Sir Christopher More (c. 1483 – 16 August 1549) was an English administrator, landowner, and

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 Bicameralism, bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house ...

. More was the son of John More, a London fishmonger, and his wife, Elizabeth. He was active in local administration in Sussex and Surrey, and from 1505 until his death held office in the

Exchequer In the civil service of the United Kingdom, His Majesty’s Exchequer, or just the Exchequer, is the accounting process of central government and the government's '' current account'' (i.e., money held from taxation and other government rev ...

, rising in 1542 to the post of

King's Remembrancer The King's Remembrancer (or Queen's Remembrancer) is an ancient judicial post in the legal system of England and Wales. Since the Lord Chancellor no longer sits as a judge, the Remembrancer is the oldest judicial position in continual existence ...

. His sister, Alice More, was the fourth wife of

Sir John More Sir John More ( – 1530) was an English lawyer and judge. He was the father of Sir Thomas More, Henry VIII of England, Henry VIII's Lord Chancellor. Family More was the son of William More (d. 1467), a London Worshipful Company of Bakers, ba ...

, father of

Sir Thomas More Sir Thomas More (7 February 1478 – 6 July 1535), venerated in the Catholic Church as Saint Thomas More, was an English lawyer, judge, social philosopher, author, statesman, and noted Renaissance humanist. He also served Henry VIII as Lord H ...

Family

Christopher More, born about 1483, was the grandson of Thomas More of Norton,

Derbyshire Derbyshire ( ) is a ceremonial county in the East Midlands, England. It includes much of the Peak District National Park, the southern end of the Pennine range of hills and part of the National Forest. It borders Greater Manchester to the no ...

. He was the son of a London

fishmonger A fishmonger (historically fishwife for female practitioners) is someone who sells raw fish and seafood. Fishmongers can be wholesalers or retailers and are trained at selecting and purchasing, handling, gutting, boning, filleting, displaying, m ...

, John More, and his wife, Elizabeth. He had a brother, Robert More of London, who married a wife named Mary, and two sisters, Alice (d. 1545), who married firstly John Clerke, and secondly

, father of

, and Anne, who married John Lucas of Halden,

Kent Kent is a county in South East England and one of the home counties. It borders Greater London to the north-west, Surrey to the west and East Sussex to the south-west, and Essex to the north across the estuary of the River Thames; it faces ...

.; ; ; .

Career

More was a clerk in the

by 1505, and in the same year purchased the office of

alnager Alnage, or aulnage (from Old French ''aune'', ell; parallel to " yardage") was the official supervision of the shape and quality of manufactured woolen cloth. Origins The alnage was first ordered in 1196, during the reign of Richard I, that "wool ...

for Surrey and Sussex. He was admitted to the

Inner Temple The Honourable Society of the Inner Temple, commonly known as the Inner Temple, is one of the four Inns of Court and is a professional associations for barristers and judges. To be called to the Bar and practise as a barrister in England and W ...

in 1513, becoming one of the first officers in the

known to have been formally trained in the law. He served as Commissioner for the Subsidy in Surrey on several occasions from 1515 on, and by 1519 had been appointed verderer of Windsor Forest. In 1521 he was surveyor of the lands of

Margaret Pole, Countess of Salisbury Margaret Plantagenet, Countess of Salisbury (14 August 1473 – 27 May 1541), also called Margaret Pole, as a result of her marriage to Sir Richard Pole, was the only surviving daughter of George Plantagenet, Duke of Clarence, a brother of ...

. He was appointed Justice of the Peace in Surrey in 1522 and in Sussex in 1534, and continued to serve in that capacity in both counties until his death. During the years between 1530 and 1546 he served on various commissions in Surrey and Sussex, and was appointed Sheriff of Sussex and Surrey in 1532-3 and again in 1539-40. In November 1539, he was among those appointed to attend as a guard of honour to meet Henry VIII's future Queen,

Anne of Cleves Anne of Cleves (german: Anna von Kleve; 1515 – 16 July 1557) was Queen of England from 6 January to 12 July 1540 as the fourth wife of King Henry VIII. Not much is known about Anne before 1527, when she became betrothed to Francis, Duke of ...

