Background
Meautys was the son of Henry Meautys of West Ham and his wife Elizabeth Coningsby, daughter of Sir Henry Coningsby of North Mims.
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Thomas Meautys
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He became the private secretary to Francis Bacon. In 1619, he was made clerk to His Majesty"s Council. He is credited, with William Rawley, as being one of two key clients of Bacon who remained loyal to the former Lord Chancellor in his disgrace.
Meautys eventually paid for a funerary monument to Bacon at his gravesite in Saint Albans.
After Bacon"s fall, Meautys became a protégé of Lord Keeper Coventry, High Steward of Cambridge from 1626 to 1640. In 1621, Meautys was made a freeman and elected an alderman of Cambridge.
He was clerk of the Privy Council from 1623. He was re-elected Member of Parliament for Cambridge in 1625, 1626 and 1628 and continued to sit for the town until King Charles I began rule without parliament in 1629.
Meautys inherited Old Gorhambury House in Hertfordshire in 1626.
He became clerk of the Writs and Processes in the Star Chamber. In 1634 he became clerk to His Majesty"s Privy Council Extraordinary. He was re-elected for Cambridge for the Short Parliament in April 1640 when the other representative was Oliver Cromwell.
He was knighted at Whitehall in 1641.
By 1645 the role as clerk to His Majesty had ceased to exist. Meautys died at the age of 57.
Membership
Short Parliament; Useless Parliament. 2nd Parliament of King Charles I]
On the same day, he was elected Member of Parliament for Cambridge.
