Sir William Killigrew (died 1622) of Hanworth, Middlesex, was a courtier to Queen

Elizabeth I Elizabeth I (7 September 153324 March 1603) was List of English monarchs, Queen of England and List of Irish monarchs, Ireland from 17 November 1558 until her death in 1603. She was the last and longest reigning monarch of the House of Tudo ...

and to her successor King James I, whom he served as Groom of the Privy Chamber. He served as a member of parliament at various times between 1571 and 1614 and was Chamberlain of the Exchequer between 1605 and 1608. Several of his descendants were also royal courtiers and many were buried in

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Origins

Killigrew was the fifth son of John III Killigrew (died 1567) of Arwenack, Cornwall, the first Governor of Pendennis Castle, situated on land within the Arwenack estate, appointed by King Henry VIII. His mother was Elizabeth Trewinnard, 2nd daughter of James Trewennard of Trewennard, in the parish of St Erth, Cornwall. The

monumental brass A monumental brass is a type of engraved church monument, sepulchral memorial once found through Western Europe, which in the 13th century began to partially take the place of three-dimensional church monument, monuments and effigy, effigies carve ...

of John III Killigrew survives in St Budock's Church, near Arwenack.

Career

Under Queen Elizabeth I

In 1571 he was elected Member of Parliament for

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in Lincolnshire and in 1572 he was elected MP for Helston in Cornwall. He became feodary and escheator for the Duchy of Cornwall and Constable of Launceston Castle in 1576 by which year he was Groom of the Privy Chamber to Queen Elizabeth I. In 1578 he was

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of the profits from seals in the Court of Queen's Bench and the Court of Common Pleas. He was commissioner for musters for Cornwall by 1582 and was a Justice of the Peace for Cornwall from 1583 to 1587. In 1584 he was elected MP for the Killigrew

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of Penryn. He was receiver for Devon and Cornwall by 1588 and was commissioner for goods from Madre de Dios in 1592. In 1593 he was elected MP for Fowey in Cornwall. He was commissioner acting treasurer of the chamber in 1595 and commissioner for goods from Cadiz in 1596. In 1597 he was elected MP for the prestigious county seat,

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Under King James I

He was knighted in 1603 on the succession of King James I. In 1604 he became MP for

Liskeard Liskeard ( ; ) is an ancient stannary and market town in south-east Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. It is situated approximately 20 miles (32 km) west of Plymouth, west of the Devon border, and 12 miles (20 km) east of Bodmin. Th ...

. From 1605 to 1608 he was Chamberlain of the Exchequer. In 1614 he was elected MP for Penryn again. History of Parliament Online – William Killigrew
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Marriage and progeny

At some time about 1576 Killigrew married Margaret Saunders, daughter of Thomas Saunders of Uxbridge, Middlesex, and widow of Robert Woolman and of John Leigh. By his wife he had the following progeny: *Sir

Robert Killigrew Sir Robert Killigrew (1580–1633) was an English courtier and politician who sat in the House of Commons at various times between 1601 and 1629. He served as Ambassador to the United Provinces. Life Killgrew was born at Lothbury, London, t ...

(1580–1633) of Hanworth, Middlesex, MP and Vice-Chamberlain to Queen

Henrietta Maria Henrietta Maria of France (French language, French: ''Henriette Marie''; 25 November 1609 – 10 September 1669) was List of English royal consorts, Queen of England, List of Scottish royal consorts, Scotland and Ireland from her marriage to K ...

. *Elizabeth Killigrew, eldest daughter, wife of Sir Maurice Berkeley (c. 1577–1617), MP, of Bruton Abbey, Somerset. *Catherine Killigrew (born 1579), wife of Sir Thomas Jermyn (died 1645) of Suffolk, MP, and mother of Henry Jermyn, 1st Earl of Saint Albans, KG, (1605–1684). Her portrait by Marcus Gheeraerts the Younger (1561–1636) survives in the collection of the Yale Center for British Art, Connecticut, USA.

Landholdings

In 1594 he obtained an 80-year lease of the two adjoining royal manors of Kempton and Hanworth in

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 ...

. In 1631 his son Sir Robert Killigrew (1580–1633) secured the reversion and in 1651 the latter's son Sir William Killigrew (1606–1695), "of Kempton Park", conveyed Kempton to John Warburton.

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, Volume 3, 1962, ''Middlesex; Sunbury: Manors

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Death and burial

Killigrew died in 1622 and was buried in St. Margaret's Church, Lothbury, in the

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, near his brother Henry Killigrew.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Killigrew, William Members of the pre-1707 English Parliament for constituencies in Cornwall Year of birth missing 1622 deaths Grooms of the Chamber English MPs 1571 English MPs 1572–1583 English MPs 1584–1585 English MPs 1593 English MPs 1597–1598 English MPs 1604–1611 English MPs 1614 17th-century English knights Knights Bachelor