Edmund Sheffield, 1st Baron Sheffield, of Butterwick (22 November 1521 – 1 August 1549) was an

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Culture, language and peoples * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England * ''English'', an Amish ter ...

nobleman Nobility is a social class found in many societies that have an aristocracy. It is normally appointed by and ranked immediately below royalty. Nobility has often been an estate of the realm with many exclusive functions and characteristics. T ...

who died in

Kett's Rebellion Kett's Rebellion was a revolt in the English county of Norfolk during the reign of Edward VI, largely in response to the enclosure of land. It began at Wymondham on 8 July 1549 with a group of rebels destroying fences that had been put up by wealt ...

Early life

Edmund Sheffield was born on 22 November 1521 in Butterwick, Lincolnshire to Sir Robert Sheffield (died 15 November 1531, son of Sir Robert Sheffield and Helen Delves) and his second wife Jane Stanley, daughter of

George Stanley, 9th Baron Strange George Stanley, 9th Baron Strange, of Knockin, Order of the Garter, KG, Order of the Bath, KB (c. 1460–1503) was an English nobleman and heir apparent of Thomas Stanley, 1st Earl of Derby. He was also a notable soldier in his own right and held ...

and

Joan le Strange, 9th Baroness Strange Baron Strange is a title which has been created four times in the Peerage of England. Two creations, one in 1295 and another in 1326, had only one holder each, upon whose deaths they became extinct. Two of the creations, that of 1299 and that ...

. Through his mother, he was a

second cousin once removed A cousin is a relative who is the child of a parent's sibling; this is more specifically referred to as a first cousin. A parent of a first cousin is an aunt or uncle. More generally, in the kinship system used in the English-speaking world, c ...

of the reigning English monarch,

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 known for his six marriages and his efforts to have his first marriage (to Catherine of Aragon) annulled. His disagreement w ...

. Following his father's death in 1531, Sheffield's

wardship In law, a ward is a minor or incapacitated adult placed under the protection of a legal guardian or government entity, such as a court. Such a person may be referenced as a "ward of the court". Overview The wardship jurisdiction is an ancient ju ...

was granted to

George Boleyn, Viscount Rochford George Boleyn, Viscount Rochford ( – 17 May 1536) was an English courtier and nobleman who played a prominent role in the politics of the early 1530s as the brother of Anne Boleyn, second wife of King Henry VIII. George was the mate ...

, the brother of

's second wife,

Anne Boleyn Anne Boleyn (; 1501 or 1507 – 19 May 1536) was List of English royal consorts, Queen of England from 1533 to 1536, as the Wives of Henry VIII, second wife of King Henry VIII. The circumstances of her marriage and execution, by beheading ...

. Rochford and Boleyn were both executed in 1536. On 2 January 1538, Sheffield's wardship passed to

John De Vere, 15th Earl of Oxford John de Vere, 15th Earl of Oxford, Lord Great Chamberlain Order of the Garter, KG Privy Council of England, PC (). was an English peerage, peer and courtier. Early life John de Vere, born around 1482, was the son of John de Vere and Alice Kilri ...

. Sheffield was sent up to

Thomas Cromwell Thomas Cromwell (; – 28 July 1540) was an English statesman and lawyer who served as List of English chief ministers, chief minister to King Henry VIII from 1534 to 1540, when he was beheaded on orders of the king, who later blamed false cha ...

and became one of his gentlemen. Sheffield had a troubled youth and was in prison by July 1538 but was soon released. On 16 Feb 1547, by the will of

, Sheffield was raised to the

Peerage of England The Peerage of England comprises all peerages created in the Kingdom of England before the Act of Union in 1707. From that year, the Peerages of England and Scotland were closed to new creations, and new peers were created in a single Peerag ...

as ''

Baron Sheffield of Butterwick Baron Sheffield is a title that has been created four times: once in the Peerage of England, twice in the Peerage of Ireland, and once in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. The first creation, as ''Baron Sheffield of Butterwick'', was in the Pe ...

