William de Grey (21 October 1652 - 27 February 1687) of

Merton Hall, Norfolk Merton Hall is a 19th century country house in Merton, Norfolk, England. The extant north-west wing is a Grade II listed building. The 17th-century gatehouse, the 19th century stables and other associated buildings are also listed. The house sta ...

was an East Anglian landowner and

Tory A Tory () is a person who holds a political philosophy known as Toryism, based on a British version of traditionalism and conservatism, which upholds the supremacy of social order as it has evolved in the English culture throughout history. Th ...

Member of Parliament. He was the grandfather of his namesake

William de Grey, 1st Baron Walsingham William de Grey, 1st Baron Walsingham PC KC (7 July 1719 – 9 May 1781), was a British lawyer, judge and politician. He served as Lord Chief Justice of the Common Pleas between 1771 and 1780. de Grey was the third son of Thomas de Grey, MP, o ...

Life

The descendant of Suffolk landowners who had acquired a seat at

Merton, Norfolk Merton is a civil parish in the English county of Norfolk. It covers an area of and had a population of 113 in 50 households at the 2001 census, increasing to a population of 133 in 56 households at the 2011 census. For the purposes of local g ...

by marriage in the 14th century, he was the only son of James de Grey (died 1665) and Elizabeth Stutevile, daughter of Sir Martin Stutevile of

Dalham Dalham is a village and civil parish in the West Suffolk district of Suffolk, England. The name, meaning 'homestead/village in a valley' is of Old English origin and first recorded in the Domesday Book. Dalham is west of the town of Bury St ...

in Suffolk. James' father had been a Royalist in the Civil Wars, although James himself took part in the

Eastern Association The Eastern Association of counties was an administrative organisation set up by Parliament in the early years of the First English Civil War. Its main function was to finance and support an army which became a mainstay of the Parliamentarian mi ...

committee and local commissions under the

Commonwealth A commonwealth is a traditional English term for a political community founded for the common good. Historically, it has been synonymous with "republic". The noun "commonwealth", meaning "public welfare, general good or advantage", dates from the ...

and

Protectorate A protectorate, in the context of international relations, is a State (polity), state that is under protection by another state for defence against aggression and other violations of law. It is a dependent territory that enjoys autonomy over m ...

and signed the Norfolk address to

George Monck George Monck, 1st Duke of Albemarle JP KG PC (6 December 1608 – 3 January 1670) was an English soldier, who fought on both sides during the Wars of the Three Kingdoms. A prominent military figure under the Commonwealth, his support was cruc ...

for a free parliament in 1660. William was educated at

Thetford Thetford is a market town and civil parish in the Breckland District of Norfolk, England. It is on the A11 road between Norwich and London, just east of Thetford Forest. The civil parish, covering an area of , in 2015 had a population of 24,340 ...

before entering

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 ...

in 1668. He was admitted to

Middle Temple The Honourable Society of the Middle Temple, commonly known simply as Middle Temple, is one of the four Inns of Court exclusively entitled to call their members to the English Bar as barristers, the others being the Inner Temple, Gray's Inn an ...

in 1671 and four years later wrote a marriage settlement with Elizabeth Bedingfield, daughter of Thomas Bedingfield of

Darsham Darsham is a village in Suffolk, England. It is located approximately north east of Saxmundham. The village is bypassed by the A12 and is served by Darsham railway station, which is approximately one mile away from the village centre, on the ...

. The couple had seven sons and one daughter, although five of the sons died before their father. The eldest of the two surviving sons, Thomas de Grey also became an MP. William initially became commissioner for assessment for Norfolk in 1673 and for Suffolk in 1679, holding both offices until 1680. In 1676 he also became deputy lieutenant for Norfolk and a year later a major in the foot militia, holding both offices until his death. In 1681 he was made a

freeman Freeman, free men, or variant, may refer to: * a member of the Third Estate in medieval society (commoners), see estates of the realm * Freeman, an apprentice who has been granted freedom of the company, was a rank within Livery companies * Free ...

of Thetford and in 1683 of

Dunwich Dunwich is a village and civil parish in Suffolk, England. It is in the Suffolk Coast and Heaths AONB around north-east of London, south of Southwold and north of Leiston, on the North Sea coast. In the Anglo-Saxon period, Dunwich was t ...

. He followed up these offices with a political career, successfully contesting

in 1685 and proving quite active during

James II James II may refer to: * James II of Avesnes (died c. 1205), knight of the Fourth Crusade * James II of Majorca (died 1311), Lord of Montpellier * James II of Aragon (1267–1327), King of Sicily * James II, Count of La Marche (1370–1438), King C ...

's parliament. He took part in committees considering bills on repairing

Great Yarmouth Great Yarmouth (), often called Yarmouth, is a seaside town and unparished area in, and the main administrative centre of, the Borough of Great Yarmouth in Norfolk, England; it straddles the River Yare and is located east of Norwich. A pop ...

pier, relieving imprisoned debtors, improving

tillage Tillage is the agricultural preparation of soil by mechanical agitation of various types, such as digging, stirring, and overturning. Examples of human-powered tilling methods using hand tools include shoveling, picking, mattock work, hoein ...

and increasing the then-low prices on corn and wool, which were major local issue in East Anglia. He attended the Parliament's second session, although it is not known whether or not he favoured James II's policy of religious toleration. He died in 1687 and was buried at Merton.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:De Grey, William 1652 births 1687 deaths English MPs 1685–1687 Alumni of Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge