Edward Latymer (c. 1557 – January 1627) was an English attorney and clerk in the Court of Wards and Liveries in London. Born in Ipswich, he served as a deputy and clerk to the Receiver-General from 1594 to 1602 and later as a common attorney in the same court until 1626. Latymer is best known for his will, which established educational trusts that founded The Latymer School in Edmonton and Latymer Upper School in Hammersmith, and supported charitable initiatives for the poor. His legacy also includes associations with Godolphin and Latymer School.
Early life
Edward Latymer was born in Ipswich, Suffolk, in 1557 during the expulsion of married clergy under the Catholic Queen Mary, to William Latymer, a clergyman and Marian exile who served as rector of St Stephen's and St Lawrence churches in Ipswich by 1556, and Ellen, a widow who had a son named Edmund English from her previous marriage. A younger brother, Josua, was born to William and Ellen later. His family descended from Suffolk gentry in Freston, where his ancestors had been minor landowners and lawyers since the 13th century.Burke, J. B. Genealogical & Heraldic Dictionary of the Landed Gentry (1844)
In 1558, when Edward was an infant, Queen Elizabeth I came to the throne, ushering in a new era of Protestant stability, and shortly after, his father was restored to his former positions, and then becoming Treasurer of Westminster Abbey and Dean of Peterborough by 1560. At the age of two or three, Edward moved with his family to the Deanery at Peterborough, where his father’s appointments provided a secure environment amidst the religious and political shifts of the Elizabethan era.
Education Little is known about Edward Latymer’s early education, though it likely began under the guidance of his parents in Peterborough, where his father, William Latymer, as Dean, would have ensured a strong foundation in reading and writing, typical for a clerical family of the time. He may have attended the Queen’s Foundation school in Peterborough, established by Queen Katherine of Aragon, given his father’s position and connections to the cathedral. Edward possibly matriculated at St John’s College, Cambridge, at the age of fourteen in Easter 1571, though the record of an Edward Latimer at the university could refer to another individual.
Career
Edward Latymer’s professional life unfolded over three decades in the Court of Wards and Liveries in London, where he held key roles that built his wealth and status. After beginning his legal training, he worked as clerk to the Receiver-General from 1594 to around 1602, followed by a long tenure as common attorney from 1601 to his death in 1627. His career success enabled him to acquire properties in Edmonton, Fulham, and Hammersmith, while residing in Fleet Street, assets that later funded his charitable efforts.
Early Career and Legal Training (1575 - 1591)
Little is known about Edward Latymer’s early career, though he likely began his legal training after attending St John’s College, Cambridge, where he would have finished his studies by 1575, although there is no record of his graduation to confirm this. From 1575 to 1586, Edward was marked as an executor of his father’s will, a role that included receiving a payment of 6 pounds 18 shillings 9 pence from Westminster Abbey in 1584, which provided him with early financial resources as he began his professional life.Westminster Abbey Minutes 39970 In 1591, he took part in a private land transaction in Mildenhall, Suffolk, with Francis Gawdy, a lawyer who would later become head of the Court of Common Pleas, an activity that involved buying and reselling land for profit, a common practice among legal professionals of the time, and highlighted his expanding network and practical experience in property law, which prepared him for his future roles in the royal courts.
Clerk to the Court of Wards and Liveries (1594 - 1602)
In 1594, Edward Latymer was appointed clerk to William Fleetwood, the newly appointed Receiver-General of the Court of Wards, a position he secured through a recommendation from Richard Orrell, an Usher of Chancery, who facilitated a letter to Fleetwood’s brother Henry on May 17. Fleetwood took his oath on June 11, and Edward began his role shortly after, with Richard Richardson appointed as teller. On June 17 or 18, during a discussion at the Old Palace at Westminster, Edward’s salary was set at £30 yearly, though he also prepared an agreement in July, delivered to Fleetwood on September 3, outlining his duties, which included managing daily receipts, payments, bonds, and ledgers, while ensuring proper documentation for audits. Edward worked in an office in the Old Palace at Westminster, maintaining detailed records and often adding notes to seek advice from clerks or auditors before issuing acquittances or endorsing bonds. His first year proved challenging, with his initial audit in March 1595 requiring numerous corrections in his records, though he later celebrated its completion with payments for wine and gifts to auditors. In 1598, Edward revised a letter for Fleetwood to Lord Burghley on June 12, addressing financial pressures, and negotiated a £3000 payment to the Exchequer,Wards, 14/3/20/2, ff. 18, 19, 20. a process complicated by procedural concerns over the warrant’s seal, which he noted for future reference. During this transaction, Edward sought advice from his half-brother Edmund, an Exchequer official, on the proper procedure for such payments, receiving a reply that confirmed the use of a teller’s bill rather than a tally, a practice Edward adopted to ensure accuracy.State Papers Domestic, Elizabeth, Addenda (S.P. 15), Vol. xxv, no. 103; it is calendared (and wrongly dated 1578) in C.S.P. Dom., Elizabeth Addenda 1566–79, p. 545. Edward continued in this role until around 1602, managing the court’s finances during a period of strain, including Fleetwood’s struggles with unexpended balances, before transitioning to a new position in the Court of Wards.
