Sir Leonard Chamberlain orChamberlayne (died 1561) was an English soldier and politician. He was theGovernor of Guernsey in 1553.
The son ofSir Edward Chamberlayne ofShirburn Castle,Oxfordshire, by Cicely, daughter of Sir John Verney, he was brother of the Members of ParliamentEdward Chamberlain andRalph Chamberlain.[1] He succeeded his father about 1543 as keeper of Woodstock Park. In 1542 he obtained from the crown a grant ofHampton Poyle; and the following year the king granted to him and Richard Andrews land in several counties, including abbey lands and other ecclesiastical property. He wasHigh Sheriff of Berkshire and Oxfordshire in 1546–7, and at the funeral of Henry VIII he bore the banner of the king and QueenCatherine Parr.[2]
In October 1549 members of the privy council opposed toProtector Somerset required Sir John Markham, thelieutenant of the Tower of London, to bring Sir Edmund Peckham and Chamberlain in to strengthen the Tower guard. At the end of the reign of Edward VI, Chamberlain served for a second time as of Sheriff of Berkshire. On 22 July 1553 the privy council wrote to Sir John Williams, Chamberlain, and others of the gentry of Oxfordshire, directing them to dismiss soldiers (a muster to ensure Mary Tudor's succession, whileLady Jane Grey was a claimant) and repair to QueenMary I of England.[2]
Chamberlain was knighted by Queen Mary at Westminster on 2 October 1551, the day after her coronation, and he sat forScarborough in the parliament which assembled on 5 September. Mary in the first year of her reign granted him the site ofDunstable Priory, and other lands inBedfordshire. He was constituted governor of Guernsey in 1553, where he improved the works atCastle Cornet, and was returned forOxfordshire to the parliaments which sat on 2 April and 12 November 1554. At the trials ofRowland Taylor andJohn Bradford for heresy in January 1555 he was involved in the proceedings.[2]
Although he was often absent from theChannel Islands, Chamberlain cooperated withWilliam Wynter to stabilise the military position there against the French threat during theItalian War of 1551–59, paying attention toAlderney andSark.[3] He died in Guernsey about August 1561.[2]
Chamberlain had four wives including; Dorothy, fourth daughter of John Newdigate, king's serjeant-at-law, and Margery Vaughan, widow ofStephen Vaughan.[4] Francis Chamberlain, who in 1555 was joined with him in the government of Guernsey, and who continued sole governor till his own death in 1570, was his eldest son. His second son George was the father ofGeorge Chamberlain theBishop of Ypres.[2]
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This article incorporates text from a publication now in thepublic domain: Stephen, Leslie, ed. (1887). "Chamberlain, Leonard".Dictionary of National Biography. Vol. 10. London: Smith, Elder & Co.
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | High Sheriff of Berkshire and Oxfordshire 1546–1547 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | High Sheriff of Berkshire and Oxfordshire 1552–1553 | Succeeded by |