Sir John Marvyn (by 1503 – 18 June 1566), of

Fonthill Gifford Fonthill Gifford is a village and civil parish in Wiltshire, England, to the north of the Nadder valley, west of Salisbury. History The name of the village and parish derives from the Giffard family, landowners, beginning with Berenger Gif ...

Wiltshire Wiltshire (; abbreviated to Wilts) is a ceremonial county in South West England. It borders Gloucestershire to the north, Oxfordshire to the north-east, Berkshire to the east, Hampshire to the south-east, Dorset to the south, and Somerset to ...

, was an English politician. He was the son of John Marvyn, head of a family which had been settled at Fonthill Gifford for generations, and Elizabeth Green. By his first wife Jane, daughter of Phillip Baskerville of

Sherborne Sherborne is a market town and civil parishes in England, civil parish in north west Dorset, in South West England. It is sited on the River Yeo (South Somerset), River Yeo, on the edge of the Blackmore Vale, east of Yeovil. The parish include ...

, and widow of William Peverell of

Bradford Peverell Bradford Peverell is a village and civil parish in the English county of Dorset, north-west of the county town Dorchester. It is sited by the south bank of the River Frome, among low chalk hills on the dip slope of the Dorset Downs. The A37 ...

, he had thirteen children, including Sir James Marvyn and Elizabeth, who married John Ryves of Damory Court,

Dorset Dorset ( ; Archaism, archaically: Dorsetshire , ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by Somerset to the north-west, Wiltshire to the north and the north-east, Hampshire to the east, t ...

and had several distinguished sons. He married secondly Elizabeth Mompessson, daughter of John Mompessson of

Bathampton Bathampton () is a village and Civil parishes in England, civil parish east of Bath, Somerset, Bath, England on the south bank of the River Avon, Bristol, River Avon. The parish has a population of 1,603. The Kennet and Avon Canal passes thro ...

, and widow of Richard Perkins. He was a

Member Member may refer to: * Military jury, referred to as "Members" in military jargon * Element (mathematics), an object that belongs to a mathematical set * In object-oriented programming, a member of a class ** Field (computer science), entries in ...

(MP) of the

Parliament of England The Parliament of England was the legislature of the Kingdom of England from the 13th century until 1707 when it was replaced by the Parliament of Great Britain. Parliament evolved from the Great Council of England, great council of Lords Spi ...

for

in April 1554 and for

Calne Calne () is a town and Civil parishes in England, civil parish in Wiltshire, southwestern England,OS Explorer Map 156, Chippenham and Bradford-on-Avon Scale: 1:25 000.Publisher: Ordnance Survey A2 edition (2007). at the northwestern extremity ...

in November 1554. He served three times as

High Sheriff of Wiltshire This is a list of the sheriffs and (after 1 April 1974) high sheriffs of Wiltshire. Until the 14th century, the shrievalty was held ''ex officio'' by the castellans of Old Sarum Castle. On 1 April 1974, under the provisions of the Local Go ...

. He received a

knighthood A knight is a person granted an honorary title of a knighthood by a head of state (including the pope) or representative for service to the monarch, the church, or the country, especially in a military capacity. The concept of a knighthood ...

, possibly an indication that he was unsympathetic to the

Protestant Reformation The Reformation, also known as the Protestant Reformation or the European Reformation, was a time of major theological movement in Western Christianity in 16th-century Europe that posed a religious and political challenge to the papacy and ...

, and thus likely to be favoured by Queen

Mary I Mary I (18 February 1516 – 17 November 1558), also known as Mary Tudor, was Queen of England and Ireland from July 1553 and Queen of Spain as the wife of King Philip II from January 1556 until her death in 1558. She made vigorous a ...

. From 1547 on he engaged in a bitter feud with

Sir Thomas Arundell Sir Thomas Arundell of Wardour Castle in Wiltshire (c. 150226 February 1552) was a Cornish administrator and alleged conspirator. Arundell was connected by birth and marriage to the crown and to several of the most important families in England ...

, a

Cornishman Cornish people or the Cornish (, ) are an ethnic group native to, or associated with Cornwall: and a recognised national minority in the United Kingdom, which (like the Welsh and Bretons) can trace its roots to the ancient Britons who inh ...

who became a rising power in Wiltshire, Marvyn's home county, through his purchase of

Wardour Castle Wardour Castle or Old Wardour Castle is a ruined 14th-century castle at Wardour, on the boundaries of the civil parishes of Tisbury and Donhead St Andrew in the English county of Wiltshire, about west of Salisbury. The castle was built in t ...

. Arundell, unlike Marvyn, was a considerable figure at Court, but his intrigues led to his execution for

conspiracy A conspiracy, also known as a plot, ploy, or scheme, is a secret plan or agreement between people (called conspirers or conspirators) for an unlawful or harmful purpose, such as murder, treason, or corruption, especially with a political motivat ...

to overthrow the Government in 1552. Marvyn played no part in Arundell's downfall, but turned it to good advantage by purchasing from the Crown the forfeited manor of

Compton Bassett Compton Bassett is a village and rural civil parish in Wiltshire, England, with a population of approximately 250. The village lies about north of Cherhill and east of the town of Calne. Parish church The Church of England parish churc ...

, adjoining Fonthill. His last

will and testament A will and testament is a legal document that expresses a person's (testator) wishes as to how their property (estate (law), estate) is to be distributed after their death and as to which person (executor) is to manage the property until its fi ...

, which was signed a few days before his death, is a rather curious document, as it effectively disinherited his eldest son, Sir James, although James, so far from being a source of disappointment, was already a coming man in the county, and held two positions at Court. Marvyn's widow received a life estate in much of his property, and there was provision for younger sons and daughters, while the manor of Compton Bassett passed to the eldest grandson. Sir John's motives are obscure, since there is no evidence of a quarrel between himself and James. James himself always maintained that his stepmother had

forged Forging is a manufacturing process involving the shaping of metal using localized compression (physics), compressive forces. The blows are delivered with a hammer (often a power hammer) or a die (manufacturing), die. Forging is often classif ...

the will to gain a life estate for herself. Fonthill Gifford Holy Trinity

References

1566 deaths Politicians from Wiltshire English MPs 1554 English MPs 1554–1555 Year of birth uncertain {{1554-2-England-MP-stub