William, first marquess of Winchester (1474/5?–1572)
Paulet, William, first marquess of Winchester (1474/5?–1572), administrator and nobleman... His main primary residence of Basing House was acquired through the marriage of Paulet's great-grandfather Sir John Paulet (d. 1437) to Constance (d. in or before 1428), daughter and coheir of Sir Hugh Poynings, eldest son and heir of Thomas Poynings, fifth Baron St John of Basing. Though a cousin, John Bonville, sued for title to Basing House, the Paulets appear to have sustained their claim, as in January 1531 Paulet was granted a licence to fortify the manor and create a park, and in 1537 was able to produce legitimate title to the lands... Paulet appears to have made little impression on local and central politics until the accession of Henry VIII. He was named sheriff in Hampshire on 8 November 1511, after being nominated, but not chosen, in each of the previous two years. He was again appointed to the post in 1518 and 1522. He was named to a commission on 2 May 1512 in Southampton to review, muster, and certify numbers of troops going to France, and named JP for Hampshire for the first time in January 1514. He was again on commissions of muster in Wiltshire in March 1539. Lucrative and important offices began to fall his way during the 1520s, but there is no clear evidence for how, or through whom, he came to the notice of the king... Paulet was knighted between 1523 and 1525 and was a member of the council from at least February 1526. (Ford)
Winchester was an accomplished courtier, if not as able an administrator, though his final years as lord chancellor taint the estimation of his earlier fiscal capabilities. His greatest achievements were his rise from obscurity to great status, his magnificent building, Basing House, which was the largest private residence in Britain, and his ability to thrive under successive regime changes; his career served as an inspiration for ambitious men rather than idealistic ones. (Ford)
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