Father: William KINGSTON (Sir Knight) (See his Biography)
Mother: Mary SCROPE
Married: Mary GAYNSFORD (b. ABT 1495 - d. BEF 12 Feb 1572) (dau. of John Gaynsford and Anne Hawte) (w. of William Courtenay) AFT 24 Nov 1535
Children:
1. Ellen KINGSTON
| Died: 14 Apr 1556 Father: William KINGSTON (Sir Knight) (See his Biography) Mother: Mary SCROPE Married: Mary GAYNSFORD (b. ABT 1495 - d. BEF 12 Feb 1572) (dau. of John Gaynsford and Anne Hawte) (w. of William Courtenay) AFT 24 Nov 1535 Children: 1. Ellen KINGSTON |
|
Date of birth unknown; his father was William Kingston, who was Lord of Painswick Manor Gloucestershire. Sir Anthony must of lived at Painswick in adult life for it is mentioned that he was much hated locally for his cruelty. He was a friend of Henry VIII and a Privy Councillor, fought at Flodden, jousted on the Field of the Cloth of Gold, helped put down the "Pilgrimage of Grace" in 1536/7 with great butchery and was knighted by Henry VIII. Anthony Kingston was given Flaxley Abbey Prinknash Park, formerly property of St. Peters Abbey, Gloucester and the manor of Miserden, Gloucestershire after the Dissolution. He signed a petition to Pope Clement VII supporting the King's divorce from Catalina of Aragon, arrested Wolsey and was with him when he died. He was at Anne Boleyn's coronation, his wife attended her in the Tower and he supervised her execution.
At 2 Jan 1540 Prinknash Abbey surrendered under the dissolution of the monasteries. The Kingstons did well out of the monastic lands at the dissolution of the monasteries. After the surrender, the manor of Prinknash (Cranham Gloucestershire) was rented by Sir Anthony from the Crown on the condition that he preserve forty deer annually for the King's use.
In 1549 he was made Provost Marshall by King Edward and had suppressed the Prayer Book rebellion in 1549 with great cruelty and supervised the execution of John Hooper, Protestant Bishop of Gloucester.
A number of priests were hanged, including Richard Bennet, vicar of St Veep. Even Richard Carew, no sympathiser with the rakehells, had to admit that Anthony Kingston "left his name more memorable than commendable amongst the townsmen' (of Bodmin), for causing their mayor (Mayor Boyer) to erect a gallows before his own door, upon which (after feasting Sir Anthony) himself was hanged. In like sort (say they) he trussed up a miller's man thereby, forthat he presented himself in the others stead, saying he could never do his master better service". Nor had the townsman of the far west any better reason to remember Sir Anthony with affection when John Payne, portreeve of St Ives, was strung up by his orders, an event commemorated on a plaque on the wall of the Catholic church four centuries later .
There is a story of Mayor Mayow of Gluvian in the parish of St. Columb. (Mayow was hung outside a tavern in St Columb). William Mayow's crime was not capital and "therefore his wife was advised by her friends to hasten to the town after the Marshal and his men", who had custody, and beg for his life. Which she accordingly prepared to do and to render herself a more amiable partitioner before the Marshal's eyes, this dame spent much time in attiring herself and putting on her French hood, then in fashion, that her husband was put to death before her arrival. Intending to plead for her husbands life, spent so long a time in making herself look smart, that before she reached the presence of the stern judge, Master Mayow was hanged.
In 1556, during Mary's reign, Anthony was involved in the Dudley plot to put Elizabeth on the throne. Arrested in Cirencester died the 14 Apr on his way to London for trial, probably by his own hand.
to Bios Page |
