Sandys entered
Gloucester Hall, Oxford in 1623, aged 16 – matriculating at Oxford on 13 June 1623, the same day as his cousin William Sandys of Ombersley. He entered the
Middle Temple as a student in 1626. He left London in 1633 to live at Fladbury with his new wife Cicely, daughter of Sir John Stede, with whom he received a handsome portion. They settled at
Fladbury, where the lease of the manor (under the
Bishop of Worcester) was settled on them. In 1635, supported by petitions from many towns and from the counties affected, Sandys was authorised by
Order in Council and Letters Patent, (in 1636),/ to improve the river Avon. Within a few years, he had made the river navigable at least to
Stratford upon Avon, and possibly beyond. This was done by constructing 'sluices', which seem to have been pound
locks (not flash locks − as often supposed). The navigation was complete to Stratford by 1640, but its cost had stretched his resources. He had had to mortgage his estates and the navigation, and these passed into the hands of his creditors. Sandys also had a patent to farm a new duty imposed by the king (without
Parliamentary sanction) on coal exports. This project was a failure and he surrendered the grant, but the fact that he had taken it at all was later held against him. In 1640 he represented
Evesham in the
Short Parliament. He was re-elected for the same constituency in the
Long Parliament, but was expelled as a monopolist. Not long after he went into exile. During the
English Civil War he acted as a
Royalist agent purchasing munitions at
Dunkirk. Later he travelled trying to raise money to finance the restoration of
Charles as king. He was a supernumerary gentleman-usher at the exiled court, but was discouraged from attendance. After the
Restoration, Sandys represented Evesham in
Cavalier Parliament and was a particularly active member for the rest of his life. His interests included the promotion of navigation schemes. He attempted to recover the river
Avon, but his claim was probably bought out. He and Windsor Sandys (probably his son rather than his great nephew) improved the
River Wye up to
Mordiford (the confluence of the
River Lugg), partly using finance raised for the purpose during the
Interregnum, but this evidently did not pay its expenses and the river was eventually surrendered to
the county. He and Windsor were also partners in the
River Wey Navigation in Surrey, but the nature of their interest (eventually sold by Windsor Sandys) is not clear. In all, he was concerned in about seven schemes, but most did not pass the initial hurdle of an Act of Parliament being passed. Due to his loss of his estates and his inability to profit from the Avon, Sandys had little property at his death in December 1669, apart from his navigation interests. ==Family==