Nathaniel Bacon of Stiffkey

English lawyer and politician

For other people named Nathaniel Bacon, see Nathaniel Bacon.

Sir Nathaniel Bacon (died 7 November 1622), of Stiffkey in Norfolk, was an English lawyer and Member of Parliament (MP).

## Life

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Nathaniel Bacon was the second son of Sir Nicholas Bacon, full brother of Elizabeth Bacon, and half-brother of Sir Francis Bacon and Anthony Bacon. Educated at Trinity College, Cambridge,[1] he was admitted to Gray's Inn in 1562, and became an "ancient" of the Inn in 1576. He was MP for Tavistock (1571–1583), Norfolk (1584–1585, 1593 and 1604–1611, and defeated there in 1601) and King's Lynn (1597–1598); a Puritan, he was an occasionally vocal member of their parliamentary faction during Elizabeth's reign. He also served as High Sheriff of Norfolk in 1586 and 1599, and was knighted in 1604.

Bacon's will, written in 1614, mentions the construction of his tomb at Stiffkey, and a jewel with a unicorn horn, which his three daughters were to use as a medicinal charm.[2]

Bacon was married twice. He had three daughters by his first wife, Anne Gresham, daughter of Thomas Gresham; his eldest daughter and a co heir, Anne Bacon, married Sir John Townshend.[3]

His second wife was Dorothy Hopton, the daughter of Sir Arthur Hopton and Rachel Hall, who inherited the manor of Eccles from her husband.[4][5]

## Notes

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1. ^ "Bacon, Nathaniel (BCN561N)". A Cambridge Alumni Database. University of Cambridge.
2. ^ Mary Anne Everett Green, Calendar State Papers Domestic, Addenda 1580-1625 (London, 1872), p. 543 citing TNA SP15/40.
3. ^ Gaby Mahlberg, ‘Townshend, Anne, Lady Townshend (1573–1622)’, Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press, Oct 2005; online edn, Jan 2008 accessed 11 Oct 2017
4. ^ "Hundred of Shropham: Eccles Pages 405-411 An Essay Towards A Topographical History of the County of Norfolk: Volume 1. Originally published by W Miller, London, 1805". British History Online. Retrieved 16 July 2020.
5. ^ "BACON, Nathaniel (1546-1622), of Stiffkey, Irmingland, Norf. | History of Parliament Online". www.historyofparliamentonline.org. Retrieved 27 October 2023.

## References

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* "Bacon, Nicholas" . Dictionary of National Biography. London: Smith, Elder & Co. 1885–1900. Mentioned at the end of article on the father.

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