Admiral Sir William Wynter (c. 1521 – 20 February 1589) was an admiral and principal officer of the
Council of the Marine
The Navy Board (formerly known as the Council of the Marine or Council of the Marine Causes) was the commission responsible for the day-to-day civil administration of the Royal Navy between 1546 and 1832. The board was headquartered within the ...
under Queen
Elizabeth I of England
Elizabeth I (7 September 153324 March 1603) was Queen of England and Ireland from 17 November 1558 until her death in 1603. Elizabeth was the last of the five House of Tudor monarchs and is sometimes referred to as the "Virgin Queen".
Eli ...
and served the crown during the
Anglo-Spanish War (1585–1604).
Personal
Wynter was born at
Brecknock, the son of John Wynter (died 1546 - a merchant and sea captain of Bristol and treasurer of the navy, who was friendly with Sir
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 char ...
) and Alice, daughter of William Tirrey of Cork.
Naval career
William was schooled in the navy. He took part in the
260 ship expedition of 1544, which burned
Leith
Leith (; gd, Lìte) is a port area in the north of the city of Edinburgh, Scotland, founded at the mouth of the Water of Leith. In 2021, it was ranked by ''Time Out'' as one of the top five neighbourhoods to live in the world.
The earliest ...
and
Edinburgh
Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian on the southern shore of t ...
, and held the office of Keeper of the King's Storehouse at Deptford Strand. In 1545 he served in
Lord Lisle's channel fleet; two years later he took part in
Protector Somerset's expedition to Scotland and victory at
Pinkie, and in 1549 an expedition to Guernsey and Jersey. In that year he was appointed
Surveyor of the Navy
The Surveyor of the Navy also known as Department of the Surveyor of the Navy and originally known as Surveyor and Rigger of the Navy was a former principal commissioner and member of both the Navy Board from the inauguration of that body in 15 ...
, and in December as captain of the ''Mynion'' he captured the prize of a French ship, the ''Mary of Fécamp'', laden with sugar. A reward of £100 was to be shared out among the crew of 300. In 1550 he superintended the removal of the ships from
Portsmouth
Portsmouth ( ) is a port and city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. The city of Portsmouth has been a unitary authority since 1 April 1997 and is administered by Portsmouth City Council.
Portsmouth is the most dens ...
to
Gillingham in the
Thames Estuary
The Thames Estuary is where the River Thames meets the waters of the North Sea, in the south-east of Great Britain.
Limits
An estuary can be defined according to different criteria (e.g. tidal, geographical, navigational or in terms of salini ...
,
Edward VI
Edward VI (12 October 1537 – 6 July 1553) was King of England and Ireland from 28 January 1547 until his death in 1553. He was crowned on 20 February 1547 at the age of nine. Edward was the son of Henry VIII and Jane Seymour and the first E ...
owed him £471 for a voyage to Ireland in 1552, and in 1553 he went on a voyage to the Levant.
In 1554, William spent several months in the
Tower of London
The Tower of London, officially His Majesty's Royal Palace and Fortress of the Tower of London, is a historic castle on the north bank of the River Thames in central London. It lies within the London Borough of Tower Hamlets, which is sep ...
under suspicion of involvement in
Thomas Wyatt's rebellion against
Mary I of England, until he was pardoned in November.
In 1557 Wynter was appointed
Master of Navy Ordnance, which post he held along with the
Surveyorship for the rest of his life. He was present at the burning of Conquet in 1558. On 22 May 1558 Wynter brought ships from Dunkirk to Dover which were sailing on to Portsmouth. He was sent with a fleet to Scotland in January 1560 during the crisis of the
Scottish Reformation
The Scottish Reformation was the process by which Scotland broke with the Papacy and developed a predominantly Calvinist national Kirk (church), which was strongly Presbyterian in its outlook. It was part of the wider European Protestant Refor ...
commanding the
Irish Squadron
The Irish Squadron originally known as the Irish Fleet was a series of temporary naval formations assembled for specific military campaigns of the English Navy, the Navy Royal and later the Royal Navy from 1297 to 1731.
History
From the 13th ...
.
