Thomas Beaumont, 1st Viscount Beaumont of Swords (c. 1582 – 8 February 1625) 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 ...

between 1604 and 1611. He was raised to the

peerage A peerage is a legal system historically comprising various hereditary titles (and sometimes Life peer, non-hereditary titles) in a number of countries, and composed of assorted Imperial, royal and noble ranks, noble ranks. Peerages include: A ...

in 1622. Beaumont was the son of Sir Henry Beaumont of Cole Orton, Leicestershire and his wife Elizabeth Lewis, daughter of John Lewis of London. He was educated at

Peterhouse, Cambridge Peterhouse is the oldest Colleges of the University of Cambridge, constituent college of the University of Cambridge in England, founded in 1284 by Hugh de Balsham, Bishop of Ely. Peterhouse has around 300 undergraduate and 175 graduate stud ...

(c. 1596) and studied law at the

Inner Temple The Honourable Society of the Inner Temple, commonly known as the Inner Temple, is one of the four Inns of Court and is a professional association for barristers and judges. To be called to the Bar and practice as a barrister in England and Wa ...

in 1610. He was knighted at

Belvoir Castle Belvoir Castle ( ) is a faux historic castle and stately home in Leicestershire, England, situated west of the town of Grantham and northeast of Melton Mowbray. A castle was first built on the site immediately after the Norman Conquest of 10 ...

on 23 April 1603. In 1604, he was elected Member of Parliament for Tamworth. He was a Justice of the Peace for Leicestershire by 1608 to 1616 and from 1618 to at least 1623 and was appointed Sheriff of Leicestershire for 1610–11. He was a member of the

Virginia Company The Virginia Company was an English trading company chartered by King James I on 10 April 1606 with the objective of colonizing the eastern coast of America. The coast was named Virginia, after Elizabeth I, and it stretched from present-day ...

by 1612. Thomas Beaumont produced a

masque The masque was a form of festive courtly entertainment that flourished in 16th- and early 17th-century Europe, though it was developed earlier in Italy, in forms including the intermedio (a public version of the masque was the pageant). A mas ...

entertainment at

Coleorton Hall Coleorton Hall is a 19th-century country mansion, formerly the seat of the Beaumont baronets of Stoughton Grange. Situated at Coleorton, Leicestershire, it is a Grade II* listed building now converted into residential apartments. The manor of Co ...

in honour of William Seymour, (later

Duke of Somerset Duke of Somerset, from the county of Somerset, is a title that has been created five times in the peerage of England. It is particularly associated with two families: the Beauforts, who held the title from the creation of 1448, and the Seymours ...

), and his wife

Frances Frances is an English given name or last name of Latin origin. In Latin the meaning of the name Frances is 'from France' or 'the French.' The male version of the name in English is Francis (given name), Francis. The original Franciscus, meaning "F ...

.David Lindley, ''Court Masques: Jacobean and Caroline Entertainments'' (Oxford University Press, The World's Classics, 1995), pp. xvii, 126–135, 251–255. He was created

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 ...

on 17 September 1619 and created

Viscount Beaumont of Swords Viscount Beaumont of Swords, in the County of Dublin, was a title in the Peerage of Ireland. It was created on 20 May 1622 for Sir Thomas Beaumont, 1st Baronet, Member of Parliament for Leicestershire from 1604 to 1611 and High Sheriff of Leicest ...

on 20 May 1622. George Edward Cokayne ''Complete Baronetage Volume 1'' 1900
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Swords A sword is an edged, bladed weapon intended for manual cutting or thrusting. Its blade, longer than a knife or dagger, is attached to a hilt and can be straight or curved. A thrusting sword tends to have a straighter blade with a pointed ti ...

was a town in County Dublin, and now in County Fingal. Beaumont died as the result of his injuries in a duel. He had married in or before 1614 Elizabeth Sapcote, daughter of Henry Sapcote of Bracebridge, Lincolnshire and his wife Eleanor Sapcote of Huntingdonshire. They had 4 sons and 3 daughters. He was succeeded by his son Sapcote Beaumont, 2nd Viscount Beaumont of Swords.

References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Beaumont, Thomas 1580s births 1625 deaths People from Coleorton Alumni of Peterhouse, Cambridge 101

Thomas Thomas may refer to: People * List of people with given name Thomas * Thomas (name) * Thomas (surname) * Saint Thomas (disambiguation) * Thomas Aquinas (1225–1274) Italian Dominican friar, philosopher, and Doctor of the Church * Thomas the A ...

Members of the Inner Temple English MPs 1604–1611 High sheriffs of Leicestershire Viscounts in the Peerage of Ireland Peers of Ireland created by James I