Henry Dawtrey was born in 1579 to William Dawtrey and Dorothy (nee Stonely) Dawtrey. He was baptised in Doddinghurst, Essex on Trinity Sunday (14th June) 1579. Doddinghurst was his mother's home and it was through his mother, Dorothy Stonely, the daughter of Richard Stonely, MP that the Dawtrey's acquired their Essex estates.