Mission to Scotland
![AnthonyRoll-37 Saker](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/80/AnthonyRoll-37_Saker.jpg)
Wynter commanded a fleet to guard against French landings in Scotland in 1559, while diplomatic efforts were made to negotiate sending an English army to aid the Scottish Protestants. After briefing at
Gillingham, Wynter left
Queenborough
Queenborough is a town on the Isle of Sheppey in the Swale borough of Kent in South East England.
Queenborough is south of Sheerness. It grew as a port near the Thames Estuary at the westward entrance to the Swale where it joins the R ...
in the ''Lyon'' on 27 December, and sailed from the
Lowestoft sea-road on 14 January with 12 men-of-war followed by two supply ships, the ''Bull'' and the ''Saker''. After the fleet was dispersed by a storm off
Flamborough Head on 16 January, the damaged ''Swallow'', ''Falcon'', and ''Jerfalcon'' were left at
Tynemouth, and the rest of the fleet passed
Bamborough Castle to
Berwick upon Tweed
Berwick-upon-Tweed (), sometimes known as Berwick-on-Tweed or simply Berwick, is a town and civil parish in Northumberland, England, south of the Anglo-Scottish border, and the northernmost town in England. The 2011 United Kingdom census recor ...
, where 600
hand gunners were embarked. 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 ...
, commander in the North, gave Wynter orders to hinder any French landings in the
Firth of Forth, but to avoid battle, pretending he came up-river by chance without any official commission. At
Coldingham
Coldingham ( sco, Cowjum) is a village and parish in Scottish Borders, on Scotland's southeast coastline, north of Eyemouth.
Parish
The parish lies in the east of the Lammermuir district. It is the second-largest civil parish by area in Berwi ...
bay, Wynter paused to send a copy of his log, which survives, to London. He was observed by
Lord John Stewart,
Commendator of Coldingham, a half-brother of
Mary, Queen of Scots
Mary, Queen of Scots (8 December 1542 – 8 February 1587), also known as Mary Stuart or Mary I of Scotland, was Queen of Scotland from 14 December 1542 until her forced abdication in 1567.
The only surviving legitimate child of James V of S ...
.
Eight ships including the ''
Antelope'' and ''Lyon'' carried on into the Firth of Forth towards the fortress Island of
Inchkeith
Inchkeith (from the gd, Innis Cheith) is an island in the Firth of Forth, Scotland, administratively part of the Fife council area.
Inchkeith has had a colourful history as a result of its proximity to Edinburgh and strategic location for u ...
on 21 January. Wynter's blockade was immediately effective in preventing communication by sea from Edinburgh to the French garrison at
Dunbar Castle
Dunbar Castle was one of the strongest fortresses in Scotland, situated in a prominent position overlooking the harbour of the town of Dunbar, in East Lothian. Several fortifications were built successively on the site, near the English-Scotti ...
. Although he could not do as much as he wished because his small landing boats were lost in the storm, he captured two French ships loaded with armaments. At first the French had thought that Wynter's fleet were French ships bringing more troops, and their response was to send these boats loaded with munition for
Henri Cleutin
Henri Cleutin, seigneur d'Oisel et de Villeparisis (1515 – 20 June 1566), was the representative of France in Scotland from 1546 to 1560, a Gentleman of the Chamber of the King of France, and a diplomat in Rome 1564-1566 during the French Wars o ...
who was advancing on
St Andrews. Instead, Cleutin was forced to race back to Stirling overland, and
William Kirkcaldy of Grange
Sir William Kirkcaldy of Grange (c. 1520 –3 August 1573) was a Scottish politician and soldier who fought for the Scottish Reformation but ended his career holding Edinburgh castle on behalf of Mary, Queen of Scots and was hanged at the co ...
delayed him by
cutting the bridge over the
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. Devo ...
at
Tullibody
Tullibody ( gd, Tulach Bòide), is a town set in the Central Lowlands of Scotland. It lies north of the River Forth near to the foot of the Ochil Hills within the Forth Valley. The town is south-west of Alva, north-west of Alloa and east-n ...
.
