Thomas Smythe was born at Saffron Walden, Essex, 23 Dec 1513, the eldest son of John Smith (d. 1547) and Agnes Charnock (b. Lancashire; d. 1547). His father was wealthy: served as sheriff of Essex and Hertfordshire in 1538/9; and had the grant of arms confirmed to him in 1545. Thomas enjoyed reading, writing and painting from a young age. Before May 1525 he “was placed under the care of Henry Gold of St. John’s College, Cambridge.”
Thomas Smythe entered Queens’ College, Cambridge in 1526, was appointed King’s scholar the following year, was elected fellow on 25 Jan 1529/30, and graduated M.A. in 1533. He then lectured on natural philosophy and Greek. In May 1540 he went abroad, visiting Paris and Orleans before studying in Padua. Back home, he sought to restore the correct pronunciation of Greek, quite a controversial matter at the college; and he also wrote a tract advocating extending the English alphabet to include 10 vowels.
His university career advanced in 1544 when he was appointed regius professor of civil law and served as vice-chancellor of Cambridge. He also became chancellor to the bishop of Ely; he was ordained priest in 1546; and claimed to have received a prebend in Lincoln Cathedral.
Smythe was early a protestant and retained moderate protestant views all his life. After Edward VI’s accession, he entered the service of Protector Somerset, to whom he always remained loyal, in February 1546/7, and later that year became provost of Eton and dean of Carlyle. He and Sir William Petre were made the two principal secretaries of state in April 1548, succeeding Paget. The next summer Smythe was sent on a special mission to Flanders, negotiating for mercenaries and for support against France, but it didn’t go well. Later that year he worked on the English feudal claim over Scotland. In 1549 he was knighted.
In September 1549, he was with Protector Somerset at Hampton Court and accompanied him to Windsor where Smythe lost his major offices: the council, the post of secretary, and his professorship at Cambridge. He was imprisoned in the Tower for close to five months. Shortly afterwards, summoned as a witness against Gardiner, he seems to have used his influence rather in Gardiner’s favour - which stood him in good stead in Mary’s reign.
May 1551 took Smythe back to France, accompanying Northampton on his embassy to the court. Most of this year and the next he was at Eton, where he had a hard time with the other fellows until Northumberland stepped in on his side. Then in 1553, after Mary’s accession he was summoned before her commissioners, but Gardiner protected him and he even obtained an indulgence from the pope.
In September 1553 Smythe was Member of Parliament for Grampound, Cornwall. He spent the rest of Mary’s reign in private study, but returned to public life on Elizabeth’s accession. He was again M.P. in 1558/9, this time for Liverpool. Smythe was a member of the ecclesiastical commission reviewing the Book of Common Prayer, and their meetings were held in his house in Cannon Row, Westminster.
In 1562, during the struggle between the Guises and the Huguenots, Smith went to France in the role of Ambassador. Sir Nicholas Throgmorton was joint ambassador, an unhappy arrangement as there was jealousy between them and some mistrust from Elizabeth. This was a difficult assignment, given that Elizabeth was interested in helping the Huguenots, and also used the occasion to seize Le Havre; Smythe was even imprisoned at Melun for 3 weeks in 1563. He stayed in France two years beyond the signing of the peace of Troyes in April 1564, returning to England in May 1566.
Having failed to obtain the chancellorship of the duchy of Lancaster, he spent the next three years in retirement in Essex. March 1570/1 saw him readmitted to the privy council. In April 1572 he was made chancellor of the order of the Garter, succeeding Burghley, then was elected knight of the shire for Essex, and in July appointed secretary of state. That year he persuaded Elizabeth to send help to Scottish protestants.
In his last years, besides much official work, he was involved in establishing a colony at Ards, county Down, where he left his illegitimate and only) son in charge, only to lose him quickly, in 1573. All parties lost their investments as well. His health declined in earl 1576 and he died at home at Hill Hall, Theydon Mount, 12 August 1577. He was buried in the parish church. By his will, his library went to Queens’ College,
Smythe was an accomplished “physician, mathematician, astronomer, architect, historian and orator” whose friends included the leading scholars of his time. His more notable work - of many - was De Republica Anglorum: the Maner of Government or Policie of the Realme of England, called “the most important description of the constitution and government of England written in the Tudor age.” There is a portrait of him by Holbein and a further portrait at Queens’ College, Cambridge.