Sir Richard Cotton (in or before 1497 – 1556), was a courtier in the court of

Henry VIII of England Henry VIII (28 June 149128 January 1547) was King of England from 22 April 1509 until his death in 1547. Henry is known for his Wives of Henry VIII, six marriages and his efforts to have his first marriage (to Catherine of Aragon) annulled. ...

. He came from

Shropshire Shropshire (; abbreviated SalopAlso used officially as the name of the county from 1974–1980. The demonym for inhabitants of the county "Salopian" derives from this name.) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the West M ...

and began his career as a lawyer before entering the king's service. His elder brother George Cotton was in charge of the

household A household consists of one or more persons who live in the same dwelling. It may be of a single family or another type of person group. The household is the basic unit of analysis in many social, microeconomic and government models, and is im ...

of the king's son Henry, Duke of Richmond at

Sheriff Hutton Castle Sheriff Hutton Castle is a ruined quadrangular castle in the village of Sheriff Hutton, North Yorkshire, England. The site of the castle is north of York, and south-east of Easingwold. History The original motte and bailey castle, the remai ...

, and Richard served there as

comptroller A comptroller (pronounced either the same as ''controller'' or as ) is a management-level position responsible for supervising the quality of accountancy, accounting and financial reporting of an organization. A financial comptroller is a senior- ...

. The king granted him property in Bedhampton, Hampshire and

Bourne, Lincolnshire Bourne is a market town and civil parishes in England, civil parish in the South Kesteven Non-metropolitan district, district of Lincolnshire, England. It lies on the eastern slopes of the limestone Kesteven Uplands and the western edge of the ...

. He became privy councillor in May 1552. He was

knight of the shire Knight of the shire () 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 Redistribution of Seats Act 1885 ...

for

Hampshire Hampshire (, ; abbreviated to Hants.) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Berkshire to the north, Surrey and West Sussex to the east, the Isle of Wight across the Solent to the south, ...

in 1553 and

Cheshire Cheshire ( ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in North West England. It is bordered by Merseyside to the north-west, Greater Manchester to the north-east, Derbyshire to the east, Staffordshire to the south-east, and Shrop ...

in 1554.

References

* * Birkbeck, J.D. A History of Bourne.(1976) * Davies, Catharine. Oxford Dictionary of National Biography 1490s births 1556 deaths Year of birth uncertain Politicians from Shropshire People from Bourne, Lincolnshire English MPs 1553 (Edward VI) English MPs 1554–1555 Members of the Privy Council of England People from the Borough of Havant Household of Henry Fitzroy {{1554-2-England-MP-stub