Thomas Lunsford

Sir Thomas Lunsford (c. 1610 – c. 1653) was a Royalist colonel in the English Civil War who in 1649 was exiled to the Virginia Colony, where he held offices, acquired land and died. Early and family life Lunsford was son of Thomas Lunsford of Wilegh, Sussex. His mother, Katherine, was daughter of Thomas Fludd, treasurer of war to Queen Elizabeth, and sister of Robert Fludd the Rosicrucian. Lunsford was the third son and heir, with a twin, Herbert. His brothers Herbert and Henry were also Royalist officers. Henry was killed in July 1643 during the assault on Bristol. Early career and French exile Lunsford had a wild temperament from an early age. On 27 June 1632, he was charged with killing deer on the grounds of his relative, Sir Thomas Pelham. In August 1633, Lunsford tried to murder Pelham by firing upon him from the doorway of a church. He was indicted, and sent on 16 August to Newgate Prison. He escaped in October 1634, although "so lame that he can only go in a coach", and fled to the continent. He served in the French army and was made colonel of a foot regiment. He was tried in absentia in the Star Chamber in June 1637, fined £8,000, and outlawed for failing to appear before the court. Personal life Lunsford married three times. He and his first wife, Anne Hudson (d. 1638), had one son who died in infancy. In 1640, he married Katherine (d. 1649), daughter of Sir Henry Neville; with whom he had three daughters. His third wife was Elizabeth, the daughter of Virginia emigrant Christopher Wormeley and granddaughter of Henry Wormeley of Riccall, Yorkshire, and the widow of Richard Kemp, member of the Governor's Council and former colonial secretary; with whom he had one daughter.