Jane Wrottesley, Mother of Cecily Cresset?

[Brad Verity]

I've been looking into the ancestry of Anne Luttrell, Duchess of
Cumberland, the wife of Prince Henry, the younger brother of George
III. The king was so maddened by his brother's marriage that he caused
the passing of the Royal Marriages Act in 1772, which is still in
effect today.

The only lines back to Edward III for Anne are through her mother,
Judith Maria Lawes, specifically thru Judith's 5x-great-grandmother
Cecily Cresset, wife of William Acton of Aldenham. Leo has her in his
database here, as the daughter of Richard Cresset of Upton Cresset and
Joan Wrottesley:
http://www.genealogics.org/getperson.php?personID=I00599598&tree=LEO

Cecily's husband, William Acton, has a bio in HOP, here:
http://www.historyofparliamentonline.org/volume/1509-1558/member/acton-william-1513-67

He is said to have been born by 1513, based on the date of his
marriage, which the bio says was by 1534, as at his death in 1567, his
eldest son and heir Robert Acton was aged 33, so born 1533/34. Anne
Luttrell, Duchess of Cumberland, descends from the 2nd son, Richard
Acton. The bio also states that Cecily was the daughter of Richard
Cresset of Upton Cresset. No mother is named. It's source for this was
the Acton of Aldenham pedigree in the 1623 Visitation of Shropshire,
which is here:
http://archive.org/stream/visitationshrop00britgoog#page/n64/mode/2up

The wife of William Acton is given as "Ciceley da. of Rich. Cressett
of Upton Cressett in com. Salop." No mother named.

The Cressett of Upton Cressett pedigree from the same volume is here:
http://archive.org/stream/visitationshrop00britgoog#page/n210/mode/2up

In it, "Cecilia vx. Wm Acton de longnor" is shown as a daughter of
"Richardus Cresset de Vpton = Jana fil. Walteri Wrottesley de co.
Staff."

Here is where things get complicated. In a 2001 message to the
newsgroup, Douglas Richardson pointed out that the will of Thomas
Cresset (Richard's father), dated 26 Aug. 1520, mentions that the
marriage of his son and heir Richard to Jane, daughter of Richard
Wrottesley, had been arranged, but had not yet taken place:
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.genealogy.medieval/msg/af771f218de2296f?hl=en

As Dorothy Dudley, the wife of Richard Wrottesley, was descended from
Edward III, this meant that the children of Richard Cresset & Jane
Wrottesley, as named in the 1623 Cresset pedigree linked to above,
were thus also descended from that monarch.

But the chronology doesn't match up. Richard Cresset & Jane
Wrottesley had not yet married by August 1520, per Douglas's reading
of Thomas Cresset's will. Their son and heir apparent Robert Cresset
was granted custody of his lunatic father by King Henry VIII on 28
Jan. 1545/6, so had to have been of age by then and born by 1524, as
Douglas states in his latest edition of Plantagenet Ancestry (p.
551):
http://books.google.ca/books?id=kjme027UeagC&pg=RA1-PA551&dq=Jane+Wrottesley+Cresset&hl=en&sa=X&ei=usfjUN6GIOaGjALIpoG4Cg&ved=0CDMQ6AEwAA#v=onepage&q=Jane%20Wrottesley%20Cresset&f=false

Even if Cecily Cresset was Richard and Jane's firstborn child, the
earliest she could have been born is 1521. Yet her eldest son Robert
Acton was born 1533/34. Either Cecily Cresset was not the daughter of
Jane Wrottesley, or the age of her son Robert Acton was returned
incorrectly in 1567.

It should be noted that the only source that makes Cecily a daughter
of Jane Wrottesley is the Cresset pedigree from the 1623 Visitation,
taken 100 years after Jane's marriage to Richard Cresset. This
pedigree is not without several errors, chief of which is making
Richard Cresset the son of Thomas Cresset & Jane Corbet, when he was
actually their grandson, son of Thomas Cresset & Eleanor Milewater, as
Brice Clagett pointed out in a newsgroup post in 2004:
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.genealogy.medieval/msg/9aae96cafbbd1009?hl=en

The pedigree is even incorrect as to the identity of Jane's father,
calling her the daughter of Walter, rather than Richard, Wrottesley.

Unfortunately the Cressets of Upton Cresset appear to (so far) be a
poorly documented family, but I think more research is warranted
before it can be said with any certainty that Cecily, wife of William
Acton (d. 1567), was the daughter of Jane Wrottesley, wife of Richard
Cresset, thus making Anne Luttrell, Duchess of Cumberland, a
descendant of Edward III.

Cheers, -------Brad

[Brad Verity]

William Acton sent a very helpful reply. He wanted it to be to the
whole newsgroup, not just to me, but it doesn't appear to have gone
through (at least not to soc.genealogy.medieval on Google Groups).
Here it is below, and many thanks, William!

According to the Shropshire Burials Index 4a, Cecily was buried at St
Gregory's, Morville, Shropshire 11 January 1581.

Two Cressett wills in Calendar of Hereford Probates 1407-1550, edited
by M.A. Faraday (2009) support Cecily being a daughter of Richard
Cressett. The first is the will of Cecily's brother Henry:

p. 378
563/4 Henry Cressett of Holgate,
gentleman W: “made 23 Jan. 1562; E: my mother in law &
my cousin John Blayney & my kinsman Thomas Ludlowe; B: Mary my wife &
Margaret my base daughter & Edward my base son & my six servants: John
Whitall & William Wever & Alice Trowe & Elizabeth & Harrye & Robert
Fewtrell & my nephews Richard Cressett & John Cressett of Upton & my
cousins Katherine Blayney & Morris Blayney & Morris Ludlowe & my three
godchildren Harrie Bawdewyne & Harry Fewtrell of Holgate & Anne
Leighton & the children of my sister Smithe & the children of my
sister Moore & the son of my sister Fraunces Acton & Mary daughter of
my sister Moore & my cousin Fraunces Cressett & William Wyer of
Longestawnton & William son of my servant Thomas Badicotte & Richard
Browne & Margaret Sympkis & Johan Stedman & Margery Jordeyn & Thomas
Fewtrell & Sir Edward Fewtrell parson of Holgate & Harrie Price & Anne
Brugge & John Russell & his wife Johan; Witn: Edw Turner & Sir Richard
Normecotte clerk”

"the son of my sister Fraunces Acton" must be Cecily's son Francis
Acton, who married Bridget Powis.

The second will is of Cecily's nephew John, son of Cecily's oldest
brother Robert:

p. 381
565/8 John Cressett of Upton Cressett,
esquire W: “made 1 Jan. 1565; E: my two brothers in law Adam
Lutley & Richard Leighton & my cousin Anne Boterell & my four aunts:
Dorothy Mynde & Cicely Acton & Frances Hopton & Mary Cressett, & my
four sisters: Elizabeth Lutley & Cycely Leighton & Johan Witton &
Thomason Draper, & my three base sisters: Anne & Jane & Elizabeth & my
base brother Edward – the four beneficiaries of the will of my
deceased father Robert Cressett & my wife’s maid Elizabeth & my son
and heir Thomas Cressett, under 21 years, & my uncle Henry Cressett &
my servants Elizabeth Harley widow & Marckes & Thomas Shippeman &
Richard Corser; O: my father in law John Harley esquire”


I also have a copy of REQ 2/1/126, "Depositions as to the parentage
and family of William Acton, son of Thomas Acton", which is available
from the National Archives:

http://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/SearchUI/Details?uri=C9117362

This seems to state that William married a daughter of Thomas
Cressett. I would be very happy to send a copy of this document to
anyone who wants to have a look at it. It is in English, but since I
am no specialist I am sure I have made some errors in my
transcription. Here it is anyway:

Depositions as to the parentage and family of William Acton

[Page 1]

“__ [hole in the parchment] Willm Acton gente this xiiijth day of May
apon __ __
__ [hole in the
parchment] annexed

first the said deponent __ that he [hole in the parchment] __ and ys
of xxvj yeres age or there abought but
he knowith not at what__ [hole in the parchment] yere [hole in the
parchment] was bo[r]ne

Itm the same deponent saith that one Thomas Acton Srvante to my Lord
of Shrewesbury was his fader
al Driland
& Elizabet Isak ^ was his moder but he non knewe her but by reporte of
the countey

Itm the same deponent saith that one Isak was his grnntfather of
his moders p[ar]te but he non
Know hym but by report he saith he did dwell in London & was a
merchint

Itm the sayd deponent saith that he non knew the stature age making no
complecon of his moder

Itm the said deponent knowith not whether on his moder gave hym suck
or no but he saith by the age
that he ­­hath taken that he the rep report is by Willm Sparrowe that
he was nursed at Berking
mans wif
wt a duche ^ woman and that the same Willm Sparrowe did sett hym from
the nurse

Itm the same deponent dothe not know what age his nurse was when he
was taken from her nor in
of Berking
What place of the towne ^ she dwelled in

Itm the same deponent dothe not know what age he was of at the deth of
his fader and furder he dothe
Say apon his othe that his moder died byfore his fader for he may
remembr his fader but not his
Mader

he
to his knowlege
Itm the said deponent saith that ^ hadd non broder no sister
__[earlier?] begotton ^ but one Griffith Acton wiche
Was his older broder & died at Shrewesbery & ther buryed and before
his deth was maried to one George
Harbornes daughter and that the said deponent knowith by the report of
dyvse psons in Shrewesbery
And the deponent non knew his said broder

Itm the sayd deponent saith that his fader non kept housold after the
deth of the deponents moder that
He may remembre And the said deponent sayth that after he was sett
from his nurse & was brought

__ moders
Upp wt Roger Bastard ^__[pace?] wiche was his ^ uncle wiche dwelled at
Hinkesworth in Hertfordshere and
After that he dwelled at Ashewell in the countie of Hertf.

Itm the same deponent sayes that he non knew __[s[erva]nnt?] in
household wt his fader

[Page 2]

Itm the same deponent saith that after the dethe of his broder
Griffith his uncle Richerd Acton & his
Uncle Antony Driland did meke enquiry for the said deponent And then
his uncle Antony
Driland did shewe the same Richerd Acton where the said deponent was
and when the sayd
Richerd Acton did kno where the said deponent was he desired Antony
Dryland to send hym to hym
and apon his request the said Antony Driland sent the said deponent
unto the foresaid Richerd Acton
and by his sayd uncles the said deponent had the first knolege that he
was very next heyre
to his grandfather and not by any oder labor

Itm the same deponent saith by his othe that he non offred any man of
sume or sumes of money to any
pson or psones wiche hathe deposed in this matter nor any oder
advantage nor any __[bounde?] by
obligacon or oderwise for the pving of his title or interest unto the
land in __ nor for
the pff whether the sayd deponent were __[unlier/earlier?] begotten
boy of Thoms Acton or no

Itm the same deponent likewise upon his othe saith that he non pmysed
to any man of pson lyving

hym
Any pte or porcon of the land for to help to pve ^ heyre to Thoms
Acton.

Itm the same deponent likewise deposith & saith that he dwelled in
Hereford there with his uncle &
there wayted upon hym & went to scole & to no __[other?] labor

Itm sayd deponent likewise saith that after the deth of his broder
Griffith was dedd it was long
after or on his uncle Richerd did fynd hym and in the meene tyme the
sayd deponent __
suppose that Mrs Jane Grene & Heling her son did __[sue?] out a
comission and in all that
tyme the sayd deponent knew nothing what title he had but asson as he
knew of it he

grandmoder to the deponent
saithe that apon the sitting of the commision one Benet Acton ^ did
com to the commissioners
defyed them to take a longer day for the commission for she said that
ther was one Willm Acton
this deponent that was son & heyre to Thomas Acton and upon that the
commissioners gave a
short day and before the day the sayd Benet for so grandmoder to the
deponent sent for the
said deponent unto his uncle Richerd Acton in London & byfore the day
appointed the said
Richerd Acton fell sik so that he could not bring this deponent before
the said commissio
ners and so the commission was returned but as the deponent hadd
knowledge he made clayme
to the sayd lande. And so was fownd heyre wtin before ij yeres were
past after the dethe of his
broder to his knolege /

[Page 3]

Itm the said deponent saith by his othe that he non knewe that Sr
Thoms Kyken Knight wold __
the wardship of the said deponent at any tyme

Itm the deponent non knewe that on his uncle did refuse to be bounden
that this deponent was
son to Thoms Acton

Itm this deponent doth likewise depose that he dothe knowe very well
by the report of Benet Acton

to the deponent
his grandmoder moder to Richerd Acton & Thoms his fader ^ that the
said Ric Acton
Was his very uncle and also by the report of the same Richerd Acton /

Itm the same deponent saith that he knowith that Richerd Acton was
broder unto Thoms Acton
Fader to this deponent by the reporte of Benett there moder & also by
the word of the countey.

Itm the deponent saith that Roger Knight non sold the wardship of hym
to Thoms Cressett but
he saith that __ __ did commande the said deponent to be ordred by
Raif Pocwoode wiche
Raiff sold the wardship to Henreus Ludlowe to mary wt the daughter of
this Cresset as
__[Apperits?] by __ & more he knowith not /”

Yours,

William Acton

[Brad Verity]

> According to the Shropshire Burials Index 4a, Cecily was buried at
St
> Gregory's, Morville, Shropshire 11 January 1581.

Thank you for sharing this, William. It's great to have a death date
for Cecily.

> Two Cressett wills in Calendar of Hereford Probates 1407-1550, edited
> by M.A. Faraday (2009) support Cecily being a daughter of Richard
> Cressett. The first is the will of Cecily's brother Henry:
>
> p. 378
> 563/4                Henry Cressett of Holgate,
> gentleman                W: “made 23 Jan. 1562; E: my mother in law &

> my cousin John Blayney & my kinsman Thomas Ludlowe [snip]

> & my nephews Richard Cressett & John Cressett of Upton & my
> cousins Katherine Blayney & Morris Blayney & Morris Ludlowe & my three
> godchildren Harrie Bawdewyne & Harry Fewtrell of Holgate & Anne
> Leighton & the children of my sister Smithe & the children of my
> sister Moore & the son of my sister Fraunces Acton & Mary daughter of
> my sister Moore & my cousin Fraunces Cressett

This will of Henry Cresset is incredibly useful. Per the Cresset
pedigree from the 1623 Visitation, Richard Cresset & Jane Wrottesley
had the following children:

1) Robert Cresset of Upton, son & heir, married Katherine Charlton
2) Edmund Cresset, s.p.
3) Henry Cresset, s.p.
4) Jane Cresset, s.p.
5) Mary Cresset, s.p.
6) Frances Cresset, married Robert Smith
7) Dorothy Cresset, married William Minde of Newton
8) Cecily Cresset, married William Acton of longnor
9) Margaret Cresset, married Thomas Moore of Larden

Henry's will confirms that he had a sister married to a Smith, a
sister married to a Moore, and a sister married to an Acton.

He also mentions nephews Richard Cresset and John Cresset of Upton.
The 1623 Cresset pedigree gives Robert Cresset of Upton & Katherine
Charlton the following sons:
1) John Cresset of Upton
2) Thomas Cresset, s.p.
3) Peter Cresset, s.p.

No Richard Cresset. At least we can say from Henry's will since John
Cresset is called of Upton, that his father Robert Cresset of Upton
was dead at the time it was made, so dead by January 1562.

Henry also mentions cousins John, Katherine & Morris Blayney, and
kinsmen & cousins Thomas & Morris Ludlow. There is no Cresset/Blayney
marriage in the 1623 pedigree, but there is a Cresset/Ludlow one. Per
the pedigree, Anne Cresset, daughter of Robert Cresset of Upton &
Christian Stapleton, and sister of the Thomas Cresset of Upton who
married Jane Corbet, was married to Lawrence Ludlow.

> "the son of my sister Fraunces Acton" must be Cecily's son Francis
> Acton, who married Bridget Powis.

Probably. Could it also be read as 'the [unnamed] son of my sister
Frances Acton'?

> The second will is of Cecily's nephew John, son of Cecily's oldest
> brother Robert:
>
> p. 381
> 565/8                John Cressett of Upton Cressett,
> esquire           W: “made 1 Jan. 1565; E: my two brothers in law Adam
> Lutley & Richard Leighton & my cousin Anne Boterell

The 1623 Cresset pedigree states that Elizabeth Cresset, another
daughter of Robert Cresset of Upton & Christian Stapleton, and sister
of Thomas Cresset of Upton who married Jane Corbet, was the wife of
".... Botterell".

>& my four aunts:
> Dorothy Mynde & Cicely Acton & Frances Hopton & Mary Cressett,

These match to four of the six daughters the 1623 pedigree assigns to
Richard Cresset of Upton & Jane Wrottesley (see list above), presuming
that Frances, wife of Robert Smith, married secondly, apparently
between 1562 and 1565, one Hopton.

> & my
> four sisters: Elizabeth Lutley & Cycely Leighton & Johan Witton &
> Thomason Draper,

The 1623 pedigree gives Robert Cresset of Upton & Katherine Charlton
the following daughters:
1) Cecily Cresset, married to Adam Lutley
2) Elizabeth Cresset, married to Richard Leighton of Cotes
3) Jane Cresset, married to 1) Thomas Chetwynd, 2) Roland Fewtrell
4) Thomasine Cresset married to 1) Richard Draper, 2) Francis Holland

The 1623 pedigree gives the following children to Thomas Cresset of
Upton & Jane Corbet:
1) Richard Cresset of Upton, married Jane Wrottesley
2) Richard Cresset "filius et haeres = ....", with issue
3) Thomas Cresset of Upton = Elizabeth, daughter of Edmund Cornewall,
with issue
4) Cecily married to Thomas Leighton of Cotes
5) Thomasine, married to Richard Draper of Walton
6) Elizabeth, married to Adam Lutley
7) Jane, married to Thomas Witton

Clearly the 1623 pedigree has repeated the four daughters of Richard
Cresset of Upton (d. by 1561) & Katherine Charlton, as daughters of
Thomas Cresset of Upton (d. by 1464) & Jane Corbet.

