John Perrot - Early Life

Early Life

John Perrot was born at Haroldston, near Haverfordwest, Pembrokeshire, the third child of Mary Berkeley and Thomas Perrott (or Perrot), Esquire of Haroldston. It was claimed he was the son of Henry VIII, whom Perrot notoriously resembled in temperament and appearance. Others reject the claim. According to Turvey, the allegation of Henry VIII's fatherhood originated with Sir Robert Naunton (1563–1635). Naunton never knew Sir John, and used second-hand accounts of his person and character, along with a series of historically inaccurate events to reach his conclusion on John's paternity. For example, John was Mary Berkeley's third child, not her first, and history does not record her and the king being in the same location during this period. Naunton even claimed that Sir Owen Hopton, Lieutenant of the Tower of London, overheard Sir John say, 'Will the Queen suffer her brother to be offered up a sacrifice to the envy of his frisking adversaries?' thus suggesting that Perrot himself fueled the rumours of his paternity. However, Hopton had been removed from the Tower 18 months prior to Perrot's imprisonment, so he could not have overheard Perrot make the claim there.

Perrot joined the household of William Paulet, 1st Marquess of Winchester, and thereby gained his introduction to King Henry VIII. His advancement faltered on the death of the king in January 1547, but Perrot did receive a knighthood at the coronation of Henry's successor, King Edward VI in the following month. He was appointed High Sheriff of Pembrokeshire for 1551.

In June 1551 Perrot also visited France in the train of William Parr, 1st Marquess of Northampton, who had been sent to arrange the marriage of the king to Elizabeth of Valois, the infant daughter of Henry II of France and of Catherine de' Medici. Perrot's skill as a knight and in the hunt fascinated Henry, who sought to retain him for reward. Perrot declined, but on his return to England his debts were paid by the French king.

During the reign of Mary I of England (1553–1558), Perrot suffered a brief imprisonment in the Fleet with his uncle, Robert Perrott, on a charge of sheltering heretics at his house in Wales. Following his release, he declined to assist William Herbert, 1st Earl of Pembroke in seeking out heretics in south Wales, but went on to serve with him at the capture of Saint-Quentin in 1557. In spite of his Protestantism, Perrot was granted the castle and lordship of Carew in Pembrokeshire, and at the beginning of Queen Elizabeth's reign the naval defence of South Wales was entrusted to his care. In 1562 he was elected knight of the shire for Pembrokeshire.

He was Member of the Parliament of England for Carmarthenshire 1547, Sandwich October 1553 and 1555, Wareham 1559, Pembrokeshire 1563 and Haverfordwest 1589.