Sir Thomas Stukeley Thomas Stukeley was a soldier, pirate and adventurer, who was born in 1525 to Sir Hugh Stukeley in Affeton, North Devon. Though there are rumours that still circulate today that Henry VIII was actually his natural father. Stukeley was one of the most colourful characters of the Elizabethan age, whose exploits brought him fame and notoriety throughout Europe. Described variously as picturesque, quixotic, cloudy minded, remarkable, and (by Evelyn Waugh) as a ‘preposterous and richly comic figure’, Stukeley remains a flamboyant and fascinating character in the imagination of...