Thomas Charlton (1417?–1465) was an English politician who served as speaker for House of Commons of England in 1454.

Biography

Possibly born 1417, Charlton was the son and heir of Sir Thomas Charlton of

Hillingdon Hillingdon is an area of Uxbridge within the London Borough of Hillingdon, centred 14.2 miles (22.8 km) west of Charing Cross. It was an ancient parish in Middlesex that included the market town of Uxbridge. During the 1920s the civil pari ...

(d. 1445), land owner and MP. By 1441, Thomas Jr. had entered Henry VI's household as one of the esquires of the hall and chamber. In 1442 he was elected to the first of six parliaments in which he served as

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

Middlesex Middlesex (; abbreviation: Middx) is a Historic counties of England, former county in South East England, now mainly within Greater London. Its boundaries largely followed three rivers: the River Thames, Thames in the south, the River Lea, Le ...

. He inherited extensive estates from his parents in over five counties and again represented Middlesex in the Parliaments of 1447 and 1449-50. He was knighted around 1453. In 1453 he once again sat in parliament for Middlesex, when Richard, Duke of York made his claim to the throne during Henry VI's illness. The speaker for the House of Commons, Thomas Thorpe, was arrested on York's orders and on 16 February 1454. Charlton was elected in his place until April 1454. In 1455, Thomas Charlton was appointed Sheriff of Bedfordshire and Buckinghamshire. In 1459, he returned to Parliament. After the Yorkist invasion of 1460, he committed to the Yorkist cause and was one of the judges who tried the Lancastrian defenders of the

Tower of London The Tower of London, officially His Majesty's Royal Palace and Fortress of the Tower of London, is a historic citadel and castle on the north bank of the River Thames in central London, England. It lies within the London Borough of Tower Hamle ...

, was again elected to Parliament and was made

Comptroller of the Household The Comptroller of the Household is an ancient position in the British royal household, nominally the second-ranking member of the Lord Steward's department after the Treasurer of the Household. The Comptroller was an ''ex officio'' member of ...

. As Comptroller, he accompanied Henry VI to the second battle of St. Albans in 1461, where he was taken as prisoner, regaining his freedom after Edward IV's victory at Towton in the following month. He died in 1465. He married Benedicta Vernon (Charlton), daughter of the former speaker of the Commons Sir Richard Vernon. They had two sons and three daughters.

References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Charlton, Thomas 1410s births 1465 deaths Speakers of the House of Commons of England English MPs 1442 English MPs 1447 English MPs November 1449 English MPs 1453 Members of Parliament for Middlesex