YALE UNIVERSITY
LIBRARY From the
COLLECTION OF OXFORD BOOKS
made by
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Bodley's Librarian

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OXFORDSHIRE

LORDS LIEUTENANT, HIGH SHERIFFS,
AND MEMBERS OF PARLIAMENT, &c.

OXFORDSHIRE

LORDS LIEUTENANT, HIGH SHERIFFS

AND

MEMBERS OF PARLIAMENT, &c.

COMPILED IN 1868

BY THE LATE

JOHN MARRIOTT DAVENPORT, F.S.A.
CLERK OF THE PEACE

REVISED BY
THOMAS MARRIOTT DAVENPORT
CLERIC OF THE PEACE

Opfotb
PRINTED AT THE CLARENDON PRESS
BY HORACE HART, PRINTER TO THE UNIVERSITY

PREFACE.
TWENTY years have passed since my Father compiled
the substance of the records which I have ventured to re
produce in this book. He maintained a zealous interest
in all matters connected with the County with which he
was for more than half a century officially associated, and
he bestowed much research upon his publications. It has
been my endeavour to classify those publications so as
merely to present a record of the leading, representative,
and official persons of the County of Oxford from the
earliest date. Conscious of imperfections, I yet venture to
hope that these County Records, in their present shape,
may not be devoid of local value or family interest. I have
amplified and amended former publications, as far as I
have been able, by the aid of recent local and parochial
histories, and especially, as regards the list of Members of
Parliament, by the guidance of the Return made by order
of the House of Commons in 1878.
T. M. D.
Oxford, March, 18S8.

CONTENTS.

PAGE
Lords Lieutenant ... . . .3
High Sheriffs ..... ... 13
Members of Parliament  . 107
Chairmen of Quarter Sessions  137
Clerks of the Peace . . . . . . .143
Index : —
Lords Lieutenant . . ... 145
Sheriffs' Names . . . 145
Addenda . . . . 155

CORRIGENDA.

P. 42, note 2, for Guienne read Guiana.
„ 42, note 2, line 6, for Son read Grandson.
„ 51, note 5, first line, for fourth read second.

LORDS LIEUTENANT

AND

CUSTODES ROTULORUM.

LORDS LIEUTENANT
AND CUSTODES ROTULORUM.
The offices of Lord Lieutenant and Custos Rotulorum are
entirely distinct, though usually, but not necessarily, held by
the same person. The former is a Military appointment, the
latter a Civil one.
The latter office, the Keeper of the Records of the County,
dates from the ancient time of the constitution of Sessions of
the Peace, — the Records having previously been dispersed pro
miscuously amongst the Justices.
The Records have since been kept in the custody of the
Clerk of the Peace, who is the acting Deputy of the Custos,
and whom the Custos is by statute (37 Henry VIII) to
appoint. The Custos derives his appointment direct from the
Crown under the Great Seal, and one of the privileges of his
office is the nomination of Justices, he recommending, through
the medium of the Lord Chancellor, to the Sovereign the in
sertion of their names in the Commission of the Peace.
. With regard to the office of Lord Lieutenant, it may be
historically interesting to state that from the year 1324 to
1557 it was usual for the Crown, from time to time, to issue
commissions of array, requiring persons of honour, reputation
and estate to muster and array the inhabitants of the counties
to which such commissioners were sent. They were directed
to put into military order those who were capable of perform
ing military service, and to distrain such as were not qualified
to serve, but were possessed of real or personal property, to
furnish armour to their more vigorous countrymen ; and they
B 3

4 COUNTY OF OXFORD.
were to erect beacons where necessary. The form of these
commissions, after much complaint, was settled by statute,
and maybe seen at length in the Parliament-rolls of 5 Hen. IV,
1403-4. In 1545 a commission ' de arraiatione et capitaneo generali
contra Francos' issued to the Duke of Norfolk, constituting
him the King's lieutenant, and captain-general of all captains,
vice-captains, men-at-arms, armed men, archers, and all others
retained or to be retained against the French, in the counties
of Essex, Suffolk, Norfolk, Hertford, Cambridge, Huntingdon,
Lincoln, Rutland, Warwick, Northampton, Leicester, and
Bedford. A similar commission issued to the Duke of Suffolk
for the counties of Kent, Sussex, Surrey, Hants, Wilts, Berks,
Oxford, Middlesex, Bucks, Worcester, and Hereford, and
London ; and to John Russell, knight, Lord Russell, Keeper of
the Privy Seal, for the counties of Dorset, Somerset, Devon,
Cornwall, and Gloucester 1. These officers are, however,
spoken of by Camden, in the reign of Elizabeth, as extra
ordinary magistrates, constituted only in times of difficulty
and danger, which was the case with commissioners of array,
as appears from the recitals in their commission. Until the
3 & 4 Edward VI was passed the Statute Law was silent, so
far as the language of express enactment was the criterion of
intention, as to the officer by whom these Local Forces were
to be commanded, and that Act gave express authority to the
Lord Lieutenant of the County.
The right of the Crown to issue commissions of lieutenancy
was denied by the Long Parliament, and formed a proximate
cause of the rupture between Charles I and his subjects.
Upon the Restoration, the right of the Crown to issue such
commissions was established by a declaratory Act, Charles II,
cap. 3.
With the exception of the objection taken during the time
of the Commonwealth, from the time of Edward VI until
recent legislation during the reign of Queen Victoria the Lord
1 Rymer's Fadera, vol. xv. p. 75.

LORDS LIEUTENANT. 5
Lieutenant was established, with the sanction of Parliament,
as a military officer of the highest rank in his county. But
since the jurisdiction over the Local Forces has, during the
present reign, passed into the control of the Sovereign, acting
by the Secretary of State for War, the powers of the Lord
Lieutenant have been limited to the granting of the first com
missions to officers of the Militia, Yeomanry and Volunteer
Forces. By the Militia Act, 1882, the Sovereign is required
to appoint Lords Lieutenant for the several counties of the
United Kingdom.
Charles Brandon, Duke of Suffolk, appointed Lord
Lieutenant by Henry VIII in 1545 L.
Sir Francis Knollys, K.G., of Rotherfield Greys,
Vice-Chamberlain and Treasurer of Queen Elizabeth's
Household. Died 19 July, 1596. His son, the Lord
Lieutenant appointed by James I, was created Earl of
Banbury. The family resided at Grey's Court near
Henley. He represented the County in Parliament in
1562 and for many years afterwards.
Henry, Lord Norreys2 of Rycot, appointed October
1596 (39th of Queen Elizabeth), with authority to dele
gate the office in his absence unto Sir Richard Fiennes,
Sir William Spencer, Sir Anthony Cope, knights; John
Doyley, and Raffe Warcoppe, esquires.
William Knollys, Earl of Banbury, Viscount Wal-
lingford, appointed by James I Lord Lieutenant and
Custos Rotulorum before March 161 2, when his com
mission was renewed. He represented the County in
Parliament in 1584 and for some years afterwards.
1 The son of Sir William Brandon who was slain in the battle of Bosworth.
He was a military man of great distinction, and had chief command of the army
in France, 1523. He married for his third wife the Princess Mary, sister of
Henry VIII and widow of the French King Louis XII.
3 His Lordship married Margary, daughter and co-heir of John, Lord Williams
of Thame, and thus acquired the Manor of Rycot in Oxfordshire, where he was
buried, 1600. A monument was erected to his memory in Westminster Abbey,
his six martial sons kneeling around him.

6 COUNTY OF OXFORD.
Thomas, Earl of Berkshire, appointed by Letters
Patent dated 26th March, 1628, to be Lieutenant of His
Majesty King Charles 'within the Countie of Oxford,
the Cittie of Oxford, and all other corporate and
priviledged places within the limits of the said Countie.'
The Earl appointed Sir John Cope, third Baronet, by
commission, dated 22nd November, 1637, to be Deputy
Lieutenant. As the head of the King's Commission of
Array, in company with Sir John Curzon and others, he
was taken prisoner to the Tower at Sir Robert Dormer's
house at Ascot by Hampden in 1642.
William, first Viscount Saye and Sele, appointed
by the Parliament in August, 1642 (tempore Charles I).
Died April 14, 1662, at the age of eighty, and buried at
Broughton x-
WlLLlAM LENTHALL, ESQUIRE, of Burford Priory,
Speaker of the Parliament and Master of the Rolls,
appointed Custos Rotulorum of Oxfordshire and Berk
shire June, 1659.
Henry, fourth Viscount Falkland 2, appointed July,
1660 (in the Commonwealth). Died in London April 2,
1663, and buried at Great Tew.
1 He succeeded his father as Baron Saye and Sele, 161 2, and was advanced to
the dignity of a Viscount by James I in 1624. When the dispute between the
King and the Parliament had reached a crisis in 1642, the House of Commons
nominated Lord Saye to array and arm the Militia of Oxfordshire in opposition to
the King's Commission, and he raised a regiment of infantry, which, like
Hampden's Green Coats and other Parliamentary forces, assumed the colours of
their leader, and was called Lord Saye's Blue Coats. Shortly after his appoint
ment he was received in Oxford by the Parliamentary troopers, who escorted him
to the Star Inn on September 14, 1642, and he ordered the destruction of the
works and trenches which the University members had made across the highways.
Anthony Wood narrates that the same night with a guard of soldiers and torches
he searched New College, and the next day Magdalen, Merton and Corpus
Colleges, and Dr. Fell's the Dean of Christ Church, for plate and arms, which
were carried off to Broughton, and that he ordered all Popish books and pictures
to be burnt in the street.
2 He represented the County in Parliament 1658 and 1661. His father Lucius,
second Viscount Falkland, who was killed at Newbury, was born at Burford, and
had a seat at Great Tew in Oxfordshire, where he devoted himself to literature.
His grandfather, Henry Cary, the first Viscount Falkland, was Lord Lieutenant
of Ireland 1622-9, an<i married the daughter of Chief Baron Tanfield.

LORDS LIEUTENANT J
MONTAGU, SECOND EARL OF LlNDSEY, K.G.1, appointed
Custos Rotulorum August 20, 1660.
Edward, Earl of Clarendon, Viscount Cornbury,
appointed by Charles II, June, 1663. Lord Chancellor.
Known as the historian of the Rebellion as well as of
his own life. Died at Rouen, but buried in Westminster
Abbey, Dec. 19, 1674.
James, second Viscount Saye and Sele2 (eldest son
of William first Viscount), appointed by Charles II,
March, 1667 ; died in 1674.
James, first Earl of Abingdon 3, appointed in 1674 by
Charles II, being then LORD NORREYS.
1 He valiantly distinguished himself in most of the battles of the Civil War, and
was wounded at Naseby. He fought by the side of his father, the first Earl, at
Edgehill, being then Lord Willoughby, and in a desperate effort to rescue his
father when mortally wounded he was himself captured and taken prisoner to
Warwick Castle. King Charles warmly acknowledged his valour by an autograph
letter. In proof of his loyalty to Charles I, Lord Lindsey was one of the four
noblemen who, as Privy Counsellors, offered to suffer death instead of the King
after the sentence of execution was issued. By his second marriage with Bridget,
Baroness Norreys of Rycote, whence his Oxfordshire connection, he became the
father of the first Earl of Abingdon. Died July 25, 1666.
2 He represented Banbury in Parliament 1625, and also the County from 1626 to
1653. He is described as ' an honest Cavalier and a quiet man ' in Wood's Athena,
and ' of a shrewd mind and a persevering and resolute temper ' by Lord Nugent,
and as ' imbued by the loftiest spirit of patriotism ' by Whitlocke.
3 James, Lord Norreys (son of Montagu Earl of Lindsey, Lord Great Cham
berlain of England, by his wife Bridget, Baroness Norreys, daughter and heir of
Edward Wray, esquire, and the Lady Elizabeth Norreys, who was daughter and
heir of Francis Lord Norreys, Viscount Thame and Earl of Berkshire, from whom
the barony of Norreys descended), was, for his great loyalty and services to the
Crown, created Earl of Abingdon by Charles II, 1682. King James H, upon
his accession in 1684, renewed the Earl of Abingdon's appointment as Lord
Lieutenant, but the Earl, believing the measures of that Sovereign to be uncon
stitutional and subversive of the liberty and religion of his country, strenuously
joined in opposition, and was discharged from the Lieutenancy in l687- He
favoured and aided with a sum of £30,000 the coming in of the Prince of Orange,
but opposed his accession to the throne and the measures of his Court. But,
notwithstanding that opposition, the Earl was reappointed Lord Lieutenant by
William and Mary in April, 1688, and he retained the office till 1697. After his
dismissal from the Lord Lieutenancy (upon the death of the venerable Duke
of Ormond, the mOst illustrious of the cavaliers of the Civil War), the Earl of
Abingdon was nominated in 16S8 by a party in the University of Oxford, in
opposition to the accomplished Earl of Halifax and the learned Lord Notting
ham, for the Chancellorship of the University, but the office was bestowed

8 COUNTY OF OXFORD.
Edward Henry, first Earl of Lichfield 1, appointed
by James II, October, 1688.
Thomas, Lord Wharton, afterwards successively Earl
and Marquis of Wharton2, appointed May, 1697, by
William III, his former commission being revoked.
Montagu Venables, second Earl of Abingdon3,
appointed by Queen Anne, June ioth, 1702, in succes
sion to Thomas Lord Wharton, whose Letters Patent
were revoked. Died June 16, 1743, and buried at
Rycot.
John, Duke of Marlborough, K.G., appointed 'by
Queen Anne, in succession to the Earl of Abingdon.
Died June 16, 1722.
Francis, Earl of Godolphin 4, appointed by George I,
on the grandson of the late Chancellor. The Earl was the first peer of the realm
who made his appearance at the quarters of the Prince of Orange. He died May
22, 1699, and was buried at Rycot.
1 This nobleman, the son and heir of Sir Francis Henry Lee of Ditchley,
Baronet, and of Lady Elizabeth Pope, daughter of Thomas Earl of Downe, was
created Baron Spelsbury, Viscount Quarendon, and Earl of Lichfield by Charles II.
The Earldom was a revival of a title bestowed by Charles I. on Bernard Stuart,
youngest son of the Duke of Richmond, as a reward for his gallantry in defence of
the royal cause near the city of Lichfield. He married Lady Charlotte Fitzroy,
one of the daughters of Charles II. Died July 14, 1716. A monument in
Spelsbury Church records an eulogium on him and his wife.
2 Mr. Thomas Wharton lived principally at his seat at Winchendon in Bucking
hamshire, but he also partly resided both at Adderbury and Dytchley in Oxford
shire. He was one of the first to welcome King William III, and was afterwards
made Lord Lieutenant of Oxfordshire, although only a commoner at the time
of his original appointment. In 1695 Mr. Wharton succeeded to the peerage,
a barony, on the death of his father. He was created an Earl and Marquis in
1 706 ; and two years later went to Ireland as Lord Lieutenant, taking Addison
with him as his Secretary. The Marquis died in London April 12, 1715, and was
buried at Winchendon on April 22. The funeral procession was stopped on the
road by a total eclipse of the sun. He was the father of the celebrated Philip,
Duke of Wharton.
3 He enjoyed the post of Lord Lieutenant until September, 1705, when his com
mission was revoked. He was re-appointed, May 171 2. Upon the accession of
George I, his services were retained until 1715, when he was succeeded by the Earl
of Godolphin. He died July 16, 1743.
4 Lord Godolphin married Henrietta, eldest daughter of John, first Duke of
Marlborough, and she succeeded, under a special Act of Parliament, to the title
of Duchess of Marlborough. His Lordship died March 16, 1767, of a wound
received in a duel with George Villiers, second Duke of Buckingham. The Earl's
title became extinct.

LORDS LIEUTENANT. 9
October, 17 15, in the room of Montagu Earl of Abing
don, whose Letters Patent were determined.
Charles, second Duke of Marlborough, K.G. 1,
appointed by George II, January 26, 1739. Died in
1758.
George, third Duke of Marlborough, K.G., ap
pointed by George II, April, 1760. Lord Chamberlain
of the Household and Lord Privy Seal. He died
January 30, 18 17 ; and was succeeded by
George, fourth Earl of Macclesfield, appointed by
George III, March 27, 181 7, and died March 20, 1842,
in the eighty-eighth year of his age. He was suc
ceeded by
George, fifth Duke of Marlborough, appointed by
Queen Victoria ; died July 1, 1857, in the sixty-fourth
year of his age, and was succeeded by
John Winston, sixth Duke of Marlborough 2, KG.,
appointed by Queen Victoria in August, 1857- Died
July 5, 1883.
Sir Henry William Dashwood, Baronet, appointed
by Queen Victoria, August, 1883. Resigned, 1887.
Victor Albert George, seventh Earl of Jersey,
appointed by Queen Victoria, June 17, 1887.
1 His Grace was also Lord Lieutenant of the County of Buckingham. He filled
the offices of Lord Steward of the Household, Keeper of the Privy Seal, and
Master General of the Ordnance. He died of a fever on October 28, 1758,
while acting as Commander-in-Chief of the British Forces at Munster in West
phalia. 2 For some time Lord President of Her Majesty's Privy Council, and Lord
Lieutenant of Ireland 1876 to 1880.

HIGH SHERIFFS.

HIGH SHERIFFS.
IT may be thought an appropriate preface to this List to
state in outline the history and duties of the ancient office of
Sheriff. Under the Anglo-Saxon system, the Sheriff, Shire-reeve or
Scir-gerefa, the Scir-man 1 of the Laws of Ini, was the King's
Steward, a royal officer nominated by the King. He was the
judicial President of the Shire, the administrator of the Royal
Demesne, and Executor of the Law. His sphere of jurisdiction
was distinctly a single shire, although after the Norman
Conquest for a long period the shires were administered in
pairs 2.
In the Saxon Heptarchy Oxfordshire belonged to Mercia,
and Berkshire to the West Saxons, and were thus under two
different kingdoms. But Oxfordshire may be said to date its
definite existence as a County from 912 upon its incorporation
into Wessex 3, and then Oxfordshire and Berkshire were
located in the same kingdom. After the Norman Conquest
the two Counties were united under one Sheriff. This con
tinued at intervals until the thirtieth year of Henry III, and
thence uniformly until the ninth year of Queen Elizabeth ; but
since that period, for the effectual discharge of the office and
the greater ease of the subjects, each County has had its own
Sheriff. Under the organisation of the Conqueror the Ealdormen
1 The word is derived from Sciran, to have or divide, for that the whole Realm
is parted and divided into Shires. Reeve or Gerefa is a King's officer.
2 Stubbs' Constitutional History.
3 See Parker's Early History of Oxford.

14 COUNTY OF OXFORD.
and Sheriffs of English birth were replaced by Normans, and
with the change of officials came a sort of amalgamation or
duplication of titles, — the Ealdorman or Earl became the
Comes or Count, and the Sheriff became the Vice-Comes, —
and the Norman Count and Viscount had not exactly the
same customs as the Earls and Sheriffs, but the Vice-Comes
was the administrator of the County immediately under
the King.
The Norman lord who took the office of Sheriff had more
unrestricted powers than the Sheriffs of old. He was the
King's representative in all matters judicial, military, and
financial in his shire.
By degrees the judicial functions of the Sheriff became
much abridged by the creation of Itinerant Justices and
the Curia Regis, though they were still Presidents in the
Courts of the County. In the reign of Henry II and by
Magna Charta the Sheriffs' powers as judges were much
impaired, and by a more modern Statute of Queen Mary
(i Sess. 2. c. 8) they were forbidden to exercise. the office of
a Justice of the Peace in their Counties, a prohibition which
has been decided1 to apply to even ordinary magisterial
duties of subsequent creation, so that a Sheriff who is also a
Justice of the Peace becomes absolutely suspended during
his year of office from acting as a magistrate.
Under Norman rule the fiscal responsibilities of the Sheriff
were large. He rendered his accounts to the Barons of the
Exchequer for his receipts of all profits arising to the King
from Crown lands within his shire, and from fines at his
Court and the like ; dispensing thereout the King's obligations
in the County, the Royal benefactions to Religious Houses,
the expenses of public business, and the travelling expenses
of the King and his visitors incurred within the shire. Di
minished though they are by modern changes, the form of
these accounts is substantially maintained in the present day,
the Sheriff having to return the fines and estreats received by
1 Ex parte Colville, I Q. B. D. 133, and Sheriffs Act, 1887, sect. 17.

HIGH SHERIFFS. i$
him, and the expenses incurred in providing lodging for the
Judges of Assize upon their Circuits as the representatives
of the Crown.
Before the time of Charles II the Sheriffs were expected
to keep an open table at the Assizes, and to maintain
much state ; but by a Statute in that reign they were
prohibited from indulging in this profuse hospitality, and
from keeping more than forty men or less than twenty men-
servants in livery at the Assizes. The retinue of javelin-
men whom the Sheriff employed to precede him in conduct
ing the Judges to the Assize Courts and to keep order there
was superseded in this County in 1875 by the County Police
Force. Though materially abridged by Statute Law, this officer
of great antiquity, as Coke styles him, still retains to the
present day, even after the lapse of about nine centuries, for
the administration and execution of justice, the authority and
functions belonging to his original creation, and the Queen
commits to him the charge and custody of the County, — com-
misimus vobis custodiam comitatus nostri. He is the keeper
of the Queen's peace, both by the Common Law and by
Special Commission. The Sheriff is still the chief executive
of the law within his County, and it is scarcely possible to
try a cause, civil or criminal, from the Superior Courts,
or to execute a judgment or to reap its fruits, without
his aid.
His judicial duties are now principally confined to assessing
damages by the aid of a jury under Writs of Inquiry, and
awarding compensation for property taken for public works
under statutory powers, and to conducting elections of
Coroners. In respect of his ministerial duties, the Sheriff
now, being the immediate officer of the High Court of Justice,
has mainly the summoning of jurors for their duties, the
execution of and enforcing judgments of that Court, and the
carrying out sentence of death, a duty which has been ex
pressly reserved for him, though the custody of the gaol

1 6 COUNTY OF OXFORD.
has been transferred to the Imperial Government. The
Sheriff is responsible for the election of Members of Parlia
ment, as the Returning Officer of the County, the writs from
the Crown being still addressed to him.
Since the reign of Edward III 1 the office has been made
an annual one, and it may be observed that it is compul
sory. The qualification for the office dates from the reign of Ed
ward II, stat. 9. c. 16, which requires the Sheriff to have 'suf
ficient land within the shire to answer to the King and the
people ; ' and as no remuneration attaches to the office, men
of substance only are appointed, to enable them to discharge
their duties with proper dignity.
By the earliest law ascertainable the Sheriffs were chosen
by the inhabitants of the County, but this is not at variance
with the proposition that the Sheriff has always derived his
authority from the Crown, for three names were returned,
ex quibus Rex unum confirmabat. In the reign of Edward II
(c. 9. st. 2) the Sheriffs were to be assigned by the Chancellor,
Treasurer, Barons of the Exchequer, and the Justices, and
from that period to the present time these High Officers of
the State assemble on the morrow of St. Martin to select
three names, returned to the senior Judge of Assize by the
outgoing Sheriff, for the approbation of the Queen, who at
a subsequent meeting of the Privy Council appoints — by
' pricking ' the list with a bodkin — one of the persons as the
next occupant of the office.
The form of a Sheriffs appointment is as follows : —
' At the Court at Windsor. Present the Queen's Most
Excellent Majesty in Council.
To (naming the Sheriff).
Whereas Her Majesty was this day pleased, by and
with the advice of Her Privy Council, to nominate you
for and appoint you to be Sheriff of the County of Oxford
1 42 Edward III. c. 9.

HIGH SHERIFFS. 17
during Her Majesty's pleasure : These are therefore to
require you to take the custody and charge of the said
County, and duly to perform the duties of Sheriff thereof
during Her Majesty's pleasure, whereof you are duly to
answer according to law. By Her Majesty's command.'
From the earliest period it was usual for the Sheriff to
have the assistance of a Deputy in the execution of his office,
Gingra or Junior, as he was termed in Anglo-Saxon times ;
and though the Deputy Sheriff is repeatedly named in older
Statutes, the appointment of an Under-Sheriff was not made
compulsory until a comparatively recent date. In the event
of the death of the High Sheriff during his year of office, the
Under-Sheriff is required to fulfil the duties of the post ; and
the same is the case if the High Sheriff is called upon to
discharge his military services as an officer of the Militia *.
The statutory law relating to the office has recently been
consolidated by the Sheriffs Act, 1887.
It may be interesting to refer to the social status of the
High Sheriff. Ancient learned text writers, including Black
stone, have asserted not only that the Sheriff, ' as keeper of
the Queen's peace, both by common law and special com
mission, is the first man in the County/ but also that he is
' superior in rank to any nobleman therein.' From this it
has frequently been presumed that the High Sheriff gained
precedence within his own County over Dukes and all ranks
of the peerage, including the Lord Lieutenant of the County.
General favour was accredited for such a view of the Sheriffs
precedence by the late Mr. Disraeli, afterwards Earl of
Beaconsfield, having stated in his book Lothair, ' There is no
doubt that, in the County, the High Sheriff takes precedence
of every one, even the Lord Lieutenant' (vol. ii. p. 78)- But
with all deference to such an authority as the late Prime
Minister, it is an established fact, recognised by the late
Garter King at Arms, Sir Charles Young, that the Lord
1 45 & 46 Vict. c. 49. 3. 40.
C

1 8 COUNTY OF OXFORD.
Lieutenant, as locum tenens of the Sovereign, has precedence
of every one in the County, and that the High Sheriff does
not, under any circumstances, precede the Lord Lieutenant,
nor, socially, take precedence of any peer. The fact that the
Sheriff presides at a County meeting involves no question of
precedence, because the Sheriff having convened the free
holders of his County, who owe suit and service at his
County court, necessarily presides over them. Sir Bernard
Burke also says {Reminiscences, 1884): 'Neither the Lord
Lieutenant of a County nor the High Sheriff is assigned any
place in the scale of precedence, and consequently neither
derives any social precedence from the office he holds. A
particular place on the scale of precedence is an honour
derived from the Crown or Parliament, or confirmed by
authorised usage, and can no more be interfered with than
the right to the dignity of a peerage which a Royal Patent
has conferred. Between the two — the Lord Lieutenant of a
County and the High Sheriff — the higher local position
appertains, I think, to the Lord Lieutenant of a County.'
The meaning of the quotation from Blackstone depends
upon the construction of the word ' nobleman.' The view
favouring the Sheriffs precedence was derived from the
dictum of Chief Justice Coke in the case of Chune v. Pyot
(Sheriff of London), Rolle's Report, i. 237, in which the Chief
Justice said : ' Anciently it was the Earls who exercised this
office of Sheriff, and then they held the office as long as they
wished ; but afterwards, when estates for life and of inherit
ance were granted, shrievalties were granted, and Sheriffs
have the same power the ancient Earls had, of which dignity
there were some relics to that day, for instance the " White
Wand : " and the patent of the grant of this office is in
these words, Commisimus vobis custodiam Comitates ; and the
Sheriff takes precedence of every nobleman during office (il
prist le lieu de chescun noble home durant Foffice).' But the
truth is, that the expression noble home, when used by the
Chief Justice in James I's reign (161 6), implied nothing more

HIGH SHERIFFS. 19
than that the Sheriff was the head of the commonalty of the
County ; because, at that time, the term ' nobleman ' was not
confined to the peerage, but applied to knights, and gentle
men below the peerage. This is proved by the following
sentence in Camden's History of Elizabeth (3rd edition, p.
29), under the date of 1559 : ' Cuthbert Scot of Chester,
Richard Pate of Worcester, and Thomas Goldwell of S.
Asaph, voluntarily departed the land, and also certain nuns,
as did likewise afterwards some noblemen ; of whom those of
better note were Henry Lord Morley, Sir Francis Inglefield,
Sir Robert Peckham, Sir Thomas Shelley, and Sir John
Gage.' And it is further proved by Coke's own interpreta
tion of the word ' nobleman ' in his note (2nd Institute,
p. 583), upon a passage in the statute 35 Edward I, in which
note Coke says : ' Knights of the shire and other gentlemen
of the House of Commons are included under these words
aliorum nobilium ; for Nobilitas est duplex, superior et inferior.
Superior belongeth to the lords of Parliament, and inferior to
knights and gentlemen of name and blood who are in this
Act termed nobiles'
It is not possible to compile a list of the Sheriffs of Oxford
shire in the early days of old English history, for the Scire-
Reeve and Vice-Comes is only mentioned in scattered pas
sages, and in most cases the name of the County is omitted.
For these reasons the earlier portion of the following list does
not pretend to perfection.
Before the date of the Norman Conquest we find Wulf-
wine mentioned as Reeve of the County of Oxford, his
signature appearing to a Charter respecting a grant of
land to St. Alban's Abbey, about 1050; and although more
directly connected with Berkshire, we should be justified in
claiming Wigod as also Sheriff of Oxfordshire at the date of
the Conquest.

C 2

ao COUNTY OF OXFORD.
WILLIAM THE FIRST. 1066-1087.
Wigod de Wallingford 1.
Sawold 2.
Edward s.
Alwi. Suain 4-
WILLIAM THE SECOND. 1087-1 100.
Peter.
HENRY THE FIRST. 11 00-11 35.
William. Restoldus.
1 131. Robert [D'Oilli] s.
1 The kinsman and cupbearer of the Confessor, and being Lord of the Manor and
Honour of Wallingford, and the owner of large landed possessions, William soon
after the Conquest ingratiated himself with him, and was sumptuously entertained
by him at Wallingford. Wigod's daughter Aldith was married to Robert de Oiley,
and succeeded to all his estates. His only son, Tokig, was killed in defence of the
King under the walls of the Castle of Gerberoi in 1077.
2 In = Westminster Charter relating to Marston we find, ' William King gret
Sawold Sirefen, and alle mine thegnges in Oxnefordecire freondlice.' It is re
corded that he held nine mansions in Oxford, and that he held of the King
Alwoldesburie (Albury) and Ropeford (Rofford near Watlington).
3 A Charter respecting the grant of Ensham is witnessed by Edward the Sheriff
and Robert D'Oilgi. As to the Sheriffs of this period, Parker's Early History of
Oxford should be consulted.
* Svain the Sheriff holds of the King six hides of land in Baldendon (Baldon),
and Hugh, of him, land for five ploughs, now in demesne one plough and two serfs,
and seven villeins, with two bordmen having one plough. It was valued and is
worth sixty shillings. — Domesday Book, Oxfordshire, No. 42.
6 He was third Baron of Hooknorton. The first Robert D'Oilli came in with
the Conqueror, and had granted to him for his services the Baronies of Hook
norton and Beckley, afterwards called St. Walery, with the Constableship of the
County of Oxford ; but having entered into an agreement with Roger D'lvery that
he would share with him his fortune and rewards, he gave to him the Barony of
St. Walery and retained that of Hooknorton for himself. Dying without issue,
his estates came to his brother Nigel, also Constable of Oxford, and father of
Robert D'Oilli the second, who founded Oseney Abbey and served the office of
Sheriff for this year. It will be seen throughout the present list that many
members of this ancient family were chosen by the Crown to fill the office of
Sheriff.

HIGH SHERIFFS. 3l
STEPHEN. 1135-1154.
Henry de Oxenford.
HENRY THE SECOND.

(1 154).

(1161).

ANNO.

I.

Ralph Restwold1.

2-6.

Henry D'Oilli 2.

7.

Manasser Arsick 3, and

Henry D'Oilli.

8-9.

Manasser Arsick.

10.

Thomas Basset 4-

Undersheriff, Robert de Aumari.

11-15.

Adam de Catmera or Catmore 5, of Aston and

Cote.

16.

Idem, half-year.

Alardus Banastre, half-year.
17-21.
Alardus Banastre6.
22-25.
Robert de Tureville.
26-27. Geoffrey Hose7.
1 In Lipscomb's Buckinghamshire he is described as Sheriff in the second year
of this reign.
1 Eldest son of Robert D'Oilli, the founder of Oseney Abbey, and fourth Baron
of Hooknorton. In the fifth year of this reign the Sheriff accounted to the Ex
chequer for a hundred and seventeen marks, as the donum or tallage of the Burgh of
Oxford : £14 from the moneyers of Oxford, and 20 marks from the Jews of Oxford.
3 The head of the Barony of Arsick was at Cogges.
4 The son of Gilbert Basset, and lord of the Manors of Burcester, Wretchwike
and Stratton in the Honour of Wallingford ; and in 1 1 74 was appointed one of the
King's Justices in Eyre. He had the Lordship of Headington with the Hundred
of Bolendon (BuUingdon), and likewise the Hundred without the North Gate of
Oxford given him in fee farm, for the rent of £20 per annum, for special services
rendered to King Henry II in divers wars.
6 This Sheriffs appointment was for the two Counties of Oxford and Berks in
common, but he was re-appointed for Berkshire alone for the next eight years.
6 He appears to have been the son of the preceding Sheriff, also called Adam
Banastre. He was Justice Itinerant 11 74. During this reign Sheriffs were
frequently added to the Justices Itinerant, whose functions were to traverse the
country, and impose the assize or tallage on the King's demesne in their County ;
their duties in that case being distinguished from those of the Chief Justiciary
and his subordinate Justiciars who sat in the Curia Regis, or Exchequer, at West
minster. 7 He was son of Henry Hose, and held a Barony in the County of Wilts. In the
22 COUNTY OF OXFORD.
(1181). 28. Idem, half-year.
Robert de Witefeld, half-year.
29-30. Robert de Witefeld 1.
31. Idem, half of year.
Alanus de Furnell, half of year.
32. Alanus de Furnell 2-
33. Idem, half of year.
Robert de la Mare, half of year.
34-35. Robert de la Mare 3.
RICHARD THE FIRST.
ANNO.
(11 89). 1-2. Robert de la Mare.
3-5. William Briwer4.
6. Idem, half of year5.
Henry de Oilli 6, half of year.
Henry the son of Simon, and
William de Clanville, Undersheriffs 7.
25th Henry II he was selected by the Council of Windsor to act as one of the.
Justices Itinerant. He died 1 199, when his wife, Gundred de Warenne, gave two
hundred marks for the custody of Geoffrey his heir, and all his lands until he was
of age ; but by a writ from the Chief Justiciary, the fine is directed to be demanded
from Robert de Tresgoz because he had the custody of the heir and land ; and in
the 3rd of John the said Robert accounts for the scutage thereon both in Hereford
shire and Wiltshire. — Foss's Judges, vol. i. p. 257.
1 Appointed a Justiciar by the great Council held at Windsor, 11 79. He was
also Sheriff of the County of Gloucester these same two years.
2 Justiciar n 79. He was specially appointed to act judicially in the Curia
Regis. He belonged to a Devonshire family, and had been Sheriff of Cornwall the
preceding years. His death is recorded in the Roll of 1 Richard I, 1189.
3 In the twenty-eighth year of King Edward I, John son of Robert De la Mare
had summons to Parliament as Baron of Garsington for services in the wars of
Scotland. See notes as to this family in Warton's History of Kiddington, p. 28.
4 Founder of the Abbey of Dunkeswell, county Devon ; died in the eleventh
year of Henry III, and was buried before the high altar of that Abbey, which he
founded for Cistercian monks. He was appointed a Justice Itinerant in 11 87, and
he was a Baron of the Exchequer in 1221. Camden says that he was a foundling,
and that he derives his name from having been discovered by Henry II on a heath
(bruyere) when hunting in the New Forest.
5 This year Alexander Arsick, son of Manasser Arsick, Baron of Cogges,
accounted to the Sheriff £20 for twenty knights' fees as scutage, for the redemption
of Richard I from captivity.
6 He was fifth Baron of Hooknorton.
7 'Be it here observed that the place of Under Sheriffs in this age was very

HIGH SHERIFFS. 23
(1195). 7. Henry de Oilli.
William the son of Ralph, Undersheriff.
8. Henry de Oilli.
Pagan de Chaderinton, Undersheriff.
9-10. Hugh de Nevill.
Geoffrey le Salvage, Undersheriff.
JOHN.
ANNO.
(1199). 1. Hugh de Nevill.
2. Gilbert Basset \
Richard de Caverton, Undersheriff.
3. Gilbert Basset, half-year.
Roger de Cofle, Undersheriff.
William Briwer, half-year.
Richard de Parco, Undersheriff.
4. William Briwer, half-year.
Richard de Parco, Undersheriff.
Thomas Basset, half-year2.
Richard de Turri, Undersheriff.
^-6. Thomas Basset.
Richard le Tus, Undersheriff.
honorable, not hackned out for profit. And, although some uncharitable people
(unjustly I hope), have now a days fixed an ill character on those who twice
together discharged the place, yet anciently the office befitted the best persons,
little difference betwixt the High Sheriffe and Under Sheriffe, save that he was
under him, being otherwise a man of great credit and estate.' — Fuller, foi. 1662,
p. 104.
1 He was Lord of Burcester, and he founded and endowed a religious house at
Bicester in 11 82 for the Prior and eleven Canons of the Augustine Order, and was
a benefactor to the Knights Templar. He gave the King a fine of £100 for leave
to marry his only daughter and heiress, Eustatia, to Thomas de Verdon, a Baron,
and upon her becoming a widow five years later, the King received a further sum
of £1000 from Gerald de Camvill, Lord of Middleton, for her wardship and second
marriage to his son, Richard de Camvill (Hedges's History of Wallingford'). He
attended King John into Normandy in 1200, and was one of his train at the
famous interview between King John and William King of Scotland, at Lincoln.
He died 1203.
2 A brother of Gilbert Basset. He was Governor of Oxford Castle and Lord of
the Manor of Haseley and Headington. He appeared on the part of King John
at Runnymede on June 5, 1215. He died 1231.

24 COUNTY OF OXFORD.
(1205). 7. Thomas Basset1.
Richard le Tus, Undersheriff2.
8. Thomas Basset.
Richard le Tus, Undersheriff.
9. Thomas Basset.
Robert de Aumari, Undersheriff 3.
10. Thomas Basset.
Richard le Tus, Undersheriff.
11-15. Thomas Basset.
Robert le Megre, Undersheriff.
16. Thomas Basset, fourth part of year 4.
Richard le Tus, Undersheriff.
Ralph de Normanville, remainder of year.
Hugh de Ripple, Undersheriff.
1 7 5. Robert de Beauchamp.

HENRY THE THIRD.

ANNO.
(1216). I.

2. Falco de Breautee" e.
Ralph de Bray, Undersheriff.
1 In this year the King commanded the Sheriff of Oxfordshire to cause a fair
to be held at Wallingford for four days in Whitsun week, for three years, although
that town is in Berkshire.
2 It is singular that this Undersheriff was appointed Sheriff of Berkshire in this
year and in the tenth year of this reign.
3 A Justice Itinerant for the County in 1225, and the following year he was
appointed to collect the quinzime of the County, and for his activity in performing
that duty he was rewarded with a pardon of a fine which he owed for permission
to plough up his property at Woodpery. — Foss's Judges, vol. ii. p. 213.
' By a Royal Warrant directed to the Sheriff of Oxfordshire, dated October 26,
1 214, the market of Crowmarsh was prohibited as injurious to the fair held at
Wallingford. 5 The Pipe Roll for this year being lost, no record of the Sheriffs name has been
discovered from that source, but Foss, in his Lives of the Judges, vol. ii. p. 230,
mentions Robert de Beauchamp as appointed a King's Justice of the Bench in 1234,
having been Sheriff of Oxfordshire in 121 5 (17 John) and Constable of Oxford Castle.
6 Falco de Breautee was a native of Middlesex and a valiant soldier, who gained
the battle of Lincoln for Henry III. Being slighted when the land was settled in
peace, he endeavoured to embroil the nation in another civil war. It was said of
him that he was too bad to live, and yet too good to be put to death ; therefore, as
an expedient between both, he was condemned to perpetual banishment. Governor
of Oxford Castle, and a Justice Itinerant in 1219. He went to Rome, lived

HIGH SHERIFFS. 35
(13 1 8). 3-4. Falco de Breautee\
Ralph de Bray, Undersheriff.
5, 6. Falco de Breautee\
Vivian the son of Ralph, Undersheriff.
7. Falco de Breautee\
Richard de Brackele, Undersheriff.
8. Falco de Breautee^ quarter of year.
Richard de Ripariis (Rivers), three quarters
of year.
Richard de Brakele, Undersheriff.
9. Richard de Ripariis, half of year.
Richard de Brackele, Undersheriff.
Walter Foliot as Custos \ half of year.
10. Walter Foliot, quarter of year.
Godfrey de Crawcumbe, three quarters of year.
Robert de Haia, Undersheriff.
11-16. Godfrey de Crawcumbe 2.
Robert de Haia, Undersheriff.
17. John de Hulecote, three quarters of year.
Engelard de Ciconiaco, quarter of year 3
Peter de Cancell, Undersheriff.
obscurely, and died 1226. He belonged to the Broughton family connected with
Broughton Castle.
1 There were in ancient time two ways of committing a County to the Sheriff,
namely, either at Ferm or in Custody. This difference in committing the County
made a difference in some particulars in the Sheriffs accompt. The Sheriff that
was Fermer was charged absolutely with the Ferm of his County and with the
Crementum, if there was any ; and, if he accepted the County upon those terms,
and with a Ferm for the proficuum of the County. But the Sheriff that was Custos
was not absolutely charged to answer in the same manner. For he was but a kind
of Proficuarius or Bailiff. — Madox's Exchequer, p. 653. Walter Foliot was one of
the Justices Itinerant for this among other Counties in 1219, and he received
grants of land in this County from King John. He was ordered to deliver up the
Shrievalty on Dec. 31 to his successor. He died in June, 1228.
3 King Henry III, by his letters patent, conceded to Godfrey de Crawcombe the
custody of the County and Castle of Oxford, with the meadow and the mill
belonging to the Castle and with other things pertaining to the Shrievalty — To have
and to hold of the King and his heirs during Godfrey's life, rendering yearly the
ancient and due Ferm, which was wont to be rendered in the time of King John,
and twenty marks more every year as proficuum. The said Godfrey paid twenty
marks as proficuum this year (the sixteenth of the reign). — Madox, p. 636.
3 His name was also spelt • Cygoin.' By writ dated December 1 2, 1 2 1 5, the King
granted to him the Castle of Middleton (Midelinton).

26 COUNTY OF OXFORD.
(1233). l8- Engelard de Ciconiaco, three quarters of year.
Peter de Cancell, Undersheriff.
John le Brunn as Custos, quarter of year.
19. John Brunus.
20. Idem, first half of year.
John de Tiwe, last half of year.
21-22. John de Tiwe.
23. Idem, first half of year.
Richard Suhard, quarter of year.
Paul Peyure, last quarter of year.
24. John de Plessitis \
William Hay, Undersheriff.
35-28. William Hay.
39. William Hay 2, first quarter of year.
Alanus de Farnham, three quarters of year.
30-31. Alanus de Farnham.
32. Alanus de Farnham, first half year.
Wydo the son of Robert, last half year.
33-34. Wydo the son of Robert.
35-36. Nicholas de Henred 3.
1 He was a Norman by birth, and domestic servant in the King's Court, and
married Christian, daughter and heir of Hugh de Sandford, upon whose death, by
the King's earnest intercession, he obtained in marriage Margery the widow of
John Mareschal, sister and heir of Thomas de Newburgh, Earl of Warwick, whose
mother was Margery, eldest daughter and heir of Henry de Oily the elder, Baron
of Hooknorton ; by which means he came into possession of the Manors of Hook
norton and Kidlington, held from the King by barony, and afterwards had the title of
the Earl of Warwick. His son, Hugh de Plessitis, succeeded to the Barony of Hook
norton, lately held by the D'Oilli family, and to the Barony of Kidlington, and
in right of his wife, Philippa Basset, became possessed of the Manor of Headington
and Hundred of BuUingdon. He was appointed a Justice Itinerant and assigned
to hold Pleas for the City of London in 1 251.
2 William de Hay was this year committed to the Marshall for arrerages in his
account, amounting to £60, and was liberated upon payment of that sum into the
Exchequer. 3 Peshall (History City of Oxford, p. 356), quoting from Wood, has placed this
Sheriff, as also Wydo the son of Robert, in the position of Mayors for the Town of
Oxford. The Charters, bearing their names as witnesses, in every instance place them
in the same position, the duties of Mayor during the 34th, 35th, and 36th years of
Henry III being transacted by the Sheriff. It is probable that the entry in the
Pipe Roll of the 19th of King Edward II may throw some light upon this unusual
occurrence, — where it is stated that the Burgesses of Oxford owe 500 marks as a

HIGH SHERIFFS. 27
(1253). 37. Nicholas de Henred 1.
38. Idem, first half year.
John de Turbervill, last half year.
39-42. Nicholas de Henred.
43. Idem, first quarter of year.
Peter Foliot, three quarters of year.
44-46. Walter de la Ryvere.
47. Fulco de Rucote (Rycot).
48. Idem 2, three quarters of year.
John de St. Walery, last quarter of year.
49. John de St. Walery.
50-1. Nicholas de Syffrewast.
52. Idem, first quarter of year.
Sampson Foliot 3, three parts of the year.
SS- Thomas de St. Vigorc.
54. Idem, first half of year.
William D'Lisle, last half of year.
55. William D'Lisle, three parts of the year.
55-6. Roger, Bishop of Coventry and Lichfield4,
last part of year.
Gilbert de Kirkeby 5, Undersheriff.
fine for receiving pardon for an indignity to King Henry, which fine the King
granted to Edward his son ; and in another paragraph the Burgesses of Oxford
owe 4ar. for a fine for having again their town, which was taken into the hands of
the King. What the indignity was remains a mystery.
1 The Return to an Inquisition taken this year was, —
Quod nihil pertinet ad Custod. Castri Oxon quia nunquam fuit separata a
Comitatu.
2 In the Pipe Rolls for this year and the next he is called ' Firmarius.' Vide
note 1, p. 25.
3 Also constituted Governor of Oxford Castle.
* It may seem strange that the Bishop of Coventry and Lichfield should have
been appointed Sheriff, Berkshire being in the Diocese of Sarum, and Oxfordshire
in the Diocese of Lincoln, but the fact that he was nephew to the King may
account for his being placed in that position. His appointment was as Sheriff
of both Counties.
5 He was appointed Undersheriff by the King's Letters Patent, and was con
nected with the Courts of Law, being mentioned in the ioth Edward I as Attorney
to Roger de Longspee, Bishop of Coventry and Lichfield, in a proceeding he had
before the Parliament. He was himself Sheriff in 1273, and also Sheriff of
Northamptonshire. In the 21st Edward I he was selected one of the Judges of
Assize.

