Christopher Layer (1531 – 19 June 1600), of

Norwich Norwich () is a cathedral city and district of the county of Norfolk, England, of which it is the county town. It lies by the River Wensum, about north-east of London, north of Ipswich and east of Peterborough. The population of the Norwich ...

, Norfolk, was an English

merchant A merchant is a person who trades in goods produced by other people, especially one who trades with foreign countries. Merchants have been known for as long as humans have engaged in trade and commerce. Merchants and merchant networks operated i ...

, burgess of

, and briefly a Member of Parliament.

Biography

Layer was the son of William Layer, Mayor of Norwich and began his career as a grocer. He was one of the leading citizens of Norwich, serving as sheriff for 1569–1570, alderman in 1570 and

mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a Municipal corporation, municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilitie ...

in 1581–1582 and 1589–1590. He imported goods from the Netherlands and invested in land and houses in Norwich, at Theberton, and elsewhere in Suffolk, and at Booton, Cawston, and Cringleford in Norfolk. His attempts to enclose the common at Great Witchingham in Norfolk led him into a long series of lawsuits. Layer served briefly as one of the two Members of Parliament for

in 1584–1585 and again in 1597–1598. During his second Parliament the two burgesses for Norwich were appointed to committees concerning navigation, the bishop of Norwich, land reclamation, cloth, and malt. During his membership, Norwich paid him five shillings a day while he attended the relatively brief parliamentary sessions. Layer was described by an opponent as "a very politique and worldly minded man most regarding his own private commodity". His will disposed of his lands among his grandchildren and surviving children, provided for a substantial income for his widow, the sole executrix, and contained bequests to numerous relatives and friends and to the poor in Norwich and elsewhere. Layer died 19 June 1600 and was buried at St. John's, Maddermarket, Norwich. The four figurines encased in the two pilasters of The Layer Monument in the Church of St. John Maddermarket are rare examples of

Northern Mannerism Northern Mannerism is the form of Mannerism found in the visual arts north of the Alps in the 16th and early 17th centuries. Styles largely derived from Italian Mannerism were found in the Netherlands and elsewhere from around the mid-century, es ...

sculpture in Britain. Layer died in 1600. He had married Barbara, the daughter of Augustine Steward, with whom he had four sons and five daughters.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Layer, Christopher 1531 births 1600 deaths Members of Parliament for Norwich Mayors of Norwich English MPs 1584–1585 English MPs 1597–1598 Businesspeople from Norwich 16th-century English merchants