The second Clothworker Lord Mayor was Sir Rowland Hayward. He is the only Clothworker to have served twice at Lord Mayor – first in the year 1570-1 and then for a few weeks in 1591 on the death of serving Lord Mayor.

Rowland was born in Bridgnorth, Shropshire c.1520, son of George Hayward, a prosperous shoemaker who became the local M.P. The young Rowland was educated at the town’s Grammar School, of which he later became a benefactor. He became Free of The Clothworkers’ Company in 1541/2, was promoted to the Livery in 1549 and served as Master 1559-60.

Sir Rowland made his money in the international cloth trade. He was a founder member of the Muscovy Company and promoted attempts to discover the north-east passage. His wealth was invested in property, including estates in Shropshire, Wales, Leicestershire, Kent, Bedfordshire, Wiltshire and Hackney, where Queen Elizabeth I stayed overnight in his house, King’s Place. He had served as assistant to the Chief Butler at Elizabeth’s coronation, as he had at the coronation of her sister, Queen Mary.

His civic career was long and distinguished. He became an Alderman in 1560 and the following year was made President of Bethlem and Bridewell Hospitals. During his Lord Mayoralty, the Royal Exchange, with which he was closely associated, was opened by Queen Elizabeth. In 1572 he became M.P. for London and President of St Bartholomew’s Hospital. He was later to serve as Surveyor General of Hospitals in the City of London and then Comptroller General of Hospitals. He was revered for his work in plague relief but succumbed to the disease himself in 1593.

He married twice, firstly to Joan Tyllesworth and then, at the age of 60, to the 16-year old Katherine Smyth. Each wife bore him 8 children, depicted on his (now lost) monument in St Aphage, London Wall.