Andrew Corbet (died 1578)

Sir Andrew Corbet (1 November 1522 – 16 August 1578) was an English Protestant politician of the mid-Tudor and early Elizabethan periods: a member of the powerful Council in the Marches of Wales for a quarter of a century.

Roger Corbet's father had died when he was only about twelve years of age and his wardship was purchased by Sir Andrew Windsor, who married him to his daughter.

As Keeper of the Great Wardrobe to Henry VII of England, he had responsibility for an annual budget running into thousands of pounds[3] and was an important part of the network of his cousin, the notorious Edmund Dudley.

[1] The process seems to have passed amicably and Andrew was often to work alongside his uncle, finally inheriting most of his property when Richard died sine prole in 1566.

Corbet was made a member of the council in 1553 and remained so, surviving the fall of his patron Dudley after the abortive attempt to install Lady Jane Grey as queen.

He was returned, first in order of precedence, with Sir Henry Stafford,[14] a nonentity who had failed twice to secure election in Staffordshire, where his family had great influence.

In fact he was also Shropshire's commissioner for the loan of 1558, levied to pay for England's disastrous participation in the Italian War of 1551–59, which led to the loss of the Pale of Calais.

He was, however, elected again to the first parliament of Elizabeth I, which was summoned on 5 December 1558 and sat for just over three months, from 28 January to 8 May 1559, vindicating the moves the queen and her advisers had already made towards the Elizabethan Religious Settlement.

An important area of work was the Council in the Marches, from 1560 under the presidency of Sir Henry Sidney, the son-in-law of John Dudley, who was frequently involved in Irish affairs.

Despite the apparent levity of the scene before Leith, the Shropshire contingent seems to have suffered heavy losses: the State Papers for 29 November, when local levies were being reimbursed, contain the entry: However, the experience seems to have rekindled Corbet's interest in military matters.

[20] Corbet's commitment to the Protestant cause was by now well-known: in 1564 the bishops letter to the Privy Council of England described him as sound in religion and mentioned that his advice had been sought in clarifying the religious position of JPs.

Acknowledging that he was essentially a modest man who preferred quietness, Ashton called him: In 1571, with plots still in the air, the Privy Council wrote to reliable county officials to secure their help in ensuring a "good choice to be made of knights, citizens and burgesses" to the short-lived parliament of that year.

[21] Later in the year Corbet was forced to write again, excusing himself from helping the authorities collect the subsidy because he was involved in the arrest of Lawrence Banester, a recusant and the Duke of Norfolk's northern agent, as well as a trustee of the Dacre family estates, who lived at Wem in Shropshire.

It seems that Banester was the source of most of the rumours, as he had several times written, perhaps on his own authority, to the Dacres and other Catholic nobles, inciting rebellion in favour of Mary, Queen of Scots.

After he tried to ride to Scotland with a bag of gold to solicit support for Mary, Corbet and others were sent to arrest him, search his home and impound his papers.

On 6 September Burghley and Robert Dudley, 1st Earl of Leicester received Corbet's report of the discovery of incriminating letters, which he enclosed.

[13] From 1573 to 1578 he was Shropshire's commissioner in matters as diverse as oyer and terminer, a key function in managing the judicial system, for sewers, and for the survey of tanneries.

When Walter Devereux, 1st Earl of Essex, a key territorial magnate in the region, died in 1576, his will appointed Corbet one of a group of officials to act as feoffees of his estates.

In 1575, when Sidney departed for the second time to take up the position of Lord Deputy of Ireland, he invested Corbet formally as vice-president of the Council in the Marches.

Castled elephant and monogram of Sir Andrew Corbet. Part of medieval gatehouse, modified by Sir Andrew, viewed from north. Moreton Corbet Castle, Shropshire.
Signature of Sir Andrew Corbet, 3 March 1571.
Effigies of Richard Corbet and Margaret Wortley, née Savile, his wife, in St Bartholomew's church, Moreton Corbet. Richard held Andrew's wardship for about four years.
John Dudley, from a painted panel at Penshurst Place . Dudley was an early ally and patron of Corbet.
Thomas Howard, 4th Duke of Norfolk. Corbet was the government's most trusted agent in Shropshire during the crisis centred on Norfolk's alleged plots.
Mary, Queen of Scots after Nicholas Hilliard . The crisis of 1569–71 centred on schemes to marry Mary to Norfolk and to place her on the English throne.
Walter Devereux, 1st Earl of Essex. Corbet was a feoffee of his estate.
Sir Henry Sidney, attributed to Arnold Bronckorst or his school. Sidney's dual responsibility for Wales and Ireland placed an increasing onus on Corbet, formalised by his appointment as vice-president of the Council in the Marches.