> & my son
> and heir Thomas Cressett, under 21 years, & my uncle Henry Cressett &
> my servants Elizabeth Harley widow & Marckes & Thomas Shippeman &
> Richard Corser; O: my father in law John Harley esquire”

Per the 1623 pedigree, John Cresset of Upton was married to Katherine,
daughter of John Harley of Brampton, and had 3 sons: Richard Cresset
of Upton (the heir), Thomas Cresset, s.p., and John Cresset, s.p. It
would appear from John's will that Thomas was the eldest of the three
sons, but that the (second?) son Richard was the eventual heir.

Also, does John's mention of "my uncle Henry Cressett" mean that Henry
Cresset of Holgate survive for at least three years after writing his
will above? Or was there another Henry Cresset?

> I also have a copy of REQ 2/1/126, "Depositions as to the parentage
> and family of William Acton, son of Thomas Acton", which is available
> from the National Archives:
>
> http://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/SearchUI/Details?uri=C9117362
>
> This seems to state that William married a daughter of Thomas
> Cressett.

[snip]

> Itm the deponent saith that Roger Knight non sold the wardship of hym
> to Thoms Cressett but
> he saith that __ __ did commande the said deponent to be ordred by
> Raif Pocwoode wiche
> Raiff sold the wardship to Henreus Ludlowe to mary wt the daughter of
> this Cresset as
> __[Apperits?] by __ & more he knowith not /”

I agree with your reading, William, that the above document implies
that William Acton married a daughter of Thomas, not of Richard,
Cresset.

What to make of all of this? It's become very clear that the Cresset
pedigree as given in the 1623 Visitation of Shropshire, is full of
errors and cannot be viewed with any authority. We can determine at
least the succession of the heads of the family as so:

1) Robert Cresset of Upton Cresset, married Christian ----,
granddaughter of John Stapleton, and had
2) Thomas Cresset of Upton Cresset (died by 1464), married Jane
(married 2ndly, by 1464, John Twynho), daughter of Roger Corbet of
Moreton Corbet & Elizabeth Hopton (descended from Edward I), and had
3) Thomas Cresset of Upton Cresset (born by 1464; will written 26 Aug.
1520), married (?) 1) Elizabeth Cornewall; married (?) 2) Eleanor
(married 2ndly, 1522, Sir John Lingen), daughter & heiress of Thomas
Milewater of Stoke Edith, Herefordshire, and had
4) Richard Cresset of Upton Cresset (went lunatic by Jan. 1546),
married after Aug. 1520, Jane, daughter of Richard Wrottesley &
Dorothy Dudley (descended from Edward III), and had
5) Robert Cresset of Upton Cresset (born by 1524; died by 1561),
married Katherine, daughter of William Charlton of Apley, and had
6) John Cresset of Upton Cresset (will written Jan. 1565), married
Katherine, daughter of John Harley of Brampton

There is a good possibility, given the chronology and the original
documents that William has researched & shared, that Cecily Cresset
(d. 1581), wife of William Arnold; Henry Cresset of Holgate (will
written Jan. 1562); Margaret Cresset, wife of Thomas Moore; Frances
Cresset, wife of Robert Smith; and possibly other children assigned by
the 1623 Cresset pedigree to Richard Cresset & Jane Wrottesley
(Generation #4 above), are in actuality children of Thomas Cresset
(Generation #3 above). This would remove Edward III as their ancestor,
though they would retain the Edward I descent brought to the Cressets
by the marriage with Jane Corbet.

Cheers, -------Brad

[Douglas Richardson]

Brad ~

Jane Cressett, wife of William Acton, Esq., appears to have been the
daughter of Richard Cressett, Esq., of Upton Cressett, Shropshire
alright. She is included as a daughter of Richard Cressett in the
pedigree of the Cressett family in the 1623 Visitation of Shropshire.
She is duly named as aunt in the 1562 will of her nephew, Henry
Cressett, Gent. She is also assigned a daughter of Richard Cressett
by the competent historian, Joseph Morris, in his work, Genealogy of
Shropshire.

Fortunately Morris' work has recently been abstracted and is found in
the LDS database, Wales. Welsh Medieval Database Primarily of Nobility
and Gentry, available at the following weblink:

http://histfam.familysearch.org/getperson.php?personID=I148053&tree=Welsh

The seeming chronological problem you have noted can be explained by
several other possibilities, none of which you have considered:

1. That Cecily Cressett was the daughter of Richard Cressett, Esq.,
but not by his wife, Joan (or Jane) Wrottesley.

2. That Cecily Cressett was a second wife of William Acton, Esq., and
that she was not the mother of his son, Robert Acton.

3. That William Acton had two sons named Robert Acton, one by an
earlier wife and one by Cecily Cressett.

4. That the age of Robert Acton indicated by his father's IPM is
either an error, or has been misread.

5. That the will of Cecily Cressett's grandfather, Thomas Cressett,
has been misdated or mistranscribed. It is this will that purportedly
indicates Cecily Cressett's parents, Richard and Joan, were only
contracted to marry in August 1520.

It seems that items #4 and #5 are the most germane to the issue, and
these should be checked first.

Best always, Douglas Richardson, Salt Lake City, Utah

[Brad Verity]

Here is William Acton's reply, which again doesn't seem to have made
it through to the soc.genealogy.medieval newsgroup on Google Groups.

On Jan 2, 10:01 am, Brad Verity <royaldesc...@hotmail.com> wrote:

[snip]

> Henry's will confirms that he had a sister married to a Smith, a
> sister married to a Moore, and a sister married to an Acton.

> He also mentions nephews Richard Cresset and John Cresset of Upton.
> The 1623 Cresset pedigree gives Robert Cresset of Upton & Katherine
> Charlton the following sons:
> 1) John Cresset of Upton
> 2) Thomas Cresset, s.p.
> 3) Peter Cresset, s.p.

> No Richard Cresset. At least we can say from Henry's will since John
> Cresset is called of Upton, that his father Robert Cresset of Upton
> was dead at the time it was made, so dead by January 1562.

Agreed, but I am sure that Richard must have been John's younger
brother (and eventual heir). The will of John Cresset of Upton (made 1
Jan 1565) mentions "my son and heir Thomas Cresset, under 21 years".
This Thomas had apparently died by 10 May 1571, as his mother
Katherine (Charlton) was forced to vacate Upton Cressett, which was
awarded to Richard Cressett:

http://search.shropshirehistory.org.uk/collections/getrecord/CCA_X5460_3_3_6/

George Morris and his son Joseph Morris did a lot of work on the
genealogy of the gentry of Shropshire. I haven't seen an copy of the
original Cresset pedigree that Joseph Morris compiled, but it is cited
as the source of the family tree used at histfam.familysearch:

http://histfam.familysearch.org/getperson.php?personID=I147990&tree=Welsh

The above states that Richard Cresset was Sheriff of Shropshire in
1584, was buried at Upton Cresset on 20 November 1601, and devised his
estates to his cousin Edward, son of Francis Cressett of Holgate. I
think Francis was in fact of Cotes and Stanton Lacy, but will have to
check my sources. These details would be worth pursuing further.

[snip]

> > "the son of my sister Fraunces Acton" must be Cecily's son Francis
> > Acton, who married Bridget Powis.
>
> Probably. Could it also be read as 'the [unnamed] son of my sister
> Frances Acton'?

It could, though it wouldn't fit with any of the other sources I have
gathered thus far.

[snip]

> >& my four aunts:
> > Dorothy Mynde & Cicely Acton & Frances Hopton & Mary Cressett,
>
> These match to four of the six daughters the 1623 pedigree assigns to
> Richard Cresset of Upton & Jane Wrottesley (see list above), presuming
> that Frances, wife of Robert Smith, married secondly, apparently
> between 1562 and 1565, one Hopton.

According to my notes Frances married four times: first to Roger
Smith, second to John Hopton, third to Francis Hord, and fourth to
William Clench. I can't find my sources for these marriages.

[snip]

> The 1623 pedigree gives the following children to Thomas Cresset of
> Upton & Jane Corbet:
> 1) Richard Cresset of Upton, married Jane Wrottesley
> 2) Richard Cresset "filius et haeres = ....", with issue
> 3) Thomas Cresset of Upton = Elizabeth, daughter of Edmund Cornewall,
> with issue
> 4) Cecily married to Thomas Leighton of Cotes
> 5) Thomasine, married to Richard Draper of Walton
> 6) Elizabeth, married to Adam Lutley
> 7) Jane, married to Thomas Witton

As noted elsewhere, the 1623 pedigree skips a generation, and exludes
Thomas Cresset and Jane Corbet's son Thomas, who married a woman named
Eleanor (though I believe her identification as the daughter and
heiress of Thomas Milewater remains unclear). I think it is agreed
that Thomas Cresset and Eleanor (Milewater?) were the parents of
Richard Cresset, but as I understand it they also had a younger son
named Thomas who married Elizabeth Cornwall. A few details about this
younger son named Thomas are provided in 'Transactions of
Shropshire' (1917), pp. 217-218. This Thomas was of Cotes, was
admitted as a burgess of Shrewsbury in 1551 and was buried at Stanton
Lacy 24 February 1565/6. It was his son Francis (of Cotes and Stanton
Lacy), who married first Catherine Slade, leaving issue (2 sons, 5
daughters), and married second (late in life) Martha Wilford, having
issue two sons: Edward (who inherited Upton Cresset from Richard
Cresset, who had obtained it from the Katherine Charlton in 1571),
ancestor of the later Cressets of Upton Cresset, and Richard (dsp).

I have seen some pedigrees which suggest that 7) Jane's husband Thomas
Witton was in fact a Mytton. But 'Pedigrees of the Families in the
County of Kent', p. 387, by William Berry (1830) confirms that Jane
Cresset's husband was Thomas Whitton, of Lamberherst, Kent, second son
of Owen Whitton, of Woodstock Park, Oxfordshire.

> Clearly the 1623 pedigree has repeated the four daughters of Richard
> Cresset of Upton (d. by 1561) & Katherine Charlton, as daughters of
> Thomas Cresset of Upton (d. by 1464) & Jane Corbet.

I agree.

[snip]

> Also, does John's mention of "my uncle Henry Cressett" mean that Henry
> Cresset of Holgate survive for at least three years after writing his
> will above?  Or was there another Henry Cresset?

Good point, I'm not sure about that, but don't know of any other Henry
Cressets living at this time.

[snip]

> 1) Robert Cresset of Upton Cresset, married Christian ----,
> granddaughter of John Stapleton, and had
> 2) Thomas Cresset of Upton Cresset (died by 1464), married Jane
> (married 2ndly, by 1464, John Twynho), daughter of Roger Corbet of
> Moreton Corbet & Elizabeth Hopton (descended from Edward I), and had
> 3) Thomas Cresset of Upton Cresset (born by 1464; will written 26 Aug.
> 1520), married (?) 1) Elizabeth Cornewall; married (?) 2) Eleanor
> (married 2ndly, 1522, Sir John Lingen), daughter & heiress of Thomas
> Milewater of Stoke Edith, Herefordshire, and had
> 4) Richard Cresset of Upton Cresset (went lunatic by Jan. 1546),
> married after Aug. 1520, Jane, daughter of Richard Wrottesley &
> Dorothy Dudley (descended from Edward III), and had
> 5) Robert Cresset of Upton Cresset (born by 1524; died by 1561),
> married Katherine, daughter of William Charlton of Apley, and had
> 6) John Cresset of Upton Cresset (will written Jan. 1565), married
> Katherine, daughter of John Harley of Brampton

As mentioned above I believe that the Thomas Cresset who married
Elizabeth Cornewall was a younger son of the Thomas Cresset who
married Eleanor (Milewater?). I would also like to see firm evidence
that Eleanor was indeed a Milewater.

> There is a good possibility, given the chronology and the original
> documents that William has researched & shared, that Cecily Cresset
> (d. 1581), wife of William Arnold; Henry Cresset of Holgate (will
> written Jan. 1562); Margaret Cresset, wife of Thomas Moore; Frances
> Cresset, wife of Robert Smith; and possibly other children assigned by
> the 1623 Cresset pedigree to Richard Cresset & Jane Wrottesley
> (Generation #4 above), are in actuality children of Thomas Cresset
> (Generation #3 above). This would remove Edward III as their ancestor,
> though they would retain the Edward I descent brought to the Cressets
> by the marriage with Jane Corbet.

William Acton not Arnold. I don't agree with this conclusion. It is
clear that Richard Cresset's son Robert was granted custody of his
lunatic father in 1546, and the wills of Henry Cresset and John
Cresset both agree that Cecily was a sister of Robert. I think it is
more natural to assume that she was married to William Acton at a very
young age. At the time of her death she still had 10 living children,
so she must have begun breeding at a young age. Since Sir John Acton
(1736-1811) married his own neice when she was 13 and he was 64, it
wouldn't be out of character for my family.

> Cheers, -------Brad

Thanks Brad, look forward to your reply.

Best,

William Acton

[willac...@yahoo.co.uk]

On Wednesday, 2 January 2013 22:27:05 UTC, Douglas Richardson wrote:
> Brad ~

[snip]

> The seeming chronological problem you have noted can be explained by
>
> several other possibilities, none of which you have considered:
>
>
>
> 1. That Cecily Cressett was the daughter of Richard Cressett, Esq.,
>
> but not by his wife, Joan (or Jane) Wrottesley.

Possible.

> 2. That Cecily Cressett was a second wife of William Acton, Esq., and
>
> that she was not the mother of his son, Robert Acton.

I doubt this. The will of Cicely Acton, Gentlewoman, Widow of Morville, Shropshire, written on 1 Sep 1575 and proven on 27 Jan 1581 is available from the National Archives:

http://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/SearchUI/Details?uri=D964684

Here is my transcription of it:

[Page 1]

“In the name of god amen. The firste daie of September in the yeare of oure
lorde god 1575 and in the eigte [18th] yeare of the raigne of our moste dreade soveraigne Lady Elizabethe by the grace of god of englande ffrannce and Irelande queene defender of the faith etc. I Cicely Acton of Alndenham within the parishe of Morvelde in the countie of Salop and dioces of hereforde gentlewomanne widowe, beinge sicke in bodye, but of whole minde and good remembrance (lawde and praise to allmightie god) make my testamente conteyninge herein my laste will in manner and forme followinge. ffirst I bequeathe my soule to allmightie god, of whome I truste to be saved by the merits and passion of oure Savioure Christe, and my Bodye to be buried in the channcell at Morveld, as nere to the bodye of my late husbande as maie be thought conveniente. Item I bequeathe to the mother churche of hereforde iiij Item I
bequeathe to the parishe churche of Morveld sixe shillinges Eighte pence. Item I bequeathe to Robert Acton my eldeste sonne tenne shillinges in goulde. Item I bequeathe to Richarde Acton my sonne tenne shillinges in goulde. Item I bequeathe to Thomas Acton my sonne sixe poundes thirtene shillinges fouer pence. Item I bequeathe to Rowlande Acton my sonne five poundes thirtene shillings fouer pence. Item I bequeathe to John Acton my sonne fortie shillinge
Item I bequeathe to ffrannces Acton my sonne sixe poundes thirtene shillinges fouer pence. Item I bequeathe to Brigitt Acton my daughter in lawe a spruse coffer. Item I bequeathe to Dorothie Jones my daughter an angell in goulde. Item I bequeathe to my daughter Marye twentie poundes. Item I bequeathe to my daughter Agnes

[Page 2]

twentie poundes. Item I bequeathe to my daughter Elizabethe twentie poundes, requiring and willing theise saide portions to be paide to eache of my three daughters at the daie of theire marriage so that thie take thereunto thassente consente and devise of the within named executors and overseers or at the leaste the consente of those of theme. Item I bequeathe to my daughter Jane Oseleye my beste gowne, my best kirtle, and my beste peticote. Item I bequeathe to Francise Billingsley my daughter tenne shillinges in golde. Item I bequeathe to Thomas Oseleye my sonne in lawe oney use of bullocke Ite[m] I further bequeathe to Frances Acton my youngest sonne all my maynes plowes cheynes and all other things belonginge to my teame Item I will that if the saide Rowland, John, Thomas, Francis, Marie, Agnes or Elizabeth or any of theme doe dye before theie have receaved theire saide sommes of moneye then I will that the portion or portions of him or her or anye of theme so deceassinge shal be indifferentlie divided amonge the survivers of my saide laste named sonnes and daughters. Item I bequeathe to John __[Thorgronemy?] my old servannte twentie shillinges. Item I bequeathe to Thomas Adams my sevante twentie shillings. Item I bequeathe to my servant John Symons one sheepe. Ite[m] I bequeathe to my svannte William Adams one sheepe. Item I give to Morriche my servant boye one sheepe. Ite[m] I give to Marie wheelewright my servant maide one sheepe. Item I bequeath to Elizabeth whelewright my svante maide one sheepe. Item the residewe of my gooddes movable and unmovable after my debtes paide my funeral discharged
and theise my legacies in this my presente will and testament conteyned fulfilled I whole give and bequeathe to Thomas Acton and Frances Acton my sonne whome I make mine executors and I ordaine and appointe Richard Acton my
sonne and Thomas Oseleye my sonne in lawe myne observers of this my will and testament. Lastlie I will that if the saide Thomas or Francis my sonnes whom I have ordeyned myne executors or either of theme doe not in all pointes
accomplishe performe and fulfil this my laste will and testament, then I will that he or their not fullfullinge thee saide will shall lose the benefitte of this and goe without his or theire parte of the benefitt of this my will and
testament, And th other of theme to have the execution of the whole will. And if bothe my executors doe not neither of theme performe the same will in all pointes, then I will theie shall lose the benefitte of this my will. And also bee discharged and lose the name of the executorshippe. And I then ordeyne Richarde Acton my sonne, and Thomas Oseleye my sonne in lawe mine executors to take the whole charge of the execucion of the same. In witnes whereof I have putto my marke and seale in the presence of the persones whose names are hereunder writtenne. William Harpeclork Williy Farmer. Richard Oseleye, and John Morgrome withe other more./”

> 3. That William Acton had two sons named Robert Acton, one by an
>
> earlier wife and one by Cecily Cressett.