28 COUNTY OF OXFORD.
EDWARD THE FIRST.
ANNO.
(1272). 1. Roger, Bishop of Coventry and Lichfield.
2. Gilbert de Kirkeby.
3-5. Henry de Shottebrok.
James de Padbury, Undersheriff, appointed
by the King's writ.
6. Henry de Shottebrok.
7-8. Alan the son of Roaldi.
9. Idem, first part of year.
John de Tydemers, second part of year.
James Cok, Undersheriff.
10-12. John de Tydemers.
13. Idem, three parts of year.
Ralph de Berners, last quarter of year.
14. Ralph de Berners, first part of year.
Thomas D'Anvers, last part of year.
15-17. Thomas D'Anvers.
18. William de Greynvylle a.
19. Sir Richard de Williamscote2 of Kiddington,
first half of year.
John de St. John, last half of year.
20-23. William de Bremmeschete.
24-28. Henry de Thistelden.
39. Adam de Brymtone.
33-35. Nicholas de Sperschete.
1 He was Custos of the Castle of Oxford, which was committed to him during
the King's pleasure.
2 By the marriage of Richard de Williamscote (grandfather of the Sheriff ) with
Sibil de Saucey, the Manors and Advowsons of Kiddington and Asterley became
the inheritance of the De Williamscote family, but he dying before, or in the
year 1232, was succeeded by Thomas, his son and heir, who in 1273 presented
Hugh of Williamscote to the Rectory of Kiddington. Sir Richard de Williams
cote, son of Thomas (Sheriff this year), presented to Asterley Church in 1288.
He married Joan Foliot, daughter of Robert Foliot, Lord of Bickmarsh in
Warwickshire, and died during his Shrievalty, the account being rendered to the
Exchequer by his executors, Robert Basset and Robert de Derby, for the first half
of this year. The family of Williamscote ceased to have connection with Kidding
ton about the year 1373.

HIGH SHERIFFS.

29

EDWARD THE SECOND.
ANNO.
(1307). 1. Thomas Danvers, first half of year.
Richard D'Amary of Bletchingdon, last half
of year 1.
2-3. Richard D'Amary.
4-5. Thomas Danvers.
6. Idem, first half of year.
Philip de la Beach 2 of Aldworth, last part of
year.
7. Philip de la Beach.
8. Richard de Windsor.
9-10. Richard de Polhampton 3.
11. Otvelus Purcel, first half of year.
Richard de la Bere, last half of year.
12. Richard de la Bere, first half of year.
John de Brumpton, last part of year.
13-14. John de Brumpton.
15- Idem, first half of year.
Drogo Barentyne, second half of year.
16-20. Drogo Barentyne.

EDWARD THE THIRD.
ANNO.
(1327). 1-2. John de Brumpton.
3. John de Bockland.
1 A descendant of Robert de Aumari, Undersheriff in 1207, and a Justice
Itinerant of the County.
2 ' Their seat was at Aldworth in the County of Berks, where their statues on
their tombs are extant at this day, but of stature surely exceeding their due
dimensions. It seems the Grecian officers have not been here, who had it in their
charge to order tombs and proportion monuments to the persons represented.
I confess corpses do stretch and extend after their death ; but these figures
extend beyond their corpse ; and the people there living extend their fame beyond
their figures, fancying them giants, and fitting them with proportionable perform
ances. They were indeed most valiant men, and their male issue was extinct in
the next King's reign, whose heir-general was married to the ancient family of
Whitlock.'— Fuller.
3 Richard de Polhampton, having died during his year of office, Margaret his
wife, as executrix of his last will, rendered the account to the Exchequer, by her
attorneys, Roger de Neubury and Richard de Pubbesbury.

30 COUNTY OF OXFORD.
(1330). 4. Philip de la Beach of Aldworth x-
5-6. Richard de Colshull.
7. John de Brumpton.
8. William de Spershete.
9. John de Alveton.
10. William de Spershete.
11-14. John de Alveton.
15. Edward de Malyns.
16. Robert Fitz Ellis 2.
17-21. John de Alveton.
22-27. John Laundeles.
38. John de Alveton, and
Richard de Nowers.
39. John de Williamscote.
30-33. John Laundeles.
34. Robert de Moreton.
35-36. Roger de Elmerugg.
37-39. Roger de Cottesford.
40-43. Roger de Elmerugg.
43. Roger de Cottesford.
44-45. Thomas de la Mare of Aldermaston.
46. Gilbert Wace 3 of Ewelme.
1 King Edward III, in the early part of his reign, granted the Manor of
Watlington, with other properties in Oxfordshire, to Sir Nicholas de la Beche,
who, in 1338, obtained a licence to convert his house at Watlington into a castle.
It stood near the east end of the church, where indications of the moat which
surrounded it may yet be traced.
2 The family of Fitz Ellis, soon after the Conquest, settled at Waterperry
and Ledhall, and partly owned those Manors ; but, failing issue in the fifteenth
century, the estates passed to the Ingletons, Lords of Thornton, Bucks. This
Sheriff is described as leader of the levies of the County.
3 The arms of William Wace, whose daughter Helen married Richard de
Louches, are recorded by Lee in the Visitation of Oxfordshire, 1574, to have been
in one of the windows of Milton Church. The following document of the reign of
Henry VI will show the connection of Gilbert Wace with several Oxfordshire
families, and also with the parish of Great Milton : —
' Linea Ricardi Camoys militis quomodo sit rectus heres Gilberti Wace, Chr.
Memorandum quod anno Domini millesimo cclxiiij*0 (Willielmus1* Wace
armiger et Elena uxor ejus fuerunt seisiti de omnibus terris vocatis Waceslondes
in com. Oxon. Qui quidem (Willielmus) et Elena habuerunt exitum inter se,
viz. Hugonem, Willielmum, Johannem, Humfridum, Thomam, Johannem,

HIGH SHERIFFS. 31
(i373)- 47- Roger de Elmerugg.
48. John James of Wallingford.
49. Gilbert Wace of Ewelme.
50. Sir Reginald de Malyns of Chinnor, Knight.
51. John de Rothwell.
Isabellam, Elenam, Radulfum, et Thomam. Et predictus Willielmus filius
predicti Willielmi supervixit. Et predicta Elena maritata fuit Ricardo Louches
militi, de Milton. Et predicti Hugo, Johannes, Humfridus, Thomas, Johannes,
Isabella, Radulfus, et Thomas obierunt sine heredibus de corporibus suis pro-
creatis. Et predictus Willielmus filius Willielmi et Cecilia uxor ejus habuerunt
exitum inter se, viz. Gilbertum Wace militem, Agnetam, Matildam, Sibillam,
et Margaretam. Et predicte Agn. Mat. Sib. et Marg. obierunt sine heredibus
de corporibus procreatis, et predictus Gilbertus supervixit. Et predictus
Gilbertus, et Nicholaa uxor ejus fuerunt seisiti de terris predictis, et nullum
habuerunt exitum, et dictus Gilbertus supervixit predictam Nicholaam, et obiit,
seisitus de terris predictis, cujus propinquior heres est Ricardus Camoys miles
filius Thome Camoys militis, et Elisabeth uxoris ejus filie et heredis Willielmi
Louches, de Milton, filii et heredis Johannis Louches de Milton filii et heredis
predicti Ricardi Louches militis, de Milton, et predicte Elene, filie predicti
Willielmi Wace militis, uxoris predicti Ricardi Louches.' \Boarstall Chartu-
lary.~]
At the entrance of the choir of Dorchester Church a large stone had the brass
figure of a knight and four shields, supposed to be that which Leland calls Way.
This, says Antony a Wood, ' I take to be the same with Sir Gilbert Wace who
was living at Ewelme 51 Edw. Ill and 9 Hen. IV.' Indeed, one of the Manors
of Ewelme was distinguished by the name of Wace's Court. The following ex
tract from his will is interesting, as showing a special connection with the abbot
and canons of Dorchester, so as to account for his having the privilege of sepulture
in the choir of their church, and also as fixing the date of his decease : —
' In Dei nomine Amen. In crastino sancti Martini Confessoris, anno domini mil-
Iesimo ccccvijm0 Gilbertus Wace miles condo testamentnm meum, in hunc modum
etc. Item, volo quod advocacio seu jus patronatus Ecclesie de Chakynden, cum
omnibus suis juribns, et pertinenciis universis, per executores vendantur, et quod
pecunia inde recepta inveniatur unus capellanus, pro anima mea et animabus
parentum meorum, celebraturus durante pecunia predicta in loco per abbatem
Dorkacestrensem qui pro tempore fuerit limitando,' etc.
Sir Gilbert Wace survived the making of this will a few months, but no notice
of him occurs later than May 1408. — Addington's History of Dorchester.
P. J. Baigent, Esquire (in the Herald and Genealogist, Part 21, p. 215), notices
the finding of Gilbert Wace's official seal at Sunningwell, Berks, it being one of
the earliest examples in existence of a Sheriffs seal. The arms are — Barry of six,
argent and gules, on a quarter of the last, a mullet of the first, inserted upon the
centre of the seal ; while a castle, and the well-known device of the ox crossing a
ford, which would indicate his being keeper of the Royal castle of Oxford, forms
the background. The original seal is in the possession of the Rev. F. G. Lee,
D.D., F.S.A.

33 COUNTY OF OXFORD.
RICHARD THE SECOND.
ANNO.
(1377). 1. Edmund Stonor of Stonor.
3. Thomas Barentyne of Little Haseley.
3. Gilbert Wace of Ewelme.
4. John James of Wallingford.
5. Richard Brines.
6. Thomas Barentyne of Little Haseley.
7. John Hulcote of Barcot, Buckland.
8. Robert Bullock of Arborfield.
9. John Hulcote of Barcot, Buckland.
10. Thomas Barentyne of Little Haseley.
11. Sir Gilbert Wace of Ewelme, Knight.
13. Sir Thomas de la Poyle of Hampton Poyle,
Knight.
13. William Attwood.
14. Hugh Wolfes.
15. Robert Bullock of Arborfield.
16. William Wilcote1 of Wilcote
17. Thomas Faryngton 2.
1 8. Thomas Barentyne of Little Haseley.
19. Edward Spersholt.
30. William Attwood.
1 Within a chapel on the north side of the chancel of North Leigh Church,
called the Wilcote Chapel, are two beautiful alabaster effigies of William Wilcote
and his wife Elizabeth, called Blacket, daughter and heiress of John Tyrlowe, of
Chastleton, Oxfordshire. He lived at Wilcote, and died in the 1 2th of Henry IV,
a.d. 1411. He was seised of the Manors of Headington, BuUingdon, and North
Gate, Oxford, and had the custody of the Royal Park of Cornbury. — Warton.
2 The following monument, described by Ashmole as being in the middle of the
aisle called Unton's Aisle in Faringdon Church, contained three figures engraved
in brass of a man armed, and two women holding up their hands in a devotional
posture, and under their feet this inscription : —
' Orate pro animabus Thome Ffaryndon, armigeri, quondam Domini de Farne-
ham, et de Luteshall, qui obiit secundo die Feb. an0 Domini mcccxcvi.
Margarete uxoris ejus que obiit secundo die Maii anno Domini mccccii. et
Margarete Pynchpole, filie et her. predictorum Thome et Margarete, qui obiit
xi. die Decemb. an0 Dom. mccccxhii. Quorum animabus propicietur Deus.
' We pray you for the Worchip of the Trinity, for our Sowles say Pater,
and Ave.'

HIGH SHERIFFS.

33

(1397). 21. John Golafre1 of Fyfield.
22. Sir Richard Abberbury, the younger, of Don-
nington.

HENRY THE FOURTH.
ANNO.
(1399). 1. William Wilcote of Wilcote.
2. Thomas Chaucer 2 of Ewelme.
3. John Wilcote of Great Tew
4. Robert James of Wallingford, Esquire.
5. Thomas Chaucer 2 of Ewelme.
6. Sir William Langford of Bradfield 3, Knight.
1 In the north aisle of the parish church of Fyfield is the monument of Sir John
Golafre, who died in 1442. His effigy in armour lies on an open altar tomb,
beneath which is the figure of a skeleton in a shroud. A licence was granted by
the Crown, pursuant to the will of Sir John Golafre, who is styled in the charter
servant to King Henry V and King Henry VI, to found a. Chantry dedicated to
St. John the Baptist at Fyfield. It was endowed with Fyfield Grove and the
Manors of Baldwin's Court and Wyke in Charlton. The Manor and Advowson
of Fyfield were purchased by Sir Thomas White, of the representatives of Lady
Gordon, about the year 1527, and by him given to the President and Fellows of
St. John's College, Oxford, in 1555.
2 He was son and sole heir of Geoffrey Chaucer, the Poet, and held lands at
Ewelme. He married Maud the daughter of Sir John Burghersh, by whom he
had an only daughter, Alice, married first to Sir John Philip, Knight, then to
Thomas Montacute, Earl of Salisbury, and lastly to William de la Pole, Duke of
Suffolk and founder of Ewelme Hospital. He was buried in Saint John's Chapel,
in Ewelme Church, at the west end of the beautiful alabaster monument of his
daughter. The following restored inscription is on a brass enamelled scroll, let
into the sunk moulding of the outer edge of the ledge on the south side of a table
monument of Purbeck marble : —
' Hie jacet Thomas Chaucer armig. quondam Dns. isti. ville et patronus isti.
ecclie. qui obiit xviii die mensis Novembris anno dni. mccccxxxiiii. et Matildis
uxor ejusque obiit xxvii die mens. Aprilis an. dni. mccccxxxvi.'
The upper surface of the slab is inlaid with brass figures of a knight and his lady.
Thomas Chaucer, the Sheriff, was in the first year of Henry IV appointed
Chief Butler of England, a post of high rank. He was by the same monarch
made Constable of Wallingford and Knaresborough Castles and Keeper of
Knaresborough Forest. Joan, the Queen of Henry IV, granted to him in 141 1,
for his good service, the manors of Woodstock, Hanborough, Wootton, and
Stonesfield. The name of this Sheriff will be found repeatedly amongst the List
of Members of Parliament for thirty years after 1401, and as Speaker of the House
of Commons.
3 The Manor of Bradfield anciently belonged to a family of the name of
Sutton. John Sutton sold it to Sir Nicholas de la Beche for an annuity of
fifty marks. When John de Dalton forcibly carried away Margaret, widow of Sir
D

34 COUNTY OF OXFORD.
(1405). 7. Sir Robert Corbett, Knight.
8. John Wilcote of Great Tew J
9. Sir Thomas Harcourt of Stanton Harcourt2,
Knight.
10. Sir Peter Besiles, of Bessels Leigh3, Knight.
11. Sir Robert Corbett, Knight.
Nicholas de la Beche and wife of Sir Thomas Ardeme, and married her, the King
seized on the Manor, and granted a lease of it to Michael le Poyning. It
reverted to the Langfords as representatives of the De la Beches. Sir William
Langford, the Sheriff this year, resided at Bradfield, and was M.P. for Berkshire
(17 Richard II and 5 Henry IV). He died 1411, and the Manors of Bradfield a
well as that of Aldworth continued in that family until 1509, when the former
descended to the Staffords and the latter to the Berties.
1 Brother of the above-named Sheriff, William Wilcote. The grave of John
Wilcote and his wife Alice is still to be seen in Great Tew Church. He lived
at Great Tew and was possessed of the Manor there, but his son Thomas resided
at Chalkford in the parish of Enstone, which estate he eventually granted to Oriel
College, Oxford, who enjoy it to this day. — (Jordan.)
2 Sir Thomas Harcourt was knighted in 1366, and received from Edward III
his general Letters of Attorney on being sent in his service to Milan with
the Duke of Clarence. He was Knight of the Shire for Oxfordshire 1376. He
married Maud, daughter of Lord Grey of Rotherfield, and heiress, through her
mother, of the Marmions who had their seat at Coggs. He died 141 7, and was
buried at Stanton Harcourt.
3 The original name of this village was Legh, and gave the name to a family early
in the thirteenth century, the last of whom (John de Lee) presented to the church
in 1342. With him ended the male line of the family, Catherine his daughter and
heir becoming wife to Sir Thomas Besils, Knight, the representative of an ancient
family, who held estates in Somersetshire and Wiltshire, as well as in the county
of Berks. He presented to the church in right of his. wife in 1353, and died 1378,
leaving John his eldest son and heir then nineteen years of age. The said John
Besils left a son of the same name, on whose death without issue the inheritance
reverted to Sir Peter Besils his uncle (Sheriff this year), younger son of Sir Thomas.
Sir Peter died in 1424, having by his will, dated the 23rd of October in that year,
bequeathed lands for the maintenance and repairs of Burford and Culham Bridges*,
near Abingdon, to the building of which he had been a principal contributor. He
also gave to his executors £600 to make restitution for any wrong that he or his
ancestors had done to any man, and if nothing were required, then the same was
to be given to the poor, and to repair highways. He also appointed his body to
be buried in the church of the Preaching Friars at Oxford, to whom he gave
£120, to make six windows in the north aisle of the said church. Sir Thomas
Besils, son and heir of Sir Peter, died in 1457, leaving issue, by his wife Clemence,
William Besils, Esq., who married Alice, daughter of Sir Richard Harcourt, of
Stanton Harcourt, Knight. He died May 5, 1515, leaving an only child Eliza
beth, wife of Richard Fetiplace, Esquire, of East Shefford, in whose posterity this
estate remained vested for several ages. (Clarke's MSS.)
* These bridges are close to the town of Abingdon, and are now maintained by
Christ's Hospital there. Burford is a corruption of Boroford.

HIGH SHERIFFS. 35
12. Sir William Lisle, Knight1

J3-

HENRY THE FIFTH.

(1413). 1. Thomas Wykham of Broughton.
2. John Golafre of Fyfield.
3. John Wilcote of Great Tew.
4. Robert James 2 of Wallingford, Esquire.
5. Sir Thomas Wykham 3 of Broughton, Knight.
6. Robert Andrews.
7. John Wilcote of Great Tew.
8 & 9. Sir William Lisle, Knight 4

1 Waterperry is given as the residence of this Sheriff. He belonged to the
ancient family of de Insula or L'Isle. His father, Robert de L'Isle, was summoned
to Parliament as a Baron in the 31 & 34 Edward III, and his grandfather, John
de L'Isle, served with distinction with Edward III throughout the wars in Gas-
cony, and was one of the chief commanders at the siege of Nantes.
2 Son and heir of John James (Sheriff 48th of Edward III and 4th of Richard II).
He married Catherine, daughter of Sir Edmund de la Pole, whose wife Elizabeth
was daughter and co-heir of Sir Edmund Handlo, Lord of Borstall. Upon the
death of Sir Edmund de la Pole, in 1417, the large estate and lordship of Borstall,
together with the custody of the forests of Stow Wood and Shotover, passed to
Catherine, the wife of Robert James, Esquire, who at that time was tenant to his
father-in-law. The daughter of Robert James and Catherine married Edmund
Rede, of Borstall, son of John Rede and Cecily his wife. The following curious
custom was registered in a court held at Chakenden by Robert James, Esquire,
lord of that Manor, 1423: 'That the servile tenants, for the wonted service of
reaping in the time of harvest, should receive from the lord one ram, price at
least eightpence, and every reaper should have one loaf of bread, price a half
penny. And they should all together have one load of wood, and one cheese,
price fourpence. And every virgate of land should have sex toddas herbae
(six tods of grass), and every half-virgate three tods.' The lordship of Borstall
and custody of the forests of Stow Wood and Shotover, after the death of Robert
James (which happened 16th of February, 10 Henry VI), came to Christiana, his
daughter, from whom they descended to Edmund Rede, her son. Edmund
Rede, 19th February, 1438, gave the sum of twenty pounds to the Abbot and
Convent of Dorchester, who, in consideration of the money, sold him the benefit
¦of their prayers and the privilege of inserting the names of himself, Robert
James, Catherine and Matilda his wives, John James, and Christiana his wife,
and all their benefactors, in the Martyrology, keeping their anniversaries, and
paying threepence to the canon who should say mass for their souls.
s Nephew and heir of William of Wykeham, Bishop of Winchester and founder
¦of New College, Oxford, from whom he acquired Broughton Castle.
* The eldest son of the Sheriff in 1410.
D 2

^6 COUNTY OF OXFORD.

HENRY THE SIXTH.
ANNO.
(1422). 1. Sir William Lisle, Knight.
2. Sir Thomas Stonor of Stonor, Knight.
3. John Golafre of Fyfield.
4. Sir Richard Walkested, Knight.
5. Sir Thomas Wykham of Broughton, Knight.
6. Sir Thomas Stonor of Stonor, Knight.
7. Robert James l of Wallingford, Esquire.
8. Philip Englefield of Englefield, Esquire.
9. Sir Thomas Wykham of Broughton, Knight.
10. William Fynderne 2 of Childrey, Esquire.
11. William Darrell.
1 2. Stephen Haytfeld 3.
13. Richard Restwold.
14. Sir Thomas Fetiplace * of Childrey, Knight.

1 He was owner of the Manor of Headington in 1427. At his death the Manor
was divided between Maud, the widow of Robert James, and Christiana Rede.
In 1459 Edmund Rede, Esquire, of Borstall granted to William Craunford and
Thomas Williams his Manor of Headington.
2 In the middle of the Chancel of Childrey Church is a large marble stone
adorned with the portraitures of a man in armour treading on a lion, and his wife
near him ; both holding up their hands in a devotional posture. At the bottom of
the said gravestone is this inscription : —
' Hie jacent Willielmus Ffynderne, Armiger et Domina Elizabetha
uxor ejus, et quondam uxor Domini Johannis Kyngeston Militis. Qui quidem
Willielmus obiit 130 die Mensis Marcii, An0 Domini 1444, et dicta
Domina Elizabetha obiit die Mens. ... A0 Domini 14 . , .
quorum animabus propicietur Deus. Amen.'
3 This Sheriff's name appears this year as one of the Knights of the Shire and
as a Commissioner to take the Oaths to the King of the Abbot of the Monastery
of Dorchester.
4 This family of Fetiplace was of long standing and good account in Berkshire
and Oxfordshire, having seats at Letcombe Regis, Childrey, and Besils Lee, near
Abingdon ; as also at Swincombe and Swinbroke, in Oxfordshire. It is said
that the first of them came into England with William the Conqueror, to whom
he was Gentleman Usher ; and in the reign of King Henry VI the family received
a. great addition of blood and honour by marrying Beatrix, daughter of the King
of Portugal ; which match is mentioned, and allowed of, in the pedigree of the
Kings of Portugal. The Fetiplace that married the daughter of Portugal was
Thomas Fetiplace, Esquire, of Childrey, in Berkshire, the Sheriff, who was the father
of James, the father of Richard, who married Friswide, the heiress of Sir John

HIGH SHERIFFS. 37
(H36)- T5- Richard Quartermayns 1 of Rycote, Esquire.
Kentwood, Knight ; and by her was father of William, who was father of Nicholas
Fetiplace, whose daughter and heir, Anne, was married to Edmund Dunch, Esq.,
who died in 1627, in the seventy-first year of her age, and lieth buried in Little
Wittenham Church, Berkshire, where, against the north wall, is a fair monument
erected to her memory, from the inscription on which this part of the account is
taken. In the reign of Henry VI, anno 14th, Thomas Fetiplace, of Childrey, was
Sheriff of Berks and Oxon, and in the 20th, Peter Fetiplace ; as in 13 Henry
VII was Anthony Fetiplace ; and in 15 Henry VIII, John Fetiplace ; and in
10 Elizabeth, John Fetiplace was Sheriff of Berks alone, and in 19; as was
Besil Fetiplace, Esq., in the 26th, who took his name from the Besiles, who lived
in great regard at Besils Lee (locus, or seat of the Besils), till Elizabeth, daughter
and heir of William Besile, last of that name, was married unto Richard Feti
place, whose great-great-grandchild was named Besile, to continue the remem
brance of their female ancestor. In the manor house of Childrey were several
coats of arms and memorials of the family, and some monuments of them in the
church. In the ist, 3rd, and 15th Car. I, John Fetiplace, Esq., was one of the
representatives of the County of Berks in the parliament then held. This gentle
man became afterwards a Colonel in the Parliament Army; and in 1642 made
Cirencester, in Gloucestershire, a garrison for the cause, and became the Governor
there ; but it was taken by Prince Rupert on the first approach. On March 30,
1661, John Fetiplace, of Childrey, in Berks., Esq., was created a Baronet of England.
Descended from, or related to him (I presume), was Edward Fetiplace, of Swinbroke,
Oxon, Esq., from whom was descended Sir John Fetiplace, of Swinbroke, Baronet,
who, by his first Lady, Anne, daughter of Sir Francis Wenman, of Carswell, in
Oxfordshire, had four sons, who all succeeded to the honour of Baronets in order,
and all died unmarried; viz. Sir Edmund, Sir Charles, Sir Lorenzo, and Sir
George ; which last died at London on Wednesday in Easter week, April 6, 1743
(much about the time of the death of Sir John Aubrey of Borstal), and left the
estate to be divided between two nephews, the sons of two sisters ; viz. John Lacy,
Esq., of Pudlicot, soon after Sheriff of Oxfordshire ; and Thomas Bushel, Esq.
But Mr. Lacy dying without issue on October 22, 1746, the whole Fetiplace
estate fell to Mr. Bushel, who in 1747 assumed, by Act of Parliament, the name
of Fetiplace, and resides at the ancient seat of Swinbroke. (Delafield's MSS.)
And see Kennett's Parochial Antiquities, vol. ii. p. 496, and Skelton's Antiquities
of Oxfordshire, under the head of Swinbrook.
1 This Sheriff was M.P. for the County 1432 and 1433. He was descended
from a family settled at Rycote and Thame, and possessed of large estates in this
county, having seats at North Weston and Shirburn Castle. During the reign of
Henry VI, Leland mentions that, through great mortality, all the lands descended
to Richard, the youngest son, a merchant of London ; who, dying without issue,
adopted his godson, Sir Richard Fowler, as his heir. This Sheriff was buried in
Thame Church, with the following inscription upon a fine marble table monu
ment, surmounted by the brasses of himself and wife : —
' O certeyn deth that now hast overthrow
Richard Quatremayns Squyer and Sibil his wife,
that lie here full lowe.
That with rial Princes of Counsel was true and
wise famed
To Richard Duke of York, and after with his sone Kyng
Edward the 4th named.

38 COUNTY OF OXFORD.
(I437)- 16. John Norreys1 of Ockholt, Esquire.
17. Edward Rede.
18. Walter Shull.
19. John Stokes.
20. Peter Fetiplace of North Denchworth, Esquire.
31. John Norreys of Ockholt, Esquire.
33. Sir John Chalers 2 of Ashampstead, Knight.
33. John Lidyard of Benham.
34. John Rogers, junior, of Benham, Esquire.
25 & 26. Edward Langford of Bradford, Esquire 3.
27. John Pennycock.
28. William Wykham of Broughton Castle.
29. Edward Rede.
30. Sir John Chalers of Ashampstead, Knight.
31. John Rogers of Benham, Esquire.
32. Thomas Stonor of Stonor.
33. Richard Quartermayns of Rycote, Esquire.

That founded in the Churche of Thame a chantrie vi
pore men and a fraternytie
In the worship of Seynt Cristofere to be releved in
perpetuyte.
They that of her always for ther soulis a Paternoster
and Ave devoutly wul sey
Of holy ffadurs is grantid they pardon of dayes
forty alwey.
Wiche Richard and Sibil oute of this Worlde passid
in the yere of oure Lord mcccclx. Upon
theyr Soules Jesu have mercy: Amen.'
1 The family of Norreys, ancestors of the Lords Norreys of Rycote, were, from
a very early period, possessed of the manor of Ockholt, in the parish of Bray.
Richard de Norreys, cook to Eleanor, Queen of Henry III, had a grant of Ock
holt from that monarch in 1267, subject to a fee farm rent of forty shillings.
John Norreys, Esquire of the Body to King Henry VI, married Milicent, daughter
and heir of Ravenscroft, of Colton-End, Hardingstone, Northamptonshire. He
was succeeded in the manor and estates at Bray by his grandson, Sir John
Norreys. 2 In 1451 Sir John Chalers, Knight, and Matilda his wife, and John Lang and
Mary his wife, sisters and co-heirs of Thomas Wayte, held jointly the Manor of
Herbrigge in the parish of Ashampstead. In 1471 Matilda, widow of Sir John
Chalers, died seized of this Manor.
3 The grandson of the Sheriff in 1404. He was M.P. for Berks. 29 and 38 Hen.
VI. He died 1474.

HIGH SHERIFFS.

39

(M55)- 34- Sir Robert Harcourt1 of Stanton Harcourt,
Knight, K.G.
1 The Harcourt family (now represented by Edward William Harcourt, Esquire,
of Nuneham Park, late M.P. for the County of Oxford) have'been located in Oxford
shire for a period exceeding seven hundred years. Their original ancestor is said
to have been a younger brother of a Saxon King, and second in command to Rollo
when the band of northern Adventurers, in the year 876, invaded France and got
possession of the province to which they gave the name of Normandy. For the
services of this chief there was assigned to him the signory of Harcourt, on
the banks of the Seine, from which the family took their name. Here they were
seated in the middle of the eleventh century, when a younger son of the then
chief (Robert de Harcourt, surnamed the Strong) accompanied Duke William in
his memorable expedition to claim the Crown of England ; fought with him at
Hastings, and, having many Manors granted to him for his bravery, became the
founder of the English Harcourts. Robert, his great-grandson, by marriage with
Isabel de Camvile obtained the estate of Stanton, Oxfordshire, which thenceforth
received the name of Stanton Harcourt. And the Manor of Stanton Harcourt
was confirmed to this Robert de Harcourt and Isabel, and their heirs, by King
Stephen and King Henry II. It was held of the Crown by the following service :
' That the Lord of Stanton Harcourt should find four Browsers in Woodstock parke
in Winter time, when the snow shall happen to fall, and tarrye, lie and abide, by
the space of two days ; and so to find the said Browsers there browsing, so long
as the snow doth lye ; every Browser to have to his lodging every night one billet
of Wood the length of his ax helve, and that to carry to his lodgings upon the
edge of his ax. And the King's Bailiff of the demesnes, or of the Hundred of
Wootton, coming to give warning for the said Browsers, shall blow his horn at
the Gate of the Mannor of Stanton Harcourt aforesaid, and then the said Bailiff
to have a cast of Bread, a gallon of Ale, and a piece of Beef, of the said
Lord of Stanton Harcourt aforesaid ; and the said Lord or other for the time
being, to have of custom yearly out of the said parke, one Buck in Summer,
and one Doe in Winter. And also the Lord of Stanton Harcourt must fell,
make, rear and carry all the grasse growing in one Meadow within the parke of
Woodstock, called Stanton and Southly mead ; and the fellers and the makers
thereof have used to have of custom, of the King's Majesty's charge, sixpence in
money, and two Gallons of Ale.'
The Harcourts have contracted the following alliances with sovereign houses : —
John, second Baron Harcourt, 1288 = Agnes of Lorraine.
John, third Count, 1302 = Alicia of Brabant, Lady of Arscot.
John, fifth Count, 1 353 = Blanche of Ponthieu, Countess of Aumalle, Princess
of Castile.
John, sixth Count, 1374 = Catherine de Bourbon.
John, seventh Count, 1 380 — Mary of Alencon.
Mary, Countess Harcourt and Aumalle in her own right, great-great-
grandmother of Henry IV, King of France, 1430 = Anthony of Lorraine,
Count of Vaudemont.
Many chivalrous and heroic deeds are recorded of successive Harcourts ; but we
here pass them by to notice that Sir John de Harcourt represented the County in
Parliament in 1322, that Sir Thomas Harcourt represented the County in 1375 : and
that the Sir Robert to whose name this note is appended was appointed High
Steward of the University of Oxford in 1446, represented the County in 1450, was

40 COUNTY OF OXFORD.
(1456). ^. Walter Mantell.
36. Sir John Norreys of Ockholt, Esquire.
made a Knight of the Garter in 1463, and signalised himself in the wars of
Henry VI and Edward IV, and lost his life in the service of the latter, being
slain by the Staffords, of the Lancastrian party, November 14th, 147°. His
remains were buried in Stanton Harcourt Church, where is a monument (on the
south side of the Harcourt Chapel), surmounted by the effigies of himself
and wife. He is represented in his hair, a gorget of mail, and plated armour
strapped at the elbows and wrists ; a large hilted sword on the left, and a dagger
on the right ; belt charged with oak-leaves, and hands bare, and a kind of ruffle
turned back at the wrists ; shoes of scaled armour ; Order of the Garter on the
left leg, and over all the mantle of the Order, with a rich cape and cordon ; his
head reclined on a helmet, with his crest, a peacock ; at his feet a lion. His lady
is in the veiled head-dress falling back ; has a mantle and surcoat, and cordon ;
long sleeves, fastened in a singular manner at the wrists, and the Garter with
the motto in embossed letters, above the elbow of the left arm, emblazoned upon
it ; her feet partly wrapped up in her mantle. On the front, four spread six-foils,
containing shields with the following arms : Harcourt impaling Byron twice, and
twice Marmion ; which Maud Grey, his grandmother, bore in right of her mother,
heiress of the Marmions. At the head of the monument two shields : on one,
Harcourt and Byron encircled with the Garter ; on the other, Harcourt single.
The figure of this lady is extremely curious, from her being represented with the
Garter, and is one of the only three known examples of female sepulchral effigies
having been decorated with the insignia of that Order. According to Mr.
Ashmole, Constance, daughter of John Holland, Duke of Exeter, first married to
Thomas Mowbray Duke of Norfolk, and secondly to Sir John Grey, Knight of
the Garter, and Earl of Tankerville in Normandy, was thus represented on her
tomb. The other similar example is the effigy of Alice, daughter of Thomas
Chaucer, wife of William de la Pole, Duke of Suffolk, on her beautiful monument
at Ewelme, in the County of Oxford, still in perfect preservation ; but on the last-
named figure the Garter is worn above the wrist, and has no motto. His grandson
(Sir Robert) was Standard Bearer to Henry VII at the battle of Bosworth ; and
was Sheriff of Oxfordshire in the 8th year of that reign. Sir Simon Harcourt
served the office of Sheriff of Oxfordshire and Berkshire (vide post), and was
knighted by King Henry VIII: — Sir Robert Harcourt (bom in 1574) was one of
the most considerable Adventurers with Sir Walter Raleigh in his voyage to
Wiassero, Guyana, etc., in America : — Sir Philip Harcourt represented Oxfordshire
in Parliament in 1680; and his son, Simon Harcourt, was constituted Lord
Chancellor in 1713, and raised to the Peerage as Baron and Viscount Harcourt.
He had previously been Lord Keeper, and on his elevation to the Chancellorship
a congratulatory poem was addressed to him, embodying the following lines : —
'Th' enraptured Muse to a glad Nation sings,
First the great race from which our Harcourt springs,
Noble his blood, and ancient his descent,
E'er since to Norman yoke Britannia bent.'
He died, aged 66, in July, 1727, immediately after the accession of George II,
and was buried in the family cemetery at Stanton Harcourt —
'There are twenty of Harcourts Barons bold
Lie buried within that proud Chapelle.'

HIGH SHERIFFS. 41
(1458). 37. William Brocas of Cookham, Esquire.
38. Thomas de la Mare of Aldermaston, Esquire.
The Chancellor's son (a most accomplished and promising young man) died pre
maturely, and the following lines upon his tomb are from the pen of Pope, who
— as it is unnecessary to record — was for years a visitor at Stanton Harcourt and
an attached friend of the family: —
' To this sad shrine, whoe' er thou art ! draw near,
Here lies the Friend most lov'd, the Son most dear ;
Who ne'er knew Joy, but Friendship might divide,
Or gave his Father Grief, but when he died.
How vain is Reason, Eloquence how weakl
If Pope must tell what Harcourt cannot speak,
Oh ! let thy once lov'd Friend inscribe thy stone,
And, with a Father's sorrows, mix his own ! '
At the Norman Survey the Manor of Newnham belonged to Richard de Curci,
and afterwards to the family of Ripariis or Redvers. Mary, youngest daughter
of William de Redvers, Earl of Devon (who, as well as his uncle William, was
sumamed de Vernon), married in 1214 Robert de Courtenay, Baron of Okehampton
(whence the conjunction of Nuneham Courtenay). After them succeeded Sir John
Pollard of Devon. From the Pollards the estate came to — Audley, of the Court
of Wards, called the rich Audley. Robert Wright, Bishop of Lichfield, was the
next owner of it. His son, Calvert Wright, sold it to John Robinson, of London,
merchant, who was knighted in 1660 by Charles II, and made Lieutenant of the
Tower. From the Robinsons it descended to David, Earl of Wemyss, who married
Mary, daughter and co-heiress of Sir John Robinson, Baronet. Lord Chancellor
Harcourt purchased the Nuneham Courtenay estate of the Earl of Wemyss, in
1 710. The present mansion, which has been the Oxfordshire residence of the
Harcourts ever since, was built by the Chancellor's grandson (Simon), who was
created an Earl by George II ; and he was succeeded by his son George Simon,
second Earl, who was long honoured with the intimacy of King George III — a
not unfrequent visitor at Nuneham Park. He died in 1809, and was succeeded by
his brother, Field Marshal William, third Earl, upon whose death in 1830 the title
became extinct, and the Oxfordshire estates passed to the Most Reverend the
Honourable Edward Vernon, Archbishop of York, who assumed the name of
Harcourt, being great-grandson of the first Lord Harcourt. His Grace was suc
ceeded by his eldest son, George Granville Harcourt, Esquire, M.P. for Oxford
shire from 1831 to his death in 1861, a man distinguished both as 1 polished
gentleman and a scholar. His only child (by his first wife, Elizabeth, daughter
of the Earl of Lucan) was married to the late Earl of Abingdon. On the death
of George Granville Harcourt, the Reverend William Harcourt (his next sur
viving brother) succeeded to the estates, and his eldest son, Edward William
Harcourt, Esquire, late M.P. for the County, and Sheriff in 1875, is now the
possessor. Simon first Earl Harcourt removed the cottages at Nuneham from their proximity
to the mansion to the more advantageous situation in which the village now stands.
He also took down the old parish church and erected a new one in its place
(after a design of his own slightly corrected by Stuart) in 1764. Mr. Edward
William Harcourt has recently built a new parish church in the village for the
convenience of the inhabitants.

42 COUNTY OF OXFORD.
EDWARD THE FOURTH1
ANNO.
(1460). 1. Sir Richard Harcourt 2 of Wytham, Knight.
3-3. Richard Restwold of Mongewell, Esquire.
4. Thomas Rogers of Benham, Esquire.
5. John Barentyne of Little Haseley, Esquire.
6. Thomas Stonor of Stonor, Esquire.
7. Sir Richard Harcourt of Wytham, Knight.
8. Sir John Howard 3, Knight.
9. Sir William Norreys 4 of Yattenden, Knight.
10. Thomas Prout, Esquire.
(14706). 11. Edward Langford of Aldworth, Esquire.
1 In Edward IV's reign Statutes were passed abridging the ancient jurisdiction
of Sheriffs, and transferring part of their powers to the Courts of Quarter Sessions.
2 The Manor of Wytham belonged to Alice Denton, widow, who died in 1479.
It is most probable that she was the heiress of Richard Wightham, and died
without issue. This estate then passed to Sir Richard Harcourt, Knight, the
seeond son of Thomas Harcourt, Esquire, on the failure of issue of his elder
brother, Sir Robert Harcourt, K.G. Sir Richard represented the County in Parlia
ment in 1460, as also did his son in 1477- He built the present house at Wytham.
By his will, dated 15th of September, i486, he bequeathed £20 to the Church of
Wytham, and directed his body to be buried in the Abbey of Abingdon. The
Wytham property was sold about 1620 by Sir Robert Harcourt to defray the
expenses of his expedition to Guienne. He is said to have been guided by the
flight of a pigeon in this sale. It then became the property of John, Lord
Williams of Thame.
3 He was son to Sir Robert Howafd, and created a Baron by this King, and
Duke of Norfolk by King Richard III, as kinsman and one of the heirs of Anne,
Duchess of York and Norfolk, whose mother was one of the daughters of Thomas
Mowbray, Duke of Norfolk. Soon after, he lost his life in his quarrel who gave
him his honour in Bos worth field. — (Fuller).
4 Son and heir of John Norreys of Ockholt, and one of the Knights of the
Body to King Edward IV. In the 2nd Henry VII he was a commander in
the King's army at the battle of Stoke, near Newark, against John Earl of
Lincoln and his adherents. This Sir William was a person learned in the laws,
as it seems ; for in the 2nd Henry VII he had an annuity of twenty marks out
of the Manor of. Swerford, granted to him by John, Duke of Suffolk, pro bono
consilio impenso et impendendo ; and in 19 Henry VII, for the like consideration
of his counsel, obtained a grant from the King of the custody of the Manor of
Langley ; as also the Stewardship of the Manors of Boreford (Burford), Shipton,
Spellesbury, and the Hundred of Chadlington.
5 Anno ab inchoatione regni nostri quadragesimo nono, et readeptionis nostrae
regiae potestatis anno primo.
The Battle of Barnet on Easter Day, 14 April, 1471, drove Henry VI again
from the throne.

HIGH SHERIFFS.

43

(147 1 ). 12. William Staverton of Staverton, Esquire.
13. William Beckinham, Esquire.
14. John Langston1 of Caversfield, Esquire.
15. Humphrey Forster2 of Harpsden, Esquire.
16. Sir Thomas de la Mare 3 of Aldermaston, Knight.
17. Thomas Restwold, Esquire.
18. James Viall, Esquire.
19. John Norreys of Ockholt, Esquire.
20. Sir Humphry Talbot, Knight.
31. Sir Thomas de la Mare of Aldermaston, Knight.
33. Sir William Norreys of Yattenden, Knight.
1 The Manor of Caversfield was holden of the Prior and Convent of Bicester
by the family of Langston, who were afterwards possessed of the estate in their
own right. In 1471 John Langston was Sheriff of Bucks, and died seized of a
moiety, holden in his own right. In 1490 John Langston senior was Sheriff of
Bucks and designated of Caversfield. In 1496 Thomas Langston also held the
same office, as did another Thomas Langston in 1523 ; and in 1526 it was returned
by an Inquisition that Richard Langston died seized of the Manor of Caversfield
held of the Prior of Bicester at a rent of four marks. This manor passed by
Amye, daughter and heir of Langston, to Thomas Moyle, and having regularly
descended became vested in James Davenport, Esquire, son and heir of Lord Chief
Baron Davenport of Sutton. The Langstons formerly possessed the patronage of
the Church of Tusmore, to which they presented for upwards of a hundred years.
In Caversfield Church, within the chancel, is a brass fixed to a gravestone of
grey marble, having the portraiture of a man in armour and his wife engraven
upon it, with the following inscription : —
'O, pater excelse, miserere precor miserere
Johis : Langstone et conjugis Amisie
Atque sue sobolis qui te in terra coluere
Hosce velis ore jungere celi colis.'
Under it twelve sons and ten daughters. Round the verge this : —
' Orate pro animabus Johis : Langstone armigeri
et Amisie consortis sue qui quidem Johes :
obiit nono die Septemb. Anno Dni. Millesimo
CCCCCVI. quorum animabus ' etc.
2 This must be he (consent of times avowing it) who was afterwards knighted,
and lieth buried in St. Martin's-in-the-Fields, London, with the following in
scription : ' Of your charity, pray for the soul of Sir Humphrey Foster, Knight,
whose body lieth buried here in earth under this marble stone ; which deceased
the 18th day of the month of September, 1500, on whose soul Jesu have mercy.
Amen.' — (Fuller). See note to the Sheriff of 1516.
2 The Manor of Aldermaston is said to have been given to Richard Achard
by King Henry I, in whose family it continued till about the year 1358, when
it passed by marriage to the De la Mares, and from them, about 1500, to the
Forsters (Sheriffs in 1475, 1516, and 1545). — (Lysons' Magna Britannia).

