Sir Edward Hoby was a diplomat

Diplomat

A diplomat is a person appointed by a state to conduct diplomacy with another state or international organization. The main functions of diplomats revolve around the representation and protection of the interests and nationals of the sending state, as well as the promotion of information and...

, Member of Parliament

Member of Parliament

A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...

, scholar, and soldier in England

England

England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...

 during the reigns of Elizabeth I

Elizabeth I of England

Elizabeth I was queen regnant of England and Ireland from 17 November 1558 until her death. Sometimes called The Virgin Queen, Gloriana, or Good Queen Bess, Elizabeth was the fifth and last monarch of the Tudor dynasty...

 and James I

James I of England

James VI and I was King of Scots as James VI from 24 July 1567 and King of England and Ireland as James I from the union of the English and Scottish crowns on 24 March 1603...

. He was the son of Thomas Hoby

Thomas Hoby

Sir Thomas Hoby was an English diplomat and translator. He was born in 1530, the second son of William Hoby of Leominster, Herefordshire, by his second wife, Katherine, daughter of John Forden. He matriculated at St. John's College, Cambridge in 1546...

 and Elizabeth Cooke, the nephew of William Cecil, Lord Burghley

William Cecil, 1st Baron Burghley

William Cecil, 1st Baron Burghley , KG was an English statesman, the chief advisor of Queen Elizabeth I for most of her reign, twice Secretary of State and Lord High Treasurer from 1572...

, and the son-in-law of Queen Elizabeth's cousin Henry Carey, 1st Baron Hunsdon

Henry Carey, 1st Baron Hunsdon

Henry Carey, 1st Baron Hunsdon, of Hunsdon was an English nobleman.He was the son of Mary Boleyn, the sister of Anne Boleyn and also the mistress to King Henry VIII of England...

.

A favourite

Favourite

A favourite , or favorite , was the intimate companion of a ruler or other important person. In medieval and Early Modern Europe, among other times and places, the term is used of individuals delegated significant political power by a ruler...

 of King James, Hoby published several works supporting the Protestant cause as well as translations from the French

French language

French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...

 and Spanish. His heir was his illegitimate son, Peregrine Hoby

Peregrine Hoby

Peregrine Hoby , was an English politician who sat in the House of Commons at various times between 1640 and 1648....

.

Biography

Born at Bisham Abbey

Bisham Abbey

Bisham Abbey is a Grade I listed manor house at Bisham in the English county of Berkshire. The name is taken from the now lost monastery which once stood alongside. Bisham Abbey was previously named Bisham Priory, and was the traditional resting place of many Earls of Salisbury...

, Berkshire

Berkshire

Berkshire is a historic county in the South of England. It is also often referred to as the Royal County of Berkshire because of the presence of the royal residence of Windsor Castle in the county; this usage, which dates to the 19th century at least, was recognised by the Queen in 1957, and...

, in 1560, Edward Hoby was the eldest son of Sir Thomas Hoby and his wife Elizabeth, third daughter of Sir Anthony Cooke or Coke

Anthony Cooke

Sir Anthony Cooke was an eminent English humanist, scholar and tutor to Edward VI, England's first ruler to be raised as a Protestant.-Background:...

 of Gidea Hall

Gidea Hall

Gidea Hall was a manor house, located in Gidea Park, the historic parish and Royal liberty of Havering-atte-Bower, whose former area today forms the north eastern extremity of Greater London, England....

, Essex

Essex

Essex is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the East region of England, and one of the home counties. It is located to the northeast of Greater London. It borders with Cambridgeshire and Suffolk to the north, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent to the South and London to the south west...

. He was educated at Eton

Eton College

Eton College, often referred to simply as Eton, is a British independent school for boys aged 13 to 18. It was founded in 1440 by King Henry VI as "The King's College of Our Lady of Eton besides Wyndsor"....

, where he formed a lasting friendship with Sir John Harington, and at Trinity College, Oxford

Trinity College, Oxford

The College of the Holy and Undivided Trinity in the University of Oxford, of the foundation of Sir Thomas Pope , or Trinity College for short, is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England. It stands on Broad Street, next door to Balliol College and Blackwells bookshop,...

. At college Thomas Lodge

Thomas Lodge

Thomas Lodge was an English dramatist and writer of the Elizabethan and Jacobean periods.-Early life and education:...

, the dramatist, was "servitour or scholar" under him.

Under the auspices of his uncle, Lord Burghley, he rose into high favour at the Elizabethan

Elizabethan era

The Elizabethan era was the epoch in English history of Queen Elizabeth I's reign . Historians often depict it as the golden age in English history...

 court, and was frequently employed on confidential missions. He married Elizabeth, daughter of William Paulet, 1st Marquess of Winchester

William Paulet, 1st Marquess of Winchester

Sir William Paulet was an English Secretary of State and statesman who attained several peerages throughout his lifetime: Baron St John , Earl of Wiltshire , and Marquess of Winchester .-Family origins and early career in Hampshire:William Paulet was eldest son of Sir John Paulet of...

 in 1580; she died in 1581 and Hoby's fortunes were further advanced by his second marriage, on 21 May 1582, to Margaret, daughter of Henry Carey, 1st Baron Hunsdon, cousin of Queen Elizabeth. The day after the wedding he was knighted by the Queen.

