William Catesby

Sir William Catesby (1450^[1] – August 25, 1485) was one of Richard III of England's principal councillors. He also served as Chancellor of the Exchequer and Speaker of the House of Commons during Richard's reign.

The son of Sir William Catesby of Ashby St Ledgers, Northamptonshire (died 1478) and Philippa, daughter and heiress of Sir William Bishopston, he was trained for the law in the Inner Temple.^[2] As an aspiring lawyer Catesby initially progressed in the service of William, 1st Lord Hastings. He married Margaret, daughter of William La Zouche, 6th Baron Zouche of Harringworth; the couple had three sons. Upon the death of his father he inherited a large number of estates in the English Midlands and was land-agent for many others. He was a member of the Council that ruled during the reign of Edward V. After Richard was enthroned, Catesby was one of King Richard's closest advisors. He served as Chancellor of the Exchequer, and as Speaker of the English House of Commons during the Parliament of 1484, in which he sat as knight of the shire for Northamptonshire. He also received a substantial grant of land from the king, enough to make him richer than most knights.^[3]

In July 1484, William Collingbourne, a Tudor agent, tacked up a lampooning poem to St. Paul's Cathedral, which mentions Catesby among the three aides to King Richard, whose emblem was a white boar:

(The dog here refers to a Lovell family heraldic symbol.)^[4][5] The poem was interpolated into Laurence Olivier's film Richard III, a screen adaptation of William Shakespeare's play. Collingbourne was hanged, drawn and quartered for this and other alleged treasonable activities.

William Catesby was one of the two councillors (the other was Richard Ratcliffe) who are reputed to have told the king that marrying Elizabeth of York would cause rebellions in the north.^[6] He fought alongside Richard at the Battle of Bosworth and was captured. Alone of those of importance he was executed three days later at Leicester. The suggestion that he might have made a deal with the Stanleys before the battle comes from his will when he asked them "to pray for my soul as ye have not for my body, as I trusted in you."^[7]

After his death his estates were largely confiscated by Robert Catesby, leader of the Gunpowder Plot, was a descendant.

Notes

1. ^ Entry in War of the Roses website; see also John A. Wagner, Encyclopedia of the Wars of the Roses, (Santa Barbara: ABC-CLIO, Inc., 2001), 49-50.
2. ^ Dictionary of National Biography, 63 vols., (New York: Macmillan, 1887) 9:284 sub loco
3. ^ Ross, p. 156.
4. ^ Robert Fabyan, The New Chronicles of England and France in to Parts (London, 1811), p. 672.
5. ^ Fields, Bertram. Royal Blood: Richard III and the Mystery of the Princes. 2000
6. ^ Weir The Princes in the Tower p. 211-212.
7. ^ Gairdner, p. 284

References

• Gairdner, James (1887). "William Catesby (d. 1485)". Dictionary of National Biography 9: 284–285. 
• Ross, Charles (1981). Richard III. 
•  

Speakers of the House of Commons House of Commons of England 14th century Hungerford De la Mare Pickering Guildesborough Waldegrave Pickering Bussy Cheney Doreward Savage Redford 15th century Esturmy Tiptoft Chaucer Stourton Hungerford Chaucer Redman Beauchamp Flower Hunt Chaucer Baynard Russell Walton Vernon Tyrell Alington Bowes Burley Tresham Say Popham Oldhall Thorpe Charlton Wenlock Tresham Green Strangeways Wood Catesby Lovell Mordaunt Fitzwilliam Empson Drury Englefield 16th century Dudley Sheffield Nevill More Audley Wingfield Rich Hare Moyle Baker Dyer Pollard Broke Higham Cordell Gargrave Williams Onslow Wray Bell Popham Puckering Snagge Coke Yelverton 17th century Croke Phelips Crewe Richardson Crewe Finch Finch Glanville Lenthall Pelham Rous (Barebones Parliament) Widdrington (2nd Protectorate Parliament) Chute (3rd Protectorate Parliament) Long (3rd Protectorate Parliament) Bampfield (3rd Protectorate Parliament) Grimston Turnour Charlton Seymour Sawyer Gregory Williams Trevor Powle Foley Littleton 18th century Harley Smith House of Commons of Great Britain 18th century Smith R. Onslow Bromley Hanmer Compton A. Onslow Cust Norton Cornwall Grenville Addington House of Commons of the United Kingdom 19th century Addington Mitford Abbot Manners-Sutton Abercromby Shaw-Lefevre Denison Brand Peel Gully 20th century Lowther Whitley FitzRoy Brown Morrison Hylton-Foster King Lloyd Thomas Weatherill Boothroyd 21st century Martin Bercow