Magdalen Rokell (Rokele)

[Gidne]

Dear All,

Can anyone comment on the validity of the marriage of Magdalen Rokell
to either John or George Wiseman (Wyseman) circa 1450. This has been
stated on the Churchyard/Orr Family Museum website and the pedigree
appears to be a standard Visitations (Suffolk? Norfolk?) extract.

If a Magdalen Rokell can be confirmed, is she related to the 'de la
Rochelle's' of Ireland in any way?

With many thanks,

Pamela

[Kelly Leighton]

Pamela,

It so happens I've been working on an extremely long paper on just this family. Was wondering who besides me might be interested in it actually.

I have located no records that explicitly tie a Magdalen Rokell to the Wiseman family. There are records (Close Rolls and the will of George Wiseman's son Simon) which tie the Wiseman and Poley families together. The Poley connection to Geoffrey Rokell and his wife Eleanor Montfort has a better footing. I suspect that Magdalen is daughter of this Geoffrey and Eleanor and that she married George Wiseman. Tracing of Geoffrey Rokell's ancestry has proven time-consuming, as well, but I have found no evidence for an Ireland connection yet.

The timeline is quite tricky, and not at all certain, but my current thought is that Magdalen was born approximately 1426 and was married to George in the early 1440s. George was married to an 'Anne" in a 1450 will, this may be a alternate/nickname for Magdalen (not good with medieval nicknames) or Magdalen may have died in childbirth by this time and George remarried.

I believe the primary source for the website you mention is the 1824 Clarke work identified on the webpage. This is available via Internet Archive and has the tree reproduced on the website. It appears accurate in the majority (the de la Poles are not) but is completely unsourced and beyond the tree has no relevant information on the early family. I've found no evidence of a direct Braiseworth connection to Simon Blyant I and Calendar of Inquisitions Miscellaneous records show that Thornham actually came from Hemenhalle family in the first decade of the 15th century.

As I said, still a work-in-progress, a friend is helping translate and transcribe primary source documemts which can give researchers a strong foundation from which to proceed. I am expecting to include these document transcriptions in the paper as appendices.

Kelly in RI

[Don McArthur]

Kelly,

I've got an Alice, dau & coh of Geffrey Rokehill, of Wormingford, co. Essex
as m bef 1444 Thomas Poley, + 1461 [SFK Visitation 1561, p. 57]

I presume this to be the same Geoffrey Rokell?

Regards,

Don McArthur.

[Kelly Leighton]

Yes, this is the same Geoffrey.

Alice appears in two National Archive documents held by the Suffolk Record Office, Bury St Edmunds Branch which document her place in the family:

Feoffment by Robert Parfyte, parson of Shepton Malet, Somerset, & Jn. Baly, parson of Stanstead, to Thos. Poley, gent. & wife Alice, daughter of Geoffrey Rokell, Esq. Manor of Boxted. HA 519/80/11 29 Apr 1445 Parchment. 1 seal & 1 fragment.

Quit-claim by Richd. Poley, gent. of Stoke Ash (son & heir of late Thos. Poley, Esq. of Lt. Walsingham, Norfolk & his wife Alice) & Rose Poley (dau. of Thos. Poley & his wife Anne, dau. of late Thos. Badwell, Esq. of Boxted) to Thos. Poley, of Boxted (brother of Richd. & Rose) & wife Alice (dau. of Geoffrey Rokell, Esq.). Manor of Boxted. HA 519/81/13 8 May 1447

Kelly in RI

[Gidne]

Dear Kelly,

Thank you very much for your post! I look forward to the results of
your research on this genealogical thread.

All the best,

Pamela