In August 1584 he accompanied his father-in-law Hunsdon on a special mission to Scotland

Scotland

Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...

. His affability and learning greatly impressed King James VI (later James of England), and after attending the Scottish ambassador, Patrick, Master of Gray

Patrick Gray, 6th Lord Gray

Patrick Gray, 6th Lord Gray , known most of his life as Patrick, Master of Gray, was a Scottish nobleman and politician during the reigns of James VI of Scotland and Mary, Queen of Scots.-Early life:...

, as far as Durham

Durham

Durham is a city in north east England. It is within the County Durham local government district, and is the county town of the larger ceremonial county...

, Hoby received from the Scottish king a flattering letter, dated 24 October 1584, in which James intimated his longing for his company, and how he had "commanded his ambassador to sue for it." James Stewart, Earl of Arran

James Stewart, Earl of Arran

Captain James Stewart, Earl of Arran was created Earl of Arran by the young King James VI, who wrested the title from James Hamilton, 3rd Earl of Arran...

 also wrote to the same effect, and enclosed a "small token," which he begged Hoby to wear in "testimony of their brotherhood". These amenities proved displeasing to Elizabeth, and Hoby found it convenient for a time to plead the ague as an excuse for not attending the court.

On 24 September 1586 he was returned M.P. for Queenborough

Queenborough

Queenborough is a small town on the Isle of Sheppey in the Swale borough of Kent in South East England.Queenborough is two miles south of Sheerness. It grew as a port near the Thames Estuary at the westward entrance to The Swale where it joins the River Medway...

, Kent, and gained distinction as a speaker in Parliament

Parliament of England

The Parliament of England was the legislature of the Kingdom of England. In 1066, William of Normandy introduced a feudal system, by which he sought the advice of a council of tenants-in-chief and ecclesiastics before making laws...

. That October he complained that he had been "not only bitten but overpassed by the hard hand of" Francis Walsingham

Francis Walsingham

Sir Francis Walsingham was Principal Secretary to Elizabeth I of England from 1573 until 1590, and is popularly remembered as her "spymaster". Walsingham is frequently cited as one of the earliest practitioners of modern intelligence methods both for espionage and for domestic security...

, and appealed to Secretary William Davison to use his influence with the queen in his behalf. Restored to favour, in July 1588 Hoby was chosen to report to the queen on the progress of the preparations against the Spanish Armada

Spanish Armada

This article refers to the Battle of Gravelines, for the modern navy of Spain, see Spanish NavyThe Spanish Armada was the Spanish fleet that sailed against England under the command of the Duke of Medina Sidonia in 1588, with the intention of overthrowing Elizabeth I of England to stop English...

. That October he was elected M.P. for Berkshire

Berkshire (UK Parliament constituency)

Berkshire was a parliamentary constituency in England, represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of England until 1707, then of the Parliament of Great Britain from 1707 to 1800 and of the Parliament of the United Kingdom from 1801 to 1885...

. He was made justice of the peace

Justice of the Peace

A justice of the peace is a puisne judicial officer elected or appointed by means of a commission to keep the peace. Depending on the jurisdiction, they might dispense summary justice or merely deal with local administrative applications in common law jurisdictions...

 for Middlesex

Middlesex

Middlesex is one of the historic counties of England and the second smallest by area. The low-lying county contained the wealthy and politically independent City of London on its southern boundary and was dominated by it from a very early time...

 by a special renewal of the commission on 17 December 1591. In 1592 he was chosen M.P. for Kent

Kent (UK Parliament constituency)

Kent was a parliamentary constituency covering the county of Kent in southeast England. It returned two "knights of the shire" to the House of Commons by the bloc vote system from the year 1290...

, and in 1594 was granted letters patent for buying and providing wool

Wool

Wool is the textile fiber obtained from sheep and certain other animals, including cashmere from goats, mohair from goats, qiviut from muskoxen, vicuña, alpaca, camel from animals in the camel family, and angora from rabbits....

 for sale in England for ten years, and the grant was ratified in the succeeding reign.

Hoby accompanied the Earl of Essex

Robert Devereux, 2nd Earl of Essex

Robert Devereux, 2nd Earl of Essex, KG was an English nobleman and a favourite of Elizabeth I. Politically ambitious, and a committed general, he was placed under house arrest following a poor campaign in Ireland during the Nine Years' War in 1599...

 on the expedition to Cádiz

Cádiz

Cadiz is a city and port in southwestern Spain. It is the capital of the homonymous province, one of eight which make up the autonomous community of Andalusia....

 in 1596, and was made constable of Queenborough Castle, Isle of Sheppey

Isle of Sheppey

The Isle of Sheppey is an island off the northern coast of Kent, England in the Thames Estuary, some to the east of London. It has an area of . The island forms part of the local government district of Swale...

