Parr, William (1513 - 1571)

Born / Died

Birth Date: 1513
Death Date: 1571-10-28

Notes

Imprisoned in the Tower for attempting to place Lady Jane Grey on the throne 26 July 1553; arraigned for treason and stripped of lands and titles 18 Aug. 1553; released 31 Dec. 1553; pardoned 13 Jan. 1553/4; briefly reimprisoned during Wyatt's rebellion; released 24 March; restored in blood but not honours 5 May 1554

Marriages/Other Unions

  1. Type: marriage
    Union began: after 1527-2-9
    Union ended: by 1542
    Note: Marriage license date. Bourchier left Parr and eloped with another man in 1541; in 1541-2 Parr had obtained a legal separation
  2. Type: marriage
    Union began: 1548
    Union ended: 1565
  3. Type: marriage
    Union began: 1571-5
    Union ended: by 1580

Primary Title

1st Marquess of Northampton

Titles

  • Knight
    Assumed 1538
    Vacated 1571-10-28
  • Baron Parr
    Assumed 1538/9-03-09
    Vacated 1553-08-18 (date attainted)
  • Knight of the Garter
    Assumed 1543-04-23 (date elected)
    Vacated 1553-08-18 (date attainted)
  • 17th Earl of Essex
    Assumed 1543-12-23
    Vacated 1553-08-18 (date attainted)
  • 1st Marquess of Northampton
    Assumed 1546/7-02-16
    Vacated 1553-08-18 (date attainted)
  • 1st Marquess of Northampton
    Assumed 1558/9-01-13 (date restored to title)
    Vacated 1571-10-28

Details of Offices

Began Ended Notes
Keeper, Northamptonshire 1539-12-16 n.d. Held jointly
Keeper, Northamptonshire 1541 n.d.
Steward, Essex 1541-9-25 n.d.
Keeper, Essex 1543-5-25 n.d.
Member, Council of the North, England 1543-4 n.d.
Steward, Essex 1543-5-25 n.d.
Warden, Marches towards Scotland 1543-4 1543-10
Privy Councillor, England 1545-5 1547/8-01-28 (date attainted) Expelled due to clandestine marriage to Elizabeth Brooke
JP, Essex 1547 n.d.
Lord Lieut, Huntingdonshire 1549-7 n.d.
Lord Lieut, Norfolk 1549-7 n.d.
Lord Lieut, Bedfordshire 1549-7 n.d.
Lord Lieut, Northamptonshire 1549-7 n.d.
Lord Lieut, Cambridgeshire 1549-7 n.d.
Lord Great Chamberlain, England 1549/50-2-14 1553-08-18 (date attainted) For life
Constable, Berkshire 1550 1553
Master Forester, Buckinghamshire 1550-7-12 1553-08-18 (date attainted) For life; Whittlewood Forest also in Northamptonshire
Lord Lieut, Surrey 1551 n.d.
Lord Lieut, Berkshire 1552 n.d.
Lord Lieut, Oxfordshire 1552 n.d.
Lord Lieut, Buckinghamshire 1553 n.d.
Lord Lieut, Hertfordshire 1553 n.d.
Privy Councillor, England after 1558-12-25 n.d.
Steward, Northamptonshire 1559-6-11 1571-10-28 For life
JP, Northamptonshire 1561/2 n.d.
JP, Cambridgeshire 1564 n.d.
JP, Northamptonshire 1564 n.d.

General Lands Note

Livery of lands 20 June 1535; stripped of lands 18 Aug. 1553; granted back some Northamptonshire lands Jan. 1554/5; more estates restored over the next 3 years

Details of Properties

Residence

Lands

  • Essex
  • Gloucestershire: Sudeley Castle
    Acquired: 1549/50-02-14
    Granted
  • Lancashire
  • Leicestershire
  • Lincolnshire
  • Norfolk
  • Northamptonshire
  • Rutland
  • Surrey
  • Wales
  • Westmorland
  • Yorkshire

Events Naming Patron

Event Date Location Troupe
Performance 1560-1560 Rye (Unknown), Rye , Sussex Lord Parr's Players
Performance 1550-1551 Guildhall, Cambridge , Cambridgeshire Marquess of Northampton's Players
Performance 1552-1553 Dover (Unknown), Dover , Kent Marquess of Northampton's Players
Performance 1559-1560 Lydd (Unknown), Lydd , Kent Marquess of Northampton's Players
Performance 1559-1560 Canterbury (Unknown), Canterbury , Kent Marquess of Northampton's Players
Performance 1560-1560 Dover (Unknown), Dover , Kent Marquess of Northampton's Players

Patronized Troupes

Troupe Name Patron Troupe Type # of events
Lord Parr's Players Parr, William (1513 - 1571) Players 1
Marquess of Northampton's Players Parr, William (1513 - 1571) Players 5

Owned Venues

Venue Name County Venue Type
Kendal Castle Westmorland Private Residence

Bibliographic Sources

The Complete Peerage of England, Scotland, Ireland, Great Britain, and the United Kingdom. 1887–98 (8 vols); 1910–59 (13 vols). 6 vols. Gloucester: Alan Sutton, 1982.
The Dictionary of National Biography. 1882–1901 (66 vols); 1908–9 (28 vols). 2 vols. London: Oxford UP, 1975.
James, Susan E. 'Queen Kateryn Parr (1512–1548).' Transactions of the Cumberland and Westmorland Antiquarian and Archaeological Society ns 88 (1988): 107–19.
Letters and Papers, Foreign and Domestic, Henry VIII [1509–47]. 21 vols and Addenda (2 vols). London: HMSO, 1864–1932.
Oxford Dictionary of National Biography. 01/05/2005 (http://www.oxforddnb.com)