Francis Windebank
Sir Francis Windebank | |
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Born | 1582 |
Died | 1646 Paris, France | (aged 63–64)
Alma mater | St John's College, Oxford |
Children | |
Parents |
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Sir Francis Windebank (1582 – 1 September 1646) was an English politician who was Secretary of State under Charles I.[1]
Biography
Francis was the only son of Sir Thomas Windebank of Hougham, Lincolnshire, who owed his advancement to the Cecil family, Francis entered St John's College, Oxford, in 1599, coming there under the influence of the Archbishop of Canterbury, William Laud. After a few years of continental travel (1605–1608), he settled at Haines Hill at Hurst in Berkshire and was employed for many years in minor public offices, eventually becoming clerk of the council.[2]
In June 1632, he was appointed by King Charles I as Secretary of State in succession to
In December 1634 Windebank was appointed to discuss with the papal agent
Windebank's efforts as treasury commissioner in 1635 to shield some of those guilty of corruption led to a breach with Archbishop Laud. In the same year Windebank was one of the promoters of the Courteen association,[3] and the next year he was for a time disgraced for issuing an order for the conveyance of Spanish money to pay the Spanish troops in the Netherlands.[2]
In July 1638 he urged the king to make war with the
Family
Windebank married and had a large family. William Laud referred in 1630 to his "many sons".[4] He had five at least, and four survived him:[5]
- Thomas (born c. 1612), was M.P. for Wootton Bassett and supported the Royalist cause in the English Civil War. He was made a baronet in 1645. He was Clerk of the Signet from 1641 until 1645 and again (after the Interregnum) from 1660 to 1674.
- Francis (died 1645), supported the Royalist cause during the English Civil War. He was court-martialled and shot for failing to defend Bletchingdon House, near Oxford.
- Christopher (born 1615), was an Englishman who lived in Madrid and worked as guide and interpreter for English ambassadors.
- —
- John (1618–1704), a physician who was admitted an honorary fellow of the Royal College of Physicians in 1680 and was buried in Westminster Abbey.
Of Windebank's daughters:
- Margaret married Thomas Turner (1591–1672), and was mother of Thomas Turner (1645–1714), president of Corpus Christi College, Oxford, and of Francis Turner, bishop of Ely,[6] one of the seven Bishops who, refusing to accept James II's Declaration of Indulgence, were imprisoned in the Tower of London.
- Frances married Sir Edward Hales on 12 July 1669.[7]
- One other died unmarried at Paris about 1650.
- Two others became nuns of the Calvary at the Église Sainte-Marie-des-Anges, Paris.[6]
Notes
- ^ Quintrell 2008.
- ^ a b c d e Chisholm 1911, p. 708.
- ^ Scott 1910, p. 113.
- ^ Pollard 1900, p. 165 cites Cal. State Papers, Dom. 1629–31, p. 297.
- ^ Pollard 1900, p. 165.
- ^ a b Pollard 1900, p. 166.
- ^ Pollard 1900, p. 166 cites Chester, Marr. Lic. col. 605.
References
- Quintrell, Brian (January 2008) [2004]. "Windebank, Sir Francis (bap. 1582, d. 1646)". doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/29715. (Subscription or UK public library membershiprequired.)
- Scott, William Robert (1910). The Constitution and Finance of English, Scottish and Irish Joint-stock Companies to 1720. CUP Archive. GGKEY:TCE56ZN27WX.
- Attribution
- public domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Windebank, Sir Francis". Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 28 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 708. This article incorporates text from a publication now in the
- This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Pollard, Albert Frederick (1900). "Windebank, Francis". In Lee, Sidney (ed.). Dictionary of National Biography. Vol. 62. London: Smith, Elder & Co. pp. 162–166.