Sir William Waldegrave (2 August 1507 – 2 May 1554) was an English soldier and Member of Parliament.M.K. Dale, 'Waldegrave, Sir William (1507-54), of Smallbridge, Suff.', in S.T. Bindoff (ed.), ''The History of Parliament: the House of Commons 1509-1558'' (from Boydell and Brewer 1982)
History of Parliament Online

Life

Waldegrave was born into a prosperous

Suffolk Suffolk ( ) is a ceremonial county in the East of England and East Anglia. It is bordered by Norfolk to the north, the North Sea to the east, Essex to the south, and Cambridgeshire to the west. Ipswich is the largest settlement and the county ...

family, the eldest son of Sir George Waldegrave of

Smallbridge Hall Smallbridge Hall is a Listed building, Grade II* listed English country house in Bures St. Mary, Suffolk, near Colchester, England. The house is partially surrounded by a moat and stands on the bank of the River Stour, Suffolk, River Stour. The ...

Bures St Mary Bures St Mary is a civil parish in the Babergh district of the English county of Suffolk. In 2005 it had a population of 940, reducing to 918 at the 2011 Census. The parish covers the eastern part of the village of Bures, the western part be ...

, Suffolk and Anne Drury, the daughter of Sir Robert Drury of

Hawstead Hawstead is a small village and civil parish in the West Suffolk district of Suffolk in eastern England. It is located south of Bury St. Edmunds between the B1066 and A134 roads, in a fork formed by the River Lark and a small tributary. The ...

, Suffolk. He was brought up at his maternal grandfather's house. The deaths within the space of 14 months of his paternal grandfather, Sir William Waldegrave, and his own father left him heir to a large estate and fortune at the age of 20. While on his deathbed, his father secured for Waldegrave an advantageous marriage to a Suffolk heiress. After inheriting the family estate, Waldegrave combined local administration with attendance at court and military service. He was knighted by

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 Wives of Henry VIII, six marriages and his efforts to have his first marriage (to Catherine of Aragon) annulled. ...

at the coronation of

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 ...

, and headed the commission to take the Oath of Succession in Suffolk. He was known for his loyalty to the Crown and in the autumn of 1536 he was one of a group of men whom

Thomas Howard, 3rd Duke of Norfolk Thomas Howard, 3rd Duke of Norfolk, (10 March 1473 – 25 August 1554) was an English politician and nobleman of the Tudor era. He was an uncle of two of the wives of King Henry VIII, Anne Boleyn and Catherine Howard, both of whom were beh ...

believed would quell any rising in Suffolk. In 1542, Waldegrave served under the Duke of Norfolk's command in the war against

Scotland Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...

, and two years later he captained 60 of his own men in the French campaign. His election to the Parliament of 1545 reflected this recent military experience as much as his own standing in Suffolk and may have been promoted by his uncle, Sir

William Drury Sir William Drury (2 October 152713 October 1579) was an English statesman and soldier. Family William Drury, born at Hawstead in Suffolk on 2 October 1527, was the third son of Sir Robert Drury (c. 1503–1577) of Hedgerley, Buckinghamshir ...

, as

Sheriff of Norfolk and Suffolk This is a list of Sheriffs of Norfolk and Suffolk. The Sheriff (since 1974 called High Sheriff) is the oldest secular office under the Crown and is appointed annually by the Crown. He was originally the principal law enforcement officer in the c ...

. Although he was not to be re-elected, early in January 1553 the Council considered him for nomination with Sir William Drury as Knights of the Shire for Suffolk in the forthcoming Parliament, but in the event nominated Sir

Henry Bedingfeld Sir Henry Bedingfeld (1505–1583F. Blomefield, "Oxburgh", in ''An Essay Towards A Topographical History of the County of Norfolk'', Vol. 6: Hundred of South Greenhoe (W. Miller, London 1807)pp. 168-97(British History Online), accessed 5 Febru ...

with Drury. Following Edward VI's death in the summer, William Cecil listed Waldegrave among potential supporters of

Lady Jane Grey Lady Jane Grey (1536/1537 – 12 February 1554), also known as Lady Jane Dudley after her marriage, and nicknamed as the "Nine Days Queen", was an English noblewoman who was proclaimed Queen of England and Ireland on 10 July 1553 and reigned ...

, but on being summoned to

Kenninghall Kenninghall is a village and civil parish in the English county of Norfolk. Kenninghall is located north-west of Diss and south-west of Norwich. History Kenninghall's name is of Anglo-Saxon origin and derives from the Old English for the ...

, Norfolk by

Mary Mary may refer to: People * Mary (name), a female given name (includes a list of people with the name) Religion * New Testament people named Mary, overview article linking to many of those below * Mary, mother of Jesus, also called the Blesse ...

on 8 July 1553 he joined her in her successful bid for the throne. Later he heard the indictments in Suffolk against Jane's adherents.

Family

Waldegrave married Juliana, the daughter of Sir John Raysnford of

Essex Essex ( ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the East of England, and one of the home counties. It is bordered by Cambridgeshire and Suffolk to the north, the North Sea to the east, Kent across the Thames Estuary to the ...

, with whom he had four children: *Dorothy Waldegrave, married

Sir John Spring of Lavenham Sir John Spring (died 12 August 1547), of Lavenham, Buxhall, Hitcham, and Cockfield, Suffolk, was an English merchant and politician. Family and life John Spring was the son of Thomas Spring of Lavenham (d.1523) by his first wife, Anne King, ...

*Margaret Waldegrave *Mary Waldegrave * Sir William Waldegrave, married firstly Elizabeth (d.1581), daughter of Thomas Mildmay and secondly Grizelda, daughter of

William Paget, 1st Baron Paget William Paget, 1st Baron Paget of Beaudesert (15069 June 1563), was an English statesman and accountant who held prominent positions in the service of Henry VIII, Edward VI and Mary I. He was the patriarch of the Paget family, whose descend ...

While on a visit to

Calais Calais ( , , traditionally , ) is a French port city in the Pas-de-Calais department, of which it is a subprefecture. Calais is the largest city in Pas-de-Calais. The population of the city proper is 67,544; that of the urban area is 144,6 ...

late in 1554, perhaps in connection with the arrival of

Cardinal Pole Reginald Pole (12 March 1500 – 17 November 1558) was an English cardinal and the last Catholic Archbishop of Canterbury, holding the office from 1556 to 1558 during the Marian Restoration of Catholicism. Early life Pole was born at Stourt ...

, Waldegrave fell sick. He died there on the following 12 December.For notes on the Waldegrave tombs at Bures, see E.A. Martin, 'Excursions: 19th June 2013. Bures St Mary Church', in C Paine (ed.), 'Excursions 2013. Reports and Notes on some Findings', ''Proceedings of the Suffolk Institute of Archaeology and History'', XX Part 2 (2014)
pp. 297-321
at pp. 299-305 (Society's pdf).

Life

Family

References

Further reading