Appendix XIII: Government opponents in 1555

Published in The History of Parliament: the House of Commons 1509-1558, ed. S.T. Bindoff, 1982
Available from Boydell and Brewer

Government opponents in 1555

Guildford mus. Loseley 1331/2

A list of some 106 opponents of a bill survives among the papers of William More II of Loseley in Surrey, More himself being one of those named. According to a note at the end of the list ‘All these in Queen Mary’s time were in the Parliament first holden against the general repeal of all treasons etc. whereby the Statute of the Supremacy was repealed’. This note is almost certainly in a lighter ink and a different hand from the list itself: neither the note nor the list is in the hand of More. An addition made at some time after the original compilation of the list would account for the inaccuracies over the Parliament and the measure concerned. Less than half of the men listed were Members of Mary’s first Parliament, but the names on the list correlate with those of the Members of the Queen’s fourth Parliament, for which nearly all the returns survive. Some of the names are not known from the returns or from any other source: thus the list is in itself evidence of Membership for the Parliament of 1555. During this Parliament two bills introduced by the government caused controversy: the bill for first fruits and tenths passed the Commons only after a division of 193 to 126 votes on 3 Dec. but that to penalize exiles was rejected on a division forced by (Sir) Anthony Kingston and others three days later. Although it is tempting to identify the list of opponents with the Members who aligned themselves with Kingston on the 6th rather than with the ‘noes’ of the 3rd, the evidence is too slim, and also too confused, to warrant certainty in the matter.

spelling not modernized Identity of Members
Sir Anthony Kyngston(Sir) Anthony Kingston
Sir John SentlooSir John St. Loe
Sir Thomas Diere(Sir) Thomas Dyer
Sir Ralph HoptonSir Ralph Hopton
Sir John RogersSir John Rogers
Sir Nicholas PoynsSir Nicholas Poyntz
Sir George HawoodSir George Howard
Sir Thomas Gargrave(Sir)Thomas Gargrave
Sir John Parret(Sir) John Perrot
Sir William CourtneySir William Courtenay
Sir John PollardeSir John Pollard
Sir John ChammonRichard Chamond
Sir Arthur ChamburneSir Arthur Champernon
Sir Giles StrangwysheSir Giles Strangways II
Sir Nicholas Arnolde(Sir) Nicholas Arnold
Sir William Cobham(Sir) William Brooke alias Cobham
Sir George BluntSir George Blount
Sir Thomas Throckmerton(Sir) Thomas Throckmorton I
Sir Nicholas StrangeSir Nicholas Lestrange
Sir Humfrey RatclifeSir Humphrey Radcliffe
Sir Roger Northe(Sir) Roger North
Sir Geams StumpeSir James Stumpe
Sir Lawrens SmytheSir Lawrence Smith
Sir Andro CorbetSir Andrew Corbet
Mr CoksJohn Cock II
Mr RastwoldeAnthony Restwold
Mr MoneReginald Mohun
Mr SmythykeWilliam Smethwick
Mr Mathew ArrundelMatthew Arundell
Mr ByngeRobert Byng
Mr MarsheJohn Marshe
Mr YoungeJohn Young
Mr BullarJohn Buller
Mr MorgayneWilliam Morgan
Mr JonesRichard Jones
Mr Jones1
Mr WyllyamsThomas Williams II
Mr Raphe SkynnerRalph Skinner
Mr ClyffordeHenry Clifford
Mr Portor of Greys InWilliam Porter
Mr Portor of GlositerArthur Porter
Mr MessengerWilliam Massinger
Mr BaseleyWilliam Baseley
Mr ErbyeLeonard Irby
Mr BoldePhilip Bold
Mr ChuneNicholas Chowne
Mr MoreWilliam More II
Mr VaghanJohn Vaughan II
Mr John ChalinerJohn Chaloner II
Mr CavelHumphrey Cavell
Mr VarneyEdmund Verney
Mr VarneyFrancis Verney
Mr John AsheleyJohn Astley
Mr BowyereRobert Bowyer II
Mr KnyghtRichard Knight
Mr NowelRobert Nowell
Mr SakfordeThomas Seckford
Mr CaryeHenry Carey
Mr HolmesJohn Holmes I
Mr DruryeRobert Drury I
Mr Thomas HuggonThomas Hogan
Mr PerneChristopher Perne
Mr DennysRobert Denys
Mr RobothimRobert Robotham
Mr AppleyeardeJohn Appleyard
Mr T dloo2George Tadlowe
Mr FowlarJohn Fowler
Mr B dnam3Henry Bodenham
Mr PeytonJohn Peyton
Mr PleydallGabriel Pleydell
Mr RandeNicholas Rand
Mr SmytheThomas Smith II
Mr HuntleyGeorge Huntley
Mr DevenisheWilliam Devenish
Mr RandollNicholas Randall
Mr LyghtEdmund Lyte
Mr FillipsJohn Phelips
Mr HodgskynsHenry Hodgkins
Mr PekhamHenry Peckham
Mr ChevertonHenry Chiverton
Mr CroucheWilliam Crowche
Mr FludkynMorris Llewellyn
Mr RydleyThomas Ridley
Mr ActonWilliam Acton
Mr David SeymerDavid Seymour
Mr ThornnefFrancis Thorneff
Mr BoltonJohn Bolton
The baron of BirportRichard Cornwall
Mr Thomas FillipsThomas Phelips
Mr FulksRobert Fowke
Mr Clement HietClement Hyett
Mr George WilliamsGeorge Williams
Mr FarrarRobert Farrar
Mr Semar4
Mr FissherHenry Fisher
Mr MaleryWilliam Mallory
Thomas Maria WynkfildThomas Maria Wingfield
Mr Jobson of HayleWalter Jobson
Mr SpiserThomas Spicer
Mr FenneNicholas Fen
Mr BalgyeJohn Balgye
Mr SturtonArthur or William Stourton
Mr CorbytReginald Corbet
Mr KemptorneJohn Ley alias Kempthorn
Mr TyrrellMaurice Tyrrell
Mr George CobhamGeorge Brooke alias Cobham

Ref Volumes: 1509-1558

Author: S. T. Bindoff

End Notes

  • 1. Unless a copyist’s error in repeating the preceding name, this entry refers either to a knight of some two years’ standing, (Sir) Henry Jones I, or more likely to an otherwise unknown Member named Jones.
  • 2. Ms punctured.
  • 3. Ms punctured.
  • 4. Thought to be a repetition of David Seymour’s name which comes not long before it on the list: otherwise a namesake who eludes identification.