Henry Hyde (c. 1563 – 29 September 1634) was an English lawyer and member of Parliament. He was the father of Edward Hyde, 1st Earl of Clarendon (1609–1674), and thus was great-grandfather of two British monarchs, Queen Mary II and Queen Anne. He lived at Dinton and later at Purton, both in Wiltshire.[1]
He matriculated at Magdalen College, Oxford (then Magdalen Hall), aged 16 in 1579. He graduated BA in 1581, and was raised to the degree of MA in 1584. He entered the Middle Temple and practised as a lawyer. He was Member of Parliament for Ludgershall in 1588–9, and Old Sarum in 1601.[2]
Character
Clarendon venerated his father's memory, describing him as the best of fathers and friends, and remarked that none of the honours he received through his life equalled that of being his father's son. His one surviving letter, to his brother Nicholas, suggests a kindly, good-humoured country gentleman, with a concern for the welfare of the poor not always shared by members of his class.
Marriage and children
On 3 April 1597 he married Mary Langford, daughter of Edward Langford and Mary St. Barbe. Their children were:
Anne Hyde (c.1598–?), also known as Jane Silverster.
Elizabeth.
Lawrence (1600–?).
Henry (1601–1627).
Mary (1603–?).
Sibble (1605–?).
Susan Hyde (c.1607–1656), spy for Charles II while exiled in France.
^ abG.E. Cokayne; with Vicary Gibbs, H.A. Doubleday, Geoffrey H. White, Duncan Warrand and Lord Howard de Walden, editors, The Complete Peerage of England, Scotland, Ireland, Great Britain and the United Kingdom, Extant, Extinct or Dormant, new ed., (1910–1959); reprint in 6 volumes, Gloucester, U.K.: Alan Sutton Publishing, 2000), volume III, p. 263.
