Thomas Hawley (died 22 August 1557) was a long-serving

officer of arms An officer of arms is a person appointed by a sovereign or state with authority to perform one or more of the following functions: * to control and initiate armorial matters; * to arrange and participate in ceremonies of state; * to conserve ...

at the

College of Arms The College of Arms, or Heralds' College, is a royal corporation consisting of professional officers of arms, with jurisdiction over England, Wales, Northern Ireland and some Commonwealth realms. The heralds are appointed by the British Sover ...

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

. He began his career of royal service as a groom porter to Queen Margaret of

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to th ...

from her marriage in 1503 until 1508. Although he may have been made Rose Blanche Pursuivant in the reign of

King Henry VII Henry VII (28 January 1457 – 21 April 1509) was King of England and Lord of Ireland from his seizure of the crown on 22 August 1485 until his death in 1509. He was the first monarch of the House of Tudor. Henry's mother, Margaret Beaufort ...

, his first permanent

heraldic Heraldry is a discipline relating to the design, display and study of armorial bearings (known as armory), as well as related disciplines, such as vexillology, together with the study of ceremony, rank and pedigree. Armory, the best-known bran ...

appointment came in 1509.

Heraldic career

King Henry VIII appointed Hawley to be Rouge Croix Pursuivant of Arms in Ordinary by

letters patent Letters patent ( la, litterae patentes) ( always in the plural) are a type of legal instrument in the form of a published written order issued by a monarch, president or other head of state, generally granting an office, right, monopoly, t ...

dated 26 August 1509. It was in this capacity that he journeyed with the

Earl of Surrey Earl of Surrey is a title in the Peerage of England that has been created five times. It was first created for William de Warenne, a close companion of William the Conqueror. It is currently held as a subsidiary title by the Dukes of Norfolk ...

on the campaign of 1513 against

King James IV of Scotland James IV (17 March 1473 – 9 September 1513) was King of Scotland from 11 June 1488 until his death at the Battle of Flodden in 1513. He inherited the throne at the age of fifteen on the death of his father, James III, at the Battle of Sauc ...

. Hawley was captured and detained as a prisoner before the

Battle of Flodden The Battle of Flodden, Flodden Field, or occasionally Branxton, (Brainston Moor) was a battle fought on 9 September 1513 during the War of the League of Cambrai between the Kingdom of England and the Kingdom of Scotland, resulting in an English ...

, but released before the fighting actually started. On 1 November 1514 he was created Carlisle Herald in recognition of his diplomatic services in Scotland. The king also granted him an annuity of 20 marks. As Carlisle, Hawley also performed the ceremonial and other duties of an officer of arms. In 1530 he was appointed the deputy to

Thomas Benolt Thomas Benolt (died 8 May 1534) was a long-serving officer of arms at the College of Arms in London. As part of his service, he was also a diplomat. He appears to have been born at Rouen, though his family had stronger links with Calais. Ben ...

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

. In this capacity, he undertook a

heraldic visitation Heraldic visitations were tours of inspection undertaken by Kings of Arms (or alternatively by heralds, or junior officers of arms, acting as their deputies) throughout England, Wales and Ireland. Their purpose was to register and regulate the ...

of London churches on Benolt's behalf. He was charged "to reforme all false armorye & Armes devysed without auctoritie" (Wagner, Heralds and Heraldry, 9). His record of the occasion is the earliest existing account of a heraldic visitation. After several more diplomatic trips to Scotland, Hawley was made

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

by patent dated 15 June 1534. Hawley continued a long-running dispute with

Garter Principal King of Arms The Garter Principal King of Arms (also Garter King of Arms or simply Garter) is the senior King of Arms, and the senior Officer of Arms of the College of Arms, the heraldic authority with jurisdiction over England, Wales and Northern Ireland ...

over the privileges of their offices. On 19 May 1536 Hawley was appointed Clarenceux King of Arms. Visitation commissions were issued to Hawley in 1541, 1552, and 1555, but it is not certain if these were acted on. Hawley died at his house in the

Barbican, London The Barbican Estate, or Barbican, is a residential complex of around 2,000 flats, maisonettes, and houses in central London, England, within the City of London. It is in an area once devastated by World War II bombings and densely populated b ...

on 22 August 1557. He was buried two days later in an elaborate ceremony at

St Giles Cripplegate St Giles-without-Cripplegate is an Anglican church in the City of London, located on Fore Street within the modern Barbican complex. When built it stood without (that is, outside) the city wall, near the Cripplegate. The church is dedicated to ...

. He is not known to have married; his will appointed

William Harvey William Harvey (1 April 1578 – 3 June 1657) was an English physician who made influential contributions in anatomy and physiology. He was the first known physician to describe completely, and in detail, the systemic circulation and prope ...

, Norroy King of Arms, as his executor, also leaving him the substantial library that Hawley had inherited from his predecessor as Clarenceux, Thomas Benolt.

Arms

External links

The College of Arms

References

*Walter H. Godfrey and Sir Anthony Wagner, ''The College of Arms, Queen Victoria Street: being the sixteenth and final monograph of the London Survey Committee''. (London, 1963). * J. B. Paul, ''Accounts of the Lord High Treasurer of Scotland, (1900), 98, 119, 123, 325, 337, 373. *Anthony Wagner. ''The Records and Collections of the College of Arms''. (London, 1952), 10, 14, 24, 62, 68. *Anthony Wagner. ''Heralds and Heraldry in the Middle Ages''. (London, 1956), 9–10, 98, 102, 118–119, 139–143, 150–175. *Sir Anthony Wagner. ''Heralds of England: a History of the Office and College of Arms''. (London, 1967), 120–185. *L. Campbell and Francis Steer. ''A Catalogue of Manuscripts in the College of Arms Collections''. (London, 1988), 5–7, 17–19, 484. *

Mark Noble Mark James Noble (born 8 May 1987) is an English former professional footballer who played as a central midfielder and is well remembered for his time at English club West Ham United, spending eighteen years with the club. Apart from two sh ...

. ''A History of the College of Arms''. (London, 1805), 119, 122, 128, 130, 143, 151–153. {{DEFAULTSORT:Hawley, Thomas 1557 deaths English antiquarians English genealogists English officers of arms Year of birth unknown 16th-century antiquarians 16th-century English writers 16th-century male writers

Heraldic career

Arms

See also

External links

References