Sir John Norreys (c. 1400 – 1 September 1466) was a high ranking Lancastrian, and the head of the branch of the

Norreys Norreys (also spelt Norris) may refer to various members of, or estates belonging to, a landed family chiefly seated in the English counties of Berkshire and Lancashire and the Irish county of Cork. Famous family members *Baron Norreys of Rycote * ...

family who became prominent under the reign of the

House of Tudor The House of Tudor was a royal house of largely Welsh and English origin that held the English throne from 1485 to 1603. They descended from the Tudors of Penmynydd and Catherine of France. Tudor monarchs ruled the Kingdom of England and it ...

. He served as

Keeper of the Wardrobe The King's Wardrobe, together with the Chamber, made up the personal part of medieval English government known as the King's household. Originally the room where the king's clothes, armour, and treasure were stored, the term was expanded to descr ...

for King

Henry VI of England Henry VI (6 December 1421 – 21 May 1471) was King of England and Lord of Ireland from 1422 to 1461 and again from 1470 to 1471, and disputed King of France from 1422 to 1453. The only child of Henry V, he succeeded to the English thron ...

Family

John was the son of William Norreys (born c. 1375)

Esquire Esquire (, ; abbreviated Esq.) is usually a courtesy title. In the United Kingdom, ''esquire'' historically was a title of respect accorded to men of higher social rank, particularly members of the landed gentry above the rank of gentlema ...

Ockwells Manor Ockwells Manor is a timber-framed 15th century manor house in the civil parish of Cox Green, adjoining Maidenhead, in the English county of Berkshire. It was previously in the parish of Bray. The manor used to own most of the land that is n ...

and Christina Stretch, daughter and heiress of William Stretch of

Ruscombe Ruscombe is a village and civil parish, east of Twyford in the Borough of Wokingham in Berkshire, England. History Reports from the late 1800s provided summaries of the status of the village; in 1876, the population was 200 and that increased ...

. William Norreys was the son and heir of Roger Norreys of Bray. The

family were descendants of the prominent le Norreys family, who are said to have come to

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

soon after the

Norman Invasion The Norman Conquest (or the Conquest) was the 11th-century invasion and occupation of England by an army made up of thousands of Normans, Norman, Duchy of Brittany, Breton, County of Flanders, Flemish, and Kingdom of France, French troops, ...

Marriages and children

John Norreys married (1st) before 1437

Alice Alice may refer to: * Alice (name), most often a feminine given name, but also used as a surname Literature * Alice (''Alice's Adventures in Wonderland''), a character in books by Lewis Carroll * ''Alice'' series, children's and teen books by ...

(c. 1405 – c. 1450), daughter and heiress of Richard Merbrook (or Merbroke), Esq., of

Yattendon Yattendon is a small village and civil parish northeast of Newbury in the county of Berkshire. The M4 motorway passes through the fields of the village which lie south and below the elevations of its cluster. The village is privately owned and ...

, Berkshire. His wife, Alice, was made a Lady of the Most Noble Order of the Garter in 1448 ee Beltz, Memorials of the Order of the Garter (1841): ccxxiv The couple had two sons: *

Sir William Norreys Sir William Norreys (c. 1441 – before 10 January 1507) was a famous Lancastrian soldier, and later an Esquire of the Body to King Edward IV. Probably born at Yattendon Castle, William was the eldest son of Sir John Norreys of Ockwells an ...

(1433 – 4 January 1507) *John Norreys, living 1466. After Alice's death, John Norreys married (2nd) Eleanor Clitherow, daughter and co-heiress of Roger Clitherow, of Goldston

n Ash N, or n, is the fourteenth Letter (alphabet), letter in the Latin alphabet, used in the English alphabet, modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its name in English is English alphabet# ...

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 ...

