Ashley baronets
| Sir Anthony Ashley | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Born | 1551 |
| Died | 13 January 1628 |
| Title | 1st Baronet of Wimborne St Giles |
| Tenure | 3 July 1622 – 13 January 1628 |
| Residence | Ashley Manor |
| Locality | Wimborne St Giles |
| Wars and battles |
Capture of Cádiz Drake–Norris Expedition |
| Offices | Clerk of the Privy Council |
| Spouse(s) | Jane Okeover (1592–1620) Philippa Sheldon (1622–1628) |
| Issue | Anne Elizabeth Ashley (1593–1628) |
| Parents | Anthony Ashley of Damerham Dorothy Lyte of Lytes Cary |
Sir Anthony Ashley, 1st Baronet, PC (1551 – 13 January 1628) was Clerk of the Privy Council, which was the most senior civil servant in the Privy Council Office. Ashley accompanied the fleet to Cádiz as a representative of the Queen. He distinguished himself by the capture of Cádiz and was knighted by Robert Devereux, 2nd Earl of Essex at Cádiz after the capture of the city. Ashley sat in several parliaments, and was highly distinguished by favor of Queen Elizabeth I of England.
Ashley was the older brother of Robert Ashley, founder of Middle Temple Library (1565–1641) and Sir Francis Ashley of Dorchester (1569–1635). Sir Francis was the father-in-law of Denzil Holles, 1st Baron Holles, one of five members of the Long Parliament whom King Charles I attempted to arrest in 1642. Sir Anthony Ashley inherited the family estates at Wimborne St Giles on his cousin, Sir Henry Ashley III's death.
The first known Ashleys originally came from Wiltshire, England, where they were lords of the manor of Ashley, at a very early period. Benedict of Ashley was born around the year 1260 in Ashley Place of Wiltshire in England. He lived during the reigns of King Henry II and King Edward I. In ancient and medieval times, the concept of surnames as we know them today was not very well developed. An individual either took the name of the village in which he lived (this would generally be the case for those starting with a "de"), or a derivative of his father's name, in the form of "fils de" (son of). The Ashley surname is taken from the name of the ancient ancestral homeland of Ashley in Wiltshire.
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