Ada of Huntingdon's 2nd husband Ralph Breteton, Knight
Douglas Richardson
George Ormerod's book, History of the County Palatine and City of
Chester, vol. 3 (1819), pg. 51 has an extensive chart of the Brereton
family which traces the Brereton family back in time before 1150.
One of the remote ancestors in the Brereton family tree is stated to
be Sir Ralph Brereton, of Brereton, Cheshire who Ormerod states is
"said in some pedigrees to marry Ada, daughter of David earl of
Huntingdon, relict of Henry Hastings." Ada of Huntingdon, wife of
Henry de Hastings, is a well known figure in medieval genealogy.
Complete Peerage shows her marriage to Henry de Hastings and Henry's
death in 1250, but provides no additional information regarding a
subsequent marriage.
Recently while I was combing through the book, Manuscripts of St.
George's Chapel, Windsor Castle, by J.N. Dalton (1957), I encountered
an interesting document on page 409:
"XV.24.34 Attestation by Dame Mary Warburton, widow of Sir John
Warburton, of Arley in the county of Chester, Knight, Thomas
Comberbache, Mayor of Congleton in the county of Chester, Henry
Brereton of the Peel, and John Somerforde of Freeerfeilds, Richard
Spencer and William Thorley, aldermen of Congleton, Randall Rode of
Walhill yeoman, Sir James Brucke now or late parson of Sadyngton, co.
Warwick, Sir Roger Willyam curate of Astburye and James Brownesworthe,
sexton or clerk of the same, concerning a monument or tomb in the
churchyard of Astbury, commonly called the Knight's Burial, wherein
was buried Sir Ralph Brereton Kt. sometime Lord of Brereton in the
county of Chester, who married Ada one of the daughters of the Earl of
Huntingdon, which also was buried in the same monument. Signed by
all. 1578."
Clearly the parties are referring to the same Sir Ralph Brereton as
Ormerod. Does anyone have any information which would shed light on
this matter?
Best always, Douglas Richardson, Salt Lake City, Utah
E-mail: royala...@msn.com
John Ravilious
Hello Douglas,
Thanks for an interesting post - this second marriage of Ada of
Huntingdon to Sir Ralph de Brereton is an interesting find.
I see nothing in my files in the way of a helpful (primary) source
re: the connection. The pedigree of Brereton in the Visitation of
Cheshire (1580) does not go back to that generation.
Two interesting pieces of information to add into consideratio:
1. I show William de Brereton, 2nd son of Ralph de Brereton above
as
being born 'ca. 1245'. This date could use tightening,
obviously.
He may in fact have been the son of an earlier marriage;
however,
the date being somewhat loose, he might also have been born
after
this marriage occurred.
2. Information provided me by Robert O'Connor shows the following,
citing Burke's Landed Gentry:
'Sir Ralph de Brereton, Kt., of Brereton, Cheshire, born
ca. 1210. M. Ada (widow of Sir William Handsacre, Kt.),
d. of Henry de Hastings. Died before 1289'
This seems unlikely on a chronological basis. It does seem more
likely that the marriage was to the widow of Henry de Hastings.
As to the identity of the mother of Ralph and William de Brereton,
that will take more time.......
Good luck, and good hunting.
John
royala...@msn.com (Douglas Richardson) wrote in message news:<5cf47a19.02021...@posting.google.com>...
Rick Eaton
did not indicate the sources of her information, I am sorry
to say. Perhaps you have all of this already. If not, I hope
that it may may prove useful in the search for Breretons.
Again, sorry for the complete lack of sourcing. I think that
the pedigree was taken from a Brereton family home page:
http://www.geocities.com/Heartland/3203/Brereton.html
It would appear, if we are speaking to the same Ralph and
William, that the latter's wife was Margery Thornton, Sir.
Ralph's mother.
> The Brereton Family, Lords of the Manor of Brereton, and later
> Joint tenure Barons of Malpas, in Cheshire is said to have been
> founded by a younger son of Gilbert de Venables, from whom they
are
> descended through a later connection with that family - this
> supposition is supported by the similarity of the arms that they
> bore, which differ only in tincture. A full pedigree is given in
> George Ormerod's Cheshire (1817, 1888) and also in Burke's Extinct
> and Dormant Peerage. The family was raised to the peerage in the
> seventeenth century, but is now extinct in the senior line.