44 COUNTY OF OXFORD.

EDWARD THE FIFTH.
Sir William Norreys continued Sheriff during this
short reign of forty-two days.
RICHARD THE THIRD.
ANNO.
(1483). 1. Thomas Kingeston of Childrey, Esquire.
3. John Barentyne 1 of Little Haseley, Esquire.
3. Edward Franke, Esquire.
HENRY THE SEVENTH.
ANNO.
(1485). 1. Sir Edward Mountford, Knight.
3. Sir William Norreys of Yattenden, Knight.
3. Thomas Say of Bletchingdon, Esquire.
4. William Besilles of Bessels Leigh, Esquire.
5. Sir Thomas de la Mare2 of Aldermaston,
Knight.
6. John Home, Esquire.
7. William Harcourt 3 of Cornbury Park, Esquire.
8. Robert Harcourt 4 of Stanton Harcourt, Esquire.
1 This family of Barentyne of Chalgrove and Little Haseley was of long stand
ing and good repute in this county. In the catalogue of Sheriffs, in a little more
than 2 20 years, the Heads of that family have borne that office fourteen times, the
first that discharged it being Drogo Barentyne, without any addition to his name,
for five years together, toward the end of the reign of Edward II, and the last
Sir William Barentyne, Knight, in 1543. They bore for their arms, Sable, three
Eagles displayed, argent, armed Or. On the north side of the chancel of Great
Haseley Church is a fine table monument belonging to some member of this
family. Leland, /tin. vol. viii. foi. 114, has the following notice: 'One Barentyne, a
younger brother of the chefe house of the Barentines, was a Goldsmithe of London,
and became wonderful riche, and purchased fayre lands, and dyenge, as it is sayde,
without heires, gave parte of his land to a yonger brother of the Barentyns, called
Drew, and he had many children, but in continuance they dyed, and it came then
to the chefe house of the Barentynes. The parcell of lands that Drew left to his
name was Little Haseley in Oxfordshire, wher Sir William Barentyne now
dwellethe.' Leland was presented to the Rectory of Haseley by King Henry VIII
in I542-
2 Hugh Hope, administrator of the goods of Sir Thomas de la Mare, rendered
the account to the Exchequer for this year.
3 Fourth son of Thomas de Harcourt of Stanton Harcourt. The Manor of
Cornbury was granted to his father by the King.
1 Second son of Sir Robert de Harcourt of Stanton Harcourt.

HIGH SHERIFFS. 45
(1493). 9-10. George Gaynsford1 of Hampton Poyle,
Esquire.
1 1. John Ashefeld 2 of Heythrop, Esquire.
12. Hugh Shirley, Esquire.
13. Anthony Fetiplace of North Dench worth,
Esquire 3.
14. George Gaynsford of Hampton Poyle, Esquire.
15. John Basket4, Esquire.
16. William Besilles of Bessels Leigh, Esquire.
1 7. Sir Richard Fowler 5 of Rycote, Knight.
1 He married, first, Isabel daughter and sole heir of Thomas Croxford of
Kidlington-on-the-Green ; secondly, Annie, widow of Sir William Rede, of
Borstall, Knight; and thirdly, Elizabeth, daughter of Sir Robert Harcourt of
Stanton Harcourt. In 1502 the Manor of Hampton Poyle, with the advowson
of the church, was sold by him for the sum of £316 6s. Sd. to Richard Hungerford,
Esquire. The family afterwards settled at Idbury, being mentioned in the Heralds'
Visitation of Oxfordshire, 1574.
2 He was buried in the Chancel of Heythrop Church, where on brass were
engraven the effigies of himself and wife, and this inscription : —
' Of your charity pray for the souls of
John Ashefield Esquire and Elinour his
wife, the which John deceased the 25th
day of December 1521, on whose soules,' &c.
Underneath are brasses of four sons and four daughters.
The window immediately over his monument also contained the proportion of
himself, wife, and children, with this inscription : —
' Orate pro animabus Johannis Ashfield et Elinora
uxoris ejus qui istam fenestram fieri fecerunt
A0 Dni. 1522 de quibus animabus propitietur Deus.'
A pedigree of the Ashfield family is to be found in Wood's MSS., Bodleian
Library. 3 A brass plate in Swinbrook Church commemorates his death on December 23,
1510. 4 He was an esquire of remark and martial activity in his younger days, who in
some years after removed to Devenish in Dorsetshire, to whom King Henry VIII,
going over into France, committed the care of that county. — Fuller.
5 Sir Richard Fowler was created Knight of the Bath at the marriage of
Prince Arthur, eldest son of King Henry VII, with Catherine of Spain, Nov. 1 7,
1501. In a list published of the names of the knights then made, Sir Richard
Fowler is in order the forty-ninth. He died in 1528, and was buried in Trinity
Church, Queenhithe Ward, London. His father, Thomas Fowler, was clerk to
Richard Quartermayns, and was afterwards appointed Chancellor of the Duchy of
Lancaster. Richard Quartermayns adopted Sir Richard Fowler as his heir, who,
by his extravagance, ran through his lands, leaving his children but small livings.
Sir Giles Heron, Treasurer of the Chamber to Henries VII and VIII, bought the
reversion of the lordship of Rycote, which afterwards came to Giles his son ; but

46 COUNTY OF OXFORD.
(1502). 18. Sir John Williams1 of Burghfield, Knight.
19. William Harcourt2 of Stanton Harcourt,
Esquire.
20. Edward Greville, Esquire.
21. Sir Edward Chamberleyne of Shirburn Castle,
Knight.
22-23. Jonn Home, Esquire.
24. Sir John Langford 3 of Bradfield, Knight.
HENRY THE EIGHTH.
ANNO.
(1509). 1. William Essex4 of Lambourne, Esquire.
2. William Harcourt of Stanton Harcourt, Esquire.
he being ' wise in words and foolish in deeds,' as Sir Richard Fowler was, sold
Rycote to John Williams, afterwards John, Lord Williams, of Thame.
In Great Haseley Church, in the north aisle, is the following inscription
engraven on a brass plate, in memory of the Sheriffs second wife, who was a
daughter of Sir John Shaa, Lord Mayor of London 1502 : —
' Here lieth buryed the body of dame Julian Ffowler sometime
Wyfe of Sir Richard Ffowler of Rycote, knighte, y" which
decessed ye 12 dai of August in ye yere of our Lorde God
m.Vxxvii. on whos' soule Ihu. have Mercy. Amen.'
Issuing from the mouth of the figure, on a scroll, is the following prayer : —
' Delicta juventut. mee et ignorantias meas ne memineris
Sed libera me Dne. de morte eterna in die ilia tremenda.'
1 Father of John, Lord Williams of Thame, by Elizabeth, daughter and co-heir
of Richard More of Burghfield, Esquire.
2 The only son of the third wife of Sir Richard Harcourt of Stanton Harcourt.
3 The account was rendered to the Exchequer this year by Thomas Ward,
administrator of the goods of Sir John Langford, Knight.
4 He was a worthy man in his generation, of great command in the County of
Berks (whereof he was four times Sheriff), and the first of his family who fixed at
Lambourne therein on this welcome occasion. He had married Elizabeth, daughter
of Thomas Rogers of Benham, whose grandfather, John Rogers, had married
Elizabeth, daughter and heir of John Shottesbroke of Burcote (whose ancestors had
been Sheriffs of Oxon and Berks in the 4th, 5th, and 6th of King Edward III),
by whom he received a large inheritance. — (Fuller.)
Leland has the following (Itinerary, vol. iv. p. 19) : —
' Mastar Estsax of Barkeshir cummith oute of the house of Estsaxis long sins
Knighttes of Fame of Estsax. The Landes of Estsax were disparkelid, and the
glorie of that Familie was almost extinctid. One William Estsax that died a 60
yeres ago was a politike Felaw, and in favor of the King, and was Under Treasorer
of the Exchequer, the which office Mr. Weston a late had. This Estsax purchacid
Landes aboute London, and is buried in an Isle of the Church of the late Priory of
S. Barptolomes in Smithefeld in London. This William Estsax Son and Heire
married the Danghter and Heire of Babthorpe of Warwikeshir, and by her had a

HIGH SHERIFFS.

47

(151 1). 3. William Barentyne of Little Haseley, Esquire1
4. Thomas Haydok, Esquire.
5. Sir Walter Rodney 2 of Chippingnortonj Knight.
6. Sir Simon Harcourt of Stanton Harcourt, Knight3.
7. Sir John Daunce of Brightwell, Berks., Knight.
8. Sir George Forster 4 of Aldermaston, Knight.
Hunderith Markes by yere of Landes. Estsax, now lyving son to the Doughter of
Babthorpe, toke to wife the Daughter and sole Heire of Rogers of Barkeshir, and
by her he had 300 Markes of Landes by the Yere in Barkeshir and theraboute.
Rogers of Barkeshir came out of Rogers of Dorsetshir, and three of them dwelt by
descent in Barkeshir.'
Ibid. vol. vii. p. 65 : ' Thens (i. e. from Wantage) a 6 myls to Chepinge Lam
bourne, a poore Friday market, by hills well comyd, and some wodds, and passinge
the better Parte of the way, I sawe a greate warren of conies longginge unto Mastar
Estsax, who is Lorde of the Towne by his Mother, the sole Daughter and Heyre
of Mastar Rogers, by whom he hath bettar than 300 marks of Lands by the yere.'
1 He was three times Sheriff during this reign. According to Leland's
Itinerary, ' Master Baretine hath a right fair mansion Place at Little Haseley,
and marvelus fair walkes and orchardes and pooles.' His altar-tomb, surmounted
by his arms and helmet, exists in Great Haseley Church. The arms of the
Barrendyne family which appeared on the windows of the Manor House of
Little Haseley are enumerated by Delafield in his MSS.
2 He married Ann, the daughter of Richard Croft, Esquire, lord of the Manor
of Chipping Norton, by which alliance, after his wife's father's decease, he became
lord of that Manor.
3 He distinguished himself at the sieges of Terouenne and Toumay, and at the
action fought on August 18, 1513, near Guingaste, called ' The Battle of Spurs,' he
was made a Knight Banneret for his bravery. He died January 16, 1547,
and wag interred at Stanton Harcourt. The ' Battle of Spurs ' derived its name
from the French using their spurs in running away more than their swords or other
military weapons. The aim of the war, of which this battle was a part, was ' to-
secure the maintenance of the balance of power in Europe.'
4 He married Elizabeth the daughter and heir of John de la Mare, Esquire,
by which marriage he became possessed of the Manor of Aldermaston. His
father, Humphrey Forster, who served the office of Sheriff in 1475, is described
by Fuller to be of Aldermaston ; but it appears more probable that he was of
Harpsden in Oxfordshire, which was the family seat before they became connected
with Aldermaston. Sir George died in 1526, and an altar-tomb of alabaster is
erected to his memory in Aldermaston Church. — (Lysons.)
The Forster family did not wholly withdraw themselves from Oxfordshire until
about the year 1645, when Bartholomew Hall, Esquire, purchased the Harpsden:
estate of Sir Humphrey Forster ; and the Hall family continuously resided at
Harpsden until a recent date, when the estate passed to its present possessor, John
Fowden Hodges, Esquire, of Bolney Court. The mansion (Harpsden Court)
formerly had seven halls, one of them being called the Beggars' Hall ; that name
arising from the indiscriminate bounty of a former occupant, who exercised
hospitality to all wayfarers. Queen Mary was once entertained for a few days
at Harpsden Court.- In a wood near the house is a small circnmvallation, near
which Roman coins have been found.

48 COUNTY OF OXFORD.
(151 7). 9. Sir Edward Chamberleyne 1 of Shirburn Castle,
Knight.
10. Sir William Essex 2 of Lambourne, Knight.
11. Thomas Englefield3 of Englefield, Esquire.
1 In his capacity as Physician he attended Queen Catharine at Kimbolton in
'535. On a stone in the chancel of Woodstock Church, under the proportion
of a man and a woman engraven on brass, is the following : —
' Edwardus Chamberleynus jacet ecce sepultus,
Ordinis aurati ad sydera notus eques
Annis clarus erat, virtutis clarior, ubi
Antistes morum et nobilitatis honos
Non tantam verbis vitam laudavit honestam,
Sed laus in factis integritatis erat
Pre cunctis leges justi servabat et equi,
Et coluit pura relligione Deum,
At quod divitias nunquam congestit egenus,
In causa fuerat mors inimica bonis.
Scilicet hie mos est fortunae semper iniquae.
Parcius ut daret maxima pro meritis,
Insuper et sortis contemptu munera prudens
Quod dixit remoras ad pietatis opes,
Hostibus hie nunquam vitiis nee victus ab ullis,
Succubuit tandem mors violenta sibi.
Heu quod pellendae morti non snfficiebat,
Ars que tarn multis profuit ante viris,
Heu quod non licuit natis superesse nepotum,
Et valde annosi nomen habere secus.
Sed quando cunctis mors est communis, et ipsum
Extinctum lachrymis non revocare potes,
Fas non lugere est Edwardi funera nobis,
Sed pro illo preculas fnndere quemque decet,
Orandum exutus mortali ut corpore dignum
Inter caelicolas possit habere locum.'
Underneath are the pictures of six sons and six daughters. Round the verge this : —
' Here lyeth buryed, the bodyes of Sir Edward Chamberleyne, Knyght, yt was
Lievtenant of the Queens mannor of Woodstock in the xxii. yeare of Hen. vii. . .
. . . memory King Henry vii  dame Cecely his wife, the whych Sr
Edward dyed the x of Sept. an. mdxliii. aged lxiii. On whose,' &c.
' This Sr. Edw. Chamberleyne, who was of Sherburne, neare Watlington, in com.
Oxon., and of Cotes, in Northamptonshire, was Kt. of the Bath, and by Cicilie his
wife, daughter of John Vemey of Penley, Kt., had more than six children yt lived
to mans and womans estate, of whom was Leonard Chamberleyne of Sherburne,
who being a captaine at Guernsey, died there 3rd Elizabeth.' — Wood's MSS., E. I.
2 Knighted at Tournay, after the King came from Mass, under his banner in the
church, December 25, 1513. 1
3 The second son of Sir Thomas Englefield, Justice of Chester, twice Speaker of
the House of Commons, who died 1514. He was appointed a King's Sergeant in
1523, and a Judge of the Common Pleas ini526. He died on September 28, 1528.
and was buried at Englefield, where there is a brass memorial of him in his robes.

HIGH SHERIFFS. 49
(1520). 12. Henry Brygges, Esquire.
13. John Osbaldeston of Chadlington, Esquire.
14. Sir Simon Harcourt of Stanton Harcourt, Knight.
15. John Fetiplace of East Shefford, Esquire.
16. Sir William Essex of Lambourne, Knight.
17. Sir William Barentyne of Little Haseley, Knight.
18. Thomas Denton of Appleton, Esquire.
19. Thomas Elyott, Esquire.
20. Sir Simon Harcourt of Stanton Harcourt, Knight.
21. William Stafford of Bradfield, Esquire.
22. Henry Bridges, Esquire.
33. Thomas Umpton, Esquire.
24. Sir Humphrey Forster of Aldermaston, Knight.
25. William Fermor1 of Somerton, Esquire.
1 The earliest notice of the Fermor family in connection with Oxfordshire occurs
about the time of Edward IV, when Thomas Richards, alias Ffermor, of Witney,
married Emmotte, the widow of Henry Wenman. His will was proved Sep
tember 9, 1485, in which 'he leaves his body to be buried in Witney Church, and
remembers his sons, William, John, Laurence, and Richard, as also Alice Wayne-
man, Ann Wayneman, and Elizabeth Wayneman, daughters of Emmotte, his wife,
by Henry Wayneman her first husband.' Their connection with the Wenman
family is recorded by Richard Leigh, Pursuivant of arms, in his Visitation of
Oxfordshire, 1574) at which time some remains of inscriptions of each of these
families were in existence in the aisle known as 'Wenman's Aisle' in Witney
Church. The Wenmans were great clothiers and merchants at Witney, and are
reported to derive their name from the circumstance either that they were the first
that used wains or carts with four wheels to carry their cloth to London, or that
the first of them was the driver of a wain. Richard Fermor, eldest son of Thomas,
was the original master of Will Somers, the celebrated jester of Henry VIII.
Dr. Doran, in his History of Court Fools, mentions the favour shown by the King
to Richard Fermor, through the intercession of his former servant. His son, Sir
John Fermor, was the ancestor of the Earls of Pomfret. William Fermor, the
Sheriff for this year, was second son of Thomas, and had a grant of Somerton, but,
dying without issue in 1552, he left it to his nephew, Thomas, son of Richard.
The Chapel on the south side of Somerton Church has, for many generations,
been used as the burial-place of this family, to whom several handsome monuments
have been erected. The inscription to William Fermor is as follows : —
'Here lyeth buried Mr. Wylliam Fermour Esquyre which was Lord of
this towne and patrone of this church, and also Clark of the crowne in
the Kings Bench by Kyng Henry the vii. and Kyng Henry ye vm.
whych dyed ye xxix daye of September in ye yere of our Lord God
mccccclii. and also here lyeth Mestres Elisabeth Fermoure hys last
wyfe, whyche was the dawghter of Syre Wylliam Norryshe Knyght
Upon whose soulls and all chrysten soulls Jesu have mercy.'
Sir Richard Fermor, Knight, son of Thomas, and grandson of Richard, served the
office of Sheriff 44th of Queen Elizabeth. E

50 COUNTY OF OXFORD.
(1534). 26. Sir Walter Stonor of Stonor, Knight.
27. Thomas Carter, Esquire.
28. Sir Anthony Hungerford of Blackbourton, Knight.
29. Sir Simon Harcourt of Stanton Harcourt, Knight.
30. Sir John Williams of Burghfield, Berks, Knight.
31. Richard Bridges of West Shefford, Esquire.
32. Sir William Essex of Lambourne, Knight.
^. Sir Walter Stonor of Stonor, Knight.
34. Sir William Barentyne1 of Little Haseley, Knight.
35. William Fermor of Somerton, Esquire.
36. Sir John Williams of Thame, Knight.
37. Sir Humphrey Forster of Aldermaston 2, Knight.
38. Sir Leonard Chamberleyne of Shirburn Castle,
Knight.

EDWARD THE SIXTH.
ANNO.
(1547). 1. Sir Francis Englefield 3 of Englefield, Knight.
1 His wife Anne was buried in a church at London with a tombstone on which
was this inscription : —
' Here lieth Anne Barentine wyf to Syr William
Barentine, who dyed 27 December 1522. On
whose soule Jesu have mercy.'
This Sir William was possessed of Little Haseley in the days of Leland, but dying
without male issue, his daughter Mary married Anthony Huddleston, Esquire, by
which alliance Haseley Court was transferred to that family. See note to Richard
Huddleston, Sheriff 1574.
2 He was one of the Esquires of the Body to King Henry VIII, and his
descendant Sir Humphrey was honored with a visit from Queen Elizabeth in 1601,
and created a Baronet in 1620.— (Lysons.)
3 The ancient family of Englefield settled at Englefield, Berks, during the reign
of Henry III. Roger de Englefield was Knight of the Shire in 1307. His
descendants frequently filled the same position, and served the office of Sheriff.
Sir Thomas Englefield, who died in 1513, was Speaker of the House of Commons,
and Justice of Chester. His son, Sir Thomas, was one of the Justices of the
Common Pleas. Sir Francis, his grandson, was Privy Councillor to Queen Mary,
and so zealous a Romanist, that after her death he left the land, with a most
large inheritance, and lived for the most part in Spain. He was a most industrious
agent to solicit the cause of the Queen of Scots, both to his Holiness and the
Catholic King ; as also he was a great promoter of, and benefactor to, the
English College at Valladolid in Spain, where he lieth interred. The Manor was
granted by Queen Elizabeth to her Secretary, Sir Francis Walsingham, from whom
it passed by the marriage of his daughter to the Earl of Clanrickard, and after-

HIGH SHERIFFS. 51
(1548). 2. Sir Anthony Cope 1 of Hanwell, Knight.
3. Sir William Rainsford of Great Tew, Knight 2.
4. Richard Fiennes of Broughton Castle, Esquire 3.
5. William Hyde 4 of South Denchworth, Esquire.
6. Sir Leonard Chamberleyne of Shirburn Castle,
Esquire.
MARY.
ANNO.
faSSS)- i- Sir John Williams5 of Thame, Knight, for part of the
year, until he was created Lord Williams, and
wards to John Marquis of Winchester, who married Lady Honora Burg, the Earl's
daughter. After the demolition of Basinghouse, Englefield became the seat of the
Marquis of Winchester. Anne, daughter and sole heir of Lord Francis Pawlet,
only surviving son of the Marquis by his second wife, brought this estate to the
Rev. Nathan Wright, a younger son of the Lord Keeper. On the death of his son,
Nathan, in 1789, Englefield devolved to the late Richard Benyon, Esquire, son of
Governor Benyon, by the widow of Pawlet Wright, elder brother of the last
mentioned Nathan. It is now the property and seat of Richard Benyon, Esquire,
late M.P. for the County of Berks, and Chairman of Quarter Sessions.
1 He was Vice-Chamberlain to Queen Catherine Parr, and knighted in the first
year of King Edward VI. Died 15 51, and buried at Hanwell.
2 The Rectory of Michell Tewe and Chapelry of Nether Worton were granted
to him by Henry VIII. He married Jane, daughter of John Osbaldeston of
Chadlington, and was buried in the chancel of Great Tew Church.
3 M.P. for the County, 1547. On his death in 1579 the title of Baron Saye and
Sele was confirmed to his son, Sir Richard, the Sheriff in 1582 and 1593.
4 At the entrance to the south aisle of South Denchworth Church is a gravestone
containing the following inscription on a brass plate : —
' Here lye we two enclosed now in erth not far apart,
Husband and wife, whiles we had lyfe, whom only death could parte,
My name William, her's Margery, by surname called Hyde,
Which name accord to us live and dead whom now the earth doth hyde;
Whyle we dyd lyve, God gave us grace to harbour clothe and hyde
The naked poor folkes : Injuries we did defend and hyde ;
Now being dead we crave mercy of God, that he will hyde
Hys face from our synnes, and with his arme he from the Devyll us hyde:
And that with saints and happy soules our sely soules may byde
In heaven with God : good folkes we pray, to pray to God, for Hyde.'
And also on a pillar near the gravestone : —
' The whiche William Hyde, Esquyer, decessyd the seconde day of Maye in the
yere of oure Lorde God MCCCCCLVII. And the sayde Margery hys wyfe decessyd
the 27 day of June in the yere of oure Lorde God mccccclxii.'
5 This was the fourth time of his being ^Sheriff, and he was also M.P. for the
County, 1542-1553. Second son of Sir John Williams of Burghfield, Berkshire,
was servant to King Henry VIII, and had in the 18th of that monarch a patent of
£10 per annum for the keeping of a greyhound. He was clerk of the King's
Jewel Office, and on Christmas Eve 1541, at seven at night, a great fire took
E 2

52 COUNTY OF OXFORD.
{^S1^)- Sir John Brome1 of Holton, Knight, for the re
mainder of the year.
place in his house when many of the jewels were burnt and more embezzled. On
May ro, 1545, Sir John Williams, with John D'Oiley, gentleman, and others, was
appointed Commissioner for the suppressing St. Frideswide's College, now Christ
Church, in Oxford, and the Cathedral Church of Osney, by receiving the sur
render of them into the King's hands. Sir John Williams was amongst the fore
most in supporting Queen Mary, for which, in April 1554, he was honoured with
the title of Lord Williams of Thame. The next year, with Sir Henry Bedingfield,
he was appointed Keeper of the Princess, afterwards Queen Elizabeth ; and in May
that year gave her a noble entertainment at his house at Rycote, and was much
more gentle to his charge than Sir Henry Bedingfield, whom Queen Elizabeth
afterwards used to call her Gaoler. Lord Williams was the bearer of a request to
Queen Mary from Bishop Ridley, before his martyrdom, regarding the continuance
of the leases he had made to his poor tenants. He married, first, Elizabeth,
daughter and co-heiress of Thomas Bledlow, Esquire, and widow of Andrew
Edmunds, Esquire, of Cressing Temple, Essex ; and, secondly, Margery, daughter
of Baron Wentworth. He died October 14, 1559, and was buried in the midst of
the chancel of Thame Church, where on a white marble tomb lie the effigies of
himself and one of his wives, with their heads towards the east, and on one side a
plate of brass, with this inscription : —
' Parva tegit cineres Gulielmides urna Joannis :
Nulla tegent tanti secula facta viri.
Quern dotes animi, fortunse dotibus ultro
Ornarflnt, sortis munere plus meritum ;
Nam potuit virtus meritis si acquirere fortis,
Munera, divitias, vir bonus ecce tulit.
Tam bonus, ut merito cunctis charissimus esset
Ordinibus, titulis major et ille suis.
Si quseris de stirpe, satus non vilis; Eqnestri,
Factus eques ; Procerum, post procer unus erat.
Regum aeri questor; Regali exinde cubili;
Postremum Cambro prsefuit et populo.'
A detailed description of his funeral, as well as a history of his life, will be found
in Dr. Lee's History of Thame.
Lord Williams purchased the manors of Great and Little Rycot, Oxon, and
obtained a grant from the Crown of the manors of Wytham and Botley, Berks,
and Weston-on-the-Green, Oxon. He left issue, Isabel, married to Sir Richard
Wenman, Knight, and Margery, married to Sir Henry Norreys, Knight, afterwards
Baron Norreys of Rycote. Upon his death the Barony fell into abeyance. The
Rev. Dr. Lee states, in his History of Thame, that this Sheriff officially at
tended the execution of Cranmer, Ridley, and Latimer at Oxford ; and in the
detailed account of Archbishop Cranmer's death it is recorded that the Archbishop
was brought by the Mayor and Aldermen and my Lord Williams, with whom
came divers gentlemen of the shire, Sir T. A. Bridges, Sir John Browne, and
others. (Harl. MSS. 422. foi. 48; Strype's Memorials?) The fact that Lord
Williams officially attended as Sheriff seems doubtful, as he ceased to be Sheriff
upon being created a Peer, and Ridley and Latimer were burned on October 16,
1555, and Cranmer on March 21, 1556.
1 The monument lately standing on the north side of the chancel of Holton
Church to the memories of Sir John Brome, Knight, Sheriff this year, and Sir

HIGH SHERIFFS. ft

PHILIP AND MARY.
ANNO.
(J554)- 1-2. Sir Richard Bridges, Knight.
2-3. Sir William Rainsford 1 of Great Tew, Knight.
3-4. Thomas Bridges, Esquire.
4-5. John Denton of Appleton, Esquire.
5-6. Richard Fiennes of Broughton Castle, Esquire.
ELIZABETH.
ANNO.
(1558). 1. Edward Ashefeld of Heythrop, Esquire.
2. Edward Fabian of Compton, Esquire.
3. John D'Oyly of Chislehampton, Esquire.
4. Henry Norreys 2 of Rycot, Esquire.
Christopher Brome, Knight, Sheriff 8th of Queen Elizabeth, has, through the
liberality of William Earle Biscoe, Esquire (the present patron, and possessor of
the Holton estate), been carefully restored, and placed within the small chapel
on the south side of the church, built by William Brome, who died in 1461. The
inscription is as follows : — ' Hoc Monumentum
D. Johanni Brome de Halton in Comita. Oxon. Militi, Mortuo 240 die mensis
Julii Anno Domini 1558 et D. Margaretae conjugi suae sorori et Haeredi
Thomse Rous de Racley in Comitatu Warwici qui reliquerunt unum filium et
octo filias. Necnon
D. Christofero Brome Militi filio eorundem mortuo 23'° die mensis Aprilis A.
Dom. 1589 et D. Alienorae conjugi suae filiae Gulielmi Baronis Windesore de
Bradenham qui reliquerunt duos filios et quinq. filias. Charissimis, Avis et
parentibus posuit Georgius Brome armiger.'
George Brome, son of the above Christopher, was Sheriff in the 39th year of
Queen Elizabeth's reign.
1 The account to the Exchequer was rendered by Hercules Rainsford, executor
of the will of Sir William Rainsford, Knight.
2 Son-in-law to the Lord Williams of Thame, having married his youngest
daughter and co-heiress, Margery. He was by Queen Elizabeth created Baron
Norreys, of Rycot, in Oxfordshire. It is hard to say whether this tree of honour
was more remarkable for the root from whence it sprang, or for the branches that
sprung from him. He was son to Sir Henry Norreys, who suffered in the cause of
Queen Anne Bullen, grandchild to Sir Edward Norreys, who married Friswide,
sister and co-heir to the last Lord Lovell. He was father (though himself of a
meek and mild disposition) to the martial brood of the Norreys. Elizabeth, his
great-grandchild, sole daughter and heir unto Francis Norreys, Earl of Berkshire,
and Baroness Norreys, was married unto Edward Wray, Esquire, whose only
daughter, Elizabeth Wray, Baroness Norreys, was married unto Montague Bertie,
Earl of Lindsey. — (Fuller.)

54 COUNTY OF OXFORD.
(1562). 5. Richard Wenman x of Thame Park, Esquire.
6. John Croker of Hooknorton, Esquire.
7. Thomas Stafford of Bradfield, Esquire.
8. Sir Christopher Brome of Holton, Knight.
From this date, the List consists of Sheriffs of the County of Oxford only.
(1566). 9. Sir Richard Fiennes of Broughton Castle, Knight.
10. Humphrey Ashefeld of Heythrop, Esquire.
1 1 . Richard Taverner 2 of Wood Eaton, Esquire.
1 2. Thomas Gibbons of Ditchley, Esquire.
13. Sir Richard Wenman of Thame Park, Knight.
14. John Danvers of Calthorp, Banbury, Esquire.
15. Hercules Raynesforde 3 of Great Tew, Esquire.
16. Sir William Babington4 of Kiddington, Knight.
17. Michael Mullins, Esquire.
( Sir Robert D'Oyly of Merton, Knight ; and
I John Cowper, Esquire.
Mr. Hart, Undersheriff to Sir R. D'Oyly.
1 He married Isabel eldest daughter and coheiress of Lord Williams of Thame,
and in right of his wife succeeded to the Thame Park Estate. He was the grand
father of the first Viscount Wenmam, Sheriff in 1627. Died 1572.
2 It is related of this Sheriff that in the year of his Shrievalty he came to Oxford,
and went up into the pulpit of St. Mary's with a sword by his side and a gold
chain about his neck, where he made an oration to the University beginning thus :
' Arriving at the Mount of S. Marie's in the stony stage wherein I now stand, I
have brot you som fyne biskets baked in y" oven of charity, carefully conserved for
the chickens of y8 Church, the sparrows of the Spirit, and the sweet swallows of
salvation,' &c. Though a layman, he had obtained from the Protector Somerset a
licence to preach. Mr. Taverner died at Woodeaton in 1575. ' He was some
time of Cardinal College, Oxford (Christ Church), afterwards Master of Arts, and
at length Clerk of the Signet to King Henry VIII and King Edward VI, from the
last of whom he obtained letters (though a mere layman) to preach the word of
God in any church of His Majesty's dominions. A good scholar he was of his
time, but an enemy not only to the Catholic religion, but to the ceremonies of the
Church of England, now in their infancy.' — Anthony Wood.
3 The son of Sir William Raynsford, Sheriff in 1549 and 1555.
4 Knighted by Queen Elizabeth during the year of his Shrievalty. He lived at
Kiddington, where his ancestors had resided since the time of Henry VI, having
previously settled at Chilwell in Nottinghamshire. Sir William Babington was
one of the victims of the Black Assize in 1576. The Manors of Upper and Lower
Kiddington, and Asterley, as also the advowsori of the Church of Kiddington,
were purchased in 1613 by Sir Henry Browne, Knight, third son of Antony Browne,
the first Lord Viscount Montague, from the representative of the Babington family.
5 This was the year of the Black Assize at Oxford, when the High Sheriff

HIGH SHERIFFS. $$
(1576). 19. William Hawtry, Esquire.
20. Richard Corbet, Esquire.
31. Edmund Bray of Alvescot, Esquire.
32. Richard Huddleston 1 of Little Haseley, Esquire.
23. Thomas Denton, of Wardington, Esquire.
24. Anthony Cope 2 of Hanwell Castle, Esquire.
(D'Oyly), one of the Judges (Lord Chief Baron Bell), Sir Nicholas Barham,
Sergeant-at-Law, Messrs. Wenman, Danvers, Fettiplace and Harcourt, Magi
strates, most of the Jury, and about 300 other persons, died within two days. At
the trial of Rowland Jenks, a. bookseller at Oxford, for seditious words, a disease
was communicated, by a poisonous stench brought with the prisoners from the
gaol, to almost all that were present at the trial, except women and children. It
has been remarked that Stow, Camden, and Dr. Ethryg, a physician who then
practised at Oxford, differ in their accounts of the number that died, though they
agree that, among them, there was neither woman nor child. An event of the
same kind happened at Cambridge in 1522 ; and at the Old Bailey in May, 1750.
Katherine D'Oyly, executrix of the will of Sir John D'Oyly, returned his account
to the Exchequer.
1 He was heir to the Barentynes, lords of Little Haseley, by the marriage of his
father, Anthony Huddleston, Esquire, with Mary Barentyne. She died in 1581,
when the noble family of Barentyne lost their last representative in this County.
The said Mary lies buried in the chancel of Haseley Church with the following
inscription under her portraiture, in brass : —
' Here lieth the body of Mary Huddleston, Daughter of Sir William Barentyne,
Knight, and Wife of Anthony Huddleston Esquire. A Gentlewoman of such
virtue, wisdom, and Godliness, as we have great cause to thank God for her ; and
to have sure hope, that she is exalted to a Crown of Glory. She dyed the 15 day
of May 1581.'— Delafield's MSS.
2 He married first Frances, daughter of Rowland Lytton, Esquire, of Knebworth,
and secondly Anne, daughter of Sir William Paston, Knight, of Paston in Norfolk.
Died July, 1614, and was buried in the chancel of Hanwell Church. He repre
sented Banbury in seven Parliaments during the reign of Queen Elizabeth, and the
County of Oxford in the following reign. He was one of the leaders of the early
Puritans, and having on February 27, 1587, in Parliament, moved a petition 'That
all laws then in force touching ecclesiastical government should be void,' and that
' no other form of common prayer should be used other than what was contained in
a book he presented to the House,' he, with others, was committed to the Tower
by the Queen, where he remained until the dissolution of the Parliament on the
23rd of March. The Queen's displeasure, however, towards Mr. Cope does not
appear to have been lasting, for she knighted him in 1590 ; and in 1601 she
intended to visit him at Hanwell, which visit does not seem to have taken
place. In September of that year, when the Queen was at Caversham, at the seat
of her Minister, Sir Francis Knollys, Sir Anthony Cope went there to wait upon
her, ' with a great show and train of retainers.' He is said to have kept ' a
hospitable house in the old English style.' On the 20th of August, 1605, he
entertained King James and his Queen, at Hanwell, for a day and a night ; and
again on the occasion of a second visit on the 27th of August, 161 2. He was
created a baronet on the first institution of that order in 161 1.

56 COUNTY OF OXFORD.
(1582). 25. Richard Fiennes of Broughton Castle, Esquire.
26. Owyne Oglethorp 1 of Newington, Esquire.
27-28. John D'Oyly of Merton, Esquire2
29. Michael Blount 3 of Mapledurham, Esquire.
30. John Danvers, Esquire4
31. William Clerke, Esquire.
— -33. William Spencer 5 of Yarnton, Esquire.
1 The family of Oglethorp (formerly of Oglethorp in Yorkshire), settled at
Newington in Oxfordshire at the commencement of the sixteenth century. Owen
Oglethorp, the Sheriff, was son of John Oglethorp of Newington, and nephew of
Owen Oglethorp, President of Magdalen College, Oxford, and Bishop of Carlisle.
2 His monument is in Merton Church, bearing this inscription : —
' Here lyeth buried John Doyley of Merton, Esquier, who has been Shrieve and
Justice of the Peace in Oxfordshire. Hee lived with great reputation in his
Countrye, for his sincerity in his religion, integrity of life, equity in justice, and.
hospitality. He died the 17 of June An. Dom. 1593, of the reign of Queen
Elizabeth 35. This John Doyley was descended of the Doyleys who were Barons,
in the Conqueror's time, of Hooknorton in the County of Oxford, Founders of the
Abbey of Oseney and of the Castle of Oxford, and were also the Lords of Wal
lingford Castle. Anne Bernard, who made for him this monument, being the
daughter of Francis Bernard of Northamptonshire Esquire, was his onlie wife, by
whom he had issue these 4 daughters and heirs, Margerie, Katherine, Anne, and
Eliza.' 3 The ancient family of Blount is traced from the Counts of Guisnes in Picardy,
a race of nobles themselves descended from the Scandinavian rulers of Denmark.
Sir William Le Blount accompanied William the Conqueror to England, and was
a General of foot at the battle of Hastings. The first connection of this family
with Oxfordshire was upon Richard Blount purchasing, in the fifteenth century, the
Manor of Mapledurham Gurney : and in 1581 Sir Michael Blount purchased the
Manor of Mapledurham Chawsey, and soon after erected the fine Elizabethan
mansion which is still the family residence. On the death of Charles Blount, Earl
of Devonshire and Lord Mountjoy, Sir Michael Blount, in 1606, claimed the
Barony of Mountjoy, but unsuccessfully. He succeeded Sir Owen Hopton as
Lieutenant of the Tower of London in 1590, and he was buried in St. Peter's Church
in the Tower. Of this family was Martha Blount, to whom Pope's attachment has
given such celebrity. The family is now represented by the Sheriff of the present
year, 1888.
4 This Sheriff and his ancestor, the Sheriff in 1571, belong to an ancient family
who resided at Calthorp, near Banbury. The family were owners of the advowson
of Stoke Talmage, afterwards purchased by the Earl of Macclesfield. They were
also owners of the Marsh Baldon estate, and sold it to the Pollards, from whom it
descended to the Willoughby family. John Danvers was the father of Sir William
Danvers and Robert Danvers, both Justices of the Common Pleas. This Sheriff
was in his year of office engaged in a serious controversy, having reference to
strong feelings upon Puritanism, with the Lord Lieutenant, which came before the
Judges of Assize. — Beesley's Banbury.
5 In a chapel on the south side of the chancel of Yarnton Church, built by Sir
Thomas Spencer, Baronet, is a fair monument, whereon is the proportion of a man

HIGH SHERIFFS. 57
(1590). 33. Anthony Cope of Hanwell Castle, Esquire.
34. Robert Chamberlayne x of Shirburn Castle,
Esquire.
2,5- Francis Stonor of Stonor Park, Esquire.
James Kidder, Undersheriff.
^6. Sir Richard Fiennes 2 of Broughton Castle, Knight.
Mr. Pilsworth, Undersheriff.
37. Owyne Oglethorpe of Newington, Esquire.
38. William Frere 3 of Watereaton, Esquire.
in alabaster, armed, lying on his back, with his helmet and crest under his head,
and gauntlets at his feet. His wife also lying by his left side. At the side of the
monument is this inscription, on a black marble tablet, referring to this Sheriff : —
' Sir William Spencer Knight, Lord of this Mannour, third Son of Sir John
Spencer of Althorp in the Countie of Northampton Knight, here resteth with
Margaret his wife daughter of Francis Bowyer of Middlesex Esquire, leaving issue
two sons and 5 daughters. They both as they lived vertuouslie and laudably, so
in assured hope to live eternally in Christ, ended this transitory life, Hee the 18 of
December 1609 She the 19 of June 1608.'
1 In the parish church of Shirburn, Oxfordshire, is the following inscription on
a mural monument : —
' Sub hoc tumulo resurrectionem in Christo expectat Robertus Chamberlain de
Sherbom in Comitatu Oxon. armiger, qui cum ex charissima uxore Alicia filia et
una haeredum Henrici Codenham de London armigeri 4 liberos Richardum,
Robertum, Annane, et Anthonium, suscepisset, et pietate, virtutibus se Deo, patriae
et bonis viris egregie probasset, in ccelesem patriam demigravit xxi November 1602.
Cui mcestisima conjux cum luctu et lachrimis in mutui amoris et conjugalis fidei
testimonium hoc monumentum posuit.
Ad marmor sepulchrale dilectissimi patris sui
Roberti Chamberlayne,
Marmor, quod pretiosa mei tegis ossa parentis
Futum hunc thesaurum dum licet (oro) tegas
Multi ilium (multi ut memorant) dum virit, amarunt
Dignus ut a multis diligeretur, erat,
Tu, tam dilecti quamvis solum ossa recondos,
Da tamen iis requiem dant decus ilia tibi,
Pars ejus melior mecum est, pars optima cselo,
Pars tua si pereat, nostra perennis erit.
Roberti filius et hseres.'
2 King James confirmed, on August 9, 1603, the title of the Baron Saye and
Sele upon Sir Richard Fiennes, lineally descended from Sir James Fiennes, Baron
Saye and Sele, and Lord High Treasurer of England, who was cruelly beheaded by
a rabble of rebels, under Jack Cade, in the time of Henry VI. This Sheriff's son
William, the distinguished leader in the Civil War on the side of the Parliament,
was created Viscount Saye and Sele 1624, and the Viscounty became extinct in
1781. 3 The following entry occurs in the Council Book of the City of Oxford, July 6,
r596 (39 Queen Elizabeth): —

58 COUNTY OF OXFORD.
(I59^)- 39. George Brome1 of Holton Castle, Esquire.
40. Sir Michael Blount of Mapledurham, Knight '
41. Francis Curson of Waterperry, Esquire.
42. William Greene, Esquire3.
43. William Pope of Wilcot, Esquire 4.
44. Sir Richard Fermor of Somerton, Knight 5.

