Edward Bellingham

Who was Edward Bellingham?

Sir Edward Bellingham, lord deputy of Ireland, was a son of Edward Bellingham of Erringham, Sussex, his mother being Jane Shelley of the Shelley family.

After his father's death in 1511, he and his brother became wards to the Duke of Norfolk. He served with Sir Thomas Seymour as envoys to Hungary during the sieges of Pesth and Buda before the Hungarian forces were defeated by the Ottoman Empire. He further fought through the Low Countries against the French before being captured. He was also present at the Siege of Boulogne. His most notable achievement was the defence of the Isle of Wight and repulsion of French raiding forces during the attempted French invasion in 1545.

After King Henry VIII's death he eventually became an English member of parliament and a member of the privy council under the rule of King Edward VI, and in 1547 took part in some military operations in Ireland, during which time he may have rebuilt Leighlinbridge Castle in County Carlow. In May 1548 he was sent to that country as Lord Deputy.