Thomas Seymour
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· Younger brother of Edward Seymour (Duke of Somerset and Lord Protector)
· Thomas was jealous of his brother’s power and plotted to usurp his position by marrying one of the Princesses (when this failed he married the King’s widow Catherine Parr).
· Inappropriate relationship with Elizabeth who was under the guardianship of Catherine Parr -
Historian David Starkey writes, "He may have even sexually abused her; at the very least he abused his power." Elizabeth was sent away to avoid scandal in 1547. There is still debate about exactly what happened between Elizabeth and Seymour and the impact these events and he eventual execution had on her (is this the reason she never married?)
· He also tried to gain favour with Edward- sending him money (Edward complained about Somerset not allowing him pocket money) through the king’s servant John Fowker who he also bribed to sing his praises to the king.
· Thomas Seymour also criticised his brother’s administrative skill to the young King. He in particular made it clear that he thought the king was not being allowed to make enough decisions himself.
· Thomas Seymour was blackmailing Sir William Sharrington who was responsible for debasing the coinage in Bristol and he had been fiddling the account books and keeping the majority of the profit. When this was discovered it appeared that Seymour was intending to use the money to fund a coup.
· The fraud was discovered and Sharrington confessed all in late 1548, Seymour was ordered to explain himself to the Privy Council but he failed to turn up and was plotting to kidnap the king.
· 16th January 1549 Thomas Seymour broke into the King’s apartments at Hampton Court Palace, he disturbed one of the kings spaniels who tried to bite him. Thomas Seymour shot the dog altering the Palace guard and he was arrested.
· 18th January 1549 The Council sent out people to interview everyone associated with Seymour including Princess Elizabeth who denied all knowledge of his actions and all accusations that she was in a relationship with Seymour and that he intended to marry her.
· Thomas Parry and Katherine (Kat) Ashley were detained at the Tower. Sir Robert Tyrwhitt was the man in charge of questioning Elizabeth, Parry and Ashley and he had no sympathy for Thomas Seymour.
· It was Tyrwhitt’s wife, Lady Tyrwhitt, who had been friends with Katherine Parr, and who had listened to Katherine lash out at Seymour when she was dying, claiming that she was “not well-handled”. Tyrwhitt, like everyone else, had heard rumours of some kind of relationship between Seymour and Elizabeth and was looking for confirmation, surely he could break this 15 year old girl, couldn’t he?
· Fortunately for Elizabeth, she had her father’s intelligence (and perhaps her mother’s also) and she kept her cool. All Tyrwhitt could get out of the teenager was confirmation that there was indeed gossip circulating that Seymour was looking to marry her and that he had been asking about her finances and estates. Despite the threats that were almost certainly used against her and the fact that she was told that Parry had told everything, Elizabeth insisted that she would “never…marry, neither in England nor out of England, without the consent of the king’s majesty, your grace’s [Somerset], and the council’s”, according to the terms of her father’s will. She was no fool.
· Tyrwhitt had no evidence against Elizabeth and although her servants continued to be detained until shortly before Seymour’s execution in March 1549, Elizabeth was in the clear.
· 22nd February 1549- Thomas Seymour was charged with 33 counts of treason. His brother delayed signing the death warrant so the council went to the king.
· 20th March Thomas Seymour was executed at the Tower of London.
· Thomas was jealous of his brother’s power and plotted to usurp his position by marrying one of the Princesses (when this failed he married the King’s widow Catherine Parr).
· Inappropriate relationship with Elizabeth who was under the guardianship of Catherine Parr -
Historian David Starkey writes, "He may have even sexually abused her; at the very least he abused his power." Elizabeth was sent away to avoid scandal in 1547. There is still debate about exactly what happened between Elizabeth and Seymour and the impact these events and he eventual execution had on her (is this the reason she never married?)
· He also tried to gain favour with Edward- sending him money (Edward complained about Somerset not allowing him pocket money) through the king’s servant John Fowker who he also bribed to sing his praises to the king.
· Thomas Seymour also criticised his brother’s administrative skill to the young King. He in particular made it clear that he thought the king was not being allowed to make enough decisions himself.
· Thomas Seymour was blackmailing Sir William Sharrington who was responsible for debasing the coinage in Bristol and he had been fiddling the account books and keeping the majority of the profit. When this was discovered it appeared that Seymour was intending to use the money to fund a coup.
· The fraud was discovered and Sharrington confessed all in late 1548, Seymour was ordered to explain himself to the Privy Council but he failed to turn up and was plotting to kidnap the king.
· 16th January 1549 Thomas Seymour broke into the King’s apartments at Hampton Court Palace, he disturbed one of the kings spaniels who tried to bite him. Thomas Seymour shot the dog altering the Palace guard and he was arrested.
· 18th January 1549 The Council sent out people to interview everyone associated with Seymour including Princess Elizabeth who denied all knowledge of his actions and all accusations that she was in a relationship with Seymour and that he intended to marry her.
· Thomas Parry and Katherine (Kat) Ashley were detained at the Tower. Sir Robert Tyrwhitt was the man in charge of questioning Elizabeth, Parry and Ashley and he had no sympathy for Thomas Seymour.
· It was Tyrwhitt’s wife, Lady Tyrwhitt, who had been friends with Katherine Parr, and who had listened to Katherine lash out at Seymour when she was dying, claiming that she was “not well-handled”. Tyrwhitt, like everyone else, had heard rumours of some kind of relationship between Seymour and Elizabeth and was looking for confirmation, surely he could break this 15 year old girl, couldn’t he?
· Fortunately for Elizabeth, she had her father’s intelligence (and perhaps her mother’s also) and she kept her cool. All Tyrwhitt could get out of the teenager was confirmation that there was indeed gossip circulating that Seymour was looking to marry her and that he had been asking about her finances and estates. Despite the threats that were almost certainly used against her and the fact that she was told that Parry had told everything, Elizabeth insisted that she would “never…marry, neither in England nor out of England, without the consent of the king’s majesty, your grace’s [Somerset], and the council’s”, according to the terms of her father’s will. She was no fool.
· Tyrwhitt had no evidence against Elizabeth and although her servants continued to be detained until shortly before Seymour’s execution in March 1549, Elizabeth was in the clear.
· 22nd February 1549- Thomas Seymour was charged with 33 counts of treason. His brother delayed signing the death warrant so the council went to the king.
· 20th March Thomas Seymour was executed at the Tower of London.