Given the above will, I doubt this is the case.

> 4. That the age of Robert Acton indicated by his father's IPM is
>
> either an error, or has been misread.
>
>
>
> 5. That the will of Cecily Cressett's grandfather, Thomas Cressett,
>
> has been misdated or mistranscribed. It is this will that purportedly
>
> indicates Cecily Cressett's parents, Richard and Joan, were only
>
> contracted to marry in August 1520.
>
>
>
> It seems that items #4 and #5 are the most germane to the issue, and
>
> these should be checked first.

I agree. I have a copy of William Acton's IPM, but it is a poor quality scan and I can't find the relevent part of it. If anyone want's to take a look please do email me.

> Best always, Douglas Richardson, Salt Lake City, Utah

Thanks Douglas, and thanks very much to Brad for posting my earlier replies. I hope I have managed to get this message through without his help!


Best,

William Acton

[John Higgins]

On Jan 1, 11:03 pm, Brad Verity <royaldesc...@hotmail.com> wrote:
>
> But the chronology doesn't match up.  Richard Cresset & Jane
> Wrottesley had not yet married by August 1520, per Douglas's reading
> of Thomas Cresset's will. Their son and heir apparent Robert Cresset
> was granted custody of his lunatic father by King Henry VIII on 28
> Jan. 1545/6, so had to have been of age by then and born by 1524, as
> Douglas states in his latest edition of Plantagenet Ancestry (p.

> 551):http://books.google.ca/books?id=kjme027UeagC&pg=RA1-PA551&dq=Jane+Wro...

>
> Even if Cecily Cresset was Richard and Jane's firstborn child, the
> earliest she could have been born is 1521. Yet her eldest son Robert
> Acton was born 1533/34. Either Cecily Cresset was not the daughter of
> Jane Wrottesley, or the age of her son Robert Acton was returned
> incorrectly in 1567.
>
> It should be noted that the only source that makes Cecily a daughter
> of Jane Wrottesley is the Cresset pedigree from the 1623 Visitation,
> taken 100 years after Jane's marriage to Richard Cresset. This
> pedigree is not without several errors, chief of which is making
> Richard Cresset the son of Thomas Cresset & Jane Corbet, when he was
> actually their grandson, son of Thomas Cresset & Eleanor Milewater, as

> Brice Clagett pointed out in a newsgroup post in 2004:http://groups.google.com/group/soc.genealogy.medieval/msg/9aae96cafbb...
> I.
>
> Cheers,                                   -------Brad

Brad:

I don't think that the 1520 will of Thomas Cresset can necessarily be
read to say that his son and heir Richard was not yet married to Jane
Wrottesley - nor do I think that DR's post of 2001 explicitly reads
the will that way. The article that Douglas cites (and that I've now
sent you, referenced hereafter as TSANHS) says that the will "mentions
the said Edward Burton and Richard Lane late of Hyde, deceased, as
standing bounden to Richard Wrottesley, esq., in 300 marks for the
performance of covenants of marriage between" Richard Cresset and Jane
Wrottesley.

The Richard Lane mentioned here d. 28 Jan 1516/7 [see post of David
Topping 22 Mar 2010 here: http://archiver.rootsweb.ancestry.com/th/read/gen-medieval/2010-03/1269288560]
at which point Edward Burton was still living. This suggests that the
agreement for the Cresset/Wrottesley marriage was no later than 1516,
but doesn't indicate when the marriage actually occurred. I don't
think the mention of the covenants in the 1520 will necessarily means
that the marriage hadn't yet taken place, but perhaps only that the
covenants had not yet been satisfied. If so, and if the marriage
actually took place sometime between 1516 and 1520, this gives you a
couple of years more to help your chronological problem.

A major problem with the Cresset pedigree is the discrepancy noted by
Brice Clagett in 2004: that two Thomas Cressets have been consolidated
into one, the Thomas who died before 1464 and the Thomas whose will
was in 1520. This creates lots of problems, particularly in the
assignment of daughters to specific fathers. One specific case of
this is in regard to Edward Burton and Richard Lane mentioned above.
Thomas Burton in 1520 calls Edward Burton his "brother" [in-law], as
Edward was the 2nd husband of Joyce Cresset, and Richard Lane was the
son of Joyce by her 1st husband Ralph Lane. Most versions of the
Cresset pedigree (including apparently the new editions of the
Richardson books) have stated that Joyce was the sister of the Thomas
Cresset who married Jane Corbet, but the will seems to make it clear
that this is wrong and that she was instead their daughter.

The 1623 Visitation pedigree is clearly confused, and a close reading
of Robert Morris's work (as abstracted by the FHL) reveals other
problems - including duplication of some daughters. I'm inclined to
go with the TSANHS article for at least the later generations of the
family, but even that source doesn't adequately address the "two
Thomases" problem. What a mess...

[Brad Verity]

Dear Douglas, William & John,

I appreciate your responses and the further information on the
Cressets and Actons that you have shared. The article 'Holgate and
the Cressets' by The Rev. R.C. Purton published in 'Transactions of
the Shropshire Archaeological & Natural History Society', 4th Series,
Volume 6 (1916-17) appears to have been the most recent in-depth
account of the Cresset family, and that was almost 100 years ago. The
fact that you three gentlemen, plus the late Brice Clagett, have done
some research into the family since, is very helpful to me and anyone
else down the line looking into this particular family and the lines
of descent that spring from them.

I'm going to intersperse my comments into each of your posts.

On Jan 2, 2:27 pm, Douglas Richardson <royalances...@msn.com> wrote:

> Jane Cressett, wife of William Acton, Esq., appears to have been the
> daughter of Richard Cressett, Esq., of Upton Cressett, Shropshire
> alright.  She is included as a daughter of Richard Cressett in the
> pedigree of the Cressett family in the 1623 Visitation of Shropshire.

Douglas, I understand that you meant Cecily, not 'Jane', Cresset
above. And though I agree that, given the fact that she lived until
the year 1581, it makes it likelier that Cecily was a daughter of
Richard Cresset, rather than his father Thomas, I don't think the 1623
Visitation pedigree can be considered an authoritative source to come
to that conclusion. It just has too many errors. It is a pointer,
but its information was gathered 100 years after the Cresset/
Wrottesley marriage. I think primary documents need to given more
weight than it. And William posted the National Archives document,
which is kind of a proof of age for William Acton of Aldenham (d.
1567), taken when he was 26 years old, where William himself
testifies: "that Roger Knight non sold the wardship of hym to Thoms

Cressett but he saith that __ __ did commande the said deponent to be
ordred by Raif Pocwoode wiche Raiff sold the wardship to Henreus

Ludlowe to mary wt the daughter of this Cresset'.

Now it could be that when William said "the daughter" of "this
Cresset" [Thomas, not Richard, Cresset] that he actually meant
granddaughter. It could also be that Thomas originally intended for
William to marry a daughter of his, but subsequently a granddaughter
was given his hand instead. Otherwise, it's very strong evidence from
William Acton himself that his wife was the daughter of Thomas
Cresset.

> She is duly named as aunt in the 1562 will of her nephew, Henry
> Cressett, Gent.

Actually the 1562 will of Henry Cresset mentions the son of his sister
Acton. It is the 1565 will of John Cresset of Upton Cresset that
mentions an aunt Cecily Acton. Although it's very clear that this John
Cresset was the son of Robert Cresset, the son of Richard Cresset, it
is not clear who Cecily's father was from John's statement that she
was his aunt. For she would be his aunt as the sister of his father
Robert Cresset, or as the sister of his grandfather Richard Cresset.

We do know she was the sister of Henry Cresset, but there has been
nothing outside of the faulty 1623 pedigree that tells us he was the
son of Richard Cresset and Jane Wrottesley. He could have been a
younger brother, as opposed to younger son, of Richard. Once Richard
went mad in 1545/46, his son Robert appears to have taken control of
the family. By the time Henry made his will in 1562, Robert was dead
and Henry was the eldest surviving male in the family, probably
advising young John Cresset, Robert's son and heir. Henry could have
played this advisory role as an uncle or as a great uncle.

If we can somehow find proof that this Henry Cresset of Holgate Castle
was the son, and not the brother, of Richard Cresset, that would
necessarily mean that Cecily Cresset Acton, plus Margaret Cresset
Moore and Frances Cresset Smith, were daughters of Richard.

> She is also assigned a daughter of Richard Cressett
> by the competent historian, Joseph Morris, in his work, Genealogy of
> Shropshire.
>
> Fortunately Morris' work has recently been abstracted and is found in
> the LDS database, Wales. Welsh Medieval Database Primarily of Nobility
> and Gentry, available at the following weblink:
>

>    http://histfam.familysearch.org/getperson.php?personID=I148053&tree=W...

Thank you for this link. Joseph Morris's brother George Morris also
left an 8-volume manuscript series 'Genealogy of Shropshire', which
the FHL has filmed. Brice Clagett cites Vol. 4 of his work, page 450,
as the source for his assertion that Jane Corbet Cresset was married
2ndly, by 1464, to John Twynho. Brice cites the same Vol. 4, but pages
315 and 321, as one of his sources for Thomas Cresset the younger and
his marriage to Eleanor Milewater.

But the Cresset family tree in the Welsh Medieval database, apparently
constructed from the 10-volume manuscripts of Joseph Morris, do not
have the Thomas Cresset/Eleanor Milewater generation. Instead they
have Richard Cresset (the one who married Jane Wrottesley and went
lunatic) as the son of Thomas Cresset & Jane Corbet.

What happened? Did the late, much-missed Brice Clagett mis-read the
Morris manuscript? Are there two separate manuscript series called
'Genealogy of Shropshire', one 10-volume one by Joseph Morris and
another 8-volume one by George Morris? If so, why would George Morris
and his brother Joseph come to different conclusions about the Cresset
family?

> The seeming chronological problem you have noted can be explained by
> several other possibilities, none of which you have considered:
>
> 1. That Cecily Cressett was the daughter of Richard Cressett, Esq.,
> but not by his wife, Joan (or Jane) Wrottesley.

I did consider this one. It seems odd for Thomas Cresset to arrange a
marriage with the Wrottesleys for his son and heir, if it was
Richard's second marriage and he was a grown man with children.
Richard should be capable of doing so himself.

> 2. That Cecily Cressett was a second wife of William Acton, Esq., and
> that she was not the mother of his son, Robert Acton.

This goes against the deposition that William Acton made when he was
26 years old, where he says that his Cresset marriage was arranged
when he was still in wardship.

> 3. That William Acton had two sons named Robert Acton, one by an
> earlier wife and one by Cecily Cressett.

Similar argument to #2 above, and not likely for the same reason.

> 4. That the age of Robert Acton indicated by his father's IPM is
> either an error, or has been misread.

This would be the simplest solution. I notice that the Welsh Medieval
Database has Cecily Cresset and William Acton married in 1542, with
Joseph Morris's manuscript series (Volume 1, p. 22) as the source. If
the HOP bio of William Acton misread his 1567 IPM and his son & heir
Robert was actually aged 23 not 33, so born 1543/44, not 1533/34, the
chronology works very nicely for Cecily Cresset to be the daughter of
a couple married in 1520.

> 5. That the will of Cecily Cressett's grandfather, Thomas Cressett,
> has been misdated or mistranscribed.  It is this will that purportedly
> indicates Cecily Cressett's parents, Richard and Joan, were only
> contracted to marry in August 1520.

It is the 1916-17 'Holgate and the Cressets' article which is the
source for Thomas Cresset's will. Here is the relevant passage from
the article: "His [Thomas Cresset] will is dated Aug. 20th 12 Hen.
VIII...mentions the said Edward Burton [his brother-in-law], and

Richard Lane late of Hyde, deceased, as standing bounden to Richard

Wrottesley, Esq., in 300 marks for the performance of covenants of
marriage between his son and heir apparent Richard Cresset and Jane
daughter of the said Wrottesley." The source for this will is
"Blakeway Bodl. MSS."

Per 'History of the Family of Wrottesley of Wrottesley' by George
Wrottesley (1903), "His [Richard Wrottesley] will is dated
1518...Similar bequests in the same unique orthography were made to
his son Jamys Lewsun (James Leveson), and to his sons Thomas, Harry,
Walter and John, and to his 'doyrthtur' Anne, his daughter Elizabeth,
his daughter Jane, his daughter Ysabell, lyttull John Wrottysley (his
grandson), to whom he bequeathed 'an ambling foyll,' his daughter
Margret, his daughter Elnar, his son Thomas Lewsun...":
http://archive.org/stream/historyoffamilyo00wrot#page/n263/mode/2up

There is no mention of Richard Cresset in Richard Wrottesley's will,
and the paraphrasing makes it uncertain if Jane was married or not at
the time. The only daughter bequeathed money for a marriage portion is
Margaret, but as Jane's marriage was likely already arranged by 1518,
it was already taken care of.

On Jan 2, 4:05 pm, willacton2...@yahoo.co.uk wrote:
[snip]

> Agreed, but I am sure that Richard must have been John's younger
> brother (and eventual heir). The will of John Cresset of Upton (made 1
> Jan 1565) mentions "my son and heir Thomas Cresset, under 21 years".
> This Thomas had apparently died by 10 May 1571, as his mother
> Katherine (Charlton) was forced to vacate Upton Cressett, which was
> awarded to Richard Cressett:
>

> http://search.shropshirehistory.org.uk/collections/getrecord/CCA_X546...

Thank you for the link, and I agree with you that Richard Cresset was
John's younger brother. The Rev. Purton, in his 1916-17 article on the
Cressets also makes Richard Cresset (d. 1601) the younger brother of
John Cresset (d. 1565). Richard married Jane, daughter of John Hopton
of Rockhill, and had a daughter Mary Cresset, wife of Edward
Blennerhasset of Blunham, Beds.

It's odd and a bit alarming that Richard, his wife, their daughter
Mary & her husband were all left off of the 1623 Cresset Visitation
pedigree.

> George Morris and his son Joseph Morris did a lot of work on the
> genealogy of the gentry of Shropshire. I haven't seen an copy of the
> original Cresset pedigree that Joseph Morris compiled, but it is cited
> as the source of the family tree used at histfam.familysearch:
>

> http://histfam.familysearch.org/getperson.php?personID=I147990&tree=W...

>
> The above states that Richard Cresset was Sheriff of Shropshire in
> 1584, was buried at Upton Cresset on 20 November 1601, and devised his
> estates to his cousin Edward, son of Francis Cressett of Holgate. I
> think Francis was in fact of Cotes and Stanton Lacy, but will have to
> check my sources. These details would be worth pursuing further.

This is also covered by Purton in his 1916-17 article. I can send it
to you if you'd like - it's unavailable online.

> > Probably. Could it also be read as 'the [unnamed] son of my sister
> > Frances Acton'?
>
> It could, though it wouldn't fit with any of the other sources I have
> gathered thus far.

Now that I see from the will of Henry Cresset when he refers to "my
cousin Fraunces Cressett" that this is a male cousin, Francis Cresset
of Cotes (d. 1605), I think you're absolutely correct that Henry was
referring to his sister's son, Francis Acton.

> According to my notes Frances married four times: first to Roger
> Smith, second to John Hopton, third to Francis Hord, and fourth to
> William Clench. I can't find my sources for these marriages.

Purton says Frances Cresset's four husbands were: 1) Roger Smith of
Morville; 2) John Hopton of Rockhill; 3) Francis Hord; 4) William
Clench of Bridgnorth.

Jane Hopton, wife of Richard Cresset of Upton Cresset (d. 1601) would
necessarily be the daughter of John Hopton of Rockhill by a wife other
than Frances Cresset.

> As noted elsewhere, the 1623 pedigree skips a generation, and exludes
> Thomas Cresset and Jane Corbet's son Thomas, who married a woman named
> Eleanor (though I believe her identification as the daughter and
> heiress of Thomas Milewater remains unclear).

13 May 1473, Westminster. "Grant during minority to John Deveroux,
knight, of the custody of all lordships, manors, lands, services and
other possessions with knights' fees and advowsons late of Thomas
Milewater of the county of Hereford, esquire, tenant in chief by
knight service, and in the king's hands by reason of the minority of
Eleanor his daughter and heiress, and the custody and marriage of the
latter without disparagement. By p.s." [CPR 1467-1477: 390.]:
http://www.archive.org/stream/calendarpatentr05blacgoog#page/n400/mode/2up

The above is one of the 3 sources Brice Clagett cited in 2004 for
Eleanor Milewater, wife of 1) Thomas Cresset, 2) Sir John Lingen. The
other 2 sources - George Morris, 'Shropshire Genealogies' 4: 315, 321,
and 'Register of Bishop Charles Bothe of Hereford', Canterbury & York
Soc. 28: 349 - are unavailable online.

> I think it is agreed
> that Thomas Cresset and Eleanor (Milewater?) were the parents of
> Richard Cresset, but as I understand it they also had a younger son
> named Thomas who married Elizabeth Cornwall.

