Francis Carew MP (abt. 1530 - 1611)

Born about 1530 in England

Ancestors

Died 16 May 1611 at about age 81 in Beddington, Surrey, England

Problems/Questions Profile manager: Nick Kennedy [send private message]

Biography

Early Life

Francis was born in about 1530, and was the only son of Sir Nicholas Carew and Elizabeth (Bryan) Carew.

His father despite being a cousin of Anne Boleyn,^[1] had been a supporter of Catharine of Aragon when King Henry VIII was seeking to divorce her to marry Anne Boleyn. He was allegedly involved in the 1538 Exeter Conspiracy plot to replace Henry on the English throne with Henry Courtenay, First Marquess of Exeter who was descended from Edward IV. Cardinal Reginald Pole was in correspondence with Courtenay and Carew, and a papist plot was suspected. ^[2]

His father was found guilty of high treason and attainted and executed on 3 March 1539/40. All his lands and properties were forfeit to the crown by his attainder, and his mother was only able to maintain herself in some degree of comfort through the influence of her brother Sir Francis Bryan who was one of Henry VIII's favourites ^[3].

Beddington

Francis gradually recovered most of the properties, by grant or purchase. His main residence at Beddington, Surrey, England was later purchased from the first Baron Darcy of Chiche to whom it had been granted. ^[4] Beddington is about twelve miles South of Central London, and is between Croydon and Carshalton. Beddington had been in the hands of the Carew family since 1352 and, although somewhat smaller by then, was still in the possession of Carew decendants at the beginning of the twentieth century. ^[5]. Francis rebuilt the house, laid out magnificent gardens and entertained both Queen Elizabeth I and King James I there. ^[4]

Career

He entered the service of Queen Mary in 1553, and it was at this time that he regained much of his father's lands which had been lost on the attainder. He remained a courtier on Queen Elizabeth's accession, and in 1561 accompanied his sister Anne to join her husband Sir Nicholas Throckmorton who was English Ambassador in Paris, France.^[6] William Cecil, Lord Burghley the Queen's chief adviser took this opportunity to sound out Throckmorton's views on Francis' suitability to succeed him in Paris, and Throckmorton, although recognising the honour and suggesting that he had 'some meet parts', replied that 'there lacks in him a second and greater degree than to be a good courtier, that is skill in negotiation of matters, not having been traded nor given thereunto, but chiefly to pleasure' and concluded he was not suitable for the post. ^[6]. Despite this, the Queen suggested him in 1572 as ambassador in Scotland, an appointment he did not want and worked hard to evade.^[6]

In 1563 he was returned as member of Parliament for Castle Rising, but there is no record of him taking part in Commons activities and he did not sit again. Thereafter though still involved at court, he was mainly involved in the affairs of his county, Surrey, and his estates.^[6]

He was sheriff of Surrey in 1567/8, was knighted in 1576, was Deputy Lieutenant of Surrey from 1587, and served as a commissioner on an enquiry into the activities of seminarians and jesuits in 1591. In 1588 he was under arms in Dover against the Spanish Armada, although there is no record that he ever saw any fighting. ^[6]

His Legacy

He died on 16 May 1611 and was buried in St Mary's Church Beddington on 18 June 1611^[7]

He had never married and, having no male siblings, his main estates at Beddington passed to his nephew Sir Nicholas Throckmorton on his death in 1611. ^[5]. Sir Nicholas changed his name to Carew after his death. Francis' 1611 will refers to Sir Nicholas having agreed to change his name to Carew as a condition of his inheriting Beddington, ^[8]

One other noteworthy feature from his will is the treatment as a man, who had never married, of his various Nephews and Nieces. Nicholas Throckmorton, the son of his sister Anne was as already mentioned the principal heir, while the other Nephew who benefited was Nicholas Saunders, son of his sister Isabel who was given a legacy of £300 and had debts of an unknown amount to Francis cancelled. There is a suggestion that Francis may have had to rescue the family from financial difficulty after the death of his son in law Nicholas Saunders in 1587^[9], but his son Nicholas, a Member of Parliament, had been knighted in 1603. The treatment of these two contrasts with Elizabeth the wife of Sir Walter Raleigh who was only bequeathed a piece of furniture.

Research Notes

A draft transcription of Francis' Will can be worked upon here.(Kennedy-14080 21:01, 14 July 2020 (UTC))

Sources

1. ↑ Nicholas Carew in Wikipedia contributors, "Nicholas Carew (courtier)," Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Nicholas_Carew_(courtier)&oldid=957940930 (accessed July 9, 2020).
2. ↑ Exeter Conspiracy in Wikipedia contributors, "Exeter Conspiracy."Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Exeter Conspiracy&oldid=914816043 (accessed July 7 2020)
3. ↑ Francis Carew in Wikipedia contributors, "Francis Carew (MP for Castle Rising)," Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Francis_Carew_(MP_for_Castle_Rising)&oldid=955553356 (accessed July 9, 2020).
4. ↑ ^{4.0 4.1} 'Beddington', The Environs of London: volume 1: County of Surrey (1792), pp. 49–67 in https://www.british-history.ac.uk/london-environs/vol1/pp49-67 (accessed July 9 2020)
5. ↑ ^{5.0 5.1} The Carew family of Beddington: Deeds and Estate Records: File 281 in https://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/details/r/5146ec30-d1ed-4124-a369-01ee532c612b (accessed July 6 2020)
6. ↑ ^{6.0 6.1 6.2 6.3 6.4} CAREW Francis in The History of Parliament: the House of Commons 1558-1603, ed. P.W. Hasler (1981) - online - Author of this biography Roger Virgoe http://www.historyofparliamentonline.org/volume/1558-1603/member/carew-francis-1530-1611. (accessed July 6 2020)
7. ↑ Francis Carew on June 18 1611 in Sutton. Surrey. England Church of England Births, Marriages and Burials 1530-1812: St Mary's Beddington: transcript "June 18 1611 Sir Francis Carew was buried"
8. ↑ Francis Carew's will in PROB 11: Will Registers 1599-1623 Piece 117: Wood, Quire Numbers 1-58 (1611)# Ancestry subscription required
9. ↑ See the Research Note on Saunders-4066

Acknowledgements

• This profile has been improved by a member of the England Project's Orphan Trail