Identity area
Type of entity
Person
Authorized form of name
Bolton, William
Parallel form(s) of name
Standardized form(s) of name according to other rules
Other form(s) of name
Identifiers for corporate bodies
Description area
Dates of existence
d.1532
History
William Bolton was a canon of the Augustinian order, prior of St. Bartholomew’s in West Smithfield, London, and master of the king’s works. While little information survives concerning the early years of his life, Bolton is known to have attended St. Mary’s College, Oxford, between 1501 and 1503, with his election at St. Bartholomew’s confirmed by the bishop of London in 1505. As a royal adminstrator, Bolton oversaw a number of important building projects, including the chapel of Henry VII and the monument to Lady Margaret Beaufort in Westminster Abbey, and from 1517, the reconstruction of New Hall in Boreham, Essex. He is cited as master of the king’s works in the will of Henry VII (1509), but is likely to have occupied this position from around 1504 onwards. In addition to his royal engagements, Bolton also oversaw important reconstruction of the priory church at St. Bartholomew’s between 1513 and 1517. In 1522, he received preferment as rector of Harrow on the Hill in Middlesex. He died in London in 1532 and was buried at St. Bartholomew’s.