Sir Robert Dormer of Wing, 1st Baronet, 1st Baron Dormer of Wing r Wenge'' (26 January 1551 – 8 November 1616) was a 17th-century English peer.

Life

Dormer was the only surviving son of Sir William Dormer and his second wife, Dorothy Pelham (née Catesby). He studied at

Gray's Inn The Honourable Society of Gray's Inn, commonly known as Gray's Inn, is one of the four Inns of Court (professional associations for barristers and judges) in London. To be called to the bar in order to practise as a barrister in England and Wale ...

in 1567 and obtained a B.A. from

Oxford University The University of Oxford is a collegiate research university in Oxford, England. There is evidence of teaching as early as 1096, making it the oldest university in the English-speaking world and the second-oldest continuously operating u ...

in 1569. In 1575, Dormer succeeded to the considerable lands and estate of his father in Buckinghamshire and elsewhere, together with a fortune estimated by the Spanish ambassador to amount to 100,000 ducats. Dormer became a Justice of the Peace in 1577. He served as High Sheriff of Buckinghamshire in 1584 and was knighted in 1591. He was returned as Member of Parliament for Tregony in 1571 and for

Buckinghamshire Buckinghamshire (, abbreviated ''Bucks'') is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England and one of the home counties. It is bordered by Northamptonshire to the north, Bedfordshire to the north-east, Hertfordshir ...

in 1593. In June 1615, he was created a

baronet A baronet ( or ; abbreviated Bart or Bt) or the female equivalent, a baronetess (, , or ; abbreviation Btss), is the holder of a baronetcy, a hereditary title awarded by the British Crown. The title of baronet is mentioned as early as the 14th ...

, of Wing (or Wenge). Only a few weeks later he was raised to the peerage as Baron Dormer, of Wing r Wenge in the County of Buckingham.

Family

Dormer married Elizabeth Browne, daughter of Anthony Browne, 1st Viscount Montagu, by whom he had six sons and three daughters. Dormer was a brother-in-law of

Henry Wriothesley, 2nd Earl of Southampton Henry Wriothesley, 2nd Earl of Southampton (pronunciation uncertain: ''RYE-zlee'' (archaic), ''ROTT-slee'' (present-day) and ''RYE-əths-lee'' have been suggested) (24 April 1545 – 4 October 1581), was an English peer. Family Henry Wriot ...

, who was married to Elizabeth's sister, Mary.Virgoe, Roger. "Dormer, Robert (1551–1616) of Wings, Bucks.", The History of Parliament
/ref> His half-sister, Jane, married the Spanish Ambassador, Gómez Suárez de Figueroa y Córdoba, 1st Duke of Feria. His paternal grandmother, Jane Newdigate, was the sister of the Carthusian martyr,

Sebastian Newdigate Sebastian Newdigate, O.Cart (7 September 1500 – 19 June 1535) was the seventh child of John Newdigate, Sergeant-at-law. He spent his early life at court, and later became a Carthusian monk. He was executed for treason on 19 June 1535 for his ...

, but both Dormer and his father appear to have conformed to the established church. Nonetheless, Dormer held strong Catholic sympathies as so many of his relatives remained Catholic. Sir William Dormer was a friend of the influential

Francis Russell, 2nd Earl of Bedford Francis Russell, 2nd Earl of Bedford ( – 28 July 1585) of Chenies in Buckinghamshire and of Bedford House in Exeter, Devon, was an English nobleman, soldier, and politician. He was a godfather to the Devon-born sailor Sir Francis Drake. He ...

, whose patronage seems to have extended to William's son, Robert, and shielded the family somewhat from close scrutiny under the

Penal laws Penal law refers to criminal law. It may also refer to: * Penal law (British), laws to uphold the establishment of the Church of England against Catholicism * Penal laws (Ireland) In Ireland, the penal laws () were a series of Disabilities (C ...

despite the fact that Robert had married into the Catholic Montague family. His daughter, Dorothy, married Sir Henry Huddleston, of Sawston Hall, noted for a number of

priest holes A priest hole is a hiding place for a priest built in England or Wales during the period when Catholics were persecuted by law. Following the accession of Queen Elizabeth I to the throne in 1558, there were several Catholic plots designed to remo ...

Death

Lord Dormer died on 18 November 1616, aged 65, and was interred at All Saints' Church, Wing, where there is an impressive monument to his memory. He was succeeded in his titles by his grandson

Robert The name Robert is an ancient Germanic given name, from Proto-Germanic "fame" and "bright" (''Hrōþiberhtaz''). Compare Old Dutch ''Robrecht'' and Old High German ''Hrodebert'' (a compound of ''Hrōþ, Hruod'' () "fame, glory, honour, prais ...

, who was created Earl of Carnarvon in 1628.

References

Sources

* Kidd, Charles, Williamson, David (editors). ''Debrett's Peerage and Baronetage'' (1990 edition). New York: St Martin's Press, 1990,

External links

Burial record
findagrave.com. Accessed 3 January 2023. {{DEFAULTSORT:Dormer, Robert Dormer, 1st Baron 1551 births 1616 deaths *01 High sheriffs of Buckinghamshire 17th-century English nobility English MPs 1571 English MPs 1593 17th-century English knights English justices of the peace Members of the pre-1707 English Parliament for constituencies in Cornwall 16th-century English nobility