Historian Martyn Taylor looks into how the Howard estate, in Bury St Edmunds, got its name
The Howard estate was part of an extensive building programme instigated by the Bury St Edmunds Corporation at the end of the 1950s and early 60s.
The drive was in response to an initiative called the London Overspill, mainly housing workers for businesses brought up from the capital.
Some of the estate’s builders were W J Baker, Hurstwood Construction and the Direct Labour force of the council itself. Though the names of the various locations were ascribed to 19th century mayors, the actual given name of the estate – Howard – bears some scrutiny.
This came from the first Earl of Suffolk, Thomas Howard, 1561-1626. He was one of four children born at Audley End, near Saffron Walden, to Thomas Howard 4th Duke of Norfolk by his second wife Margaret Audley.
Strangely, when she died at a fairly young age Thomas junior inherited the manor of nearby Saffron Walden and other Audley End properties.
The intrigues of late 16th century England saw Thomas senior go to the block because as a prominent Roman Catholic nobleman he was involved with the notorious ‘Ridolfi’ plot to oust the Protestant Queen Elizabeth from the throne and install her cousin the Catholic Mary Queen of Scots in her stead.
At the time, young Thomas jnr was 11 years old. While in the Tower of London awaiting his fate, his father urged Thomas to marry his step-sister Mary Dacre, which eventually he did though their union did not produce any children. After she died he re-married a noted beauty, Katherine Knyvel.
The inevitable beheading of his father saw much of the family’s estates confiscated by the crown only to be restored later on as Thomas jnr went on to greater glory when as Admiral Lord Thomas Howard aboard the Golden Lion he valiantly attacked the Spanish Armada on July 25 1588, to be knighted the next day.
On the accession of James VI in 1603, Thomas was appointed chancellor of Cambridge University and also Lord High Treasurer. Unfortunately for him, despite these impressive positions and a plethora of other appointments, he would ultimately fall foul of the King’s infatuation with another member of the court, the king’s favourite Sir George Villers. History tells us that the King was most probably bi-sexual, knighting Villers in 1615, creating him Gentleman of the Bedchamber followed by being made Duke of Buckingham in 1623.
Thomas Howard’s fall from grace started slowly back in 1603 with the commencement of the spectacular building of Audley End House. It would become by 1616 the largest private residence in the country.
With purchases of land throughout East Anglia accusations were levelled at him as to his stewardship of the treasury finally to be deprived of this post. Though he served a short period in the House of Lords, you could say he died a broken man in 1626. He is buried in Saffron Walden.
George Villers, though buried in Westminster Abbey, did not fare as well as he was accused of various misdeeds, being assassinated two years later by John Felton, a former disaffected army officer.
Though Howard is a somewhat tenuous link to the rich heritage of Bury, another definite set of historical names has been recently added on the Howard estate, the connection is to that of the Tudor dynasty and Mary Rose Tudor, Queen of France and Duchess of Suffolk.
A new development including a community centre on the site of the former Newbury Community Centre and Howard Primary School has seen the adoption of names associated with the life of Queen Mary, buried in St Mary’s Church: That of Charles Place, alluding to Mary’s second husband Charles Brandon Duke of Suffolk; Frances Street, Frances their daughter and Westhorpe Avenue, Westhorpe the home of the Duke and Duchess of Suffolk.
All in all though, another fascinating story.
