Sir Thomas Button Later Life Details

Date: [unknown] [unknown]
Location: [unknown]

A courageous seaman and an able navigator, Button had the misfortune to serve during a period of considerable corruption in the Stuart navy. He persistently pursued the back pay he was owed over the course of his 33 year career in the navy. In January 1625 he received a warrant to back pay of over 3615 pounds, a fortune in those times. However this warrant was not honoured by the exchequer, and he was not paid. In October 1625 he wrote to the admiralty detailing what he had personally paid in supplying his ship, but he received no reimbursement^[1][2].

In 1627 he mortgaged his lands in Glamorgan, Wales to raise funds, but was then unable to repay the 1243 pounds needed to discharge the mortgage. Although he had been depending on the warrant of back pay, he had only 100 pounds of pay available. When he seized a vessel with a salt cargo worth 1400 pounds as a prize of war, he petitioned to be given some of the proceeds. He then removed some of the salt without permission. This action was discovered in March 1631, leading to censures. He travelled to London to protest in November 1631 but was refused an audience. After waiting 24 weeks for a meeting, Button returned to Glamorgan, ill and on the verge of bankruptcy. In February 1634 he was charged with several offences, harbouring a pirate, turning over command to a lieutenant without permission and failing to prevent a pirate raid on Baltimore, Ireland in 1631. Button cleared his name with vigour and courage, but died before the amount of funds due him was decided^[3].

On 8 April 1634 Button was buried at St Margaret's, Westminster, survived by his wife and five of their seven children. He left no will, but his Welsh lands had not been seized by the Admiralty, and therefore were inherited his eldest son, Miles. Miles mortgaged the land to pay his father's debts. After waiting three years, his widow received 650 pounds (equivalent to about 98,000 pounds in 2015) from the government in settlement of pay and expenses he was owed^[4].

Return to the main page, click Sir Thomas Button: Thomas Button (abt.1565-1634).