" The Golding family held all, or the greater part of this estate, under the dean and chapter This family was seated at Halstead, in the reign of Edward the First; and one of their descendants, Thomas Golding, was of Cavendish, in Suffolk.
He married Elizabeth, daughter of John Worthie, Esq. of Blamsters, in Halstead, and had by her John Golding, Esq. of St. Paul's Belchamp Hall and Halstead, one of the auditors of the exchequer. He held several parcels of land in soccage of the dean and chapter , and had also estates in Belchamp Otton, Belchamp St. Ethelbert, and in Halstead ; and also in Hempsted and Bumpsted Helion . "

Arthur Golding's father [this] John was one of the auditors of the exchequer, and died 28 Nov. 1547[1] One of the five Auditors of the Exchequer who, in 1516, were awarded £10 "during good behaviour" by King Henry VII. John Golding held the lands of Blamsters (in Halstead), Essex, which his mother had brought to her marriage. He is given as "of Belchamp St.Pauls" in the Norfolk Visitations, and also by Rev. Jarvis, the latter stating "the Golding family of New-House in this [Poslingford, Suffolk] parish, were for a while considerable in the parish of Belchamp St. Paul, in Essex."[2] It is three miles from Cavendish, Suffolk, where descendants of the same Golding family appear prominently in the Old Parish Registers for several generations.

This John Golding held several parcels of land in Belchamp St.Paul in soccage of the Dean and Chapter of St. Paul's Cathedral, London, and also had estates in Belchamp Otton, Belchamp St. Ethelbert, and in Halstead; and also in Hempsted and Bumpstead Helion.[3]

He married twice with 11 children to his wives (10 in his Will, but one may have died). John Golding was an armiger. The Arms given by Burke (1844) for Golding of Halstead are: Gules, a chevron, or, between three bezants. (No Crest given).

"According to Louis Thorn Golding in An Elizabethan Puritan (New York: Richard R. Smith, 1937), pp. 14-16, John Golding had four children by his first wife, Elizabeth (nee Towe), the widow of Reginald Hammond: Sir Thomas, William, Margery and Elizabeth and seven children by his second wife, Ursula (nee Marston): Henry, Arthur, George, Edmund, Mary, Dorothy and Frances."[4]

His daughter Margery was the second wife of John de Vere, 16th Earl of Oxford, by whom she had two children: Edward de Vere, 17th Earl of oxford (b. 12 Apr 1550, d. 24 Jun 1604) and Lady Mary de Vere (d. c 24 Jun 1624)[5]

His second wife is thought to have been Ursula Merston, daughter of William Merston of Surrey. His son Henry was steward of household to the 16th Earl of Oxford[6]

He was buried 28 Nov 1547 at the church of St Andrew, Belchamp St Paul, Essex[7]

The Visitations are slightly confusing/erroneous regarding John Golding's two wives and issue. Miscellaneous Essex Pedigrees gives John's [half-] brother Roger as the eldest son by Thomas Golding's first wife, Agnes Latton (or Letton). This would seem correct as Roger inherited his father Thomas's paternal estate at Grays, Essex. However it then gives John as 2nd son of Thomas's first wife, Agnes. This seems wrong as John inherited Elizabeth's Worthey's (father's) estate at Halstead, suggesting that John is her son. Moreover, the Visitation of Essex, 1558 gives no children at all to Thomas's first wife and all of them to his second, Elizabeth Worthy.[8] Rev. Jarvis clearly states that John is a son of Thomas Golding by Elizabeth Worthey.[9]