Thomas Parr (courtier)

For other people named Thomas Parr, see Thomas Parr (disambiguation).

This article is about the person who died in 1517. For the longevity claimant, see Old Tom Parr.

Sir Thomas Parr
Close-up of Thomas in a sketch of the Parr tomb at St. Anne's, Blackfriars Church.
Born	c. 1478 Kendal Castle, Kendal, Westmorland, England
Died	(1517-11-12)12 November 1517 Blackfriars, London
Buried	Blackfriars Church, London, England
Spouse	Maud Green
Issue	Catherine, Queen of England and Ireland William Parr, 1st Marquess of Northampton Anne Parr, Countess of Pembroke
Father	Sir William Parr
Mother	Elizabeth FitzHugh

Drawing of the Parr tomb illustrating Thomas Parr, and his wife Maud Green kneeling with their children at St. Anne's, Blackfriars, London which was later destroyed.

Sir Thomas Parr (1478 – 11 November 1517) of Kendal in Westmorland (now Cumbria), England, was a courtier and is best known as the father of Queen Catherine Parr, the sixth and final wife of King Henry VIII.

Early life and family

Thomas was the eldest son of Sir William Parr and Elizabeth FitzHugh. He descended from King Edward III of England through his mother, Elizabeth. Thomas's paternal grandparents were Sir Thomas Parr of Kendal and Alice Tunstall. His maternal grandparents were Sir Henry FitzHugh, 5th Baron FitzHugh of Ravensworth Castle and Lady Alice Neville, daughter of Richard Neville, 5th Earl of Salisbury and Alice Montacute, 5th Countess of Salisbury. The Earl and Countess were parents to "Warwick, the Kingmaker" who was influential in the War of the Roses. The 5th Earl of Salisbury was the son of Lady Joan Beaufort, daughter of John of Gaunt, 1st Duke of Lancaster, son of Edward III.

Thomas had three siblings, and three half siblings. They were:

• Anne Parr (d. 1513), who married Sir Thomas Cheney of Irthlingborough. Their daughter Elizabeth married Thomas Vaux, 2nd Baron Vaux of Harrowden, son of Nicholas Vaux, 1st Baron Vaux of Harrowden by his second wife, Anne Green. This Anne was sister of Maud Green, who married Anne's brother Thomas Parr (below), meaning Anne Green was both aunt and mother-in-law to Elizabeth.