Richard (Edwards) Edwardes Sr.

Ancestors

Husband of Helen (Griffith) Edwards — married 1562 in Buckden, England

Descendants

Died 31 Oct 1566 in St. Faith Parish, London, England

Problems/Questions Profile manager: Nancy Snow [send private message]

Disputed Origins

The father William Edwards is believed by many to be the non-biological father. William Edwards is highly believed not to be the father.

Rumor has long had it that Agnes Blewitt was a mistress of Henry VIII and had a son Richard by him.

No proof of the rumors exists. FMG does not list Agnes as a mistress, and the fairly recent book by Kelly Hart, The Mistresses of Henry VIII (2009) says that it is unlikely.

We need DNA with Henry VIII and a descendant of Richard. Henry VIII lineage needs to be included for Richard.

Following Wikitree guidelines, therefore, we have detached Richard as a son of Henry.

Biography

On January 5, 2015 at 17:06GMT Elizabeth Ross wrote:

It is suggested in some documents including in the book 'Edward's Legacy by David Dean Edwards (1992), that it was whispered among some Tudor researchers that Agnes was mistress to King Henry VIII of England and that the son Richard was fathered by King Henry and not by William. But no solid proof has yet to be found if it ever will be. Nor has solid proof been found that Richard was the son of William either. It will be up to the researcher as to which line to follow. I believe that the evidence leans more towards the fact that Richard was the "bastard" son of the King and Agnes and my documentation here will reveal that line. It is documented that Agnes did have a son named Richard, but only 2 sons, William and Henry are shown to be positively the sons of William. Richard is said to have kept his Edwards last name out of shame for the indecency that his mother engaged in. King Henry Tudor was born ca. 1491 and died ca. 1546. He had a mistress named Agnes Blewitt who was born 1509 and she died ca.1575. The 1 child of King Henry VIII Tudor and Agnes is as follows: Richard Edwards •• Note ** It has also been suggested that Agnes was the wife of William Edwardes, born ca. 1500 in England and died ca. 1547. The son Richard is the son that cannot be positively linked to William because records suggest that he was born from another man, King Henry VIII. He is known as the "bastard child" of Agnes.

The two known children of William Edwardes and Agnes are as follows: William Edwards

1561
English composer and poet, who became Master of the Children of the Chapel Royal in 1561 and wrote two plays for them. His five surviving songs, of which the most famous is In going to my naked bed, show the influence of the Franco-Flemish style on English music before the arrival of the Italian madrigal. Three keyboard arrangements of 3 part-songs (only one assigned to him, but the other two assumed to be his from his authorship of the words) survive in MS. English playwright Born in Somerset, Edwards was educated at Oxford, receiving both a Bachelor's and a Master's degree. He considered the law as a career, entering Lincoln's Inn Field, but never took up the practice. Instead he became master of the children at the Chapel Royal, where he created musical dramas that the children's choir could perform. The composition, 'Palamon and Arcite' was written for the Queen, and was performed at Oxford. Sadly this has since been lost. The Queen was impressed with the piece, and intended to bestow a gift on Edwards, but he died soon after the performance. Little more is known of Edwards' life.

Edwards' importance as a playwright is that he instigated the basing of the English tragedy on the Latin classical model. His plays were classical in subject, but were set in a contemporary world. The only play of his that is still in existence is 'Damon and Pithias' (1571), and he notes in this his intention to follow Horace in his decorum. The play does not break up into parts in the way other plays of the time did in order, for example, to suggest the passage of time. In this way his play has been seen as having a more natural effect. It has been noted that his true talent was, however, for comedy. He helped to develop the popular appeal of Elizabethan tragedy in pioneering what was, in effect, comic relief in a play. One only has to look at the famous grave digger scene in Shakespeare's 'Hamlet' to see how great this influence was.

'Damon and Pithias' was a rhymed play about two Greek characters. Based on a Greek legend, it tells of how they both insist in giving up their life for each other, as one of them is to be executed by Dionysus. Dionysus is so impressed with their selflessness that he asks to join their brotherhood, and the execution is forgotten. Edwards also compiled the influential 'Paradyse of Dainty Devises' (published posthumously, 1576), a collection of minor poets of the 1560's and 70's. The Edwards Family - http://www.jaimeadams.com/edwards.htmlOf Corpus Christi College and Christ Church, Oxford, was master of the children of the Chapel Royal, 1561. He composed Palamon and Arcite (now lost) for Queen Elizabeth's entertainment at Oxford, 1566. The Excellent Comedie of ... Damon and Pithias (printed 1571) is his only extant play. He was the compiler of the Paradyse of Dainty Devises, published after his death (1576). The Edwards Family - http://www.jaimeadams.com/edwards.html

