Southampton, Thomas Wriothesley, 4th earl of, 1607-67, English nobleman; son of the 3d earl. At first an opponent of the court party in the events leading up to the English civil war, he later joined the royalists and served Charles I as an intimate adviser. He negotiated for Charles with Parliament in 1643 and 1645. After the king's execution (1649) he retired. At the Restoration (1660), Southampton became lord high treasurer. He counseled leniency toward the regicides. He disapproved of the immorality and ostentation of Charles II and his court and soon retired from active politics.

Southampton, Thomas Wriothesley, 1st earl of, c.1500-1550, lord chancellor of England. Appointed a clerk of the signet in 1530, he rose in the favor of Thomas Cromwell and Henry VIII, who granted him many of the lands of the dissolved monasteries. He was knighted in 1537 and became (1540) a principal secretary of state. For his efforts in negotiating an alliance with Holy Roman Emperor Charles V, he was created (1544) Baron Wriothesley and made lord chancellor—an office in which he became notorious for his severity. He was one of the executors of Henry VIII's will but acceded to the appointment of Edward Seymour, duke of Somerset, as protector. Somerset, however, though he gave Wriothesley the earldom of Southampton, dismissed (1547) him from the lord chancellorship on the ground that he had delegated his legal duties without consulting the council. Southampton's consequent grievance against Somerset led him to support John Dudley, earl of Warwick (later duke of Northumberland), in overthrowing the protector in 1549.

Southampton, Henry Wriothesley, 3d earl of, 1573-1624, English nobleman and patron of letters. He succeeded to his title in 1581, was educated at Cambridge, and gained favor at the court of Queen Elizabeth I. A generous patron of such writers as Barnabe Barnes, Thomas Nash, and John Florio, he is best known as the patron of William Shakespeare, who dedicated Venus and Adonis (1593) and The Rape of Lucrece (1594) to him. Some scholars have maintained that Southampton is the patron and friend described in Shakespeare's sonnets. A friend of Robert Devereux, 2d earl of Essex, Southampton accompanied him on military and naval expeditions in 1596 and 1597. His secret marriage (1598) to Elizabeth Vernon, one of Elizabeth's ladies in waiting, angered the queen greatly, and she never forgave him. Southampton accompanied Essex to Ireland in 1599 as general of the horse, but Elizabeth revoked his appointment. He was closely involved in Essex's rebellion (1601) and was sentenced to death, but this sentence was changed to life imprisonment. Upon the accession (1603) of James I, Southampton was released and restored to favor. He became interested in colonial explorations and was a member of the Virginia Company and of the British East India Company. Although his impetuosity involved him in a number of court brawls, Southampton became (1619) a privy councilor. He lost favor, however, because of his opposition to the 1st duke of Buckingham. In 1624 he volunteered, with his son James, to lead a troop of English volunteers to fight for the Netherlands against Spain. Shortly after arriving in the Netherlands, both Southampton and his son died of fever.

Southampton Island, c.15,700 sq mi (40,700 sq km), Nunavut Territory, Canada, at the entrance to Hudson Bay. It is separated from the mainland by Ross Welcome Sound and Frozen Strait. With lowlands in the west, the tundra-covered island rises to c.2,000 ft (610 m) in the east. Coral Harbour, a trading post and airfield, is at the head of South Bay.

Southampton Insurrection, slave uprising in Virginia (1831) led by Nat Turner.

Southampton, county district (1991 pop. 194,400), Hampshire, S England, at the head of Southampton Water. Southampton is Britain's second largest port. The London-Southampton railway, finished in 1840, and the double tide of the harbor made Southampton an important shipbuilding, trade, and tourist port. It was then England's main ocean liner port. In 1951, a major oil tanker terminal and refinery were built on the western shore, and North Sea oil became a primary economic focus in 1978. There are several major manufactures, including automobiles and aircraft. Cables, electrical engineering products, and petrochemicals are also produced. Southampton is the site of the Roman Clausentum and of the Saxon Hamtune or Suth-Hamtun. Remains of the ancient town walls and reworked Norman structures may be seen. The Crusaders under Richard I, Henry V on his expedition to France (1415), and the Pilgrims all embarked from Southampton. Until the discovery (16th cent.) of a new trade route to India, Southampton had a lucrative trade in goods from the East with Venice. In the 18th cent. it was a fashionable spa. Trade with the United States, the construction of modern docks and the railroad to London (1840), and the coming of the steamboat all worked to convert the spa back into a commercial port. Southampton was one of Britain's chief military transport stations in both world wars. The city suffered considerable damage in World War II, as a result of which there are new dock facilities and shopping districts. The city received a grant of county land after the war to accommodate its growing industrial population. Among its schools are the Univ. of Southampton and a teacher-training college.

(born Dec. 21, 1505, London, Eng.—died July 30, 1550, London) English politician. He followed his father, a herald, into royal service and became personal secretary to Thomas Cromwell (1533), whom he succeeded as a secretary of state to Henry VIII (1540). Wriothesley became one of Henry's leading councillors and was appointed lord chancellor of England (1544–47). After Henry's death, he was created earl of Southampton (1547) by the duke of Somerset, but he was deprived of the chancellorship. He supported Somerset's overthrow in 1549 but was excluded from the privy council in 1550.

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(born Oct. 6, 1573, Cowdray, Sussex, Eng.—died Nov. 10, 1624, Bergen op Zoom, Neth.) English nobleman, patron of William Shakespeare. Grandson of the 1st earl of Southampton, he became a favourite of Elizabeth I. He was a liberal patron of writers, including Thomas Nashe. Shakespeare dedicated two long poems to him (1593, 1594), and he has often been identified as the noble youth addressed in most of Shakespeare's sonnets. He accompanied the 2nd earl of Essex on expeditions to Cádiz and the Azores (1596, 1597). For supporting the Essex rebellion (1601), he was imprisoned (1601–03); following James I's accession, he regained his place at court. He became a privy councillor in 1619, but he lost favour by opposing the 1st duke of Buckingham. He and his son volunteered to fight for the United Provinces against Spain, but, soon after landing in the Netherlands, they both died of fever.

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Island, Keewatin region, Nunavut, Canada. Lying at the entrance to Hudson Bay, the island is roughly triangular and has an area of 15,913 sq mi (41,214 sq km). Its plateau in the northeast, with 1,000-ft (300-m) coastal cliffs, gradually slopes to lowlands in the south. Its coastal waters are noted for Arctic char fishing.

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City and unitary authority (pop., 2001: 217,478), historic county of Hampshire, England. First settled by Romans, it was chartered (circa 1155) by King Henry II and incorporated in 1445. In the Middle Ages its location on the English Channel helped it to become a major British port. Southampton declined in the 17th–18th centuries but revived in the 19th with the arrival of railways. It is England's second largest port. Historic buildings include the 11th-century St. Michael's Church and the 12th-century King John's Palace, one of Britain's oldest domestic buildings.

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