On 24 January Wynter allowed the Scottish
Snawdoun Herald John Patterson with the trumpet messenger James Drummond aboard the ''Lyon'', who demanded to know his business in Scottish waters. As instructed, Wynter told Snawdoun he had been bound for Berwick, and came into the Forth expecting "friendly entertainment" as the nations were at peace. As the French forts had fired on him, and he had heard of the political situation in Scotland, he had taken it upon himself to aid the
Lords of the Congregation
The Lords of the Congregation (), originally styling themselves "the Faithful", were a group of Protestant Scottish nobles who in the mid-16th century favoured a reformation of the Catholic church according to Protestant principles and a Scotti ...
against the "wicked practices of the French," and so
Elizabeth I of England
Elizabeth I (7 September 153324 March 1603) was Queen of England and Ireland from 17 November 1558 until her death in 1603. Elizabeth was the last of the five House of Tudor monarchs and is sometimes referred to as the "Virgin Queen".
Eli ...
knew nothing of it. Patterson and Drummond visited the English fleet four times.
Wynter's actions and speech to the herald were reported to the
Privy Council of England. To maintain the pretence he was instructed not to bring any ships he captured to England, but berth them in the friendly harbours of
Dundee and
St Andrews which were in Protestant hands. As late as 16 February, Norfolk sent the
Chester Herald
Chester Herald of Arms in Ordinary is an officer of arms at the College of Arms in London. The office of Chester Herald dates from the 14th century, and it is reputed that the holder was herald to Edward, Prince of Wales, also known as the Black ...
,
William Flower, to
Mary of Guise who declared the English fleet had arrived in the Firth by accident. She claimed that the Lords of the Congregation had revealed advance knowledge of Wynter's mission and were in communication with him. Flower replied that he had no knowledge of ships or letters. While this ineffectual diplomacy continued, the Lords of the Congregation concluded the
Treaty of Berwick with Norfolk, which set conditions for English intervention. Some of the sons of the leading Protestants were given up as hostages to guarantee the treaty, and these boys were delivered to Wynter.
Wynter continued to harass shipping and then supported the English army brought in by the
Treaty of Berwick to the
Siege of Leith
The siege of Leith ended a twelve-year encampment of French troops at Leith, the port near Edinburgh, Scotland. The French troops arrived by invitation in 1548 and left in 1560 after an English force arrived to attempt to assist in removing the ...
. He burnt seven ships under d'Elbouf; not only that, all supplies were cut off from France. He kept up a naval bombardment of the town. On Saturday 7 May 1560, Wynter waited for a signal to sail up the
Water of Leith
The Water of Leith (Scottish Gaelic: ''Uisge Lìte'') is the main river flowing near central Edinburgh, Scotland, and flows into the port of Leith where it flows into the sea via the Firth of Forth.
Name
The name ''Leith'' may be of Britt ...
and land 500 men on the quayside called the Shore, but the signal never came as the English assault on the walls had failed. The siege was ended by the negotiation of the
Treaty of Edinburgh
The Treaty of Edinburgh (also known as the Treaty of Leith) was a treaty drawn up on 5 July 1560 between the Commissioners of Queen Elizabeth I of England with the assent of the Scottish Lords of the Congregation, and the French representatives ...
of 1560 which was the effective conclusion to the '
Auld Alliance
The Auld Alliance ( Scots for "Old Alliance"; ; ) is an alliance made in 1295 between the kingdoms of Scotland and France against England. The Scots word ''auld'', meaning ''old'', has become a partly affectionate term for the long-lasting a ...
'. Lord Burghley reported to the Privy Council that all spoke well of Wynter's conduct and he "was to be cherished." In July, Wynter discussed his fleet's return to Gillingham for re-fitting in dry-dock, but "the most expert officers of the Admiralty" sent the fleet to active service at Portsmouth, on their way escorting the ships evacuating the French army from Scotland to Calais.
In 1561 he purchased
Lydney
Lydney is a town and civil parish in Gloucestershire, England. It is on the west bank of the River Severn in the Forest of Dean District, and is 16 miles (25 km) southwest of Gloucester. The town has been bypassed by the A48 road since 199 ...
