Sir Anthony Mildmay – Apethorpe – East Northamptonshire

For the past nine years, I have dedicated myself to researching and exploring notable figures of the Tudor and Stuart courts. This passion for history ultimately led me to move from the North of England (Yorkshire) to the East Midlands, drawn by the wealth of heritage and historical sites in this region.

One such figure is Sir Anthony Mildmay, whom I first discovered during a by-election campaign in Corby in 2012. On one particular day, my focus turned to the small village of Apethorpe in East Northamptonshire. As someone who values local knowledge when campaigning, I researched the village to better engage with residents—and it was during this research that I came across the story of Sir Anthony. Fascinated, I returned to Apethorpe and visited his resting place at St Leonard’s Church to learn more about his life.

Sir Anthony was the eldest son of Sir Walter Mildmay (d. 1589), Chancellor of the Exchequer under Elizabeth I, and Mary Walsingham, sister of Sir Francis Walsingham, Principal Secretary to the Queen. In 1567, he married Grace Sharington, daughter of Sir Henry Sharington, and they had one child, Mary, who later married Francis Fane, 1st Earl of Westmorland.

Sir Anthony served as MP for Newton in Lancashire in 1571, for Wiltshire from 1584 to 1586, and for Westminster in 1597. He was also Sheriff of Northamptonshire in 1580 and again in 1592, was knighted in 1596, and subsequently appointed as English Ambassador to the French Court of King Henry IV.

He resided at the magnificent Apethorpe Palace and passed away on 11 September 1617. He and his wife are commemorated with an impressive tomb in St Leonard’s Church. The photographs in my gallery capture this tomb, reflecting the virtues and values held in high regard during the Elizabethan Court.