Robart Foot Esqr her present Husband
January 1712.
Arms. Sa. a chev. or. betw. three gryffins’ heads era. ar. a crescent for difference.
SIR HUMPHRY EDWIN.
Sir Humphry Edwin, descended from an old Herefordshire family, was born at Hereford in 1642. He was the only son of William Edwin (sometime Mayor of Hereford) by his wife Anne Mansfield, and grandson of William Edwin of the Field next Hereford. One of his sisters (Mary) was married to Sir Edward Dering. He married Elizabeth, daughter of Samuel Sambrooke, a London merchant, and a sister of Sir Jeremy Sambrooke; by her he had four sons, born between 1671 and 1677, viz., Samuel, Humphry, Thomas and Charles.
On the 3rd February, 1679, he was admitted to our freedom; on 11th October, 1687, he was sworn in Alderman of Tower Ward on the direct appointment of James II; on the 18th November following he was knighted at Whitehall, and a few weeks later appointed Sheriff of Glamorganshire, in which county he had purchased considerable estates. In 1688 Edwin was chosen Sheriff of London and Master of the Barber-Surgeons. In 1689 he took official part in the Proclamation of William and Mary in the City, and shortly after was appointed a Commissioner of Excise with a salary of £1,000; he was also an officer in the Honourable Artillery Company, and a Colonel of the Trained Bands.
In 1691 Edwin was the victim of a malicious prosecution; he was indicted for perjury, and a true bill found against him, but on his trial was acquitted, Lord Chief Justice Holt not calling on him to swear all his witnesses. Sir Humphry owned extensive property near Westminster Hall, he also had a mansion at Kensington, and added to his Glamorganshire property the castle and lordship of Ogmore. In 1697 his eldest son Samuel was married to Lady Catharine Montagu, daughter of the Earl of Manchester, and the same year Sir Humphry was elected Lord Mayor of London, having been previously translated from the Barber-Surgeons to the Skinners’ Company. The customary mayoralty pageant was omitted, owing, doubtless, to Edwin’s religious scruples, he being a Nonconformist. Soon after his admission as Lord Mayor, he gave great offence by attending Nonconformist worship at a conventicle on the afternoons of Sunday, 31st October and 7th November, in full civic state. A meeting of the Court of Aldermen was held 9th November to consider a complaint of the Swordbearer against the Lord Mayor, for compelling his attendance on the occasion when the Lord Mayor was deserted by all his officers except the Swordbearer, whom one of the chapel officials had locked in a pew! According to the minute, the Court took notice that the Lord Mayor had “for two Lords dayes past in the afternoones gone to private meetings with the sword,” whereupon his Lordship promised to forbear the practice for the future. Edwin’s action roused all the bitterness of the High Church party and caused an angry literary controversy in which Dr. Nicholls, James Peirce, Calamy and Defoe joined, and in which the question of “occasional conformity” was raised. Edwin had on his election received the Sacrament in accordance with the rites of the Church of England, and his friend Defoe took him very severely to task for this, charging him with having “played bo-peep with God Almighty.”
On the 19th April, 1694, Sir Humphry Edwin was dismissed from the Court of Assistants of our Company on account of his continued non-attendance. He died 14th December, 1707, at his country seat at Llanmihangel, intestate, administration being granted to his son Charles on 19th February following. His widow died in London 22nd November, 1714. Besides the children already mentioned he had four daughters and a fifth son John, from whom is descended the present Earl of Crawford and Balcarres.