Manor in
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 ...
as his residence. In that year, he helped save the Palace of the
Bishop of London
A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution.
In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is ca ...
from fire by advising the
Mayor of London
The mayor of London is the chief executive of the Greater London Authority. The role was created in 2000 after the Greater London devolution referendum in 1998, and was the first directly elected mayor in the United Kingdom.
The current m ...
,
William Harpur
Sir William Harpur (c. 1496 – 27 February 1574) was a merchant from Bedford who moved to London, amassed a large fortune, and became Lord Mayor of London. In 1566 he and his wife Dame Alice gave an endowment to support certain charities inclu ...
to demolish the roof of the adjacent north aisle of
St Paul's Cathedral when the church caught fire after being struck by lightning on 4 June 1561. In 1563 he served in the fleet off
Havre. In 1570, he was sent by
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 ...
to escort
Anne of Austria
Anne of Austria (french: Anne d'Autriche, italic=no, es, Ana María Mauricia, italic=no; 22 September 1601 – 20 January 1666) was an infanta of Spain who became Queen of France as the wife of King Louis XIII from their marriage in 1615 un ...
on her sea journey from the Netherlands to mary
Philip II of Spain.
Operations off Ireland
In 1571, during the first of the
Desmond Rebellions
The Desmond Rebellions occurred in 1569–1573 and 1579–1583 in the Irish province of Munster.
They were rebellions by the Earl of Desmond, the head of the Fitzmaurice/FitzGerald Dynasty in Munster, and his followers, the Geraldines an ...
one of Wynter's ships was seized at Kinsale by
James Fitzmaurice Fitzgerald
James fitz Maurice FitzGerald (died 1579), called "fitz Maurice", was captain-general of Desmond while Gerald FitzGerald, 14th Earl of Desmond, was detained in England by Queen Elizabeth after the Battle of Affane in 1565. He led the first Des ...
, the Irish rebel. On 12 August 1573, Wynter was knighted, but in 1577 he was passed over for the post of treasurer of the navy in place of Sir
John Hawkins
John is a common English name and surname:
* John (given name)
* John (surname)
John may also refer to:
New Testament
Works
* Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John
* First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John
* Second ...
, a promotion that would have doubled his income. Nevertheless, Sir William Wynter and his brother George, both received a handsome return on their investment in
Sir Francis Drake
Sir Francis Drake ( – 28 January 1596) was an English explorer, sea captain, privateer, slave trader, naval officer, and politician. Drake is best known for his circumnavigation of the world in a single expedition, from 1577 to 1580 ( ...
's 1577 Voyage. In 1579 he commanded the squadron off
Smerwick in Ireland, cutting off the sea-routes and seizing the ships of the papal invasion force, which was landed by Fitzmaurice in the company of
Nicholas Sanders launching the
Second Desmond Rebellion
The Second Desmond Rebellion (1579–1583) was the more widespread and bloody of the two Desmond Rebellions in Ireland launched by the FitzGerald Dynasty of Desmond in Munster against English rule. The second rebellion began in July 1579 whe ...
; during this campaign he assisted in the
siege of Carrigafoyle Castle.
Spanish Armada
In 1588, the year of the
Spanish Armada, Wynter joined the main fleet of Lord Howard off Calais and proposed the
fire-ship plan to drive the Spaniards from their anchorage; he took a celebrated part in the battle off Gravelines on 29 July, which was the only time in his career when he had hard fighting. During the engagement, he received a severe blow on the hip when a demi-cannon toppled over. It is said that he was the only one to have understood the completeness of the navy's defence, assessing from his experience at Leith that the enemy army's transport would require 300 ships, while Howard and
Drake
Drake may refer to:
Animals
* A male duck
People and fictional characters
* Drake (surname), a list of people and fictional characters with the family name
* Drake (given name), a list of people and fictional characters with the given name
* ...
thought that the invasion of England might still take place despite the naval repulse delivered to the armada.
Vice-Admiral of England
The Vice-Admiral of the United Kingdom is an honorary office generally held by a senior Royal Navy admiral. The title holder is the official deputy to the Lord High Admiral, an honorary (although once operational) office which was vested in t ...
