Sir William Le Neve (1600?–1661) was an English herald and genealogist.

Life

Le Neve was the son and heir of William Neve of

Aslacton Aslacton is a village and civil parish in the England, English county of Norfolk. It is situated between Norwich and Diss, Norfolk, Diss, and is near Great Moulton. The closest town to Aslacton is Long Stratton. The village name means 'Asla ...

, Norfolk, by his first wife, the daughter of John Aldham of

Shimpling Shimpling is a village and civil parish in south Suffolk, England. About from Bury St Edmunds, it is part of Babergh district. The village is formed from two halves, the newer Shimpling Street and about away the old village of Shimpling. The ...

; his father died in 1609. Le Neve was appointed Mowbray herald extraordinary, under a warrant dated 24 June 1622 . He was then

York herald York Herald of Arms in Ordinary is an officer of arms at the College of Arms. The first York Herald is believed to have been an officer to Edmund of Langley, Duke of York around the year 1385, but the first completely reliable reference to such ...

, 25 November 1625;

Norroy King of Arms Norroy and Ulster King of Arms is the provincial King of Arms at the College of Arms with jurisdiction over England north of the River Trent, Trent and Northern Ireland. The two offices of Norroy and Ulster were formerly separate. Norroy King of ...

, December 1633; and

Clarenceux King of Arms Clarenceux King of Arms, historically often spelled Clarencieux (both pronounced ), is an Officer of Arms, officer of arms at the College of Arms in London. Clarenceux is the senior of the two provincial King of Arms, kings of arms and his juri ...

, 23 June 1635, having been knighted at

Whitehall Palace The Palace of Whitehall – also spelled White Hall – at Westminster was the main residence of the English monarchs from 1530 until 1698, when most of its structures, with the notable exception of Inigo Jones's Banqueting House of 1622, ...

on 23 April 1634. In 1640 he was in correspondence with

Sir Christopher Hatton Sir Christopher Hatton (12 December 1540 – 20 November 1591) was an English politician, Lord Chancellor of England and a favourite of Elizabeth I of England. He was one of the judges who found Mary, Queen of Scots guilty of treason. Early ...

. In 1625, Le Neve went to France with Henry St George to France, to bring back the future

Queen Henrietta Maria Henrietta Maria of France ( French: ''Henriette Marie''; 25 November 1609 – 10 September 1669) was Queen of England, Scotland and Ireland from her marriage to King Charles I on 13 June 1625 until his execution on 30 January 1649. She was ...

. In 1639, Le Neve and George Owen were attached to the

Earl Marshal Earl Marshal (alternatively marschal or marischal) is a hereditary royal officeholder and chivalric title under the Monarchy of the United Kingdom, sovereign of the United Kingdom used in England (then, following the Act of Union 1800, in the U ...

, the

Earl of Arundel Earl of Arundel is a title of nobility in England, and one of the oldest extant in the English peerage. It is currently held by the Duke of Norfolk, and it is used (along with the earldom of Surrey) by his heir apparent as a courtesy title ...

, for the

First Bishops' War The First Bishops' War was a conflict that took place in Scotland in 1639 between a Scottish political movement known as the Covenanters and forces loyal to King Charles I, who at that time was the king of both Scotland and England. Military acti ...

. In 1642 Le Neve was sent by

Charles I Charles I may refer to: Kings and emperors * Charlemagne (742–814), numbered Charles I in the lists of Holy Roman Emperors and French kings * Charles I of Anjou (1226–1285), also king of Albania, Jerusalem, Naples and Sicily * Charles I of ...

, on the day before the

battle of Edgehill The Battle of Edgehill (or Edge Hill) was a pitched battle of the First English Civil War. It was fought near Edge Hill, Warwickshire, Edge Hill and Kineton in southern Warwickshire on Sunday, 23 October 1642. All attempts at constitution ...

, to the parliamentary army under the

Earl of Essex Earl of Essex is a title in the Peerage of England which was first created in the 12th century by King Stephen of England. The title has been recreated eight times from its original inception, beginning with a new first Earl upon each new cre ...

, with a proclamation. This mission is now described as intelligence work. Le Neve was deprived of his proclamation, and taken to Essex blindfolded, where his protests were found amusing. There is an account of the brusque treatment he received from Essex in the

Earl of Clarendon Earl of Clarendon is a title that has been created twice in British history, in 1661 and 1776. The family seat is Holywell House, near Swanmore, Hampshire. First creation of the title The title was created for the first time in the Peer ...

's ''History''. Le Neve was deprived of his position in 1646, when Arthur Squibb was made Clarenceux herald. He was declared to be a

lunatic ''Lunatic'' is a term referring to a person who is seen as Mental disorder, mentally ill, Risk, dangerous, Foolishness, foolish, or crazy—conditions once attributed to "lunacy". The word derives from ''lunaticus'' meaning "of the moon" or "moo ...

in October 1658, and Sir Edward Walker was empowered to execute his office. Again in 1661 he was found to be insane. Le Neve died at

Hoxton Hoxton is an area in the London Borough of Hackney, England. It was Historic counties of England, historically in the county of Middlesex until 1889. Hoxton lies north-east of the City of London, is considered to be a part of London's East End ...

, on 15 August 1661, and was buried at St. Benet's, Paul's Wharf. He was not married. An antiquarian and collector, he bought works from the library of William Dethick. He left manuscripts that went to the

Ashmolean Museum The Ashmolean Museum of Art and Archaeology () on Beaumont Street in Oxford, England, is Britain's first public museum. Its first building was erected in 1678–1683 to house the cabinet of curiosities that Elias Ashmole gave to the University ...

Arms

Notes

;Attribution {{DEFAULTSORT:Le Neve 1661 deaths English officers of arms English antiquarians Year of birth uncertain People from Norfolk