10 Facts About Lawrence Sheriff

Not much is known about Lawrence Sheriff's early life, but it is thought that he was born either in a house opposite St Andrew's Church in Rugby, Warwickshire, or in an extant house in the nearby village of Brownsover.

Lawrence Sheriff's father was a yeoman farmer, and probably one of the most important people in Rugby at the time.

Lawrence Sheriff was apprenticed by his father to a London grocer named William Walcott, at which point he went to London.

Lawrence Sheriff became a highly successful grocer to many of the rich and powerful of the day including Princess Elizabeth.

Lawrence Sheriff provided "spices and necessaries" to Princess Elizabeth when she was living in exile at Hatfield House.

Lawrence Sheriff remained unwaveringly loyal to her during this difficult period, and in 1559 following her accession he was granted a coat of arms produced by Herald's College with the Queen's approval, the main feature of which is a griffin, the traditional guardian of treasures.

Lawrence Sheriff took up residence in a large house called the King's Grocer's House on Newgate Street in the City of London.

Lawrence Sheriff became a wealthy merchant, and married a woman called Elizabeth but was not known to have had any children.

Shortly before his death, Lawrence Sheriff added a codicil to his will reducing the amount of money he left to the school, possibly due to a family financial problem, and instead leaving to it his eight-acre Conduit Close estate.

Lawrence Sheriff requested to be buried at parish church of St Andrew's Church in Rugby, where his parents were buried, but this request was not carried out, and instead he was buried at Christ Church Greyfriars in Newgate in London.