Robert Southwell

Who was Robert Southwell?

Sir Robert Southwell was an English civil servant during the reigns of Henry VIII, Edward VI and Mary I. He was elected Member of Parliament from Kent in October 1553 and in 1555. In January–February 1554 Southwell, then the High Sheriff of Kent, was one of the key loyalist officers engaged against the Wyatt's rebellion. According to D. M. Loades, "Sir Robert Southwell and Lord Abergavenny were almost the only significant gentlemen in the country whose loyalty was never in doubt. So resolute was Southwell's opposition to Wyatt that it is tempting to regard them as personal enemies, but .. there is no evidence for this."