. He was knighted between August 1540 and February 1541, and by 1542 had risen in the Exchequer to the position of

. By 1547, he was

steward Steward may refer to: Positions or roles * Steward (office), a representative of a monarch * Steward (Methodism), a leader in a congregation and/or district * Steward, a person responsible for supplies of food to a college, club, or other ins ...

of the manor of

West Horsley West Horsley is a semi-rural village between Guildford and Leatherhead in Surrey, England. It lies on the A246, and south of the M25 and the A3. Its civil parish ascends to an ancient woodland Sheepleas Woods which are on the northern downsl ...

in Surrey. Christopher More (1483-1549), History of Parliament Retrieved 26 February 2013
He was elected to Parliament as

Knight of the Shire Knight of the shire ( la, milites comitatus) was the formal title for a member of parliament (MP) representing a county constituency in the British House of Commons, from its origins in the medieval Parliament of England until the Redistributio ...

for Surrey in 1539, and again in 1547. More is said to have been the first member of his family to settle in Surrey, and about 1509 he purchased the manor of Loseley, near

Guildford Guildford () is a town in west Surrey, around southwest of central London. As of the 2011 census, the town has a population of about 77,000 and is the seat of the wider Borough of Guildford, which had around inhabitants in . The name "Guildf ...

. After his initial purchase of Loseley, More acquired other properties in the neighbourhood, as well as properties elsewhere in Surrey and Sussex, and in 1530 was granted licence to empark 200 acres at Loseley. After the Dissolution, More also purchased some former monastic lands. More made his will on 28 June 1549, appointing as executors his second wife, Constance, and son,

William William is a masculine given name of Norman French 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 conq ...

, and as

overseer Overseer may refer to: Professions *Supervisor or superintendent; one who keeps watch over and directs the work of others * Plantation overseer, often in the context of forced labor or slavery * Overseer of the poor, an official who administered ...

Constance's brother, John Sackville. He added a

codicil Codicil may refer to: * Codicil (will), subsequent change or modification of terms made and appended to an existing trust or will and testament * A modification of terms made and appended to an existing constitution, treaty, or standard form c ...

on 8 July 1549 requiring Constance to enter into sureties to her stepson,

, concerning property in the

Blackfriars, London Blackfriars is in central London, specifically the south-west corner of the City of London. Blackfriars Priory The name is first visible today in records of 1317 in many orthographies. Friar evolved from la, frater as french: frère has, me ...

. More died 16 August 1549, and was buried in the Loseley Chapel in

St. Nicolas' Church, Guildford St Nicolas' is an Anglican parish church in Guildford, England. Location and parish Location St Nicolas’ church (spelt ‘Nicholas’ until the early 20th century) is on the west bank of the River Wey, at the bottom of Guildford High Street ...

Marriages and issue

More married firstly, Margaret Mugge or Mudge, the daughter of Walter Mugge or Mudge of

, Surrey, by whom he had five sons, Sir William More, Richard, two sons named Christopher, and John, and seven daughters, Elizabeth; Cecily; Margaret, who married Thomas Fiennes, a brother of

Lord Dacre Baron Dacre is a title that has been created three times in the Peerage of England, every time by writ. History The first creation came in 1321 when Ralph Dacre was summoned to Parliament as Lord Dacre. He married Margaret, 2nd Baroness Multo ...

; Eleanor, who married William Heneage of Milton; Bridget, who married a husband surnamed Compton, of Guernsey; Anne, who married John Scarlett; and Elizabeth, who married John Wintershall or Wintershull. More married secondly, by 1535, Constance Sackville, widow of William Heneage (d. 10 June 1525). She was the daughter of Richard Sackville (d. 28 July 1524), esquire, of

Withyham Withyham is a village and large civil parish in the Wealden district of East Sussex, England. The village is situated 7 miles south west of Royal Tunbridge Wells and 3.5 miles (5.6 km) from Crowborough; the parish covers approxi ...

, Sussex, and the sister of John Sackville. Constance survived him, and died at

Shalford, Surrey Shalford is a village and civil parish in Surrey, England on the A281 Horsham road immediately south of Guildford. It has a railway station which is between Guildford and Dorking on the Reading to Gatwick Airport line. It has one named locali ...

, on 29 March 1554.; ; .

Notes

References

* * * * * * * * *

External links

Christopher More (1483-1549), History of Parliament Will of Sir Christopher More of Loseley, National Archives Will of Dame Constance More, National Archives Will of John Sackville, National Archives Sackville, John (1484-1557), History of Parliament
{{DEFAULTSORT:More, Christopher 1480s births 1549 deaths People from Surrey High Sheriffs of Surrey High Sheriffs of Sussex English justices of the peace English MPs 1539–1540 English MPs 1547–1552 Knights Bachelor