Giles HERON

(1504 – 1540)

Giles Heron was executed at Tyburn in 1540

Giles Heron (1504–1540) was an English politician. He was born in Hackney, Middlesex, the son of the wealthy landowner and courtier Sir John Heron.

His father died in 1521 while Giles was still a minor, and he came under the wardship of Sir Thomas More. He later married Sir Thomas's daughter, Cecily, with whom he had two sons and a daughter. He inherited much of his father's wealth, and enjoyed a comfortable life as a landowner.

He was educated at Cambridge University and in 1529 he became Member of Parliament for Thetford. In 1532 he was appointed as bodyguard of Henry VIII and in same year he and three of his brothers were pardoned of offences against forestry laws. In 1536 he served as foreman on the Middlesex Grand Jury which found a true bill of indictment against Anne Boleyn for the alleged crime of committing adultery with five men.  As a result, she was tried before a jury, found guilty and beheaded. 

A dispute with a tenant led to his eventual downfall, as he was accused on a trumped up charge of treason. He was found guilty and hanged at Tyburn in 1540. In 1554, during the reign of Queen Mary, part of his lands were repatriated to his eldest son, Thomas.