Henry Compton, 1st Baron Compton

Who was Henry Compton, 1st Baron Compton?

Henry Compton, 1st Baron Compton was an English peer and Member of Parliament.

Compton was the posthumous son of Peter Compton of Compton Wynyates and his wife Anne, daughter of George Talbot, 4th Earl of Shrewsbury, and the grandson of Sir William Compton. He was trained in the law at Gray's Inn. He succeeded his father in 1544 and was knighted in 1567.

He was elected a Member of the Parliament of England for Old Sarum in 1563 and was appolnted High Sheriff of Warwickshire for 1571-72. In 1572 he was summoned to the House of Lords as Baron Compton, of Compton in the County of Warwick. After his enoblement Lord Compton was one of the peers at the trial of Mary, Queen of Scots in 1586.

He married, firstly, Frances, daughter of Francis Hastings, 2nd Earl of Huntingdon, with whom he had one son. He married, secondly, Anne, daughter of Sir John Spencer, with whom he had a further two sons. Lord Compton died in December 1589, aged 51, and was succeeded in the barony by his son from his first marriage, William, who was created Earl of Northampton in 1618.