, by his wife, Maud. She was living 1455. The couple had one son and one daughter. *John Norreys, Esq. (of Goldston

Kent), married Isabel/Elizabeth Wyfold, daughter and heiress of Nicholas Wyfold, Alderman, Citizen, and grocer of London, Mayor of London (1450–1). *Anne Norreys, living 1495, married (1st) John Harcourt, Esq. (born c. 1450, died 1485), of Stanton Harcourt, Oxfordshire; (2nd) before 1495 John Grey, Esq., of Bosworth, Leicestershire. John Norreys married (3rd) in September 1459 Margaret Chedworth (1436–1494), widow of Nicholas Wyfold (died 1456), Alderman, Citizen, and grocer of London, Mayor of London (1450–1), and daughter of John Chedworth, Knt., civil lawyer, by his wife, Joan. The couple had one son and one daughter: *William Norreys, living 1466. *Lettice Norreys, living 1466. His widow, Margaret Chedworth, married (3rd) before 22 Jan. 1467

John Howard, 1st Duke of Norfolk John Howard, 1st Duke of Norfolk (c. 142522 August 1485), was an English nobleman, soldier, politician, and the first Howard Duke of Norfolk. He was a close friend and loyal supporter of King Richard III, with whom he was slain at the Battle ...

Property

John began rebuilding the family home of

Ockwells Ockwells Manor is a timber-framed 15th century manor house in the civil parish of Cox Green, adjoining Maidenhead, in the English county of Berkshire. It was previously in the parish of Bray. The manor used to own most of the land that is now ...

in 1446. The windows of its great hall still contain the fine stained glass he placed there, showing the

arms Arms or ARMS may refer to: *Arm or arms, the upper limbs of the body Arm, Arms, or ARMS may also refer to: People * Ida A. T. Arms (1856–1931), American missionary-educator, temperance leader Coat of arms or weapons *Armaments or weapons **Fi ...

of his friends, including the

King King is the title given to a male monarch in a variety of contexts. The female equivalent is queen, which title is also given to the consort of a king. *In the context of prehistory, antiquity and contemporary indigenous peoples, the tit ...

and

Queen Queen or QUEEN may refer to: Monarchy * Queen regnant, a female monarch of a Kingdom ** List of queens regnant * Queen consort, the wife of a reigning king * Queen dowager, the widow of a king * Queen mother, a queen dowager who is the mother ...

, the

Bishop of Salisbury The Bishop of Salisbury is the ordinary of the Church of England's Diocese of Salisbury in the Province of Canterbury. The diocese covers much of the counties of Wiltshire and Dorset. The see is in the City of Salisbury where the bishop's seat ...

and the Dukes of Warwick,

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_ ...

and

Suffolk Suffolk () is a ceremonial county of England in East Anglia. It borders Norfolk to the north, Cambridgeshire to the west and Essex to the south; the North Sea lies to the east. The county town is Ipswich; other important towns include Lowes ...

. Through his first marriage, to Alice, John gained ownership of

Yattendon Castle Yattendon Castle was a fortified manor house located in the civil parish of Yattendon, in the hundred of Faircross, in the English county of Berkshire. History The site upon which Yattendon castle stood was originally occupied by a moat ...

around 1440, then just a manor house. He received a Royal licence to

crenellate A battlement in defensive architecture, such as that of city walls or castles, comprises a parapet (i.e., a defensive low wall between chest-height and head-height), in which gaps or indentations, which are often rectangular, occur at interva ...

on 20 January 1448 and to empark some . In 1450 he purchased the manor of Hampstead Ferrers, which soon became renamed

Hampstead Norreys Hampstead Norreys (alternatively spelt ''Hampstead Norris'' as it is pronounced) is a village and civil parish in Berkshire, England. It is centred on the small tributary the River Pang, north of Newbury. Amenities Hampstead Norreys was awarde ...

. He then began buying many neighbouring estates, consolidating his extensive landholding in the county of

Berkshire Berkshire ( ; in the 17th century sometimes spelt phonetically as Barkeshire; abbreviated Berks.) is a historic county in South East England. One of the home counties, Berkshire was recognised by Queen Elizabeth II as the Royal County of Berk ...

