Thomas Howard, 1st Earl of Suffolk

Thomas Howard

Thomas Howard, 1st Earl of Suffolk KG (born August 24, 1561 - † May 28, 1626 , London ) was an English politician. He was an admiral during the Spanish-English war and took part in the conquest of Cadiz . He later exposed the Guy Fawkes conspiracy . After all, he held the office of Lord High Treasurer . He had to resign on charges of corruption .

Life

Thomas Howard was born the younger son of the 4th Duke of Norfolk (1538–1572) and Margaret Audley (1540–1563 / 64), who were executed for treason in 1572 .

He was educated in Cambridge. At the request of his father before his execution, he married his stepsister Mary Dacre (1563 / 64–1578). In his second marriage he married Katherine Knyvet (1565 / 66-1633). This and his uncle Henry Howard, 1st Earl of Northampton , determined his actions to a great extent. A daughter from his second marriage was Frances Howard .

Although his father was executed as a traitor and all his titles and possessions had been confiscated by the crown, he still managed to win the favor of Queen Elizabeth I. In the fight against the Spanish Armada in 1588 he commanded a ship and was promoted to Knight Bachelor on July 25, 1588 by Grand Admiral Charles Howard, 2nd Baron Howard of Effingham , a distant relative, while at sea .

During the Anglo-Spanish War in 1591 he commanded a squadron in the Azores as an admiral . The aim was to intercept the Spanish silver fleet. Instead of the treasure fleet, the English ships encountered a Spanish navy. The English ships, with the exception of the Revenge , managed to escape; his Vice Admiral Richard Grenville was fatally wounded in the battle for the ship. He held a similar command in 1596/97. Here, the English attacked Cadiz , defeated a Spanish fleet and conquered (at times) the city.

On April 23, 1597 he was accepted as a Knight Companion in the Order of the Garter and solemnly introduced to the Order on May 24, 1597. On October 24, 1597, he was appointed to the House of Lords by a Writ of Summons and thus elevated to hereditary Baron Howard de Walden . Despite criticism from Walter Raleigh and others, he became fleet admiral in 1599. In 1601 he became constable of the Tower . In the uprising of Robert Devereux, 2nd Earl of Essex , he was marshal of the troops who besieged and finally arrested him in his Essex House estate in Strand near London. Later he was a member of the court that ruled Essex.

Finally, after James I ascended the throne on July 21, 1603 , Howard became Earl of Suffolk . He also became Lord Chamberlain and a member of the Privy Council . During this time, he began building the magnificent Audley End House . In 1605 he uncovered the Gunpowder Plot planned by Guy Fawkes .

In 1614 he received the office of Lord High Treasurer and became Chancellor of the University of Cambridge . The murder of Thomas Overbury by his daughter Frances Howard did him no further harm, although he supported her marriage to Robert Carr, 1st Earl of Somerset and later helped clear up incriminating material.

Due to various offenses he and his wife were indicted in 1619 on charges of corruption and a fine of 30,000 pounds sterling convicted and sentenced. However, they were released after ten days. The fine was later reduced to £ 7,000.

He received no more public office except for the position of High Steward of Exeter in 1621.

His descendants not only inherited the title of Earl of Suffolk to this day, but also acquired the title of Earl of Berkshire in 1626 through his son from his second marriage, Thomas (1587–1669). Both titles are now in one Person united, while the title of Baron Howard de Walden has passed to other families through female succession.

He was buried in Saffron Walden .

literature

• Gordon Goodwin: Howard, Thomas (1561-1626) . In: Sidney Lee (Ed.): Dictionary of National Biography (DNB). Volume 28, Smith, Elder & Co., London 1891, pp. 71-73.
• Alan Palmer, Veronica Palmer: Who's Who in Shakespeare's England. New York 1999, p. 126.
• Genealogical handbook of the nobility, Princely houses. Volume VII, CA Starke-Verlag, Limburg 1964, pp. 502, 516, 517.

Web links

• Thomas Howard, 1st Earl of Suffolk on thepeerage.com

Individual evidence

1. ↑ ^{a b c} DNB
2. ^ William Arthur Shaw: The Knights of England. Volume 2, Sherratt and Hughes, London 1906, p. 86.
3. ^ William Arthur Shaw: The Knights of England. Volume 1, Sherratt and Hughes, London 1906, p. 29.

predecessor	Office	successor
New title created	Baron Howard de Walden 1597-1626	Theophilus Howard
New title created	Earl of Suffolk 1603-1626	Theophilus Howard
George Carey	Lord Chamberlain of the Household 1603-1614	Robert Carr
Thomas Egerton (First Lord of the Commission of the Treasury )	Lord High Treasurer 1614-1618	George Abbot (First Lord of the Commission of the Treasury )