Thank you for this. I'm especially interested in Elizabeth Cornewall
as she is also descended from Edward I.

> I have seen some pedigrees which suggest that 7) Jane's husband Thomas
> Witton was in fact a Mytton. But 'Pedigrees of the Families in the
> County of Kent', p. 387, by William Berry (1830) confirms that Jane
> Cresset's husband was Thomas Whitton, of Lamberherst, Kent, second son
> of Owen Whitton, of Woodstock Park, Oxfordshire.

Very good information - thank you.

> As mentioned above I believe that the Thomas Cresset who married
> Elizabeth Cornewall was a younger son of the Thomas Cresset who
> married Eleanor (Milewater?). I would also like to see firm evidence
> that Eleanor was indeed a Milewater.

Well we have the evidence that an Eleanor Milewater existed in 1473.
The evidence that she married Thomas Cresset (d. 1520) is apparently
to be found in George Morris's Volume 4.

> William Acton not Arnold.

Yes!

> I don't agree with this conclusion. It is

> clear that Richard Cresset's son Robert was granted custody of his
> lunatic father in 1546,

Yes, so at least age 21 then, born by 1524/25.

> and the wills of Henry Cresset and John
> Cresset both agree that Cecily was a sister of Robert.

Actually, William, the 1562 will of Henry Cresset shows that he had a
sister Acton, and the 1565 will of John Cresset shows that he had an
aunt Cecily Acton. But Cecily & Henry could've been John's great-aunt
& great-uncle and Cecily still referred to as an "aunt". And remember,
per William Acton of Aldenham's own testimony when he was aged 26, he
was arranged to marry a daughter of Thomas, not of Richard, Cresset.

> I think it is
> more natural to assume that she was married to William Acton at a very
> young age. At the time of her death she still had 10 living children,
> so she must have begun breeding at a young age. Since Sir John Acton
> (1736-1811) married his own neice when she was 13 and he was 64, it
> wouldn't be out of character for my family.

We don't know how old Eleanor Milewater was in 1473, except that she
was not yet age 16. Let's say she was age 10, so born about 1463. She
would then turn age 40 about 1503. If Cecily Cresset Acton was about
age 80 at her death in 1581, she was born in 1501. As chronologically
possible for her to have been a daughter of Thomas Cresset & Eleanor
Milewater, as it is for her to have been a daughter of Richard Cresset
& Jane Wrottesley if she were born right after their marriage and/or
her son Robert was actually younger than age 33 in 1567.

[snip]

> I doubt this. The will of Cicely Acton, Gentlewoman, Widow of Morville, Shropshire, written on 1 Sep 1575 and proven on 27 Jan 1581 is available from the National Archives:
>
> http://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/SearchUI/Details?uri=D964684
>
> Here is my transcription of it:

[snip]

Many thanks for posting this. It's nice to have the confirmation that
Cecily was the mother of Robert Acton of Aldenham, William's son and
heir in 1567.

> I agree. I have a copy of William Acton's IPM, but it is a poor quality scan and I can't find the relevent part of it. If anyone want's to take a look please do email me.

I'm not very good at making out the handwritten script in these
original National Archives document, but as the age of Robert Acton in
1567 is such a key point, if you can email it to me, William, I'll see
if I can make anything out.

> Thanks Douglas, and thanks very much to Brad for posting my earlier replies. I hope I have managed to get this message through without his help!

Your response to Douglas did make it through to the newsgroup. And
thank you, William, for all of your valuable contributions to this
topic!

On Jan 2, 9:41 pm, John Higgins <jhiggins...@yahoo.com> wrote:
> I don't think that the 1520 will of Thomas Cresset can necessarily be
> read to say that his son and heir Richard was not yet married to Jane
> Wrottesley - nor do I think that DR's post of 2001 explicitly reads
> the will that way.

Douglas said in his 2001 post: "In her father-in-law, Thomas
Cressett's will dated 26 August 12 Henry VIII, he specifically
stipulates that his son and heir apparent, Richard Cressett, is to
marry Joan daughter of Richard Wrottesley, Esquire."

That sounded to me like the marriage hadn't yet taken place. But now
having read Purton's article and his paraphrasing of Cresset's 1520
will, I agree that the marriage could've already taken place.

> The article that Douglas cites (and that I've now
> sent you, referenced hereafter as TSANHS) says that the will "mentions
> the said Edward Burton and Richard Lane late of Hyde, deceased, as
> standing bounden to Richard Wrottesley, esq., in 300 marks for the
> performance of covenants of marriage between" Richard Cresset and Jane
> Wrottesley.

Thank you very much, John, for sending me the article.

> The Richard Lane mentioned here d. 28 Jan 1516/7 [see post of David

> Topping 22 Mar 2010 here:http://archiver.rootsweb.ancestry.com/th/read/gen-medieval/2010-03/12...]

> at which point Edward Burton was still living.  This suggests that the
> agreement for the Cresset/Wrottesley marriage was no later than 1516,
> but doesn't indicate when the marriage actually occurred.

Agreed.

> I don't
> think the mention of the covenants in the 1520 will necessarily means
> that the marriage hadn't yet taken place, but perhaps only that the
> covenants had not yet been satisfied.

Agreed.

> If so, and if the marriage
> actually took place sometime between 1516 and 1520, this gives you a
> couple of years more to help your chronological problem.

Yes. If Cecily was their first child and born in 1517, and her eldest
son Robert was indeed age 33 in 1567, then Cecily would've been age 16
or 17 at his birth. Certainly plausible.

> A major problem with the Cresset pedigree is the discrepancy noted by
> Brice Clagett in 2004: that two Thomas Cressets have been consolidated
> into one, the Thomas who died before 1464 and the Thomas whose will
> was in 1520.

But as Brice's main source for the two Thomas Cressets appears to have
been the 19th-century manuscript series of George Morris, perhaps it
is a false assumption?

> This creates lots of problems, particularly in the
> assignment of daughters to specific fathers.  One specific case of
> this is in regard to Edward Burton and Richard Lane mentioned above.
> Thomas Burton in 1520 calls Edward Burton his "brother" [in-law], as

I think you meant to say "Thomas Cresset [not Burton] in 1520..."

> Edward was the 2nd husband of Joyce Cresset, and Richard Lane was the
> son of Joyce by her 1st husband Ralph Lane.  Most versions of the
> Cresset pedigree (including apparently the new editions of the
> Richardson books) have stated that Joyce was the sister of the Thomas
> Cresset who married Jane Corbet, but the will seems to make it clear
> that this is wrong and that she was instead their daughter.

Yes, if there were indeed two Thomas Cressets, father and son, then
Joyce was definitely daughter of the senior one. There is also
Humphrey Onslow of Onslow, sheriff of Shropshire 1566, who is said in
the 1623 Onslow Visitation pedigree to have married "filiam Tho.
Cresset de Upton Cresset", as well as "Margareta fil. Rici Wrotesley
de com. Staff.", and "Elizabetha cilia Ellisij Kiffin vxor 3":
http://archive.org/stream/TheVisitationOfShropshireV.29/VisitationshrophshireTaken1623_treswellVol.28P2#page/n101/mode/2up

> The 1623 Visitation pedigree is clearly confused,

As Purton said in his 1916-17 article, "But the pedigree is in a
chaotic condition".

> and a close reading
> of Robert Morris's work (as abstracted by the FHL)

Do you mean Joseph Morris? Or his brother George? Just getting those
two straight is confusing enough!

> reveals other
> problems - including duplication of some daughters.  I'm inclined to
> go with the TSANHS article for at least the later generations of the
> family, but even that source doesn't adequately address the "two
> Thomases" problem.  What a mess...

Yes, a mess indeed. But you're right, the Purton article does help a
lot.

Thanks & Cheers, ----Brad

[Douglas Richardson]

On Jan 2, 10:41 pm, John Higgins <jhiggins...@yahoo.com> wrote:
< I don't think that the 1520 will of Thomas Cresset can necessarily
be
< read to say that his son and heir Richard was not yet married to
Jane
< Wrottesley - nor do I think that DR's post of 2001 explicitly reads
< the will that way.  The article that Douglas cites (and that I've
now
< sent you, referenced hereafter as TSANHS) says that the will
"mentions
< the said Edward Burton and Richard Lane late of Hyde, deceased, as
< standing bounden to Richard Wrottesley, esq., in 300 marks for the
< performance of covenants of marriage between" Richard Cresset and
Jane
< Wrottesley.
<
< The Richard Lane mentioned here d. 28 Jan 1516/7 [see post of David
< Topping 22 Mar 2010 here:http://archiver.rootsweb.ancestry.com/th/

read/gen-medieval/2010-03/12...]

< at which point Edward Burton was still living.  This suggests that
the
< agreement for the Cresset/Wrottesley marriage was no later than
1516,
< but doesn't indicate when the marriage actually occurred.  I don't
< think the mention of the covenants in the 1520 will necessarily
means
< that the marriage hadn't yet taken place, but perhaps only that the
< covenants had not yet been satisfied.  If so, and if the marriage
< actually took place sometime between 1516 and 1520, this gives you a
< couple of years more to help your chronological problem.

I hadn't seen the abstract of the 1520 will of Thomas Cressett in
recent time, but due to the chronology problem Brad raised, I
suspected that the impression I previously had that Richard Cressett
and Joan Wrottesley were still unmarried in 1520 was not correct.

If John's comments above are accurate, then the marriage settlement of
Richard and Joan clearly took place sometime before 28 January
1516/17. We know from Thomas Cressett's will that the covenants of
that settlement still had not been satisfied as late as 1520. That
would be a better interpretation of the will of Thomas Cressett.

It may well be that Richard Cressett and Joan Wrottesley were married
some years before the date of his father's will. The delay in
observing the terms of their marriage settlement as late as 1520 was
probably caused by property being held for life by Richard's father,
Thomas Cressett, which property was supposed to go to Richard and Joan
following Thomas' death. If the property was held by feoffees, then
it would explain why Thomas Cressett directed that his feoffees/
executors observe the terms of the marriage settlement which could
only be fulfilled on his death. Presumably the desired transfer of
property took place on Thomas Cressett's death as directed.

In other words, the seeming chronological problem with Cecily
(Cressett) Acton now vanishes. The 1623 Visitation of Shropshire
certainly has many problems, but it appears that the visitation
correctly assigned Cecily (Cressett) Acton to the right set of
parents. The visitation may be viewed at the following weblink:

http://books.google.com/books?id=ESoEAAAAIAAJ&pg=PA157

One final matter: The "extra" alleged Thomas Cressett/Eleanor
Milewater generation advanced by Mr. Clagett is nonexistent and
erroneous.

[Wjhonson]

Subj: Re: Identity of Bridget wife of Captain Thomas Wilford of Virginia
Date: 3/27/2011 6:08:14 PM Pacific Daylight Time
From: willac...@yahoo.co.uk <mailto:willac...@yahoo.co.uk>
To: <mailto:WJho...@aol.com>WJho...@aol.com <mailto:WJho...@aol.com>

I would suggest that William was born around 1508 on the basis that William gives his age as "around xxvj" in National Archives document REQ 2/1/126 ('Depositions as to the parentage and family of William Acton, son of Thomas Acton, servant to Lord Shrewsbury'). The above depositions must have taken place soon after the death of William's father Thomas in 1534. There were a large number of court cases involving William around this time, and various family members had a go at disinheriting him. Many thanks, William Acton

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[John Higgins]

On Jan 3, 6:03 am, Douglas Richardson <royalances...@msn.com> wrote:

>
> One final matter: The "extra" alleged Thomas Cressett/Eleanor
> Milewater generation advanced by Mr. Clagett is nonexistent and
> erroneous.
>
> Best always, Douglas Richardson, Salt Lake City, Utah

Oh? Please explain..... The "extra" Thomas and his wife Elinor
appear in at least the index of the new edition of Plantagenet
Ancestry, in a manner that suggests they're part of the line of
descent from Robert Cresset to Richard Cresset. (The actual page
showing them is excluded from preview on Google Books - by you, or by
Google?)

[Wjhonson]

Robert was living in 1560
Richard was an adult by 1576, and Thomas was dead probably never taking majority

This all pushes Robert birth back *before* 1519


Recital: Lease of 3 July 5 Eliz. [1563] by Jn Cressett, esq, decd., to Rd Garbett, Parnell his wife, now decd. and Thos Garbett their son, party, of messuages in Meadowley now in occ. of Rd Garbett, to Rd Garbett for life, remainder to Parnell for life, remainder to Thos Garbett for life.
Recital: Lease of 21 Sept. 6 Jas I [1608] by Edw.Cressett esq. and Eliz. his wife to Jn Hamond and Rd Symonds of the messuages and lands as fully as they were let to Rd Garbett etc. by Jn Cressett (except as in the last recited lease was excepted), to hold from the death of the survivor of Rd and Thos Garbett for 36 years.
Recital: Lease of 13 March 3 Eliz. [1560] by Robt Cressett late of Upton Cressett, esq., decd., to Jn Marckes of Round Moor decd., Alice his wife and the sd Jn Marckes, their son, of the messuage called Rownd Moore in which Jn Marckes and Wm Shipman live in p. Upton Cressett for 3 lives and that of the longest liver.
Recital: Lease of 22 Oct. 6 Jas I [1608] by Edw. Cressett, party, and Eliz. his wife, to Wm Shipman, party, of the messuage called the Rownd Moor let by Robt Cressett to Jn Marckes, etc., from the death of Jn Marckes, party, for 99 years if Wm Shipman, Frances his wife and Henry their son lived as long.
Recital: Lease of 10 Oct. 18 Eliz. [1576] by Rd Cressett late of Upton Cressett, to Jn Shipman, decd., Katherin his wife (now wife of Rog. Bailies) and Rd Shipman, decd., son of Jn and Kath., of the messuage in which Jn Shipman decd. lately lived in p. of Upton Cressett, now or late in occ. of Rog. Bailies and Kath. his wife, and lands, namely: the leasow adjoining the messuage (8a), leasow called Trevesse parke near adjoining the park of Upton Cressett on the W. side of the park (50a), Treversse Meadow adjoining the sd pasture (5a), a pasture (7a) near adjoining to the sd meadow, called the Quarrell, in Upton Cressett, now or late in occ. of Rog. Bailies and Kath., to Jn Shipman for life, then to Kath. his wife, and to Rd Shipman decd., for lives and that of the longest liver.

-----Original Message-----
From: Brad Verity <royald...@hotmail.com>
To: gen-medieval <gen-me...@rootsweb.com>

[Wjhonson]

Christian Stapleton was married firstly to
Robert /Cressett/ of Upton Cressett, Shropshire; Sheriff of Shropshire 1468-9
Heir of his father
living 1483; Will proved 1490

by whom this son Thomas Cressett

She married secondly
Robert /Burton/ , Knt 1478
by whom this son Edward /Burton/ of Longner, Shrewsbury
buried 24 Apr 1524 tomb was in St Chad’s, Shrewsbury

So Thomas Cressett and Edward Burton were half-brothers (brothers-by-law)

-----Original Message-----
From: John Higgins <jhigg...@yahoo.com>
To: gen-medieval <gen-me...@rootsweb.com>
Sent: Wed, Jan 2, 2013 9:45 pm
Subject: Re: Jane Wrottesley, Mother of Cecily Cresset?

[David Topping]

Does this really work, Will? See my earlier post:
http://archiver.rootsweb.ancestry.com/th/read/gen-medieval/2010-03/1269247099
David

[Wjhonson]

Both this solution, which has some evidence
and the other, which has some evidence
Need further research as our friend Douglas says frequently.

What isn't true, is that we *know* which of these, or a third, might be the case

[John Higgins]

On Jan 3, 2:03 pm, Wjhonson <wjhon...@aol.com> wrote:
> Both this solution, which has some evidence
> and the other, which has some evidence
> Need further research as our friend Douglas says frequently.
>
> What isn't true, is that we *know* which of these, or a third, might be the case
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> -----Original Message-----

> From: David Topping <davidt...@gmail.com>
> To: gen-medieval <gen-medie...@rootsweb.com>
>
> Cc: gen-medieval <gen-medie...@rootsweb.com>; jhigginsgen <jhiggins...@yahoo.com>

> Sent: Thu, Jan 3, 2013 11:50 am
> Subject: Re: Jane Wrottesley, Mother of Cecily Cresset?
>
> On Thursday, 3 January 2013 18:08:57 UTC, wjhonson  wrote:
> > Christian Stapleton was married firstly to
>
> > Robert /Cressett/ of Upton Cressett, Shropshire; Sheriff of Shropshire 1468-9
>
> > Heir of his father
>
> > living 1483; Will proved 1490
>
> > by whom this son Thomas Cressett
>
> > She married secondly
>
> > Robert /Burton/ , Knt 1478
>
> > by whom this son Edward /Burton/ of Longner, Shrewsbury
>
> > buried 24 Apr 1524 tomb was in St Chad’s, Shrewsbury
>
> > So Thomas Cressett and Edward Burton were half-brothers (brothers-by-law)
>
> > -----Original Message-----
>

> > From: John Higgins <jhiggins...@yahoo.com>
>
> > To: gen-medieval <gen-medie...@rootsweb.com>

> > Topping 22 Mar 2010 here:http://archiver.rootsweb.ancestry.com/th/read/gen-medieval/2010-03/12...]

> > To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to GEN-MEDIEVAL-requ...@rootsweb.com

>
> > with the word 'unsubscribe' without the quotes in the subject and the body of
>
> > the message
>

> Does this really work, Will? See my earlier post:http://archiver.rootsweb.ancestry.com/th/read/gen-medieval/2010-03/12...
> David
>
> -------------------------------
> To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to GEN-MEDIEVAL-requ...@rootsweb.com

> with the word 'unsubscribe' without the quotes in the subject and the body of
> the message

Aside from the problems with this solution mentioned in David
Topping's 2010 post (including chronology and Incest - !!), it gets
even more complicated if Brice Clagett's hypothesis of two Thomas
Cressets is accepted. If so, Edward Burton was both the brother-in-
law and the uncle of the half blood to Thomas Cresset who made his
will in 1520.

