Paternal Family Tree: Southwell
In or before 1503 [his father] Francis Southwell [aged 26] and [his mother] Dorothy Tendering [aged 17] were married.
Around 1506 Robert Southwell was born to Francis Southwell [aged 30] and Dorothy Tendering [aged 21] at Windham Manor, Norfolk.
On 2nd September 1512 [his father] Francis Southwell [aged 36] died at Stoke-by-Nayland, Suffolk.
In 1520 [his mother] Dorothy Tendering [aged 35] died.
In or before 1524 [his son-in-law] Thomas Sydney [aged 23] and [his daughter] Mary Southwell were married.
In 1529 Robert Southwell [aged 23] was elected MP King's Lynn.
In 1531 Robert Southwell [aged 25] was obliged to pay £1,000 for a pardon for his involvement with his two brothers Robert Southwell and [his half-brother] Francis Southwell of Wymondham [aged 19] for the murder of Sir William Pennington. The pardon was later confirmed by Act of Parliament (25 Hen. VIII, c.32).
In 1534 Robert Southwell [aged 28] was appointed High Sheriff of Norfolk and High Sheriff of Suffolk.
In 1536 Robert Southwell [aged 30] was elected MP King's Lynn.
Annals of the six Kings of England by Nicholas Trivet
Translation of the Annals of the Six Kings of England by that traces the rise and rule of the Angevin aka Plantagenet dynasty from the mid-12th to early 14th century. Written by the Dominican scholar Nicholas Trivet, the work offers a vivid account of English history from the reign of King Stephen through to the death of King Edward I, blending political narrative with moral reflection. Covering the reigns of six monarchs—from Stephen to Edward I—the chronicle explores royal authority, rebellion, war, and the shifting balance between crown, church, and nobility. Trivet provides detailed insight into defining moments such as baronial conflicts, Anglo-French rivalry, and the consolidation of royal power under Edward I, whose reign he describes with particular immediacy. The Annals combines careful year-by-year reporting with thoughtful interpretation, presenting history not merely as a sequence of events but as a moral and political lesson. Ideal for readers interested in medieval history, kingship, and the origins of the English state, this chronicle remains a valuable and accessible window into the turbulent world of the Plantagenet kings.
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In 1536 Robert Southwell [aged 30] was appointed Master of Requests.
On 1st May 1536 Robert Southwell [aged 30] and Margaret Neville [aged 16] were married at Mereworth, Kent.
On 24th March 1537 [his son] Thomas Southwell was born to Robert Southwell [aged 31] and [his wife] Margaret Neville [aged 17] at Mereworth, Kent.
In 1538 [his daughter] Anne Southwell was born to Robert Southwell [aged 32] and [his wife] Margaret Neville [aged 18]. She married before 24th August 1585 Edmund Bedingfield.
In 1539 Robert Southwell [aged 33] was elected MP King's Lynn.
In 1539 Robert Southwell [aged 33] was appointed Commissioner for the Suppression of Monasteries.
On 16th January 1542 Robert Southwell [aged 36] was appointed Master of the Rolls which position he held until 1550.
Around 1552 [his daughter] Dorothy Elizabeth Southwell was born to Robert Southwell [aged 46] and [his wife] Margaret Neville [aged 32]. She married before 4th May 1589 Thomas Bedingfield and had issue.
In October 1553 Robert Southwell [aged 47] was elected MP Kent.
On 28th January 1554 the Battle of Hartley was fought at Hartley Sevenoaks, Kent between a rebel force of Wyatt's Rebellion led by Henry Isley [aged 54] and a loyal royalist force led by Henry Neville 6th and 4th Baron Abergavenny [aged 24] and Robert Southwell [aged 48]. The rebels were defeated. Rebel Anthony Knyvet [aged 37] fought and was captured.
In October 1555 Robert Southwell [aged 49] was elected MP Kent.
The History of William Marshal was commissioned by his son shortly after William’s death in 1219 to celebrate the Marshal’s remarkable life; it is an authentic, contemporary voice. The manuscript was discovered in 1861 by French historian Paul Meyer. Meyer published the manuscript in its original Anglo-French in 1891 in two books. This book is a line by line translation of the first of Meyer’s books; lines 1-10152. Book 1 of the History begins in 1139 and ends in 1194. It describes the events of the Anarchy, the role of William’s father John, John’s marriages, William’s childhood, his role as a hostage at the siege of Newbury, his injury and imprisonment in Poitou where he met Eleanor of Aquitaine and his life as a knight errant. It continues with the accusation against him of an improper relationship with Margaret, wife of Henry the Young King, his exile, and return, the death of Henry the Young King, the rebellion of Richard, the future King Richard I, war with France, the death of King Henry II, and the capture of King Richard, and the rebellion of John, the future King John. It ends with the release of King Richard and the death of John Marshal.
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On 26th October 1559 Robert Southwell [aged 53] died at Mereworth, Kent.
Henry Machyn's Diary. 8th November 1559. [The viij day of November was buried in Kent] ser Robartt Sowthwell [deceased] knyght, sum-tyme master of the rolles, with a harold of armes, and a standard, a penon of armes, a cot armur, a target, a elmett, and a viij dosen skochyons of armes.
Note. P. 217. Funeral of sir Robert Southwell. Constituted master of the rolls July 1, 1542; resigned in 1550. He was brother to sir Richard Southwell [aged 56], a member of the privy council, and executor to Henry VIII. Sir Robert resided at Jotes Place in the parish of Mereworth, Kent. (Hasted, iii. 269.)
On 25th December 1575 [his former wife] Margaret Neville [aged 55] died.
[his daughter] Mary Southwell was born to Robert Southwell and Margaret Neville. She married (1) Thomas Sydney (2) in or before 1524 Thomas Sydney and had issue.
Great x 2 Grandfather: John Southwell of Felix Hall 
Great x 1 Grandfather: Robert Southwell
Grandfather: Richard Southwell
father: Francis Southwell
Great x 1 Grandfather: William Tendering
Grandfather: William Tendering
mother: Dorothy Tendering
Great x 1 Grandfather: William IV Sidney 
Grandmother: Thomasine Sidney