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Chidiock Tichborne (after 24 August 1562 – 20 September 1586), erroneously referred to as Charles, was an English conspirator and poet. ==Biography== He was born in Southampton sometime after 24 August 1562 〔Phillimore, Hampshire Parish Records, Vol VI, page 78, marriage of Peter Tychborne, gent to Elizabeth Midleton, 24 Aug 1562〕 to Roman Catholic parents, Peter Tichborne and his wife Elizabeth (née Middleton).〔Penry Williams, ‘Babington, Anthony (1561–1586)’, Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press, 2004〕 His birth date has been given as circa 1558 in many sources, though unverified, and thus his age given as 28 at his execution. It is unlikely that he was born before his parents' marriage, so he could have been no more than 23 years old when he died. Chidiock Tichborne descended from Sir Roger de Tichborne, who owned land at Tichborne, near Winchester, in the twelfth century. Chidiock's second cousin and contemporary was Sir Benjamin Tichborne who lived at Tichborne Park and was created a Baronet by King James I in 1621. The Tichborne family is ancient and believed to have held land at Tichborne from before the Norman Conquest. In Chidiock's reported oration from the scaffold before his execution he allegedly stated: "I am descended from a house, from two hundred years before the Conquest, never stained till this my misfortune.".〔Isaac D'Israeli (circa 1859) (1st collected edition 1881) ''Curiosities of Literature'', Vol II, pp177〕 Chidiock's father Peter appears to have been the youngest son of Henry Tichborne (born circa 1474) and Anne Mervin (or Marvin) but the records are unclear. Peter was clerk of the Crowne at the trial of Sir Nicholas Throckmorton in 1554 and was an ardent Catholic supporter. Being the youngest son of a youngest son he was of little means and required to make his own way. He secured an education and the patronage of his distant kinsman, Lord Chidiock Paulet (1521–1574, son of the 1st Marquess of Winchester), after whom he named his son. In later life he spent many years imprisoned unable to pay recusancy fines. Chideock's mother was Elizabeth Middleton, daughter of William Middleton (grandson of Sir Thomas Middleton of Belso, Kt.) and Elizabeth Potter (daughter of John Potter of Westram). William had been servant to John Islip, Abbot of Westminster, and a banner bearer at Islip's funeral 1532,〔Kenning's Masonic Encyclopedia and Handbook of Masonic Archeology, History and Biography (1878) page 299〕 and later bought lands in Kent. The name ''"Chidiock"'', as derived from his father's patron, Chidiock Paulet, originates from a Paulet ancestor, Sir John de Chideock, who owned land at Chideock, a village in Dorset. Chidiock Tichborne was never called Charles - this is an error that has grown from a misprint in the AQA GCSE English Literature syllabus which has included the Elegy in its early poetry section for several years. Unfortunately, this error persists in much of the educational literature supporting the syllabus. At least two of Chidiock's sisters are recorded by name: Dorothy, first wife of Thomas Muttelbury of Jurdens, Somerset;〔Visitation Somerset 1623 (1876) page 76〕 and Mary, second wife of Sir William Kirkham of Blagdon, Paignton, Devon.〔Visitation of Kent 1574, page 9〕 At his execution Chidiock mentions his wife Agnes, one child, and his six sisters. In his letter to his wife, written the night before his execution he mentions his sisters - and also 'my little sister Babb'.〔Harl. MSS. 36. 50. as quoted by Isaac D'Israeli, page 177〕 Another sister is implied in a secret intelligence note to Francis Walsingham, dated Sept 18 1586, in which the writer has had conference with "Jennings of Portsmouth" who reports that Mr Bruyn of Dorset and Mr Kyrkham of Devon are persons to be suspect as they had married Tychbourn's sisters.〔Cal. State Papers, Domestic Series, Reigns of Edward VI, Mary and Elizabeth I, 1547-(1625), Vol CXCII, Number 62〕 Given the recent succession of Elizabeth I to the throne after the death of Mary I, he was allowed to practice Catholicism for part of his early life. However, in 1570 the Queen was excommunicated by the Pope for her own Protestantism and support of Protestant causes, most notably the Dutch Rebellion against Spain; in retaliation she ended her relative toleration of the Catholic Church. Catholicism was made illegal, and Roman Catholics were once more banned by law from practicing their religion and Roman Catholic priests risked death for performing their functions. In 1583, Tichborne and his father, Peter, were arrested and questioned concerning the use of "popish relics", religious objects Tichborne had brought back from a visit he had made abroad without informing the authorities of an intention to travel.〔 Though released without charge, records suggest that this was not the last time they were to be questioned by the authorities over their religion. In June 1586 accusations of "popish practices" were laid against his family. In June 1586, Tichborne agreed to take part in the Babington Plot to murder Queen Elizabeth and replace her with the Catholic Mary, Queen of Scots, who was next in line to the throne. The plot was foiled by Sir Francis Walsingham, Elizabeth's spymaster, using double agents, most notably Robert Poley who was later witness to the murder of Christopher Marlowe, and though most of the conspirators fled, Tichborne had an injured leg and was forced to remain in London. On 14 August he was arrested and he was later tried and sentenced to death in Westminster Hall. While in custody in the Tower of London on 19 September (the eve of his execution), Tichborne wrote to his wife Agnes. The letter contained three stanzas of poetry that is his best known piece of work, ''Tichborne's Elegy'', also known by its first line ''My Prime of Youth is but a Frost of Cares''. The poem is a dark look at a life cut short and is a favorite of many scholars to this day. Two other poems are known by him, ''To His Friend'' and ''The Housedove''. On 20 September 1586, Tichborne was executed with Anthony Babington, John Ballard, and four other conspirators. They were eviscerated, hanged, drawn and quartered, the mandatory punishment for treason, in St Giles Field. However, when Elizabeth was informed that these gruesome executions were arousing sympathy for the condemned, she ordered that the remaining seven conspirators were to be hanged until 'quite dead' before being eviscerated. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Chidiock Tichborne」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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