Thomas Wilson (record keeper)

Sir Thomas Wilson (1560?–1629) was an English official. He is known as a government agent, Member of Parliament, Keeper of the Records, translator and author.

Born probably about 1560, Wilson was educated apparently at Stamford School, and matriculated at St John's College, Cambridge, on 26 November 1575. In 1583 he was elected on Lord Burghley's nomination to a scholarship there. He graduated B.A. in 1583 at St. John's, then migrated to Trinity Hall, where he graduated M.A. in 1587. For fifteen years, according to his own account, he studied civil law at Cambridge. In 1594 he obtained a letter from Burghley recommending his election as Fellow of Trinity Hall. The recommendation was unsuccessful, and Wilson turned to travel.

In 1596, Wilson was in Italy and Germany. He remained faithful to the Cecils, and during the later years of Elizabeth's reign he was employed as a foreign intelligencer. In December 1601 he was at Florence, on negotiations with the Duke of Ferrara, the Venetians, and other Italian states. The main object of his residence in Italy during 1601–2 was to discover Spanish and papal plans against England. He returned to England during the winter, and was at Greenwich on 12 June 1603; and then early in 1604 was sent to reside as consul in Spain. He was at Bayonne in February 1603–4, and remained in Spain until the arrival of the Earl of Nottingham and Sir Charles Cornwallis as ambassadors in 1605.

On his return to England, Wilson entered the service of Sir Robert Cecil, who leased to him a house adjoining his own, "Britain's Burse", in Durham Place, Strand, London. He worked on supervising the building of Salisbury's house in Durham Place and also at Hatfield, near which he received from Cecil, now Lord Salisbury, the manor of Hoddesdon. In 1605 he was returned to parliament for Newtown, Isle of Wight; he took notes of its proceedings on matters including scutages and the "post-nati" for the government. He also kept the minutes of the proceedings of the committee for the Union of England and Scotland, and made a collection of the objections likely to be urged against the union in parliament.

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