JAMES THE FIRST.
anno.
(1603). 1. Sir Anthony Cope of Hanwell Castle, Knight.
2. George Tipping of Wheatfield, Esquire 6
3. Sir James Harrington of Merton, Knight 7.
'It is agreed at this Counsell that Mr. Ffrere, nowe High Sheriffe of this
Countie of Oxon, shall have a hoggeshead of Claret Wyne bestowed on him against
the next Assizes, at the Citie's charge.'
1 Upon the dispersion of the estates of the Quartermaynes, through the prodi
gality of Sir Richard Fowler, the adopted heir and Sheriff in 1501, the Manor of
Holton came into the possession of Sir William Brome, who had married the
daughter and heiress of Baldington of Albury. It remained in this family until the
marriage of Sir Thomas Whorwood with Ursula, daughter and sole heiress of
George Brome, and continued in his family until 1801, when Henry Mayne
Whorwood, Esquire, of Headington, sold the estate.
2 He also served as Sheriff in 1586.
3 It is recorded in Queen Elizabeth's Progresses- that in September of this year,
while her Majesty " abode at Reading, she went one day to dinner at Mr.
Comptroller's, Sir William Knollys, at Caversham. Mr. Greene, Sheriff of
Oxfordshire, met Her Majesty at the Bridge, very well accompanied.'
4 A nephew of Sir Thomas Pope, the founder of Trinity College, Oxford, which
College he entered July 7, 1587. On the arrival of James I in England, he was
created a Knight of the Bath, July 24, 1603, and on May 22, 1611, a Baronet by
the style of Sir William Pope of Wilcot, Oxfordshire. He was afterwards made
Earl of Downe by Charles I. He built the present mansion house at Wroxton,
which he finished in 1618 ; and he also built a mansion at Coggs on the site of the
Priory dissolved by Henry VI. He died July 2, 1631, and was buried at Wroxton,
where an alabaster monument represents the recumbent figures of himself and his
wife, who was the widow of Henry Lord Wentworth.
5 See the note to his ancestor, the Sheriff in 1533.
The ancient mansion ceased to be inhabited by the Fermor family at the
beginning of the eighteenth century, and they subsequently settled at Tusmore.
The manor and estate of Somerton was sold by them to the Earl of Jersey in
1817. 6 The pedigree of this family is given in the Harl. MSS., including the Sheriffs in
1641 and»i7i6. (Lee's Thame.)
7 Sir Jatnes Harrington (a descendant of the D'Oylys by a female heir) resided
at the Plac* House, Merton, and was lord of the Manor. He forfeited the estate
in consequence of the part he took in the Great Rebellion, but in King Charles II's

HIGH SHERIFFS. 59
(1606.) 4. Sir Thomas Temple, Knight.
5. Sir Rowland Lacy of Shipton under Whichwood,
Knight.
6. Henry Sambome, Esquire.
7. Sir Michael Dormer 1 of Ascot, Knight.
8. Benedict Winchcombe 2 of Noke, Esquire.
reign Lady Harrington sold her furniture and bought back the estate. Upon the
forfeiture Sir James retired to London, and lived there in obscurity till his
death. Upon that event his body was secretly conveyed to Merton, and interred
near one of the doors of the south aisle, under pretence of it being the corpse of a
gentlewoman who died in childbed. But some years after his family removed the
body into the chancel, where it lies without any memorial.
1 The manor and estate of Great Milton (of which parish Ascot was a hamlet)
belonged successively to the Danvers family, and then the Brays, who sold the
property to Sir Michael Dormer, Lord Mayor of London in 1541, and ancestor of
Lord Dormer. Sir Michael was the son of Geoffrey Dormer, a woolstapler of
Thame, and was succeeded in the Milton and Ascot estates by his son Ambrose
Dormer, who died in 1566. And his son was Sir Michael Dormer, the above
Sheriff, who died in 1624, when the estate passed to Sir Robert Dormer, the Sheriff
in 1628.
2 The manor and advowson of Noke were purchased from the Fermors by
Benedict Winchcombe, who was buried in the small chapel (now destroyed)
attached to the north-east side of Noke Church, in 1623. The estate passed to his
sister Mary, the wife of Benedict Hall, Esquire, heiress to him. His effigy
(removed from the chapel) is now within the chancel of Noke Church, broken off
at the knees. His ancestor was a rich clothier living at Newbury, Berks, in the
time of Henry VIII, noted for a generous and public-spirited man, as also for his
riches, and was commonly called Jack of Newbury. The great number of hands
employed by him is curiously related in verse, in an old black-letter book, entitled
The Life and Gests of Jack of Newbury : —
' Within one room, being large and long, And each sleeve, with a silken band,
There stood two hundred looms full Was fairly tied at the hand.
strong; These pretty maids did never lin
Two hundred men, the truth is so, But in that place all day did spin,
Wrought in these looms all in a row, And spinning so with voices meet,
By every one a pretty boy, Like nightingales they sung full sweet.
Sate making quills with mickle joy, Then to another room came they,
And in another place hard by, Where children were in poor array,
An hundred women merrily And every one sat picking wool
Were carding hard with joyful cheer, The finest from the coarse to cull,
Who singing, sat with voyces cleer ; The number was seven score and ten,
And in a chamber close beside The children of poor silly men :
Two hundred maidens did abide, And these their labors to requite,
In petticoats of stammel red, Had every one a penny at night
In milk-white kerchers on their head ; Beside their meat and drink all day,
Their smock sleeves like to winter- Which was to them a wondrous stay.
snow Within another place likewise,
That on the western mountains flow, Full fifty proper men he spies,

60 COUNTY OF OXFORD.
(1611). 9. Thomas Moyle1 of Caversfield, Esquire.
10. Sir William Clerke2 of North Weston, Knight.
Richard Osbolston, Undersheriff.
11. Sir Henry Lee3 of Ditchley, Baronet.
Nicholas Robbes, Undersheriff.
And these were shearmen every one, A brewer eke for ale and beer,
Whose skill and cunning there was A baker for to bake his bread,
shown. Which stood his household in good
And hard by them there did remain, stead.
Full fourscore rowers taking pain. Five cooks within his kitchen great
A dyhouse likewise had he then, Were all the year to dress his meat,
Wherein he kept full forty men, Six scullion boys unto their hands,
And likewise in his fulling mill, To make clean dishes, pots and pans,
Full twenty persons kept he still. Beside poor children that did stay
Each week ten good fat oxen he To turn the broaches every day.
Spent in his house for certainty : The old man that did see this sight
Besides good butter, cheese, and fish, Was much amazed, as well he might.
And many another wholesome dish. This was a gallant clothier sure,
He kept a butcher all the year, Whose fame for ever shall endure.'
Jack of Newbury is represented to have gone before Henry VIII ' in a plain russet
coat, a pair of white kersey slops, without welt or guard, and stockings of the same
piece sewed to his slops.' The caprices in dress at this period were thus
ridiculed by a satirist and caricatured by an engraver : —
' I am an Englishman, and naked I stand here,
Musing in my mind what raiment I shall wear.
For now I will wear this, and now I will wear that,
And now I will wear, — I cannot tell what.'
1 On an alabaster stone on the ground in Caversfield Church is the following
inscription: —
' Here lyeth Thomas Moyle of Caversfeild in the countie of Bucks, Esquire,
second son to Thomas Moyle (of Bucknell in the countie of Oxon) Esquire
and Mercy his wife, who married Mary North daughter of Sir Henry North
of Millner in the countie of Suffolke. Hee departed this life the 10 of June
an. dom. 1649. Some men desire rich monuments to frame,
Onelie a stone I leave in memory of my name.
There is little happiness in monuments of stone,
My happiness in Heaven's, in Christ alone.'
2 This Sheriff, the son of Nicholas Clerke, died Feb. 1, 1624, and was buried
at Hitcham. He was the grandson of the famous Sir John Clerke, who lies
buried in the chancel of Thame Church ; upon whose monument is the following
inscription : —
' Here lyeth Sir John Clerke of Northe Weston Knyght, wyche toke Lovys
of Orleans Duk of Longueville and Marquis of Rotuelin prysoner at the
Tomey of Bomy by Terouane,' y" xvith day of August in vth year of the reigne
of the noble and victorious Kyng Henry y8 VIIIth, which John decessyd the
vtb day of April, a0, dni. 1539 : whose soule God pardon.'
" Made a Baronet by James I, 22nd May, 1611, on the first institution of that
title. He was appointed a Knight of the Garter by Queen Elizabeth. He was

HIGH SHERIFFS. 61
(1614). 12. Edward Dunch of Newington, Esquire.
Richard Osbolston, Undersheriff.
13. Thomas Read, Esquire.
Nicholas Robbes, Undersheriff.
14. Sir Thomas Spencer1 of Yarnton, Knight and
Baronet.
William Batson, Undersheriff.
15. Sir John Curson of Waterperry, Knight.
Richard Osbolston, Undersheriff.
16. Edward Fenner, Esquire.
Richard Gosteloe, Undersheriff.
17. Sir William Cope of Hanwell Castle, Knight and
Baronet.
Hugh Candishe, Undersheriff.

great-grandfather of Sir Edward Henry Lee, who was raised to the peerage as
Earl of Lichfield, Viscount Quarrendon, and Baron Lee of Spelsbury, July 5th,
1674. This peerage became extinct on the death of Robert, fourth Earl, in 1776,
when the estates in Oxfordshire passed to Henry, second Viscount Dillon, of
Ireland, who had married, October 20th, 1745, Lady Charlotte Lee, eldest
daughter of George Henry, second Earl of Lichfield. The following lines are
placed upon this Sheriff's monument immediately under the Latin inscription : —
' To the happie memorie of Sir Henry Lee, Knight and Baronett.
They whose inglorious undeserving dayes
Of life deserve noe memorie nor prayse
Of future and succeeding ages, these
Have need of marble Tombes, Pyramides
To keep alive their names, and fame, but he
Whose sacred ashes here entombed be,
Needes no such Oratours to speak his praise,
No lying epitaphes, aeternal bayes,
Which nere shall wither, are the just desert
Of his rare vertues, which transcend the art
Of all expression, this tombe's sole intent
Shewes he deserves, but needes no monument.
Sleep then sweet Soule, we'l not injure thee soe,
As wish thee here again with us in woe.'
1 Son and heir of Sir William Spencer, Knight. He married Margaret, daughter
of Richard Branthwayte, serjeant-at-law, and died August 17, 1622, and was
buried the next day in a chapel he had erected on the south side of the chancel
of Yamton Church. On the failure of heirs male of the body of Sir Thomas
Spencer, the third baronet, the reversion of the estate, manor, and three-fourths
of the advowson were purchased by Sir Robert Dashwood, of Kirtlington, in 1695,
after the death of Lady Spencer, for which he gave the sum of £31,000, and in
the year 1711 or thereabouts came into possession of it.

62 COUNTY OF OXFORD.
(1620). 18. Sir Richard Baker1 of Steeple Aston, Knight.
William Batson, Undersheriff.
19. Sir Francis Stonor of Stonor Park, Knight.
Nicholas Crouch, Undersheriff.
20. Rowland Lacy of Pudlicot, Esquire 2.
Hugh Candishe, Undersheriff.
21. Sir William Aishcombe of Alvescot, Knight.
Molineus Paulins, Undersheriff,
22. Walter Dunch of Newington, Esquire 8.
CHARLES THE FIRST.
ANNO.
1625. Sir Richard Blount of Mapledurham, Knight4.
John Bromely, Undersheriff.
1626. Richard, Lord Lovelace of Watereaton 5, and
Sir Cope D'Oyly 6 of Chiselhampton, Knight.
1 Sir Richard Baker, Knight, was a native of Oxfordshire. His youth he spent
in learning the benefit whereof he reaped in his old age, when his estate, through
surety-ship (as I have heard him complain), was very much impaired. But God
may smile on them on whom the world doth frown ; whereof his pious old age
was a memorable instance, when the storm on his estate forced him to fly for
shelter to his studies and devotions. He wrote an Exposition on the Lord's
Prayer, which is co-rival with the best comments which professed Divines have
written on that subject. He wrote a chronicle on our English Kings, embracing
a method peculiar to himself, digesting observables under several heads, very
useful for the reader. The Reverend Knight left this troublesome world about the
beginning of our Civil Wars. — Fuller. He was the grandson of Sir J. Baker,
of Lilinghurst, Kent, Chancellor of the Exchequer. On his death, which occurred
in the Fleet, London, February 8, 1644, his estates at Steeple and Middle Aston
were sold to Sir Richard Hawkins.
2 Sir Rowland Lacy's family belonged to Shipton-under-Wychwood. He
married Constance, daughter of Sir Thomas Lucas of Colchester.
3 He was a descendant of the family of Dunch of Little Wittenham, Berkshire.
He built the present mansion at Newington near the church, which was modernised
by Mr. George White in 1777. The Sheriff died in- January, 1664. There is a
monument in the church to Henry Dunch, Esquire, who died in 1686, with a com
plimentary epitaph from the pen of Waller the Poet.
4 The eldest son of Sir Richard Blount and the grandson of Sir Michael, the
Sheriff in 1586 and 1597. He married the daughter of Sir John Burroughs, Garter
King of Arms. He was appointed by Charles I Commissioner for the loan
money of the County.
5 Lord Lovelace had a fine seat at Watereaton. From him the estate passed
to his son-in-law, Sir Henry Johnson, and it now belongs to the family of Sawyer,
of Heywood Lodge, Berks.
0 He was son and heir of Sir Robert D'Oyly, of Greenlands, Hambleden,

HIGH SHERIFFS. 63
a place celebrated for the remarkable events which happened in the time of the
Civil Wars, when the house was garrisoned for the King in 1644, with the
intention of commanding the passage over the Thames from Reading and Henley
to London. The siege of Greenland House is described in Whitelock's Memorials
as follows: — In May 1644 tQe Earl of Essex, Lord General, whose forces were
quartered at Henley, reconnoitred Greenland House and certified the Parliament
that it was very prejudicial to the cause, but unsafe for him to make an attack
upon it without a reinforcement of troops ; and Major-General Skippon approach
ing the works had his horse shot under him. In June, the House of Lords sent
a message to the House of Commons, desiring that a Regiment of Foot, at least,
might be sent to join the Forces before Greenland House, to batter it from the
opposite side of the Thames ; but the King being again at Oxford, the siege was
discontinued until the arrival of Major-General Brown, with additional forces, the
better to ensure its reduction ; and the Major-General having planted batteries
on the opposite bank of the Thames, battered the House, and sent for some
petards and two more pieces of ordnance, so that in the month of July the
besiegers had nearly destroyed the House ; but a party being sent from Oxford
and Wallingford to the relief of the besieged, the Parliamentary forces at that
time being but few in number, drew off to Henley. However, the King's forces
brought but little relief, only carrying away in safety twenty-nine women, with
some plunder, and so returning, the besiegers renewed the attack ; and, in a few
days, Major-General Brown, with his whole brigade, having joined the assailants,
the Governor of Greenland, Colonel Hawkins, demanded a parley, and sur
rendered the House to Major-General Brown upon conditions. The mansion being
destroyed, Sir John D'Oyley sold this estate, in 165 1, to Bulstrode Whitlock,
Esq., who transferred it to Penning Alstone, Esquire, from whom it passed to
Robert Chandler, Esquire, Alderman of London, in 1669; from him it was con
veyed to John Green, Esquire, who was Lord of this Manor in 1687. Mr. Green
bequeathed this estate to his two daughters ; and by an agreement, Mill-end
passed to the eldest, who was married, from whom it descended to Richard Lane,
Esquire, who was High Sheriff of Bucks in 1756. His widow, Anne, was sub
sequently married to the Rev. Thomas Hinde, and, surviving him, possessed that
part of the estate called Mill-end, or Ewden ; but Greenland became the property
of Elizabeth, the second daughter, who was married to Mr. Baker, by whom that
property was sold in 17*9 to Mr. Robert Ayre; and passing in marriage by
Elizabeth, his sole daughter and heiress, to Henry Stevens, Esquire, Proctor in.
Doctors' Commons ; his son, the Reverend Henry Stevens, Rector of Bradfield,
Berks, was lord of the Manor in 1797, but he sold the estate about the year i8iov
to Mr. Coventry. The present mansion called Greenlands is the property and
residence of the Right Hon. W. H. Smith, M.P.
Sir Cope D'Oyley married the sister of Francis Quarles, the author of The
Emblems, and Sir Cope and his wife lie buried in Hambleden Church, where is
a fine monument composed of alabaster and black marble, with the effigy of him
occupying the dexter side and that of his wife the sinister. On the tablet under
the dexter arch is this inscription : —
'To the Memory of that Noble Knight Sr Cope D'Oyley, late Deputy
Lieut, of Oxfordshire, and Justice of Oyer and Terminer, Heir of the Antient
and famous family of the D'Oyleys in Oxfordshire, Founders of Osney and
Missenden and the Castle of Oxford, who put on Immortality the 4th of
August 1663.'
Under the other arch on the other tablet this inscription :—
' To the Memory of that rare example of undistayned Vertue Martha, wife

64 COUNTY OF OXFORD.
1627. Sir Richard Wenman1 of Thame Park, Knight.
John Langston, Undersheriff.
1628. Sir Robert Dormer of Ascot, Knight2.
Peter Langston, Undersheriff.
to the said Sr Cope d'Oyley, eldest daughter of James Quarles of Romford",
in Essex, Esq.; who received the Crown of Glory, in the year of Grace 1618.'
On the verge of the tomb this : —
'Who lived together in inviolated bands of holy wedlock 22 years and
multiplied themselves into five sonnes and five daughters, viz. John, James,
Robert, Charles, Francis, Martha, Mary, Dorothy, Elizabeth, and Joannai.
His descendants are the Doylys of Chiselton, Oxfordshire.'
Under this last inscription are two black marble tablets, the dexter one con
taining the following lines : —
' Ask me not who 's buried here,
Goe ask the Commons, ask the Shiere,
Goe ask the Church, They'l tell thee who,
As well as blubber'd eyes can doe;
Goe ask the Heralds, ask the Poore,
Thine ears shall hear enough to ask no more.
Then if thine Eye bedew this sacred Urne
Each drop a Pearle will turne
T' adorne his Tombe, or if thou canst not vent,
Thou bringest more marble to this Monument.'
On the other tablet this : —
'Wouldst thou (Reader) draw to life
The perfect copy of a Wife,
Read on, and then redeeme from shame,
That lost, that Honorable name.
This Dust was once in Spirit a Jael,
Rebecca in Grace, in Heart an Abigail,
In Works a Dorcas, to the Church a Hanna,
And to her spouse, Susanna.
Prudently simple, providently warie,
To th' World a Martha, and to Heav'n, a Mary.
1 He received the honour of Knighthood for his gallant conduct at the taking
of Cadiz in 1596, where he served as a volunteer. He twice represented the
County in Parliament, 1620 and 1625. In 1628 he was created Baron Wenman of
Kilmainham, and Viscount Wenman of Tuam. His Lordship zealously promoted
the Royal cause during the Civil War, and at his house Dr. Seth Ward, afterwards
Bishop of Salisbury, found an asylum, when persecuted for his fidelity to the King.
He married Agnes, eldest daughter of Sir George Fermor, of Easton Neston in
Northamptonshire. He died on Good Friday, 1640, and was buried at Twyford,
Bucks, and was succeeded by his son, Thomas Viscount Wenman, M.P. for the
County during the Long Parliament.
2 It was at this Sheriffs house at Ascot that the King's Commissioners of
Array, the Earl of Berkshire, Sir John Curzon, and others, fled for refuge from
Watlington, and were besieged by Hampden and taken prisoners to the Tower
in 1642.

HIGH SHERIFFS. 65
1629. Sir William Cobb x of Adderbury, Knight.
1630. Sir John Lacy 2 of Pudlicot, Knight.
1631. John Harbome3 of Tackley, Esquire.
1632. Sir Thomas Coghill4 of Blechingdon, Knight.
1633. Sir John Meller6 of Phillis Court, Knight.
1634. Sir Peter Wentworth 6 of Lillingston Lovell, Baronet.
1 635. Sir Francis Norreys 7 of Weston-on-the-Green, Knight.
1 Knighted June 15th, 1624. He married Susan, daughter and co-heir of Noah
Floyd, Esquire, of Gloucestershire, by whom he had twenty-one children, but few
attained maturity. Thomas, his son and heir, was created a Baronet by King
Charles II, December 9, 1662, died February, 1699. After the decease of Sir
Edward, eldest son of Sir Thomas Cobb, in 1744, without issue, the estates and
title descended to George, the second son, who falling accidentally into a moat
at the seat of John Blagrave, Esquire, near Reading, was drowned, at the advanced
age of ninety, when the Baronetcy became extinct.
2 The eldest son of the Sheriff in 1623. He married Mary, the daughter of
Sir Edward Wythepoll, of Suffolk.
, 3 In a chapel on the north side of Tackley Church is a marble monument of
two arches with the effigies of a man and woman praying before a table whereon
are two books open, under them is a table between the effigies of five sons and
nine daughters, in alabaster, praying. Behind the man's head is this inscription : —
' To the pious memory of John Harborne Esquire whose name and vertues
need no other elogy than their owne. He married into an antient and honor
able family, viz. Frances the onlie daughter of Sir Francis Eure, Kt. of Upper
Heyford in this county, whom he left a sad Widow having by her 5 sons and
9 daughters whereof 6 of them were dead when he changed this life the 9th
day of Jany 1651 aged 69 years. John Harborne his son and heire in com
memoration of his deare father erected this monument.'
His widow lived in Holywell parish, Oxford, in a sad and distracted condition
occasioned by the ill courses of her sons. John, the eldest, sold the Tackley estate,
and died at Cassington, February 21, 1654. William, sometime a commoner of
Gloucester Hall, was an unworthy member of society. Frances, their mother, died
July 27, 1663, and was buried at Tackley by her husband. — (Wood's MSS.)
4 He married Elizabeth, daughter and co-heiress of John Sutton, of Aldenham,
Herts, and was buried at Bletchingdon, June 6, 1657. After a successful engage
ment at Islip Bridge, in April, 1645, Cromwell pursued some of the routed
Royalists into this Sheriffs house at Bletchingdon, and Colonel Francis Winde-
bank, the officer in command, was persuaded to surrender, for which he was tried
by Court Martial, and ordered to be shot. Cromwell issued a triumphant report
of this success, dated from Bletchingdon House, April 25, 1845.
6 Sir John Meller's father (Sir Robert Meller) married the eldest daughter of
Sir John Swinnerton, Knight, of Phillis Court, Citizen and Alderman of London.
0 Sir Peter Wentworth was appointed one of the King's Judges, but he refused
to act. Lillingston Lovell being an isolated parish of Oxfordshire, surrounded by
Buckinghamshire, was in 1844 transferred to the latter County, by virtue of the
Statute 7 & 8 Victoria, c. 6i.
7 He was the reputed son of Francis, Lord Norreys, of Weston-on-the-Green,
and Sarah Rose, afterwards the wife of Samuel Haywarde, and he was known
F

66 COUNTY OF OXFORD.
1636. William Walter1 of Sarsden, Esquire.
1637. Sir Thomas Peniston2 of Cornwell, Baronet.
1638. John D'Oyly of Chislehampton, Esquire.
1639. Ralph Warcoppe 3 of English (near Henley), Esquire.
by the name of Francis Rose alias Norreys. By an Indenture dated ist June,
16 James I, his father settled upon him the Manors of Weston-on-the-Green
and Yattenden, as also lands at Cherrington, Chilswell, &c, which upon the un
fortunate suicide of his father he succeeded to, January 28, 1621. Being a young
gentleman of property and talent, he speedily distinguished himself, and in 1656
was elected one of the members for the County of Oxford. On the accession
of Richard Cromwell to the Protectorate, 1658, he again offered himself for the
same honour and stood a contest with Robert Jenkinson, Esquire, and Lord
Falkland, and was actually returned with the other candidates, but his election
was nullified by a vote of the House of Commons. The following extracts will
show the particulars of this unusual occurrence : — ¦
Mercurius Politicus, No. 548, p. 135, Dec. 29, 1658. — Extract of a letter from
Oxford : ' Yesterday our election was for the County : My Lord Falkland and
Mr. Jenkinson stood, and upon the poll Mr. Jenkinson carried it by thirteen voices.
This day the competition stands between the said Lord and Sir Francis Norreys,
and tis thought my Lord will carry it.'
lb., No. 555, p. 222 : 'Monday, Feb. 7, Mr. Sergeant Waller reports from the
Committee of Elections and Priviledges, the state of the case concerning the double
retume made of the elections of the Knights for the County of Oxford. That the
Indentures whereby Robert Jenkinson Esquire and Henry Carey, Viscount Falkland,
are returned, is the true returne, and that the said Lord Falkland ought to sit in
the house, and that the Indenture whereby the said Robert Jenkinson and Sir
Francis Norreys are returned, ought to be withdrawn ; thereupon the house re
solved accordingly, directing that the latter Indenture be taken off the file.' Sir
Francis Norreys died 1669, aged sixty.
1 The eldest son of Chief Baron Walter of Godstow. He was created a Baronet
in 1641, and died March 23, 1674. The Baronetcy became extinct in 1731.
2 Sir Thomas Peniston was created a Baronet by King James I, November 25,
161 2. He married first, Anne, fourth daughter of Sir William Stonehouse, and
secondly, Martha, fourth daughter of Sir Thomas Temple, Baronet, of Stowe ; but
by those ladies he had no surviving issue. Sir Thomas married, thirdly, Elizabeth,
daughter and sole heir of Sir Thomas Watson of Halstead, in Kent, widow of Sir
William Pope, and by her had two daughters and two sons. He was succeeded
in the Baronetcy by his son Thomas, who married Elizabeth, only daughter and
heir of Sir Cornelius Fairmedow, Knight, of London, Upon the death of his
son, Sir Fairmedow Peniston, without issue in 1 705 (who had married Elizabeth,
daughter of Sir Compton Reade, Baronet, of Shipton Court), the Baronetcy became
extinct. 3 At a subsequent date the Warcoppes owned an estate and resided at North-
moor in a house called Minchins. After the death of Mr. Edmund Warcoppe (or
Warcupp) his daughter, the Lady Price, sold the estate, for the benefit of herself
and four daughters, for £11,000, to Mr. Blewett, who married Mr. Bray's daughter
of Barrington. Mr. Edmund Warcupp was a nephew of Speaker Lenthall, and
in 1659 a Captain in the Parliament Army, in the Regiment of Sir Anthony Ashley
Cooper. After the King's return he was made a Justice of the Peace for Middlesex,

HIGH SHERIFFS. 67
1640. Richard Lybbe 1 of Hardwick, Esquire.
1641. Thomas Tipping 2 of Wheatfield, Esquire.
1642. Sir Thomas Chamberlayne3 of Wickham, Baronet.
1643. Sir Robert Jenkinson 4 of Walcot (Charlbury), Knight.
1644. David Walter5 of Godstow, Esquire.
1645. Edward Clerke6, Esquire.
Thomas Crooke, Undersheriff.

and he was actively engaged as a Magistrate in 1678, when the Popish Plot was
pretended to be discovered. On December 15, 1684, ne received the honour of
knighthood from King James II.
1 Buried in Whitchurch Church, with this inscription on a white marble tablet
with black Ionic pilasters : —
* Richard Lybbe of Hardwick, Esquire, and Anne Blagrave, united in sacred
wedlock 50 years, are here again made one by death. She yielded to the
chance January 17, 1651, which he embraced July 14, 1658.
He whose renowne for what compleateth man
Speakes lowder, better things than marble can,
Shee, whose religious deeds makes Hardwick's fame,
Breathe as the balm of Lybbe's immortal name,
Are once more joyned within this peaceful bed,
Where honour (not Arabian gummes) is spread,
Then judge not, Friends, who next succeed them must,
Y' are happy that shall mingle with such dust.'
2 His successor, Sir Thomas Tipping, was created a Baronet by King William III.
3 Created a Baronet February 4, 1642 ; and died in Oxford, during his year of
office as High Sheriff, October 6, 1643. He was buried near his father's monu
ment at Banbury. He was succeeded in the title by his son Sir Thomas Chamber
layne, whose daughter Penelope married Sir Robert Dashwood of Northbrook,
Baronet, by which alliance the Dashwood family became possessed of the Chamber
layne Estates in Oxfordshire. On the death of Sir Thomas Chamberlayne, the
King granted a patent to Sir Robert Jenkinson to hold the office of Sheriff during
pleasure. On July 22 in this year the High Sheriff received the King's command
to protect the University of Oxford in consequence of the trouble that had arisen
from their pledged assistance to the King of money and plate.
4 He died in 1645, and was buried in the chancel of Charlbury Church.
5 Son of Chief Baron Walter. He caused his house at Godstow near Oxford to be
destroyed in 1645 to prevent the Parliamentary army making it a place of defence.
He was appointed Lieutenant-General of the Ordnance by Charles II for his
loyalty and valour during the Civil War. His wife, the daughter of Viscount
¦Bayning, was created Countess of Sheppy-
6 Appointed by the Parliament December 1, 1645. ' Upon the humble petition
of Edward Clerke, Esquire, High Sheriff of the County of Oxford, in regard the
said County is almost wholly under the power of the enemy, and the said Edward
Clerke hath no habitation or place of residence within the said County, but hath a
dwelling-house in Reading in the County of Berks, near adjoining to the said
County of Oxford ; the Lords and Commons assembled in Parliament do hereby
give leave unto and authorise the said Edward Clerke to make his residence and
F 2

68 COUNTY OF OXFORD.
164.6. William Cope1 of Hanwell Castle, Esquire.
1647. George Chamberlayne2 of Bishop's Land (Warding-
ton), Esquire.
1648. Nicholas Herman 3 of Middleton Stoney, Esquire.

THE COMMONWEALTH.
ANNO.
1649. Robert Jenkinson4 of Walcot, Charlbury, Esquire.
1650. William Boseville, Esquire.
1 65 1. Robert Loggin6 of Idbury, Esquire.
1652. John Keate of Stoke Talmage, Esquire.
1653. Charnell Pettie6 of Tetsworth, Esquire.
usual place of abode in Reading during the time of his being High Sheriff of
Oxfordshire.' — Lords' Journal, February 6, 1645.
1 ' Ordered by the Lords and Commons, &c, that William Cope, Esquire, be
Sheriff of the County of Oxford, and that the Commissioners of the Great Seal of
England do issue a Commission to him to be Sheriff of the said County accord
ingly.' — Lords' Journal, December 1, 1646.
2 John Ellis rendered the Account to the Exchequer for Mr. Chamberlayne,
who died at the end of his year of office.
3 The following entry occurs in the Register of Middleton Stoney: ' 1668, nth
April, obiit et sepult. Nich. Herman Dom. Man.'
4 He was son and heir of Sir Robert Jenkinson of Walcot (Sheriff in 1643), and
the heir of the celebrated Anthony Jenkinson employed by Queen Elizabeth on
many delicate missions, and twice her Ambassador in Russia. He represented
the County of Oxford in the Commonwealth Parliaments, and was created a
Baronet May 18, 1661, the first year of the Restoration ; he died on March 30,
1677. His only son and successor, Sir Robert Jenkinson, was also M.P. for
the County of Oxford ; an honour which was also enjoyed by the third, fourth,
and fifth Baronets down to 1766. Upon the decease of Sir Bankes Jenkinson,
unmarried, in 1789, the baronetcy passed to Charles Jenkinson, created in 1786
Lord Hawkesbury, and in 1796 Earl of Liverpool.
5 In the north aisle of Idbury Church is a marble monument erected to the
memory of John Loggin and Robert his son. The inscription to Robert runs thus :
' Hie etiam obdormit Robertus natu maximus predicti Johis. quondam Vicecom.
com. Oxon., qui ccelebs obiit 30 June 1654, aetat. 63.' At a subsequent period the
name was spelled Logan.
6 He was buried in the Church of Stoke Lyne, having died at the house of his
grandson, Ralph Holt, Sheriff in 1678. The following is the inscription on his
gravestone : —
'February the 14th 1661. Here lyes the body of Charnell Pettie, Esq., aged
82. The Righteous shall bee in everlasting Remembrance. — Ps. 112. v. 6.
They who full threescore years in one bed lay
Doe here rest sweetly in one bed of clay.'
This family were owners for a long time of the Manor of Tetsworth, and were
related by marriage to Anthony a Wood, the Oxford antiquary.. In Delafield's

HIGH SHERIFFS. 69
1654. John Cartwright of Aynhoe, Esquire.
i655- William Draper of Lower Worton, Esquire.
1656. Francis Martin of Ewelme, Esquire.
1657. William Draper of Nether Worton, Esquire.
1658. Unton Croke1 of Marston, Esquire.
1659. William Gore 2 of Southleigh, Esquire.
1660. Robert Vesey 3 of Chimney, Esquire.

manuscript account of Great Milton is the following : ' Christopher Pettie, who
left his name on one of the bells in Tetsworth Church, a lasting memorial of his
unthriftiness, folly, and extravagance. For being much addicted to ringing, he
carried about with him a set of silken ropes (as I have heard it often affirmed) and
a train of idle fellows for his accommodation of that exercise, till he had rung
away a good estate and dyed very old, and extremely reduced, at Thame, in the
year 17..."
1 Son of Sergeant Unton Croke and grandson of Sir John Croke the Judge.
His father, Sergeant Unton Croke, acquired his estate at Marston by his marriage
with Anne, daughter and heiress of Richard Hore, Esquire, of that place. His
house at Marston was made use of in May, 1646, by the Commissioners for the
King and the Parliament Army in the treaty for the surrender of Oxford.
This Sheriff, Colonel Unton Croke, played a prominent part in command of
cavalry in the Parliamentary Army and in the desultory warfare of the time in the
neighbourhood of Oxford. With his brother, Sir Richard Croke, he was ap
pointed Commissioner to take possession of Woodstock Palace and Park after the
death of King Charles, and the adventures they met with in fulfilling their task,
and how they were assailed by the powers of darkness, are commemorated by Dr.
Plot, and in the romantic writings of Sir Walter Scott. On the death of Oliver
Cromwell in 1658, Colonel Unton Croke proclaimed the new Protector before St.
Mary's Church in Oxford, and was then appointed Sheriff by Richard Cromwell
and his Council. As Sheriff he made a double return to Parliament of members
for the County, and in the same year he and his brother Sir Richard Croke were
elected Members of Parliament for the City of Oxford, a fact which has been often
quoted as a Parliamentary precedent to show that a Sheriff may sit for a borough
in the county for which he holds office.
2 The following occurs in Wood's MSS., E. 1, p. 55 : —
' Most of this Lordship (Southleigh) was sometime in the Harcourts' possession.
Now, William Gore, Alderman of London, hath, by report, here land worth
£1,000 per annum. He was High Sheriff of Oxfordshire 1659-60. The said
Gore hath been Lord of this place about 16 years. Since my writing this I have
been informed that the Harcourts of Stanton Harcourt sold this manor to one
Skinner, and from him it came to Sir Henry Marten, Knight, Judge of the Pre
rogative Court, whose son, Henry Marten, the Regicide, sold it to the said Gore
about 1643.'
3 One of the Vesey family, who were seated at Chimney, founded the Free
Grammar School at Bampton, in Charles I's reign. They had considerable
possessions in the western part of Oxfordshire, and the chancel of Taynton Church
was their burial-place. The family of Vaisey, Voisey, or Veysey, was formerly
that of the Harmans. It appears that John Harman, sometime Bishop of Exeter,

7© COUNTY OF OXFORD.
CHARLES THE SECOND1.
ANNO.
1661. Thomas Cobb of Adderbury, Esquire.
1662. John Taverner2 of Sonndness (Nettlebed), Esquire.
1663. (No return found.)
1664. Sir George Croke3 of Waterstock, Knight.
was called Voysey, and Veysey, on account of his having been educated by a
person of that name.
1 It may be interesting to quote, from a MS. of Peter le Neve, Norroy, the
following list of gentlemen of Oxfordshire chosen by King Charles II to be
invested with the Order of the Royal Oak, and the value then returned of their
respective estates, 1660.
' This order of knighthood,' Mr. Burke says, ' projected by the restored monarch
to perpetuate the loyalty of his faithful adherents, was wisely abandoned, under the
apprehension that it might perpetuate likewise dissensions which were better
consigned to oblivion.' £
Sir Henry Jones, Knight  1500
— Gardiner, Esquire, of Tew  800
Matthew Skinner, Esquire  600
Welsbome Gill, Esquire  600
Sir Francis Norreys  1500
George Wenman, Esquire  2000
James Heme, Esquire  1000
Rowland Lacey, Esquire  1600
Sir Anthony Cope, Baronet  4000
Thomas Stonor, Esquire  3000
Cuthbert Warcupp, Esquire  1000
Sir Timothy Tyrrell, Knight  1500
Sir John Clerke  2000
Sir Thomas Penniston, Baronet  800
Sir Francis Henry Lee, Baronet  3000
Sir Francis Wenman, Knight  1500
2 A grandson of the Sheriff in 1568. On the south side of the east window of
the chancel of Nettlebed Church is an alabaster monument containing the follow
ing inscription : —
' Neare to this place rest the bodies of John Taverner of Soundness, Esquire,
sometime High Sheriff of this countie, and Jndeth his wife, one of the
daughters and co-heirs of John Smithes of Wrington in Somersetshire, Esquire,
by whome he had issue Edward, buried June 25 an. 1648, in the great church
at the Hague in Holland, in the 19 yeare of his age. John of Greys Inne,
who dying 1657, aged 25 years, was buried in St. Andrew's Church in Hol-
borne, London. Richard buried May 9, 1642, neare this place, aged one yeare
and half. Lucy buried June 16, 1648, neare this place, aged 17 years, and
Mary, who being married to John Harrys of Silkstede in Hampshire, Esquire,
became at length heir to her Father's lands. The said John died Jan. 19,
1674, aged 84 years, and his wife followed him May 17, 1676, in the 68 yeare
of her age.'
3 He was the eldest son of the Reverend Henry Croke, D,D., Rector of Water-

HIGH SHERIFFS. 71
1665. Thomas Wheate1 of Glympton Park, Esquire.
1666. William Dormer 2 of Ascot, Esquire.
1667. Edmund Dance, Esquire.
1668. Sir William Glynne 3 of Ambrosden, Baronet.
1669. Sir Samuel Jones, Knight.
1670. John Cartwright4 of Aynho, Esquire.
stock, upon whose death he became possessed of that estate, and great-nephew of
the Judge of the same name. By virtue of a dispensation from Oliver Cromwell,
the Chancellor of the University, he was created M.A. February 27, 1651, having
been previously made Fellow of All Souls College by the Parliamentary Visitors.
Upon the Restoration he was knighted, and chosen Fellow of the Royal Society
on February 8, 1676. He was a man of scientific acquirements, and Dr. Plot
styled him ' a learned and curious Botanist.' He died November 17, 1680, and
was buried in Waterstock Church, having left only two daughters, Elizabeth and
Sarah, as heiresses to his estate, which was afterwards sold to Sir Henry Ashhurst,
Baronet. 1 On a black marble gravestone before the pulpit in the body of the church at
Glympton is the following inscription : —
' Memorise Sacrum
Thomae Wheate armigeri
qui obiit decimo secundo die Maii,
1668.
Et memoriae sacrum
Franciscae Wheate, viduae
quae obiit decimo tertio
die Decembris anno Domini
1706.'
2 He was the son of Sir Robert Dormer (Sheriff in 1628), and built a noble
mansion at Ascot, the entrance to which, through a fine avenue of lime-trees, is
all that is now discernible. In finishing the building, the joiners' shavings took
fire, and, on October 9, 1662, the structure was destroyed. William Dormer, the
above Sheriff, married one of the daughters of Edmund Waller of Beaconsfield,
the poet, and they had four children. He was so magnificent in his notions that,
according to tradition, the binders of his carriage wheels and the shoes of his
horses were of silver. In September, 1683, he went to Uxbridge Fair, and upon
his return died at Great Wycombe, 25th of the same month, and was buried soon
after at Milton by the side of his ancestors.
3 Sir William Glynne, who was created a baronet the 13th of Charles II, was
the son and heir of Lord Chief Justice Glynne, a distinguished person in the
reign of Charles I. Sir William erected a noble mansion at Ambrosden, and was
a considerable benefactor to Bicester Church.
4 This gentleman, espousing the cause of the Parliament, suffered deeply at the
commencement of the Civil War. In 1645 his mansion house at Aynho was
burnt to the ground by the King's troops, who forced him at that time to pay the
sum of £800 ; and in two years afterwards, when the Earl of Northampton was
summoned to compound for delinquency, Mr. Cartwright petitioned for £10,000
out of that nobleman's estate, in compensation for the losses he had sustained
while the Earl commanded the Royalists in his vicinity. In that year (1647) he

72 COUNTY OF OXFORD.
1671. Henry Hall of Harpsden, Esquire.
1672. John Lenthall 1 of Burford Priory, Esquire.
was appointed one of the Parliamentary Visitors of the University of Oxford, but,
disapproving the proceedings of the Committee, he refused to act. Mr. Cartwright
was a learned man, and an encourager of learning, as attested, amongst other
acts of liberality, by the rent charges of £10 annually out of lands in Bloxham,
which he conferred upon Brasenose College, to found two scholarships for natives
of Cheshire, Northamptonshire, or Oxfordshire, but more especially to be chosen
from the Free Grammar School of Aynho, or the parishes of Budworth, or Wrerl-
bury, in Cheshire. He married Catherine, daughter of William Noy, Esquire,
Attorney-General to King Charles I. In pursuance of the will of his mother he
built a school-house in Aynho, for the education of twenty-five free scholars, and
endowed it with a yearly rent of £20 out of an estate at Milcomb, in Oxfordshire.
He was also Sheriff in 1654. He died April 17, 1676, and was succeeded by his
grandson, the Sheriff in 1699.
1 This family was originally seated at Leynthall Earls, Leynthall Starkes, and
Hampton Court in the County of Hereford. Sir Rowland Lenthall, or Lentall,
of Hampton Court, was high in favour with King Henry IV, to whom he was
Master of the Robes. He was one of the Lords Marchers for South Wales, and
for some time Ambassador either to the Court of France or Spain. Sir Rowland
accompanied Henry V to France, and, having a command at the battle of Agin-
court, made so many prisoners in that celebrated contest that he completed with
the produce of their ransom the new buildings at Hampton Court (Herefordshire),
and Henry V, in reward for his bravery, conferred upon him a moiety of the estate
of Monkland Abbey. In the mansion at Hampton Court was preserved a picture
of Henry IV. Pendant from the neck is a chain and medallion on which are
depicted the arms of the Fitz Alans, Earls of Arundel, and underneath, the fol
lowing inscription : —
' Henry the Fourth, King of England, who laid the first stone of this house
and left this picture in it, when he gave it to Lenthall.'
Sir Rowland married Lady Margaret Fitz Alan, daughter and eventually co-heiress
of Richard Fitz Alan, Earl of Arundel, beheaded in the reign of Richard II, upon
which marriage, Lady Margaret, being nearly related to the King (her mother or
grandmother being Eleanor of Lancaster), Sir Rowland had given to him a thousand
by the year ' for the maintenance of them and their heirs,' of which grant, says
Leland, the town of Ludlow forms a part. Some years afterwards, the Lenthalls
sold their estate in Herefordshire to the Cornwalls, Barons of Burford, and settled
at Lachford and Great Haseley in Oxfordshire, which manors and estates they
acquired in the reign of Edward IV by the marriage of William Lenthall of
Herefordshire, — who died 28th June 1497, — with the heiress of the Pypards, a very
ancient and rich family, one of whom had been created a Baron in the Scotch wars.
This William was buried in the church of Great Haseley, in the chapel belonging
to them. His brass, still remaining in the south aisle, represents a man in his
winding sheet, with a scroll at his mouth, with the words ' O bone Jesu . . . Jesu
miserere mei ;' and, under, this inscription : —
' Quisquis eris qui transieris sta prospice plora
Sum quod eris fueram quod sis pro me precor ora.
Hie jacet Willm. Leynthall (de) quondam dominus de Lachforde qui obiit
280 die mensis Junii, An" Dni. mcccclxxxxvii. Cuj. aie. propiciet. Deus.'
Lachford Manor (in Haseley parish) belonged for more than 200 years to the

HIGH SHERIFFS. 73
1673. William Draper of Lower Worton, Esquire.
family of Lenthall, and was the usual place of residence of William Lenthall, the
father of the famous Speaker of the House of Commons. The following occurs in
the Register of Henley-on-Thames : ' 4 July, 1591. William Lenthall, filius Joh'is
gens, bapts.' He (the Speaker) was the second son of William Lenthall of
Lachford (in Haseley parish), and is believed to have been bom at Henley, where
his father had a residence. It is presumed that he is incorrectly described in the
Register, as Filius Johannis. Edmund Lenthall, eldest brother of the Speaker,
married Elizabeth, daughter of Sir William Wade, Lieutenant of the Tower of
London, and had issue two sons and a daughter. The elder son married late in
life, and, selling the old family estates at Lachford and Great Haseley, terminated
this branch of the family. The prosperous career of Speaker Lenthall enabled
him to purchase considerable estates both in Oxfordshire and Berkshire. In 1634
he gave to Lucius, Lord Falkland, £7,000 for the mansion at Burford called the
Priory, with the annexed estate. He also purchased, in 1647, another manor in
Burford from William Eyston, Esquire, of East Hendred in the county of Berks,
which estates were sold in 1828 to Mr. Greenaway of Little Barrington in
Gloucestershire. In 1639 William Lenthall was returned member for Woodstock,
of which borough he was Recorder, as his descendant, F. Kyffin Lenthall, Esquire,
was at the recent termination of that office ; and when the Long Parliament met,
on the 3rd November 1640, he was chosen Speaker; which office he continued to
hold after the King's death. In Cromwell's second Parliament he was returned as
member for both the city of Gloucester and the county of Oxford, and was again
elected Speaker. In the Parliament of Richard Cromwell he sat in the upper
house by the title of William, Lord Lenthall. He sent King Charles II £3,000,
to assist his Restoration, — a piece of generosity which savours strongly of a bribe
for indemnity, notwithstanding the assurance of General Monk that he could not
have brought about the Restoration of King Charles II without Mr. Lenthall's
concurrence. The estate, manor, and appendant advowson at Bessels Leigh were
purchased of Sir Richard Fettiplace, or his son, in the year 1630. Speaker
Lenthall died at his seat, the Priory, Burford, ist September, 1662, and was
privately buried at Burford.
' Such Bulstrode was, and Lenthall yet more great ;
Both raised to highest offices of state ;
Their acts of mercy let the shades attest,
Of Strafford — Goring — long consigned to rest.
The former fell, for Whitelock could not save,
But Lenthall turn'd the latter from his grave.
Their natures gentle, generous, and bland,
Each bore the impress of his native land.'
The Speaker's only surviving son John (the above Sheriff) was member for
Gloucester in the Long Parliament, and created a Baronet by Cromwell, and, dying
9th Nov. 1681, was buried in the chancel of Bessels Leigh Church. His grandson
John also was Sheriff for Oxfordshire, as was his great-grandson, William Lenthall,
who, dying unmarried, was succeeded by his brother, John Lenthall, Esquire, who
likewise supplied a Sheriff in 1785, in the person of his eldest son John, who died
in 1820, and was buried at Burford. His son, William, sold the Burford Priory
estate in 1828, and thus terminated the connexion of the family with Oxfordshire.
The present representative of the family (Edmund Kyffin Lenthall, Esquire) is
resident on the Bessels Leigh estate, Berks.

