Sir William Pelham (''c.'' 1528 – 1587) was an English soldier and

Lord Justice of Ireland The Lords Justices (more formally the Lords Justices General and General Governors of Ireland) were deputies who acted collectively in the absence of the chief governor of Ireland (latterly the Lord Lieutenant) as head of the executive branch o ...

, which was a military and political role rather than a judicial one.

Life

He was third son of Sir William Pelham of Laughton,

Sussex Sussex (), from the Old English (), is a historic county in South East England that was formerly an independent medieval Anglo-Saxon kingdom. It is bounded to the west by Hampshire, north by Surrey, northeast by Kent, south by the English ...

, by his second wife, Mary, daughter of

William Sandys, 1st Baron Sandys of the Vyne William Sandys, 1st Baron Sandys (1470 – 4 December 1540), KG, of The Vyne in the parish of Sherborne St John, Hampshire, was an English diplomat and was a favourite of King Henry VIII, whom he served as Lord Chamberlain. In the 1520s he bui ...

near

Basingstoke Basingstoke ( ) is the largest town in the county of Hampshire. It is situated in south-central England and lies across a valley at the source of the River Loddon, at the far western edge of The North Downs. It is located north-east of Southa ...

Hampshire Hampshire (, ; abbreviated to Hants) is a ceremonial county, ceremonial and non-metropolitan county, non-metropolitan counties of England, county in western South East England on the coast of the English Channel. Home to two major English citi ...

and his wife Margaret Bray. His full brothers included

Edmund Pelham Sir Edmund (or Edward) Pelham (c.1533 – 1606) was a member of the distinguished Pelham family of Laughton, East Sussex. He was a judge in Ireland who held the office of Chief Baron of the Irish Exchequer, and was noteworthy as the first judge ...

Chief Baron of the Irish Exchequer The Chief Baron of the Irish Exchequer was the Baron ( judge) who presided over the Court of Exchequer (Ireland). The Irish Court of Exchequer was a mirror of the equivalent court in England and was one of the four courts which sat in the build ...

: their eldest half-brother was Sir Nicholas Pelham (1517-60). His father died in 1538, and Pelham was probably thirty when he was appointed captain of the pioneers at the

siege of Leith The siege of Leith ended a twelve-year encampment of French troops at Leith, the port near Edinburgh, Scotland. The French troops arrived by invitation in 1548 and left in 1560 after an English force arrived to attempt to assist in removing the ...

in 1560. Among the siege works, his pioneers built a

sconce Sconce may refer to: *Sconce (fortification), a military fortification *Sconce (light fixture) *Sconcing, imposing a penalty in the form of drink *Sconce Point Fort Victoria is a former military fort on the Isle of Wight, England (), built to ...

with four bastions which was called "Mount Pelham." William was commended on that occasion; but, according to Humfrey Barwick, his bad engineering was responsible for the wound inflicted during the assault on Arthur Grey, 14th Lord Grey de Wilton, the son of the army's commander. He commanded the pioneers at

Le Havre Le Havre (, ; nrf, Lé Hâvre ) is a port city in the Seine-Maritime department in the Normandy region of northern France. It is situated on the right bank of the estuary of the river Seine on the Channel southwest of the Pays de Caux, very cl ...

in November 1562 under Ambrose Dudley, 3rd Earl of Warwick; and, despatched to the assistance of

Admiral Coligny Gaspard de Coligny (16 February 1519 – 24 August 1572), Seigneur de Châtillon, was a French nobleman, Admiral of France, and Huguenot leader during the French Wars of Religion. He served under kings Francis I and Henry II during the Ita ...

in February 1563, was present at the capture of

Caen Caen (, ; nrf, Kaem) is a commune in northwestern France. It is the prefecture of the department of Calvados. The city proper has 105,512 inhabitants (), while its functional urban area has 470,000,Jacopo Aconcio in inspecting and improving the fortifications of

Berwick upon Tweed Berwick-upon-Tweed (), sometimes known as Berwick-on-Tweed or simply Berwick, is a town and civil parish in Northumberland, England, south of the Anglo-Scottish border, and the northernmost town in England. The 2011 United Kingdom census recor ...

. Confidence was reposed in his judgment, and, appointed

lieutenant-general of the ordnance The Lieutenant-General of the Ordnance was a member of the British Board of Ordnance and the deputy of the Master-General of the Ordnance. The office was established in 1545, and the holder was appointed by the crown under letters patent. It ...

