Edward Bayntun

Sir Edward Bayntun (c.148027 November? 1544), of Bromham, Wiltshire, was a gentleman at the court of Henry VIII of England. He was vice-chamberlain to Anne Boleyn, the King's second wife, and was the brother-in-law of Queen Catherine Howard, Henry VIII's fifth wife. Early life Sir Edward Bayntun was born around 1480, a son of Sir John Bayntun of Bromham. Though medieval accounts record the name as "Baynton", the spelling around the Tudor period was "Bayntun". In 1516, Sir Edward inherited the manors of Bromham and Faulston (Bishopstone, near Salisbury) after the death of his father. Faulstone manor had been owned from 1328 by an ancestor named Thomas Benton, but lost in 1475 after Sir Robert Bayntun supported Henry VI at the Battle of Tewkesbury, then regained by his son John (Sir Edward's father) in 1503. Career at court Edward was a soldier and a courtier, and would be a favourite of Henry VIII, as well as a champion of religious reform. Though it is uncertain as to whether or not Catherine of Aragon had a vice-chamberlain, the two were said to be friends, and Edward was said to have visited her house often. She had the archway to Bromham House reconstructed as a gift to Sir Edward. "It bears the royal arms of the Tudors beneath the oriel window in the upper storey, and in the spandrels of the arch forming the gateway, those of Sir Edward Bayntun, the original builder and his first wife Elizabeth Sulliard, the daughter of Sir John Sulliard, Lord Chief Justice of the Common Pleas. Today this landmark is known to locals as Spye Arch." The King granted Sir Edward large tracts of lands, making him one of the largest landowners in Wiltshire. Among these were many stewardships including the stewardship of Salisbury for which Cardinal Wolsey recommended him.