Common Attorney in the Court of Wards and Liveries (1601 - 1626) In 1601, Edward Latymer was appointed one of the two common attorneys of the Court of Wards by Sir Robert Cecil on June 16, marking a significant advancement in his career within the court. His role involved representing the court’s interests in legal proceedings, managing wardships, and handling financial transactions, building on the administrative experience he gained as clerk. In 1600, prior to his appointment, Edward had negotiated a £9000 payment to the Privy Chamber on August 10, showcasing his growing influence in financial matters, and by April 13 of that year, he was lodging at “Sign of the Cock” in Fleet Street, indicating his established presence in London’s legal circles.State Papers Domestic, Elizabeth, Addenda (S.P. 15), Vol. 34, no. 30; calendared in C.S.P. Dom., Addenda, 1580–1625, p. 405. He was re-sworn as attorney on May 12, 1603, following the accession of James I, ensuring continuity in his position. Edward’s tenure saw him managing significant wardships, including his first recorded wardship in 1597, though his role as attorney expanded his responsibilities in this area. In 1615, he contributed 22 shillings toward church repairs at St Dunstan’s in the West, reflecting his integration into the local community while continuing his legal work. Despite the plague in 1625, Edward worked through part of Trinity term in June and July, though he was absent during the Michaelmas term, likely due to the outbreak’s severity. That December, he sought an appointment in the King’s Bench on December 26, possibly aiming to secure a new role as his career in the Court of Wards neared its end. On June 9, 1626, Edward was ordered to provide a “light horse” at Edmonton, indicating his ongoing civic duties,Coke MSS., Vol. I, p. 269. and his last recorded appearance as an attorney in the Court of Wards was on June 29, 1626, marking the end of his long tenure.
Property Acquisitions and Residences
Fleet Street By 1600, Edward Latymer had established his residence in Fleet Street, lodging at “Sign of The Cock” by April 13, a location central to London’s legal community that supported his work in the Court of Wards. By 1615, he had moved to Ram Alley, Fleet Street, as recorded in the Churchwardens’ Accounts of St Dunstan’s in the West, where he contributed 22 shillings toward church repairs.
Edmonton In 1615, at Easter, Edward Latymer purchased a house in Edmonton from Thomas Tomlinson and Joan Walker, described as a "messuage with a barn, garden, and orchard", for an estimated £100 or more, providing him with a suburban retreat outside London. In 1621, he was assessed for taxation at £10 in lands for the first of two subsidies granted to James I in September, a valuation that likely included this property.
Another source of his income was the rental from his property situated at Pymmes Brook on the main road to Scotland, which later became a coaching inn The Bell, and was renamed The Angel in 1780. It was demolished in 1968 through a compulsory purchase order for the widening of the North Circular Road.
Hammersmith and Fulham In 1622, on June 1, Edward Latymer acquired the Manor of Butterwick and other lands in Fulham and Hammersmith, significantly expanding his estate, it consisted of of land including meadows, pasture, and woods, the manor house, two houses on Brook Green, and four cottages. (Public Domain) That year, he paid 13 shillings and 4 pence in taxes for the second installment of a subsidy granted to James I in April, reflecting the increased value of his holdings. In 1625, Edward paid £2 in taxes for the third of three subsidies granted to James I in April, and later that year, in December, he paid another £2 for the first of two subsidies granted to Charles I.
Personal life
Edward Latymer never married, leaving him without a wife or children, though he came from a landed family and maintained ties with relatives like his distant cousin Thomas Alured,Familiae Minorum Gentium, MS. 430, with whom he often shared a home, and Richard Chamberlain, a fellow official at the Court of Wards who became a close friend through shared dinners and mutual courtesies during term times.
Edward’s religious beliefs were rooted in Protestantism, shaped by the era’s emphasis on faith and charity, which influenced his outlook and interactions. His personal life reflected the refinements of a well-to-do gentleman, evident in his possessions like gilt and silver bowls, Canary cups, Damask napkins, a clock, standing cup, flaxen sheets, and Turkey work chairs, which highlighted the comforts he enjoyed.Will of Edward Latymer (March 16, 1624)
Bequest and death
In 1625, he made his will (dated 1624), bequeathing most of his wealth to benefit the people of Hammersmith and the Parish of St Dunstan’s, today known as Latymer Upper School, as well as a smaller bequest for the Parish of Edmonton, now The Latymer School. His provisions included clothing and education for eight poor boys from each of the parishes of Edmonton and Fulham (which then included Hammersmith). (Public Domain) The stated aim of this education was practical and social rather than academic; the boys were to be taught to read English at existing petty schools until the age of thirteen, specifically "to keepe them from idle and vagrant courses." The clothing, marked with a red cross on the left sleeve, was distributed twice a year on Ascension Day and All Saints' Day.
His will also allocated other significant sums for the poor, including £200 for releasing people from eight London prisons "onely for debt or onely for want of money to pay their fees," and another £200 to provide for the "preferment in marriage" of "poore young maides." The administration of these charitable trusts was overseen by separate groups of trustees for each parish.