William Parr, 1st Baron Parr of Horton (c. 1483 – 10 September 1547
[Douglas Richardson. ''Plantagenet Ancestry: A Study In Colonial And Medieval Families,'' 2nd Edition, 2011. pg 663.]) was the son of
Sir William Parr and his second wife, the Hon.
Elizabeth Fitzhugh
Elizabeth FitzHugh (1455/65 – before 10 July 1507) was an English noblewoman. She is best known for being the grandmother of Katherine Parr, sixth queen consort to Henry VIII, and her siblings Anne Herbert, Countess of Pembroke, and William Par ...
, later Lady Vaux of
Harrowden.
Life
William Parr was a military man who fought in France, where he was knighted by 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 ...
at Tournai Cathedral, and Scotland. Parr seemed to be uncomfortable in court circles and insecure in securing relationships. Nonetheless, he accompanied the King 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 ...
' in France. Like his brother,
Sir Thomas Parr
Sir Thomas Parr (c. 1483 – 11 November 1517) of Kendal in Westmorland (now Cumbria), England, was a courtier and is best known as the father of Queen Catherine Parr, the Wives of Henry VIII, sixth and final wife of King Henry VIII of England, ...
, William flourished under Sir Nicholas Vaux.
[Porter, Linda. ''Katherine the Queen: The Remarkable Life of Katherine Parr, the Last Wife of Henry VIII''. Macmillan, 2010.]
William was also a family man. After the death of his brother, Sir Thomas, William's sister-in-law
Maud, widowed at age 25, called upon him to help in financial matters and to manage her estates in North England while she was busy in the south securing a future for her three children. William had been named one of the executors of his brother's will. Along with
Cuthbert Tunstall
Cuthbert Tunstall (otherwise spelt Tunstal or Tonstall; 1474 – 18 November 1559) was an English Scholastic, church leader, diplomat, administrator and royal adviser. He served as Prince-Bishop of Durham during the reigns of Henry VIII, Edwa ...
, a distant kinsman of the Parr's, they provided the kind of protection and father figure which was missing in the lives of Maud's children. William's children were educated alongside Maud's children.
Although William was en-adapt at handling his financial matters, he was ironically appointed the office of Chamberlain in the separate household of the
Duke of Richmond
Duke of Richmond is a title in the Peerage of England that has been created four times in British history. It has been held by members of the royal Tudor dynasty, Tudor and House of Stuart, Stuart families.
The current dukedom of Richmond was ...
, the acknowledged illegitimate son of
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 ...
and
Elizabeth Blount
Elizabeth Blount (// – 1540), commonly known during her lifetime as Bessie Blount, was a mistress of Henry VIII of England.
Early life
Blount was the daughter of Sir John Blount and Catherine Pershall, of Kinlet, Bridgnorth, Shropshire. Si ...
, based at
Sheriff Hutton Castle
:''not to be confused with Hutton Castle in the Scottish Borders''
Sheriff Hutton Castle is a ruined quadrangular castle in the village of Sheriff Hutton, North Yorkshire, England. The site of the castle is north of York, and south-east of Ea ...
in
Yorkshire
Yorkshire ( ; abbreviated Yorks), formally known as the County of York, is a Historic counties of England, historic county in northern England and by far the largest in the United Kingdom. Because of its large area in comparison with other Eng ...
.
It was William who found a spot for his nephew,
William Parr, later
Earl of Essex
Earl of Essex is a title in the Peerage of England which was first created in the 12th century by King Stephen of England. The title has been recreated eight times from its original inception, beginning with a new first Earl upon each new cre ...
, in the Duke's household where he would be educated by the very best tutors and mixed with the sons of other prominent families. Though thought to be a wonderful environment for Parr and his nephew to flourish in, the household was not a great passport to success as Parr hoped for. Henry VIII was very fond of his illegitimate son, but had no intention of naming him his heir. It has been claimed that Parr and his sister-in-law,
Maud Parr, coached William to make sure that he ingratiated himself with the Duke, in case the Duke became heir to the throne but there is no factual evidence to support this claim.
