Solomon I- 1536-1542
House of Devon
Solomon I was briefly King of England in the early-mid 1500s during the English Revolt of Religion and was the grandson of Simon I.
Renowned as a dour and humourless figure Solomon had, as a the son of the second son of the King spent much of his adult life in service of the Devon Company, one of the era's foremost mercenary companies gaining a formidable reputation in Iberia and France and a building hefty personal fortune in the process. He would return to England in 1535, quite wealthy by any measure and virtually bought the Dukedom of York outright from his cashed-strapped grandfather, King Simon. Solomon quickly gained allies within the nobility, many of whom were concerned about the lack of action being taken with the growing numbers of Protestant adherents in the kingdom. He may well have had suspicions that his grandfather was secretly a protestant though it seems the two barely conversed.
His father Samuel, as the second son, opposed the implementation of a German-style religious tolerance and headed the Catholic faction in court. Whilst Solomon wasn’t as extreme as his father he still kept great catholic sympathies. When Simon promoted a Protestant to the Archbishop of Canterbury, Solomon was opposed.
As heir when his grandfather died aged 81, this secured Solomon's rule and Catholicism, but his reputation took a blow thanks to the capture and subsequent death in captivity of the popular Richard Clarke in March 1537. He soon began the persecution of Protestants, burning their heretical churches, destroying books and printing presses and publicly burning unrepentant preachers. This only made the Protestants more combative and he was faced with revolt in Norfolk and Durham as well as three separate assassination attempts.
Solomon would meet his end at the Battle of Sandringham, dying of wounds inflicted on the field. He had three sons, the eldest would claim the throne. Solomon’s religious policies would warn other monarchs not to follow the same policies and is nowadays glossed over.
House of Devon
Solomon I was briefly King of England in the early-mid 1500s during the English Revolt of Religion and was the grandson of Simon I.
Renowned as a dour and humourless figure Solomon had, as a the son of the second son of the King spent much of his adult life in service of the Devon Company, one of the era's foremost mercenary companies gaining a formidable reputation in Iberia and France and a building hefty personal fortune in the process. He would return to England in 1535, quite wealthy by any measure and virtually bought the Dukedom of York outright from his cashed-strapped grandfather, King Simon. Solomon quickly gained allies within the nobility, many of whom were concerned about the lack of action being taken with the growing numbers of Protestant adherents in the kingdom. He may well have had suspicions that his grandfather was secretly a protestant though it seems the two barely conversed.
His father Samuel, as the second son, opposed the implementation of a German-style religious tolerance and headed the Catholic faction in court. Whilst Solomon wasn’t as extreme as his father he still kept great catholic sympathies. When Simon promoted a Protestant to the Archbishop of Canterbury, Solomon was opposed.
As heir when his grandfather died aged 81, this secured Solomon's rule and Catholicism, but his reputation took a blow thanks to the capture and subsequent death in captivity of the popular Richard Clarke in March 1537. He soon began the persecution of Protestants, burning their heretical churches, destroying books and printing presses and publicly burning unrepentant preachers. This only made the Protestants more combative and he was faced with revolt in Norfolk and Durham as well as three separate assassination attempts.
Solomon would meet his end at the Battle of Sandringham, dying of wounds inflicted on the field. He had three sons, the eldest would claim the throne. Solomon’s religious policies would warn other monarchs not to follow the same policies and is nowadays glossed over.
