Sir William D'Oyly, 1st Baronet ( 1614 – November 1677) was an English politician who sat in the

House of Commons The House of Commons is the name for the elected lower house of the Bicameralism, bicameral parliaments of the United Kingdom and Canada. In both of these countries, the Commons holds much more legislative power than the nominally upper house of ...

variously between 1654 and 1677.

Biography

D'Oyly was the son of William D'Oyly. He succeeded to the estates of his uncle Henry, and was known as Sir William, the elder. As heir to Susan D'Oyly, his cousin, he came into possession of Pond-hall ( Hadleigh), Topsfield, and Cossford, in Suffolk, and Shottisham (now more generally spelled

Shotesham Shotesham () is a village in South Norfolk which lies approximately 5 miles south of Norwich. It sits next to Stoke Holy Cross and Saxlingham Nethergate in the valley of the River Tas. It covers an area of and had a population of 539 in 210 ...

), Gostlings, and three manors in Warham, in Norfolk. He was serving abroad in the army of

Gustavus Adolphus of Sweden Gustavus Adolphus (9 December ld Style and New Style dates, N.S 19 December15946 November ld Style and New Style dates, N.S 16 November1632), also known in English as Gustav II Adolf or Gustav II Adolph, was King of Sweden from 1611 t ...

, and remained abroad after Gustavus Adolphus's death until he returned to take possession of the family fortune. He was knighted by King Charles I in 1642, for his gallant behaviour. William Betham
''The Baronetage of England Volume 2''
/ref> At the end of the

First English Civil War The First English Civil War took place in England and Wales from 1642 to 1646, and forms part of the 1639 to 1653 Wars of the Three Kingdoms. An estimated 15% to 20% of adult males in England and Wales served in the military at some point b ...

in 1646 D'Oyly was commanding a regiment of the Norfolk Trained Bands, though he was excluded at the time of

Pride's Purge Pride's Purge is the name commonly given to an event that took place on 6 December 1648, when soldiers prevented members of Parliament considered hostile to the New Model Army from entering the House of Commons of England. Despite defeat in the ...

.Jeremy Ive, 'The Local Dimensions of Defence: the Standing Army and Militia in Norfolk, Suffolk and Essex, 1649–1660', Cambridge University PhD Thesis, 1987, pp. 230, 323.
/ref> In 1654, he was elected Member of Parliament for

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 ...

in the

First Protectorate Parliament The First Protectorate Parliament was summoned by the Lord Protector Oliver Cromwell under the terms of the Instrument of Government. It sat for one term from 3 September 1654 until 22 January 1655 with William Lenthall as the Speaker of the H ...

. He was re-elected MP for Norfolk in 1656 for the

Second Protectorate Parliament The Second Protectorate Parliament in England sat for two sessions from 17 September 1656 until 4 February 1658, with Thomas Widdrington as the Speaker of the House of Commons (United Kingdom), Speaker of the House of Commons. In its first sess ...

and in 1659 for the

Third Protectorate Parliament The Third Protectorate Parliament sat for one session, from 27 January 1659 until 22 April 1659, with Chaloner Chute and Thomas Bampfylde as the Speakers of the House of Commons. It was a bicameral Parliament, with an Upper House having a po ...

.History of Parliament Online - Doyley, Sir William
/ref> In 1660, D'Oyly was elected Member of Parliament for

Great Yarmouth Great Yarmouth ( ), often called Yarmouth, is a seaside resort, seaside town which gives its name to the wider Borough of Great Yarmouth in Norfolk, England; it straddles the River Yare and is located east of Norwich. Its fishing industry, m ...

in the Convention Parliament, and also returned to a command in the county militia. He was among the most zealous in the convention parliament, for the restoration of the royal family. He was a very accomplished gentleman, and much esteemed in his county. He was one of the commissioners appointed by the House of Commons, to see the army disbanded, in 1661, and was chosen by the city of Norwich, with Sir Horatio Townsend, Sir John Holland, and Sir Ralph Hare, to wait on the King, soon after his return with the resignation of the charter which the king restored. He was re-elected MP for Great Yarmouth in 1661 for the

Cavalier Parliament The Cavalier Parliament of England lasted from 8 May 1661 until 24 January 1679. With the exception of the Long Parliament, it was the longest-lasting English Parliament, and longer than any Great British or UK Parliament to date, enduring ...

and sat until his death in 1677. In 1663, he was created a

baronet A baronet ( or ; abbreviated Bart or Bt) or the female equivalent, a baronetess (, , or ; abbreviation Btss), is the holder of a baronetcy, a hereditary title awarded by the British Crown. The title of baronet is mentioned as early as the 14th ...

, of Shottisham. D'Oyly married Margaret Randall of Pulham, Norfolk. They had six daughters and three sons. He was succeeded in the baronetcy by his son

William William is a masculine given name of Germanic languages, Germanic origin. It became popular in England after the Norman Conquest, Norman conquest in 1066,All Things William"Meaning & Origin of the Name"/ref> and remained so throughout the Middle ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Doyly, William, 1st Baronet 1610s births 1677 deaths

English MPs 1654–1655 English MPs 1656–1658 English MPs 1659 English MPs 1660 English MPs 1661–1679 Baronets in the Baronetage of England Members of the Parliament of England for Norfolk Norfolk Militia officers