, he was chiefly occupied for several years in strengthening the defences of the kingdom. He accompanied

Henry Brooke, 11th Baron Cobham Henry Brooke, 11th Baron Cobham KG (22 November 1564 – 24 January 1618 ( Old Style)/3 February 1618 ( New Style), lord of the Manor of Cobham, Kent, was an English peer who was implicated in the Main Plot against the rule of James I of Engla ...

, and Secretary

Francis Walsingham Sir Francis Walsingham ( – 6 April 1590) was principal secretary to Queen Elizabeth I of England from 20 December 1573 until his death and is popularly remembered as her "spymaster". Born to a well-connected family of gentry, Wals ...

on a diplomatic mission to the Netherlands in the summer of 1578, and in the following summer he was sent to Ireland to organise the defence of the

Pale Pale may refer to: Jurisdictions * Medieval areas of English conquest: ** Pale of Calais, in France (1360–1558) ** The Pale, or the English Pale, in Ireland *Pale of Settlement, area of permitted Jewish settlement, western Russian Empire (179 ...

against possible inroads by the O'Neills. He was knighted by

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, Buckinghamshi ...

, and, on the latter's death shortly afterwards, was chosen by the

Privy Council of Ireland His or Her Majesty's Privy Council in Ireland, commonly called the Privy Council of Ireland, Irish Privy Council, or in earlier centuries the Irish Council, was the institution within the Dublin Castle administration which exercised formal executi ...

to be Lord Justice of Ireland ''ad interim''.

Career in Ireland

The situation of affairs in

Munster Munster ( gle, an Mhumhain or ) is one of the provinces of Ireland, in the south of Ireland. In early Ireland, the Kingdom of Munster was one of the kingdoms of Gaelic Ireland ruled by a "king of over-kings" ( ga, rí ruirech). Following the ...

, recently convulsed by the

Second Desmond Rebellion The Second Desmond Rebellion (1579–1583) was the more widespread and bloody of the two Desmond Rebellions in Ireland launched by the FitzGerald Dynasty of Desmond in Munster against English rule. The second rebellion began in July 1579 when ...

James Fitzmaurice Fitzgerald James fitz Maurice FitzGerald (died 1579), called "fitz Maurice", was captain-general of Desmond while Gerald FitzGerald, 14th Earl of Desmond, was detained in England by Queen Elizabeth after the Battle of Affane in 1565. He led the first Des ...

, and the menacing attitude of

Gerald FitzGerald, 15th Earl of Desmond Gerald FitzGerald, 14th Earl of Desmond ( – 1583), also counted as 15th or 16th, owned large part of the Irish province of Munster. In 1565 he fought the private Battle of Affane against his neighbours, the Butlers. After this, he was for so ...

and his brother Sir John of Desmond, obliged him to go there. His efforts at conciliation proving ineffectual, he caused the earl to be proclaimed a traitor; but, finding himself not sufficiently strong to attack Askeaton, he returned to Dublin by way of

Galway Galway ( ; ga, Gaillimh, ) is a City status in Ireland, city in the West Region, Ireland, West of Ireland, in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Connacht, which is the county town of County Galway. It lies on the River Corrib between Lo ...

, leaving the management of the war in Munster to

Thomas Butler, 10th Earl of Ormond Thomas Butler, 10th Earl of Ormond and 3rd Earl of Ossory PC (Ire) (; – 1614), was an influential courtier in London at the court of Elizabeth I. He was Lord Treasurer of Ireland from 1559 to his death. He fought for the crown in th ...

. His proceeding gave considerable offence to Queen Elizabeth, reluctant to involve herself in a new and costly campaign; and Pelham, though pleading in justification Drury's intentions and the necessity of the proclamation, asked to be relieved of his office. Yielding to pressure from England, Pelham in January 1580 prepared to go to Munster himself. At

Waterford "Waterford remains the untaken city" , mapsize = 220px , pushpin_map = Ireland#Europe , pushpin_map_caption = Location within Ireland##Location within Europe , pushpin_relief = 1 , coordinates ...

, where he was detained till about the middle of February for want of victuals, he determined, in consequence of rumours of a Spanish invasion, to entrust the government of the counties of Cork and Waterford to

Sir William Morgan Sir William Morgan, KB (8 March 1700 – 24 April 1731) was a Welsh Whig politician of the early 18th century. Morgan was the eldest son of Sir John Morgan, a Whig of great political influence in Brecknockshire and Monmouthshire. He in ...

, and in conjunction with the Earl of Ormonde to direct his march through Connello and

Kerry Kerry or Kerri may refer to: * Kerry (name), a given name and surname of Gaelic origin (including a list of people with the name) Places * Kerry, Queensland, Australia * County Kerry, Ireland ** Kerry Airport, an international airport in Count ...

