Thomas Wilson MP (1523 - 1581)

Born 1523 in Strubby, Lincolnshire, England [uncertain]

Ancestors

Descendants

Died May 1581 at about age 58 in Edmonton, Middlesex, England

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Biography

This profile is part of the Wilson Name Study.

Sir Thomas Wilson was "an English diplomat and judge who served as a privy councillor and secretary of state to Queen Elizabeth I. He is now remembered principally for his Logique (1551) and The Arte of Rhetorique (1553), which have been called 'the first complete works on logic and rhetoric in English.'"^[1]

Thomas Wilson, the son of Thomas Wilson of Strubby, Lincolnshire and Anne (Cumberworth) Wilson, daughter and heir of Roger Cumberworth of Cumberworth, Lincolnshire, was born in in 1523.^[2]

Thomas married, first, about 1560, Agnes (Wynter) Brooke, daughter of John Wynter of Lyndney, Gloucestershire and widow of William Brook. They had 1 son and two daughters, all by 1565. Thomas' wife Agnes died in June 1574.^[3]

Thomas married, second, by 1576, Jane (Empson) Pinchon, the daughter of Richard Empson of London and widow of John Pinchon of Writtle, Essex.^[4]

Thomas died in May 1581. Since he had recently before his death been living on his estate, Pymmes, at Edmonton, Middlesex, he probably died there.^[5]

Life Events^[6]

1523: Thomas was born in Strubby, Lincolnshire.

1537: Matriculated at Eton as a King's scholar.

1542: Matriculated at King's College, Cambridge.

1547: Awarded Bachelor of Arts degree.

1549: Awarded Master of Arts degree.

1551: Contributed funeral verses to John Cheke's commemorative volume for Martin Bucer, De Obitu and edits with Walter Haddon Vita et Obitus, funeral verses commemorative of the Brandon Boys.

1552: Edits Walter Haddon's oration Exhortiatio ad Literas.

1553: Wrote and published the Art of Rhetoric, one of the most successful books of its kind during the English Renaissance.

1554: Exile din Padua.

1557-1558: Advocated appealed marriage annulment in Rome relating to Richard Chetwood and Agnes Woodhall.

1558: Ordered to return to England and appear before the Privy Council. Tried and imprisoned by Roman Inquisition.

1559: Freed by rioting mob from imprisonment. Awarded Doctor of Civil Laws degree from University of Ferrara.

1560: Returned to England. Married Agnes, the widow of William Brooke, daughter of John Wynter. One son and two daughters born by 1565.

1563: Returned to House of Commons from the borough of Mitchell, Cornwall.

1567: Emissary to Portugal.

1571: Returned to House of Commons from the city of Lincoln.

1574: His wife, Agnes, died.

1576: Married Jane Pynchon. Also emissary to the Netherlands.

1577: Principal secretary and privy councilor.

1579: His wife, Jane, died.

1581: 20 May, Thomas Wilson died and was buried the next day in the Church of St. Katherine's Hospital, London.

"Thomas left a will and last testament, written 19 May 1581, the day before his death. In his will, he made provisions for his three children, all of whom were unmarried, ranging in age from sixteen to twenty. Each of his two daughters, Mary and Lucretia, received 500 marks upon her marriage or coming of age. His son, Nicholas, was bequeathed the remainder of the estate. Executors were Wilson's colleague, Sir Francis Walsingham, his former brother-in-law, Sir William Wynter, and his cousin, Matthew Smith. Thomas also mentioned his brother, Godfrey Wilson, who had been managing Thomas's business affairs in Durham. A straight 'accompt' was to be made of Godfrey's handling of Wilson's business there, for which he was to receive 100 pounds, but only on the condition that he be 'found honest, otherwise, nothing."^[7]

Thomas's children:

Nicholas was married to Anne Henneage, daughter of William Henneage of Bemmiworth and resided in Sheepwash.

Mary was married to Robert Burdett, of Bramcote, Warwickshire. They were the parents of several daughters and a son.

Lucretia married Sir Geroge Belgrave, of Belgrave, Leicestershire and were the parents of eight children.

Sources

1. ↑ Thomas Wilson (rhetorician) on Wikipedia.
2. ↑ The visitation of the county of Lincoln in 1562-4, by Cook, Robert. cn; Metcalfe, Walter Charles, ed; Harvey, William, d. 1567; College of Arms (Great Britain) cn, Publication date, 1881, pages 73 and 74.
3. ↑ "WILSON, Thomas (1523-81), of Washingborough, Lincs. and Edmonton, Mdx." The History of Parliament: the House of Commons 1558-1603, ed. P.W. Hasler, 1981. Link to article at historyofparliamentonline.org.
4. ↑ "WILSON, Thomas (1523-81), of Washingborough, Lincs. and Edmonton, Mdx." The History of Parliament: the House of Commons 1558-1603, ed. P.W. Hasler, 1981. Link to article at historyofparliamentonline.org.
5. ↑ "WILSON, Thomas (1523-81), of Washingborough, Lincs. and Edmonton, Mdx." The History of Parliament: the House of Commons 1558-1603, ed. P.W. Hasler, 1981. Link to article at historyofparliamentonline.org.
6. ↑ Thomas Wilson, Twayne's English Authors Series; Arthur F. Kienny, Editor, University of Massachusetts, Amherst. Peter E. Medine, author. 1986.
7. ↑ Thomas Wilson, Twayne's English Authors Series; Arthur F. Kienny, Editor, University of Massachusetts, Amherst. Peter E. Medine, author. 1986.

• "WILSON, Thomas (1523-81), of Washingborough, Lincs. and Edmonton, Mdx." The History of Parliament: the House of Commons 1558-1603, ed. P.W. Hasler, 1981. Link to article at historyofparliamentonline.org.