If this solution "needs further research", that should have been
stated when the "solution" was first posted here this morning.

[Brad Verity]

On Jan 3, 2:24 pm, John Higgins <jhiggins...@yahoo.com> wrote:

> Aside from the problems with this solution mentioned in David
> Topping's 2010 post (including chronology and Incest - !!), it gets
> even more complicated if Brice Clagett's hypothesis of two Thomas
> Cressets is accepted.  If so, Edward Burton was both the brother-in-
> law and the uncle of the half blood to Thomas Cresset who made his
> will in 1520.
>
> If this solution "needs further research", that should have been
> stated when the "solution" was first posted here this morning.

Dear John, Will, Douglas & David,

I think Douglas and David are correct: Joyce Cresset, married first,
by 1473, Ralph Lane of Bentley & Hyde (born 1443; died 1477); married
second, by 1480, Edward Burton of Longner (died 1524), was the
daughter of Robert Cresset of Upton Cresset (died by 1490) & his wife
Christine ----- (maiden name definitely *not* Stapleton, which was her
mother's maiden name - possibly her maiden name was Coyney).

This means there cannot have been two successive Thomas Cressets, one
married to Joan Corbet & the next married to Eleanor Milewater.

The reason for this is chronology. Elizabeth Hopton (later countess
of Worcester) was age 34 in 1461, so born 1427. I have her married to
her 1st husband Sir Roger Corbet of Moreton Corbet (c.1415-1467) by
1448, but perhaps it was a little earlier. Their elder son and heir
Richard Corbet was born in 1451. Their daughter Jane Corbet could have
been up to 5 years his senior, but no more than that, given their
mother's age. So born 1445 at the earliest.

Jane Corbet would then have married and been having children with
husband Thomas Cresset in the late 1460s, at the earliest. Per his
Proof of Age, taken on 27 May 1497 [CIPM HenVII Vol. 1], Richard Lane
of Bentley was baptized on 25 June 14 Edward IV [1474], with Christine
Cresset as a godparent. There is no way that Joan Corbet, born in
1445 at the earliest, could have a grandson born in 1474.

The Rev. Purton in his 1916-17 article on the Cressets says that
Edward Burton was the brother-in-law of Thomas Cresset who made out
his will in August 1520. We don't know if he is called brother-in-law
in Thomas's will, or if Purton is explaining their relationship
himself (in a footnote, he says, "On this relationship see Blakeway's
'Sheriffs,' p. 165", so the proof of the relationship may be in that
work, which I haven't tracked down).

If the Thomas Cresset who made out his will in 1520 was indeed brother
of Joyce, Edward Burton's wife, then he had to be the son of Richard
Cresset (d. about 1483) & his wife Christine (Coyney?).

This means that the sources which Brice Clagett cited in 2004 for the
two Thomas Cressets, plus Eleanor Milewater, need to be tracked down
and reconciled. Especially the George Booth register, which
apparently has Eleanor as the widow of Thomas Cresset and re-married
to Sir John Lingen. It's of course very possible that Thomas Cresset
(d. 1520) married twice - first to Joan Corbet, and after to Eleanor
Milewater. Purton makes no mention of any wife being mentioned in
Thomas's will. If he did turn out to have two wives we may never have
any certainty as to which one was the mother of his children. He
mentions three children in his will: Anne Cresset, wife of Lawrence
Ludlow; Mary Cresset, wife of John Lawley; and son and heir Richard
Cresset, in a marriage to Joan Wrottesley.

A quick note on the Cresset/Wrottesley marriage: Richard Lane of
Bentley (1474-1517), who, along with his stepfather Edward Burton,
bound himself to make sure that the covenants of the Cresset/
Wrottesley marriage took place, was himself married to Anne Harcourt,
daughter of John Harcourt of Ranton and Margaret Bracy. Her sister
Isabel Harcourt was the wife of Walter Wrottesley, the son & heir of
Richard Wrottesley, and brother of the bride Joan. So Richard Lane was
brother-in-law to the bride and first cousin to the groom - he was in
a perfect position to involve himself in the marriage contract
negotiations.

Cheers, ------Brad

[Wjhonson]

So start it John, since you posted the certainly of one possibility.
Let us know how you proceed

To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to GEN-MEDIEV...@rootsweb.com

[Wjhonson]

>From where are you getting an age for Elizabeth Hopton?

-----Original Message-----
From: Brad Verity <royald...@hotmail.com>
To: gen-medieval <gen-me...@rootsweb.com>

Sent: Thu, Jan 3, 2013 4:45 pm
Subject: Re: Jane Wrottesley, Mother of Cecily Cresset?

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[Brad Verity]

On Jan 3, 5:07 pm, Wjhonson <wjhon...@aol.com> wrote:
>From where are you getting an age for Elizabeth Hopton?

“(i) Elizabeth, da. of Eleanor, and aged 34 in 1461. She m., 1stly,
Roger Corbet; 2ndly, John (Tibetot), Earl of Worcester; and, 3rdly,
Sir William Stanley, of Holt (Cal. Patent Rolls, 1461-67, p. 551;
1476-85, p. 333), brother of the 1st Earl of Derby. She d. 22 June
1498, leaving issue (Cal. Inq.p.m., Hen. VII, vol. ii, nos. 130,
&c.).” [CP 8: 263 (sub Lucy of Newington).]

Cheers, -------Brad

[Wjhonson]

I don't understand this.
Are you suggesting that Joan Corbet is somehow being suggested as a mother of either Ralph Lane or his wife Joyce ? I never suggested that, I don't have that.



Richard Lane is not the one who needs to be linked here to any brother-in-law, so I don't know why you're looking at his supposed grandparents.

-----Original Message-----
From: Brad Verity <royald...@hotmail.com>
To: gen-medieval <gen-me...@rootsweb.com>

Sent: Thu, Jan 3, 2013 4:45 pm
Subject: Re: Jane Wrottesley, Mother of Cecily Cresset?

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[Wjhonson]

Brad I think you go this from DR's book.
I now have the underlying citation.

-----Original Message-----
From: Wjhonson <wjho...@aol.com>
To: royaldescent <royald...@hotmail.com>; gen-medieval <gen-me...@rootsweb.com>
Sent: Thu, Jan 3, 2013 5:08 pm
Subject: Re: Jane Wrottesley, Mother of Cecily Cresset?

>From where are you getting an age for Elizabeth Hopton?

-----Original Message-----
From: Brad Verity <royald...@hotmail.com>
To: gen-medieval <gen-me...@rootsweb.com>

Sent: Thu, Jan 3, 2013 4:45 pm
Subject: Re: Jane Wrottesley, Mother of Cecily Cresset?

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[Wjhonson]

Hmmm I doubt the CPR states that she was 34 in 1461, I'll check out that citation and link to the exact paragraph. However there is another citation that is most likely to state her age, which CP is not citing. How curious.

-----Original Message-----
From: Brad Verity <royald...@hotmail.com>
To: gen-medieval <gen-me...@rootsweb.com>
Sent: Thu, Jan 3, 2013 5:36 pm
Subject: Re: Jane Wrottesley, Mother of Cecily Cresset?

[Brad Verity]

On Jan 3, 5:29 pm, Wjhonson <wjhon...@aol.com> wrote:
> I don't understand this.
> Are you suggesting that Joan Corbet is somehow being suggested as a mother of either Ralph Lane or his wife Joyce ?  I never suggested that, I don't have that.

Joyce Cresset has been suggested (I forget by whom originally, David
maybe?) as the sister of the Thomas Cresset who made his will in 1520.
The reason for this is because Edward Burton of Longnor (d. 1524), who
is mentioned in the 1520 will, is apparently the brother-in-law of
Thomas Cresset. And we know from Richard Lane's IPM that this same
Edward Burton was the 2nd husband of his mother Joyce.

It was suggested by Brice Clagett in 2004 that the Thomas Cresset who
made his will in 1520 was the son of an older Thomas Cresset (who died
by 1464, according to Brice), by his wife Joan Corbet. In other
words, though most sources had Joan Corbet as the wife of the Thomas
Cresset who died in 1520, Brice suggested she was rather his mother.

If Joan Corbet was the mother of Thomas Cresset (d. 1520), then she
had to also have been the mother of Joyce Cresset Lane Burton.

It is impossible chronologically for Joan Corbet (born after 1445) to
have been the mother of Joyce Cresset, who was herself a mother in
1474.

Since it is impossible for Joan Corbet to have been the mother of
Joyce Cresset, it is also impossible for her to have been the mother
of Thomas Cresset (d. 1520), since we know that he and Joyce were
siblings.

Since it is impossible for Joan Corbet to have been the mother of
Thomas Cresset (d. 1520), then she had to have been his wife. In
other words, Brice's theory of two Thomas Cressets, father and son, is
impossible chronologically.

>  Richard Lane is not the one who needs to be linked here to any brother-in-law, so I don't know why you're looking at his supposed grandparents.

Richard Lane was the nephew of Thomas Cresset (d. 1520). His
(maternal) grandparents then have to be the parents of Thomas Cresset.

The reason why any of this is important to me in the first place is
because Joan Corbet, the alleged wife of Thomas Cresset (d. 1520), if
she existed (and there is no proof of this so far outside of early
17th-century pedigrees), is a descendant of Edward I thru her mother
Elizabeth Hopton. So I'd like to determine if Joan Corbet existed,
who she married, and what, if any, children she had.

Cheers, ------Brad

[Wjhonson]

Yes as I suspected the CPR doesn't give her an age
It's just the record of the descent of lands being held for life by the widow of William Lucy her brother of whom Eleanor was also co-heiress in her issue, and also lands going to her over the attainder of her uncle-in-law Vaux who had married her aunt Maud Lucy (not Lacy as some have)

Interesting, but this is not the source for her age

-----Original Message-----
From: Wjhonson <wjho...@aol.com>

To: royaldescent <royald...@hotmail.com>; gen-medieval <gen-me...@rootsweb.com>
Sent: Thu, Jan 3, 2013 5:46 pm
Subject: Re: Jane Wrottesley, Mother of Cecily Cresset?

Hmmm I doubt the CPR states that she was 34 in 1461, I'll check out that
citation and link to the exact paragraph. However there is another citation
that is most likely to state her age, which CP is not citing. How curious.

-----Original Message-----
From: Brad Verity <royald...@hotmail.com>
To: gen-medieval <gen-me...@rootsweb.com>
Sent: Thu, Jan 3, 2013 5:36 pm
Subject: Re: Jane Wrottesley, Mother of Cecily Cresset?

[Wjhonson]

This seems confused. I don't think that we know that Edward Burton (buried 1524) was a second husband to anyone let alone a Joyce. Do you have the exact quotation that shows this?

-----Original Message-----
From: Brad Verity <royald...@hotmail.com>
To: gen-medieval <gen-me...@rootsweb.com>
Sent: Thu, Jan 3, 2013 6:05 pm
Subject: Re: Jane Wrottesley, Mother of Cecily Cresset?

[Brad Verity]

On Jan 3, 6:10 pm, Wjhonson <wjhon...@aol.com> wrote:
> This seems confused.  I don't think that we know that Edward Burton (buried 1524) was a second husband to anyone let alone a Joyce.  Do you have the exact quotation that shows this?

The source is an article by George Wrottesley entitled "History of the
Lane Family", published in the 1910 volume of 'Collections for a
History of Staffordshire'. The article was brought to the newsgroup's
attention in 2010 by David Tepping.

[page 157] "He [Ralph Lane] died on the 27th March, 1477, leaving a
son, Richard, four years of age, and two daughters, Christine and
Marjory. His wife was Joyce, daughter of Ralph Cresset of Upton
Cresset, co. Salop, who subsequently remarried Edward Burton of the
same county (footnote: Lane Evidences, and 'Staff. Hist. Coll.', Vol.
VI, New Series, part 1, p. 128)":
http://archive.org/stream/collectionsfor1910stafuoft#page/156/mode/2up

[page 160] "The jurors say on their oath that the said Richard Lane
some time before his death was seised...with the reversion of the
third part of the manor aforesaid [Bentley]...Which said third part
Edward Burton and Joyce, his wife, then held as the dower of the said
Joyce, the reversion belonging to the said Richard and his
heirs...Ralph Lane and to the said Joyce, then his wife, as yet
alive...and they had issue the said Richard. And the said Ralph
died" [IPM of Richard Lane, taken 15 June, 8 Henry VIII [1516]]:
http://archive.org/stream/collectionsfor1910stafuoft#page/160/mode/2up

Cheers, -------Brad

[willac...@yahoo.co.uk]

If there were two Thomas Cressetts, would they have to have been father and son? Couldn't the Thomas Cressett who married Jane Corbet have been a younger brother of Robert Cressett? I believe that Robert Cressett had at least one younger brother; Walter Cressett, who married Margaret Hatton, daughter of John Hatton, was living in 1476:

http://www.medievalgenealogy.org.uk/fines/abstracts/CP_25_1_195_23.shtml

[Brad Verity]

On Jan 3, 6:05 pm, Wjhonson <wjhon...@aol.com> wrote:
> Yes as I suspected the CPR doesn't give her an age
> It's just the record of the descent of lands being held for life by the widow of William Lucy her brother of whom Eleanor was also co-heiress in her issue, and also lands going to her over the attainder of her uncle-in-law Vaux who had married her aunt Maud Lucy (not Lacy as some have)
>
> Interesting, but this is not the source for her age

Will, I believe CP's source for Elizabeth Hopton's age had to have
been the IPM of her maternal uncle Sir William Lucy: "Ch. Inq.p.m., 1
Edw. IV, no. 16; there are inqs. for cos. Hereford and Worcester". I
don't believe it's ever been published - it hasn't in the CIPM series,
but maybe it has been in another work. At any rate, the bio of Sir
William Lucy in Wedgwood's HOP (pp. 559-560) states, "His heirs were
Elizabeth, aged 34, wife of Roger Corbet, da. of Sir William’s sis.
Eleanor, and William Vaux, aged 24, s. of Maud his other sis.”

On Jan 3, 6:59 pm, willacton2...@yahoo.co.uk wrote:
> If there were two Thomas Cressetts, would they have to have been father and son? Couldn't the Thomas Cressett who married Jane Corbet have been a younger brother of Robert Cressett?

Brice's theory was that there were two father-son Thomas Cressets. It
is always possible that there were still two different Thomases - they
just couldn't have been father and son as Brice had.

> I believe that Robert Cressett had at least one younger brother; Walter Cressett, who married Margaret Hatton, daughter of John Hatton, was living in 1476:
>
> http://www.medievalgenealogy.org.uk/fines/abstracts/CP_25_1_195_23.shtml

Interesting. The Cressets in the 15th century need a lot more
research in order to compile a decent family tree for them! I've
combed the Fine Rolls from the reign of Henry VI, but no writs of diem
clausit extremum were undertaken. Apparently their lands were not
held of the crown, so no IPMs, making the chronology more difficult.
I'm going to attempt a family skeleton for the Cressets using what
we've all discussed so far, plus the materials you sent me, William
(thanks again). It's going to take awhile so I probably won't have it
finished and posted until later tomorrow.

Cheers, -------Brad

[John Higgins]

I think the key paragraphs here are the following, as expressed well
by Brad:

"It is impossible chronologically for Joan Corbet (born after 1445) to
have been the mother of Joyce Cresset, who was herself a mother in
1474.

"Since it is impossible for Joan Corbet to have been the mother of
Joyce Cresset, it is also impossible for her to have been the mother
of Thomas Cresset (d. 1520), since we know that he and Joyce were
siblings.

"Since it is impossible for Joan Corbet to have been the mother of
Thomas Cresset (d. 1520), then she had to have been his wife. In
other words, Brice's theory of two Thomas Cressets, father and son, is
impossible chronologically."

Specifically, the Thomas Cresset whose widow Jane married John Twynho
cannot be the Thomas Cresset who married Joan/Jane Corbet, because the
latter Thomas was still living in 1520.

I think Brice Clagett in 2004 was correct in identifying two separate
Thomas Cressets, one whose widow Jane married John Twynho in 1464, and
the other whose widow Elinor (possibly daughter of Thomas Milewater)
married Sir John Lingen in 1522. But it now appears that he was
incorrect in concluding that they were father and son. It would
interesting to see if Brice's sole source for the Cresset widow Jane
who married John Twynho (George Morris, 4:450) specifically identifies
her as Jane Corbet - that would certainly complicate matters. The
other Cresset widow Elinor, as Brad indicates, may well be a second
wife to the Thomas Cresset who made his will in 1520 - or she may not
be. But it's peripheral to the descent in question here.

I think Brad is also correct in saying that Christian/Christine the
wife of Robert Cresset was not a Stapleton (although her mother was a
Stapleton). I wonder how this idea developed....

Also, although Christian was the mother of Joyce and Thomas Cresset,
she was certainly NOT the mother of Edward Burton (although she was
perhaps his stepmother), as is reported in Burton pedigrees in the
older peerages (and repeated by Will earlier today). This is true for
chronological reasons (as discussed by David Topping in 2010) and also
because making her the mother of Edward Burton would mean that he
married his half-sister Joyce - not very likely. [Minor point: aside
from the peerages, what is the evidence that says that Edward Burton
was the son of Robert Burton - or that the Burton whom Christian
married as her 3rd husband was Robert?]

