The picture of Sir Henry Wyatt in
the Louve. Henry VII knighted him for his bravery.
A few Wyatt names which stand out in English history of this period were: Henry Wiatt 1467-1537 was influential in helping place Henry VII on the throne. For this loyalty he was knighted and given a large estate. His picture hangs in the Louvre. His son, Sir Thomas Wyatt, 1503-1542, poet and statesman, married Elizabeth Brooke, daughter of Lord Cobham (who had an unbroken line of descent from Charlemagne which included William the Conqueror and numerous kings). His picture hangs in Windsor Castle. His son, Sir Thomas Wyatt II 1520-1554, a zealous Protestant, led an ill-fated expedition against London in protest against the marriage of Queen Mary Tudor to Catholic Philip II of Spain. He was convicted of treason and hanged April 11, 1554. His estates and titles were confiscated but were restored in part to the family during the reign of Queen Elizabeth.
|
Sir Henry Wyatt of Yorkshire was born about 1460 and died November 10,1536 at Allington Castle. He married Anne, daughter of John Skinner of Surrey. It is said by historians that he was the most beloved man in England in his day. Henry attended college with Henry Tudor (later King Henry VII) at Eton. At this time Richard III was on the throne and was very uneasy about the fact that Henry Tudor, the legal heir, could claim the crown. Richard III did not want Sir Henry Wyatt, a man of wealth and influence, to be on such friendly terms with Henry Tudor. The King was afraid to kill Sir Henry outright, but he did have Sir Henry Wyatt imprisoned for two years in a tower in Scotland. It is said that Sir Henry was even required to wear instruments of torture called barnacles while imprisoned. According to his son, Sir Henry was racked in the presence of King Richard himself. Once he was imprisoned in a cold and narrow tower where he was given neither enough clothes to keep him warm nor enough food. He would have starved there had it not been for a cat named Acater that came almost every day with a pigeon for him to eat.
Upon the death of Richard III on Bosworth Field, Henry Tudor ascended the throne and freed and knighted Sir Henry Wyatt. On the day of his coronation, King Henry VII granted Henry his coat of arms as Knight Banneret. Henry VII bestowed lands and estates on Sir Henry until he was one of the wealthiest of the Tudor families. Henry VII did this in appreciation for the suffering of Sir Henry while in prison. The king also made him guardian of his son Henry (later Henry VIII) and executor of his estate. Sir Henry was admitted to the Privy Council by Henry VIII in April 1509 and became Knight of the Bath in 1509. He was in the Vanguard at the Battle of the Spurs in 1513 and accompanied King Henry VIII to the Field of Cloth and Gold in 1520.
In 1485 Sir Henry was appointed Yeoman Assistant to Sir William Tyler, the Master of the King's Jewels and Plate; two years later he was promoted to Clerk of Jewels, and after the death of Tyler in 1490, Sir Henry succeeded him as Master. Soon thereafter he was also appointed Treasurer of the King's Chamber, and the two positions combined made him active and influential in financial matters. He remained Master of the Jewels for thirty-four years, resigning in 1524. He retained the position of Treasurer of the King's Chamber until 1528. Sir Henry Wyatt died November 10,1536 at Allington Castle and was buried at Milton near Gravesend, as requested in his will.
Thomas Wyatt, son of the poet, at first supported Mary I. But then her intent to marry Phillip II of Spain concerned Thomas Wyatt that the country would come under the rule of a Spanish King. Considering it his duty to prevent the marriage he led a rebellion against Queen Mary from Allington, entering London and demanding that the Tower be surrendered to him. These demand s roused the citizens of London who came to the defense of Queen Mary. He finally surrendered, was brought to trial and was executed. His head was hung on the gallows at Haymarket beside Hyde Park.
Sir George Wyatt, son of Sir Thomas and Jane Haute, was restored to his estate at Boxley by Queen Elizabeth in 1570. He married Jane, daughter of Sir Thomas Finch of Eastwell in 1582. Between 1590 and his death he devoted most of his efforts to study and writing. His interests included theology, the Military Sciences and history, particularly the history ofthe English Reformation in which his father and grandfather played such important and hazardous parts. His main project appears to have been a eulogistic biography of Anne Boleyn. He died in Ireland and was buried at Boxley in 1624.
Sir Francis Wyatt was the first English colonial governor of Virginia. He sailed for America on August 1, 1621 on board the George. He became governor shortly after his arrival in October, taking with him the first written constitution for an English colony. In 1622 he rallied the defense of Jamestown which was attacked by Native Americans, during which the lives of some 400 settlers were lost and he then oversaw the contraction of the colony from scattered outposts into a defensive core.
Wyatt was governor of Virginia from November 1621. Virginia became a royal colony in 1624, but Sir Francis, at the request of the crown, remained on as governor until September 18, 1625, when Sir George Yeardley, whom he had succeeded, resumed the office. In 1624, Wyatt resided in Jamestown with his wife, his brother Haute, and seventeen servants. In 1625, he received a black servant girl after a court settlement from her previous employer. After leaving office, he left Virginia for the Ireland and England to settle his father's estate. He was appointed governor again in 1639, sailing from England to take up his post. He served from November 1639 until February 1641 and was then succeeded by Sir William Berkeley. He arranged the purchase of the home of the previous governor to use as the first designated "state house" of the colony, the government previously having met in the church.
Sir Francis's wife was named Margaret; she was the niece of George Sandys, the Treasurer of Jamestown. Francis and Margaret had children including Henry and Francis who was at King's College, Cambridge, 1639.