74 COUNTY OF OXFORD.
1674. Sir Thomas Curzon1 of Waterperry, Baronet.
1675. Sir Edmund Fettiplace of Swinbrook, Baronet.
1676. John Gower of Bampton, Esquire.
1677. John Parsons of Nether Worton, Esquire.
1678. Ralph Holt2 of Stoke Lyne, Esquire.
1679. Sir Jacob Parret3, junior, Baronet.
1680. Edmund Gregory4 of Cuxham, Esquire.
1681. Robert Mayot6 of Fawler, Esquire.
1682. John Wickham of Garsington, Esquire.
1683. Sir Robert Dashwood6 of Northbrook, Baronet.
1684. Sir John D'Oyly7 of Chislehampton, Baronet.
1 Created a Baronet by King Charles II, 30th April, 1661. He married
Elizabeth, daughter of William Burrow, Esquire, of Burrow in Leicestershire, and,
dying about 1681, was succeeded by his son, Sir John Curzon. The Baronetcy
became extinct upon the death of Sir Francis, the third Baronet, 28th May, 1750,
and the Waterperry estate came eventually to Lord Teynham, of whom the late
Joseph Henley, Esquire, purchased it. The name of William Wright, Esquire, is
printed in the List of Sheriffs for this year in the London Gazelle as Sheriff for
Oxfordshire, but in Anthony a Wood's copy of the Gazette in the Bodleian Library
his name is erased, and Sir Thomas Curzon, Baronet, substituted.
2 He was son of Thomas Holt of Stoke Lyne, Esquire, and married Susan,
daughter of John Risley, Esquire, of Chetwode, Buckinghamshire. His monument,
on the south side of the altar of Stoke Lyne Church, bears the following in
scription : —
'To the memory of Ralph Holt Esquire, Lord of this Manor, who died
August the 22, 1702, in the 65th year of his age. By his first wife, Susanna,
daughter of John Risley Esquire, he had one daughter, Susanna. By his
second wife, Susanna, daughter of Francis Dodsworth Esquire, he had seven
children, Charles (who erected this monument), Elizabeth, Mary, William,
Susanna, Thomas, and Francis.'
3 This is correctly copied from the Gazette of 1679, but its accuracy is doubtful,
for there is no mention in Wotton's English Baronets, or Burke's Extinct
Baronetage, of any early Baronetcy of Parret, or Perrot. The above Sheriff is
believed to be the James Perrott (not Jacob Parret) who was buried at Northleigh
in July, 1710. The family lived for many generations in a mansion at Northleigh,
and were Lords of the Manor; but they became extinct (at least in a lineal
succession) about a hundred years ago ; when the estate was purchased by the
Duke of Marlborough. The estate was formerly Lord Downe's, who sold it to the
Holmans, of whom the Perrotts bought it.
4 References to Mr. Gregory's career will be found in Wood's Athena Oxoni-
enses, vol. i. p. 76, Bliss's edition, 1848.
5 This Sheriff had the duty of conveying in his coach from Henley to Oxford
Castle the State prisoner Stephen Colledge, for his trial for treason on 17 August,
and of superintending his hanging and quartering in the gaol.
6 See note to Sir Henry William Dashwood, Baronet, the Sheriff in 1866.
7 This branch of the D'Oyly family settled at Chislehampton during the sixteenth,

HIGH SHERIFFS. 75
JAMES THE SECOND.
ANNO.
1685. Sir Edward Reade x of Shipton Court, Baronet.
1686. Sir Rowland Lacy2 of Pudlicot, Knight.
1687. Sir Henry Browne3 of Kiddington, Baronet.
WILLIAM THE THIRD.
ANNO.
1688. Sir William Glynne of Bicester, Baronet.
1689. William Blake of Coggs, Esquire.
1690. Simon Whorwood of Dean, Esquire.
1691. Thomas Rowney 4, junior, of Oxford, Esquire.
sveenteenth, and eighteenth centuries, and sold their manor, estate, and advowson
to Charles Peers, Esquire. The following curious entry in the Parish Registry
of Chislehampton will show the period when the property changed hands through
the altered circumstances of its proprietor : —
' Mem. March 20, 1743. — I enter this.to acquaint my successors that the stipend
for Chisleton and Stadham Curacy was ever till this day ten shillings a Sunday and
a dinner for myself and care of my horse. But now Sir John D'Oyly being
obliged to sell the Chisleton estate, in order to make more of it, has refused to
give any more than twenty pounds a year, and obliges me to take care of myself
and horse. This is Sir John's own declaration.
' This I attest to be literally true. ' John Bilstone, Curate of Chistleton.'
Christopher a Wood, of Oxford, attorney at law, died Sept. 24, 1684, having been
Undersheriff for twenty-two years previously. He was succeeded as Undersheriff
by his son, Thomas a Wood, of Oxford, who died August 13, 1686.
1 Buried in the Church of Shipton under Wychwood ; and the following in
scription is on his monument : —
' Here lyeth the body of Sr. Edward Reade, Bart., who departed this life the
4th of September Anno Domini mdclxxxxi, aged 32 years and 2 months.'
2 On a white marble gravestone in Shipton under Wychwood Church was the
following inscription : —
Here lyeth the body of Sr. Rowland Lacy, who espoused Arabella second
daughter of Sir John Fettyplace of Swinbrooke, in the Comity of Oxon, Bart.,
who departed this life the 28th of September Anno Dni. mdcxc. aged 26 years
and 3 months.
3 This was the first year, in consequence of the public ill-feeling which existed
against the King's policy and his influence over the Judicial Bench, that the old
custom ceased to be observed of men of high position and estate riding in the train
of the Sheriff when he escorted the Judges.
4 The Rowney family was long and beneficially connected with the City of
Oxford. Thomas Rowney practised there as an attorney at law in the days of
Anthony Wood, with whom he was on intimate terms. His son, Thomas Rowney
(the above Sheriff), was M.P. for the City of Oxford from the 7th of William III to
the 8th of George I (1721), when 'young Tom Rowney' (the High Sheriff's son)

76 COUNTY OF OXFORD.
1692. Thomas Crispe of Dornford, Wootten Parish, Esquire,
1693. Sir Sebastian Smythe1 of Cuddesdon, and of Oxford.
Knight.
—his father desiring to be excused from any longer being elected — was chosen
M.P. for the City, in conjunction with Sir John Walter ; an honour he retained
until his decease. He was also for some time High Steward of the city of Oxford ;
and he was, in various ways, its benefactor, having, in 1751, built (nearly at his
own expense) the present Town Hall in Oxford; and in 1758 he presented to the
Radcliffe Trustees five acres of ground, upon part of which the Radcliffe Infirmary
is built — a ward in which is still dedicated to his name. He erected and resided
in the mansion in St. Giles's Street now used at each Assizes for the Judges'
lodgings. He died in the hunting-field near to his seat at Dean in Oxfordshire,
and was buried in St. Giles's Church, Oxford, on Sunday, November 4th, 1759,
upon which day the Rev. John Bilston, Chaplain of All Souls College, preached
before the City authorities in St. Martin's Church a commemorative sermon. The
following extract will show the character of this worthy man, and the great loss the
city of Oxford sustained upon his death : —
' A man cannot be perfect as his Maker ; and the most shining character may be
sullied with some small blemishes. But this will never justify human censure:
correction of ourselves is a more commendable discipline, and cleansing our own
corruption, before we throw a stone at our neighbour, would be an effectual cure of
all malevolence and abuse. But the conversation and conduct of our lost friend is
the best armour against scandal in every shape. In his public worship of the Deity
he was remarkably constant and serious ; to his Sovereign dutiful, and to his
country faithful. If undissembled friendship and unrivalled hospitality can claim
any share of human affection, the members of this loyal city may reasonably clothe
themselves in sable and bow down heavily as one that mourneth for a parent. If
public spiritedness deserves human applause, and the love of our country be either
a commendable or distinguishing character, the whole country concern must be
great and exemplary for the loss of a patriot who had no clandestine views to
gratify, and the magnificent monuments of whose generosity cannot be concealed
from the eyes of mankind. If extensive charity, not proclaimed by the pharisaical
trumpet of vanity and ostentation, be any mark of a Christian spirit, or Christian
beneficence, pour out your lamentations, ye sons and daughters of poverty and
affliction I Let the widow's head be a fountain of waters, and the poor orphan's
cheek swim in tears, and their hearts be clothed in real sorrow. The poor had no
occasion to cry unto him, and the fatherless could not say he had none to help him.
His studied secrecy was no mean part of his beneficence, and numbers were
cherished without knowing their benefactor. To the friendless he was a father,
and, like the good Samaritan, he poured in his oil and wine, and drew forth his
soul to satisfy the miserable. In short, if good nature and good manners can merit
esteem, and giving to the poor be lending to the Lord, though our loss be great
and sorrow unavoidable, yet this may administer some comfort unto us, that we
have reasonable hope, such exemplary virtues must meet with divine approbation,
and " Well done, good and faithful servant, enter thou into the joy of thy Lord " be
the happy sentence pronounced on him hereafter by a God of infinite justice and
mercy.' 1 His Oxford residence was in Cornmarket Street (called Northgate Street until
the removal of the Gate or Bocardo in 1 771), on the site of the house in which

HIGH SHERIFFS. 77
1694. Robert Jennings of Shiplake Court1, Esquire.
1695. William Newell of Adwell, Esquire.
1696. Sir Thomas Wheate of Glympton Park, Baronet.
1697. Robert Barber of Adderbury, Esquire.
1698. William Hinde of Hampton Gay, Esquire.
1699. Thomas Cartwright2 of Aynhoe, Esquire.
1700. Sir James Reade of Shipton Court, Baronet.
1 701. Sir John Thornicroft3 of Milcomb, Baronet.
QUEEN ANNE.
ANNO.
1702. Francis Keck of Great Tew, Esquire.
1703. Thomas Whorwood of Headington, Esquire.
1 704. Humphrey Smith of Kidlington, Esquire.
Messrs. Grimbly, Hughes, and Dewe conduct their extensive business. The house,
as occupied by Sir Sebastian Smythe, was burned down in September 1863 (upon
a conflagration which occurred in the shop adjoining Messrs. Grimbly and Co.'s
new establishment), and on that occasion perished the fine rooms, carvings, and
decorative work which adorned this old city mansion.
1 Shiplake Court was a seminary to the Abbey of Reading, and it formerly
belonged to the Inglefield family. The estate was given to Attorney-General
Plowden in the reign of Queen Elizabeth, as an acknowledgment of his eminent
services, especially in taking off Sir Charles Inglefield's Bill of Attainder.
This Sheriff was the son of Robert Jennings, M.A., St. John's College, Oxford,
who was appointed Master of Reading School by Sir Bulstrode Whitelock, but
removed therefrom by the Commissioners, and he afterwards became Master of
Abingdon School. He became possessed of a fortune, and purchased the estate of
the Plowden family and retired there. He pleaded old age as an excuse for not
serving the office of Sheriff this year, and his son was accepted in his stead.
2 Grandson of the Sheriff in 1670. He married the Hon. Armine Crewe,
daughter of Thomas second Lord Crewe ; and his son, William Cartwright,
Esquire, for many years represented Northamptonshire in Parliament, as the
above Sheriff also did. He died March 11, 1747-8.
3 He was created a Baronet August 12, 1701, and married Elizabeth, daughter
and heir of Josiah Key, gentleman, of Milcomb. He died December 8, 1725.
Soon after his creation Sir John Thornicroft delivered the following petition to
the Lords of the Treasury, whereby he obtained a privy seal pursuant to his
request : —
' To the Rt. Hon. the Lords Commissioners of His Majesty's Treasury,
' The humble petition of Sir John Thornicroft, of Milcomb, in the county of
Oxon, Bart.
'Sheweth:
'That His Majesty having been graciously pleased to confer the dignity of
a Baronet of this Kingdom upon your petitioner, and the heirs male of his body ,

78 COUNTY OF OXFORD.
1705. Carleton Stone1 of Brightwell Park, Esquire.
1706. Sir William Glynne of Bicester, Baronet.
1707. Borlase Warren 2 of Stratton Audley, Esquire.
by letters patent dated 1 2th day of August last past ; and there being the sum of
one thousand ninety-five pounds payable to His Majesty, in respect of that dignity,
Your petitioner humbly prays your Lordships that a privy seal may be granted to
him, in order to his being discharged from the said sum of one thousand ninety-five
pounds, as is usual in the like cases, and your petitioner shall ever pray,' &c The
Baronetcy expired at the death of his son in 1743.
1 His monument in Brightwell Church contains the following inscription : —
To the memory of Carleton Stone Esquire, eldest son of John Stone Esquire
(Lord of this Mannour), who departed this life August 21st, anno Domini
1768, setatis 54. Winifred, his relict and sole executrix, putt up this in a
grateful remembrance of his kindness to her.'
2 John Borlase, Esquire, a descendant of a Comish gentleman of that name,
purchased, in or about 1540, of the representatives of Lord Berners, the Manor and
Estate of Stratton Audley, which he settled upon Ann his wife as her dowry. And
in 1560 he purchased the Manors of Little Marlow and Medmenham in Bucking
hamshire, and resided at Bockmer Manor House. His great-grandson, John
Borlase, Esquire, was appointed one of the Justices of Ireland, and greatly dis
tinguished himself by his attempts to suppress the rebellion in that country in
1 641. In the following May he was created a Baronet, and in the civil calamities
which followed, evincing a devout attachment to the Royal cause, the Parliament
voted him a delinquent, and caused his person to be secured. A composition,
amounting to £2,400, was at first refused ; but at length accepted, and appro
priated for the garrison at Abingdon. He lived to see the government of his
country happily settled on its ancient basis, and he was honoured with a visit of
King Charles II accompanied by the celebrated Nell Gwynne. He died August
1672, and was succeeded in the Baronetcy by his son, Sir John Borlase, who
settled at Stratton Audley, and left issue a daughter, Anne, who married Arthur
Warren, Esquire, of Stapleford, Nottinghamshire, to whom Sir John left all his
estates, and dying August 8, 1688, was buried in the south aisle of Stratton Audley
Church. The Baronetcy then became extinct, and on the death of Anne Warren,
August, 1703, the Stratton Audley estate descended to the eldest of her seven sons,
Borlase Warren, Esquire, the above Sheriff. He died in May, 1747, when the
estate devolved upon his son, John Borlase Warren, Esquire, who was M.P. for
Nottingham, and died in 1763. Old Squire Warren, as the countrymen called
him (the Sheriff in 1707), latterly kept the meanest equipage of any man in his
neighbourhood. His harness was tied together with string, his coachman had but
one eye, two of his horses were equally unfortunate, and the other four were quite
blind. Both the Squire and his brother John were martyrs to the gout. The
lastly-mentioned John Borlase Warren was succeeded by his eldest son, Admiral
Sir John Borlase Warren, G.C.B., who sat in Parliament for Marlow, and was in
1775 created a Baronet. He married Caroline, daughter of General Sir John
Clavering, and had (with a son killed at the landing of the British troops in
Egypt) an only surviving daughter and heir, Frances Mary, married to George
Charles fourth Lord Vernon. The estate remained in the Vemon family till a
recent date, when it was purchased by the late owner, George Glen, Esquire,
the Sheriff in 1864, who built a new mansion upon a well-selected spot, called
Stratton Audley Park.

HIGH SHERIFFS. 79
1708. Edward cVter1, Esquire.
1709. John Lenthall, Esquire, appointed December 1, and
William Lenthall, Esquire, appointed December 18.
1 7 10. Sir William Osbaldeston2 of Chadlington, Baronet.
171 1. Charles Holt3 of Stoke Lyne, Esquire.
1 712. Richard Lybbe, junior, of Hardwick, Esquire.
1 713. Sir Charles Fettiplace of Swinbrook, Baronet.
Sir Lorenzo Fettiplace of Swinbrook, Baronet.
GEORGE THE FIRST.
ANNO.
17 14. James Norreys of Weston on the Green, Esquire.
1 715. Charles Crispe of Dornford, Wootton Parish, Esquire.
1 7 16. William Tipping of Draycot, Esquire.
1 71 7. John Travell of Swerford, Esquire.
Henry Warner, Undersheriff.
1 71 8. Thomas Whorwood of Headington, Esquire.
1 71 9. Francis Nourse of Woodeaton, Esquire.
1720. Daniel Blake of Coggs, Esquire.
1 721. John Dew of Bampton, Esquire.
1722. Benjamin Sweet4 of Medley, near Oxford, Esquire.
1723. John Blewitt of Salford, Esquire.

1 He was descended from an ancient family of yeomen at South Weston, who
were benefactors to the Church and Parish of Thame.
2 Son of Sir Lacy Osbaldeston, and a descendant of the Sheriff in 152 1. He
married Catherine, eldest daughter of Richard Viscount Wenman of Thame, and
widow of the Honourable Robert Bertie, son of the Earl of Abingdon. He died
September 18, 1736, and was succeeded by his brother Charles, upon whose death
without issue, April 7, 1749, the Baronetcy expired.
3 The pedigrees of the family of Holt are given in the Harleian MSS. This
Sheriff was a descendant of Chief Justice Holt, and married Martha, daughter
of John Striblehill of Thame, Esquire, by Frances, daughter of Thomas Carter of
North Weston, Esquire.
4 This Sheriff built an elegant house at Medley near the ancient building
belonging to the monks of Osney Abbey, but he ceased to reside there owing to
a difference with the Freemen of Oxford for not allowing him a right of road
across Port Meadow, and the house was sold in 1772 and pulled down the
following year. Mr. Sweet was held in esteem for his charitable acts, but he
showed an eccentric tendency in his testamentary arrangements when he charged
his Executors to lay out forty shillings a year to feed sparrows, and his will was
cancelled on the grounds of his insanity.

8o

COUNTY OF OXFORD.

/

f

1724. Allan Horde1 of Cote, Esquire. r1
1725. James Croke2 of Studley Priory/ Esquire.
1726. John Saunders of Mongewell, Esquire.
GEORGE THE SECOND.
ANNO.
1727. Richard Wickham of Garsington, Esquire.
1728. Edward Barber of Adderbury, Esquire.
1729. Joseph Taylor of Sandford, Esquire.
1730. Thomas Greenwood of Chastleton, Esquire.
1731. Henry Smith of Caversham, Esquire.
Edward Turner3 of Ambrosden, Esquire.

1732.
*733

Francis Heywood, the younger4, of Forest Hill,
Esquire.
Thomas Trollope, Undersheriff.
1 His father (Thomas Horde, Esquire), by deed of January 15, 1712, granted a
perpetual benefaction for criminal prisoners and debtors in the common ward of
Oxford Castle. The present income is £24 a year, which is paid from lands at
Cote and is appropriated in common with the other charities of the prison.
3 The second son of Captain John Croke of Studley. He died unmarried in the
year of his office.
3 He was the second son of John Turner, Esquire, an eminent and opulent
merchant of London, and was created a Baronet, August 24, 1733. He married,
in 1 7 18, Mary, eldest daughter of Sir Gregory Page, Baronet, of Blackheath. Sir
Edward was, in 1733, chosen Chairman of the Court of Directors of the Honourable
East India Company. He died June 19, 1735.
4 On the north wall of the north aisle of Forest Hill Church is the following
inscription : — Franciscus et Thcede provectiori fuerunt
astate uterque maritali prius mita" societate
subtus requiescat,
Hie tamen ATEKNOS obiit;
ille, quem unicum susccpit gnatum
aliquot post menses Abrcptum deflevit,
Quod de AnnS factum est
adversi doceant Parietes
Dorothea Catherina Josepho Crewe, S.T.P.,
conjuncta unicum peperit Joannem,
Gulielmo ccelibatum agenti et nuper defuncto
superbtites fuere
Maria uxor Joannis Wright, arm1
et
Elizabetha Abelis Fonnereau arm1 vidua
quae ex lege cohxredes instituta:
Una cum Joanne Crewe arm0 itidem [coliacrede
Marmor hoc omnium memorise
sacrum esse voluerunt
anno mdccxii. '

H. S. E.
Franciscus Heywood, arm* Francisci filius
Foederis mariti Sociam habuit Mariam
E Thoma et Alicia Smith de Harnell
in agro Glocestria; ,
(Dein de Kidlington in agro Oxoniensi),
oriundam,
Franciscus sexaginta et sex annos natus
obiit Octobris die xviij° mdccxxxix.
Maria sexaginta et septem annos nata
obiit Julii die xviij0 mdccxlii.
ab his suscepta est
quo recensita est ordine
Dena proles : viz.
Franciscus, Thomas, Maria,
Dorothea, Anna, Gulielmus,
Elizabeth, Theede, Susanna,
et Dorothea Catherina,
ex iis Thomas et Susanna Biennes,
Dorothea cum quatuor lustra
vix jam impleverat,
nee dum utli connubio devincta
vita emigrarunt,

HIGH SHERIFFS/ 8l
1734. Sebastian jorde of Cote^ pv^sdon, Esquire.
1735. Sir Edward Li- n1 ^ Adderbury, Baronet.
1 736. Samuel Greenhill 3 of Swyncombe, Esquire.
1737. John Clerke4 of North Weston, Esquire.
Mr. Edward Clerke, Undersheriff.
1738. Sir James Dashwood of Northbrook, Baronet.
1739. Philip Powys of Hardwick, Esquire.
1740. John Duncombe of Watlington, Esquire.
1 741. John Nourse of Woodeaton, Esquire.
1 74a. John Taylor of Sandford, Esquire.
1743. Rowland Lacy of Pudlicot, Esquire.
1 744. Thomas Whorwood 5 of Holton Park, Esquire.
J745- John Raine of Badgemore, Esquire.
1746. Thomas Horde of Cote, Esquire.
1 On a marble monument in Cuddesdon Church is the following epitaph : —
' Sacred to the memory of Barbara Smythe, daughter of Sebastian Smythe,
Esquire, who, after a life spent in the most unremitted attention to every
religious, moral, and social duty, died on the 27th January 1787, of a paralytic
complaint, at her house in this place, long the residence of her numerous
and respectable ancestry, in the 76th year of her age.'
2 Grandson of the Sheriff in 1629. He died unmarried in 1744, and was suc
ceeded by his brother, Sir George Cobb, the last Baronet.
3 The manor and estate of Swyncombe were, in 1732, purchased by Samuel
Greenhill of Warfield, Berks, Esquire (the above Sheriff), of Charles, fifth Lord
Dormer, who was seated at Swyncombe House ; and Mr. Greenhill's son (the
Rev. John Russell Greenhill) sold the estate, in 1758, to George Ruck, Esquire,
whose only daughter and heiress, Mary, married Benjamin Keene of Westoe Lodge,
Cambridgeshire, Esquire (only son of Edmund, Lord Bishop of Ely), and his grand
son, Colonel Edmund Ruck-Keene, is the present owner of the estate. The old
mansion was burnt down in 1814, consequent upon which the present splendid
house was built by the late Rev. Charles Edmund Ruck-Keene, the present
owner's father.
4 The several Clerkes of North Weston, mentioned in this list, are ancestors of
the late Venerable Archdeacon Charles Carr Clerke, D.D., Canon of Christ Church,
son of the Reverend Sir William Henry Clerke, the eighth Baronet. They were
long seated at North Weston, near Thame, in the church of which town are
several elaborate monuments to their memory.
5 On the south wall of the chancel of Holton Church is the following in
scription : —
' Near this place are deposited the Remains of Thomas Whorwood Esquire .
and of Penelope his wife. He was born on 29 April 1718, she on 24 June
1719. They intermarried on 23 Nov. 1746. He departed this life 3 September
1771. She died the 6 day of October 1779. " They were lovely and pleasant
in their lives, and in their death they were not divided." 2nd Sam. i. 23.'
G

83 dVUNTY OF OXFORD. /
/
1747. Robert Nedhanr, Esquire, part ofthe year.
Edward Metcalf of DraytoJJ, Esquire, the other part.
1748. John Pollard of Finmere1, Esquire.
1749. John Coker2 of Bicester, Esquire.
1 750. Francis Clerke 3 of North Weston, Esquire.
17514.
175a. Francis Page5 of Middle Aston, Esquire.
1 He purchased Finmere House of the last descendant of the James family, and
died there in 1761.
2 The family of the Cokers derive their origin from Coker, a town in Somerset
shire; but, in the reign of Henry IV, John Coker, a member of that family,
having married an heiress of the name of Veale, became possessed of a very
considerable estate at Mapouder, in Dorsetshire, where he settled. John Coker,
a descendant and younger son who was born at Mapouder in the reign of Henry
VIII, married a wife at Pollicot in Oxfordshire, and resided there a short time ;
but afterwards purchasing the Manor of Nun's Place, Bicester, of John Denton,
Esquire, of Blackthorn, in the year 1582, he adopted the mansion for the residence
of himself and his posterity, which, together with the estate, still remains in their
possession. The Manor House seems to have had its name changed to Burchester
Hall, during the time it was the residence of his son Cadwallader Coker, and to
have been rebuilt by Mr. John Coker, his son, in 1682. The above Sheriff
was the grandson of the last-mentioned John Coker and died in 1766, and was
succeeded by his nephew, John Coker, Esquire, who was unanimously elected
Chairman of Quarter Sessions in 1808. The Chairman was highly respected in
Oxfordshire, and, to his exertions, the prevalent amusement at Bicester of bull-
baiting was put an end to. He married, in 1792, the Honourable Charlotte
Marsham, the youngest daughter of Robert, Lord Romney. In the year 1798
Mr. Coker was appointed Colonel of the Oxford University Volunteers. Upon
the visit of the Prince Regent in 1814, at a numerous meeting of the nobility,
gentry, clergy, and freeholders of the County of Oxford, convened by the High
Sheriff to consider of the propriety of addressing the Prince Regent on the occasion
of his visit to the County in company with the Emperor of Russia and King
of Prussia, Mr. Coker, after an eloquent and impressive speech, moved an
address, which was received with unbounded applause, and was presented to His
Royal Highness, at Christ Church, by the Earl of Abingdon, Earl Harcourt, the
Bishop of Oxford, John Fane, Esquire, and numbers of the leading gentlemen of
the County. Mr. Coker died 1816, leaving a daughter.
3 He married Susanna Elizabeth, the daughter of Thomas Henry Ashhurst,
Esquire, of Waterstock, and was grandson of Richard Clerke, Clerk of the Peace
1697-1716. He died April 13, 1760.
* In 1 75 1 (being the year in which the Julian Calendar, or old style, was
abolished), no Sheriff was appointed. George, second Earl of Macclesfield, LL.D.
and President of the Royal Society, was the author of the Act of Parliament
(24 George II, c. 23) for altering the style.
5 On a marble tablet over the arch leading to the east (or Page's) Chapel in
Steeple Aston Church is the following inscription : —
' In the vault beneath are deposited the remains of Francis Page Esquire,
LL.D., of Middle Aston in this parish, and of Acton Hall in the county of

HIGH SHERIFFS. 83
1753- Thomas Horde of Cote, Esquire.
I754- Thomas Blackall1 of Haseley Court, Esquire.
1755- Sir William Burnaby of Broughton Poggs, Knight.
1 756. Charles Peers of Chislehampton, Esquire.
1757. Sir Francis Knollys2 of Thame, Baronet.
Worcester. He had the honour of representing the University of Oxford in the
13th, 14th, 15th, 16th, 17th, and 18th Parliaments of Great Britain, and in the
Ist of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. He died on the 25th
day of November 1803, in the 78th year of his age.'
The Sheriff (Francis Page) was originally Francis Bourne, Esquire, but changed
his name in accordance with the. conditions enjoined by his relative, Mr. Justice
Page, famous in history for his severity on the judicial bench.
1 This was the year of the renowned Oxfordshire election, when the Candidates
for the two seats were Viscount Wenman, Sir James Dashwood, Baronet, Viscount
Parker, and Sir Edward Turner, Baronet. The polling lasted six days, in the
month of April 1754. The Sheriff made a double return. And, after forty days'
discussion and scrutiny in Parliament, the House of Commons voted Lord Parker
and Sir Edward Turner duly elected. On the day of the double return, the excite
ment was so great in Oxford, that, amongst other affrays, a mob, on Magdalen
Bridge, surrounded a postchaise in which Captain Turton and another were return
ing home, when the Captain shot a sweep who was pelting flints at the carriage
and killed him. Captain Turton was tried for murder at the next assizes, and
acquitted. The representation of the county was not again contested until 1826.
The following are incidents of that election : —
Sir Edward Turner, to propitiate Magdalen College, presented to the Society the
iron gates which stood at the entrance to the Water Walks, and which have on
them the initials of his name. Afterwards, meeting Dr. Bacon, Sir Edward asked
him how the College liked his present. 'Why, Sir Edward, the gates are very
handsome, but all in College say that they can see through them.' These gates
now form the entrance from the courtyard of the President's Lodgings to his
private garden.
Also, after the contest, Dr. Bacon being at his estate at Baldon, his neighbour
Mr. Blackall, the High Sheriff (to whom credit was generally given for making
a double return on account of his partiality for Lord Parker and Sir Edward
Turner), happened to be hunting with his harriers over the Doctor's land ; and,
thinking an apology necessary, Mr. Blackall sent his servant to Dr. Bacon to say
that he hoped the trespass would be excused. ' Tell Mr. Blackall ' (said the Doctor)
' that I will excuse him, provided he makes no double return on my turnips.'
2 This family was founded by Sir Robert Knollys, K.G., the celebrated general
in the martial times of Edward III, the companion in arms of the Black Prince
and the most renowned warrior of his day. In 1 Richard II Sir Robert was
governor of the castle of Brest, and in the third of the same reign he went with
Thomas Plantagenet (of Woodstock), Earl of Buckingham, to assist the Duke of
Brittany against the French, when they marched quite through France without
resistance. The next year, on the outbreak of Jack Straw's insurrection, he led
the citizens of London against the rebels, and thus terminated, at an advanced
age, his military career. Independently of those high deeds which rendered his
name famous all over the world, Sir Robert left other noble memorials behind
G 2

84 COUNTY OF OXFORD.

i

him. He erected a stately bridge over the river Medway, near Rochester, known
as Rochester Bridge. He enlarged the house of Friars Carmelites, commonly
called White Friars, in the city of London, and he founded a college at Pontefract,
in Yorkshire, where his wife, the Lady Constance, was born, endowing it with an
estate of £180 per annum. He died at the Manor of Sconethorp, in Norfolk,
full of honour and years, being at least ninety years of age, August 15, 1407, and
was buried with his lady in the church of the White Friars. From him descended
Robert Knollys, Gentleman of the Privy Chamber to King Henry VIII, who had
from that monarch a lease of the Manor of Rotherfield Greys, and who was the
father of Sir Francis Knollys, upon whom Henry VIII conferred the lordship of
Rotherfield Greys in fee, and made him one of the gentlemen pensioners. This Sir
Francis was afterwards high in favour with Queen Elizabeth, was sworn of Her
Majesty's Privy Council, constituted Vice-Chamberlain of the Household, and em
ployed on several important negotiations abroad, and his name appears in the
Lists of Lords Lieutenant and Members of Parliament for the County. In 29
Elizabeth he was appointed one of the judges to sit in judgment on the unhappy
Queen of Scotland, and was subsequently made Treasurer of the Household, and
installed a Knight of the Garter. He married Catherine, daughter of William
Carey, Esquire of the Body to Henry VIII, by his wife, Lady Mary Boleyne,
sister of Queen Anne Boleyne ; and amongst his issue was Sir William Knollys,
Treasurer of the Household in the reign of Queen Elizabeth and advanced to the
Peerage by King James I, by letters patent dated May 13, 1603, in the dignity of
Lord Knollys of Greys in the County of Oxford (his chief seat). He also is recorded
amongst the Lords Lieutenant and Members of Parliament. In 16 14 his Lordship
was appointed Master of the Wards, and within a short time installed a Knight of
the Garter. In 1616 he was created Viscount Wallingford, and advanced by
King Charles I, on August 18, 1626, to the Earldom of Banbury, with precedency
of all Earls who were created before him. The inquisition taken upon his death,
which happened May 25, 1632, found that he died without issue, leaving a widow,
Elizabeth, his last wife. His honours were then deemed extinct, and his estates passed
to his collateral heirs, excepting such as he devised to his wife. The subsequent
history of the claimants to this title is the most curious in the whole history of
Peerage claims. The limits of these notes prevent the particulars being here
recorded, but a most full and interesting account is to be found in Burke's Extinct
Peerage. The claim to the Earldom of Banbury was decided between 1808-1813
against William Knollys. Sir Francis' daughter Lettice was married first to Walter
Devereux, Earl of Essex, and was mother of Robert, Earl of Essex, the ill-fated
favourite of Queen Elizabeth. She married, secondly, Robert Dudley, Earl of
Leicester, and thirdly, Sir Christopher Blount, and lived to see the grandchildren
of her grandchildren. Another son of Sir Francis, bearing the same name, as so
many members of the family did successively, was Sir Francis Knollys, Knight, who
inherited, under his father's will, the manor of Battel, and other estates in the
vicinity of Reading Abbey. He represented the City of Oxford in Parliament, and
afterwards the County of Berks. He married Lettice, daughter of John Barret,
Esquire, of Hanham in Gloucestershire, and was succeeded by his son, Sir Francis
Knollys, Knight, who married Ellen, daughter and heir of Richard Milles, Esquire,
of Lower Winchendon, Bucks, and was the grandfather of Francis Knollys,
Esquire, who married Anne, daughter and co-heir of — Bateman, Esquire, of
Berkshire, and had, besides his daughter, Elizabeth, wife of Sir Francis Curzon, of
Waterperry, in Oxfordshire, a son and heir, Francis Knollys, Esquire, M.P. for
Reading, who married Elizabeth, youngest daughter and co-heir of John Striblehill,
Esquire, of Thame. This last Francis Knollys; dying of the small-pox in 1701,

HIGH SHERIFFS. 85
1758. Robert Fettiplace1 of Pudlicot, Esquire.
1759. Anthony Hodges of Bolney Court, Harpsden, Esquire.

GEORGE THE THIRD.
ANNO.
1760. Samuel Trotman2 of Bucknell, Esquire.
was succeeded by his son, Francis Knollys, Esquire, of Thame, M.P. for the City
of Oxford, who died a bachelor, June 24, 1757, and was succeeded by his brother,
Richard Knollys, Esquire, the father of the above Sheriff. Sir Francis, the Sheriff,
was created a Baronet April I, 1754, and was elected to Parliament for Reading in
1761. He married in 1756, Mary, daughter and heiress of Sir Robert Kendall
Carter, of Kempston, in the County of Bedford, third son of John Kendall,
Esquire, of Basingbourn Hall, in Essex, but dying without issue, June 29, 1772,
the Baronetcy expired. The last representative of the family connected with the
County was the late General Sir William Thomas Knollys, K.C.B., of Blount's
Court, Oxfordshire, who, like so many of his ancestors, was associated with Royalty
and was Treasurer of H. R. H. the Prince of Wales' Household, and was entrusted
with the especial charge of the Prince during his University career.
1 He married Charlotte, daughter of Emanuel, Viscount Howe. She died at
Swinbrook, 1787.
2 The family of Trotman settled at Bucknell in 1638, having purchased the
estate of Edward Ewere, Esquire. The Eweres afterwards fell into great decay,
and are said to have been reduced to the position of drovers, or cattle dealers.
Samuel Trotman, Esquire, resided in the Manor House from the beginning of
Oliver Cromwell's Protectorate until his own death in 1684. From him the
estate descended to Lenthall Trotman, Esquire, and on his decease it passed to
Samuel Trotman, a gentleman so much distinguished for eccentricity that he was
usually denominated the mad Trotman. He was succeeded, in 1748, by his
nephew Samuel (the Sheriff in 1760), who, for many years, kept a pack of hounds
at Bucknell. This Sheriff was great-grandson of Samuel Trotman of Bucknell,
1638. He also inherited another family estate, Siston Court, Gloucestershire.
This gentleman was so much afflicted with lethargy that he was frequently known
to sit more than two hours at dinner, and sometimes fell asleep on horseback
while hunting; so that it became dangerous to trust him alone. This disease
terminated fatally on January 13, 1775, when both the Bucknell and the Siston
Court estates devolved upon his first cousin, Fiennes Trotman of Shelswell Park,
Esquire (Sheriff in 1769). He was the eldest son of Edward Trotman, Esquire,
by Mary, daughter and co-heiress of Thomas Filmer, Esquire, of Amwellbury,
Herts, who married Susannah, daughter of the Hon. John Fiennes, and sister
and co-heiress of Laurence, fifth Viscount Saye and Sele, through whom he in
herited Shelswell, part of the ancient Saye and Sele property. This Fiennes
Trotman was distinguished for his improvement in agriculture, and the planting ot
his estate. He died s. p. 1782, and was buried at Shelswell. His nephew Samuel
lost, at play, the reversion of Shelswell estate, which, in consequence, was sold to
the Harrison family, the present owners. The sale of the Shelswell estate so
offended Fiennes Trotman, that he and his cousin Samuel settled the Bucknell
and Siston Court estates on the nephews of Fiennes Trotman, and their issue;
and Fiennes, on the death of his uncle in 1782, succeeded to both estates; and,

86 COUNTY OF OXFORD. f
1 761. Charles Price of Rotherfield, Esquire.
1762. William Vanderstegen * of Cane End, Caversham,
Esquire.
1763. Edward Horn of Pyrton, Esquire.
1764. Abel Dotting of Newnham Murren, Esquire.
1765. Arthur Annesley of Bletchingdon, Esquire.
Mr. Henry Smith, Undersheriff.
1766. Thomas Rollinson 2 of Chadlington, Esquire.
Mr. Edward Clerke, Undersheriff.
1767. William Ledwell of Cowley, Esquire.
Mr. Edward Clerke, Undersheriff.
1768. Stukeley Baynton of Chadlington, Esquire.
after the death of his relative, Richard, sixth Viscount Saye and Sele, in 1781, the
Government offered to revive that title in his favour, an honour which he declined.
A short time before the death of the Viscount, the Barony of Saye and Sele
(being in abeyance) was recovered by another kinsman, Colonel Twisleton. Thus,
there were at the same time two Peers, one Viscount, the other, Baron Saye and
Sele. The estate of Bucknell is possessed by Frederick Drummond Hibbert,
Esquire, in right of his wife, Louisa, daughter and co-heiress of the late Fiennes
Trotman, Esquire.
On the south wall, in Bucknell Church, on a. scroll nicely designed, is the fol
lowing inscription : —
' Near this place lieth the body of Thomas Trotman Esquire, second son of
Lenthall Trotman Esquire. He married Elizabeth, daughter of Richard
Haynes Esquire, of Wick in Gloucestershire, by whom he had several children,
who died in their infancy, and one son, Samuel, who survived him. He died
May 26, 1 75 1, aged 65.
Samuel Trotman Esq., his son, married Ann, daughter of Arthur Plomer,
merchant of Bristol, who died June 10, 1763, and is interred in this church.
He afterwards married Mary, daughter of John Stanton Esq. of Longbridge,
near Warwick, who survived him. He died without issue Jan. 13, 1775, aged
54, and is here buried with his ancestors.
This monument is erected by Fiennes Trotman Esq. of Shelswell. I777-'
1 He was Assistant Chairman of the Quarter Sessions of Oxfordshire. The
hamlet and manor of Cane End (or Canon End) derived its name from the Canons
of Nottley, Bucks, to whom it formerly belonged. At the Dissolution of the
Monasteries, the estate was sold by the Crown to the Brigham family ; an heiress
of that family brought the estate in marriage to the Vanderstegens in 1750, and it
has ever since remained in that family.
2 This Sheriff died December 18, 1773, and was buried at Chadlington. This
name was subsequently converted into Rawlinson, a family long seated at Chad
lington, and now represented by Mr. Abram Creswicke Rawlinson of Chipping
Norton, and his distinguished uncles, Sir Henry Rawlinson, K.C.B., and the
Reverend George Rawlinson, Camden Professor of Ancient History in the Univer
sity of Oxford and Canon of Canterbury.

HIGH SHERIFFS. 87
1769. Fiennes Trotman 1 of Shelswell Park, Esquire.
Mr. Edward Clerke, Undersheriff.
T770. Francis Wastie2 of Cowley, Esquire.
1771. William Draper of Lower Worton, Esquire.
1772. Thomas Willatts of Caversham, Esquire.
1773. John Bush of Burcot, Esquire.
1774. William Nedham of Hobury, Esquire.
1775'. Maximilian Western3 of Cokethorpe Park, Esquire.
1776. Oldfield Bowles4 of North Aston, Esquire.
1 See the note to his cousin the Sheriff in 1760. On a mural monument on
the north wall of Newton Purcell Church, under Fiennes Trotman's arms and
crest, is the following inscription : —
'In a vault near this place rest the remains of Fiennes Trotman of Shelswell,
in the county of Oxford Esquire, who departed this life December 2nd, 1782,
in the 60th year of his age.
He was the eldest son of Edward Trotman Esq. by Mary, daughter and
co-heiress of Thomas Filmer Esq. of Amwellbury in Herts, who married
Susannah, daughter of the Honourable John Fiennes.'
2 On the north side of the chancel of Cowley Church, on a marble monument,
is the following inscription : ' Francis Wastie Esquire, High Sheriff of the county
of Oxon for the year 1770. Died May 16, 1775, aged 59 years.'
The following anecdote occurs in the Life of Mr. Justice Butter : ' There is a
tradition on the Oxford Circuit that he (Mr. Justice Buller) once met at Oxford
with a very unsophisticated Sheriff (Mr. Wastie), who bluntly demanded of his
lordship, as he was stepping into his Carriage, "whether he was a bona fide
Judge ? " (the worthy Functionary made but one syllable of the word fide) " as
they had been so often fobbed off with Serjeants in these parts." When satisfied
on this important particular, he took his seat aside the Judge. A grave severity
on the countenance of Mr. Justice Buller occasioned some misgiving in the mind
of the Sheriff, who expressed his fear that he had unwittingly done something
wrong. "It is certainly" (said his Lordship with a smile) "against etiquette on
these occasions for the Sheriff to take his seat fronting the Horses, unless " (here
he put his hand on the Gentleman who was starting up) " invited by the Judge, as
I now invite you." '
3 A marble monument in Stanlake Church perpetuates his death on June 7,
1 801, and that of his wife Elizabeth, daughter of William Ffolkes, Esq., Hilling-
don, Norfolk.
4 This Sheriff died at the seat of his son-in-law (Sturges Bourne, Esquire),
October 18, 1810. He was fairly described as the patron and example of excel
lence in the Fine Arts, and equally distinguished by his amiable qualities in civil
and domestic life. He was an active magistrate, a vigilant officer, an affectionate
husband, a tender father, a sincere friend, and a social neighbour. The North
Wootton Volunteers, which he raised in 1803 and commanded, met his remains
at the turnpike on the Abingdon Road, and followed the hearse; his sumpter
horse, with his boots and spurs, being led by two of the Corps, in solemn funeral
procession through Oxford, on their road to North Aston, where his remains
were deposited in the family vault. His son, Colonel Charles Oldfield Bowles,

88 COUNTY OF OXFORD.
1777. John Weyland of Woodeaton, Esquire.
1778. Charles Burrell Massingberd of Braisiers, Esquire.
1779. Edward Witts of Swerford Park, Esquire.
1780. Robert Langford of Ensham, Esquire.
1781. Richard Paul Joddrell 1 of Lewknor, Esquire.
1782. William Phillips of Culham, Esquire.
1783. Sir Gregory Page Turner of Ambrosden, Baronet
1784. Arthur Annesley 2 of Bletchingdon Park, Esquire.
1785. John Lenthall the younger, of Burford Priory, Esquire.
1786. Joseph Grote of Badgemore, Esquire.
1787. Charles Marsack3 of Caversham Park, Esquire.
1788. William Jemmett of Little Milton, Esquire.
1789. John Blackall, junior, of Haseley Court, Esquire.
1 790. David Fell of Caversham, Esquire.
1 791. James Peter Auriol of Woodcot, Esquire.
1792. Thomas Willats of Caversham, Esquire.

who for many years commanded the Oxfordshire Militia, sold the North Aston
estate in 1861 to William Melliar Foster-Melliar, Esquire, the Sheriff in 1865.
1 Educated at Eton and Hertford College, Oxford ; F.R.S., D.C.L., M.P. for
Seaford. Author of many classical writings and literary and dramatic works.
Died Jan. 26, 1831, in his eighty-sixth year. He was the last surviving member
of the famous Dr. Johnson Club. His son, Sir Richard Paul Jodrell, succeeded to
his maternal uncle's Baronetcy.
2 He was for some time Member of Parliament for the City of Oxford, until
May 1796, when he was succeeded by H. Peters, Esquire.
3 The splendid domain of Caversham Park was originally possessed by the
Craven family, who sold it to the Earl of Kildare, of whom it was purchased, in
1718, by Lord Cadogan, the friend and companion-in-arms of the great Duke of
Marlborough. From the Cadogans the estate came into the hands of Colonel
Marsack, and, after the mansion had for some time remained untenanted, was
purchased by the late William Crawshay, Esquire. The original mansion stood
nearer the river than the present one. It was here that Anne of Denmark, Queen
of James I, was so splendidly entertained by Lord Knollys, when on her journey
to Bath in 1613 ; and here too it was that Charles I and his children had their last
interview. The King was a prisoner at Windsor, and the Parliament, through
the mediation of General Fairfax, permitted him to visit his children here, where
they resided in the custody of the Earl of Northumberland. In the reign of
George I, the late princely mansion was erected by Lord Cadogan. It was a
large square building, with two wings ; and its front was embellished, by the late
Colonel Marsack, with a magnificent Corinthian colonnade, which was copied
from the Portico of the Pantheon at Rome. An Ionic colonnade, which formed
the wings, was added by Mr. Crawshay. In 1850, however, the house was burned
down, and Mr. Crawshay erected, upon its site, the present noble mansion.