[Wjhonson]

Yes it has to be this IPM. Thanks for the citation to HOP I didn't have that.
This is curious because the CPR states clearly that Vaux was attainted and his lands were GOING to Eleanor because of that.

So Maud was dead by 1461. this William by the way was Slain at Tewkesbury just a few years later

-----Original Message-----
From: Brad Verity <royald...@hotmail.com>
To: gen-medieval <gen-me...@rootsweb.com>
Sent: Thu, Jan 3, 2013 7:40 pm
Subject: Re: Jane Wrottesley, Mother of Cecily Cresset?

[Wjhonson]

wikipedia's entry for Nicholas vaux had his father attainted as a *result* of Tewkesbury
But the CPR clearly states that he was attainted before his death, not after it.

-----Original Message-----
From: Wjhonson <wjho...@aol.com>

To: royaldescent <royald...@hotmail.com>; gen-medieval <gen-me...@rootsweb.com>
Sent: Thu, Jan 3, 2013 9:31 pm
Subject: Re: Jane Wrottesley, Mother of Cecily Cresset?

Yes it has to be this IPM. Thanks for the citation to HOP I didn't have that.
This is curious because the CPR states clearly that Vaux was attainted and his
lands were GOING to Eleanor because of that.

So Maud was dead by 1461. this William by the way was Slain at Tewkesbury just
a few years later

-----Original Message-----
From: Brad Verity <royald...@hotmail.com>
To: gen-medieval <gen-me...@rootsweb.com>
Sent: Thu, Jan 3, 2013 7:40 pm
Subject: Re: Jane Wrottesley, Mother of Cecily Cresset?

[Wjhonson]

http://books.google.com/books?id=K7k9AAAAMAAJ&pg=PA551
CPR, 6E4 Part II, pg 551
29 Nov 1466
"Licence for Roger Corbet of Moreton knight and Elizabeth his wife kinswoman and one of the heirs of William Luey knight viz daughter of Eleanor one of his sisters and heirs to enter freely into a moiety of all the lordships manors lands and other possessions which Maigaret late the wife of the said William held on the day of her death for life or in fee tail or in dower or otherwise and a moiety of all the lordships manor3 lands and other possessions which the said William held on the day of his death iu fee tail within England and the marches of Wales and which on their death came into the king's hands and ought to descend to her to hold from 4 November last although the other moieties of the same belong to the king by the forfeiture of William Vaux knight attainted of high treason by an act in Parliament at Westminster 4 November 1 Edward IV who was the other heir of the said William Luey viz sou of Matilda late his other sister By ps "

-----Original Message-----
From: Wjhonson <wjho...@aol.com>

To: wjhonson <wjho...@aol.com>; royaldescent <royald...@hotmail.com>; gen-medieval <gen-me...@rootsweb.com>
Sent: Thu, Jan 3, 2013 9:34 pm
Subject: Re: Jane Wrottesley, Mother of Cecily Cresset?

wikipedia's entry for Nicholas vaux had his father attainted as a *result* of Tewkesbury
But the CPR clearly states that he was attainted before his death, not after it.







-----Original Message-----
From: Wjhonson <wjho...@aol.com>

To: royaldescent <royald...@hotmail.com>; gen-medieval <gen-me...@rootsweb.com>
Sent: Thu, Jan 3, 2013 9:31 pm
Subject: Re: Jane Wrottesley, Mother of Cecily Cresset?

Yes it has to be this IPM. Thanks for the citation to HOP I didn't have that.
This is curious because the CPR states clearly that Vaux was attainted and his
lands were GOING to Eleanor because of that.

So Maud was dead by 1461. this William by the way was Slain at Tewkesbury just
a few years later

-----Original Message-----
From: Brad Verity <royald...@hotmail.com>
To: gen-medieval <gen-me...@rootsweb.com>
Sent: Thu, Jan 3, 2013 7:40 pm
Subject: Re: Jane Wrottesley, Mother of Cecily Cresset?

[Wjhonson]

I was mistaken when I said that Vaux's portion was coming to HER.
I skimmed the CPR entry too fast, it says that moeity is in the King's hands.
By the way notice that he was attainted 1E4, not just recently.
So something else happened "recently" to make the king grant a license here
Maybe Margaret died.

-----Original Message-----
From: Wjhonson <wjho...@aol.com>
To: wjhonson <wjho...@aol.com>; royaldescent <royald...@hotmail.com>; gen-medieval <gen-me...@rootsweb.com>

Sent: Fri, Jan 4, 2013 6:41 am
Subject: Re: Jane Wrottesley, Mother of Cecily Cresset?

http://books.google.com/books?id=K7k9AAAAMAAJ&pg=PA551
CPR, 6E4 Part II, pg 551
29 Nov 1466
"Licence for Roger Corbet of Moreton knight and Elizabeth his wife kinswoman and one of the heirs of William Luey knight viz daughter of Eleanor one of his sisters and heirs to enter freely into a moiety of all the lordships manors lands and other possessions which Maigaret late the wife of the said William held on the day of her death for life or in fee tail or in dower or otherwise and a moiety of all the lordships manor3 lands and other possessions which the said William held on the day of his death iu fee tail within England and the marches of Wales and which on their death came into the king's hands and ought to descend to her to hold from 4 November last although the other moieties of the same belong to the king by the forfeiture of William Vaux knight attainted of high treason by an act in Parliament at Westminster 4 November 1 Edward IV who was the other heir of the said William Luey viz sou of Matilda late his other sister By ps "








-----Original Message-----
From: Wjhonson <wjho...@aol.com>

To: wjhonson <wjho...@aol.com>; royaldescent <royald...@hotmail.com>; gen-medieval <gen-me...@rootsweb.com>
Sent: Thu, Jan 3, 2013 9:34 pm
Subject: Re: Jane Wrottesley, Mother of Cecily Cresset?

wikipedia's entry for Nicholas vaux had his father attainted as a *result* of Tewkesbury
But the CPR clearly states that he was attainted before his death, not after it.







-----Original Message-----
From: Wjhonson <wjho...@aol.com>

To: royaldescent <royald...@hotmail.com>; gen-medieval <gen-me...@rootsweb.com>
Sent: Thu, Jan 3, 2013 9:31 pm
Subject: Re: Jane Wrottesley, Mother of Cecily Cresset?

Yes it has to be this IPM. Thanks for the citation to HOP I didn't have that.
This is curious because the CPR states clearly that Vaux was attainted and his
lands were GOING to Eleanor because of that.

So Maud was dead by 1461. this William by the way was Slain at Tewkesbury just
a few years later

-----Original Message-----
From: Brad Verity <royald...@hotmail.com>
To: gen-medieval <gen-me...@rootsweb.com>
Sent: Thu, Jan 3, 2013 7:40 pm
Subject: Re: Jane Wrottesley, Mother of Cecily Cresset?

[Douglas Richardson]

Dear Newsgroup ~

Below is the descent from Elizabeth (Hopton) Corbet down to Capt.
Richard More (or Moore), the Mayflower passenger. The average per
generation from Elizabeth Hopton down to her great-great-grandson,
Jasper More, Esq., is 29.75 years, which is normal for this time
period.

1. Elizabeth Hopton, born about 1427 (aged 34 in 1461), died 1498,
married (1st) before 1448 Roger Corbet, Knt.

2. Jane Corbet, married Thomas Cressett, Esq. (died c.1520), of Upton
Cressett, Shropshire.

3. Richard Cressett, Esq., of Upton Cressett, Shropshire, living
1545/6, married by settlement dated before 28 January 1516/17 Joan (or
Jane) Wrottesley.

4. Margaret Cressett, married Thomas More (or Moore), Esq. (died 1566[/
67]), of Larden (in Shipton), Shropshire.

5. Jasper More, Esq., of Larden (in Shipton), Shropshire, born 1546,
died 1613/14, married 1572/3 Elizabeth Smalley.

6. Katherine More, married 1610[/11] [Col.] Samuel More, Esq. (died
1662), of More, Linley (in More), and Larden (in Shipton), Shropshire.

7. [Capt.] Richard More (or Moore), of Plymouth and Salem,
Massachusetts, mariner and ship captain, born 1614, living 1693/4,
married (1st) 1636 Christian Hunt (or Hunter); (2nd) before May 1678
Jane _____, widow of Samuel Crumpton.

[Wjhonson]

A few corrections for Douglas
The average age of a generation "at this time period" was 26.42872 years

But seriously Thomas More of Larden in Shipton, Salop, esq
was buried at Shipton on 28 Feb 1566
His son Jasper, also of Larden, was baptised at Shipton on 31 Oct 1547



The *year* of Jasper's marriage to Elizabeth Smalley is ... wait for it, wait,, wait, wait,,.... unknown

His Will dated 27 Mar 1611, proved 25 May 1614 (PCC 42 Lawe)
She was still living in 1620


Katherine More was a co-heiress along with her sister Joan (More) Gresley, and perhaps other co-heiresses I don't know yet.

You're welcome, be sure to cite me in your next book.

-----Original Message-----
From: Douglas Richardson <royala...@msn.com>
To: gen-medieval <gen-me...@rootsweb.com>
Sent: Fri, Jan 4, 2013 9:40 am
Subject: Re: Jane Wrottesley, Mother of Cecily Cresset?

[willac...@yahoo.co.uk]

> 6. Katherine More, married 1610[/11] [Col.] Samuel More, Esq. (died
>
> 1662), of More, Linley (in More), and Larden (in Shipton), Shropshire.
>
>
>
> 7. [Capt.] Richard More (or Moore), of Plymouth and Salem,
>
> Massachusetts, mariner and ship captain, born 1614, living 1693/4,
>
> married (1st) 1636 Christian Hunt (or Hunter); (2nd) before May 1678
>
> Jane _____, widow of Samuel Crumpton.

The above implies that Captain Richard More was the son of Katherine More and her husband Samuel More. Surely the reason why Richard and his siblings were sent abroad is that they were the illegitimate children of Katherine More and Jacob Blakeway. I don't think Katherine, Samuel, or Jacob ever disagreed on that point.

[Brad Verity]

On Jan 3, 7:39 pm, Brad Verity <royaldesc...@hotmail.com> wrote:
> I'm going to attempt a family skeleton for the Cressets using what
> we've all discussed so far, plus the materials you sent me, William
> (thanks again).  It's going to take awhile so I probably won't have it
> finished and posted until later tomorrow.

The Cressetts are an interesting, yet challenging, family to
research. Per the 1916-17 article by The Rev. Purton, the family
first appears in record in the beginning of the 14th century in the
parish of Shawbury, Shropshire. Later in that century, marriage to the
heiress of the Uptons brought them that manor in the hundred of
Stottesdon. The chief seat of the family within that manor became
known as Upton Cressett Hall, which still stands today. The Victoria
County History of Shropshire series is ongoing, and unfortunately
hasn’t yet covered the hundred of Stottesdon. But Upton Cressett Hall
has a terrific website with useful information:
http://www.uptoncressetthall.co.uk

Note on spelling: I've seen the family name spelled Cresset (with 1
't') and 'Cressett' (with 2 't's) in various sources. I've been using
the 1 't' but am moving to the 2 't's since that's how it's spelled on
the Upton Cressett Hall site, and for some reason I just feel I should
give them the most authority on the spelling.

We’ve covered a lot of ground on this family in the last few days, so
I thought I’d do a skeletal outline to consolidate information that
has been gathered and shared, and make it a little easier for those
interested in researching this family further. As the Cressetts don’t
fall into the scope of my Edward I project until the beginning of the
Tudor era, I’ll start the outline in the reign of Henry VI, with the
only Cressett to ever be elected to Parliament, and take it down to
the end of the 16th-century.

HUGH CRESSETT of Upton Cressett Hall
There is a bio of him Wedgwood’s HOP, p. 235. Purton in 1916-17 says
Hugh was the son of Thomas Cressett and his wife Alice, and that
Hugh’s wife was named Florence. HOP says Hugh was born about 1400,
the son of Thomas Cressett and his wife Florence. It doesn’t attempt
to identify Hugh’s wife. The HOP article says that “In 1431 Hugh
Cresset held Upton of John Maltravers for half a knight’s fee”. The
Upton Cressett Hall website says “the de Uptons [the family whom the
Cressetts replaced] were Verderers of the Royal Forest of Morfe and
Knights and suitors to Holgate Castle”. Luckily Holdgate Castle is
covered in VCH Shropshire Volume 10:
http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.aspx?compid=22864

VCH says “Between c.1284 and 1292 Earl Edmund [of Cornwall]'s feudal
tenant of Holdgate, Robert Burnell, bishop of Bath and Wells, acquired
the chief lordship, which thereafter followed the descent of Acton
Burnell until 1542 when Sir John Dudley exchanged Acton Burnell.”
Unfortunately, Acton Burnell is covered in VCH Shropshire Vol. 8,
which is not available online. The main point is that the Cressetts
held their chief seat of Upton Cressett Hall as feudal tenants of
(presumably) the owners of Holdgate Castle, not directly of the king
as tenants in chief. This explains why there are no IPMs for the
family, and few appearances in the 15th century Chancery Rolls. They
may however appear frequently in surviving records and deeds of
whichever families held Holdgate Castle in that century.

The Upton Cressett Hall website says, “In the mid fifteenth century,
Hugh Cressett, a Lancastrian, was a Royal Commissioner along the Welsh
March, the Constable of Mortimer Castle and on the Duke of Exeter's
Council. He also served as a Member of Parliament and as the Sheriff
of Shropshire”. Hugh was M.P. for Shropshire in 1437 and 1447. That a
man of such a relatively obscure family managed to represent his
entire county in Parliament twice, as well as twice serve as sheriff,
is impressive. He clearly was a man of ability, and the Cressetts
certainly owe their subsequent prominence and position in Shropshire
to him. The identity of his wife remains uncertain, and if she was of
a well-connected family, that may have aided Hugh in his achievements.

HOP says that Hugh was, “elector, Salop, 1442. In 1449(1) his son,
Robert, was elector. Presumably he d. about 1448.” This seems good
reasoning for estimating a death date. The Wedgwood HOP bio is not
very detailed. I guess we’ll have to wait for the HOP 1422-1504 series
to be published to get a more comprehensive bio of Hugh Cressett.

The Cressett pedigree from the 1623 Visitation begins with Hugh,
doesn’t identify his wife, and gives him one child, a son Robert:
http://archive.org/stream/visitationshrop00britgoog#page/n210/mode/2up

Hugh may have had an additional son, however.

Issue of Hugh Cressett of Upton Cressett Hall (c.1400-c.1448):

1) Robert – see below
?? 2) Thomas Cressett. In Access to Archives is the following
document:
26 March 1457. “1. John Burgh, knight 2. Thomas Stafford, Margaret
(w.) and William (s.). Counterpart of indenture of lease for lives of
tenement in vill of HALGHTON IUXTA HAMON[D]…[snip]…Witnesses Thomas
Banaster de Hadnall esq., Thomas Charleton, esq., Thomas Cresset and
many others. Seals missing.” [Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent
Archive Service, Staffordshire Record Office/D938/706]:
http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/a2a/records.aspx?cat=169-d938&cid=3-26-1#3-26-1

As 1457 would be too early for Robert Cressett’s son Thomas (d. 1520)
to be witnessing a document, Robert may have had a younger brother
Thomas Cressett. In a newsgroup post in 2004, Brice Clagett stated,
“Jane (Corbet) Cressett married (2) John Twynyho prior to Aug. 12,
1464. George Morris, Shropshire Genealogies 4:450”:
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.genealogy.medieval/msg/9aae96cafbbd1009?hl=en

With George Moriss’s work unavailable online, we can’t determine why
he and/or Brice came to the above conclusion. But it is possible that
if a widow of a Thomas Cressett married a John Twynyho by 1464, it may
have been this Thomas Cressett, who was a witness in 1457.

Identifying this John Twynyho is also not an easy task. The likeliest
candidate would be John Twynyho of Keyford, Somersetshire (c.
1445-1475), eldest son & heir of William Twynyho of Keyford (c.
1420-1472) & Ankaret Hawkeston (executed 1477 after being accused by
the Duke of Clarence of poisoning his wife Isabel). John Twynyho and
his father William each have bios in Wedgwood’s HOP on p. 887. John
was M.P. for Plympton 1472-75. HOP estimates John’s birth as about
1445, and says John had a son and heir, Roger, but doesn’t identify
John’s wife.

Curiously the Twynyho pedigree in the 1531/1573 Visitation of Somerset
also does not identify John’s wife. It gives him 4 sons (Roger,
Thomas, George, John) and 1 dau (Edith):
http://archive.org/stream/visitationscoun00benogoog#page/n150/mode/2up

The IPM for John’s son Roger Twynyho of Keyford, who died 17 June
1497, says that his brother and heir George Twynyho was age 25 and
more, so born by 1472:
http://archive.org/stream/calendarofinquis02grea#page/44/mode/2up

The Twynyho Visitation pedigree says George was the 3rd son, so Roger
was likely born around 1465. This works chronologically for the "by
1464" marriage of John Twynyho to Joan (Corbet) Cressett that Brice
mentioned in 2004. Ironically, it also works chronologically for a
daughter of Sir Roger Corbet (c.1415-1467) & Elizabeth Hopton
(1427-1498) to have married this John Twynyho of Keyford & borne his
five children. Is it noteworthy that his eldest son & heir was named
‘Roger’?

John Twynyho died in 1475, per his HOP bio. Could George Morris in
the 19th century and/or Brice Clagett have gotten mixed up, and Joan
Corbet married 1st John Twynyho, then after his death in 1475, married
Thomas Cressett of Upton Cressett (d. 1520)?

At any rate, it’s certainly worth further research, but the key will
be in tracking down George Morris’s Shropshire Genealogies manuscript
series filmed at the FHL Library, and that will take some time.

