John Digby (died 1533) explained

Sir John Digby (died 1533) of Eye Kettleby, near Melton Mowbray, Leicestershire, was Knight Marshal for King Henry VIII.

Origins

John was the third son of Everard Digby, Esq., MP ^[1] (whose father had died at Towton, 1461) of Tilton on the Hill, Leicestershire and Jacquet, daughter of Sir John Ellys of Devonshire.^[2]

Career

Digby was knighted by King Henry VIII for his services at the Battle of Bosworth Field, and appointed Knight Marshal for the King's household.^[3]

He was Steward of Lewes Priory, Sussex. He was High Sheriff of Warwickshire in 1515 and was also Sheriff of Rutland in 1491, 1517 and 1523, as was his father before him.

In 1513 Digby accompanied Henry VIII to Calais and fought in the battle of Thérouanne.

Family

He married Katherine, daughter of Sir Nicholas Griffin of Braybrooke, Northamptonshire. They had at least two sons and two daughters.

• William
• Simon, his heir, who married Catherine Clapham of Beamesley
• Elizabeth, married Sir Humphrey Hercy of Grove, Nottinghamshire
• Anne, married Sir William Skeffington (died 1535) of Skeffinton, Lord Deputy of Ireland

After the death of Katherine, Digby married as his second wife Sanche (née Willoughby), widow of John Strelley, on 24 October 1517.^[4]

Death and burial

Digby died in May 1533 and was buried at St Mary's Church, Melton Mowbray, Leicestershire, where as well as at Frisby, Leicestershire, there is a monument to his memory.^[5]

Digby had been responsible for the construction of the clerestory of Melton Mowbray church in 1500, and the vestry located on the north side of the chancel in 1532, which is confirmed by a date stone set into the east wall.^[6]

Notes and References

1. Web site: History of Parliament.
2. Armytage, G.J., ed. (1870). The Visitation of the County of Rutland in the year 1618-19, taken by William Camden, Clarenceux King of Arms, and other descents of families not in the visitation. Harleian Society, 1st ser. 3. London. P.17.
3. The Peerage of Ireland: Or, A Genealogical History of the Present Nobility of that Kingdom, Volume 6 By John Lodge, Mervyn Archdall 1789 p.264
4. Douglas Richardson, Magna Carta Ancestry, 2nd Edition, Vol. III, p. 469.
5. A genealogical and heraldic history of the commoners of Great Britain and Ireland by John Burke 1838 p.465
6. St. Mary’s Parish Church, Melton Mowbray, Leicestershire (SK 75276 19029): Archaeological Desk-based Assessment and Statement of Significance by Sophie Clarke. University of Leicester, 2013 http://www.melton.leicester.anglican.org/Publisher/File.aspx?ID=116149