Although Parr was named Chamberlain of the Duke's household, the household was actually controlled by 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 figure ...
in London. This control by Wolsey diminished any opportunity of Parr gaining financial benefit or wider influence. Along with the limited possibilities came other daily frustrations as the Duke's tutors and the household officers under Parr disagreed on the balance of recreation and study. Parr was a countryman who thought it perfectly normal for boys to prefer hunting and sports to the boring rhetoric of learning Latin and Greek. As the Duke's behaviour became more unruly Parr and his colleagues found it quite amusing. The Duke's tutor,
John Palsgrave
John Palsgrave (c. 1485 – 1554) was a priest of Henry VIII of England's court. He is known as a tutor in the royal household, and as a textbook author.
Life
It is believed that John Palsgrave, who spelled his name in a variety of ways inclu ...
, who had only been employed six months, would not tolerate being undermined and decided to resign. Such was the household in which Parr presided over. Parr was suspicious of schoolmaster priests and anyone of lesser birth, even though he was not considered a nobleman at the time. The experience did not further the Parr family. If Sir William had spent more attention to his duties and responsibilities he may have reaped some sort of advancement; thus when the overmanned and over budgeted household was dissolved in the summer of 1529, Parr found himself embittered by his failure to find any personal advancement or profit from the whole ordeal.
Despite his failed attempts at achieving personal gain from the household of the Duke, Sir William made up for it during the
Pilgrimage of Grace
The Pilgrimage of Grace was a popular revolt beginning in Yorkshire in October 1536, before spreading to other parts of Northern England including Cumberland, Northumberland, and north Lancashire, under the leadership of Robert Aske. The "most ...
during 1536. William showed impeccable loyalty to the Crown during the rebellion. He had been in
Lincolnshire
Lincolnshire (abbreviated Lincs.) is a county in the East Midlands of England, with a long coastline on the North Sea to the east. It borders Norfolk to the south-east, Cambridgeshire to the south, Rutland to the south-west, Leicestershire ...
along with the
Duke of Suffolk
Duke of Suffolk is a title that has been created three times in the peerage of England.
The dukedom was first created for William de la Pole, 1st Duke of Suffolk, William de la Pole, who had already been elevated to the ranks of earl and marquess ...
and supervised the executions at Louth and Horncastle. William tried to ingratiate himself with the
Duke of Norfolk
Duke of Norfolk is a title in the peerage of England. The seat of the Duke of Norfolk is Arundel Castle in Sussex, although the title refers to the county of Norfolk. The current duke is Edward Fitzalan-Howard, 18th Duke of Norfolk. The dukes ...
and
Thomas Cromwell
Thomas Cromwell (; 1485 – 28 July 1540), briefly Earl of Essex, was an English lawyer and statesman who served as chief minister to King Henry VIII from 1534 to 1540, when he was beheaded on orders of the king, who later blamed false charge ...
. Parr's presence at the execution in Hull of Sir
Robert Constable
Sir Robert Constable (c. 1478 – 6 July 1537) was a member of the English Tudor gentry. He helped Henry VII to defeat the Cornish rebels at the Battle of Blackheath in 1497. In 1536, when the rising known as the Pilgrimage of Grace broke out ...
prompted Cromwell to share in confidence a correspondence in which he received from the Duke of Norfolk on William's "goodness" which "never proved the like in any friend before."
Parr was a strong supporter of the new religion under Henry VIII and he became Thomas Cromwell's chief agent for the dissolution of the monasteries in Northamptonshire.
Offices
Sir William was
Sheriff of Northamptonshire
This is a list of the High Sheriffs of Northamptonshire.
The High Sheriff is the oldest secular office under the Crown. Formerly the High Sheriff was the principal law enforcement officer in the county but over the centuries most of the respon ...
in 1518, 1522, 1534 and 1538. He was also
Esquire of the Body to
Henry VII and
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 ...
. In addition to this, he was a third cousin to King Henry VIII through his mother. William was appointed
Chamberlain
Chamberlain may refer to:
Profession
*Chamberlain (office), the officer in charge of managing the household of a sovereign or other noble figure
People
*Chamberlain (surname)
**Houston Stewart Chamberlain (1855–1927), German-British philosop ...
to his niece Queen
Catherine
Katherine, also spelled Catherine, and other variations are feminine names. They are popular in Christian countries because of their derivation from the name of one of the first Christian saints, Catherine of Alexandria.
