Thomas Burgh of Gainsborough
Sir Thomas Burgh | |
---|---|
1st Baron Burgh of Gainsborough | |
Born | c. 1431 Edward Burgh Thomas Burgh Margaret Burgh Elizabeth Burgh Anne Burgh |
Father | Thomas Burgh |
Mother | Elizabeth Percy |
Sir Thomas Burgh (English: /bʊræ/; BURRA (pronounced: Borough; c.1431 – 18 March 1496), KG was an English gentleman.
In records, the peerage, and genealogy books he is shown as being created 1st Lord Burgh, of Gainsborough {England by writ} on 1 September 1487. He was several times summoned to Parliament, but never sat; whether he held a hereditary peerage is not clear; fifteenth century records treat him as a knight. His son was never summoned to Parliament (because he was found insane in 1510); his grandson was summoned and sat in the House of Lords, but sixteenth century records treat this as a new creation in 1529 after the death of his father. When the Burgh peerage was drawn out of abeyance in 1916, however, it was given precedence as of 1487. He had noble ancestors on both sides: his mother was one of the daughters of Sir Henry Percy, who was in turn grandson to Henry Percy, 1st Earl of Northumberland, and to David of Strathbogie, Earl of Atholl, descended from the ancient Mormaers of Atholl.[1]
The Burgh family sprang from Hubert de Burgh, younger son of
Career
Thomas was
It was Sir Thomas Burgh with Sir Thomas Stanley who rescued King Edward IV from the Earl of Warwick whom the Earl had kept prisoner in his castle of Middleham. In 1471, when Edward IV came to reclaim his throne it was Sir Thomas who was first to rally to his side. Sir Thomas fought at the battles of Barnet and Tewkesbury.[2]
After the unexpected death of Edward IV, Sir Thomas was courted by King
Gainsborough Old Hall
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/65/Gainsborough_Old_Hall_tower.jpg/250px-Gainsborough_Old_Hall_tower.jpg)
In 1460, Sir Thomas built the great Old Hall in Gainsborough, Lincolnshire. Gainsborough Old Hall was not only their home, but also a demonstration of their wealth and importance. Sir Thomas was a great benefactor to Newark Church and also the founder of the Chantry and Alms House at Gainsborough. In 1470, the manor was attacked by Sir Robert Welles over a clash about lands, status, and honour, but it was not severely damaged. It was in 1484 that Sir Thomas entertained King Richard III in his hall. Today, the Hall with its elaborate timber roof survives as well as the kitchen—possibly the most complete medieval kitchen in England. The Hall is over five hundred years old and one of the best preserved medieval manor houses in England.[3]
Marriage
Sir Thomas married Margaret de Ros (1432–1488) widow of
Sir Thomas and Margaret had the following children:
- Elizabeth Burgh (d. 1 August 1507), married Richard FitzHugh, 6th Lord FitzHugh and secondly Sir Henry Willoughby.[5] In his will, her father gave her "a book of gold enamelled" which had been her mother's.[8]
- Margaret Burgh (d. before April 1493), married Sir George Tailboys.[5] Like her brother Edward, Lord Burgh, her husband Sir George was found to be a lunatic, in 1531.[9]
- Thomas Burgh[5] In his will, his father gave him a cross of gold with an emerald.[8]
- Anne Burgh[5] In his will, her father gave her a cross of gold set with precious stones and rubies.[8]
Death and succession
Lord Thomas died on 18 March 1496. He was buried next to his wife, Margaret, in the family vault in Holy Trinity Church, Gainsborough.
See also
- Hiberno-Normandynasty founded in 1193
- Hubert de Burgh, 1st Earl of Kent(c.1170–1243) English nobleman and ancestor of the Burghs of Gainsborough
References
Citations
- barony by writare that a man receive a writ for a valid Parliament (one including the Commons) and that he sit by virtue of that writ.
- ^ a b Sir Bernard Burke. A genealogical history of the dormant, abeyant, forfeited, and extinct peerages of the British empire. Harrison, 1866. p. 90.
- ^ John Julius Norwich. Treasures of Britain; the architectural, cultural, historical and natural heritage of Britain. W. W. Norton & Company, 2002. p. 262.
- ^ George Edward Cokayne. The Complete Peerage of England, Scotland, Ireland, Great Britain, and the United Kingdom, Vol. II, p. 422.
- ^ a b c d e f Douglas Richardson, Plantagenet Ancestry, p. 503.
- ^ Linda Porter. Katherine, the Queen. Macmillan. 2010. pp. 49, 53.
- ^ James, Susan E. Catherine Parr: Henry VIII's Last Love, Gloucestershire, England: The History Press, 2009. pp. 60–63.
- ^ a b c Nicholas Harris Nicolas, Testamenta Vetusta: Illustrations from Wills, vol. 1 (London, 1826), p. 429.
- ^ M. E. James, "Obedience and Dissent in Henrician England: The Lincolnshire Rebellion, 1536", Past and Present, 48 (August 1970), 3–78.
External links
- Thomas, Lord Burgh's Retinue – Historical Interpretation and Living History from the Wars of the Roses 1460–1490, the household of Lord and Lady Burgh.
- Biography of Sir Thomas "Borough" Burgh *Note, there is no source and the information on the top part of the page is not entirely correct.
- Official Gainsborough Old Hall Website Official information on admissions, events and history
- Friends of Gainsborough Old Hall – published by Friends of the Old Hall Association.
- English Heritage, Gainsborough Old Hall – English Heritage
- Pictures of Gainsborough Old Hall – published by the Lincolnshire Council.