Thomas Wyatt was born at Allington, Kent, in 1503, the son of Sir Henry Wyatt by Anne Skinner, the daughter of John Skinner of Reigate, Surrey.[5] He had a brother Henry, assumed to have died an infant,[6] and a sister, Margaret who married Sir Anthony Lee (died 1549) and was the mother of Queen Elizabeth's champion, Sir Henry Lee.[7][8]
Education and diplomatic career
Wyatt was over six feet tall, reportedly both handsome and physically strong. He was an ambassador in the service of Henry VIII, but he entered Henry's service in 1515 as "Sewer Extraordinary", and the same year he began studying at St John's College, Cambridge.[9] His father had been associated with Sir Thomas Boleyn as constable of Norwich Castle, and Wyatt was thus acquainted with Anne Boleyn.[10]
Following a diplomatic mission to Spain,[10] in 1526, he accompanied Sir John Russell, 1st Earl of Bedford, to Rome to help petition Pope Clement VII to annul Henry VIII's marriage to Catherine of Aragon, in hopes of freeing him to marry Anne Boleyn. Russell being incapacitated, Wyatt was also sent to negotiate with the Republic of Venice.[10] According to some, Wyatt was captured by the armies of Emperor Charles V when they captured Rome and imprisoned the pope in 1527, but he managed to escape and make it back to England.
From 1528 to 1530, Wyatt acted as high marshal at Calais. In the years following he continued in Henry's service; he was, however, imprisoned in the Tower of London for a month in 1536, perhaps because Henry hoped he would incriminate the queen.[10] He was knighted in 1535 and appointed High Sheriff of Kent for 1536.[11] At this time, he was sent to Spain as ambassador to Charles V, who was offended by the declaration of Princess Mary's illegitimacy; he was her cousin and they had once been briefly betrothed. Although Wyatt was unsuccessful in his endeavours, and was accused of disloyalty by some of his colleagues, he was protected by his relationship with Cromwell, at least during the latter's lifetime.[10]
Wyatt was elected knight of the shire (MP) for Kent in December 1541.[11]
Marriage and issue
In 1520, Wyatt married Elizabeth Brooke (1503–1560).[12] A year later, they had a son Thomas (1521–1554) who led Wyatt's rebellion some 12 years after his father's death.[13] In 1524, Henry VIII assigned Wyatt to be an ambassador at home and abroad, and he separated from his wife soon after on grounds of adultery.[14]
