all in Devon, was a grandso ...
(1538),
KG,
PC, the eldest son of
William Courtenay, 1st Earl of Devon
William Courtenay, 1st Earl of Devon (1475 – 9 June 1511), feudal baron of Okehampton and feudal baron of Plympton, was a member of the leading noble family of Devon. His principal seat was Tiverton Castle, Devon with further residences at ...
by his wife
Catherine of York
Catherine of York (14 August 1479 – 15 November 1527), was the sixth daughter of King Edward IV of England and his queen consort Elizabeth Woodville.
Soon after the death of her father and the usurpation of the throne by Richard III, Cather ...
, daughter of King
Edward IV
Edward IV (28 April 1442 – 9 April 1483) was King of England from 4 March 1461 to 3 October 1470, then again from 11 April 1471 until his death in 1483. He was a central figure in the Wars of the Roses, a series of civil wars in England ...
.
*Secondly, before the end of July 1509, Mountjoy married Inés de Venegas, one of the Spanish attendants of Catherine of Aragon while she was Princess of Wales.
*Thirdly, before February 1515, Mountjoy married Alice Keble (died 8 June 1521), daughter of
Henry Keble
Sir Henry Keble (died April 1517) was a grocer and Lord Mayor of London in 1510, in the second year of King Henry VIII's reign.
Sir Henry was a leading grocer in London. He was a Merchant of the Staple in Calais. He was originally from Coventry ...
, Lord Mayor of London in 1510 and widow of Sir William Browne (died 1514),
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 powe ...
in 1513. She died in 1521 and was buried at the
Greyfriars, London
In London, the Greyfriars was a Conventual Franciscan friary that existed from 1225 to 1538 on a site at the North-West of the City of London by Newgate in the parish of St Nicholas in the Shambles. It was the second Franciscan religious ho ...
.
By Alice, he had children as follows:
**Charles Blount, 5th Baron Mountjoy (28 June 151610 October 1544), eldest son and heir, like his father also a successful
English
English usually refers to:
* English language
* English people
English may also refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England
** English national ide ...
courtier and patron of learning.
**Catherine Blount (c. 1518 25 February 1559), who married firstly Sir John Champernowne of
Modbury
Modbury is a large village, ecclesiastical parish, civil parish and former manor situated in the South Hams district of the county of Devon in England. Today due to its large size it is generally referred to as a "town" although the parish co ...
,
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 ...
, and secondly
Sir Maurice Berkeley (died 1581) of
Bruton
Bruton ( ) is a market town, electoral ward, and civil parish in Somerset, England, on the River Brue and the A359 between Frome and Yeovil. It is 7 miles (11 km) south-east of Shepton Mallet, just south of Snakelake Hill and Coombe Hill, 10 ...
,
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_ ...
.
*Fourthly, before 29 July 1523, Mountjoy married Dorothy Grey (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 ...
by his wife,
Cecily Bonville) and widow of
Robert Willoughby, 2nd Baron Willoughby de Broke
Robert Willoughby, 2nd Baron Willoughby de Broke and ''de jure'' 10th Baron Latimer, (1472 – 10 November 1521) was an English nobleman and soldier.
Robert Willoughby was born about 1470–1472 (aged 30 in 1502, 36 in 1506), the son of Sir ...
. Dorothy Grey was the sister 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), ...
(1477–1530), grandfather of
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 ...
(1536/1537–1554). Dorothy, Lady Mountjoy, left a will proved 17 November 1553 (P.C.C. 20 Tasche). By Dorothy, Blount had the following children, all first-cousins-once-removed
[They are cousins to her father, so are one generation removed from Jane Grey.] to Lady Jane Grey:
**John Blount
**Mary Blount, who married (as his first wife)
Sir Robert Dennis, Knt. (died 1592) of
Holcombe Burnell
Holcombe Burnell is a civil parish in Devon, England, the church of which is about 4 miles west of Exeter City centre. There is no village clustered around the church, rather the nearest village within the parish is Longdown. Only the manor hou ...
in Devon.
**Dorothy Blount, who married John Blewett, Esq. (died 1585) of
Holcombe Rogus
Holcombe Rogus is a village and civil parish in the English county of Devon. In 2001 the population of the parish was 503. The northern boundary of the parish forms part of the county boundary with Somerset and clockwise from the east it is bord ...
in Devon.
Notes
References
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External links
Berkeley family tree
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mountjoy, William Blount, 4th Baron
1470s births
1534 deaths
15th-century English people
16th-century English nobility
William
William is a male given name of Germanic origin.Hanks, Hardcastle and Hodges, ''Oxford Dictionary of First Names'', Oxford University Press, 2nd edition, , p. 276. It became very popular in the English language after the Norman conquest of Engl ...
Knights of the Garter
Masters of the Mint
Barons Mountjoy (1465)