Sir Richard Bulkeley (1524 – 1572 or 1573) was a Welsh politician, and High Sheriff of both

Anglesey Anglesey ( ; ) is an island off the north-west coast of Wales. It forms the bulk of the Principal areas of Wales, county known as the Isle of Anglesey, which also includes Holy Island, Anglesey, Holy Island () and some islets and Skerry, sker ...

and

Caernarvonshire Caernarfonshire (; , ), previously spelled Caernarvonshire or Carnarvonshire, was one of the thirteen counties of Wales that existed from 1536 until their abolishment in 1974. It was located in the north-west of Wales. Geography The county ...

Ancestry

He was the eldest son of Sir Richard Bulkeley, of

Beaumaris Beaumaris (; ) is a town and community (Wales), community on the Anglesey, Isle of Anglesey in Wales, of which it is the former county town. It is located at the eastern entrance to the Menai Strait, the tidal waterway separating Anglesey fro ...

Chamberlain of North Wales The Chamberlain of North Wales was a financial official of the Principality of Wales during the medieval period. The Chamberlain controlled the provincial Exchequer located at Caernarfon. Background With the final defeat of the Welsh Princes of ...

in 1534. His mother Catherine was the daughter of Sir William Griffith, Knight of

Penrhyn Castle Penrhyn Castle () is a country house in Llandygai, Bangor, Wales, Bangor, Gwynedd, North Wales, constructed in the style of a Norman architecture, Norman castle. The Penrhyn estate was founded by Ednyfed Fychan. In the 15th century his descenda ...

in the county of

Caernarfon Caernarfon (; ) is a List of place names with royal patronage in the United Kingdom, royal town, Community (Wales), community and port in Gwynedd, Wales. It has a population of 9,852 (with Caeathro). It lies along the A487 road, on the easter ...

and his wife Jane Stradling.

Life

He was knighted at

Berwick-upon-Tweed Berwick-upon-Tweed (), sometimes known as Berwick-on-Tweed or simply Berwick, is a town and civil parish in Northumberland, England, south of the Anglo-Scottish border, and the northernmost town in England. The 2011 United Kingdom census recor ...

in 1547 by

John Dudley, 1st Earl of Warwick 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 ...

and Lieutenant of the King's Army in

Scotland Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...

. He was appointed

High Sheriff of Anglesey This is a list of Sheriffs of Anglesey. Following the conquest of Wales by Edward I, Anglesey was created a county of Wales under the Statute of Rhuddlan, 1284.Prior to 1974 the office now known as "High Sheriff" were styled "Sheriff" () On 1 A ...

in 1547, 1552 and 1561, and

High Sheriff of Caernarvonshire This is a list of Sheriffs of Caernarvonshire (or Carnarvonshire). The Sheriff is the oldest secular office under the Crown. Formerly the Sheriff was the principal law enforcement officer in a county but over the centuries most of the responsibi ...

in 1550 and 1558. and

Custos Rotulorum of Anglesey This is a list of people who have served as Custos Rotulorum of Anglesey. * Thomas Holte bef. 1544–1546 * Lewis Ab Owen ap Meurig ?–1558 * Sir Richard Bulkeley 1558–1572 * Sir Richard Bulkeley bef. 1577 – bef. 1584 * Rob ...

bef. 1558–1572. As the leading citizen of Beaumaris he did everything possible to advance the town's interests, and obtained a

charter A charter is the grant of authority or rights, stating that the granter formally recognizes the prerogative of the recipient to exercise the rights specified. It is implicit that the granter retains superiority (or sovereignty), and that the ...

for its incorporation from

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. She was the last and longest reigning monarch of the House of Tudo ...

in 1562. His eldest son became the first Mayor of Beaumaris the following year. He was the Member of Parliament for

in 1549–1552, April to May 1554, Nov 1554 to Jan 1555, and in 1571–1572. He married twice: firstly Margaret, daughter of Sir John Savage of Rock Savage, Cheshire, and Lady Elizabeth Somerset (daughter of

Charles Somerset, 1st Earl of Worcester Charles Somerset, 1st Earl of Worcester, (c. 146015 March 1526) was an English nobleman and politician. He was the bastard son of Henry Beaufort, 3rd Duke of Somerset by his mistress Joan Hill. Origins Somerset was born in about 1460, an ill ...

), and secondly Agnes, eldest daughter of Thomas Needham of Shenton. His eldest son

Richard Richard is a male given name. It originates, via Old French, from compound of the words descending from Proto-Germanic language">Proto-Germanic ''*rīk-'' 'ruler, leader, king' and ''*hardu-'' 'strong, brave, hardy', and it therefore means 'st ...

was also an MP and his youngest son

Lancelot Lancelot du Lac (French for Lancelot of the Lake), alternatively written as Launcelot and other variants, is a popular character in the Matter of Britain, Arthurian legend's chivalric romance tradition. He is typically depicted as King Arthu ...

was

Archbishop of Dublin The Archbishop of Dublin () is an Episcopal polity, archiepiscopal title which takes its name from Dublin, Republic of Ireland, Ireland. Since the Reformation in Ireland, Reformation, there have been parallel apostolic successions to the title: ...

from 1619 to 1650. He died in 1573; his second wife, who had been unfaithful to him, was accused by his eldest son of having

poison A poison is any chemical substance that is harmful or lethal to living organisms. The term is used in a wide range of scientific fields and industries, where it is often specifically defined. It may also be applied colloquially or figurati ...

ed him. She was convicted of

adultery Adultery is extramarital sex that is considered objectionable on social, religious, moral, or legal grounds. Although the sexual activities that constitute adultery vary, as well as the social, religious, and legal consequences, the concept ...

by an ecclesiastical court but a local jury acquitted her of

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 ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bulkeley, Richard 1524 births 1570s deaths 16th-century Welsh politicians High sheriffs of Anglesey High sheriffs of Caernarvonshire Members of the Parliament of England (pre-1707) for constituencies in Wales Welsh knights

English MPs 1547–1552 English MPs 1554 English MPs 1554–1555 English MPs 1571 People from Beaumaris