In the early Christ ...
and when she became Queen regent during Henry's time in France, Catherine appointed William part of her council. Although he was too ill to attend meetings, the appointment shows her confidence in her uncle.
Parr was knighted by King Henry VIII after the
siege of Tournai in October 1513. He was elected to parliament as knight of the shire 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 ...
in 1529 and 1539.
He was made a
peer of the realm
A peer of the realm is a member of the highest aristocratic social order outside the ruling dynasty of the kingdom.
Notable examples are:
* a member of the peerages in the United Kingdom, who is a hereditary peer or a life peer
* a member of the ...
as 1st Baron Parr of
Horton, Northamptonshire
Horton is a village in Northamptonshire, England. The village manor, Horton Hall, now demolished, was home to the first governor of the Bank of England and William Parr, 1st Baron Parr of Horton. An outline of its former nucleus can be seen in ...
on 23 December 1543. Upon his death in 1547 he was buried at Horton, where the inscription on his monument wrongly gives his year of death as 1546. With no male heirs, the barony became extinct.
Family
He married Mary Salisbury, the daughter and co-heiress of Sir William Salisbury; who brought as her dowry the manor of Horton. It was a happy marriage which produced four daughters who survived infancy. In 1517 he named his eldest daughter to be his sole heir.
*
Maud (Magdalen) Parr, who married Sir Ralph Lane of Orlingbury.
Maud grew up with her cousin
Catherine Parr
Catherine Parr (sometimes alternatively spelled Katherine, Katheryn, Kateryn, or Katharine; 1512 – 5 September 1548) was Queen of England and Ireland as the last of the six wives of King Henry VIII from their marriage on 12 July 1543 until ...
, who became the last queen of 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 ...
. She became a lady-in-waiting and was among the queen's close circle. Maud would become a lifelong friend and confidante of the queen. She was with her cousin as Dowager queen and was one of her ladies at
Sudeley Castle
Sudeley Castle is a Grade I listed castle in the parish of Sudeley, in the Cotswolds, near to the medieval market town of Winchcombe, Gloucestershire, England. The castle has 10 notable gardens covering some 15 acres within a 1,200-acre estate ...
.
* Anne Parr, who married Sir John Digby.
[Burke, John. ''A general and heraldic dictionary of the peerages of England, Ireland, and Scotland, extinct, dormant, and in abeyance''. Page 411]
* Elizabeth Parr, who married Sir Nicholas Wodhull (modern spelling: Woodhull).
* Mary Parr, who married
Sir Thomas Tresham.
[Burke, A general and heraldic dictionary of the peerages of England, Ireland, and Scotland, extinct, dormant, and in abeyance, pg. 411]
Lord Parr and his wife are ancestors of
William, Prince of Wales
William, Prince of Wales, (William Arthur Philip Louis; born 21 June 1982) is the heir apparent to the British throne. He is the elder son of King Charles III and his first wife Diana, Princess of Wales.
Born in London, William was educat ...
through his late mother,
Lady Diana Spencer
Diana, Princess of Wales (born Diana Frances Spencer; 1 July 1961 – 31 August 1997) was a member of the British royal family. She was the first wife of King Charles III (then Prince of Wales) and mother of Princes William and Harry. Her ac ...
. They descend from both Maud, Lady Lane and Mary, Lady Tresham.
He is buried at
Horton Horton may refer to:
Places Antarctica
* Horton Glacier, Adelaide Island, Antarctica
* Horton Ledge, Queen Elizabeth Land, Antarctica
Australia
* Horton, Queensland, a town and locality in the Bundaberg Region
* Horton River (Australia), ...
where the family estate was.
Ancestry
References
Sources
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Parr, William
1480 births
1547 deaths
People from Kendal
Barons in the Peerage of England
15th-century English people
High Sheriffs of Northamptonshire
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 ...
English MPs 1529–1536
English MPs 1539–1540
Esquires of the Body
16th-century English nobility
Peers of England created by Henry VIII
Court of Henry VIII
Household of Catherine Parr