Royal association

John made a life for himself at the royal court. He was a

Knight of the Shire Knight of the shire ( la, milites comitatus) was the formal title for a member of parliament (MP) representing a county constituency in the British House of Commons, from its origins in the medieval Parliament of England until the Redistributio ...

(MP) for

and Sheriff of Oxfordshire and Berkshire in 1442 and 1457. He was made a Yeoman of the King's Chamber by 1439,

usher Usher may refer to: Several jobs which originally involved directing people and ensuring people are in the correct place: * Usher (occupation) ** Church usher ** Wedding usher, one of the male attendants to the groom in a wedding ceremony ** Fiel ...

of the Chamber and then Esquire of the Body in 1441. From 1444 to 1446 he was

Keeper of the wardrobe The King's Wardrobe, together with the Chamber, made up the personal part of medieval English government known as the King's household. Originally the room where the king's clothes, armour, and treasure were stored, the term was expanded to descr ...

King Henry VI Henry VI (6 December 1421 – 21 May 1471) was King of England and Lord of Ireland from 1422 to 1461 and again from 1470 to 1471, and disputed King of France from 1422 to 1453. The only child of Henry V, he succeeded to the English throne a ...

and in 1447 was appointed, until 1452,

Treasurer of the Chamber The Treasurer of the Chamber was at various points a position in the British royal household. 13th century The post of Treasurer of the Chamber first arose in the early 13th century. As part of the evolutionary changes that saw the Treasurer of the ...

and master of the Queen's jewels. He was later made a

Knight of the Bath The Most Honourable Order of the Bath is a British order of chivalry founded by George I on 18 May 1725. The name derives from the elaborate medieval ceremony for appointing a knight, which involved bathing (as a symbol of purification) as one ...

Later life

Sir John died on 1 September 1466. He was buried in the Norreys Chapel (of St. Nicholas) in Bray Church, in a marble tomb. His tomb has not survived, but the Norreys arms, which are carved in stone and located on the walls, still exist.

Descendants

John's descendants all served at court. His great grandson Sir John Norreys served as

of the body of

King Henry VII Henry VII (28 January 1457 – 21 April 1509) was King of England and Lord of Ireland from his seizure of the crown on 22 August 1485 until his death in 1509. He was the first monarch of the House of Tudor. Henry's mother, Margaret Beaufo ...

, and later

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 ...

King Edward VI Edward VI (12 October 1537 – 6 July 1553) was King of England and King of Ireland, 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 Queen Mary. Another of his great grandsons, Sir Henry Norreys served under

and was

beheaded Decapitation or beheading is the total separation of the head from the body. Such an injury is invariably fatal to humans and most other animals, since it deprives the brain of oxygenated blood, while all other organs are deprived of the i ...

for his supposed

adultery Adultery (from Latin ''adulterium'') is extramarital sex that is considered objectionable on social, religious, moral, or legal grounds. Although the sexual activities that constitute adultery vary, as well as the social, religious, and legal ...

with 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 ...

. Great-great-grandson Sir Henry Norris was a lifelong friend of Queen Elizabeth's, serving as Ambassador to

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

, and eventually was made 1st

Baron Norreys The title Baron Norreys of Rycote was created in the Peerage of England by writ for Sir Henry Norris in 1572. The 2nd Baron Norreys was created Viscount Thame and Earl of Berkshire, both titles became extinct on his death. After two female heirs i ...

. Henry Norris' 6 sons all served with distinction in the military under Queen Elizabeth. One, Sir John Norreys, was considered the most acclaimed soldier of his time.

References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Norreys, John 1400s births 1466 deaths 15th-century English people Medieval English knights Knights of the Bath People from Bray, Berkshire People from Yattendon People of the Wars of the Roses John, Keeper High Sheriffs of Berkshire High Sheriffs of Oxfordshire Esquires of the Body