Dingle Dingle ( Irish: ''An Daingean'' or ''Daingean Uí Chúis'', meaning "fort of Ó Cúis") is a town in County Kerry, Ireland. The only town on the Dingle Peninsula, it sits on the Atlantic coast, about southwest of Tralee and northwest of Kill ...

. He carried out his intention ruthlessly, killing indiscriminately according to the '' Annals of Four Masters''. Returning along the sea coast, he sat down before Carrigafoyle Castle on 25 March. Two days later he carried the place by assault, and put the garrison to the sword, sparing no one. Terrified by the fate of Carrigafoyle, the garrison at Askeaton surrendered without a blow, and Desmond's last stronghold of Ballyloughan fell at the same time into Pelham's hands. With his headquarters at

Limerick Limerick ( ; ga, Luimneach ) is a western city in Ireland situated within County Limerick. It is in the province of Munster and is located in the Mid-West which comprises part of the Southern Region. With a population of 94,192 at the 2016 ...

, the lord justice garrisoned the Desmond district, his object being to confine the struggle to Kerry, and, with the assistance of the fleet, under

William Wynter Admiral Sir William Wynter (c. 1521 – 20 February 1589) was an admiral and principal officer of the Council of the Marine under Queen Elizabeth I of England and served the crown during the Anglo-Spanish War (1585–1604). Personal Wynter wa ...

, to starve the rebels into submission. He also summoned a meeting of the noblemen and chief gentry of the province, but the attendance was meagre. He and Ormonde then entered Kerry together. From

Castleisland Castleisland () is a town and commercial centre in County Kerry in south west Ireland. The town is known for the width of its main street. As of the 2016 Census, Castleisland had a population of 2,486. Castleisland was described by one of its ...

, where they narrowly missed capturing the Earl of Desmond and

Nicholas Sanders Nicholas Sanders (also spelled Sander; c. 1530 – 1581) was an English Catholic priest and polemicist. Early life Sanders was born at Sander Place near Charlwood, Surrey, one of twelve children of William Sanders, once sheriff of Surrey, who ...

, they advanced along the valley of the River Maine, scouring the country as they went, to Dingle. At Dingle they found Admiral Winter, and, with his assistance, Pelham ransacked the coast between Dingle and Cork, while Ormonde harried the interior of the country. The western chiefs one by one submitted to Ormonde. At Cork, there was a great meeting of all the lords and chiefs, and all were received to mercy except

Lord Barrymore Earl of Barrymore was a title in the Peerage of Ireland. It was created for David Barry, 6th Viscount Buttevant, in 1627/28. Lord Barrymore held the subsidiary titles of Baron Barry (created c. 1261) and Viscount Buttevant (created 1541) in th ...

; but Pelham, acting on the advice of Sir Warham St. Leger, took them along with him to Limerick. Desmond was still at large, but his power had been crippled. He instigated the eponymously-named "Pelham's Pardon" to bring the rebellion under control. This was his decision to refuse any "rebel" the right to surrender unless he had killed another suspected rebel of higher rank. Pelham, who insisted on unconditional surrender, was preparing for a fresh inroad into Kerry, when he received information that the new viceroy,

Arthur Grey, 14th Baron Grey de Wilton The Rt Hon. Arthur Grey, 14th Baron Grey de Wilton, KG (1536–1593), was a baron in the Peerage of England. Lord Grey de Wilton is now largely remembered for his memoir of his father, for participating in the last defence of Calais (1558), a ...

, had arrived at Dublin. It was originally intended to send Sir

Henry Wallop Sir Henry Wallop (c. 1540 – 14 April 1599) was an English statesman. Biography Henry Wallop was the eldest son of Sir Oliver Wallop (d. 1566) of Farleigh Wallop in Hampshire. Having inherited the estates of his father and of his uncle, Sir Joh ...

with the sword of state to Dublin; but Pelham was offended at the lack of courtesy shown to him by the Deputy's secretary, Edmund Spenser, and determined to go himself to Dublin. He was detained for some time about Athlone by bad weather, and it was not till 7 September that he formally resigned the sword of state to the deputy in

St. Patrick's Cathedral, Dublin Saint Patrick's Cathedral ( ir, Ard-Eaglais Naomh Pádraig) in Dublin, Ireland, founded in 1191 as a Roman Catholic cathedral, is currently the national cathedral of the Church of Ireland. Christ Church Cathedral, Dublin, Christ Church Cathedr ...