>
> Robert, Lord Clive of Plassey ("Clive of India"), the present
Earls
> of Powis, Earls of Plymouth, Baroness D'arcy de Knath are
descended
> from this family.
>
> Ralph de Brereton I
> Occurs c. 1100
> |
> |
> William de Brereton I
> lord of Brereton
> |
> |
> Sir Ralph de Brereton I
> lord of Brereton
> |
> |
> Sir William de Brereton II = Margery de Thornton of Thornton (See
> Chart---)
> lord of Brereton, occurs |
> temp John. |
> |
> ___________________|
> |
> Sir Ralph de Brereton II
> lord of Brereton, occurs
> 1275 |
> |
> |
> Sir William de Brereton III = Margaret de Sandbach of Sandbach
> lord of Brereton | (See Chart---)
> |
> |
> ____________________|
> |
> Sir William de Brereton IV = Rose de Vernon of Shipbrook
> lord of Brereton, occurs | (See Chart---)
> 1301, 1321 and 1340/1 |
> |
> |
> ___________________|
> |
> William de Brereton V = Maragret Bosley,
> Died before his father| Daughter of Richard de Bosley
> |
> |
> _____________|
> |
> Sir William de Brereton VI = Ellen de Egerton
> Occurs 1367/8 | Baroness of a moiety of the
Palatinate
> Barony of Malpas.
> lord of Brereton | (See Chart---)
> |
> __________________|
> |
> Sir William de Brereton VII = Anyill de Venables of Kinderton
> Baron of half of Malpas, | Married at Audley, 1386.
> lord of Egerton and Brereton| (See Chart IV)
> Governor of Caen. Born 14th |
> February 1348/9 at Egerton |
> baptised at Malpas, Died of |
> "honourable wounds" 1402. |
> |
> __________________|
> |
> William de Brereton VIII = Alice Corbet
> Occurs 1400. Died with | Heiress, (d. 1458)
> his father at Harfleur | (See Chart---)
> in 1402. |
> |
> ______________|
> |
> Sir William Brereton IX = Phillipaa Hulse
> (d.1484)Baron of half |
> of Malpas, lord of |
> Egerton and Brereton |
> |
> ____________|
> |
> Sir Andrew Brereton
> of Brereton, younger
> son, eventual heir
> to his father.
> (1438-1495)|
> |
> |
> Katherine Brereton = William Bowyer (See Chart II)
>
Also, for Brereton information, look at the Malpas/Maupas
and Egerton families.
Rick Eaton
Voice: 203.453.6261 Fax:203.453.0076
----------
>From: the...@AOL.COM (John Ravilious)
>To: GEN-MED...@rootsweb.com
>Subject: Re: Ada of Huntingdon's 2nd husband Ralph Breteton, Knight
>Date: Mon, Feb 18, 2002, 1:45 AM
Douglas Richardson
Thank you for your good post.
George Ormerod shows that Sir Ralph Brereton, husband of Ada of
Huntingdon, had two sons, William, and Gilbert. He further shows that
the son, William, was a ward of Sir R. Sondbach, which suggests that
William was a minor at his father's death. If so, it should be
relatively easy to find out when William was born and whether or not
he might have been a son of Ada of Huntingdon.
The following two immigrants descend from the Brereton family:
1. Robert Abell.
2. Obadiah Bruen.
I'm curious to know the purpose of the 1578 attestation I found.
Also, I haven't checked to find the location of Astbury mentioned in
that document. Can anyone identify this place?
Best always, Douglas Richardson, Salt Lake City, Utah, Home of the
Winter 2002 Olympics
E-mail: royala...@msn.com
the...@aol.com (John Ravilious) wrote in message news:<55712d2e.02021...@posting.google.com>...
Ian Cairns
news:5cf47a19.02021...@posting.google.com...
> Dear John ~
<snip>
> I'm curious to know the purpose of the 1578 attestation I found.