'' at the beginning of the reign of

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. The only surviving son of Henry VIII by his thi ...

Personal life

Sheffield married Anne de Vere, daughter of his guardian

John de Vere, 15th Earl of Oxford John de Vere, 15th Earl of Oxford, Lord Great Chamberlain Order of the Garter, KG Privy Council of England, PC (). was an English peerage, peer and courtier. Early life John de Vere, born around 1482, was the son of John de Vere and Alice Kilri ...

, before 31 January 1538, and by her had two sons and three daughters: *Eleanor Sheffield () married Denzel Holles *

John Sheffield, 2nd Baron Sheffield John Sheffield, 2nd Baron Sheffield , of Butterwick ( – 10 December 1568) was an English nobleman. Early life John Sheffield was born in Butterwick, Lincolnshire to Edmund Sheffield, 1st Baron Sheffield and Lady Anne De Vere, dau ...

( – 10 December 1568) married Douglas Howard *Robert Sheffield () *Frances Sheffield () married Thomas Metham *Elizabeth Sheffield () Sheffield was a poet of the same generation as the

Henry Howard, Earl of Surrey Henry Howard, Earl of Surrey, KG (1516/1517–19 January 1547) was an English nobleman, politician and poet. He was one of the founders of English Renaissance poetry and was the last known person to have been executed at the insistence of King ...

. Although none of his poetry has survived, he was praised by Fuller: "''Great his skill in music, who wrote a book of sonnetts according to the Italian fashion''"''.''

Death

In 1549, Sheffield accompanied

William Parr, 1st Marquess of Northampton William Parr, Marquess of Northampton, Earl of Essex, 1st Baron Parr, 1st Baron Hart (14 August 151328 October 1571), was the only brother of Queen Katherine Parr, the sixth and final wife of King Henry VIII. He was a "sincere, plain, dir ...

on an expedition to quell

Norfolk Norfolk ( ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in England, located in East Anglia and officially part of the East of England region. It borders Lincolnshire and The Wash to the north-west, the North Sea to the north and eas ...

. On 1 August 1549, during a pitched battle at Pockthorpe Gate for control of Norwich, Sheffield fell from his horse and was captured by an armed mob. The rebels refused the lord's request to spare his life in return for a promised ransom and Sheffield was fatally struck by a butcher, reputedly named Fulke. Sheffield's death was seen as a turning point in the fight. With the loss of a senior commander and his army being broken up in street fighting, Northampton ordered a retreat. Sheffield left behind a young son,

, who became a ward of

. In recognition of his father's loyalty to the crown and sacrifice, John Sheffield was granted an annual

annuity In investment, an annuity is a series of payments made at equal intervals based on a contract with a lump sum of money. Insurance companies are common annuity providers and are used by clients for things like retirement or death benefits. Examples ...

and in November 1550 the right to marry freely without having to pay the usual fees or fines to the

Court of Wards and Liveries The Court of Wards and Liveries was a court established during the reign of Henry VIII in England. Its purpose was to administer a system of feudalism, feudal dues; but as well as the revenue collection, the court was also responsible for wa ...

. Sheffield was buried at

St Martin at Palace, Norwich St Martin at Palace Plain, Norwich is a Grade I listed redundant parish church in the Church of England in Norwich Norwich () is a cathedral city and district of the county of Norfolk, England, of which it is the county town. It lies by ...

. A plaque near

Norwich Cathedral Norwich Cathedral, formally the Cathedral Church of the Holy and Undivided Trinity, is a Church of England cathedral in the city of Norwich, Norfolk, England. The cathedral is the seat of the bishop of Norwich and the mother church of the dioc ...

now marks the location of Sheffield's murder.

Ancestry

References

1521 births 1549 deaths 1 Peers of England created by Edward VI 16th-century English nobility

Edmund Edmund is a masculine given name in the English language. The name is derived from the Old English elements ''ēad'', meaning "prosperity" or "riches", and ''mund'', meaning "protector". Persons named Edmund include: People Kings and nobles *Ed ...

English murder victims People from the Borough of Boston {{authority control