Sir William Harris (21 September 1556 – 14 November 1616) was an English knight, land owner, and a notable incorporator in the third

Virginia Company The Virginia Company was an English trading company chartered by King James I on 10 April 1606 with the object of colonizing the eastern coast of America. The coast was named Virginia, after Elizabeth I, and it stretched from present-day Main ...

of London. This Harris family appears to have originated some east-north-east of London and on the north bank of the

River Crouch The River Crouch is a small river that flows entirely through the English county of Essex. The distance of the Navigation between Holliwell Point which is north of Foulness Island and Battlesbridge is 17.5 Miles, i.e. 15.21 Nautical Miles. Ro ...

. The village of Cricksea (or

Creeksea Creeksea is a village and former civil parish, now in the parish of Burnham-on-Crouch, in the Maldon district, in the county of Essex, England. It is on the Dengie peninsula on the north side of the River Crouch, one mile west of Burnham-on-Crou ...

) exists today on this peninsula in Essex County. Creeksea is located about west of Burnham-on-the-Crouch and about inland from the North Sea. Anciently called "Danes Island", this area was inhabited largely by Norman families after the conquest in 1066. Sir William Harris was knighted on 23 July 1603 at

Whitehall Whitehall is a road and area in the City of Westminster, Central London. The road forms the first part of the A roads in Zone 3 of the Great Britain numbering scheme, A3212 road from Trafalgar Square to Chelsea, London, Chelsea. It is the main ...

on the eve of the coronation of James I. His elevation to the knighthood was the result of military service in Ireland during the

Nine Years' War The Nine Years' War (1688–1697), often called the War of the Grand Alliance or the War of the League of Augsburg, was a conflict between France and a European coalition which mainly included the Holy Roman Empire (led by the Habsburg monarch ...

along with his cousin Sir William Harris of Shenfield, Essex.

Family life

William Harris was born on 21 September 1556 in Essex. His parents were Sir Arthur Harris and Dorothy Waldegrave. He made his home at Creeksea Place Manor William married Alice Smythe on 6 May 1583 in St Gabriel Fenchurch, London, England. Alice was the daughter of

Thomas Smythe Sir Thomas Smythe (or Smith, c. 1558 – 4 September 1625) was an English merchant, politician and colonial administrator. He was the first governor of the East India Company and treasurer of the Virginia Company from 1609 to 1620 until envel ...

of Westenhanger, Kent. The children of Sir William Harris and Lady Alice Harris were: Sir Arthur Harris b 1584....d 9 Jan 1632
William Harris b 1585....d 1622 in Lincolns Inn, Middlesex.
Thomas Harris b 1586....d 1617 in England, unmarried and without issue
John Harris b 1588....d by 14 Oct 1638 in Charles City Co., Va.
Alice Harris married Sir

Henry Mildmay Sir Henry Mildmay (ca. 1593–1668) was an English politician who sat in the House of Commons at various times between 1621 and 1659. He supported the Parliamentarian cause in the English Civil War and was one of the Regicides of Charles I of ...

Frances Harris married Mr. Roope
Elizabeth Harris
Mary Harris married Gyles Browne

Virginia Company

Sir William Harris, his brother in law, Sir Thomas Smythe and his son, Sir Arthur Harris, each, were Incorporators and Subscribers to the third charter of the

of London, and each paid £75 as their subscription. Both Harris and Smythe were very interested in the development of Virginia. They exerted their influence to secure money, men, equipment, supplies, and ships for the colonization efforts.Harris, Francis Gray (2006), Harris: From Essex, England and Allied Families, II, Ashland, OH: Atlas Books, Lady Alice died 10 November 1615 and Sir William on 14 November 1616. Both are buried at

All Saints' Church All Saints Church, or All Saints' Church or variations on the name may refer to: Albania *All Saints' Church, Himarë Australia * All Saints Church, Canberra, Australian Capital Territory * All Saints Anglican Church, Henley Brook, Western Aust ...

in Creeksea. All Saints still displays a depiction of Sir William and his sword, a rapier, which was found in Creeksea Place and given to the church.

Sources

* * * * * * * * * * *''The Virginia Company of London, 1606-1624'', by Wesley Frank Craven, published by University Press of Virginia, 1957, Charlottesville, Virginia.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Harris, William 1556 births 1616 deaths 16th-century English people 17th-century English people English knights People from Maldon District