Charles Stourton, 8th Baron Stourton (c. 1520 – 1557) was an English peer who was executed for

murder Murder is the unlawful killing of another human without justification (jurisprudence), justification or valid excuse (legal), excuse committed with the necessary Intention (criminal law), intention as defined by the law in a specific jurisd ...

Life

He was the eldest son of William Stourton, 7th Baron Stourton and Elizabeth Dudley, daughter of

Edmund Dudley Edmund Dudley (c. 1462Gunn 2010 or 1471/147217 August 1510) was an English administrator and a financial agent of Henry VII of England, King Henry VII. He served as a leading member of the Council Learned in the Law, Speaker of the House o ...

, a key adviser to Henry VII. His parents' marriage was unhappy, due largely to his father's liaison with Agnes ap Rhys, or Rice, daughter of

Rhys ap Gruffydd Rhys ap Gruffydd or ap Gruffudd (often anglicised to "Griffith"; c. 1132 – 28 April 1197) was the ruler of the kingdom of Deheubarth in south Wales from 1155 to 1197. Today, he is commonly known as The Lord Rhys, in Welsh ''Yr Arglwydd Rhys' ...

and granddaughter of

Thomas Howard, 2nd Duke of Norfolk Thomas Howard, 2nd Duke of Norfolk (144321 May 1524), styled Earl of Surrey from 1483 to 1485 and again from 1489 to 1514, was an English people, English nobleman, soldier and statesman who served four monarchs. He was the eldest son of John ...

; in their later years, his parents lived apart. To the understandable chagrin of his children, William left almost the whole of the Stourton inheritance to Agnes Rice, resulting in years of litigation between his children and Agnes. Charles was on very bad terms with his father, calling him a "false hypocrite" for whom prison would be too good. Stourton succeeded his father as

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

in 1548. He was a nephew of

John Dudley, 1st Duke of Northumberland John Dudley, 1st Duke of Northumberland (1504Loades 2008 – 22 August 1553) was an English general, admiral, and politician, who led the government of the young King Edward VI from 1550 until 1553, and unsuccessfully tried to install Lady Jane ...

, as well as a

Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

. A

Wiltshire Wiltshire (; abbreviated to Wilts) is a ceremonial county in South West England. It borders Gloucestershire to the north, Oxfordshire to the north-east, Berkshire to the east, Hampshire to the south-east, Dorset to the south, and Somerset to ...

resident, he was asked for help by Mary Tudor in the succession crisis of 1553, but hesitated in supporting her until her victory was clear. In August 1553 he was described as an "archpapist" by a London pamphleteer. He had a reputation for being quarrelsome and violent, and was clearly regarded as a public nuisance even before he was charged with murder. The legal difficulties and family quarrels caused by his father's affair with Agnes Rice, and his decision to disinherit his children, may to some extent explain Charles's violent temper, although

lawsuits A lawsuit is a proceeding by one or more parties (the plaintiff or claimant) against one or more parties (the defendant) in a civil court of law. The archaic term "suit in law" is found in only a small number of laws still in effect today. T ...

over property were then an everyday part of life among the English landed classes.

Execution for murder

He was executed, as were four of his servants, on 16 March 1557 at

Salisbury Salisbury ( , ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and civil parish in Wiltshire, England with a population of 41,820, at the confluence of the rivers River Avon, Hampshire, Avon, River Nadder, Nadder and River Bourne, Wi ...

for murdering two men, William Hartgill and his son John Hartgill, following a trial at

Westminster Westminster is the main settlement of the City of Westminster in Central London, Central London, England. It extends from the River Thames to Oxford Street and has many famous landmarks, including the Palace of Westminster, Buckingham Palace, ...

on 28 February previous. Stourton had been most reluctant to plead to the

indictment An indictment ( ) is a formal accusation that a person has committed a crime. In jurisdictions that use the concept of felonies, the most serious criminal offense is a felony; jurisdictions that do not use that concept often use that of an ind ...

, until he was reminded by the judges that he faced the horrific penalty of peine forte et dure (being pressed to death under heavy stones) if he did not. William Hartgill, described as a "surly and cross old man", was a neighbour with whom Stourton had long been on bad terms. Stourton had quarrelled with his widowed mother, who wished to remarry, and Hartgill had taken Lady Stourton's part in the quarrel. As not infrequently happened in that age, the

feud A feud , also known in more extreme cases as a blood feud, vendetta, faida, clan war, gang war, private war, or mob war, is a long-running argument or fight, often between social groups of people, especially family, families or clans. Feuds begin ...

degenerated into a private war, eventually requiring the intervention of

Star Chamber The court of Star Chamber () was an English court that sat at the royal Palace of Westminster, from the late to the mid-17th century (), and was composed of privy counsellors and common-law judges, to supplement the judicial activities of the ...

. Stourton was fined and ordered to pay damages to the Hartgills: this humiliation seems to have been the motive for the crime. On the pretext of arranging a meeting to pay them the money, Stourton ambushed the Hartgills at Kilmington church, kidnapped them and had them brought to his house, where after being imprisoned for a time they had their throats cut. Stourton did not actually commit the murders but was found guilty of ordering them. Before his execution, he is said to have expressed true repentance for this and his other crimes.

Family

Stourton married Lady Anne Stanley, daughter of Edward Stanley, 3rd Earl of Derby and Lady Dorothy Howard. They had three sons: *

John John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Second E ...

, who became Baron in 1557. *

Edward Edward is an English male name. It is derived from the Anglo-Saxon name ''Ēadweard'', composed of the elements '' ēad'' "wealth, fortunate; prosperous" and '' weard'' "guardian, protector”. History The name Edward was very popular in Anglo-S ...

, who became Baron in 1588. *Charles; and three daughters: * Mary, who married John TregianCornwall Record Office, AR/17/107 * Anne, who married Edward Rogers * Katherine, who married Richard Sherborne. His widow remarried Sir John Arundell of Lanherne and had further issue. He died in 1590, and she died in 1602.

Notes

References

* Ives, Eric: ''Lady Jane Grey: A Tudor Mystery'' Wiley-Blackwell 2009 * Kidd, Charles; Williamson, David (eds): ''Debrett's Peerage and Baronetage'' London: St. Martin's Press 1995 * The Newgate Calendar {{DEFAULTSORT:Stourton, Charles, 8th Baron Stourton 1520s births 1557 deaths *08

Charles Charles is a masculine given name predominantly found in English language, English and French language, French speaking countries. It is from the French form ''Charles'' of the Proto-Germanic, Proto-Germanic name (in runic alphabet) or ''* ...

16th-century English nobility