Thomas Fairfax, 1st Viscount Fairfax

Thomas Fairfax, 1st Viscount Fairfax of Emley JP (1575 – 23 December 1636) was an English landowner and politician who sat in the House of Commons at various times between 1601 and 1626. He was created Viscount Fairfax in the Peerage of Ireland in 1629. He "erected a mansion on Bishophill (York) early in Elizabeth's reign".

Early life Fairfax was the only son and heir of Sir William Fairfax of Gilling Castle and Walton, Yorkshire, by his second wife Jane Stapleton, daughter and heiress of Brian Stapleton of Burton Joyce. He attended school at Gilling and entered Caius College, Cambridge, in 1590. He succeeded his father to the estates of Gilling and Walton in 1597 and was a sheep farmer and an encloser.

Personal life Fairfax married Catherine Constable, daughter of Sir Henry Constable of Burton Constable in 1594 and had six sons and five daughters. She was an open Catholic and was convicted of recusancy at regular intervals from 1599 until her death. She does not appear to have been fined, which may be attributable to Fairfax's friendship with Sir Arthur Ingram, Secretary to the Council of the North, and collector, for a time, of recusancy fines. She also employed Catholic maids and escaped penalty for this; and although it was also an offence, at least two of the sons went abroad to Catholic colleges.

Thomas Fairfax, 2nd Viscount Fairfax (–24 Sept 1641), who married Alathea Howard, daughter of Sir Philip Howard (eldest son of Lord William Howard, a son of Thomas Howard, 4th Duke of Norfolk).

Fairfax died at Howsham at the age of about 61 and was buried at Scrayingham. His widow died in March 1638/9.

Descendants Through his third son William, he was a grandfather of William Fairfax, 8th Viscount Fairfax (d. 1738), who married Elizabeth Gerard (a daughter of Capt. Gerard), parents of Hon. Alathea Fairfax (wife of Ralph Pigott of Whitton) and Charles Gregory Fairfax, 9th Viscount Fairfax (d. 1772). He married the Hon. Elizabeth Constable, widow of William Constable, 4th Viscount of Dunbar and eldest daughter of Hugh Clifford, 2nd Baron Clifford of Chudleigh, in 1719. On the death of the 9th Viscount Fairfax, the Viscountcy of Fairfax became extinct. After the death of his only surviving child, Hon. Anne Fairfax in 1793, the Gilling Castle estates passed to her first cousin once removed, Charles Gregory Pigott later Fairfax.