[Edwards-Richard-1524-Descendants.FTW] - Excelled at Oxford University and went on to become a great poet, playwright and composer and master of the Children in the Chaple Royal.[Edwards-Richard-1524-Family.FTW]

1563
He married Helen Griffith in 1563. The Edwards Family - http://www.jaimeadams.com/edwards.html

1566
Richard died October 31, 1566.[Evans, Heinreichs, Melville, Outlaw, Scarlett, Tanis.FTW]

[Freeland Little 4.ged]

Richard Edwards - Time-Line

General
Diana Edwards Roy - Edwards Clan-(William 1500, Robert 1475, John 1450, John 1420) Before coming to Colonial America, the Edwards name was spelled EDWARDES. Widely believed, the earliest Edwards in our family line is JOHN EDWARDES. EDWARDS Generally believed to be a Welsh family name, its use can be found in England 200 years before it appeared in Wales. The name is derived from the old English word Eadweard which means 'prosperity guard'. Prior to the Norman conquest, Edward was a personal name with widespread use. Many references to the name can be found in the Domesday Book, including one 'Eaduuardus 1066'.The Welsh use of hereditary family names started as late as the 16th century when the normal practice was to take the fathers name as the family name. Thus there became a large number of family names taken from the names of Evan, Hugh, William, Davy and Edward COAT OF ARM Sermine, a gold lion rampant. (Taken from Burke's General Armoury) FAMILY MOTTO: Duw fyddo ein cryfdwr - God be our strength.

1523
Richard was born 1523 in Somersetshire, England and died 1566 in Cadiff, England. The Edwards Family - http://www.jaimeadams.com/edwards.html

Somerset: - A list of worthies and unworthies and villains born in the county Burialls The Somerset Roll Burials County: Somerset Country: England Edwards, Richard ( 1523 ?- 1566 ), Poet and Playwright. Born about 1523. Died 31 Oct 1566.

More About Richard E, Sr. Edwardes: Burial: Unknown290, 291 Christening: March 1524/25, North Petherton Parish, Somerset, England, Great Britain.292, 293 Record Change: October 23, 2004294, 295

More About Richard E, Sr. Edwardes and Helen Griffith: Marriage: 1562, England.296, 297, 298, 299 Marriage Notes for Richard E, Sr. Edwardes and Helen Griffith:

or 1563.[Evans, Heinreichs, Melville, Outlaw, Scarlett, Tanis.FTW]

[Freeland Little 4.ged] [Freeland Little 4.ged]

or 1563.

Children of Richard E, Sr. Edwardes and Helen Griffith are: +Richard B, Jr. Edwards, b. November 22, 1566, North Petherton, Somerset, England, Great Britain - also listed as: Cardiff, Giamorganshire, Wales and B: about 1554300, 301, d. April 19, 1635, Hagley Hall302, 303. http://familytreemaker.genealogy.com/users/m/e/l/Felicia-A-Melville-SC/WEBSITE-0001/UHP-0069.html

Links

• Wikipedia: Richard Edwardes

Sources

• Chalmers' General Biographical Dictionary

View Record Name Richard Edwards Birth Date 1523 Death Date 31 Oct 1556 Or 1566 Page number 55 Volume Number Volume 13

• Familytreemaker.genealogy.com/katherine-Davis/Website

• Hart, K. (2009). The Mistresses of Henry VIII. History Press.

• http://www.thepeerage.com/p23634.htm#i236337

• J. Ralph Lindgren. The Lindgren/Tryon Genealogy: The Ancestry of John Ralph Lindgren and Shirley Ann Tryon, Revised Edition, Trafford Publishing, Jan 24, 2008 Limited Version on GoogleBooks

• http://www.thepeerage.com/p23634.htm#i236337

• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard_Edwardes

• (https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/186683909/richard-blewett-edwards: accessed 26 October 2023), memorial page for Rev Richard Blewett Edwards I (25 Mar 1525–31 Oct 1566), Find A Grave: Memorial #186683909; Burial Details Unknown, Lost to time; Maintained by Plantagenet Crown Dynasty (contributor 49922906).(https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/77262283/elizabeth-hunt: accessed 26 October 2023), memorial page for Elizabeth Edwards Hunt (1564–unknown),Find A Grave: Memorial #77262283; Burial Details Unknown, Lost in time; Maintained by The Cemetery Lady (contributor 47893478).

• Foster, Joseph: Alumni Oxonienses 1500-1714, on BHO: scholar of Corpus Christi Coll. 11 May, 1540, from Somerset; B.A. 3 Nov. 1544, fellow 1544; student of Christ Church 1547, M.A. 1547