HIGH SHERIFFS. 89
1793. General John Caillaud, of Aston Rowant.
1794. Samuel Gardiner of Coombe Lodge, Whitchurch,
Esquire.
1795. Strickland Freeman of Fawley Court, Esquire.
1796. William Lowndes Stone of Brightwell, Esquire.
Mr. Pierce Walsh, Undersheriff.
1797. James Jones of Adwell, Esquire.
1798. John Atkyns Wright1 of Crowsley Park, and of
Oxford, Esquire.
1799. George Stratton of Great Tew, Esquire.
1800. Richard Williams of Neithrop, and formerly of
Oxford, Esquire.
1 801. George Clarke2 of Chesterton Lodge, Esquire.
1 802. Thomas Toovey of Joyce Grove, Nettlebed. Esquire.
1803. James Taylor of Sandford, Esquire.
1804. John Langston of Sarsden, Esquire.
1805. Elisha Biscoe 3 of Holton Park, Esquire.
1806. George Frederick Stratton of Great Tew, Esquire.
1807. William Hodges of Bolney Court, Esquire.
1808. The Honourable Thomas Parker4 of Ensham Hall
(afterwards 5th Earl of Macclesfield).
1 Chairman of Quarter Sessions from January 1819 to March 1822 ; and he
was, with Francis Burton, Esquire, returned M.P. for the City of Oxford in 1802,
an honour he retained till 1818.
2 Chesterton Lodge was the residence of a family of the name of Lander, who
demised it to the Honourable Mrs. Weaver. The estate was afterwards the
property of Mr. Penrose, who investigated the ruins of Alchester in 1766. He
sold the property to John Hayley, Esquire, from whom it passed to Mr. Clarke,
the above Sheriff, whose son, George Rochfort Clarke, Esquire, having for many
years enjoyed the possession of Chesterton Lodge, recently sold the estate to Henry
Tubb, Esquire, of Bicester.
3 He purchased in 1801, from Henry Mayne Whorwood, Esquire, of Headington,
the Estate, Manor, and Advowson of Holton. After this sale the family of
Whorwood, which had many times supplied a representative to the Crown, ceased
to be enrolled in the list of High Sheriffs. The Rev. Thomas Henry Whorwood,
D.D., late Fellow of Magdalen College, and Vicar of Willoughby in Warwick
shire, who died in 1884, was the last representative of that old family. See note to
Mr. Biscoe's grandson, the Sheriff in 1868.
4 The noble family of Macclesfield is descended from Thomas Parker, who
flourished in the reign of Edward III, and then possessed the Manor of Lees, near
Norton, in the County of Derby, which still retains the name of Norton Lees.

90 COUNTY OF OXFORD.
1 809. John Harrison of Shelswell, Esquire.
1 810. William Henry Ashhurst1 of Waterstock, Esquire.
1 81 1. Sir John Chandos Reade of Shipton Court, Baronet.
1 81 2. Francis Sackville Lloyd Wheate of Glympton Park,
Esquire, one part, and
Thomas Darby Coventry of Henley, Esquire, other
part of year.
18 13. William Wilson of Lower Worton, Esquire.
1 8 14. James King of Wickham Park, Esquire.
1815. Edward Francis Colston of Filkins Hall, Esquire.
1 81 6. John Phillips of Culham, Esquire.
1817. Joseph Henley2 of Waterperry, Esquire
1 81 8. Philip Lybbe Powys 3 of Hardwick House, Esquire.
The Earls of Macclesfield have been seated at Shirburn Castle, in Oxfordshire,
from the time of the first Earl, Lord Chancellor Macclesfield, in the reign of
George I. For a view of the judicial character of the first Earl, suffice it to record
the following quotation from his learned biographer, Lord Campbell : 'The decisions
of Lord Macclesfield in the Court of Chancery have ever since commanded an
authority second only to that of the most illustrious Judges who have filled the
seat of Equity, — of a Hardwicke or an Eldon.'
The second Earl (already alluded to as the author of the Act of Parliament
which altered the style) was, on account of his great learning, complimented by
admission as a member of several Universities; and in 1752 he was elected
President of the Royal Society. The third Earl was the Lord Parker referred to
in a foregoing note with reference to the great Oxfordshire Election in 1754.
Previously to that date he sat in Parliament as Member for Newcastle-under-
Lyne; and subsequently he was M.P. for Rochester until his accession to the
Earldom. His son (the fourth Earl), who is numbered in the List of Lords
Lieutenant, was succeeded in the title by his brother, the above Sheriff, who
was the father of the present sixth Earl, so well-known and esteemed at Shirburn
Castle. 1 M.P. for the County from 1815 to 1830; and Chairman of Quarter Sessions
from 1822 to 1846. See note to his son, the Sheriff in 1852.
2 It is a matter of regret that the name of Mr. Henley's son — the Right
Honourable Joseph Warner Henley, M.P. — is not recorded in the Roll of High
Sheriffs of his County ; but he was excused from the office by reason of his duties
during a long series of years, as Vice-Chairman, and afterwards as Chairman of
Quarter Sessions. However, his name, though absent from this List, appears
honourably for many years in the Roll of M.P.'s.
3 Hardwick House, the seat of Philip Lybbe Powys Lybbe, Esquire, is a large,
antiquated mansion. So early as the reign of Richard II this mansion belonged
to the Hardwick family. From the Hardwicks it passed by purchase to the
Lybbes ; and in 1730, through his marriage with Isabella, daughter and heiress of
Richard Lybbe, Esquire, the estate passed to Philip Powys, Esquire, youngest son
of Sir Thomas Powys, of Lilford, Salop. The south front was erected by Anthony

HIGH SHERIFFS. 91
1819. James Haughton Langston1 of Sarsden, Esquire.
GEORGE THE FOURTH.
ANNO.
1820. Thomas Fraser of Woodcot House, Esquire.
1 821. Charles Peers of Chislehampton Lodge, Esquire.
1822. John Blackall of Haseley, Esquire.
1823. Daniel Stuart of Wickham Park, Esquire.
1824. Stanlake Batson of Mixbury, Esquire.
1825. Sir Francis Desanges of Aston Rowant, Knight.
i825. William Peere Williams Freeman of Fawley Court,
Esquire.
1827. Joseph Wilson of Lower Worton, Esquire.
1828. Charles Cottrell Dormer2 of Rousham, Esquire.
1829. Thomas Cobb of Neithrop, Esquire.
Lybbe, Esquire, soon after the restoration of Charles II. The mansion was
frequently attacked and pillaged by the Parliamentary forces during the Cjfn\
Wars. Tradition asserts that it was visited by Queen Elizabeth during one of
her progresses. In 1839 the house underwent considerable repairs and altera
tions, and the general appearance of the mansion was restored to its original
character. 1 He was M.P. for Woodstock for several years till 1826; and for the City of
Oxford from 1826 to 1863. He was the son of John Langston, Esquire, the
Sheriff in 1804, whose father, James H. Langston, Esquire, in 1791, purchased the
Sarsden and Churchill estates of Dennis Rolle, Esquire, who had purchased them
of Sir William Walter, Baronet. Mr. John Langston died in 1812, leaving an
only son, James Haughton Langston, Esquire, the above Sheriff, who upon attain
ing his majority in 1818 rebuilt Churchill Parish Church, as =¦ pious offering,
copying exactly Magdalen College Tower, with its pinnacles, only reduced through
out one-third, so as to consist with the proportions of the church. Mr. Langston
married, in 1824, Lady Julia Moreton, daughter of the second Earl of Ducie, and
their daughter was married to her cousin, the present Earl of Ducie, who succeeded
to the Oxfordshire and other estates upon Mr. Langston's decease in October,
1863. 2 He married Frances Elizabeth, eldest daughter of Walter Strickland, Esquire,
of Cokethorpe Park, Oxfordshire. The family of Cottrell held the hereditary office
of Master of the Ceremonies from 1641 till 1796. Upon the demise of Lieutenant-
General James Dormer (who had married Anne Cottrell) the family assumed the
additional surname of Dormer. The history and antiquity of this family have
been written by Miss Dormer in an Account of Rousham, Oxfordshire, and a
pedigree will be found in the Rev. Dr. Lee's History of Thame.

92 COUNTY OF OXFORD.
WILLIAM THE FOURTH.
ANNO.
1830. Richard Weyland 1 of Woodeaton, Esquire.
1831. Sir Henry John Lambert of Aston Rowant, Baronet.
1832. Michael Henry Blount2 of Mapledurham, Esquire.
1833. Sir George Dashwood of Kirtlington Park, Baronet.
1834. William Francis Lowndes Stone of Brightwell Park,
Esquire.
1835. John Fane 3 of Wormsley, Esquire.
1836. Thomas Stonor 4 of Stonor Park, Esquire (afterwards
Baron Camoys).
1 Mr. Weyland was a Major in the Army, and a soldier of the finest type. His
regiment was the 16th Light Dragoons, with which he served during the Peninsular
War, and at Waterloo. The Woodeaton estate came to the Weylands upon the
marriage of the Major's father to the heiress of John Nourse, Esquire, — an old
Oxfordshire family. The estate came to the Nourse family from the Taverners.
Richard Taverner, in 1554, built the old Mansion House, which was taken down
by the late John Weyland, Esquire, in 1775, when the present mansion was built.
Major Weyland represented the County of Oxford in Parliament from 1831 to
1837. He died on October 14, 1864, at his seat, Woodrising Hall, Norfolk, being
succeeded by his elder son, John Weyland, Esquire, of Woodeaton, who married
Lady Catherine De Burgh, daughter of the Marquess of Clanricarde.
2 See note to his ancestor, the Sheriff in 1586.
" He was M.P. for the County from 1824 to 1831.
4 Few names appear in the Roll of Sheriffs which can boast their descent from
more remote antiquity than that of Stonor, which so often occurs in the present List ;
and the continuous residence of the family for so many centuries in their ancient
mansion at Stonor is without a parallel in the County.
The family derive their territorial patronymic from the Manor of Stonor in
Oxfordshire. The first of them who served the office of High Sheriff was Edmund
Stonor, in 1377, who was grandson of the celebrated Judge, Sir John Stonor, Chief
Justice of the Common Pleas in the reigns of Edward II and Edward III, whose
monument and effigy in Dorchester Church are still in good preservation. In the
2nd and 6th years of Henry VI, Sir Thomas Stonor filled the office of High Sheriff,
and represented the City of Oxford in Parliament in the 7th year of that reign ;
and, dying in the following year, he was succeeded by his son, Thomas Stonor,
who was also High Sheriff in 32 Henry VI and 6 Edward IV. His eldest son,
Sir William Stonor, was High Steward of Oxford in 1492. Leland visited him at
Stonor, and thus described it : ' Ther is a fayre parke, and a warren of conies, and
fayre wood. The mansion place standyth on a hill and hath two courtes buildyed
with tymbre, brike, and flinte. Sir William Stonor, now possessor of it, hath aug
mented and strengthened the house. The Stonors hathe longe had it in possession.'
Upon Sir William's death he was succeeded by his nephew, Sir Walter Stonor,
Sheriff in the 26th and 33rd years of Henry VIII. He was Lieutenant of the
Tower, and on his death the estates devolved upon John Stonor, whose son
married Cecily, daughter of Sir Leonard Chamberlain of Shirburn Castle. Sir
Francis Stonor, grandson of John Stonor, was High Sheriff in 35 Queen Elizabeth,

HIGH SHERIFFS. 93
VICTORIA.
ANNO.
1837. Philip Thomas Herbert Wykeham of Tythrop House,
Esquire.
1838. William Peere Williams Freeman of Fawley Court,
Esquire.
1 839. John Harrison Slater Harrison of Shelswell, Esquire.
1840. Hugh Hamersley (of Pyrton Manor1), Great Haseley
House, Esquire.
1 841. John Loveday 2 of Williamscot, Esquire.
and in 19 James I Sir Francis built and endowed an almshouse at Assendon for
ten poor persons. From this period (James I) the Stonor family do not appear again
in the List of Sheriffs till the appointment of Thomas Stonor, Esquire, in 1836.
With regard to the ancient Barony of Camoys (to which the above Thomas
Stonor, Esquire, succeeded), it may be stated that Thomas, Lord Camoys, son of
Ralph, Lord Camoys, was included in most of the military services of Edward III,
but was not summoned to Parliament ; and, dying without issue, his estates
passed to Sir Thomas de Camoys, an eminent warrior in the reigns of Richard II,
Henry IV, and Henry V, and commanded the left wing of the English army at
Agincourt, and was there made a Knight of the Garter. He was summoned to
Parliament from 7 Richard II to 8 Henry V. He was succeeded by his grandson
Hugh, second Baron Camoys, upon whose death in 4 Henry VI the Barony fell into
abeyance, and so continued until 1839, when the above Sheriff (upon the death
of John Biddulph, Esquire) became the senior co-heir of Hugh, Baron Camoys,
and was summoned by Her Majesty to Parliament, taking his place in the House of
Lords as a Baron of the reign of Richard II. His Lordship died Jan. 18, 1881.
1 Pyrton Manor is interesting in history as the house from which John Hampden,
in 1619, married his first wife, Elizabeth, only daughter of Edmund Simeon,
Esquire, the then Lord of the Manor; and, in the hall of the mansion, Mr.
Hamersley has placed a fine bust of Hampden, with the following inscription,
copied from that on the medal which Hampden wore round his neck, and which is
preserved in the Bodleian Library : —
'Tis not against my King I fight,
But for my King and Country's right.
After Hampden's mortal wound at Chalgrove Field, he with difficulty rode to
Pyrton Manor House, and was ministered to there before continuing his journey to ¦
Thame, where he lingered and died. He was buried at Hampden. ' Hampden
died as he had lived, true to the cause approved by his reason and sanctioned by
his conscience, and which he sealed with his blood. The last words upon his lips
were a prayer for his bleeding country.' — Aikin's Memoirs of the Court of Charles
the First, vol. ii. p. 349.
Mr. Hamersley died Nov. 2, 1884, having actively fulfilled the duties of
Chairman of Quarter Sessions for many years, and upon his retirement the
Magistrates placed his portrait in the County Hall.
2 The Lovedays were seated at Caversham in Oxfordshire from the seventeenth
to the latter part of the eighteenth century, when John Loveday, Esquire, D.C.L.,
acquired the Williamscot estate by his marriage, in 1777, with Anne, daughter

94 COUNTY OF OXFORD.
1 842. John Shawe Phillips of Culham House, Esquire.
1843. William Henry Vanderstegen of Cane End House,
Esquire.
1 844. Walter Strickland x of Cokethorpe Park, Esquire.
1845. Lieutenant-Colonel John Sidney North2 of Wroxton
Abbey.
and heiress of William Taylor Loder, Esquire, of Williamscot ; and upon the death
of Dr. Loveday, the estate passed to his eldest son, John Loveday, Esquire, the
above Sheriff, who died a bachelor in 1864, and was succeeded by his brother, the
Rev. William Loveday, of Arlescote.
1 The Mansion at Cokethorp Park was built by Sir Simon Harcourt (afterwards
Lord Chancellor Harcourt), in the reign of Queen Anne ; and Her Majesty
presented his Lordship with the carved-oak decorations of the dining room, and
visited the Chancellor at Cokethorpe after the house was finished.
This estate was sold in 1755 to Maximilian Western, Esquire, whose daughter
and co-heiress married Walter, brother of Sir William Strickland, Baronet, of
Boynton in Yorkshire, and father of the above Sheriff.
2 Wroxton Abbey was founded by an ecclesiastic named Michael Belet, in the
year 1 200. He endowed it with the Manor of Wroxton, and all his property in
Wroxton and Balscot, &c. He was the friend of Grostete or Greathead, Bishop
of Lincoln, and is mentioned in connection with him in 1235. The priory, and
lands belonging to it, afterwards became the property of Sir Thomas Pope,
founder of Trinity College, Oxford, and by him given to that foundation. Of that
society it was held by the Earls of Guilford, and it is now in the possession of
Lord North, the son of this Sheriff and Baroness North, who was the second
daughter of the third Earl of Guilford. The ancient buildings of the Priory are
said to have been in great part destroyed by fire, but Sir William Pope, afterwards
Earl of Downe, to whom the property belonged in the reign of James I, erected
on its site the present splendid mansion, which was completed in 1618. The Lord
Keeper Guilford, who became possessed of Wroxton by his marriage with the
Lady Frances Pope, daughter of Thomas, third Earl of Downe, made some
additions to it in the reign of Charles II.
The mansion contains a good collection of ancient portraits of the families of
Pope and North. Among the former is an original of Sir Thomas Pope, founder
of Trinity College, Oxford. The gardens and pleasure grounds still retain most of
their monastic features. This noble mansion has been more than once honoured
by the presence of royalty. James I paid a visit here to Sir William Pope, ' and
was diverted with the amusements of hawking and bear-baiting.' Charles I and
his Queen, together with Prince Charles and the Duke of York, visited Sir Thomas
Pope, and slept here on the night of July 13, 1643, and the next day proceeded to
Woodstock Castle. George, Prince of Wales, afterwards George IV, paid visits
to the Earl of Guilford at Wroxton in 1805, in 1806, and again in 1808. On the
occasion of the Prince's second visit he was accompanied by his brother, the Duke
of Clarence, afterwards King William IV. The obelisk at Wroxton bears the
following inscription with reference to the first visit of the Prince of Wales : —
' Georgius Wallia? Princeps Frederici Nepos avi virtutibus omatus hospitium
sibi a Francisco Comite De Guilford Francisci Nepote Wroxtonise renovatum
huic obelisco inscribi voluit mense Junii mdcccv.'

HIGH SHERIFFS. 95
1846. Mortimer Ricardo * of Kiddington Hall, Esquire.
1847. Henry Baskerville2 of Crowsley Park, Esquire.
1848. Matthew Piers Watt Boulton of Great Tew Park,
Esquire.
1849. Samuel Weare Gardiner of Combe Lodge, Whit
church, Esquire.
1 850. Henry Hall of Barton Abbey, Esquire.
1 851. John Brown of Kingston Blount, Esquire.
The Baroness North, the second daughter of the third Earl of Guilford, by his
second wife, daughter of the late Thomas Courts, Esquire, married in 1835 John
Sidney Doyle, Esquire (son of General Doyle), the above Sheriff, who in 1838
assumed the surname of North ; and her Ladyship succeeded to the barony in
1841. This peerage, which was created by writ of summons, fell in abeyance in
1802, on the death of the ninth Baron, who was third Earl of Guilford. That
earldom descending to the heir male, the barony became divided among the three
daughters of the Earl. The youngest of them died in 1835, and the eldest (who
was Marchioness of Bute) in 1841, when the abeyance naturally terminated in
favour of their sister the late peeress, who died in March, 1884. Her grandfather,
the second Earl of Guilford, was long known as Lord North, the Prime Minister
from 1770 to 1782. The Baroness North also possessed an estate at Elsfield,
which was purchased by Lord North (father of Lord Guilford) of Sir George
Pudsey, Recorder of Oxford, and which has since become the property of Herbert
Parsons, Esquire. Colonel North represented the County in Parliament for thirty-
four years preceding the electoral redistribution in 1886, and on his retirement he
was appointed a member of the Privy Council.
1 This Sheriff was a son of the celebrated political and financial writer, Mr. David
Ricardo, M.P. for Portarlington, Ireland, and author of The Principles of Political
Economy and Taxation, and a brother of Mr. J. L. Ricardo, M.P. for Stoke-upon-
Trent. This Kiddington estate was long in the hands of the Browne-Mostyn family,
now represented by Lord Vaux of Harrowden. In 1840 it was sold to Mr. Mortimer
Ricardo under a private Act of Parliament, and he made many improvements to
the hall, village, and parish, — since added to in the best taste by his successor,
Henry Lomax Gaskell, Esquire, to whom the property was sold upon the death of
Mrs. Ricardo in 1855, when the widower took an aversion to it as a residence.
Mr. Mortimer Ricardo died on April 21, 1876.
2 Mr. Baskerville is the representative of a branch of the old Herefordshire
family of Baskerville, derived from Philip Baskerville, son, by his second wife, of
Sir Walter Baskerville, of Eidesley, Sheriff of Herefordshire, 9 Edward IV,
created a Knight of the Bath on the marriage of Prince Arthur in 1501. Mr.
Henry Baskerville (the above Sheriff) was formerly a civilian at Madras ; and, in
1838, succeeded to the estates and the representation of the family on the death of
his cousin, the late John Baskerville, Esquire, of Woolley House, Wilts, when he
assumed, by Royal Licence, his present surname and arms in lieu of those of
Viveash. He was second, but eldest surviving son of Oriel Viveash, Esquire, of
Calne, by Sarah his wife, youngest daughter of Thomas Baskerville, Esquire, of
Woolley, and grandson of Simeon Viveash, Esquire, of Calne. He died Feb. 6,
1877, and was succeeded by his son, Colonel John Baskerville, who commands the
Oxfordshire Yeomanry.

96 COUNTY OF OXFORD.
1852. John Henry Ashhurst1 of Waterstock, Esquire.
Mr. Samuel Cooper was Undersheriff this year, and he and his
father, Mr. Thomas Cooper, held the office successively for many
preceding years.
1853. James Morrell 2, junior, of Oxford, Esquire.
Mr. John Marriott Davenport was Undersheriff from this date
until 1874 consecutively.
1 The Waterstock estate anciently belonged to the Danvers family, and passed
to the Cave family by the marriage of Sir Thomas Cave to the daughter and
heiress of Sir John Danvers. In the early part of the seventeenth century Sir
George Croke purchased the estate of Sir William Cave; and, shortly after Sir
George Croke's death in 1680, the estate was sold to Sir Henry Ashhurst, Baronet.
The Ashhursts had, from the time of the Conquest, been seated at a place bearing
their own name, in Lancashire. But, in Charles IPs reign, a younger son (Henry
Ashhurst, Esquire) settled in the city of London as a merchant, and was eminent
for his benevolence, and as the chief person in founding the Corporation for
Propagating the Gospel in Foreign Parts. He was likewise a promoter of
translating the Bible into Hindostanee. His second son, Sir William Ashhurst,
Knight, was Lord Mayor of London in 1693, and represented the City of London
in several Parliaments ; whilst the eldest son (Henry) was created a Baronet by
James II in 1688 ; and he married a daughter of William, fifth Lord Paget. Sir
Henry sat in Parliament in the reigns of Charles II and William III for Truro
and Wilton. He was succeeded by his son, Sir Henry Ashhurst, M.P. for
Windsor, in 1714, and he, dying in 1732 without issue, the Baronetcy expired.
The Waterstock estate then passed to Thomas Henry Ashhurst, Esquire, of
Ashhurst in Lancashire, from his marriage with Diana, daughter of Sir Richard
Allin, Baronet, by Frances his wife, who was the only daughter of the first Sir
Henry Ashhurst, Baronet. Thomas Henry Ashhurst died in 1744, and was
succeeded by Sir William Henry Ashhurst, Knight, one of the Judges of the
King's Bench from 1770 to 1800, and twice one of the Lords Commissioners of
the Great Seal. He died at Waterstock in 1807, and was succeeded by his eldest
son, William Henry Ashhurst, Esquire (Sheriff in 1810, M.P. for Oxfordshire, and
Chairman of Quarter Sessions), whose high qualities as a Christian gentleman
endeared him to every one — rich and poor alike — who came within his sphere.
He died 3rd June, 1 846, and was succeeded by his eldest surviving son, John Henry
Ashhurst, Esquire, the above Sheriff, who died November 5, 1885, and was
succeeded by his son, William Henry Ashhurst, Esquire. The ancient seat of
Waterstock was pulled down in 1695. A new one of brick was built in its place,
but this in turn was demolished, and the present excellent mansion erected by Sir
William Henry Ashhurst the Judge.
2 Mr. Morrell died in 1863, at Headington Hill, at the early age of 53. His
character may be collected from the following quotations in a Memorial of him
written shortly after his death : ' Mr. Morrell (the kind friend in distress, the
benefactor of so many) is no more ; and both the City and County of Oxford
mourn the loss of a man whose like, — for kindness of heart, for true benevolence,
and for unbounded hospitality, — we shall probably never see again. His means
were great, and his heart to dispense those means was commensurately large.'
Mr. Morrell was for some years Master of the Old Berkshire hounds. He was
succeeded in his estates by his only daughter Emily Alicia, who was married to
her relative, George Herbert Morrell, Esquire, the Sheriff in 1885.

HIGH SHERIFFS. 97
1854. Lieutenant- Colonel John William Fane1 of Wormsley.
1855. Benjamin John Whippy of Lee Place, Esquire.
1856. William Evetts of Tackley Park, Esquire.
1857. The Right Honourable Charles Henry, fourteenth
Viscount Dillon 2, of Dytchley.
1 Genealogists trace the Fane family up to Howel ap Vane, seated in Mon
mouthshire before the Conquest. Passing to Sir Henry Vane, the eighth person in
the descent, he was, on the 19th of December 1356, knighted at the battle of
Poictiers, by Edward the Black Prince ; and, nearly two hundred years afterwards,
Sir John Vane was knighted at the siege of Boulogne in 1 544, and made a Knight
Banneret at the great battle of Musselborough, in the first year of Edward VI's
reign. He was afterwards executed, on the 25th of February 1552, for adhering to
the unfortunate Duke of Somerset. And at this date the name appears to have
been changed to Fane. Sir Francis Fane was created Earl of Westmoreland in
1624. One of his descendants, Henry Fane, married Anne, daughter of Thomas
Scrope, Esquire (a descendant of the regicide Adrian Scrope), and by her acquired
the estate of Wormsley in Oxfordshire, where the family have ever since been
seated. This Henry Fane was the father of Thomas, the eighth Earl of West
moreland, and was succeeded at Wormsley by the Earl's younger brother, the
Honourable Henry Fane, M.P. for Lyme Regis, who married, first, Charlotte,
daughter of Nicholas Rowe, Poet Laureate ; secondly, Anne, daughter of John
Wynn, D.D., Bishop of Bath and Wells; and, thirdly, in 1748, Charlotte,
daughter of Richard Luther, Esquire, of Myles's in Essex, by which alliance the
Fanes acquired their Essex estate, and of that marriage the above Sheriff was the
great-grandson. Colonel John William Fane was the third in the generations of the house who
has represented the County of Oxford in Parliament. He succeeded to the
Colonelcy of the Oxfordshire Regiment of Militia upon the death of Colonel
Bowles in 1862, but had commanded the regiment at Corfu during the Crimean
War in 1855. He died November 19, 1875.
2 In the Visitation of Oxfordshire by Lee, in 1574, the name of Gibbons is
recorded as living at Dytchley, and Thomas Gibbons, Esquire, was High Sheriff
of Oxfordshire in the 1 2th year of Queen Elizabeth. From the Gibbons family
Dytchley passed, by purchase, to Sir Henry Lee, K.G., of Quarendon, Bucks, the
celebrated Courtier and Knight in Queen Elizabeth's reign. Upon his decease, in
16 1 1, the estate passed to his nephew, Sir Henry Lee, Knight and Baronet,
High Sheriff in the nth year of James I. In 1674 Sir Edward Henry Lee, the
6th Baronet, whose name appears in the list of Lords Lieutenant, was raised to
the. Peerage as Baron of Spelsbury, Viscount Quarendon, and Earl of Lichfield.
He married Lady Charlotte Fitzroy, daughter of King Charles II by Barbara
Villiers, Duchess of Cleveland, and died in 1716, and was succeeded by his fourth
son, George Henry Lee, second Earl, whose eldest son, Sir George Henry Lee
(third Earl), was Chancellor of the University of Oxford from 1762 to 1772, and
was a great benefactor both to the University and City. Amongst other endow
ments the four City Lectureships were founded, 1778, with money left by him, and
invested in Oxford Canal shares. He died in 1775, and was succeeded by his
uncle, Sir Robert Lee, previously M.P. for the City of Oxford. Sir Robert (fourth
Earl of Lichfield) married Katherine, daughter of Sir John Stonehouse, of Radley,
H

98 COUNTY OF OXFORD. ,<
/
f
1858. Henry Lomax Gaskell of Kiddington Hall, Esquire.
1859. George Gammie1 (afterwards Gammie-Maitland) of
Shotover House, Esquire.
and died, issueless, in 1776, when all his honours (including the Baronetcy)
expired. The Dytchley estate devolved upon his niece, Charlotte, Viscountess
Dillon, and has since remained in that noble family. Her grandson, Henry
Augustus, 13th Viscount Dillon, assumed the additional surname and arms of Lee,
and, upon his decease in 1832, he was succeeded by his eldest son, the above
Sheriff, who died in 1865, when the Peerage and estates devolved upon his two
next brothers, the 15th and 16th Viscounts Dillon, in succession. The mansion of
Dytchley (designed by Gibbs) is a grand house, and, with its extensive park, ranks
high amongst the noble seats of the county.
1 Shotover is historically an interesting place. The mansion (to which wings
were added by Mr. Gammie-Maitland) was built by Sir Timothy Tyrrell, Baronet,
in the reign of James I, upon the site of the ancient house, celebrated as being
selected by Queen Elizabeth for her reception of the authorities of Oxford at the
close of Her Majesty's visit in 1566 to the classic city. It is recorded that on the
Queen's arrival at Shotover, upon leaving Oxford, the Earl of Leicester (Chancellor
of the University) told her that the University Liberties reached no farther that
way ; whereupon Mr. Roger Marbeck delivered an eloquent oration to the Queen,
containing many passages relating to learning, and the encouragement of it by
Her Majesty ; and the Queen then expressed her thanks to the whole University,
saying, ' Farewell the learned University of Oxford, farewell my good subjects
there, farewell my dear scholars ; and pray God prosper your studies.' The
obelisk in view of the mansion was built to commemorate Queen Elizabeth's visit,
and to mark the site of the former house. There are several traditions as to
the origin of ' Shotover ; ' amongst them may be mentioned ' Chateau Vert,' but
as one of the royal forests it is described in the Domesday Survey as Scotorne, and
throughout the Patent Rolls of King John and Henry Ill's reigns we find it called
Scotore, Shotore, Shothore, Shottovere, &c.
The estate belonged to the Crown, and was granted to the Tyrrells in recogni
tion of the following incident. Sir Timothy Tyrrell, being Master of the Buck-
hounds to Henry, Prince of Wales (son of James I), was hunting with the Prince
in Shotover Forest, and, on holding the buck's head for the Prince to cut it off, the
Prince cut Sir Timothy's hand in such a way as permanently to deprive him of the
use of it. On Sir Timothy's next appearance at Court, the Prince granted him the
Rangership of the Forests of Shotover and Stow Wood, and King James I
confirmed the grant (after the death of Prince Henry in 1612), by Letters Patent
dated 1613, for the lives of Sir Timothy Tyrrell and his two sons, Timothy and
William. Sir Timothy was also Master of the Buckhounds to Prince Charles
(afterwards Charles I), and, in the Civil War, Sir Timothy Tyrrell, the son, raised
a regiment at his own expense, and was dangerously wounded in two engagements ;
whilst William Tyrrell was killed in the King's service at the siege of Chester. It
was at Shotover that James Tyrrell, the son of the second Sir Timothy Tyrrell,
wrote his History of England, residing there for access to the Bodleian Library at
Oxford. His son, General James Tyrrell, left the domain of Shotover (then
become a freehold estate) to Baron Augustus Schutz, in the reign of George I,
and his descendants consecutively resided there till the last of the family (Thomas
James Schutz, Esq.) died in 1839, when the property devolved upon George

HIGH SHERIFFS. 99
i860. John Fowden Hodges of Bolney Court, Esquire.
1 861. Henry Birch Reynardson1 of Adwell House, Esquire.
1862. Edward Mackenzie2 of Fawley Court, Esquire.
1863. Thomas Taylor of Aston Rowant House, Esquire.
1864. George Glen of Stratton Audley Park, Esquire.
1865. William Melliar Foster-Melliar of North Aston,
Esquire.

Vandeput Drury, Esquire, after whose death it was purchased by George Gammie-
Maitland, Esq., by whom it was sold to Lieutenant-Colonel James Miller, the
Sheriff in 1880, the present owner. The following inscription upon a monu
ment in Forest Hill Church records the decease of the last of the Schutz
family : —
' Sacred to the memory of Thomas James Schutz Esquire, of Shotover House
in this county, who departed this life the vii. of December a.d. mdcccxxxix.
aged lxxix years. He was the last of a long line of ancestors distinguished
for their public acts and employments as well as for their private virtues. The
recollection of the charitable, humane, and honourable character of the
deceased will never be forgotten by those who knew him, and by the Poor who
have reason to deplore his loss. In the same vault rest the remains of Ann,
wife of the above Thomas James Schutz Esquire, daughter and co-heiress of
Samuel Sheppard Esquire, of Minchin Hampton, Gloucestershire. After an
union of forty years she died the xviii. of March A.D. mdcccxxxvii., sincerely
lamented by her husband. This tablet is erected by George Vandeput Drury
Esquire, cousin and successor of the late Thomas James Schutz Esquire, as
a tribute of his gratitude and esteem.'
1 James Jones, Esquire, the Sheriff in 1797, was one of Mr. Reynardson's
predecessors at Adwell. Mr. Jones acquired the estate by his marriage with Miss
Elizabeth Newell, and through her it came to her cousin, John William Newell
Birch, Esquire, late of Henley Park, for life, and he, having purchased the
reversion, presented the estate to his nephew, the late Henry Birch Reynardson,
Esquire, the above Sheriff. (See Plot's History of Oxfordshire as to antiquities of
Adwell Cop, &c.)
2 Mr. Mackenzie, in 1853, purchased the Fawley Court estate of Mr. William
Peere Williams Freeman, the Sheriff in 1838. It had belonged to the Freeman
family for several generations, they having acquired it, by purchase, of the White-
locks, who were related to John Hampden, and took a prominent part in the Civil
War on Hampden's side. There are three mansions on the estate, Fawley Court,
Henley Park, and Phillis Court. Of these, Fawley Court (designed by Sir
Christopher Wren, and built in 1684) is by far the most important, and it has
historical interest attached to it. The former Court house was sacked by the
Royalists during the Civil War ; the Court rolls and title deeds burned ; and the
deer in the park killed. The present mansion abounds with treasures of art, and
amongst other paintings is the celebrated one, by Salter, of the Waterloo Banquet.
This picture adorns one of the rooms ; whilst the grand staircase is lined with
Salter's individual portraits of the heroes. Mr. Mackenzie died September 27,
1880, and was succeeded by his eldest son, the Sheriff in 1873.
H 2

I oo COUNTY OF OXFORD. /
1866. Sir Henry William Dashwood1 of Kirtlington Park,
Baronet.
1867. Alexander William Hall2 (of Barton Abbey), Dun's
Tew, Esquire.
1 The Dashwood family was originally seated in Dorsetshire, whence it removed
into the County of Somerset, and settled at Vallow Wood, in the parish of
Stogumber, towards the latter part of the reign of Elizabeth. Over the porch of
the house of Vallow Wood was a stone with the carved initials R. D., for Robert
Dashwood, and the date 1606. This property remained in the elder branch of the
Dashwood family, until sold to Sir John Trevelyan, of Nettlecomb, by Robert
Dashwood, Esquire, father of Admiral Sir Charles Dashwood, K.C.B., who died in
1847. From the first marriage of Samuel Dashwood, Esquire, of Rowdon, in the
parish of Stogumber, County Somerset, the Baronetcy now represented by the
Dowager Lady Dashwood of West Wycombe descends ; and from the only son of
his second marriage, George Dashwood, an Alderman of London, the Oxfordshire
Baronetcy descends. Robert, the son of George Dashwood, and Sheriff in 1683,
married Penelope, daughter and co-heir of Sir Thomas Chamberlayne, Baronet, of
Wickham Park, Oxfordshire, and was created a Baronet the 16th of September 1684.
He was M.P. for Banbury in several Parliaments in the reign of William III. On
the occasion of his return in the second year of William and Mary, John Hawles,
Esquire, the other candidate, petitioned against the return, on the ground that Sir
Robert had been elected by the Mayor, Aldermen, and Capital Burgesses, whereas
Mr. Hawles had been chosen by the votes of the Freemen and Burgesses at large.
After an inquiry in the House of Commons, it was resolved that Sir Robert
Dashwood had been duly elected, thus maintaining the electoral privileges of the
Mayor, Aldermen, and Capital Burgesses. He was succeeded by his grandson,
Sir James Dashwood (Sheriff in 1738), for some time M.P. for the County of
Oxford, but who in 1754 was (after a scrutiny) one of the unsuccessful candidates
at the great Oxfordshire election in that year. Sir James Dashwood built the
house at Kirtlington Park, which was then the finest mansion in the County,
with the exception of Blenheim Palace, and the concurrent expenses of building
this mansion and contesting the County, in 1754, were extremely large. He
died November 10, 1779, an(^ was succeeded by his eldest son, Sir Henry
Watlrin Dashwood, who sat as one of the representatives of Woodstock in eight
successive Parliaments, but retired on account of his advanced age at the General
Election in 1820. He died June 10, 1828, and was succeeded by his eldest son,
Sir George Dashwood (Sheriff in 1833). In early life Sir George was page of
honour to King George III, and was afterwards in the Third Regiment of Guards ;
and he was for a short time in Parliament as Member for Truro. Upon his death,
on September 20, 1861, he was succeeded by his eldest son, the above Sheriff, and
the fifth Baronet, who was appointed to the Lord Lieutenancy of the County in
1883, and he held that honour for four years. Kirtlington was formerly part of
the property of the Kings of England, but it was alienated from the Crown to
Henry, son of Edmund Crouchback, Earl of Lancaster, by whose daughter and sole
heir, Blanche, the estate came to John of Gaunt, Duke of Aquitaine and Lancaster,
and it was free ' a thelonio, passagio, lastagio, paeagio, stallagio, tollagio, carriagio,
et terragio, per totum Regnum.' The estate afterwards (1677) became the property
of Sir Thomas Chamberlayne, Baronet, and from that family passed by marriage
to Sir Robert Dashwood, Baronet, the Sheriff in 1683.
2 He represented the City of Oxford in Parliament from 1874 to 1880, and also
since 1885.

HIGH SHERIFFS. IOI
1868. William Earle Biscoe1 of Holton Park, Esquire.
1 The old Manor House of Holton was a large stone edifice, surrounded by
a moat. This was taken down, and the present mansion built, by Elisha Biscoe,
Esquire, on another site, in 1815. The daughter of Oliver Cromwell was married
in the old house. The following entry of the marriage occurs in the parish
register : —
'Henry Ireton, Commissary General to Sir Thomas Fairfax, and Bridget,
daughter to Oliver Cromwell, Lieutenant- General of the Horse to the said Sir
Thomas Fairfax, were married by Dr. Dell, in the Lady Whorwood her house, in
Holton, June 15, 1646. ' Alban Eales, Rector.
'John Glover, Churchwarden.'
General Ireton died of the plague at the siege of Limerick, November 26, 1651,
and was buried in Henry VII's Chapel. His widow afterwards married General
Charles Fleetwood, Lord Deputy of Ireland, and died 1681.
The above Sheriff assumed by Royal Licence the surname of Biscoe in lieu of
that of Tyndale upon succeeding to the Holton Park estates in 1866.
Holton Park is one of the eleven ancient deer parks of the County, which
consist, besides, of —
Blenheim Park, — formerly the Royal Park of Woodstock, and one of, if not
the oldest of the deer parks in England. It contains 2,800 acres, and was granted
by Queen Anne to John, Duke of Marlborough, in 1 705, the name being changed
to Blenheim.
Cornbury Park, — another ancient Royal park till the reign of Charles II.
That King granted it to Lord Chancellor Clarendon, who took his second title
of Viscount Cornbury from this park. — Lord Churchill.
Crowsley Park, — inclosed in the time of James II, when the present mansion
was built. — Colonel John Baskerville.
Dytchley Park. — Viscount Dillon.
Glympton Park. — Henry Barnett, Esquire.
Grey's Court Park, — described by Leland, and long the seat of the house of
Knollys. — Sir Francis George Stapleton, Baronet.
Magdalen College Park, or ' Grove,' Oxford. — Deer have been kept here
for rather more than a hundred years. They attracted the attention of George III
upon his visiting the College in 1786. It is described as a miniature park contain
ing about eleven acres.
Nuneham Park, — inclosed by Simon, Lord Harcourt, about 1720. It contains
1,200 acres. — Edward William Harcourt, Esquire.
Stonor Park, — of great antiquity, and is noticed by Leland as a ' fayre Parke.'
— Lord Camoys.
Thame Park. — This park can also lay claim to great antiquity, being connected
with the Abbey refounded by Alexander, Bishop of Lincoln, in 11 38. — Aubrey
Wenman Wykeham-Musgrave, Esq.
There were formerly deer parks at
Beekley. — A charter for a park was obtained by Hugh de Spencer in 1312.
It afterwards reverted to the Crown, and in 1457 Henry VI presented Archbishop
Chichele with twelve trees from his park at Beckley towards building All Souls
College. Benson. — Shown in ancient maps.

102 COUNTY OF OXFORD.
1 869. James Mason of Eynsham Hall 1, Esquire.
1870. John Weyland of Woodeaton, Esquire.
1871. Sir Algernon William Peyton2 of Swift's House,
Baronet.
1872. Charles Sartoris of Wilcote, Esquire.
1873. William Dalziel Mackenzie of Gillotts, Esquire.
1874. The Right Honourable Arthur, Viscount Valentia3,
of Bletchingdon Park.
Bletchingdon. — The Annesleys, Earls of Anglesea.
Broughton Castle. — Lord Saye and Sele.
Caversham. — It belonged to the Craven family in 1676.
Elsfleld. — Licence to inclose a park here was granted to Gilbert de Elsfield in
the first year of Edward III.
Ewelme. — A Royal manor and 'a right fair parke.' In 1609 Lord William
Knollys was Keeper of this park, and Master of the wild beasts in the same.
Hanwell. — The seat of the Copes.
Hooknorton. — It belonged to Chaucer, then to the Poles, Dukes of Suffolk, by
marriage. Langley. — A royal seat in Whichwood Forest.
Mapledurham. — The ancient seat of the Blounts.
Minster Lovell. — Sir William Lovel, temp. Henry VI.
Eyoot. — Disparked within the present century.
Watlington. — Belonged to the Stonor family.
Yarnton. — The Spencers.
* The Eynsham Hall estate was purchased by Mr. Mason of Sir Thomas
Bazley, who had not many years previously acquired it by purchase of the Earl of
Macclesfield. Mr. Mason, who ranks in Portugal as Viscount San Domingo, has
at great cost enlarged the mansion-house and beautified the park and grounds, and
added an ornamental and extensive lake.
2 Sir Algernon Peyton, who had been a Captain in the First Life Guards, died
on March 25, 1872, and was succeeded in the Baronetcy by his cousin, the Sheriff
in 1881, who died February 18, 1888.
3 This Sheriff's ancient family assumed their name from the town of Annesley,
which they possessed at the time of the Norman Conquest. From that early period
many of his ancestors received the honour of Knighthood, but bore no title until
Sir Francis Annesley, who filled the highest official positions in Ireland, was
advanced to the dignity of Baronet at the first institution of that order in Ireland in
1620, and upon whom in the following year a Peerage was conferred by the title
of Baron Mountnorris, and also the Viscounty of Yalentia in reversion. The
second Viscount was created Earl of Anglesey and Baron Annesley in 1661, but
the Earldom of Anglesey expired in 1765, and the Earldom of Mountnorris was
created and conferred on the son of the sixth Earl of Anglesey in 1793. This
later Earldom terminated in 1844, and the above Sheriff only succeeded his grand
father as Viscount Valentia and Baron Mountnorris and as a Baronet in Ireland.
The ancestors of Viscount Valentia were large territorial owners in Ireland,
but the family now only possess small estates there. It was said that the Irish
estates of the second Viscount Valentia and first Earl of Anglesey were so extensive

HIGH SHERIFFS. 103
187,5. Edward William Harcourt1 of Nuneham Park,
Esquire.
(Mr. Thomas Marriott Davenport was Undersheriff in this and the
subsequent years consecutively.)
1876. Holford Cotton Risley of Deddington, Esquire.
1877. Arthur Henry Clerke Brown of Kingston Blount,
squire.
1878. Albert Brassey2 of Heythrop Park, Esquire.
that he held property in every county in Ireland, and that in the time of the eighth
Viscount and first Earl of Mountnorris the Annesley estate in the county of
Wexford reached from the top of Sleibhboy Mountain ten miles to the sea and
seven miles along the coast.
1 Mr. Harcourt's ancestors have served the office of Sheriff since the year 1407,
and he himself represented the County in Parliament from 1878 to 1885, as his
ancestors have done since the year 1322.
It may be interesting, with respect to the Harcourt family, to give the following
quotation from the paper headed ' Testamentary Eccentricities ' in Sir Bernard
Burke's remodelled edition of the Vicissitudes of Families : —
' Another instance of the advantages of pedigree occurs in the will of William, r
last Earl Harcourt, who died in 1830. That nobleman was the lineal descendant
and male representative of the great and historic house of Harcourt of Stanton
Harcourt, founded in England in the twelfth century by Ivo de Harcourt, brother
of Robert d'Harcourt, Seigneur d'Harcourt in Normandy, ancestor of the Dues
d' Harcourt in France. The two lines, Harcourt of Normandy and Harcourt of
England, thus became separated seven hundred years ago ! Nevertheless when the
last representative of the English branch, William, Earl Harcourt, was making his
final testamentary arrangements, his thoughts turned to the source from which his
lineage originally sprang, and he bequeathed to the French Marquis d'Harcourt
and his heirs male, not only the beautifully situated estate of St. Leonard's Hill,
overlooking regal Windsor, but also a sum of £80,000 to be laid out in land, to
increase the property. His Lordship required, however, that each inheritor should
not be absent from England more than six months at one time, unless engaged in
the civil or military service of Great Britain.'
And referring to this Sheriff and the ancient distinctions of his family, Sir
Bernard Burke says (Reminiscences, 1884) : —
' Harcourt of Stanton Harcourt and Nuneham Courtenay, although its pedigree
can be traced back to the Castle of Harcourt in Normandy before the Conquest,
and can show amongst the worthies of the name, Knights of the Garter, a Lord
Chancellor of Great Britain, an Ambassador Extraordinary, a Field Marshal, and
three Earls of Harcourt, is now represented, as heir-general, by an untitled Squire.'
This was the first year in which the County Constabulary were called into use
by sanction of Quarter Sessions to keep order in the Assize Courts in substitution
of the Sheriff's ancient retinue of Javelin-men, who used to precede the Judges in a
walking procession through the town, and be utilised as doorkeepers in the Courts.
2 The Heythrop estate formerly belonged to the Earl of Shrewsbury. On
February 24, 1 831, being then occupied by the Duke of Beaufort, the mansion-
house was almost entirely burnt down, and many valuable paintings and tapestry
were destroyed by the fire. Mr. Albert Brassey, upon purchasing the estate,

104 COUNTY OF OXFORD.
1879. William Fanning of Bozedown, Whitchurch, Esquire.
1880. Lieutenant-Colonel James Miller of Shotover House.
1881. Major-General Sir Thomas Peyton of Swift's House,
Baronet.
1882. Edward Slater Harrison of Shelswell Park, Esquire.
1883. William Henry Fox of Bradwell Grove, Esquire.
1884. Wenman Aubrey Wykeham-Musgrave J of Thame
Park, Esquire.
1885. George Herbert Morrell2 of Headington Hill Hall,
Esquire.
1886. Sir Francis George Stapleton3 of Grey's Court,
Baronet.
1887. Philip James Digby Wykeham4 of Tythrop House,
Esquire.
1888. John Darell Blount5 of Mapledurham, Esquire.
rebuilt the house, which is now one of the grandest mansions in the county, and in
other respects improved the park and estate at great cost.
1 The eldest son of Aubrey Wenman Wykeham, Esquire, and of Georgiana,
sister of Sir James Musgrave, Baronet, of Barnsley Park, Gloucestershire. He
assumed the additional name of Musgrave, as his father had done before him,
under the provisions of Sir James Musgrave's will, on the death of his mother,
April 18, 1879, when he became entitled to the Barnsley Park estate. In 1879, on
the death of his father, following shortly after the death of his uncle, Philip T.
Herbert Wykeham, Esquire, the Sheriff in 1837, he became entitled to the Thame
Park and certain other estates under the will of his relative, the Baroness Wenman.
2 This Sheriff married the only daughter and heiress of James Morrell, Esquire,
High Sheriff in 1853. He is Lieutenant-Colonel of the University Volunteers.
His year of office as Sheriff was characterised by great hospitality.
3 This Sheriff succeeded to the Baronetcy on the death of his father in 1874.
The Barony of Le Despencer devolved upon his grandfather, the sixth Baronet,
but the Barony descended in the female line to the present Sheriff's first cousin,
now Viscountess Falmouth. Sir Francis' ancestor, Sir William Stapleton, repre
sented the County in Parliament 1727-41. Grey's Court was long the seat of the
Knollys family, for which reference may be made to the note to the Sheriff in 1757.
4 The second son of Aubrey Wenman Wykeham, Esquire, who assumed the
additional surname of Musgrave, as also did his elder brother, the Sheriff in 1884.
He succeeded to the Tythrop estate in 1879, on the death of his uncle, Philip T.
Herbert Wykeham, Esquire, who served as Sheriff in the year of the Queen's Acces
sion, the office by a singular coincidence devolving upon his nephew and successor
in estate in the year of Her Majesty's Jubilee.
6 See the note to his ancestor, the Sheriff in 1586.