This Cressett account has already become long, and I’m only finished
with the first generation. I’ll break it up into a series of posts,
and hopefully have the next one up later tonight.

Cheers, ------Brad

[Brad Verity]

ROBERT CRESSETT of Upton Cressett Hall
Purton in his 1916-17 article says that Robert was left “meum gladium
cum scuto” by his father Hugh in his will dated 22 Sept. 1407, and
cites the “Blakeway Bodl. MSS.” for this. I’ve noticed several dates
that have been mis-printed in the article, and this would clearly be
one of them. HOP’s bio of Hugh Cressett guesses he died in 1448, so
perhaps ‘1407’ is a misprint for ‘1447’? At any rate, Robert would
have been of full age when he was made elector of Shropshire in 1449,
and he lived to at least 1483, possibly to 1490. A birthdate of about
1420 seems reasonable for him, and matches well with birthdates of
about 1415 & 1427 for the parents of the woman said to have married
his son and heir.

The Upton Cressett Hall website says, “Robert was a Yorkist lawyer who
played an adventurous part in the Wars of the Roses. He is frequently
mentioned in the Commissions of Array and was pardoned at the Devil's
Parliament in December 1459 for rebellion after the Yorkists were
defeated at Ludlow. There is a long-standing tradition that the young
Edward V, son of King Edward IV, and one of famed 'Princes in the
Tower', stayed at the early manor in April 1483 on his fateful and
hurried journey from Ludlow to the Tower of London…Upton Cressett is
seventeen miles from Ludlow - exactly a day's march - and the royal
party would have stayed at Upton Cressett before crossing the River
Severn at Bridgnorth”.

Robert Cressett can be found on a total of 9 commissions of the peace
for Shropshire during the period 1471-1475, in 1480, and in 1483:
http://www.archive.org/stream/calendarpatentr05blacgoog#page/n636/mode/2up
http://www.archive.org/stream/calendarpatentr12offigoog#page/n582/mode/2up

In 5 of the 9 commissions, Robert served with Sir Richard Corbet of
Moreton Corbet, starting in 1471 with the first one he was ever on.
It’s possible Corbet helped place Robert on the commissions because
Corbet’s sister was already married to Robert’s son and heir, or the
marriage could have resulted from the working relationship Corbet and
Robert formed on the committees. A search in the National Archives
website turns up Robert Cressett as a witness in various Shropshire &
Staffordshire deeds, which is to be expected of a lawyer. Sadly none
of the deeds regard the Corbet family.

The Cressett pedigree from the 1623 Visitation of Shropshire says
Robert married “Xpiana fil. et haer. Johes Stepleton de Stepleton mil.
2 nupta …. Eyton et 3 [postea] …. Byrton”. The Rev. Purton says Robert
“married Christina ‘the daughter of Margaret the daughter and fourth
heir of John Stepulton’ (See Trans. 4th Ser. V. 222)”. There is an HOP
bio of Sir John Stapleton (d. by 1450), here:
http://www.historyofparliamentonline.org/volume/1386-1421/member/stapleton-john-ii

In a 2007 post to the newsgroup, Douglas Richardson identifies Robert
Cressett’s wife as: “b. CHRISTIAN STAPLETON, daughter and co-heiress.
She married 
(1st) before 1455 ROBERT CRESSETT, of Upton Cressett,
Shropshire, 
Sheriff of Shropshire, 1468-1469, son and heir of Hugh
Cressett, 
Sheriff of Shropshire, 1435. They had one son, Thomas,
Esq. In 1455 
Robert and his wife, Mary, and her fellow Stapleton co-
heirs presented 
to the Free Chapel of St. John the Baptist at
Stapleton, Shropshire. 
In 1483 her cousin, William Roynon,
quitclaimed all his land he had in 
Warminster, Wiltshire which he had
by feoffment of Leonard Stapleton 
to George Booth and his wife,
Katherine, John Leighton, and Robert 
Cressett and his wife,
Christian. ROBERT CRESSETT left a will proved 
in 1490. His widow,
Christian, married (2nd) _____ EYTON, and (3rd) 
_____ BURTON. Eyton,
Antiqs. of Shropshire 6 (1858): 118. Tresswell 
& Vincent, Vis. of
Shropshire 1623, 1569 & 1584 1 (H.S.P. 28) (1889): 
157-158 (Cressett
pedigree: "Robertus Cressett de Uton Cresset in com. 
Salop [Sheriff
1469].= Xpiana fil. et hær. Joh'es Stepleton de 
Stepleton mil. 2
nupta .... Eyton et 3 [postea] .... Byrton Burton."). 
List of
Sheriffs for England & Wales (PRO Lists and Indexes 9) (1898): 
118.
VCH Wiltshire, 8 (1965): 96-103.”

He further identifies Christian’s mother as a daughter of Sir John
Stapleton (d. by 1450) & his wife Margaret Deviock: “ii. MARGARET
STAPLETON. She was a legatee in the 1414 will of her 
grandmother,
Margaret Hakluyt, who bequeathed her 10 marks. She 
married after
1414 _____ (possibly JOHN STAPLETON). They had two 
daughters, Mary
and Christian. Margaret died before 1455. Weaver, 
Somerset Medieval
Wills 1 (Somerset Rec. Soc. 16) (1901): 66-67. VCH 
Wiltshire, 8
(1965): 96-103”:
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.genealogy.medieval/msg/873cb406615439e8?hl=en

In a 2010 post to the newsgroup, David Topping quoted the following
passage from ‘A History of Shrewsbury’ Vol 2 (1825): “but the arms
impaled over her head are those of Coyney, of Weston Coyney co.
Stafford, and Stepleton, of Stepleton in Shropshire: and one ancient
document in possession of the present Robert Burton, esq. of Longner,
which professes to correct the error of the former pedigrees, says she
was a Coyney: whence it seems probable that Christina, daughter and
coheir of John Stepulton, esq.,
after the death of her first husband Robert Cresset, married 2dly, a
person of the name of Coyney, and was mother by her (sic) of Mrs.
Joyce Burton. This would explain her arms on the tomb-stone”:
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.genealogy.medieval/msg/949a10a68d3fa4c3?hl=en

Since the husband of Margaret Stapleton (the father of Christian,
Robert Cressett’s wife) is so far unknown, it seems likely that the
explanation for the Coyney/Stapleton impalement is that the father,
not a subsequent husband, of Christian was a Coyney. This riddle, as
well as the riddle of Christian’s subsequent marriages, I leave to
others to investigate further, since Christian falls outside the scope
of my Edward I project.

The 1623 Cressett pedigree assigns Robert Cressett & Christian one son
(Thomas), and three daughters: Mary, wife of John Lawley; Elizabeth,
wife of --- Botterell; and Anna, wife of Lawrence Ludlow. It’s wrong
on Mary & Anne (they were actually daughters of Thomas Cressett), but
it may have been correct on Elizabeth.

Robert Cressett last appears in the Patent Rolls in December 1483.
Purton says, “He died in 1490 (When his son Thomas was fined for not
appearing at the Court of Leighton. Trans. 1st Ser. IX. 406)”. In
2004, Brice Clagett said, “It is true that Robert Cressett's will,
proved 1490, is said to have named his son Thomas as executor…We have
only the act book entry; the will itself has not survived. Index
Library, Calendar of Probate and Administration Acts...in the Court
Books of the Bishop of Hereford (1989) p. 128”. Neither of these
facts can prove Robert died *in* the year 1490, only that he died *by*
the year 1490.

Issue of Robert Cressett (c.1420-by1490) & Christian (?Coyney): at
least 1 son & 1 dau, with a possible 2nd & 3rd son & 2nd dau:

1) Thomas Cressett, son & heir – will be covered in Part 3

? 2) Walter Cressett of Milson, Shropshire married Margaret, daughter
& heiress of John Hatton.
William Acton brought to the attention of the newsgroup yesterday an
item from the Feet of Fines [CP 25/1/195/23, number 12] dated 5 May
1476, in which Walter Cresset, and Margaret his wife enfeoff the manor
of Milson, Shropshire (apparently of Margaret’s inheritance) for the
term of their lives. William had speculated that Walter may have been
Robert Cressett’s younger brother. This is a good assumption, but as
he was of age when this fine was made, Walter was born by 1455, which
could also make him a younger son of Robert:
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.genealogy.medieval/msg/7bfd3413b90f14d9?hl=en

? 3) Richard Cressett
On 23 June 1480, one Richard Cressett served on the commission of the
peace for Shropshire, apparently substituting for Robert Cressett, who
served on the commission immediately prior to this one, and the two
immediately following. Assuming he was of full age to serve on the
commission, this Richard was born by 1459, and may have been a younger
son of Robert:
http://www.archive.org/stream/calendarpatentr12offigoog#page/n582/mode/2up

4) Joyce Cressett, married 1st, by 1473, Ralph Lane of Bentley & Hyde
(born 1443; died 27 March 1477), and had issue, 1 son & 2 daus;
married 2ndly, by 1480, Edward Burton of Longnor (died April 1524,
buried St Chad Church, Shrewsbury).
For links & evidence from the article on the Lane family, see my post
from yesterday:
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.genealogy.medieval/msg/d63021ca0a18c2f1?hl=en

For the excellent argument by David Topping that Joyce was the
daughter of Robert Cressett, see his post from March 2010:
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.genealogy.medieval/msg/949a10a68d3fa4c3?hl=en

? 5) Elizabeth Cressett, married William Staresmore of Frolesworth,
Leicestershire (died 1509, buried St Nicholas Church, Frolesworth)
The 1623 Cressett pedigree gives Robert Cressett & Christian a
daughter named Elizabeth married to one Boterell. But the 1623
Boterell pedigree says that Boterell’s wife was named Joyce, and was
the daughter of Thomas, not Robert, Cressett. As the other 2 daughters
assigned to Robert in the 1623 Cressett pedigree were actually
daughters of Thomas, this Boterell daughter likely was as well.

For the convincing argument that Robert Cressett & Christian did,
however, have a daughter Elizabeth, married to William Staresmore, see
Ian Payne’s 2011 newsgroup post:
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.genealogy.medieval/msg/93290d70726ea5ad?hl=en

Cheers, ---------Brad

[Brad Verity]

On Jan 4, 4:40 pm, Brad Verity <royaldesc...@hotmail.com> wrote:
> The main point is that the Cressetts
> held their chief seat of Upton Cressett Hall as feudal tenants of
> (presumably) the owners of Holdgate Castle, not directly of the king
> as tenants in chief.

Turns out the Cressetts held Upton Cressett of the Earls of Arundel,
as the following document from the National Archives shows.

"Manor of Upton 5 messuages, 105a arable, 6a meadow, 40a heath and
furze, 1 water mill - Upton Mill, held of Hen. Earl of Arundel as of
the Manor of Rownd Acton [Acton Round] in socage by fealty":
http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/a2a/records.aspx?cat=166-5460&cid=7-1-2#7-1-2

Cheers, -----Brad

[David Topping]

Brad, many thanks for this excellent summary.
David

[Brad Verity]

With Thomas Cressett and his wife "Jane" Corbet, we enter the scope of
my personal project, the descendants of Edward I, so I'm looking at
him in much closer detail than I did his father & grandfather.

THOMAS CRESSETT of Upton Cressett Hall
Douglas Richardson says Robert Cressett and his wife Christian were
married by 1455, at which date the couple, plus the other Stapleton co-
heirs, presented a new rector for Stapleton in Shropshire. The
earliest I can find Thomas in Chancery Rolls is 1484, when he was made
steward of a royal manor. Assuming he was of age by then, Thomas was
born by 1463. As he was the eldest (or at least the eldest surviving)
son, and there’s no reason to believe his parents were underage in
1455, that year seems a good estimate for Thomas’s birthdate, and fits
well with Sir Richard Corbet of Moreton Corbet, the brother of
Thomas’s presumed wife, being born in 1451.

Exactly when Thomas was married to Sir Richard Corbet’s sister is not
known. We can’t even be 100% certain that Thomas’s wife was a
daughter of Sir Roger Corbet. The only evidence we have that says so
are a Cressett pedigree and a Corbet pedigree, both apparently taken
at the 1623 Visitation of Shropshire, more than 150 years after
Thomas’s marriage. The fact that both families included the marriage
is promising, and in both pedigrees her first name is given as “Jane”.
But there unfortunately doesn’t seem to be any surviving evidence from
the late 15th or early 16th centuries to validate the pedigrees.
Augusta Corbet, in her extensive 2-volume study of the family, ‘The
Family of Corbet: It’s Life and Times’ (1914), has only this to say of
Jane Corbet, “The daughters were…Jane, married to Thomas Cresset, of
Upton, Co. Salop”:
http://archive.org/stream/familyofcorbetit02corb#page/n133/mode/2up

Her only source for this appears to have been “the Pedigree”, which no
doubt was the Corbet one from the 1623 Visitation. The Corbets were a
knightly family, one of the leading ones in Shropshire, with
connections to the peerage from 1467-1470 when Elizabeth, the widow of
Sir Roger Corbet (and the mother of Thomas Cressett’s wife), was
married (as his third wife) to one of Edward IV’s most trusted nobles,
John Tiptoft, and was countess of Worcester as a result. She even,
rather miraculously, gave birth to his son and heir in 1469 at the age
of 42. Tiptoft was so loyal to Edward IV that he was speedily executed
when Warwick the Kingmaker re-installed Henry VI as king of England in
1470. But Edward IV was back on the throne the following year, and
another of his loyal supporters, Sir William Stanley, younger brother
to the Lord Stanley, was married to the twice-widowed countess of
Worcester by the end of 1471.

Sir Richard Corbet came of age by 1472, having weathered the
Readeption of Henry VI and the return of Edward IV under the
guardianship of Walter Devereux, 1st Lord Ferrers of Chartley. As soon
as Edward IV was back on the throne in 1471, however, Richard,
probably knighted by the newly re-instated Yorkist king, was placed on
the commission of the peace for Shropshire. Also serving on that
commission was a lawyer about the age of 50, a fellow Yorkist, Robert
Cressett of Upton Cressett Hall. This is the first record the two
appear in together, but it may not indicate the families were tied by
marriage at that point. Before young Sir Richard Corbet set off on
Edward IV’s 1475 French expedition, he enfeoffed in May of that year a
large portion of his paternal inheritance (and expected maternal
inheritance) to five men, one of whom, Thomas Thornes, was Sir
Richard’s brother-in-law, married to his sister (whom the pedigrees
name ‘Mary’) before 1469, by which year their son and heir Roger
Thornes was born. It seems if Sir Richard at that point had another
brother-in-law, the son of a prominent Shropshire lawyer, he would
also have made that brother-in-law, or his father, a feoffee on this
important transaction:
http://archive.org/stream/familyofcorbetit02corb#page/n135/mode/2up

For the possibility that Thomas Cressett’s Corbet wife was the widow
of John Tywnyho of Keyford (died by Oct. 1475), see my Part 2 post
from yesterday. As a widow, she could negotiate her marriage to
Cressett without the involvement of her mother or her brother Sir
Richard.

Whenever and however it was arranged, the marriage brought much more
(status, connections to the child earl of Worcester, and the Stanley &
Devereux families) to the Cressetts than vice versa. My gut instinct
is that the Cressett/Corbet marriage was not arranged by Sir Roger
Corbet before his 1467 death, as two other of his daughters’ marriages
(to Cholmondeley & to Thornes) seem to have been. Since Elizabeth
Hopton bore the earl of Worcester’s heir in 1469, she was fertile up
to her first husband’s death. It’s quite possible that Thomas
Cressett’s wife was Elizabeth’s youngest daughter with Sir Roger
Corbet, born in the 1460s, and not married until the latter years of
Edward IV’s reign.

In March 1484, Richard III made Thomas Cressett master of the chase of
Clee and steward of Corfham manor in Shropshire, during the minority
of the earl of Shrewsbury:
http://www.archive.org/stream/calendarpatentr12offigoog#page/n390/mode/2up

Thomas is called the king’s “servant” in the patent, but whether he
was serving him in the royal household, or more generally in a
Shropshire capacity, is not clear. Bosworth and the accession of Henry
VII to the throne must’ve been bumpy, but marriage to Sir William
Stanley’s stepdaughter may have helped him transition to the new Tudor
monarch. The Upton Cressett Hall website says, “Robert Cressett's son,
Thomas, was imprisoned by Henry VII in the Marshalsea, probably for
conspiracy, but he escaped in 1503 and was pardoned in 1505. He did,
however, supply soldiers for Henry VIII's French Wars of 1512-13 and
the family were reconciled to the Tudor Throne”:
http://www.uptoncressetthall.co.uk

By 1490, Thomas was the head of the Cressett family. The Rev. Purton
in his 1916-17 article, has nothing to say of Thomas’s career. We
don’t even know whether he was an attorney, like his father had been.
We do know Thomas made his will on 20 Aug. 1520, and presumably died
not long afterward.

In his latest edition of Plantagenet Ancestry, Douglas gives Thomas
two wives, Jane Corbet and Eleanor ----:
http://books.google.ca/books?id=8JcbV309c5UC&pg=RA2-PA173&lpg=RA2-PA173&dq=Eleanor+Corbet+Cresset&source=bl&ots=kumJKSIPa9&sig=8NVoAcFjDzur3QWg6r7PrJD9ncg&hl=en&sa=X&ei=qnfoUNiJGqf7iwKo_YGQCA&sqi=2&ved=0CF8Q6AEwCA#v=onepage&q=Eleanor%20Corbet%20Cresset&f=false

In typical Douglas fashion, he cites the exact same sources that Brice
Clagett did in his 2004 newsgroup post, but gives no mention of
Clagett or why he disagreed with some of his arguments. And as these
sources have come under question in this discussion of the Cressetts
in the past few days, and Douglas hasn’t commented about them, we can
assume that he continues in his books to cite sources that he hasn’t
actually read.

