Smyth was born in the south Lancashire village of Farnworth in the parish of Prescot, which now falls within the town of Widnes in the Borough of Halton.

[4] Lady Margaret was the mother of the future Henry VII by her previous marriage to Edmund Tudor, 1st Earl of Richmond,[5] and she was to have an important influence in Smyth's life.

[6] On 24 September 1485, one month after the battle of Bosworth and the consequent accession to the throne of Henry VII, Smyth was given the benefice of the deanery of Wimborne, Dorset, where Lady Margaret's parents were buried.

[6] He later obtained the livings of Combe Martin, Devon, of Great Grimsby[9] and on 14 June 1492 he was instituted as rector of Cheshunt, Hertfordshire.

[11] On 20 September 1485 Smyth gained a place in the Court of Chancery as keeper of the hanaper which gave him a salary for life.

[6] Prince Arthur died in April 1502 and in August of that year Smyth became Lord President of the council, giving him full responsibility for the exercise of royal power in Wales.

[6] In November 1495 Smyth refounded the hospital of St John the Baptist in Lichfield and added to it a school for poor children.

[14] He purchased land including a footpath from the village to the church to allow entry for his tenants by a separate door to avoid contact with the residents of Farnworth at the time of the plague.

[6] Smyth's ecclesiastical, legal and political duties resulted in his having a very busy life, only at times being resident in his diocese.