\

THE
MEMBERS OF PARLIAMENT
FOR THE COUNTY

THE
MEMBERS OF PARLIAMENT
FOR
THE COUNTY.
The word Parliament, derived from the French word parler,
to speak, dates back to as early a period as 1175, but the
term commonly used in ancient times to express a Session
of Council was Colloquium. Great Councils of the Nation
existed in England under the Saxons and Normans, which
were called by the Saxons Michel-synoth, or great Council ;
Michel-gemote, or great Meeting ; and Wiienagemote, Meeting
of Wise Men.
The constitution of Parliament, as it is now formed, was
marked out as long ago as the fifteenth year of King John
(a. D. 1213), in the Great Charter, wherein he promised to
summon all Archbishops, Bishops, Abbots, Earls, and greater
Barons personally, and all other Tenants in chief under the
Crown; and Writs were issued to the Sheriffs commanding
them to return four Knights for each County ad loquendum
nobiscum de negotiis Regni nostri — summoned to meet at
Oxford. The Lords and Commons were originally one Assembly,
but the date of their separation is not accurately known. The
Commons apparently deliberated alone in 1295, and certainly
in 1332, and thereafter the Lords Temporal and the Knights
of the Shire are described as deliberating apart in separate
Session.

108 COUNTY OF OXFORD.
In 1254 (38 Henry III) appeared the first rude outline of
the present House of Commons. And in 1265 two Knights
from every Shire, and one or two Burgesses from every
Borough Town, were summoned to assemble in Parliament at
Westminster, in addition to the Barons and Clergy.
The Constitutional Law of the Country, whatever it may
have been in practice, was first pronounced by the Statute
15 Edward II. In this Act the Legislative Authority was
declared to reside in the King, with the assent of the Prelates,
Earls, Barons, and Commons assembled in Parliament ; and
from that time the real existence of that Body, and of the
form of Government still subsisting, has been uninterrupted,
excepting only during the period of the Commonwealth.
Thus for about six centuries the writs from the Crown have
directed the Sheriffs to summon for the County two Repre
sentatives, who formerly were required to be actual Knights,
or such notable Esquires or Gentlemen as had estates suffi
cient to be Knights, and were not of the degree of Yeomen.
These representatives of the County were elected by the
landed proprietors and were styled Knights of the Shire,
being essentially Milites gladiis cincti, or belted Knights,
until modern legislation has released these more antiquated
conditions and assigned to them the appellation of Members
of Parliament. The system of registration of the electors was
not created until the Reform Act of 183 1. The County was
never subdivided for electoral purposes before 1886.
No Returns are found during the reigns of King John or
Henry III, or the early part of Edward I's reign.
The following list was originally compiled, after much research, at the
Library of the Society of Antiquaries as far as the reign of Queen Mary, and then
from the Returns at the Crown Office, House of Lords. But it has since been
revised from the House of Commons' Return of 1878 and Willis' Notitia Parlia-
mentaria.

MEMBERS OF PARLIAMENT. 109
EDWARD THE FIRST.
ANNO.
1290. Johannes fil. Gwydon.
Ricardus de Williamscote.
1295. Robert Pogeys J-
John de Elsfeld.
1397. Henry de Bruli.
John de Prewes.
1298. William de Scalebrok.
Henry de Bruly.
1300. John de Elsfeld.
John de Pratellis 2.
1302. John de Elsfeld.
Robert Pogeys.
1304. Roger de Burghfield, Miles3-
Egidius de Insula, Miles.
1306. Roger de Burghfield, Miles.
William de Scalebrok, Miles.
1306-7. John de Hynton.
William de Scalebrok.
EDWARD THE SECOND.
ANNO. 1307. William de Scalebrok.
John de Hynton.
1309. John de Elsfeld.
William de Scalebrok.
131 1. William de Scalebrok, Miles.
John de Elsfeld, Miles.
1312. William de Scalebrok.
John de Croxford.
1 The Sheriff's Return this year affords a good instance of the system of repre
sentation at this period, the Knights of this Shire being described as elected at the
County Court " per assensum communitatis, in pleno comitatu."
2 This family had possessed the Great Tew estate for many years, and from
them it passed to the Willicotes whose name so often appears hereafter.
3 The Sheriff was commanded in this year to summon the Coroners of the
County before the King in Parliament, and the Coroners returned were Robert de
Ascote and William de Scalebrok.

110 COUNTY OF OXFORD.
131 2-13. John Bardolf.
John le Myrie.
1313. John Bardolf.
Radulphus de Chastillon.
1 3 14. Robert de Arderne1.
John de Chaumpaigne.
131 4-1 5. Richard de Bere, Miles.
Thomas Golafre.
1315-16. John de Croxford.
John de Chaumpaigne.
1316. John de Croxford.
Richard de la Bere.
1318. John de Croxford.
Adam de la Fenne.
1319. John de Bloxham.
Thomas Blaket.
1320. Roger de Nowers.
John de Croxford.
1331. John de Croxford.
Richard de Burncestre.
1322. May 2. John de Bloxham.
Robert de Trillawe.
1322. Nov. 14. John de Harcourt.
John de la Pole, of Sydenham.
1323. Gilbert de Elsfeld.
William le Mareschal, of Crowmarsh.
1324. Richard de Bere.
John de Croxford.
1325. Richard de la Bere.
John de Croxford.
EDWARD THE THIRD.
ANNO. 1327. Roger de Nowers.
John de Whitefeld.
1 He resided at Wickham, near Banbury, and was owner of Drayton and other
property in that neighbourhood. The King appointed him Keeper of the Castle
of Banbury 1322, and he was made Commissioner for arranging the forces of the

MEMBERS OF PARLIAMENT. in
1327-8. Roger de Nowers.
James de Woodstock.
1328. April 24. John de Brumpton1
William le Mareschal, of Crowmarsh.
1328. July 31. John de Chancy.
Roger de Nowers.
1328-9. Gilbert de Elsfeld.
Richard de Abberbury.
1329-30. Roger de Nowers.
John de Whitefeld.
1330. William de Legh.
Robert de Morby.
1 33 1. John de Whitefeld.
John de Louches.
1331-2. Richard de Williamscot.
John de Lewknor.
1332. Sept. 9. John de Alveton.
Robert de Barton.
1333. Dec. 4. James de Woodstock.
Hugo de Berwick.
1333-4. John Golafre.
James de Woodstock.
1334. Richard de Williamscote.
John de Alveton.
1335. Thomas de Langele.
John de Alveton.
1335-6. John de Lewknor.
Richard de Williamscote.
1336. John de Alveton.
Richard de Williamscot.
1336-7. John de Lewknor.
John de Alveton.
County. Sir Robert de Arderne received the royal licence to fortify his mansion
at Wickham in the fourth year of Edward III, and he died the next year, 1331.
1 The name is also spelt Brymtone and Brampton. The manor of Middle
Aston was owned by the family. His father was Sheriff in 1300, and he himself
held that office seven times between 1318 and 1333.

113 COUNTY OF OXFORD.
I337- John de Alveton.
Thomas de Langele.
1337-8. John de Lewknor.
Thomas atte More.
1338. Thomas atte More.
John de Alveton.
1338-9. Richard de Williamscote.
Richard de Hattecombe.
1339. Richard de Hattecombe.
John le Peyntour.
1339-40. John Golafre.
Thomas de la More 1.
1340. John Golafre.
Thomas de la More.
1 341. Richard de Beaufo.
John Frelond.
1342. (No returns found).
1343. John de Lewknor.
Thomas de la More.
1344. Thomas Huscarl.
John de Herdwyk.
1346. Richard de Williamscot.
John Laundels.
1347-8. Richard de Williamscot.
John Laundels.
1348. Richard de Williamscot.
Richard de Hattecombe.
1350-1. Thomas de la More.
Thomas de Langley.
1 35 1-2. John de Trillowe.
John de Alveton.
1 The family of de la More, or Mare, or Mara, was of ancient note in Oxford
shire, dating from 1060, when Peter de Mara and his son Robert endowed Eynsham
Abbey at the dedication of Heyford Church by Wulfwine, Bishop of Dorchester.
This Knight's father and grandfather held the office of Huntsman to the King by
petty serjeanty.

MEMBERS OF PARLIAMENT. 113
I35*1 John de Whitefeld.
1353. Thomas de Langley.
1354. John de Lewknor.
Thomas de Langley.
1355. Thomas de Langley.
Adam de Shareshull.
1357. Thomas de Langley.
John Laundels.
13,57-8. John de Nowers.
Thomas de Langley.
1360. Thomas de Langley.
Nicholas Poure.
1360-1. Roger de Elmerugg.
Nicholas Dammory.
1362. Roger de Elmerugg.
John de Nowers.
1363. Roger de Elmerugg.
Roger de Cottisford 2.
1364-5. Roger de Elmerugg.
Nicholas Dammory.
1366. Nicholas Dammory.
John de Trillowe.
1368. Nicholas Dammory.
Roger de Elmerugg.
1369. Roger de Elmerugg.
Roger de Cottisford.
1370-1. Roger de Elmerugg.
Roger de Cottisford.
1 In this and the following Parliament the Sheriffs were directed to send one
Knight from each County.
2 For many years he resided at the Manor House of his ancestral estate at
Cottisford, and he acquired the Tusmore, Bletchingdon, and Little Haseley estates.
His name will be found in the list of Sheriffs of this date. See The Deanery of
Bicester, part 3, by the Rev. J. C. Blomfield, who in describing this knight ap
propriately quotes these lines from Chaucer : —
'At Sessions was he Lord and Sire,
Full oft times was he Knight of the Shire,
A Sheriff had he been, and a Counter,
Was nowhere such a worthy vavasor.'
I

114 COUNTY OF OXFORD.
1371. Roger de Cottisford.
1372. Gilbert Wace1, Chivaler.
Thomas de Broughton, Chivaler.
1373. Reginald de Malyns.
Richard de Adderbury.
1 37 5~6- Thomas Harcourt2, Chivaler.
Robert Symeon.
l376~7- Gilbert Wace.
John James.

RICHARD THE SECOND.
ANNO. 1377. Reginald de Malyns.
Robert Symeon.
1378. John Herle, Miles.
Robert Symeon, Miles.
1379. John Herle.
Robert Symeon.
1379-80. Reginald de Malyns.
Edmund de Stonor.
1380. John Herle.
John Harowedon.
1381. John Herle.
Thomas Blount 3.

1 See the note to him as Sheriff this year. The description of Chivaler or Miles
has been given where so stated in the Parliamentary Return, 1879. The title
Miles, technically adhering to its original significance of a servant, was specially
applicable to a Knight of a Shire, who properly serves in Parliament for his
County. The principal freeholders of a County who held their estates by knight's
service were styled both Chivaler and Miles, and, Selden says, indifferently as
respects the order of Knighthood. Both these titles ceased to be used before the
reign of Elizabeth. The designation Member of Parliament, superseding as regards
representatives of Counties that of Miles Comitatus or Knight of a Shire, is of
very modem creation.
2 See note to him as Sheriff, 1408.
3 He served with King Edward III at the Battle of La Hogue, and also at the
Siege of Calais, where he was wounded. (Sir A. Croke's Genealogical History,
vol. ii. p. 349.)

MEMBERS OF PARLIAMENT. 115

1382. May 7. John Herle.
Thomas Blount.
1383. Oct. 6. Gilbert Wace.
Roger Cheyne.
1382-3. Gilbert Wace.
John Harowedon.
1383. Gilbert Wace.
John Harowedon.
1384. April 29. Gilbert Wace.
Edmund Giffard.
1384. Nov. 13. Gilbert Wace.
Roger Cheyne.
1385. Gilbert Wace, Chivaler.
William Willicotes.
1386. Richard Abberbury 1.
Gilbert Wace.
1387-8. Thomas Barentyne 2
William Willicotes.
1388. Thomas de la Poyle.
John Rede.
1389-90. Thomas Barentyne.
William Willicotes.
1390. Thomas de la Poyle.
Thomas Barentyne.
1391. William Willicotes.
John Rede.
1393-3. Thomas Paynell, Chivaler.
Thomas Barentyne.
1393-4. William Willicotes.
John Adderbury.

1 Donnington Castle, Berks, was built by Sir Richard Abberbury, who had
been guardian to Richard II during his minority, and whose son was Sheriff
in 139S.
2 The ancient family of Barentyne belonging to Haseley supplied many Sheriffs
of the County from 1321 to 1542, as well as Knights of the Shire during this and
the following reign. I 2

n 6 COUNTY OF OXFORD.
1394-5. William Willicotes.
William Bruly.
1396-7. Thomas Barentyne.
John Adderbury.
1397-8. William Willicotes.
John Golafre.
HENRY THE FOURTH.
ANNO.1399. Thomas Barentyne, Esquire.
John Willicotes, Esquire \
1400-1. John Willicotes, Esquire.
Thomas Chaucer, Esquire 2.
1403. Thomas Chaucer, Esquire.
Thomas Wykham, Esquire 3.
1403. William Makkeny, Esquire.
Peter Besyles, Chivaler i-
1404. John Drayton, Chivaler.
John Willicotes, Esquire.
1405-6. Thomas Chaucer, Chivaler.
John Willicotes, Esquire.
T407. Thomas Chaucer, Chivaler.
John Willicotes, Esquire.
1409-10. Thomas Chaucer, Esquire, Speaker 5.
William Willicotes.
HENRY THE FIFTH.
ANNO. 1413. Thomas Chaucer, Esquire, Speaker.
John Willicotes, Esquire.
1 The family of Willicotes who so frequently appear as Knights of the Shire are
also well represented in the list of Sheriffs, the name being there spelt Wilcote,
and their residences given both at Great Tew and Wilcote.
2 His frequent return to Parliament during the next thirty years will be noticed,
as well as the fact that he was Speaker of the House of Commons, and that he
is recorded in the List of Sheriffs for 1400 and 1404.
3 Of Broughton Castle. See the note to his name as Sheriff in 141 7.
' See the note to his name as Sheriff in 1408.
5 There is no instance during the middle ages in which any but a Knight of a
Shire was elected Speaker. The first exception to that usage was in the case of the
Recorder of London in Queen Mary's reign.

MEMBERS OF PARLIAMENT. 117
1413-4. William Lisle, Esquire.
John Willicotes, Esquire.
1414. Thomas Chaucer.
John Willicotes.
1415-6. Thomas Wykham, Chivaler.
Thomas Stonor, Esquire.
141 7. William Lisle, Esquire.
John Willicotes, Esquire.
1419. John Willicotes.
Thomas Stonor.
1430. John Danvers, Esquire x.
Richard Gryvell, Esquire.
1431. May 3. Thomas Chaucer.
John Willicotes.
1421. Dec. 1. John Danvers, Esquire, of Banbury.
Peter Fettiplace, Esquire.

HENRY THE SIXTH.
ANNO. 1422. Thomas Wykham, Chivaler.
Thomas Chaucer, Esquire.
1423. Peter Fettiplace, Esquire.
John Danvers, Esquire.
1425. Thomas Wykham, Chivaler.
Thomas Stonor, Esquire.
1425-6. Thomas Chaucer.
William Lyle.
1427. Thomas Chaucer, Esquire.
Thomas Stonor, Esquire.
1429. Thomas Chaucer, Esquire.
Thomas Stonor, Esquire.
1 430-1. Thomas Chaucer.
Thomas Stonor.
1 The family of Danvers resided for some generations at Calthorp, near Banbury.
This knight's two sons, Sir Robert Danvers and Sir William Danvers, became
Justices of the Common Pleas.

Il8 COUNTY OF OXFORD.
1433. Thomas Fettiplace.
Richard Quartermayne l.
1433. Stephen Haytfield.
Richard Quartermayne.
1435. Peter Fettiplace, Esquire.
John Danvers, Esquire.
1436-7. Richard Drayton.
Robert Danvers2.
1441-2. John Norreys, Esquire.
William Wykham, Esquire.
1446-7. Robert Harcourt, Miles.
Thomas Stonor, Esquire.
1448-9. Edmund Hampden, Miles.
John Pury, or Pery.
1449. Sir Edmund Hampden.
Thomas Stonor, Esquire.
1450. Sir Robert Harcourt, Miles 3.
Edmund Rede, Esquire.
1453-3. Sir Edmund Hampden, Miles.
Richard Drayton, Esquire.
1459. Sir Edmund Hampden, Miles.
William Lovell, Esquire.
1460. Sir Richard Harcourt, Miles4.
John Stokes, Esquire.
EDWARD THE FOURTH.
ANNO. 1467. Humphrey Foster, Esquire.
John Barentyne, Esquire.
1473. Richard Quartermayn, Esquire.
Richard Crost, j'unior, Esquire.
1 He was Sheriff for the County 1436 and 1454.
2 The eldest son of John Danvers by his first marriage. He was Recorder of
London, 1442, and tried many cases of high treason as head of a commission
enforced by Jack Cade. He was Justice of the Common Pleas, 1450, and died
1467. 3 Appointed Knight of the Garter 1463. See note to him as Sheriff 1455.
4 Brother of Sir Robert Harcourt, K.G. See note to him as Sheriff 1460.

MEMBERS OF PARLIAMENT. 119
1477-8. Sir Richard Harcourt, Miles.
William Stonor, Esquire.
No Returns are found for any of the Counties in England during
the reigns of Richard III and Henry VII, and the Returns are
imperfect during the beginning of Henry VIII's reign.

HENRY THE EIGHTH.
ANNO. 1539. Sir John Dauntsey, Miles.
Sir William Barentyne, Miles.
1541-3. Sir John Williams, Miles1.
Edward Bridges, Esquire.

EDWARD THE SIXTH.

ANNO.

1547. Sir John Williams, Miles.
Richard Fiennes, Esquire 2.
1552-3. Andrew Dudley, Miles.
Sir John Williams, Miles.
QUEEN MARY.
ANNO.
1553. Sir John Williams, Miles.
John Pollard, Esquire, Speaker3.
1554. Sir Leonard Chamberlain, Miles.
John Pollard, Esquire, Speaker.

PHILIP AND MARY.
ANNO. 1554. Sir Leonard Chamberlain, Miles.
John Pollard, Esquire, Speaker.
1 Afterwards Lord Williams of Thame. See the note to him as Sheriff in
1553- 2 Also Sheriff in 1550 and 1557. He died in 1579, and was succeeded by his
son Sir Richard, the Sheriff in 1582 and 1593 and Member of Parliament 15S6, and
to whom the title of Baron Saye and Sele was confirmed.
3 Recorder of the City of Oxford.

120 COUNTY OF OXFORD.

1555. Sir Thomas Wenman, Miles, of Thame Park1.
Edmund Powell, Esquire.
1557-8. George Owen, Esquire.
Thomas Denton, Esquire.

QUEEN ELIZABETH.
ANNO.
1558-9. Thomas Bridges, Esquire.
Edmund Ashfield, Esquire 2.
1562—3. Sir Francis Knollys, Knight 3.
Sir Richard Blount, Knight *.
1573. Sir Francis Knollys, Knight, Treasurer of the
Household.
Henry Knollys, Esquire 5.
1584. Sir Francis Knollys, Knight.
William Knollys, Esquire 6-
1 The eldest son of Richard Wenman, Sheriff of the County 1562 and 1570,
and of the daughter of John, Lord Williams of Thame, in whose right this
Member's father succeeded to Thame Park. He married the daughter of the
eighth Lord de la Warr. Died July 22, 1577.
2 The second son of John Ashfield, Esquire, of Heythrop, whose family provided
three Sheriffs for this County, but thin Member served as Sheriff for Bucks, 1568.
He was Knighted, and died at his residence, The Lodge, in Ewelme Park, Jan. 24,
1577, but was buried at Shenley, Bucks, where he possessed an estate.
3 His name has been previously recorded as Custos Rotulorum. He was Vice-
Chamberlain and Treasurer of the Queen's Household. Knight of the Garter 1593.
He was Member until bis death on July 19, 1596, and was buried at Rotherfield
Greys. 4 The eldest surviving son of Richard Blount, who was the first of the family
to settle at Mapledurham. He was Gentleman of the Chamber to Henry VHI,
of the Privy Chamber to Edward VI, and he held various offices under Queen
Elizabeth, including that of Lieutenant of the Tower. He married Elizabeth
daughter of Sir Richard Lister, Chief Justice of England. Died August 11, 1564,
and buried at St. Peter's in the Tower.
5 Father and son here jointly represent the County. Henry the son represented
Reading in the previous Parliament. He was Constable of WaUingford Castle
and Keeper of Ewelme Park, as well as Esquire of the Body Guard of the Queen.
6 Father and son are also this year and in 1592 associated as Members, both
names having previously appeared as Lords Lieutenant. William the son was
Knighted in 1586, created Baron Knollys 1603, Viscount Wallingford 161 7, Earl
of Banbury 1626, K.G. He was Comptroller of Queen Elizabeth's Household and
Treasurer of King James'. Died May 25, 1632.

MEMBERS OF PARLIAMENT. 121
1586. Sir Francis Knollys, Knight.
Richard Fiennes, Esquire1.
1588-9. Sir Francis Knollys, Knight.
Sir John Norreys, Knight.
1592-3. Sir Francis Knollys, Knight.
Sir William Knollys, Knight.
1597. Sir William Knollys, Knight.
Sir Richard Wenman, Knight 2.
1 601. Sir William Knollys, Knight.
Ralph Warcoppe, Esquire 3.
JAMES THE FIRST.
ANNO.
1603-4. Laurence Tanfield, Sergeant at Law4.
John D'Oyly, Esquire.
1 6 14. Sir Anthony Cope, Baronet 5.
1 620-1. Sir Richard Wenman, Knight.
Sir William Pope, Knight 6.
1623-4. Sir William Cope, Knight and Baronet7.
Sir Henry Poole, Knight.
1 Also Sheriff of the County 1582 and 1593. Knighted 1592, and the Barony
of Saye and Sele was confirmed to him August 9, 1603. He died 1613.
2 Also Sheriff of the County 1627. The eldest son of Sir Thomas Wenman,
and created Viscount Wenman of Tuam 1628. Died April 3, 1640.
3 The son of Cuthbert Warcupp, or Warcoppe, Esq ., of English. After gradu
ating at Christ Church he travelled abroad, and became an accomplished linguist.
King James had appointed him to be Ambassador for France or Spain, but his
death in August, 1605, prevented his acceptance. He was buried at Nuffield
Church, near English.
1 Judge of the King's Bench 1606 and Chief Baron of the Exchequer from 1607
until his death in 1625. Buried at Burford, where he owned the Priory, and he
was also possessed of the Great Tew Estate. He was the father-in-law of the first
Viscount Falkland.
5 Sheriff in 1581, 1590, and 1603. See the notes to his name.
6 The son of Sir William Pope, first Earl of Downe, who built the mansion at
Wroxton. He was Knighted by James I at Woodstock, July 28, 1616, and died
in his father's lifetime, 1624. His widow married Sir Thomas Pennistone, Baronet,
of Cornwell. (Willis gives the name of Cope this year for the County as well as
for Banbury, but the Parliamentary Return has been followed.)
7 He represented Banbury in Parliament at the beginning of the reign. Knighted
in 1603, and succeeded his father Sir Anthony in the Baronetage. He was visited
by the King and Queen at his seat at Hanwell in 1624. He died August 2, 1637,
and was buried at Hanwell.

122 COUNTY OF OXFORD.
CHARLES THE FIRST.
ANNO. 1625. Edward Wray, Esquire x-
Sir Richard Wenman, Knight.
1625-6. James Fiennes, Esquire2.
Sir Thomas Wenman, Knight 3.
1627-8. James Fiennes, Esquire.
Sir Francis Wenman, Knight *.
1640. James Fiennes, Esquire.
Sir Francis Wenman, Knight, of Carswell.
1640-1653. (The Long Parliament 5.)
Thomas, Viscount Wenman 6
James Fiennes, Esquire.
1 Groom of the Bedchamber to James I. He was the grandfather of James,
Lord Norreys, first Earl of Abingdon.
2 He represented Banbury in Parliament on the accession of the King. After
wards second Viscount Saye and Sele. Died March 15, 1673-4.
3 Brother of Sir Richard who was created Viscount Wenman.
4 First cousin of Sir Richard, the first Viscount. 'Sir Francis Wenman
would not look upon himself under any other character than that of a country
gentleman, though no man of his quality in England was more esteemed at
Court. He was of a noble extraction, and of an ancient family in Oxfordshire,
where he was possessed of a competent estate, but his reputation for wisdom and
integrity gave him an interest and credit in that county much above his fortune,
and no man had more esteem in it, or power over it. He was a neighbour to
the Lord Falkland, and in so entire friendship and confidence in him that he had
great authority in the society of, all his friends and acquaintance. He was a man
of great sharpness of understanding, and of a piercing judgment ; no man better
understood the affections and temper of the kingdom, or indeed the nature of
the nation, or discerned further the consequence of counsels, and with what success
they were like to be attended. He was a very good Latin scholar, but his ratio
cination was above his learning, and the sharpness of his wit incomparable. He
was equal to the greatest trust and employment, if he had been ambitious
of it, or solicitous for it, but his want of health produced a kind of laziness of
mind which disinclined him to business, and he died a little before the general
troubles of the kingdom, which he foresaw with wonderful reluctancy, and when
many wise men were weary of living so long.'— Zonf Clarendon' s Life, p. 927.
5 Charles I was beheaded January 30, 1648-9, and the Commonwealth com
menced, but this Parliament, begun November 3, 1640, continued sitting till
April 20, 1653, when it was expelled by Cromwell. But, notwithstanding this
dissolution, — and the summoning of no less than four Parliaments by the Usurping
Powers, — this Parliament of 1640 was regarded as the legitimate one ; for in the
Commons' Journal is this entry: ' 16 March 1659. A Bill of the dissolution of
the Parliament begun at Westminster 3 November 1640, and for calling another
Parliament 25 April 1660.'
6 The second Viscount, and the son of the Member in 1620 and 1625. He died
January 16, 1664, and was buried at Twyford, Bucks.

MEMBERS OF PARLIAMENT. 123

Interregnum.
1653. (The little Parliament summoned by the Protector,
Oliver Cromwell.)
Sir Charles Worsley, Knight.
William Draper, Esquire, of Lower Worton x.
Dr. Jonathan Goddard.
1654. (Commonwealth.) Robert Jenkinson, Esquire 2.
Charles Fleetwood, Esquire, Lieutenant General of
Ireland.
Colonel James Whitelock 3.
Nathaniel Fiennes, Esquire 4
William Lenthall, Esquire, Speaker 6.
1 Cromwell's appointment and summons of Mr. Draper is amongst Colonel
Ruck Keene's muniments at Swyncombe.
2 See the note to him as Sheriff, 1649.
3 The son of Lord Commissioner Bulstrode Whitelock and grandson of the
Judge Sir James Whitelock. A Fellow of All Souls College. A Colonel in the
Parliamentary army. Knighted by Oliver Cromwell 1650.
4 The second son of William Lord Saye and Sele, and brother of James Viscount
Saye and Sele. He represented Banbury in Parliament 1640. In Oliver Cromwell's
last Parliament, 1656, no summons was issued for Banbury, and he was elected
for the University of Oxford. He was Fellow of New College as Founder's kin.
He was Commissioner of the Great Seal and Speaker of the other or Lords' House.
He served as a prominent Colonel in the Parliamentary army. He was condemned,
after trial by Court Martial, for surrendering Bristol, but subsequently pardoned ;
and though he came into favour with the change of times, he latterly retired into
privacy, and died December 16, 1669, at Newton Tracey, near Salisbury. (Lord
Nugent's Life of Hampden.) His son succeeded to the title of Viscount Saye and
Sele. 5 Although he filled the office of Master of the Rolls during the whole period
from the death of Charles I to the Restoration of Charles II, he is better known
to posterity as Speaker Lenthall. He was born June, 1591, at Henley, and
educated at Thame School and St. Alban Hall, Oxford, before he went to Lincoln's
Inn. In 1639 ne represented Woodstock in Parliament, having been previously
Recorder of that borough, of which office his descendant, Frank Kyffin Lenthall,
Esquire, was the recent and last holder. He was chosen Speaker in the Parlia
ment of 1640, but was forcibly compelled by Cromwell to vacate the office in
April, 1653. When returned to Parliament for the County in September, 1654,
he was re-elected Speaker. In the next Parliament he played a conspicuous
part in endeavouring by plausible arguments to induce Cromwell to assume
the title of King. He sat in the Upper House under the title of William
Lord Lenthall, in the Parliament summoned by the Protector Richard Crom-

134 COUNTY OF OXFORD.
1656. (Commonwealth?)
Charles Fleetwood, Esquire, Lord Deputy of
Ireland.
William Lenthall, Esquire, Master of the Rolls,
Speaker.
Robert Jenkinson, Esquire.
Miles Fleetwood, Esquire.
Sir Francis Norreys, Knight.
1658. (Richard Cromwell?)
Robert Jenkinson, Esquire *.
Henry Cary, Viscount Falkland 2.

CHARLES THE SECOND.
ANNO. 1660. James Fiennes.
Sir Thomas Wenman 3.
No Return is to be found in the Records of the House of
Commons, and the names are quoted from the Parliamentary
History of England.
1661. Henry, Viscount Falkland.
Sir Anthony Cope, Baronet.
1664. Sir Francis Wenman, Knight and Baronet4.
Vice William Knollys, Esquire, deceased 5.
1675. Sir Edward Norreys, Knight.
Vice Sir Anthony Cope, deceased.
well, but soon returned to the Chair of Speaker. He was for a short time
Keeper of the Great Seal. Died at his residence, Burford Priory, September 1,
1662. 1 Another Return giving the names of Robert Jenkinson, Esquire, and Sir
Francis Norreys, Knight, was ordered to be taken off the file. See note to Sir
Francis Norreys, Sheriff, 1635.
2 The fourth Viscount, who was also Lord Lieutenant of the County 1660.
3 This name is apparently a mistake for Philip, third Viscount Wenman.
1 The son of Thomas, second Viscount Wenman, M.P. in 1640. Created a
Baronet November 29, 1662.
5 The only record relating to the return of William Knollys, Esquire, is an
Order of the House dated June 18, 1663, as to the merits of the respective elections
of Mr. Knollys and Sir William Walter.

MEMBERS OF PARLIAMENT. 125
1678-9. Sir Edward Norreys, Knight.
Sir John Cope, Baronet1.
This Election was contested by Sir John D'Oyley and John
Clerke, Esquire.
1679. Thomas Horde, Esquire.
Sir John Cope, Baronet.
1 680-1. Thomas Horde, Esquire.
Sir Philip Harcourt, Knight2.
This Election was contested by Sir John Cope and Sir Edward
Norreys. JAMES THE SECOND.
ANNO. 1685. Anthony, Viscount Falkland.
Thomas Tipping, Esquire.
1688-9. (The Convention Parliament).
Sir Robert Jenkinson, Baronet 3.
Sir John Cope, Baronet.
WILLIAM AND MARY.
ANNO.
1689-90. Montagu, Lord Norreys.
Sir Robert Jenkinson, Baronet.
WILLIAM THE THIRD.
ANNO.1695. Montagu, Lord Norreys.
Sir Robert Jenkinson, Baronet.
1698. Montagu, Lord Norreys.
Sir Robert Jenkinson, Baronet.
1699. Sir Robert Dashwood, Baronet.
Vice Lord Norreys, called to the House of Lords
as Earl of Abingdon.
* Educated at Queen's College, Oxford. Succeeded his brother Sir Anthony in
the Baronetcy 1675, and purchased Bramshill Park, Hants, in 1 699, where the family
have since resided. Died January n, 172 1, aged 87, and buried at Eversley.
2 Sir Philip Harcourt was the father of Lord Chancellor Harcourt. He was
Knighted June 5, 1660. He died in April 1688, and was buried at Stanton Har
court. See note, p. 40.
3 See the note to his father as Sheriff in 1649.

126 COUNTY OF OXFORD.
1 700-1. Sir Robert Jenkinson, Baronet.
Sir Edward Norreys, Knight.
1 701. Sir Robert Jenkinson, Baronet.
Sir Edward Norreys, Knight.
QUEEN ANNE.
ANNO. 1 702. Sir Robert Jenkinson, Baronet.
Sir Edward Norreys, Knight.
1 705. Sir Robert Jenkinson, Baronet.
Sir Edward Norreys, Knight.
1708. Francis, Viscount Rialton (afterwards Earl of
Godolphin) x
Sir Robert Jenkinson, Baronet.
1709. Sir Robert Jenkinson, Baronet2.
Vice Sir Robert, deceased.
1 7 10. Sir Robert Jenkinson, Baronet.
Francis Clerke, Esquire3.
1713. Sir Robert Jenkinson, Baronet.
Francis Clerke, Esquire.
GEORGE THE FIRST.
ANNO.
1 7 14-15. Sir Robert Jenkinson, Baronet.
Francis Clerke, Esquire.
1 His name appears in the list of Lords Lieutenant. His wife, the daughter of
the first Duke of Marlborough, was created Duchess of Marlborough in her own
right. He himself succeeded his father as Earl of Godolphin in 1712, and having
no male issue the Earldom expired at his death in 1766, but the Barony of
Godolphin had been created for him at his son's death in 1735, and that title
devolved upon his cousin.
2 This election was contested by Sir Thomas Read. Above 2600 polled, but
many were hindered from voting by the prevalence of small-pox. ' Sir Robert was
recently a Gentleman Commoner of Trinity College, Oxford, and was a gentleman
of great virtues and of singular integrity and probity, of a courteous, affable temper,
a lover of his country, and an enemy to rebellion.' (Hearne.) He married Miss
Scarborough, Maid of Honour to the Queen in 171 2.
3 The fourth son of Sir John Clerke, Baronet. He died May 2, 1715, and was
buried at Thame. His brother, Richard Clerke, was Clerk of the Peace for
Oxfordshire 1 697-1 71 6.

MEMBERS OF PARLIAMENT. il']
1715. James Herbert, Esquire.
Vice Francis Clerke, deceased.
1717. Sir Robert Banks Jenkinson, Baronet.
Vice Sir Robert Jenkinson, deceased.
1 731. Henry Perrott, Esquire.
Vice James Herbert, deceased.
1722. Sir Robert Banks Jenkinson, Baronet x-
Henry Perrott, Esquire.
GEORGE THE SECOND.
ANNO. 1727. Sir William Stapleton, Baronet.
Henry Perrott, Esquire.
1734. Sir William Stapleton, Baronet.
Henry Perrott, Esquire.
1739. Sir James Dashwood, Baronet.
Vice Sir William Stapleton, Baronet, deceased.
1739. George Henry, Viscount Quarrendon z.
Vice Henry Perrott, deceased.
1 741. George Henry, Viscount Quarrendon.
Sir James Dashwood, Baronet.
1742. Norreys Bertie, Esquire, of Weston on the Green.
Vice Lord Quarrendon, called to the House of
Lords as Earl of Lichfield.
1747. Sir James Dashwood, Baronet.
Norreys Bertie, Esquire.
1754. Thomas, Viscount Parker.
Sir Edward Turner, Baronet 3.
1 He married Catherine, third daughter of Sir Thomas Dashwood, Baronet.
Died July 2, 1738, and was buried at Charlbury.
2 Succeeded his father as third Earl of Lichfield, and on his death in 1772 with
out issue was himself succeeded by his uncle, Robert Earl of Lichfield, with
whom the Earldom terminated. The estates of the Lees then passed to the last
Earl's sister, Lady Charlotte Lee, and by her marriage with the eleventh Vis
count Dillon the noble mansion and park of Ditchley became the property of
the Dillon family. This Member, George Earl of Lichfield, was High Steward
and afterwards Chancellor of the University of Oxford, and held high honours in
the Court of George III.
3 This election was contested by Philip Viscount Wenman, and Sir James

128 COUNTY OF OXFORD.

GEORGE THE THIRD.
ANNO. 1761. Lord Charles Spencer1.
Sir James Dashwood, Baronet.
Dashwood, Baronet, and so strenuous was the contest, that the sick, and almost
dying, were carried to the poll.
This election is memorable as the last great contest between the Whig and Tory
factions, and which first brought the famous Mr. Charles Jenkinson (who afterwards
became Earl of Liverpool) into Court favour and public notice, and procured him
(by the introduction of him by Lord Harcourt to George III) at first the humble
situation of a Clerk in the Treasury, from whence he rose by a regular gradation
in 1762 to be Private Secretary to Lord Bute; in 1763 to be Secretary to the
Treasury in the Administration of Mr. George Grenville, grandfather to the Marquis
of Buckingham ; in 1 766 a Lord of the Admiralty under the Administration of the
Duke of Grafton ; in 1767 a Lord of the Treasury under the same nobleman ; in
1778 Secretary at War under Lord North; in 1786 created Lord Hawkesbury,
and made Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster by Mr. Pitt ; in 1 790 first Lord
of Trade and Plantations under the same Minister; in 1796 Earl of Liverpool;
besides holding for many years the valuable office of Collector of the Customs in
the Port of London; and he»at last retired from office with the addition of
an enormous pension for life. All this accumulation of wealth, fortune, and
favouritism originated in his being what is commonly called ' Squib Writer ' to the
Court candidates at this memorable election.
Lord Parker and Sir Edward Turner were the Whig candidates, supported by
the Duke of Marlborough, the Earl of Guildford, Earl Harcourt, and the Earl
of Macclesfield, and by the Administration of that day, the Whigs being then
in place ; and it was Lord Parker who first introduced Mr. Jenkinson to the
Duke of Newcastle, at that time Minister, and procured for him his Grace's
patronage. Lord Wenman and Sir James Dashwood were supported by the Tory and
Opposition interest, and by the Earl of Abingdon and the Earl of Lichfield ; and,
after a most violent and expensive contest, this election ended in a double return
of all four candidates; and on April 23, 1755, the House of Commons declared
Lord Wenman and Sir James Dashwood not duly elected, but that Lord Parker
and Sir Edward Turner were duly elected, and ought to have been returned.
Lord Wenman and Sir James Dashwood were in what was called the old
interest, distinguished as the Blues; and Lord Parker and Sir Edward Turner in
the new interest, or Yellows.
The mob that espoused the new interest were, on some occasions, most tumul
tuous and indecent. Among other enormities they got into one of the churches
in Oxford, and, mounting the pulpit, drank damnation to the last blue parson that
preached in that blue pulpit.
The incidents of this animated contest survive in four famous election pictures
painted by William Hogarth, the originals of which are preserved in Sir John
Soane's Museum. Hogarth sold the series to his friend David Garrick for a small
sum, and in 1823 they were secured by Sir John Soane for £1732.
1 Lord Charles Spencer was re-elected after the following appointments : — In
January 1763 as Ranger of Windsor Forest, in May 1763 as Comptroller of

MEMBERS OF PARLIAMENT. 129
1768. Lord Charles Spencer.
Philip, Viscount Wenman.
1774. Lord Charles Spencer.
Philip, Viscount Wenman.
1780. Lord Charles Spencer.
Philip, Viscount Wenman.
1784. Lord Charles Spencer.
Philip, Viscount Wenman.
1790. George Spencer, Marquess of Blandford x.
Philip, Viscount Wenman 2
1796. Lord Charles Spencer.
John Fane, Esquire, of Wormsley 3.
1801. Lord Francis Almeric Spencer.
Vice Lord Charles Spencer, appointed Post
master General.
1802. Lord Francis Almeric Spencer.
John Fane, Esquire.
1806. Lord Francis Almeric Spencer.
John Fane, Esquire.
the Household, in December 1779 as Treasurer of the King's Chamber, and
in December 1782 as Vice-Treasurer of Ireland. For many years Colonel of the
Oxfordshire Militia. Died June 15, 1820, in his 80th year.
1 Afterwards fourth Duke of Marlborough, but fifth in succession. He was the
nephew of Lord Francis Almeric Spencer, first Baron Churchill, and the great-
nephew of Lord Charles Spencer. Died 1840.
2 The seventh and last Viscount Wenman. D.C.L., Oriel College, Oxford.
His father, Philip, sixth Viscount, was Member for the City of Oxford from
1749 to 1754. The following memorial inscription exists in the Chapel of
Thame Park : — ' Near this place are deposited the remains of Philip, Lord
Viscount Wenman, Baron Tuam, of the Kingdom of Ireland. His Lordship
was returned to serve the County of Oxford in Parliament five successive times.
Being the last of the Family and dying without issue, the Title became extinct.
This monument is erected by his nephew, Philip Thomas Wykeham, as a small
token of affection. His Lordship died March 26, 1800, aged 56 years.' The
record might have added that seven of his ancestors represented the County in
Parliament, of whom four were his great-grandfathers, successively.
3 He died February 8, 1824, having represented the County in eight successive
Parliaments. To quote from an obituary notice in Symonds' MSS., ' he was a true
but unostentatious patriot, loyal to his King, and the faithful friend of his con
stituents. He never sacrificed a vote in Parliament at the shrine of ambition or
self-interest. Upright and inflexibly impartial in the exercise of his magisterial
duties, a regular attendant at the Assizes and Quarter Sessions, and a memorable
President of the County Agricultural Society.' K

130 COUNTY OF OXFORD.
1807. Lord Francis Almeric Spencer.
John Fane, Esquire.
1 81 2. Lord Francis Almeric Spencer1
John Fane, Esquire.
1 815. William Henry Ashhurst, Esquire2.
Vice Lord Francis Almeric Spencer, raised
to the Peerage as Baron Churchill.
1 81 8. John Fane, Esquire.
William Henry Ashhurst, Esquire.
GEORGE THE FOURTH.
ANNO. 1820. John Fane, Esquire.
William Henry Ashhurst, Esquire.
1824. John Fane, Esquire, of Wormsley.
Vice his father (John Fane, Esquire), deceased.
1836. William Henry Ashhurst, Esquire.
John Fane, Esquire.
This election was contested by George Frederick Stratton,
Esquire 3-
1 Created Baron Churchill, August 11, 1815.
2 Chairman of Quarter Sessions from 1822 to 1846, having served as Sheriff in
1810. See the note to his son, the Sheriff in 1852.
3 At the time of this contested election, which occurred after an interval of
seventy-two years from the preceding contest, the late Mr. John Marriott Davenport
was a pupil in the office of his predecessor, the then Clerk of the Peace, and he thus
described the proceedings of the election : — All the electors of the County who
voted were polled in booths erected in Broad Street, Oxford; and at the back
of these booths was a larger one, in which the High Sheriff sat judicially with his
Assessor (Mr. Serjeant Russell), to decide upon such ex tempore questions of right
to vote as the Undersheriff and his deputies in the outside booths referred for the
decision of the Court. The three candidates were represented by Counsel (the
Honourable Robert George Cecil Fane, afterwards a Commissioner in Bank
ruptcy, Mr. Curwood, and Mr. William Whateley, subsequently Queen's
Counsel and Leader of the Oxford Circuit), and the alternations of grave and
ludicrous questions— eliciting, at one interval, learned arguments, and, at another,
the platitudes and wit of Whateley, the urbane and gentle speeches of Fane, and the
stirring eloquence of Curwood — presented a scene which, to look back upon, seems
invested more with the elements of romance, than mantled in the truth of history.
That scene, too, was varied one day by Mr. Curwood fainting from the heat, and
being carried out ; and, each day, by personal bickerings, squabbles, and fighting
within the very precincts of the booths — intensified as each day's polling was
drawing to its close.
One aged voter was carried to the Poll at this election who had voted at the
election in 1754.

