Sir John Peyton (1544–1630) was an English soldier, MP and administrator, as well as the

Governor of Jersey Jersey ( , ; nrf, Jèrri, label=Jèrriais ), officially the Bailiwick of Jersey (french: Bailliage de Jersey, links=no; Jèrriais: ), is an island country and self-governing Crown Dependency near the coast of north-west France. It is the la ...

. He was born in Knowlton, Kent to John Peyton (died 1558) and Dorothy Peyton, who was the daughter of John Tyndale. He entered Parliament in 1572 as MP for

King's Lynn King's Lynn, known until 1537 as Bishop's Lynn and colloquially as Lynn, is a port and market town in the borough of King's Lynn and West Norfolk in the county of Norfolk, England. It is located north of London, north-east of Peterborough, nor ...

and was re-elected to the same seat in 1584 and 1593. He was

knight A knight is a person granted an honorary title of knighthood by a head of state (including the Pope) or representative for service to the monarch, the Christian denomination, church or the country, especially in a military capacity. Knighthood ...

ed in 1586 and served under Robert Dudley. He was Lieutenant-Governor of

Bergen op Zoom Bergen op Zoom (; called ''Berrege'' in the local dialect) is a municipality and a city located in the south of the Netherlands. Etymology The city was built on a place where two types of soil meet: sandy soil and marine clay. The sandy soil ...

from 1586 to 1587 and was a colonel "in the forces for the defence of the queen's person against the threatened attack of the

Spanish Armada The Spanish Armada (a.k.a. the Enterprise of England, es, Grande y Felicísima Armada, links=no, lit=Great and Most Fortunate Navy) was a Spanish fleet that sailed from Lisbon in late May 1588, commanded by the Duke of Medina Sidonia, an ar ...

" in 1588. He was Sheriff of Norfolk for 1588. He served as a deputy lieutenant of

Cambridgeshire Cambridgeshire (abbreviated Cambs.) is a county in the East of England, bordering Lincolnshire to the north, Norfolk to the north-east, Suffolk to the east, Essex and Hertfordshire to the south, and Bedfordshire and Northamptonshire to t ...

under Roger North in 1596 and MP for

Middlesex Middlesex (; abbreviation: Middx) is a historic county in southeast England. Its area is almost entirely within the wider urbanised area of London and mostly within the ceremonial county of Greater London, with small sections in neighbour ...

in 1597. He was appointed lieutenant of 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 ...

from 1597 to 1603, during which time he gave kind attention to

Sir Walter Raleigh Sir Walter Raleigh (; – 29 October 1618) was an English statesman, soldier, writer and explorer. One of the most notable figures of the Elizabethan era, he played a leading part in English colonisation of North America, suppressed rebelli ...

when he was imprisoned. He sat in Parliament for the last time in 1601 as member for Weymouth. He later served as

from 1603 to 1630; a post that was formerly held by Raleigh. On 8 June 1578, Peyton married Dorothy Bell (died 1603), the widow of

Sir Robert Bell Sir Robert Bell SL (died 1577) of Beaupré Hall, Norfolk, was a Speaker of the House of Commons (1572–1576), who served during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I. He was legal counsel (1560) and recorder (1561) for King's Lynn, legal counsel f ...

(died 1577), co-heiress of Edward Beaupré of

Beaupré Hall Beaupré Hall was a large 16th-century house mainly of brick, which was built by the Beaupres in Outwell, Norfolk, England and enlarged by their successors the Bells. Like many of Britain's country houses it was demolished in the mid-20th cen ...

, Outwell, Norfolk, and his second wife, Catherine Beddingfield. Peyton gained a position in the county of Norfolk from his wife's property and the responsibilities of raising Bell's eight children, together with his only son, Sir John Peyton (1579–1635).

References

*Helen M. E. Evans
"Peyton, Sir John (1544-1630)"
''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'', Oxford University Press, 2004, retrieved 7 May 2005 {{DEFAULTSORT:Peyton, John 1544 births 1630 deaths People from Dover District English army officers Governors of Jersey Knights Bachelor High Sheriffs of Norfolk English MPs 1572–1583 English MPs 1584–1585 English MPs 1593 English MPs 1597–1598 English MPs 1601 People from Outwell