Sir Thomas Fitzwilliam | |
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| Personal details | |
| Occupation | Speaker of theHouse of Commons of England |
Sir Thomas Fitzwilliam (died 4 March 1497) wasSpeaker of theHouse of Commons of England in 1489–1490.[1]
He was born into a Lincolnshire gentry family, the son of Thomas Fitzwilliam ofMablethorpe and educated at theInner Temple.
He was appointedRecorder of Lincoln and elected MP forLincoln in 1459. In 1467 he was returned as MP forPlympton Earle, then a seat under the control of the Crown. In 1478 he was appointed a serjeant-at-law for theDuchy of Lancaster.
After obtaining a house inStepney, he was elected aRecorder of London and supported the claim ofRichard III to the English throne. He nevertheless welcomedHenry Tudor after theBattle of Bosworth and became more active in government, representing London in King Henry's first parliament. He was knighted in 1486.
In 1489, in Henry's third Parliament, he was elected Speaker of the House, electing to sit asknight of the shire forLincolnshire.
He died in 1497 and was buried in Mablethorpe church. He had married Margaret Harrington (d. 1498), with whom he had at least three sons, John, George, and William. John predeceased him, and he was succeeded by John's son, another Thomas, who also died young in 1502. The estates then passed to Sir Thomas' second son, George.
| Political offices | ||
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| Preceded by | Speaker of the House of Commons 1489–1490 | Succeeded by |
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