MEMBERS OF PARLIAMENT. 131
WILLIAM THE FOURTH.
ANNO. 1830. John Fane, Esquire.
Montague Bertie, Lord Norreys x
This election was contested by Sir George Dashwood, Baronet.
1831. George Granville Harcourt, Esquire2.
Major Richard Weyland 3.
This election was contested by Lord Norreys.
1833 4. George Granville Harcourt, Esquire.
Major Richard Weyland.
Montague Bertie, Lord Norreys.
1835. George Granville Harcourt, Esquire.
Major Richard Weyland.
Montague Bertie, Lord Norreys.
QUEEN VICTORIA.
ANNO. 1837. Montague Bertie, Lord Norreys.
George Granville Harcourt, Esquire.
Thomas Augustus Wolstenholme Parker, Esquire
(afterwards Viscount Parker, and Earl of
Macclesfield) 5.
This election was contested by Thomas Stonor, Esquire (after
wards Lord Camoys).
1 Sixth Earl of Abingdon. He married Elizabeth Lavinia, only daughter of
George Granville Harcourt, Esquire, 1835, and died in February, 1884. Lord
Lieutenant of Berkshire 1854 to 1881.
2 The eldest son of Archbishop Vernon of York, who assumed the name of
Harcourt on the death of the last Earl Harcourt and on succeeding to his Oxford
shire estates. He was member of Parliament for Lichfield as Mr. Vernon. He
married, first, Lady Elizabeth, daughter of the second Earl of Lucan, and, secondly,
Frances, Dowager Countess of Waldegrave. Died December 19, 1861, having
represented the County in Parliament for thirty years. See the note to his ancestor,
the Sheriff in 1455.
3 Major Weyland was at the same time returned for Weymouth, but he elected
to represent this County. He was High Sheriff the previous year. Died October,
1864. 4 This was the first Election after the Reform Act (2nd William IV, chapter 45),
which added a third Member to the County, and which introduced the system of
registration. Prior to that Act the Land Tax Assessments deposited with the Clerk
of the Peace were the criteria of the right of persons to vote at a County election.
6 The present Earl of Macclesfield, who sat in the House of Commons on
Queen Victoria's accession, has lived to see his fourth son, the Honourable Francis
K 2

132 COUNTY OF OXFORD.
1841. Montague Bertie, Lord Norreys.
George Granville Harcourt, Esquire.
Joseph Warner Henley, Esquire.
1847. Montague Bertie, Lord Norreys.
George Granville Harcourt, Esquire.
Joseph Warner Henley, Esquire.
1852. The Right Honourable Joseph Warner Henley
re-elected, on being appointed President of
the Board of Trade.
1852. The Right Honourable Joseph Warner Henley.
Lieutenant-Colonel John Sidney North.
George Granville Harcourt, Esquire.
This election was contested by Lord Norreys.
1857. The Right Honourable Joseph Warner Henley.
George Granville Harcourt, Esquire.
Lieutenant-Colonel John Sidney North.
1858. The Right Honourable Joseph Warner Henley
re-elected, on being again appointed President
of the Board of Trade.
1859. The Right Honourable Joseph Warner Henley.
George Granville Harcourt, Esquire.
Lieutenant-Colonel John Sidney North.
1862. Lieutenant-Colonel John William Fane1.
Vice George Granville Harcourt, Esquire,
deceased.
This election was contested by Sir Henry William Dashwood,
Baronet.
1 865. The Right Honourable Joseph Warner Henley.
Lieutenant-Colonel John Sidney North.
Lieutenant-Colonel John William Fane.
1868 2- The Right Honourable Joseph Warner Henley.
Lieutenant-Colonel John Sidney North.
William Cornwallis Cartwright, Esquire.
Parker, represent the Southern Division of the County in Parliament at the celebra
tion of Her Majesty's Jubilee.
1 See note to him as Sheriff in 1854.
2 This was the first election after ' The Representation of the People Act, 1867,'

MEMBERS OF PARLIAMENT.

*33

1874. The Right Honourable Joseph Warner Henley1.
Colonel John Sidney North.
William Cornwallis Cartwright, Esquire.
1878. Edward William Harcourt, Esquire.
Vice Joseph Warner Henley, retired.
1880. Colonel John Sidney North 2.
Edward William Harcourt, Esquire.
William Cornwallis Cartwright, Esquire.
1885 3. Northern or Banbury Division : —
Sir Bernhard Samuelson, Baronet.
Contested by Llewellyn Malcolm Wynne, Esquire.-
Mid or Woodstock Division : — ¦
Francis William Maclean, Esquire.
Contested by Arthur, Viscount Valentia.
Southern or Henley Division : —
Edward William Harcourt, Esquire.
by which the franchise was considerably extended, and which conferred in this
County representation upon the minority, electors being restricted from giving
more than two votes for the three candidates.
1 Mr. Henley, who was educated at Magdalen College, Oxford, and honoured
with a D.C.L. degree by the University, became the acknowledged mentor of
the House of Commons, of which he was an industrious and indefatigable member
for thirty-seven years. He has been candidly described as shrewd, original, witty,
and full of common sense, which he often exhibited in blunt expressions uttered
with a racy and old-fashioned humour. What he said in Parliament was
listened to as attentively and respectfully as if he had been talking at the Oxford
shire Quarter Sessions, which he presided over with distinction for seventeen years..
Without presuming to powers of oratory, he studied brevity rather than effect in.
speaking, and besides his high personal character, the union of common sense with
shrewdness which he always exhibited won for him general public approbation.
His lengthened experience as a Magistrate, as a Landowner, and as a Senator,.
combined to enable him to speak with authority upon a variety of subjects which
could not be attained by his colleagues.
Mr. Henley held the post of President of the Board of Trade in 1852, and
again in 1858, and was appointed a Member of the Privy Council.
He succeeded his father, the Sheriff in 1817, in the Waterperry estate, and
upon his death on December 9, 1884, at the advanced age of ninety-one, he was
himself succeeded by his son, Joseph John Henley, Esquire, who holds an official
post under the Local Government Board.
2 See the note to him as Sheriff in 1845.. After his retirement from his Parlia
mentary services, extending over thirty years, Colonel North was appointed-
a member of the Privy Council.
3 A change of important magnitude had now been effected by the Legislature.
The County was divided by the Redistribution of Seats Act, 1885, into three

134 MEMBERS OF PARLIAMENT.
1886. Northern Division : —
Sir Bernhard Samuelson, Baronet.
Contested by Llewellyn Malcolm Wynne, Esquire.
Mid Division : —
Francis William Maclean, Esquire, Q.C.
Southern Division : —
The Honourable Francis Parker.
Contested by Sir Walter Francis George Phillimore, Baronet.
separate divisions, each forming an independent constituency and returning one
Member, and the Boroughs of Banbury and Woodstock ceased to return Members
and became merged in the County electorate. A large extension of the franchise
had been granted, the numbers of the registered electors throughout the whole
County having been increased from 7,246 to 27,045. This election moreover was
the first in the County at which voting by Ballot had been put in force. A vast
increase in the number of polling-places had taken place, there being, under an
arrangement which brought the polling-booths within four miles of the voters,
thirteen polling-places for the Northern Division, and eleven for each of the Mid
and Southern Divisions, or a total of thirty-five for the whole County. By a sub
sequent measure this distance was reduced to three miles, and the total number
of polling-places for the whole County is now fifty-three. This change is the more
significant when it is remembered that the only place of voting for the whole of
the electors of the County was at Oxford, the County town, until the year 1843,
and that then four places, Oxford, Deddington, Witney, and Nettlebed, were pro
vided, and that for fourteen years after 1854 there were only eight polling-places.
The only other constituencies within the three Divisions of the County are the
University and City of Oxford. The former has returned Members to Parliament
since the reign of James I, and the latter from an ancient date; but by the
Redistribution Act the representation of the City was reduced to one Member.

THE CHAIRMEN OF QUARTER
SESSIONS.

THE
CHAIRMEN OF QUARTER SESSIONS.
The term ' Sessions of the Peace ' is used to designate
a Sitting of Justices of the Peace for the execution of those
powers which are confided to them by the Sovereign's Com
mission of the Peace under the Great Seal, and by numerous
Statutes. The Quarter Sessions is a Court of Record, and its
jurisdiction for criminal purposes was mainly defined by
Statute, 34 Edward III, and for administrative purposes its
duties are by numerous Statutes multifarious and important
within the County. The Chairman is the chosen President
of the Court, and guides it in its deliberations ; though, upon
a division of opinion in any case, and an equality of votes,
the Chairman has no casting vote ; — for, Inter pares non est
potestas. The office of Chairman of Quarter Sessions is
a highly honourable one, and in every County confers distinc
tion upon its holder. The office is wholly gratuitous and
without remuneration.
The muniments of the County of Oxford (in the office of
the Clerk of the Peace), from which the names of the Chair
men might have been collected, commence only with the
date of 1687. It is conjectured that the earlier documents
were destroyed, or otherwise miscarried, at the Revolution.
There appears to have been no regularly appointed
Chairman prior to 177 1. During the preceding century and
a half, the duties of the chair were exercised principally (in
chronological order), by Bulstrode Whitelock1, Esquire, of
1 Aikin's Memoirs of the Court of Charles I, vol. i. p. 373.
The following is Mr. Whitelock's own account of his introduction to the Chair : —
' 1635. At the Quarter Sessions at Oxford I was put into the Chair in Court,

138 COUNTY OF OXFORD.
Fawley Court (a Member of St. John's College and an eminent
Barrister on the Oxford Circuit) ; William Pudsey, Esquire ;
Richard Powell, Esquire ; Thomas Carter, Esquire (for a long
period) ; William Wright, Esquire ; Sir Sebastian Smythe ;
Richard Carter, Esquire; Henry Beeston, Esquire; Charles
Crispe, Esquire ; John . Wright, Esquire ; John Lenthall,
Esquire ; Sir Simon Harcourt, afterwards Lord Chancellor x ;
The Reverend Thomas Pardo, D.D. ; Thomas Blackall,
Esquire; and the Reverend Theophilus Leigh, D.D. The
appointed place for holding the Quarter Sessions (after the
destruction of the ancient County Hall, which stood on a
site contiguous to the present one) was, up to I751, the old
Town Hall, a small building in St. Aldate's Street, Oxford.
But the records show that during parts of the seventeenth and
eighteenth centuries, adjournments of the Court of Quarter
Sessions were made variously (amongst other places) to Sir
though I was in coloured clothes, a sword by my side, and a falling band, which
was unusual for Lawyers in those days ; and in this garb I gave the Charge to the
Grand Jury. I took occasion in this place to enlarge myself upon the point of
jurisdiction of the temporal Courts in matters Ecclesiastical, and the antiquity
thereof; which I did the rather, because the Spiritual Men began in those days
to swell higher than ordinary, and to take it as an injury to the Church that
anything savouring of the Spirituality should be within the cognizance of ignorant
laymen ; yet I was wary in my expressions, and so couched the matter as it might
seem naturally to arise from the subject of the discourse, and not to be brought in
purposely, and by head and shoulders. The Gentlemen and Freeholders seemed
well pleased with my Charge and management of the business of the Sessions,
and said that they perceived that one might speak as good sense in a falling band
as in a ruff, and they treated me at that time, and at all times afterwards when I
waited on them, with extraordinary respect and civility.' — Whitelock's Memorials,
Oxford edition.
Lord Campbell (Lives of the Chancellors, vol. iii. p. 20) writes : ' Whitelock
passed his Vacations in Oxfordshire, affecting while there merely to be a Country
Squire ; yet, from his knowledge of the Law, he was called upon to preside as
Chairman of the Justices.'
In January, 1643, Whitelock was named one of the Commissioners to carry
propositions of peace to the King at Oxford. At an Inn there, some of the officers
of the Royal Army having quarrelled with the Commissioners' servants, Whitelock
' collared a great mastiff officer, and took his sword from him.' — Lord Campbell.
In 1648 Whitelock was appointed one of the three Lords Commissioners of the
Great Seal.
1 Some notes of his charges to the Grand Jury are quoted in the Harcourt
Papers.

CHAIRMEN OF QUARTER SESSIONS. 139
John Walter's House at Sarsden, or rather at three cottages
in Churchill called ' The Sessions House x ; ' the Cross Inn in
Oxford ; the George Inn at Burford ; the White Hart, Chip
ping Norton ; the Bowling Green House at Bicester ; and the
Salutation at Witney. In 1751 the present Town Hall in
Oxford was built; and the City courteously allowed the use
of it for the Assizes and Ouarter Sessions of the County until
1841, when the present County Hall was erected.

CHAIRMEN.
1771-77. Francis Burton, Esquire.
Educated at Christ Church, Oxford. Senior King's Counsel.
He was Recorder of Oxford from 1797 to 1 801, and Member
of Parliament for the City of Oxford from 1790 to 1812. He
was also for a considerable time one of the Judges on the
Welsh Circuit. He died at his house, No. 5, Upper Brook
Street, Grosvenor Square, London, on November 28, 1832,
at the advanced age of SS years.
1 778-1 80S. Sir Christopher Willoughby, Baronet.
D.C.L. of the University of Oxford ; and created a Baronet
in 1794. Died at Baldon House, February 5, 1808.
William Vanderstegen, Esquire,
was Assistant Chairman, and took an active part in the
County business up to 1797, the year in which he died. He
was educated at St. John's College, Oxford, and was a dis
tinguished Member of the University.
1808-18. John Coker, Esquire, D.C.L.
Resident at Bicester. Fellow of New College, Oxford.
Colonel of the University Volunteers. Died January, 1819.
1819-i^. John Atkyns Wright, Esquire, D.C.L.
Educated at Exeter College, Oxford, and called to the Bar.
Member of Parliament for the City of Oxford from iSoj-6
and 1S12-20. Resident at Crowsley Park and Oxford.
1 Si 2-46. William Henry Ashhurst, Esquire, D.C.L.
Educated at Charter House, and Worcester College, Oxford.
Member of Parliament for the County of Oxford from 1 S 1 5 to
1S30. Died at Waterstock, June 3, 1846.
1 The cottages were described as ' The Sessions House ' in the Particulars o£
Sale of the Sarsden Estate, July 1, 1 7S9.

140 county of oxford.
1846-63. The Right Honourable Joseph Warner
Henley.
Ed nested at Magdalen College Oxford. D.CX. of the Uni
versity. Member of Parliament for the Connty of Oxford
from 1S41 to 1S7S. Died at Waterperry, December 9, 1SS4.
1864-78. Hugh Hamersley, Esquire, of Pyrton Manor.
Educated at Harrow, and Trinity College, Cambridge. He
was Vice-Chairman for ten years previously. He died
November 2, 1SS4.
Since 1878. Charles Edward Thornhtll, Esquire.
Educated at Rugby, and M_\. Christ Church. Oxford, and
afterwards of Lincoln's Inn, Barrister-at-law. He was Vice-
Chairman. during his predecessor's Chairmanship- Resident
at Woodleys, Woodstock, and Oxford.

CLERKS OF THE PEACE.

THE
CLERKS OF THE PEACE.
THE Custos Rotulorum of the County appoints the
Clerk of the Peace, — whose office is a freehold one ; held ad
vitam, aut culpam. The original date of the office is not
known, but the first Commission of the Peace having been
granted by Edward III (who began to reign in 1327), the
office is at least traced to that period under the present title
of ' Clerk of the Peace ; ' and it is assumed by the old writers
that the office existed by the same, or similar title, under the
ancient system of Conservators of the Peace. (See Lambard's
Eirenarcha.) In the Year Book 2 Henry VII, pi. 1, this
officer is denominated not only Clericus Pacis, but Attornatus
Domini Regis.
All the learning on the office of Clerk of the Peace may be
found collected in the judgments delivered in the case of
Harding v. Pollock (a Writ of Error to the House of Lords),
6 Bingham's Reports, p. 25. Reference also should be made
to Wilde v. Russell, 1 Law Reports, Common Pleas, p. 722.
It has not been possible to trace the names of the
Clerks of the Peace of Oxfordshire prior to the year
1684. 1684-91. Richard Stevens, Esquire.
1691-97. Edward Prince, Esquire.
1697-1716. Richard Clerke, Esquire \
1716-59. William Diston, Esquire2.
1 The sixth son of Sir John Clerke, Baronet, of North Weston, Thame. His
brother, Francis Clerke, represented the County in Parliament 1710-14, and his
grandson, Francis Clerke, was High Sheriff in 1750.
2 Mr. Diston resided at Chadlington, and died there in 1759. The Custos
Rotulorum (Charles, Duke of Marlborough) having at the time of Mr. Diston's

144 COUNTY OF OXFORD.
1759-62. Harry Harmood, Esquire1.
1763-67. Edward Ryves, Esquire2.
1767-77. Thomas Walker, Esquire 3.
1777-81. Paul Elers, Esquire *
1781-1815. Sir William Elias Taunton, Knight5.
1815-31. Thomas Henry Taunton, Esquire6.
1831-82. John Marriott Davenport, Esquire7.
1882. Thomas Marriott Davenport 8
death died abroad, the Justices in Quarter Sessions on August 29, 1759, temporarily
appointed Mr. Edward Ryves to fulfil the duties of the office of Clerk of the Peace
during the vacancy of the post of Custos Rotulorum.
1 Of Lincoln's Inn Fields and of Stockbridge, Hants. He held an official
post under the Lord Keeper, Earl of Northington.
' Mr. Ryves was resident at Woodstock. Died April, 1767.
8 Mr. Thomas Walker first resided at Oxford/and afterwards built and resided
at Hensington House, Woodstock, which he subsequently sold to the Duke of
Marlborough. He died March 24, 1804, having left his property to his grand
daughter, the fourth Viscountess Ashbrook.
4 Died December 4, 1781, aged 82.
5 Sir William Taunton resided at Grandpont House, Oxford, and at Freeland
Lodge, Eynsham, both of which houses he built. His eldest son bearing the
same name was a Judge of the Court of King's Bench, and his second son
succeeded his father as Clerk of the Peace.
6 Mr. Thomas Henry Taunton was educated at Abingdon School under Dr.
Lempriere, and at Pembroke College, Oxford, and he was a man of great
abilities and varied learning. Died at Grandpont, Oxford, March 11, 1831.
7 Mr. John Marriott Davenport laboriously occupied the office of Clerk of the
Peace for upwards of fifty years, and upon the occasion of his completing half
a century of his official life, the Court passed the following resolution at the Easter
Quarter Sessions, 1881 : —
' The Court desires to express to Mr. John Marriott Davenport (who has held
the office of Clerk of the Peace since the year 1831) the grateful thanks of the
Magistrates for the eminent services which he has rendered to the County and to
the public during the past half-century, and to place on record their complete
appreciation of the energy, ability, and courtesy which he has on all occasions
displayed in the performance of the duties of the office.'
The Clerks to the Magistrates of the various Petty Sessional Divisions of the
County at the same time presented him with a testimonial, in which they ex
pressed ' the uniform courtesy and kindness extended to them in all official and
private interviews.' Mr. Davenport died at his residence in St. Giles's, Oxford,
on January 31, 1882.
8 Educated at Rugby, and M.A. Pembroke College, Oxford.

I X D E X.

INDEX

TO THE

TITLES OF THE LORDS LIEUTENANT.

PACE

Abingdon, James, ist Earl of 7
Abingdon, Montagu, 2nd Earl of - 8
Banbury, William Knollys, Earl of 5
Berkshire, Thomas, Earl of - 6
Clarendon, Edward, Earl of 7
Dashwood, Sir Henry William, Baronet 9
Falkland, Henry, 4th Viscount 6
Godolphin, Francis, Earl of 8
Jersey, Victor Albert George, 7th Earl of 9
Knollys, Sir Francis, K.G. 5
Lenthall, William, Esquire 6
Lichfield, Edward Henry, Ist Earl of 8
Lindsey, Montagu, 2nd Earl of 7
Macclesfield, George, 4th Earl of - - 9
Marlborough, John, ist Duke of 8
Marlborough, Charles, 2nd Duke of1 - 9
Marlborough, George, 3rd Duke of * 9
Marlborough, George, jth Duke of 1 - 9
Marlborough, John Winston, 6th Duke of1 9
Norreys, Henry, Lord - 5
Saye and Sele, William, ist Viscount 6
Saye and Sele, James, 2nd Viscount 7
Suffolk, Charles Brandon, Duke of 5
Wharton, Thomas, Lord 8
1 According to the succession of the title, Charles, called 2nd Duke, would be
more accurately described as third Duke ; George, called 3rd Duke, as fourth
Duke ; George, called 5th Duke, as sixth Duke ; and John Winston as seventh
Duke.

L 2

INDEX

TO THE

HIGH SHERIFFS' NAMES.

Abberbury, Sir Richard, p. 33.
Aishcombe, Sir William, '62.
Alan, the son of Roaldi, 28.
Alveton, John de, 30.
Alwi, 20.
Andrews, Robert, 35.
Annesley, Arthur, 86, 88.
Arsick, Manasser, 21.
Ashefeld, Edward, 53.
Ashefeld, Humphrey, 54.
Ashefeld,' John, 45.
Ashhurst, John Henry, 96.
Ashhurst, William Henry, 90.
Attwood, William, 32.
Auriol, James Peter, 88.
Babington, Sir William, 54.
Baker, Sir Richard, 62.
Banastre, Alardus, 21.
Barber, Edward, 80.
Barber, Robert, 77.
Barentyne, Drogo, 29.
Barentyne, John, 42, 44.
Barentyne, Thomas, 32.
Barentyne, William, 47, 49, 50.
Baskerville, Henry, 95.
Basket, John, 45.
Basset, Gilbert, 23.
Basset, Thomas, 21, 23, 24.
Batson, Stanlake, 91.
Baynton, Stukeley, 86.
Beach, Philip de la, 29, 30.
Beauchamp, Robert de, 24.
Beckinham, William, 43.
Bere, Richard de la, 29.

Berners, Ralph de, 28.
Besiles, Sir Peter, 34.
Besilles, William, 44, 45.
Biscoe, Elisha, 89.
Biscoe, William Earle, 101.
Blackall, John, 88, 91.
Blackall, Thomas, 83.
Blake, Daniel, 79.
Blake, William, 75.
Blewitt, John, 79.
Blount, John Darell, 104.
Blount, Michael, 56, 58.
Blount, Michael Henry, 92.
Blount, Sir Richard, 62.
Bockland, John de, 29.
Boseville, William, 68.
Boulton, Matthew P. W., 95.
Bowles, Oldfield, 87.
Brassey, Albert, 103.
Bray, Edmund, 55.
Breautee, Falco de, 24, 25.
Bremmeschete, William de, 28.
Bridges, Henry, 49.
Bridges, Richard, 50, 53.
Bridges, Thomas, 53.
Brines, Richard, 32.
Briwer, William, 22, 23.
Brocas, William, 41.
Brome, Sir Christopher, 54.
Brome, George, 58.
Brome, Sir John, 52.
Brown, Arthur Henry Clerke, 103.
Brown, John, 96.
Browne, Sir Henry, 75.
Brumpton, John de, 29, 30.

INDEX TO THE SHERIFFS' NAMES.

149

Brunn, Jqjnn le, 26.
Brunus, John, 26.
Brygges, Henry, 49.
Brymtone, Adam de, 28.
Bullock, Robert, 32.
Burnaby, Sir William, 83.
Bush, John, 87.
Caillaud, John, 89.
Camvil, Richard de, Addenda.
Carter, Edward, 79.
Carter, Thomas, 50.
Cartwright, John, 69, 71.
Cartwright, Thomas, 77.
Catmera, Adam de, 21.
Chalers, Sir John, 38.
Chamberlayne, George, 68.
Chamberlayne, Robert, 57.
Chamberlayne, Sir Thomas, 67.
Chamberleyne, Sir Edward, 46, 48.
Chamberleyne, Sir Leonard, 50, 51.
Chaucer, Thomas, 33.
Ciconiaco, Engelard de, 25, 26.
Clarke, George, 89.
Clerke, Edward, 67.
Clerke, Francis, 82.
Clerke, John, 81.
Clerke, William, 56.
Clerke, Sir William, 60.
Cobb, Sir Edward, 81.
Cobb, Thomas, 70, 91.
Cobb, Sir William/ 65.
Coghill, Sir Thomas, 65.
Coker, John, 82.
Colshull, Richard de, 30.
Colston, Edward Francis, 90.
Cope, Anthony (afterwards Knight and
Baronet), 55, 57, 58.
Cope, Sir Anthony, 51.
Cope, William, 68.
Cope, Sir William, 61.
Corbet, Richard, 55.
Corbett, Sir Robert, 34.
Cottesford, Roger de, 30.
Coventry, Thomas Darby, 90.
Coventry and Lichfield, Roger, Bishop
of, 27, 28.
Cowper, John, 54.
Crawcumbe, Godfrey de, 25.
Crispe, Charles, 79.
Crispe, Thomas, 76.

Croke, Sir George, 70.
Croke, James, 80.
Croke, Unton, 69.
Croker, John, 54.
Curson, Francis, 58.
Curson, Sir John, 61.
Curzon, Sir Thomas

74-

D'Amary, Richard, 29.
Dance, Edmund, 71.
D'Anvers, Thomas, 28, 29.
Danvers, John, 54, 56.
Darrell, William, 36.
Dashwood, Sir George, 92.
Dashwood, Sir Henry William, 100.
Dashwood, Sir James, 81.
Dashwood, Sir Robert, 74.
Daunce, Sir John, 47.
Denton, John, 53.
Denton, Thomas, 49, 55.
Desanges, Sir Francis, 91.
Dew, John, 79.
Dillon, Viscount, 97.
D'Lisle, William, 27.
D'Oilli, Henry, 21, 22, 23.
D'Oilli, Robert, 20.
Dormer, Charles Cottrell, 91.
Dormer, Sir Michael, 59.
Dormer, Sir Robert, 64.
Dormer, William, 71.
Dotting, Abel, 86.
D'Oyly, Sir Cope, 62.
D'Oyly, John, 53, 56, 66.
D'Oyly, Sir John, 74.
D'Oyly, Sir Robert, 54.
Draper, William, 69, 73, 87.
Dunch, Edward, 61.
Dunch, Walter, 62.
Duncombe, John, 81.
Edward, 20.
Elmerugg, Roger de, 30, 31.
Elyott, Thomas, 49.
Englefield, Sir Francis, 50.
Englefield, Philip, 36.
Englefield, Thomas, 48.
Essex, Sir William, 46, 48, 49, 50.
Everts, William, 97.
Fabian, Edward, 53.
Fane, John, 92.

M

i5°

INDEX TO THE SHERIFFS' NAMES.

Fane, John William, 97.
Fanning, William, 104.
Farnham, Alanus de, 26.
Faryngton, Thomas, 32.
Fell, David, 88.
Fenner, Edward, 61.
Fermor, Sir Richard, 58.
Fermor, William, 49, 50.
Fetiplace, Anthony, 45.
Fetiplace, John, 49.
Fetiplace, Peter, 38.
Fetiplace, Sir Thomas, 36.
Fettiplace, Sir Charles, 79.
Fettiplace, Sir Edmund, 74.
Fettiplace, Sir Lorenzo, 79.
Fettiplace, Robert, 85.
Fiennes, Richard, Esquire and Knight,
5i. 53. 54-
Fiennes, Sir Richard, Baron Saye and
Sele, 56, 57.
Fitz Ellis, Robert, 30.
Foliot, Peter, 27.
Foliot, Sampson, 27.
Foliot, Walter, 25.
Forster, Sir George, 47.
Forster, Humphrey, 43, 49, 50.
Foster-Melliar, William M., 99.
Fowler, Sir Richard, 45.
Fox, William Henry, 104.
Franke, Edward, 44.
Fraser, Thomas, 91.
Freeman, Strickland, 89.
Freeman, William P. W., 91, 93.
Frere, William, 57.
Furnell, Alanus de, 22.
Fynderne, William, 36.
Gammie, George, 98.
Gardiner, Samuel, 89.
Gardiner, Samuel Weare, 95.
Gaskell, Henry Lomax, 98.
Gaynsford, George, 45.
Gibbons, Thomas, 54.
Glen, George, 99.
Glynne, Sir William, 71, 75, 78.
Golafre, John, 33, 35, 36.
Gore, William, 69.
Gower, John, 74.
Greene, William, 58.
Greenhill, Samuel, 81.
Greenwood, Thomas, 80.

Gregory, Edmund, 74.
Greville, Edward, 46.
Greynvylle, William de, 28.
Grote, Joseph, 88.
Hall, Alexander William, 100.
Hall, Henry, 72, 95.
Hamersley, Hugh, 93.
Harborne, John, 65.
Harcourt, Edward William, 103.
Harcourt, Sir Richard, 42.
Harcourt, Robert, 44.
Harcourt, Sir Robert, 39.
Harcourt, Sir Simon, 47, 49, 50.
Harcourt, Sir Thomas, 34.
Harcourt, William, 44, 46.
Harrington, Sir James, 58.
Harrison, Edward Slater, 104.
Harrison, John, 90.
Harrison, John H. Slater, 93.
Hawtry, William, 55.
Hay, William, 26.
Haydok, Thomas, 47.
Haytfeld, Stephen, 36.
Henley, Joseph, 90.
Henred, Nicholas de, 26, 27.
Herman, Nicholas, 68.
Heywood, Francis, 80.
Hinde, William, 77.
Hodges, Anthony, 85.
Hodges, John Fowden, 99.
Hodges, William, 89.
Holt, Charles, 79.
Holt, Ralph, 74.
Horde, Allan, 80.
Horde, Thomas, 81, 83.
Horn, Edward, 86.
Home, John, 44, 46.
Hose, Geoffrey, 21.
Howard, Sir John, 42.
Huddleston, Richard, 55.
Hulcote, John, 32.
Hulecote, John de, 25.
Hungerford, Sir Anthony, 50.
Hyde William, 51.
James, John, 31, 32.
James, Robert, 33, 35, 36.
Jemmett, William, 88.
Jenkinson, Robert, 68.
Jenkinson, Sir Robert, 67.

INDEX TO THE SHERIFFS' NAMES.

151

Jennings, Robert, 77.
Joddrell, Richard Paul, 88.
Jones, James, S9.
Jones, Sir Samuel, 71.
Keate, John, 68.
Keck, Francis, 77.
King, James, 90.
Kingeston, Thomas, 44.
Kirkeby, Gilbert de, 2S.
Knollys, Sir Francis, 83.
Lacy, Sir John, 65.
Lacy, Rowland, of Pudlicot, 81.
Lacy, Rowland, of Shipton, 62.
Lacy, Sir Rowland, of Pudlicot, 75.
Lacy, Sir Rowland, of Shipton, 59.
Lambert, Sir Henry John, 92.
Langford, Edward, 38, 42.
Langford, Sir John, 46.
Langford, Robert, 88.
Langford, Sir William, 33.
Langston, James Haughton, 91.
Langston, John, 43, 89.
Laundeles, John, 30.
Ledwell, William, 86.
Lee, Sir Henry, 60.
Lenthall, John, 72, 79, 88.
Lenthall, William, 79.
Iidyard, John, 38.
Lisle, Sir William, 35, 36.
Loggin, Robert, 6S.
Loveday, John, 93.
Lovelace, Richard, Lord, 62.
Lybbe, Richard, 67, 79.
Mackenzie, Edward, 99.
Mackenzie, William Dalziel, 102.
Malyns, Edward de, 30.
Malyns, Sir Reginald de, 31.
Mantell, Walter, 40.
Mare, Robert de la, 22.
Mare, Thomas de la, 30, 41.
Mare, Sir Thomas de la, 43, 44.
Marsack, Charles, SS.
Martin, Francis, 69.
Mason, James, 102.
Massingberd, Charles Burrell, SS.
Mayot, Robert, 74.
Meller, Sir John, 65.
Metcalf, Edward, S2.

Miller, James, 104.
Moreton, Robert de, 30.
Morrell, George Herbert, 104.
Morrell, James, 96.
Mountford, Sir Edward, 44.
Moyle, Thomas, 60.
Mullins, Michael, 54.
Musgrave, Wenman Aubrey Wykeham,
104.
Nedham, Robert, 82.
Nedham, William, 87.
Nevill, Hugh de, 23.
Newell, William, 77.
Normanville, Ralph de, 24.
Norreys, Sir Francis, 65.
Norreys, Henry, 53.
Norreys, James, 79.
Norreys, John, 38, 43.
Norreys, Sir John, 40.
Norreys, Sir William, 42, 43, 44.
North, John Sidney, 94.
Nourse, Francis, 79.
Nourse, John, Si.
Nowers, Richard de, 30.
Oglethorp, Owyne, 56, 57.
Osbaldeston, John, 49.
Osbaldeston, Sir William, 79.
Oxenford, Henry de, 2 1 .
Page, Francis, S2.
Parker, The Hon. Thomas, S9.
Parret, Sir Jacob, 74.
Parsons, John, 74.
Peers, Charles, 83, 91.
Peniston, Sir Thomas, 66.
Pennycock, John, 38.
Peter, 20.
Pettie, Charnell, 68.
Peyton, Sir Algernon William, 102.
Peyton, Sir Thomas, 104.
Peyure, Paul, 26.
Phillips, John, 90.
Phillips, John Shawe, 94.
Phillips, William, SS.
Plessitis, John de, 26.
Polhampton, Richard de, 29.
Pollard, John, 82.
Pope, William, 5S.
Powys, Philip, Si.

152

INDEX TO THE SHERIFFS' NAMES.

Powys, Philip Lybbe, 90.
Poyle, Sir Thomas de la, 32.
Price, Charles, 86.
Prout, Thomas, 42.
Purcel, Otvelus, 29.
Quartermayns, Richard, 37, 38.
Raine, John, 81.
Rainsford, Sir William, 51, 53.
Raynesforde, Hercules, 54.
Read, Thomas, 61.
Reade, Sir Edward, 75.
Reade, Sir James, 77.
Reade, Sir John Chandos, 90.
Rede, Edward, 38.
Restoldus, 20.
Restwold, Ralph, 21.
Restwold, Richard, 36, 42.
Restwold, Thomas, 43.
Reynardson, Henry Birch, 99.
Ricardo, Mortimer, 95.
Ripariis, Richard de, 25.
Risley, Holford Cotton, 103.
Rodney, Sir Walter, 47.
Rogers, John, 38.
Rogers, Thomas, 42.
Rollinson, Thomas, 86.
Rothwell, John de, 31.
Rowney, Thomas, 75-
Rucote, Fulco de, 27.
Ryvere, Walter de la, 27.
Samborne, Henry, 59.
Sartoris, Charles, 102.
Saunders, John, 80.
Sawold, 20.
Say, Thomas, 44.
Shirley, Hugh, 45.
Shottebrok, Henry de, 28.
Shull, Walter, 38.
Smith, Henry, 80.
Smith, Humphrey, 77.
Smythe, Sebastian, 81.
Smythe, Sir Sebastian, 76.
Spencer, Sir Thomas, 61.
Spencer, William, 56.
Sperschete, Nicholas de, 28.
Spershete, William de, 30.
Spersholt, Edward, 32.
Stafford, Thomas, 54.

Stafford, William, 49.
Stapleton, Sir Francis George, 104.
Staverton, William, 43.
St. John, John de, 28.
St. Vigorc, Thomas de, 27.
St. Walery, John de, 27.
Stokes, John, 38.
Stone, Carlton, 78.
Stone, William Francis Lowndes, 92.
Stone, William Lowndes, 89.
Stonor, Edmund, 32.
Stonor, Francis, 57.
Stonor, Sir Francis, 62.
Stonor, Thomas, 38, 42.
Stonor, Sir Thomas, 36.
Stonor, Thomas (Baron Camoys), 92.
Stonor, Sir Walter, 50.
Stratton, George, 89.
Stratton, George Frederick, 89.
Strickland, Walter, 94.
Stuart, Daniel, 91.
Suain, 20.
Suhard, Richard, 26.
Sweet, Benjamin, 79.
Syffrewast, Nicholas de, 27.
Talbot, Sir Humphry, 43.
Taverner, John, 70.
Taverner, Richard, 54.
Taylor, James, 89.
Taylor, John, 81.
Taylor, Joseph, 80.
Taylor, Thomas, 99.
Temple, Sir Thomas, 59.
Thistelden, Henry de, 28.
Thornicroft, Sir John, 77.
Tipping, George, 58.
Tipping, Thomas, 67.
Tipping, William, 79-
Tiwe, John de, 26.
Toovey, Thomas, 89.
Travell, John, 79.
Trotman, Fiennes, 87.
Trotman, Samuel, 85.
Turberville, John de, 27.
Tureville, Robert de, 21.
Turner, Edward, 80.
Turner, Sir Gregory Page, 88.
Tydemers, John de, 28.
Umpton, Thomas, 49.

INDEX TO THE SHERIFFS' NAMES.

153

Valentia, Viscount, 102.
Vanderstegen, William, 86.
Vanderstegen, William Henry, 94.
Vesey, Robert, 69.
Viall, James, 43.
Wace, Gilbert, Esquire and Knight, 30,
31.32.
Walkested, Sir Richard, 36.
Walter, David, 67.
Walter, William, 66.
Warcoppe, Ralph, 66.
Warren, Borlase, 78.
Wastie, Francis, 87.
Wenman, Richard, Esquire and Knight,
54-
Wenman, Sir Richard, first Viscount
Wenman, 64.
Wentworth, Sir Peter, 65.
Western, Maximilian, 87.
Weyland, John, 88, 102.
Weyland, Richard, 92.
Wheate, Francis Sackville Lloyd, 90.
Wheate, Thomas, 71.
Wheate, Sir Thomas, 77.
Whippy, Benjamin John, 97.
Whorwood, Simon, 75.
Whorwood, Thomas, of Headington,
11, 79-

Whorwood, Thomas, of Holton, 81.
Wickham, John, 74.
Wickham, Richard, 80.
Wigod, 20.
Wilcote, John, 33, 34, 35.
Wilcote, William, 32, 33.
Willatts, Thomas, 87, 88.
William, 20.
Williams, Sir John, of Burghfield, 46,
5°-
Williams, Sir John, of Thame, 50, 51.
Williams, Richard, 89.
Williamscote, John de, 30.
Williamscote, Sir Richard de, 28.
Wilson, Joseph, 91.
Wilson, William, 90.
Winchcombe, Benedict, 59.
Windsor, Richard de, 29.
Witefeld, Robert de, 22.
Witts, Edward, 88.
Wolfes, Hugh, 32.
Wright, John Atkyns, 89.
Wydo, the son of Robert, 26.
Wykeham, Philip James Digby, 104.
Wykeham, Philip Thomas Herbert,
93-
Wykham, Sir Thomas, 35, 36.
Wykham, William, 38.

ADDENDA.

Sheriffs.
P. 21, year 1154. The Sheriff in this first year of the reign of Henry II was Richard
de Camvil. He was a faithful adherent of King Stephen, and the son of Gerard de
Camvil. whom he succeeded in the possession of Middleton Stoney (Dunkin). His
wife Milicent was a cousin of Queen Adeliza, the second wife of Henry I. That
Queen gave Stanton Harcourt to Richard de Camvii's wife as a marriage portion,
and the gift was confirmed by King Stephen and King Henry II to her daughter
Isabel, who married Robert de Harcourt, and the estate has ever since been pos
sessed by the Harcourt family.
P. 21, note 3. For a reference to the family of Arsick and the descent of the
Coggs estate, see The Harcourt Papers, vol. i. p. 65 .
P. 26, 17 and 18 Henry III. Engelard de Ciconiaco, or de Cigone, or Cygoingny,
was a favourite of King John, and being a foreigner he was particulary obnoxious
to the Barons, and he with his Undersheriff, Peter de Cancell, were expressly
mentioned in Magna Charta as persons whom it was stipulated the King should
remove from their bailiwicks. Notwithstanding this he was shortly afterwards
appointed Keeper of Windsor Castle and Forest, and Henry III assigned to him
for his services the manor of Bensington and town of Henley, with an indemnity
against any complaint which John de Harcourt, the dispossessed owner, might
make. (Close Roll, 403.)
P. 50, year 1537. Sir Simon Harcourt was the eldest son of Sir John Harcourt and
the grandson of Sir Simon who has been previously noted as Sheriff. He him
self was Knighted by Henry VIII, and his eldest son, Sir Walter Harcourt, was
Knighted at Rouen by the Earl of Essex. He died July 27, 1577.
P. 51, note 4. The John Danvers, of Calthorpe near Banbury, who was father
of the two Judges, Sir William Danvers and Sir Robert Danvers, lived in the
reigns of Henry IV, V and VI. The eldest son of his first marriage was Sir
Robert of Epwell, who was Justice of the Common Pleas 28 Henry VI, and died
1467. And Sir William, a son of his second marriage, was also Justice of the
Common Pleas in 3 Henry VII, and died 1503.
P. 88, year 1788. Mr. William Jemmett, in consequence of the illness of George
III, was obliged to retain office until a fresh Sheriff could be appointed. By a
series of misfortunes he was reduced to poverty, and retired from his Little Milton
estates to live in a cottage at Cuddesdon. He died July 1831, having during the
end of his days been supported by parochial aid.
P. 93, year 1838. Mr. William Peere Williams Freeman's father, bearing the
same names, died in the lifetime of this Sheriff's grandfather, Admiral William
Peere Williams, who had assumed the name of Fri_eman upon succeeding his
cousin Strickland Freeman in the Fawley Court estates in 1822. (Burn's History
of Henley, p. 254.)

156 ADDENDA.

Members of Parliament.
P. 115, year 1385. William Willicotes, who represented the County in seven
Parliaments, was Sheriff in 1392 and 1399, his name being returned as Wilcote.
He held the Manor of Woodstock under a grant from the Queen, Joanna of
Navarre. P. 119, year 1477.-8. Richard Harcourt of Abingdon, the Knight in this Par
liament, was the eldest son of Sir Christopher Harcourt and the grandson of Sir
Richard Harcourt of Wytham, previously mentioned as Knight of the Shire and
Sheriff. He died without issue, and the Wytham estates passed to his brother,
Sir Simon Harcourt.
P. 122, note 3. It may be interesting to give the form of Summons issued by
Oliver Cromwell in the Interregnum to the Assembly, nominated by him and a
Council of Officers, to meet at Westminster, and which declared itself a Parlia
ment on July 6, 1653 : —
' Forasmuch as upon the dissolucion of the late Parliam' It became necessary
that the Peace, safety and good Government of this Comonwealth should be provided
for ; And in order thereunto diverse p'sons fearing God and of approved fidelity
and honestie are by my Selfe with the advice of my Councill of Officers nominated
to whome the great charge and trust of soe weightie affaires is to be comitted ; And
having good assurance of your love to and courage for God and the Interest of his
cause, and of the good people of this Comonwealth — I Oliver Cromwell Captaine
Generall and Comander in Cheife of all the Armies and Forces raised and to be
raised within this Comonwealth, Doe hereby somon and require ytou William
Draper Esquire (being one of the p'sons nominated) p'sonally to be and appeare art
the Councill Chamber comonly knowne or called by the name of the Councill
Chamber in Whitehall within the Citie of Westm. upon the fourth day of July next
ensuing the date hereof then and there ,to take upon you the said trust unto w*
you are hereby called and appointed to serve as a Member for the County of
Oxford. And hereof you are not to fayle. Given under my hand and seale the
sixth day of June 1653.
'0. Cromwell.'

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