Person:Edward Bray (7)

Sir Edward Bray II was born circa 1519, the eldest son of Sir Edward Bray, by his 2nd wife Beatrice, daughter of Ralph Shirley of Wiston, Sussex and widow of of Edward Elrington of London and Udimore, Sussex. he married 1stly (bef. Oct. 1542), Mary daughter of of Simon Elrington. He married secondly Elizabeth, daughter of William Roper of Eltham and widow of John Stevenson. This lady was the grandaughter of Sir Thomas More (later Saint Thomas More). After her death he married as his third wife Magdalene daughter of Sir Thomas Cotton of Oxenhoath, Kent. As his last wife he married a lady called Mary.

By Elizabeth’s reign the Bray's chief estates were in the home counties—Berkshire, Buckinghamshire, Kent and Surrey. Sir Edward’s held the parliamentary seat of Helston in Cornwall which is confusing considering they had no link to this area. Possibly it was the 2nd Earl of Bedford, who received a Privy Council letter before the election, urging him to see that suitable candidates were returned for Cornish boroughs^[1].

Further information is provided in the History of Parliament article^[1].

1. ↑ ^{1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5} BRAY, Sir Edward (c.1519-81), of Shere, Surr., in The History of Parliament.