Tyndale’s Friend of North Ockendon
Up until the sixteenth century the general public’s only knowledge of the bible, the foundation of their religious lives, would have come from whatever the clergy told them; unless they were very fortunate and read Latin. William Tyndale, a priest himself, wanted to translate the bible into the vernacular, so that people would be able to read the word of God for themselves.
This was strictly forbidden in Henry VIII’s England. Church leaders such as Cardinal Wolsey, and later Thomas More, vigorously enforced the law. Tyndale began translating the New Testament but was forced to flee England for Germany where he eventually completed it. By 1526, copies were being read in England, though Bishop Tunstall of London publicly burnt all the copies he could find. With both English and Papal authorities hounding him from place to place, in 1534 Tyndale fled to Thomas Poyntz’s ‘English House’ in Antwerp in Belgium where he could continue his work translating and publishing the complete English Bible in relative safety.
Thomas Poyntz, a merchant from North Ockendon, owned one of the many ‘English’ houses located close to the Grote Markt in the centre of Antwerp. Poyntz was sympathetic to Tyndale’s work and did his best to make him welcome and secure in his house. At this time, there was considerable trade between England and Antwerp.
Bibles printed in English could be shipped relatively easily, hidden in bales of cloth or barrels. It was a highly risky business, as the east coast ports of England were watched continuously. Anyone caught with English bibles could be charged with heresy which carried the death penalty, so Poyntz had to be very careful. Shipments were made in the dead of night and often landed in and around Purfleet or Dagenham. The contraband then had to be dispersed overland, which was also extremely dangerous.
Seen as a heretic by the church, and not only in England, William Tyndale had many enemies. One of these was John Stokesley, who in 1530 succeeded Tunstall as Bishop of London. Stokesley, in his capacity as Bishop of London, needed someone to do his dirty work. He persuaded, then later blackmailed, the aristocratic, but financially destitute Henry Phillips to do just this. Phillips was described as a charming man with good connections. He was familiar with Flanders, yet in desperate financial straits. He was just the man Stokesley wanted. Phillips could be blackmailed, used to flush Tyndale out and once the job was done he could be discarded.
Phillips travelled to Antwerp posing as a student. With his smooth-talking ways, he managed to ingratiate himself with the English merchant classes in Antwerp and discover the whereabouts of Tyndale.
Taking advantage of Thomas Poyntz’s absence on a business trip, Phillips succeeded in luring Tyndale out of the house. Thinking he was joining Phillips for lunch, he was ambushed in one of the many dark alleys that criss-crossed the area. Tyndale was bound, gagged and put in a cart and removed to Vilvoorde Castle, just outside of Brussels.
Hearing the news on his return, Thomas Poyntz strenuously tried to get Tyndale released. He even attempted, unsuccessfully, to make a deal with the guards at Vilvoorde Castle. Poyntz petitioned Thomas Cromwell and Henry VIII for Tyndale’s release, but all efforts failed. In 1536, after being incarcerated for year and a half in Vilvoorde’s Prisoners’ Tower, Tyndalel was taken to the Market Square, tied to a stake and strangled. His body was then burnt.
Thomas Poyntz was also branded as a heretic for his part in sheltering Tyndale and was placed under house arrest in Antwerp. He may well have received the same fate as Tyndale but through his many friends he managed to evade his captors and escape to England. On his return to Essex Thomas’ life was in ruins. As a known heretic he was under surveillance by Henry’s spies and his continued involvement in the spreading of the new bible meant life was very difficult. This, despite the fact that John Poyntz, his elder brother, was a member of the household of Queen Catherine of Aragon and had been at ‘The Field of the Cloth of Gold’ with Henry VIII. It could be that his brother was also concerned for his family and wanted to keep his distance from a known heretic.
Thomas may have felt vindicated when, two years after the death of Tyndale, Henry VIII decreed that Miles Coverdale’s English Bible, based largely on Tyndale’s translation, must be used in every parish church in the country. Vindicated maybe, but the damage was done, and his fortunes did not improve. In 1547 his brother John died but his will left all his estate to his wife Anne. The only immediate benefit to Thomas was a length of black cloth for a gown and hood!
It was not until Anne’s death in 1558 that Thomas succeeded to the Manor of North Ockendon. By that time he was so poor that he could not afford to live there. He died in 1562 and is buried in St Dunstan’s in the West, in Fleet Street, London. North Ockendon’s Church of St Mary Magdelene lies next to the site of the old Manor House.
In its ‘Poyntz Chapel’, dedicated in the will of John Poyntz to ‘Our Lady’, the family are remembered. Thomas’ son, Sir Gabriel Poyntz, twice Lord Lieutenant of Essex under Elizabeth I, restored the family fortunes. He commissioned the tomb effigies of himself and his wife and a series of wall tablets commemorating his ancestors, including Thomas, which survive today.
As for the charming Henry Phillips, as predicted, it came to pass that he was discarded by his master and disowned by his family and country. He died a pauper in a lice infested cell in Italy.
William Tyndale was ‘executed’ on October 6th 1536
North Ockendon today is part of the London Borough of Havering. For more chapters on the parts of Essex, now in London check out our new book, ONCE IN ESSEX NOW IN LONDON, due March 2026
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