Sir Henry DARCY

Died: AFT 1592/3

Father: Arthur DARCY (Sir)

Mother: Mary CAREW

Married 2: Catherine FERMOR (dau. of Sir John Fermor and Maud Vaux) (w. of Michael Pulteney)

1. Catherine DARCY

The details in this biography come from the History of Parliament, a biographical dictionary of Members of the House of Commons.

First son of Sir Arthur Darcy. Educated Inner Temple, adm. 16 Jan 1556. Married first Catherine (d. 1567), dau. and heiress of Sir Robert Tyrwhitt of Leighton Bromswold, s.p.; Married second Catherine, dau. of Sir John Fermor of Easton Neston, Northants., widow of Michael Pulteney (d. 1567) of Misterton, Leics., by whom he had one dau. Succeeded family 3 Apr 1561. Kntd. 21 Aug 1565. Jt. (with fa.) constable, Conisbrough castle, Yorks. 1556; sheriff, Cambs. and Hunts. 1562-3, 1583-4; j.p.q. Hunts. 1564-92/93; commr. sewers, Hunts. 1569, musters 1569, 1580, 1584, to execute Acts of Uniformity and Supremacy, dioceses of Lincoln and Peterborough 1571, for oaths, Hunts. 1592; superintendent, Kimbolton castle, Hunts. temp. Elizabeth.

Darcy, who was no more than 19 at the time, must have owed his return for the duchy of Lancaster borough of Knaresborough to his father, a younger son of Thomas, Lord Darcy and a royal servant who held or had held a number of duchy offices. Lord Darcy himself had once been constable and steward of Knaresborough.

On 25 Jul 1557 Darcy was committed to the Fleet for brawling, and a week later, he was bound with Thomas Hussey to keep the peace. Hussey was friendly with the Fermors, a family with which the Darcys were also connected before Darcy married into it: in Jul 1532 Sir Arthur Darcy, Sir John Dudley, Richard Rich and Richard Fermor had stood surety for a loan made by the King to Sir Edward Seymour.

Darcy was to inherit a large estate in Yorkshire and elsewhere from his father, but on his first marriage he settled in Huntingdonshire and disposed of much of his Yorkshire property. It is not known when he died but his name last appears on the commission of the peace during 1592/1593.

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