William Paget, 4th

Baron Paget Baron is a rank of nobility or title of honour, often hereditary, in various European countries, either current or historical. The female equivalent is baroness. Typically, the title denotes an aristocrat who ranks higher than a lord or knigh ...

of Beaudesert (1572 – 29 August 1629) was an

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

peer and

colonist A settler is a person who has migrated to an area and established a permanent residence there, often to colonize the area. A settler who migrates to an area previously uninhabited or sparsely inhabited may be described as a pioneer. Settl ...

born in Beaudesert House,

Staffordshire, England Staffordshire (; postal abbreviation Staffs.) is a landlocked county in the West Midlands region of England. It borders Cheshire to the northwest, Derbyshire and Leicestershire to the east, Warwickshire to the southeast, the West Midlands Cou ...

Thomas Paget, 3rd Baron Paget Thomas Paget, 3rd Baron Paget (c. 1544 – 1590) was an English peer, the second son of William Paget, 1st Baron Paget. He succeeded to the barony in 1568 at the death of his elder brother, Henry Paget, 2nd Baron Paget. Family Thomas Paget, bor ...

and

Nazareth Newton Nazareth or Nazaret Newton (died 1583) was a courtier and lady-in-waiting. Nazareth Newton was the youngest daughter of Sir John Newton (d. 1568) of East Harptree, Somerset, and Barrs Court, Gloucestershire, and Margaret, daughter of Sir Anthony ...

. His grandfather was

William Paget, 1st Baron Paget William Paget, 1st Baron Paget of Beaudesert (15069 June 1563), was an English statesman and accountant who held prominent positions in the service of Henry VIII, Edward VI and Mary I. Early life He was the son of John Pachett or Paget, one ...

(1506-1563). William's father and his uncle, Charles Paget were both devout Catholics, and would not conform to the Protestant religion of

Queen Elizabeth I Elizabeth I (7 September 153324 March 1603) was Queen of England and Ireland from 17 November 1558 until her death in 1603. Elizabeth was the last of the five House of Tudor monarchs and is sometimes referred to as the "Virgin Queen". El ...

. Thomas Paget fled to Paris on the uncovering of the Throckmorton Plot in November 1583, joining his brother who had been in exile there since 1581. The failed conspiracy's plan was for an invasion of England by French forces under the command of

Henry, Duke of Guise Henry I, Prince of Joinville, Duke of Guise, Count of Eu (31 December 1550 – 23 December 1588), sometimes called ('Scarface'), was the eldest son of Francis, Duke of Guise, and Anna d'Este. His maternal grandparents were Ercole II d'Este, Du ...

, financed by Philip II of Spain. English Catholics would then rise up and depose Elizabeth, placing Catholic

Mary, Queen of Scots Mary, Queen of Scots (8 December 1542 – 8 February 1587), also known as Mary Stuart or Mary I of Scotland, was Queen of Scotland from 14 December 1542 until her forced abdication in 1567. The only surviving legitimate child of James V of S ...

on the English throne. Europe was ablaze with conflicts between Catholics and Protestants. England's ''old enemy'', France, was in the midst of its

Religious Wars A religious war or a war of religion, sometimes also known as a holy war ( la, sanctum bellum), is a war which is primarily caused or justified by differences in religion. In the modern period, there are frequent debates over the extent to wh ...

, which saw the St. Bartholomew's Day massacre in the year in which William was born. In 1587 Thomas Paget was attainted of treason by act of parliament while in exile, resulting in him being stripped of his title and lands. He died in Brussels in 1590.

Life

William, a Protestant, applied himself vigorously to England's interests, taking part in the 1596

capture of Cadiz Capture may refer to: * Asteroid capture, a phenomenon in which an asteroid enters a stable orbit around another body *Capture, a software for lighting design, documentation and visualisation *"Capture" a song by Simon Townshend * Capture (band), ...

(Gādēs). He never earned the favour of

, but the family title and lands were restored upon him by her Scottish heir

King James I James VI and I (James Charles Stuart; 19 June 1566 – 27 March 1625) was King of Scotland as James VI from 24 July 1567 and King of England and Ireland as James I from the union of the Scottish and English crowns on 24 March 1603 until hi ...

in 1604. In 1612 he became an ''adventurer'' of the

Virginia Company The Virginia Company was an English trading company chartered by King James I on 10 April 1606 with the object of colonizing the eastern coast of America. The coast was named Virginia, after Elizabeth I, and it stretched from present-day Mai ...

. The Company had been created under Royal Charter to colonise North America as a merchant venture. It founded its first settlement, Jamestown, in 1607. That colony fared badly in its first years, and a fleet sent to relieve it in 1609 was broken up by a hurricane, with the Company's flagship, the

Sea Venture ''Sea Venture'' was a seventeenth-century English sailing ship, part of the Third Supply mission to the Jamestown Colony, that was wrecked in Bermuda in 1609. She was the 300 ton purpose-built flagship of the London Company and a highly unusual ...

, lost on the reefs of

Bermuda ) , anthem = "God Save the King" , song_type = National song , song = "Hail to Bermuda" , image_map = , map_caption = , image_map2 = , mapsize2 = , map_caption2 = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = , es ...