. There was some talk of making him

President of Munster The post of Lord President of Munster was the most important office in the English government of the Irish province of Munster from its introduction in the Elizabethan era for a century, to 1672, a period including the Desmond Rebellions in Munst ...

, and he accompanied Grey to

Drogheda Drogheda ( , ; , meaning "bridge at the ford") is an industrial and port town in County Louth on the east coast of Ireland, north of Dublin. It is located on the Dublin–Belfast corridor on the east coast of Ireland, mostly in County Louth ...

to inspect the fortifications; but being taken dangerously ill, he returned to Dublin in a wagon. He obtained permission to return to England, and left Ireland early in October. On 16 January 1581 he was joined in commission with

George Talbot, 6th Earl of Shrewsbury George Talbot, 6th Earl of Shrewsbury, 6th Earl of Waterford, 12th Baron Talbot, KG, Earl Marshal (c. 1522/1528 – 18 November 1590) was an English magnate and military commander. He also held the subsidiary titles of 15th Baron Strange of ...

and Sir Henry Neville to convey

Mary, Queen of Scots Mary, Queen of Scots (8 December 1542 – 8 February 1587), also known as Mary Stuart or Mary I of Scotland, was Queen of Scotland from 14 December 1542 until her forced abdication in 1567. The only surviving legitimate child of James V of Scot ...

, from

Sheffield Sheffield is a city status in the United Kingdom, city in South Yorkshire, England, whose name derives from the River Sheaf which runs through it. The city serves as the administrative centre of the City of Sheffield. It is Historic counties o ...

Ashby de la Zouch Castle Ashby de la Zouch Castle is a ruined fortification in the town of Ashby-de-la-Zouch, Leicestershire, England. The castle was built by William, Lord Hastings, a favourite of Edward IV, after 1473, accompanied by the creation of a park. Const ...

Leicestershire Leicestershire ( ; postal abbreviation Leics.) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the East Midlands, England. The county borders Nottinghamshire to the north, Lincolnshire to the north-east, Rutland to the east, Northamptonshire t ...

, a house of

Henry Hastings, 3rd Earl of Huntingdon Henry Hastings, 3rd Earl of Huntingdon, KG, KB (c. 153514 December 1595) was an English Puritan nobleman. Educated alongside the future Edward VI, he was briefly imprisoned by Mary I, and later considered by some as a potential successor to E ...

. They were intended to confiscate Mary's papers and send them to London. However, these orders were cancelled and Mary remained in the keeping of the Earl of Shrewsbury at

Chatsworth House Chatsworth House is a stately home in the Derbyshire Dales, north-east of Bakewell and west of Chesterfield, Derbyshire, Chesterfield, England. The seat of the Duke of Devonshire, it has belonged to the House of Cavendish, Cavendish family sin ...

. Pelham still retained the office of lieutenant-general of the ordnance, but he was deeply in debt, and Elizabeth refused either to remit or stall the debts. She made the payment of his arrears a requirement to permit him to serve under

Robert Dudley, 1st Earl of Leicester Robert Dudley, 1st Earl of Leicester, (24 June 1532 – 4 September 1588) was an English statesman and the favourite of Elizabeth I from her accession until his death. He was a suitor for the queen's hand for many years. Dudley's youth was ov ...

in the

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

. Leicester and

Lord Burghley William Cecil, 1st Baron Burghley (13 September 15204 August 1598) was an English statesman, the chief adviser of Queen Elizabeth I for most of her reign, twice Secretary of State (1550–1553 and 1558–1572) and Lord High Treasurer from 1 ...

induced her to accept a mortgage on his property, and in July 1586 he joined Leicester in the Netherlands.

Career in the Netherlands

Leicester, who thought highly of his military abilities, created him marshal of the army, so giving great offence to Sir John Norris and his brother Sir Edward Norris. As for Pelham, he shared Leicester's prejudices against the Norrises, and at a drinking bout on 6 August at Count Hohenlohe's quarters at

Geertruidenberg Geertruidenberg () is a city and municipality in the province North Brabant in the south of the Netherlands. The city, named after Saint Gertrude of Nivelles, received city rights in 1213 from the count of Holland. The fortified city prospered un ...

, he was the cause of a brawl which nearly cost Sir Edward Norris his life. A few days later, while inspecting the trenches before

Doesburg Doesburg () is a municipality and a city in the eastern Netherlands in the province of Gelderland. Doesburg received city rights in 1237 and had a population of in . The city is situated on the right bank of river IJssel, at the confluence of ...

in company with Leicester, he was wounded by a shot in the stomach; the wound did not prove immediately fatal. He was able to take part in the fight at

Zutphen Zutphen () is a city and municipality located in the province of Gelderland, Netherlands. It lies some 30 km northeast of Arnhem, on the eastern bank of the river Ijssel at the point where it is joined by the Berkel. First mentioned in the 1 ...

