George Monoux

Who was George Monoux?

George Monoux, born in Walthamstow, Essex, England, was Lord Mayor of London and a local benefactor in Walthamstow.

He was a younger son of John Monoux of Stanford, Worcestershire.

A member of the Drapers Company, Monoux was an alderman for Bassishaw ward in the City of London. He was made Sheriff of London in 1509 and became the Lord Mayor of London in 1514.

On 15 June 1527 Monoux purchased land for almshouses and a school in Walthamstow. He left property worth £50 a year to pay the salaries of a schoolmaster and parish clerk, who were to pray for the souls of Monoux and his wives and to teach up to thirty children. This chantry endowment lasted until 1548 when it was suppressed in the Reformation.

He died in February 1544 and was buried at Walthamstow. He had married twice:firstly Joan, with whom he had a son and 2 daughters and secondly Anne, the daughter and coheiress of John Wood of Southwark, Surrey, and the widow of Robert Wattes of London.

The Monoux School, now Sir George Monoux College, traces its history back to that 1527 endowment as do the Monoux Hall almshouses in Church End, Walthamstow.