Walter Jones (MP for Worcester)

Portrait at Chastleton House, presumed to be Walter Jones

Walter Jones (c. 1550 – 1632) was an English lawyer and politician who served as Member of Parliament for Worcester.

Biography

Jones was the son of Henry Jones of Witney, Oxfordshire, and his wife Ann.[a] He entered Corpus Christi College, Oxford in 1567,[1] graduating B.A. in 1570.[3] He was admitted to Lincoln's Inn on 5 January 1572,[4] and was called to the bar in November 1584.[2]

He became town clerk of Worcester in 1583 (or possibly earlier)[2] and, while serving as town clerk, was elected MP for Worcester in 1584, 1586, 1589, and 1593. He also served as a Justice of the peace in Worcestershire.[1] In about 1593, he was appointed an attorney of the Court of Star Chamber in London.[2]

In May 1602, Jones bought Chastleton House from Robert Catesby (who was in debt after being heavily fined for participation in Essex's Rebellion, and later led the Gunpowder Plot). Catesby was allowed to continue living at Chastleton. After Catesby was killed in the aftermath of the Gunpowder Plot, Jones – who had arrested some of Catesby's co-conspirators – took possession of Chastleton. He demolished and rebuilt the house entirely.[2]

He was buried on 27 August 1632 in the church at Chastleton, Oxfordshire.[5]

Family

On 14 December 1573 at All Hallows-by-the-Tower, London,[6] Jones married Helen, daughter of Henry Mekys alias Pope, a German-born London goldsmith.[b][c] Their children included:

• Henry (c. 1582 – 1656)
  The Queen's College, Oxford 1598,[9] Lincoln's Inn 1599;[10] married Anne Fettiplace 1609, inherited Chastleton House[2]
• John (1585 – before 1629)
  The Queen's College, Oxford 1602,[11] Gray's Inn 1607;[12] married Ann Dews,[2] parents of Dr Walter Jones, Sub-Dean of the Chapel Royal[13]
• Thomas (1586 – after 1629)
• Elizabeth (b. 1588)
  married George Greenwood 1607[2]
• Elinore (b. 1589)
  married Ralph Holt[2]
• Sarah (1590–1668)
  married William Bankes 1624, parents of William Bankes MP
• Gilbert (1592 – after 1629)
  Oriel College, Oxford 1612, B.A. 1614, M.A. 1617[14]
• Walter (b. 1595)

Notes

1. The History of Parliament gives Ann as daughter of Thomas Hill MP.[1] This is incorrect according to Turner.[2]
2. Their marriage settlement dated 2 November 1573 is held by Oxfordshire Record Office.[7]
3. Turner[2] refutes the claim made for instance by Marsden[8] that Pope was Master of the Jewel House, a claim which has arisen from gradual distortion over time. She also refutes the claim that Pope was related to Sir Thomas Pope.

References

1. "JONES, Walter (d.c.1631), of Worcester; later of Chastleton, Oxon". The History of Parliament. Retrieved 7 December 2023.
2. Turner, Hilary L. (2008). "Walter Jones of Witney, Worcester, and Chastleton: Rewriting the Past" (PDF). Oxoniensia. 73. Retrieved 7 December 2023.
3. Foster, Joseph (1891). "Jones, Walter (2)" . Alumni Oxonienses: the Members of the University of Oxford, 1500–1714. Oxford: James Parker – via Wikisource.
4. The Records of the Honourable Society of Lincoln's Inn. Vol. 1. 1896. p. 78. Retrieved 7 December 2023.
5. Oxfordshire, England, Church of England Baptism, Marriages, and Burials, 1538-1812. Oxfordshire Family History Society; Oxford, Oxfordshire, England; Anglican Parish Registers; Reference Number: PAR60/1/R1/1
6. London, England, Church of England Baptisms, Marriages and Burials, 1538-1812. London Metropolitan Archives; London, England; London Church of England Parish Registers; Reference Number: P69/Alh1/A/01/001
7. "Marriage Settlement, 02 Nov 1573". Oxfordshire County Council: Heritage Search. Retrieved 10 December 2023.
8. Marsden, Jonathan (2000). "The Chastleton Inventory of 1633". Furniture History. 36: 23–42. JSTOR 23409991. Retrieved 10 December 2023.
9. Foster, Joseph (1891). "Jones, Henry (9)" . Alumni Oxonienses: the Members of the University of Oxford, 1500–1714. Oxford: James Parker – via Wikisource.
10. The Records of the Honourable Society of Lincoln's Inn. Vol. 1. 1896. p. 128. Retrieved 10 December 2023.
11. Foster, Joseph (1891). "Jones, John (16)" . Alumni Oxonienses: the Members of the University of Oxford, 1500–1714. Oxford: James Parker – via Wikisource.
12. Foster, Joseph (1889). The Register of Admissions to Gray's Inn, 1521–1889 (PDF). p. 115. Retrieved 10 December 2023.
13. Lasocki, David (2018). A Biographical Dictionary of English Court Musicians, 1485–1714. Routledge. p. 30. ISBN 9781351578226. Retrieved 10 December 2023.
14. Foster, Joseph (1891). "Jones, Gilbert (1)" . Alumni Oxonienses: the Members of the University of Oxford, 1500–1714. Oxford: James Parker – via Wikisource.