, and, according to

Fulke Greville Fulke Greville, 1st Baron Brooke, ''de jure'' 13th Baron Latimer and 5th Baron Willoughby de Broke KB PC (; 3 October 1554 – 30 September 1628), known before 1621 as Sir Fulke Greville, was an Elizabethan poet, dramatist, and statesman wh ...

, it was the desire to emulate him that made

Sir Philip Sidney ''Sir'' is a formal honorific address in English for men, derived from Sire in the High Middle Ages. Both are derived from the old French "Sieur" (Lord), brought to England by the French-speaking Normans, and which now exist in French only as p ...

lay aside his

cuisses Cuisses (; ; ) are a form of medieval armour worn to protect the thigh. The word is the plural of the French word ''cuisse'' meaning 'thigh'. While the skirt of a maille shirt or tassets of a cuirass could protect the upper legs from above, a t ...

and so to receive the wound that caused his death. He was entrusted with the task of bringing the recalcitrant citizens of

Deventer Deventer (; Sallands: ) is a city and municipality in the Salland historical region of the province of Overijssel, Netherlands. In 2020, Deventer had a population of 100,913. The city is largely situated on the east bank of the river IJssel, bu ...

to heel. He returned to England with the Earl of Leicester in April 1587, and took the waters at Bath. He was sent back with reinforcements to the Netherlands in the autumn, but died shortly after landing at

Vlissingen Vlissingen (; zea, label= Zeelandic, Vlissienge), historically known in English as Flushing, is a municipality and a city in the southwestern Netherlands on the former island of Walcheren. With its strategic location between the Scheldt river ...

, on 24 November 1587.

Works

Pelham's ''Letter Book'', comprising his diary and official correspondence when lord justice of Ireland, is preserved among the Carew Manuscripts at Lambeth. It was compiled by Morgan Colman, and consists of 455 leaves. The title page is elaborately ornamented. Pelham wrote

commendatory verse The epideictic oratory, also called ceremonial oratory, or praise-and-blame rhetoric, is one of the three branches, or "species" (eidē), of rhetoric as outlined in Aristotle's ''Rhetoric'', to be used to praise or blame during ceremonies. Origin ...

s prefixed to Sir George Peckham's ''A true Reporte of the late Discoveries ... of the Newfound Landes: By ... Sir Humphrey Gilbert'', London, 1583. There is a tract by him, with the title, ''A form or maner howe to have the Exersyse of the Harquebuse thorowe England for the better Defence of the same'', in 'State Papers,’ Dom. Eliz. xliv. 60.

Family

Pelham married, first, Eleanor (died 1574), daughter of

Henry Neville, 5th Earl of Westmorland Henry Neville, 5th Earl of Westmorland (1525–Aug 1563) was an English peer, member of the House of Lords and Knight of the Garter. Life He was born in 1525, the eldest son of Ralph Neville, 4th Earl of Westmorland and his wife, Katherine Staf ...

and his first wife Anne Manners. By her, he had one son, Sir William Pelham, who succeeded him, and married Ann, eldest daughter of Charles Willoughby, 2nd Baron Willoughby of Parham and Margaret Clinton. His second wife was Dorothy (died 1623), daughter of Anthony Catesby of Whiston,

Northamptonshire Northamptonshire (; abbreviated Northants.) is a county in the East Midlands of England. In 2015, it had a population of 723,000. The county is administered by two unitary authorities: North Northamptonshire and West Northamptonshire. It is ...

, and widow of Sir William Dormer, by whom he had a son, Peregrine, and a daughter, Ann. Dorothy left an endowment that became part of the foundation of the

Royal Grammar School, High Wycombe , established = , closed = , type = Selective Grammar SchoolAcademy , head_label = Headmaster , head = Philip Wayne , r_head_label = , r_head = , chair_label = , chair = , founder ...

References

;Attribution * {{DEFAULTSORT:Pelham, William 1520s births 1587 deaths People of Elizabethan Ireland 16th-century English soldiers English knights People from Laughton, East Sussex Year of birth uncertain

William William is a male given name of Germanic origin.Hanks, Hardcastle and Hodges, ''Oxford Dictionary of First Names'', Oxford University Press, 2nd edition, , p. 276. It became very popular in the English language after the Norman conquest of Engl ...

People of the Second Desmond Rebellion