. This began England's claim to, and the permanent settlement of, Bermuda, and the Virginia Company's Third Charter extended the limits of ''Virginia'' far enough out to sea to encompass Bermuda, which was also known as ''Virgineola''. The first intended settlers arrived in 1612, to join the remaining survivors of the Sea Venture. Ever since, the colony (now called an

Overseas Territory A territory is an area of land, sea, or space, particularly belonging or connected to a country, person, or animal. In international politics, a territory is usually either the total area from which a state may extract power resources or an ...

) has had two official names, ''Bermuda'', and ''The Somers Isles''. In 1615, a second company was created by the shareholders of the Virginia Company. Called the

Somers Isles Company The Somers Isles Company (fully, the Company of the City of London for the Plantacion of The Somers Isles or the Company of The Somers Isles) was formed in 1615 to operate the English colony of the Somers Isles, also known as Bermuda, as a commerc ...

, this administered Bermuda until 1684. Eight of Bermuda's nine parishes (originally called ''tribes'') were commercial land, and named for major shareholders of the Company.

Paget Parish Paget Parish is one of the nine parishes of Bermuda. It is named for William Paget, 4th Baron Paget de Beaudesert (1572–1629). The parish is located in the central south of the island chain, immediately south of Hamilton Harbor on th ...

, in the centre of Bermuda, was named for William Paget in 1617. The

coat of arms A coat of arms is a heraldic visual design on an escutcheon (i.e., shield), surcoat, or tabard (the latter two being outer garments). The coat of arms on an escutcheon forms the central element of the full heraldic achievement, which in its ...

of the parish is identical to that of Baron Paget de Beaudesert. William Paget died in 1629, and was buried in

West Drayton West Drayton is a suburban town in the London Borough of Hillingdon. It was an ancient parish in the county of Middlesex and from 1929 was part of the Yiewsley and West Drayton Urban District, which became part of Greater London in 1965. Th ...

, in

Middlesex Middlesex (; abbreviation: Middx) is a historic county in southeast England. Its area is almost entirely within the wider urbanised area of London and mostly within the ceremonial county of Greater London, with small sections in neighbour ...

Family

William married before 19 June 1602 Lettice Knollys (1583–1655), daughter of Sir Henry Knollys (c. 1542 – 21 December 1582),

Member of Parliament A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house members o ...

representing first

Shoreham, Kent Shoreham is a village and civil parishes in England, civil parish in the Sevenoaks District of Kent, England. It is located 5.2 miles north of Sevenoaks. The probable derivation of the name is ''estate at the foot of a steep slope''. Steep slo ...

(1563) and then Oxfordshire, Esquire of the Body to

Elizabeth I Elizabeth I (7 September 153324 March 1603) was List of English monarchs, Queen of England and List of Irish monarchs, Ireland from 17 November 1558 until her death in 1603. Elizabeth was the last of the five House of Tudor monarchs and is ...

(son of Sir Francis Knollys and

Catherine Carey Catherine Carey, after her marriage Catherine Knollys and later known as both Lady Knollys and Dame Catherine Knollys, (c. 1522 – 15 January 1569), was chief Lady of the Bedchamber to Queen Elizabeth I, who was her first cousin. Biograph ...

), and Margaret Cave (1549–1600), daughter of Sir Ambrose Cave and Margaret Willington. William and Lettice had the following children: # Dorothy Paget (born c. 1602) # Margaret Paget (born c. 1604 – buried 10 September 1652) married Sir William Hicks, 1st Baronet, of Beverston # Anne Paget (born c. 1605) married (1) Sir Simon Harcourt (2)

William Waller Sir William Waller JP (c. 159719 September 1668) was an English soldier and politician, who commanded Parliamentarian armies during the First English Civil War, before relinquishing his commission under the 1645 Self-denying Ordinance. ...

# Henry Paget (born c. 1607) #

William Paget, 5th Baron Paget William Paget, 5th Baron Paget (13 September 1609 – 19 October 1678) was an English peer. He was born at Beaudesert House, Staffordshire, England to William Paget, 4th Baron Paget and Lettice Knollys. Career He was a Parliamentarian with ...

(13 September 1609 – 19 October 1678) married Lady Frances Rich, daughter of

Henry Rich, 1st Earl of Holland Henry Rich, 1st Earl of Holland (baptised 15 August 1590, died 9 March 1649), was an English courtier and politician executed by Parliament after being captured fighting for the Royalists during the Second English Civil War. Younger brother of ...

and Isabel Cope # Thomas Paget (born c. 1611) # Catherine Paget (born c. 1615 – 1695) married Anthony Irby

Notes

References

Paget family
Accessed 4 March 2009
familysearch.org
Accessed 4 March 2009 * endnotes: **

External links

National Archives: Records for Paget, William (1572-1628) 4th Baron Paget
{{DEFAULTSORT:Paget, William 1572 births 1629 deaths History of Bermuda

William William is a male given name of Germanic origin.Hanks, Hardcastle and Hodges, ''Oxford Dictionary of First Names'', Oxford University Press, 2nd edition, , p. 276. It became very popular in the English language after the Norman conquest of Engl ...

People from Cannock Chase District 16th-century English nobility 17th-century English nobility Barons Paget