> Also, I haven't checked to find the location of Astbury mentioned in
> that document. Can anyone identify this place?
<snip>
There is only one modern Astbury, immediately to the south of Congleton,
Cheshire. See:
http://www.streetmap.co.uk/streetmap.dll?G2M?X=384500&Y=361500&A=Y&Z=5
Regards
Ian
CMc...@aol.com
The Breretons are also ancestors of Gerard Fowke, immigrant to Westmoreland
Co., VA and later Charles Co., MD. According to MCS5: 101A-10, "Sir Robert
Aston, d. 1464/65, of Tixall; m. Joan Brereton, dau. of Sir William Brereton
of Brereton, co. Chester, by his wife, Alice Corbet." The line from this
Brereton is supplied in part by John Steel Gordon's weblist, Barnes' British
Roots of Maryland Families: 198-9, and RD500: 363. I think it will also
appear in your forthcoming update of MCS5. I would like to known how
accurate the line in the Rick Eaton email to Gen-Medieval today was; I am
about to get the Ormerod CD running. Charlie McNett
U...@aol.com
royala...@msn.com writes:
> I'm curious to know the purpose of the 1578 attestation I found.
> Also, I haven't checked to find the location of Astbury mentioned in
> that document. Can anyone identify this place?
>
> Best always, Douglas Richardson, Salt Lake City, Utah, Home of the
> Winter 2002 Olympics
>
I find a town by this name in Cheshire, just south of Congleton.
Always optimistic--Dave
Douglas Richardson
Since my initial post, I've checked Ormerod's History of Chester again
for the parish of Astbury, which is located in the same hundred as
Brereton, where Sir Ralph Brereton reportedly resided. Under Astbury
parish, Ormerod gives the following information:
"Near the north-east angle of the church-yard are four recumbent
figures carved in red stone. The figure to the north is that of an
ecclesiastic resting on a slab, which forms the lid of a stone coffin,
wholly above ground; that on the south is the figure of an armed
knight placed on an altar-tomb, the feet resting on an animal, the
helmet conical, and the shield emblazoned two bars, in chief three
leopards' heads, of which the centre and sinister head alone are
remaining. The two middle figures, an armed knight and his lady, rest
on a tomb higher than the last, over which is a raised pointed arch,
with a pediment and pinnacles ornamented with crockets. The following
inscription has been cut in capitals within the arch at the west end:
Hic jacent Radulphus Br-
reton miles et domina
Ada uxor sua, una fi-
liarum Davidis comi-
tis Huntingdonis.
This inscription is mentioned in Church Notes taken 1576, but is
noticed as being in characters more modern than the rest of the
monument, which in Camden's time was claimed by the families of
Venables, Mainwaring and Brereton. It is, however, presumed that the
question is settled by the seal mentioned in the account of the family
of Venables of Astbury, which accords precisely with the arms on the
shield of one of the figures already described."
[Reference: George Ormerod, History of the County Palatine and City of
Chester, vol. 3 (1819), pg. 19].
Ormerod is presumably referring back to an earlier passage in his
account of Astbury parish in which he discusses a conveyance of the
Venables family which has a seal attached bearing a shield with the
arms of two bars with three leopards' heads in chief. I suppose that
Ormerod believes that the arms on the shield of the one knight
identifies the family name of ALL four occupants of this burial.
However, Ormerod has included a picture of this tomb. The drawing
shows that the priest and the knight with the shield bearing arms are
buried away from and outside the canopy covering the bodies of the two
middle figures who are the knight and his lady. As such, I would
presume that the knight and his wife were buried first, followed at a
later date by the other knight with a shield and the priest. I would
not assume that all four parties belong to the same family, in fact,
just the opposite.
At any rate, it appears this is the tomb attributed to Sir Ralph
Brereton and his alleged wife, Ada of Huntingdon. Does anyone have
any further particulars to provide on this matter?
Best always, Douglas Richardson, Salt Lake City, Utah
E-mail: royala...@msn.com
>Best always, Douglas Richardson, Salt Lake City, Utah
>
>E-mail: royala...@msn.com
>