Anthony Hussey

Anthony Hussey (c. 1496-1560), was an English politician and judge of the High Court of Admiralty for England and Wales between 1542 and 1549.

Early life

Hussey was born in London in either 1496 or 1497, the son of a John Hussey of Slinfold in West Sussex.^[1] He may have attended Oxford University^[1] but, if so, he departed without obtaining an academic degree.^[2] Nonetheless, in 1525 he secured employment in the junior legal role of notary public to the Diocese of London. A year later he married Catherine Webbe of Dedham, Essex, with whom he would have two children.^{[1][lower-alpha 1]}

Ecclesiastical positions

Hussey's career subsequently pursued dual paths of ecclesiastical advancement and promotions through the law. He was prominent in religious affairs during the upheavals created by the English Reformation and in 1530 was one of 14 men indicted for breaching laws against advocating for Papal supremacy over the English church. Pardoned for this offence in 1531, he was restored to good graces as an Anglican and in 1533 was named as the next rector of the parish of Bradninch in Devon.^[1] In 1536 his aptitude for the law was recognised via appointment as chief registrar to the ecclesiastical court overseen by England's most senior cleric, the Archbishop of Canterbury. Additional ecclesiastical positions followed, including appointment as proctor of the Arches Court in 1542 and registrar to the Dean of St Paul's Cathedral from 1546.^[1]

The Admiralty Court

In 1536 Hussey also began sitting as a deputy judge of the Admiralty Court during absences of his superior, Judge John Tregonwell. Hussey was formally appointed to the Admiralty Court in around 1542, after Tregonwell's resignation to become Dean of Wells Cathedral. On his appointment, Hussey became the only Admiralty Court judge not to have held any formal legal qualifications.^[2]

His term as Admiralty Court judge continued until 1549, when he was replaced by Richard Lyell. At around this time he moved to Antwerp where he held an informal position as shipping agent handling trade in the name of Queen Mary.^[2] He returned to England before 1553 and was elected in October of that year as Member (MP) of the English constituency of Horsham. In 1558 he was elected as Member for New Shoreham, a constituency that had previously been represented by his cousin Sir Henry Hussey.^[1]

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