In 1509, Henry VII died and his son became Henry VIII. Everyone has heard of this Henry, who is arguably the most famous; or infamous King we have ever had. When he came to the throne he was, of course, a Roman Catholic, as his predecessors had been since Saxon times. He married an ardent Catholic, Catherine of Aragon, his brother’s widow, who bore him a daughter, Mary.

The Reformation is a complicated subject, but put simply there had been dissenters to the Catholic Religion before, but in 1517, a German Catholic Monk, Martin Luther, had become so disillusioned with the wealth and corruption of the Pope and Cardinals that he posted his 95 Theses on the Church door at Wittenberg.

His main complaint seemed to be over the sale of “Indulgences”, that is, you could buy-a piece of paper which absolved you from any sins that you may have committed. A new religion was founded, Lutherisch-Evangelisch (Lutheran Evangelist).   This started a new war in Europe, Catholic against Protestant.

Henry was still a Catholic and he wrote a book against Luther, which so impressed the Pope that he gave Henry a new title, “Fidei Defensor”, Defender of the Faith, a great joke, in view of what happened subsequently.

Henry was tiring of his wife, Catherine. She had produced a daughter, Mary, but other children had died and Henry wanted a son and heir. He had natural children with other women, but none but a Queen’s son could inherit the Kingship. He and his Cardinal, Wolsey, tried devious means to declare his marriage null and void, but the Pope, backed by Catherine’s influential relatives, would have none of it, so Henry decided to invent his own “Church of England”, with himself as its head. This had an added bonus for him as he began to sequester the wealth of Monasteries and Abbeys to pay for his extravagant lifestyle and his foreign wars; kicking out the monks and nuns.         The clergy and important people had to accept Henry as head of the new church. The most famous person who refused was Thomas More, who had previously been a persecutor of Protestants and who was therefore executed.

These must have been difficult times for the Lord of the Manor and Rector in Sharrington, as they were throughout the country. In 1527, Giles Daubeney was Rector, under the patronage of Thomas Daubeney and, in 1533 Leonard Hadon became Rector under Henry Daubeney, his son.

In about 1529, King Henry had allowed the burning of a few Protestants but, by 1535, he was executing Catholic Friars after his excommunication from the Church in Rome. He cast off his wife Catherine, married Anne Boleyn and so, in 1533, Princess Elizabeth was born to Protestant parents.

Also in 1533, Thomas Hunt became Rector of Sharrington under Henry Daubeney, and he continued as Rector until 1554. So, Thomas Hunt and Henry Daubeney became Protestants, together with their church, whether they wanted it or not.      No doubt, the residents of Sharrington were as confused about the new religion foisted on them as were the Rector and the Lord of the Manor.

Luckily, the North Sea intervened between England and mainland Europe; otherwise the Wars of the Deformation would have spread here. It is known, from ‘An Historical Atlas of Norfolk’, that sometime subsequently, a Recusant Catholic Priest visited Sharrington, no doubt to celebrate Mass with secret believers in the old religion.

William Daubeney and Henry VIII

It would seem that, during the later years of Henry VIII’s reign there was serious trouble in the Daubeney family.

William Daubeney, also known as William Sharrington, who was the third son of Thomas and brother of the Sharrington Lord of the Manor, Henry Daubeney, held various positions at court.

In 1539, at the dissolution of ‘the monasteries’ and abbeys, William Sharrington purchased Laycock Abbey, in Wiltshire, for £738.

It is noted on the National Trust site for the Abbey that…

“Sir William Sharington, Tudor courtier, purchased the abbey after the Dissolution of the Monasteries and turned it into his country house. He incorporated the cloister into the design of his home… and added Italian-inspired Renaissance architecture, including an octagonal tower”.

In 1549, William had nefarious dealings with the coinage in collusion with Lord Thomas Seymour, Treasurer of the Mint, both men were arrested. William Sharrington confessed, blamed Seymour, who was beheaded, but escaped himself with an attainder and forfeit of lands.

Sometime later he regained all his land including Laycock Abbey, on payment of £8,000.

William Sharrington was later knighted at the coronation of Henry’s son, Edward VI.

On Henry VIII’s third coinage and his posthumous coinage of Bristol mint, his silver coins[1] bear the mint mark “WS”, a monogram of William Sharrington, noted as a “notorious Wiltshire embezzler”.

These proceedings are typical of activities during the reign of Henry VIII, who himself should have been arrested for interference with the coinage.

In later life, Henry was known as ‘Old Copper nose’ because he had so debased the coinage that, after constant use, his coins showed signs of wear and the base metal showed through the silver, turning his nose copper colour. But he was the King and could execute wives as well as many other people and could fiddle the Treasury for his own ends.

In 1547, Henry VIII died, leaving a son, Edward, from one of his wives, Jane Seymour, who had died in childbirth. Edward VI was only a child when he became King. He was born a Protestant, but he was a sickly youth and died in his teens.

By Peter Chapman 2000

References:

• An article on Laycock Abbey and William Sharrington.
• National Trust – Laycock Abbey
• Seaby’s Coins of England.

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[1] Now rare and collectable a silver hammered Groat of Henry VIII, showed on the obverse the crowned head of the king. The reverse showed the long cross with lis in the forks over royal shield of arms.