, Kent, on 9 July 1597. On the following 28 October Hoby received a commission to search out and prosecute all offences against the statute prohibiting the exportation of iron from England, his reward being half the forfeitures arising therefrom. He represented Rochester in the parliaments of 1597, 1601, February 1604, and 1614. James I made him a Gentleman of the Privy Chamber, forgave his arrears of rent of the Royal Manor of Shirland

Shirland

Shirland is a parish and former mining village in Derbyshire, England. It is continuous with the villages of Higham, Stretton and Stonebroom. Shirland has existed since at least 1086. Local politics is largely Labour. The River Amber flows through the parish....

 in Derbyshire

Derbyshire

Derbyshire is a county in the East Midlands of England. A substantial portion of the Peak District National Park lies within Derbyshire. The northern part of Derbyshire overlaps with the Pennines, a famous chain of hills and mountains. The county contains within its boundary of approx...

 (amounting to over £500), and on 21 August 1607 granted him an exclusive license to buy wool in Warwickshire

Warwickshire

Warwickshire is a landlocked non-metropolitan county in the West Midlands region of England. The county town is Warwick, although the largest town is Nuneaton. The county is famous for being the birthplace of William Shakespeare...

 and Staffordshire

Staffordshire

Staffordshire is a landlocked county in the West Midlands region of England. For Eurostat purposes, the county is a NUTS 3 region and is one of four counties or unitary districts that comprise the "Shropshire and Staffordshire" NUTS 2 region. Part of the National Forest lies within its borders...

. He frequently entertained the king at Bisham.

Hoby died in Queenborough Castle, Kent

Kent

Kent is a county in southeast England, and is one of the home counties. It borders East Sussex, Surrey and Greater London and has a defined boundary with Essex in the middle of the Thames Estuary. The ceremonial county boundaries of Kent include the shire county of Kent and the unitary borough of...

 on 1 March 1617. Hoby and his wife had no children. He brought up his illegitimate son by Katherine Pinkney, Peregrine Hoby, and made the boy his heir.

Works

An excellent scholar himself, Hoby cultivated the friendship of learned men, especially that of William Camden

William Camden

William Camden was an English antiquarian, historian, topographer, and officer of arms. He wrote the first chorographical survey of the islands of Great Britain and Ireland and the first detailed historical account of the reign of Elizabeth I of England.- Early years :Camden was born in London...

, who eulogises his bounty and accomplishments in his Britannia. Camden also dedicated his Hibernia (1587) to him.

In 1612 Hoby presented Sir Henry Savile's sumptuous edition of St. Chrysostom to the library of Trinity College. Hoby was also a keen Protestant theologian

Theology

Theology is the systematic and rational study of religion and its influences and of the nature of religious truths, or the learned profession acquired by completing specialized training in religious studies, usually at a university or school of divinity or seminary.-Definition:Augustine of Hippo...

, sparring in print with the Roman Catholic convert Theophilus Higgons

Theophilus Higgons

Theophilus Higgons was a divine and convert to Catholicism.-References:...

 and the Jesuit John Fludd or Floyd

John Floyd (Jesuit)

John Floyd was an English Jesuit, known as a controversialist. He is known under the pseudonyms Daniel à Jesu, Hermannus Loemelius, and George White John Floyd (1572 – September 15, 1649) was an English Jesuit, known as a controversialist. He is known under the pseudonyms Daniel à Jesu, Hermannus...

.

Hoby's theological writings include:

• A Letter to Mr. T[heophilus] H[iggons], late Minister: now Fugitive ... in answere of his first Motive, (1609), which was answered by Higgons during the same year.
• A Counter-snarle for Ishmael Rabshakeh a Cycropedian Lycaonite (1613), being a reply to The Overthrow of the Protestants Pulpet Babels, by "J. R." (John Floyd). Floyd forthwith rejoined with his Purgatories triumph over Hell, maugre the barking of Cerberus in Syr Edward Hobyes "Counter-snarle" (1613).
• A Curry-combe for a сохе-combe . . . In answer to a lewd Libel lately foricated by Jabal Rachil against Sir Edward Hobies "Counter-Snarle," entitled "Purgatories triumph over Hell," (1615), written under the ponderous pseudonym of "Nick-Groome of the Hobie-Stable Reginoburgi," in the form of a dialogue.

Hoby also translated Mathieu Coignet's Politique discourses on trueth and lying from French (1586), and Bernardino de Mendoza

Bernardino de Mendoza

Bernardino de Mendoza was a Spanish military commander, a diplomat and a writer on military history and politics.- Life and works :Bernardino de Mendoza was born in Guadalajara, Spain around 1540...

's Theorique and Practise of Warre from Spanish (1597).