Henry Colley (died 1584)

Sir Henry Colley, or Cowley (died 1584) was an Irish soldier and landowner. He is chiefly remembered today as the ancestor of the 1st Duke of Wellington.

Little is known of his early years, except that he is thought to have been the son of Walter Cowley (c. 1500-1548), Principal Solicitor for Ireland, and thus the grandson of Robert Cowley (c. 1470-1546), Master of the Rolls in Ireland. Records and monuments in Glaston, Rutland provide evidence that the Colley family were Lords of the Manor of Glaston from about the year 1400, and also that a Walter and Robert Colley left Glaston for Ireland in about the time of Henry VII. Both Robert and Walter rose to positions of eminence through the patronage of Thomas Cromwell. Cromwell's downfall was disastrous for the Cowleys, who were generally unpopular and mistrusted: both Robert and Walter were removed from office and imprisoned for a time in England.

Walter in his last years was restored to royal favour, and appointed Surveyor-General for Ireland. He presumably left to his son a comfortable inheritance, since in 1554 Henry was able to lease Carbury Castle, County Kildare for 21 years, and later acquired it permanently.

Henry's good qualities attracted the attention of Sir Henry Sidney, the Lord Deputy of Ireland, who later recalled him as a young man who was "valiant, fortunate and a good servant". He was knighted in 1560 and given a Commission of Array for Kildare, and power to impose martial law in County Offaly and adjoining territories. He was a member of the Privy Council of Ireland and sat on the Court of Castle Chamber (the Irish equivalent of the English Star Chamber).

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