Sir William Wynter was granted the manor of
Lydney
Lydney is a town and civil parish in Gloucestershire, England. It is on the west bank of the River Severn in the Forest of Dean District, and is 16 miles (25 km) southwest of Gloucester. The town has been bypassed by the A48 road since 199 ...
in recognition of his services against the
Spanish Armada. His portrait was included in the
Armada Tapestries.
Having been created admiral, Wynter supported charges of dishonesty against the
treasurer of the navy
The Treasurer of the Navy, originally called Treasurer of Marine Causes or Paymaster of the Navy, was a civilian officer of the Royal Navy, one of the principal commissioners of the Navy Board responsible for naval finance from 1524 to 1832. ...
, Hawkins, and wrote critically of him to Sir
William Cecil, Lord Burghley.
Offices held
:Included
* Served on expeditions against Scotland 1544, 1547.
* Channel fleet 1545.
* Keeper of the Deptford Storehouse, 1546.
*
Surveyor and Rigger of the Navy, 8 July 1549 to 11 July 1589
*
Master of Naval Ordnance
The Master of Naval Ordnance was an English Navy appointment created in 1546 the office holder was one of the Chief Officers of the Admiralty and a member of the Council of the Marine and a member of the Office of Ordnance until the post was abo ...
, 1557-1589
* Admiral in all seagoing expeditions 1557-88
*
Justice of the peace, Gloucestershire, from c.1564
* Commissioner of Sewers,
Kent
Kent is a county in South East England and one of the home counties. It borders Greater London to the north-west, Surrey to the west and East Sussex to the south-west, and Essex to the north across the estuary of the River Thames; it faces ...
,
Surrey. and
Sussex, 1564.
* Mission to the
Prince of Orange
Prince of Orange (or Princess of Orange if the holder is female) is a title originally associated with the sovereign Principality of Orange, in what is now southern France and subsequently held by sovereigns in the Netherlands.
The title ...
, 1576.
* Steward and Receiver,
Duchy of Lancaster
The Duchy of Lancaster is the private estate of the British sovereign as Duke of Lancaster. The principal purpose of the estate is to provide a source of independent income to the sovereign. The estate consists of a portfolio of lands, properti ...
lands in
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 ...
and
Herefordshire
Herefordshire () is a county in the West Midlands of England, governed by Herefordshire Council. It is bordered by Shropshire to the north, Worcestershire to the east, Gloucestershire to the south-east, and the Welsh counties of Monmouthsh ...
from 1580.
Legacy
Wynter married Mary Langton (died 4 November 1573, Seething Lane, London, daughter of Thomas and Mary Langton) and had issue:
* Edward
* William
* Nicholas (died fighting Spaniards)
* James (died young)
* Mary
* Elizabeth
* Eleanor
* Jane
* Sarah
His grandson was
John Winter who was an active
royalist
A royalist supports a particular monarch as head of state for a particular kingdom, or of a particular dynastic claim. In the abstract, this position is royalism. It is distinct from monarchism, which advocates a monarchical system of governm ...
during the
English Civil War
The English Civil War (1642–1651) was a series of civil wars and political machinations between Parliamentarians (" Roundheads") and Royalists led by Charles I ("Cavaliers"), mainly over the manner of England's governance and issues of re ...
.
Wynter died on 20 February 1589 aged 68. A Latin eulogy by
William Patten was published in that year.
[Patten, William, ''In Mortem W. Wynter equitis auratis'', Thomas Orvvinum, London (1589), (8pp).]
References
*Richard Bagwell, ''Ireland under the Tudors'' 3 vols. (London, 1885–1890).
*
Notes
{{DEFAULTSORT:Wynter, William
1520s births
1589 deaths
Year of birth uncertain
People from Brecknockshire
English admirals
16th-century Royal Navy personnel
People of Elizabethan Ireland
16th-century Welsh military personnel
Scottish Reformation
16th century in Scotland
English MPs 1559
English MPs 1563–1567
English MPs 1572–1583
English MPs 1586–1587
People of the Second Desmond Rebellion
16th-century Welsh politicians
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 ...