Sigh. Brice’s speculation that the Eleanor who was the widow of Thomas
Cressett and who received a dispensation to marry Sir John Lingen in
1522, was Eleanor, the daughter of Thomas Milewater of Stoke Edith,
Herefordshire, can be discounted with the following passage from
Richard Hodgson’s online genealogy database, “The Lingen family
records, and our many years of research have not revealed a previous
marriage of Eleanor, daughter and heiress of Thomas Milewater (died in
or before 1473) of Stoke Edith, Herefordshire, to Thomas Cresset (will
dated 1520)…We now have several entries stating Eleanor Milewater
inherited Stoke Edith in 1473, and of her marriage to Sir John Lingen
in 1499/1500 (or less likely, 1512). He died in 1530. So far we have
not established the year of birth of their son, another Sir John (who
married in 1530 Margaret, daughter of Sir Thomas Englefield), was High
Sheriff of Herefordshire in 1544 and died in 1545-46; or when his
mother died…The only conclusion I can come to at the moment is that if
Eleanor Milewater Lady Lingen died before 1522, the Marriage
Dispensation would be understandable. The fact that the relict of
Thomas Cresset had the same Christian name could a coincidence”:
http://wc.rootsweb.ancestry.com/cgi-bin/igm.cgi?op=GET&db=ancestorsearch&id=I42375

Since we know that the manor of Stoke Edith descended to Sir John
Lingen (d. 1546), we know that Eleanor Milewater had to have been his
mother. And since we know that Eleanor Milewater was born by 1473, she
could not have borne children after 1522. So we know that Eleanor,
widow of Thomas Cressett, who married Sir John Lingen in 1522, could
not have been Eleanor Milewater.

Who was she then? One possibility that hasn’t yet been considered is
that Thomas Cressett had only one wife, who survived him and then
married Sir John Lingen. The only sources that say the first name of
the Corbet wife of Thomas Cressett was “Jane” are the Corbet &
Cressett pedigrees from the 1623 Visitation of Shropshire, which was
information gathered 100 years after Thomas Cressett’s death, and is
faulty in other important respects, including his children. What if
her first name was instead “Eleanor”, and she was named after her
maternal grandmother, Eleanor Lucy, Lady Hopton?

This post has taken much longer than I originally thought. I’ll have
to wait until Part 4 to go over the children of Thomas Cressett &
“Jane” Corbet.

On Jan 5, 12:38 am, David Topping <davidt...@gmail.com> wrote:
> Brad, many thanks for this excellent summary.

My pleasure. I know it's a bit complicated, but I'm enjoying looking
into the Cressetts, and am glad you also are finding it useful.

Cheers, -----Brad

[John Higgins]

> of the earl of Shrewsbury:http://www.archive.org/stream/calendarpatentr12offigoog#page/n390/mod...

>
> Thomas is called the king’s “servant” in the patent, but whether he
> was serving him in the royal household, or more generally in a
> Shropshire capacity, is not clear. Bosworth and the accession of Henry
> VII to the throne must’ve been bumpy, but marriage to Sir William
> Stanley’s stepdaughter may have helped him transition to the new Tudor
> monarch. The Upton Cressett Hall website says, “Robert Cressett's son,
> Thomas, was imprisoned by Henry VII in the Marshalsea, probably for
> conspiracy, but he escaped in 1503 and was pardoned in 1505. He did,
> however, supply soldiers for Henry VIII's French Wars of 1512-13 and
> the family were reconciled to the Tudor Throne”:http://www.uptoncressetthall.co.uk
>
> By 1490, Thomas was the head of the Cressett family. The Rev. Purton
> in his 1916-17 article, has nothing to say of Thomas’s career.  We
> don’t even know whether he was an attorney, like his father had been.
> We do know Thomas made his will on 20 Aug. 1520, and presumably died
> not long afterward.
>
> In his latest edition of Plantagenet Ancestry, Douglas gives Thomas

> two wives, Jane Corbet and Eleanor ----:http://books.google.ca/books?id=8JcbV309c5UC&pg=RA2-PA173&lpg=RA2-PA1...

>
> In typical Douglas fashion, he cites the exact same sources that Brice
> Clagett did in his 2004 newsgroup post, but gives no mention of
> Clagett or why he disagreed with some of his arguments. And as these
> sources have come under question in this discussion of the Cressetts
> in the past few days, and Douglas hasn’t commented about them, we can
> assume that he continues in his books to cite sources that he hasn’t
> actually read.
>
> Sigh. Brice’s speculation that the Eleanor who was the widow of Thomas
> Cressett and who received a dispensation to marry Sir John Lingen in
> 1522, was Eleanor, the daughter of Thomas Milewater of Stoke Edith,
> Herefordshire, can be discounted with the following passage from
> Richard Hodgson’s online genealogy database, “The Lingen family
> records, and our many years of research have not revealed a previous
> marriage of Eleanor, daughter and heiress of Thomas Milewater (died in
> or before 1473) of Stoke Edith, Herefordshire, to Thomas Cresset (will
> dated 1520)…We now have several entries stating Eleanor Milewater
> inherited Stoke Edith in 1473, and of her marriage to Sir John Lingen
> in 1499/1500 (or less likely, 1512). He died in 1530. So far we have
> not established the year of birth of their son, another Sir John (who
> married in 1530 Margaret, daughter of Sir Thomas Englefield), was High
> Sheriff of Herefordshire in 1544 and died in 1545-46; or when his
> mother died…The only conclusion I can come to at the moment is that if
> Eleanor Milewater Lady Lingen died before 1522, the Marriage
> Dispensation would be understandable. The fact that the relict of

> Thomas Cresset had the same Christian name could a coincidence”:http://wc.rootsweb.ancestry.com/cgi-bin/igm.cgi?op=GET&db=ancestorsea...

>
> Since we know that the manor of Stoke Edith descended to Sir John
> Lingen (d. 1546), we know that Eleanor Milewater had to have been his
> mother. And since we know that Eleanor Milewater was born by 1473, she
> could not have borne children after 1522. So we know that Eleanor,
> widow of Thomas Cressett, who married Sir John Lingen in 1522, could
> not have been Eleanor Milewater.
>
> Who was she then?  One possibility that hasn’t yet been considered is
> that Thomas Cressett had only one wife, who survived him and then
> married Sir John Lingen.  The only sources that say the first name of
> the Corbet wife of Thomas Cressett was “Jane” are the Corbet &
> Cressett pedigrees from the 1623 Visitation of Shropshire, which was
> information gathered 100 years after Thomas Cressett’s death, and is
> faulty in other important respects, including his children. What if
> her first name was instead “Eleanor”, and she was named after her
> maternal grandmother, Eleanor Lucy, Lady Hopton?
>
> This post has taken much longer than I originally thought.  I’ll have
> to wait until Part 4 to go over the children of Thomas Cressett &
> “Jane” Corbet.
>
> On Jan 5, 12:38 am, David Topping <davidt...@gmail.com> wrote:
>
> > Brad, many thanks for this excellent summary.
>
> My pleasure.  I know it's a bit complicated, but I'm enjoying looking
> into the Cressetts, and am glad you also are finding it useful.
>
> Cheers,                            -----Brad

Brad:

This series on the Cressetts continues to be most informative and
useful. Keep it coming!!

[willac...@yahoo.co.uk]

Many thanks for all of your hard work Brad! Your posts on the Cressetts have been fascinating and very useful. Looking forward to part 4.

[Brad Verity]

The Cressett pedigree from the 1623 Visitation of Shropshire assigns
Thomas Cressett & his wife Jane Corbet a total of 7 children, 3 sons
(Richard, Richard & Thomas) and 4 daus (Cecily, Thomasine, Elizabeth &
Jane):
http://archive.org/stream/visitationshrop00britgoog#page/n210/mode/2up

The two Richards should be combined into one, while we know from the
will of Thomas’s great-grandson John Cressett that the four daughters
were actually the daughters not of Thomas, but of his grandson Robert
Cressett (d. 1561).

A close look through the 1623 Visitation of Shropshire, as well as
surviving documents of the family that have been published, shared
with the newsgroup by William Acton, or are indexed in the National
Archives, have uncovered at least two sons and four daughters for
Thomas.

Issue of Thomas Cressett of Upton Cressett Hall (born about 1455; will
dated August 1520), and ‘Jane’ [For the possibility that her first
name may have been ‘Eleanor’, see Part 3 of this series of posts]
Corbet:

1) Richard Cressett, son and heir, born about 1480.
The chronological evidence, such as it is, supports that the children
of ‘Jane’ Corbet and Thomas Cressett were born in the 1480s. There is
nothing that suggests they were born any earlier. The same holds true
for the children of Jane’s sister Anne Corbet and her husband John
Sturry of Rossall – in fact chronology suggests that one of their
daughters, Elizabeth Sturry, may have been born around 1490. This
supports the theory that Jane and Anne Corbet were younger than their
brother Sir Richard Corbet, and were both born closer to 1460, than to
his birth year of 1451. [Chronology also shows that the other two
sisters, Elizabeth Corbet Cholmondeley and Mary Corbet Thornes, were
close in age to Sir Richard, like him born within a couple years on
either side of 1450.] A birthdate of about 1480 for Jane’s elder son
Richard Cressett seems safe.

2) Thomas Cressett of The Coates, born about 1490, died February 1565,
buried 24 February 1565, St Peter Church, Stanton Lacy, Shropshire)
married Elizabeth, daughter of Sir Edmund Cornewall of Burford
(descended from Edward I) & Margaret Horde.

As he lived until 1565, I estimate a birthdate of about 1490 for
Thomas. Elizabeth Cornewall’s father Sir Edmund died in December 1489,
so she had to have been born by that year. Elizabeth’s older brother
Thomas (he was born by 1474), was placed under the guardianship of the
4th Earl of Shrewsbury after their father’s death, came of age by
1495, and was knighted at the battle of Blackheath in 1497. He has a
bio in HOP here:
http://www.historyofparliamentonline.org/volume/1509-1558/member/cornwall-sir-thomas-147274-1537

Sir Thomas Cornewall’s wife, whom he probably was married to while he
was still in wardship, was Anne Corbet, the eldest daughter of Sir
Richard Corbet of Moreton Corbet, and so a niece of ‘Jane’ Corbet
Cressett. The newly married young Cornewall couple was in a perfect
position to broker the marriage of Sir Thomas’s younger sister
Elizabeth to Anne’s first cousin, Thomas Cressett. Elizabeth is left
off of the Cornewall pedigree from the 1623 Visitation, but it is as
full of error as the Cressett one:
http://archive.org/stream/visitationshrop00britgoog#page/n200/mode/2up

‘The House of Cornewall’ states that Elizabeth Lenthall Cornewall
mentions in her January 1489 will two unnamed daughters of her son Sir
Edmund Cornewall. Per the book, one of these was “Elizabeth, wife of
Thomas Cressett, of Stanton Lacy, Salop, by whom she had a daughter,
who married … Powell”:
http://archive.org/stream/houseofcornewall00live#page/n255/mode/2up

For a younger son, Thomas Cressett married into an impressive family –
more impressive than the matches any of his sisters made. Considering
that his elder brother Richard would be declared a lunatic in his
later years, it may be that Thomas was the more able & showed more
promise. Though the 1623 Cressett pedigree says he was of “Upton”,
Thomas is often referred to as of Stanton Lacy, Shropshire. The Rev.
Purton in his article on the Cressetts says that Thomas was of The
Coates, a manor within the Shropshire parish of Holdgate, which he
purchased in 1560:
http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.aspx?compid=22864#s2

Thomas Cressett of the Coates lived until his late 70s, and was buried
at St Peter Church in Stanton Lacy in February 1565. As there is no
entry for his wife Elizabeth’s burial in the years immediately
following, she likely predeceased him:
http://archive.org/stream/shropshireparish04byushro#page/n23/mode/2up

Issue of Thomas Cressett of the Coates & Elizabeth Cornewall: 1 son
(2B) & 1 dau (2A):

2A) Joyce Cressett, married Thomas Botterell of Aston Botterell, son
of Robert Botterell of Aston Botterell & Elizabeth Cotton

The Cornewall book linked to above says Elizabeth Cornewall & Thomas
Cressett only had one child, a daughter married to Powell. ‘Powell’
is likely mis-transcribed, and should be ‘Botterell’. The marriage of
“Jocosa fil. Tho. Cressett de Vpton Cresset in co. Salop” to Thomas
Botterell is given in the Botterell pedigree from the 1623 Visitation:
http://archive.org/stream/visitationshrop00britgoog#page/n116/mode/2up

Among their six children is a daughter Anne Botterell, wife of John
Purslow. In the 1565 will of John Cressett of Upton Cressett he
mentions “my cousin Anne Boterell”, who is likely this Anne, before
her marriage.

The Botterells were a relatively minor Shropshire gentry family, and I
can find little on them, not even dates of death. The 1623 Cressett
pedigree mentions two marriages with the Botterells. One for Thomas
Cressett & Elizabeth Cornewall’s daughter “Jocosa” to “Tho.
Botterell”, and one for Robert Cressett of Upton & his wife
Christian’s daughter “Elizabeth” to an unnamed “Botterell”. The
Botterell pedigree makes no mention of this latter one, and as all of
the other daughters of Robert Cressett in the pedigree are incorrect,
this one likely is as well.

2B) Francis Cressett of the Coates, born about 1525, died March 1605,
buried 6 March 1605, St Michael Church, Upton Cressett. He married
1st, Katherine, daughter of William Slade of Wotton, and had 2 sons
(Francis & Edmund) & 3 daus (Audrey, Elizabeth & Jane). He married
2ndly, Martha (buried 1617 at St Michael Church, Upton Cressett),
daughter of Nicholas Wilford of London, and had 2 further sons
(Richard & Edward).

For a man whose mother was born by 1489 to live to the year 1605 is
quite a feat, and it means Francis was likely born about 1525, when
his mother was nearing age 40. He seems definitely to have been born
several years after his sister Joyce, and isn’t even mentioned in the
book on the Cornewall family. In his 1562 will, Henry Cressett of
Holdgate mentions “my cousin Fraunces Cressett”, who is this Francis.
As Henry died with no legitimate children, Francis appears to have
succeeded to his interests in Holdgate. Indeed, Francis survived all
the male-line descendants of his uncle Richard Cressett of Upton
Cressett Hall, and became head of the Cressett family in 1603, dying
two years later. The descendants of his eldest son, Francis Cressett
of the Coates (1566-1640), and of his youngest son Edward Cressett of
Upton Cressett Hall (1586-1645), are well-covered in the 1916-17
article by The Rev. Purton.

3) Jane Cressett, married Henry Eyton of Eyton Hall, Shropshire, son
of Lewis Eyton of Eyton Hall & Anne Savage.

The Eyton pedigree from the 1623 Visitation of Shropshire has “Jana
fil. Thomae Cressett de Upton Cressett” married to Henry Eyton, with
10 sons and a daughter:
http://archive.org/stream/visitationshrop00britgoog#page/n234/mode/2up

One of the sons, the seventh according to the pedigree, Robert Eyton
of Springfield, Essex (d. 1571), has a bio in HOP, here:
http://www.historyofparliamentonline.org/volume/1509-1558/member/eyton-robert-1519-71

His birthdate is estimated as by 1519, based on his first mention in
record, which means Jane’s childbearing began at least by 1510, and
probably earlier. Thomas Cressett made “Harry Eyton” one of the
feoffees to the uses of his August 1520 will. Given that he doesn’t
owe any money for Jane’s marriage in 1520, as he does for the
marriages of two other of his daughters, Jane was likely Thomas’s
eldest daughter, possibly married as early as 1500. I unfortunately
haven’t been able to uncover death dates for either Jane or her
husband Henry Eyton.

4) Anne Cressett, married Lawrence Ludlow of the Moorhouse (died
1538), son of Moris Ludlow of Stokesay Castle & Constance Griffith.

The Ludlow of Stokesay pedigree from the 1623 Visitation of Shropshire
has “Anne da. of Tho. Cressett of Vpton” married to Lawrence Ludlow,
with 4 sons and 6 daughters:
http://archive.org/stream/visitationshrop01britgoog#page/n65/mode/2up

In his August 1520 will, Thomas Cressett mentions that he still owes
£80 to Lawrence Ludlow for Anne’s marriage. Henry Cressett of Holdgate
appears to have been very close to his Ludlow cousins. In his January
1562 will, he mentions “my cousin John Blayney” and “my cousins
Katherine Blayney & Morris Blayney”. These are presumably Lawrence
Ludlow & Anne Cressett’s eldest daughter Katherine, her husband John
Blayney of Herefordshire, and their son, though the Blayney pedigree
from the 1569 Visitation of Herefordshire doesn’t give them a son
Morris:
http://www.archive.org/stream/visitationofhere00cookrich#page/10/mode/2up

Henry Cressett also mentions in his will “my kinsman Thomas Ludlow”
and a “cousin Morris Ludlow”. These were Lawrence & Anne’s eldest and
second sons. Finally, Henry Cressett mentions “Harry Bawdewyne”, one
of his godchildren. This presumably was a son of Lawrence & Anne
Ludlow’s youngest daughter Margery, wife of Richard Baldwin of
Diddlebury.

VCH Shropshire Vol. 10 says, “At his death in 1538 Lawrence Ludlow
held it [the manor of The Moorhouse, in the parish of Shipton] of
Wenlock priory in fee. He was followed successively by his sons Thomas
(d. 1581), Maurice (d. 1595), and presumably Rowland”:
http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.aspx?compid=22885

5) Mary Cressett, married John Lawley of Spoonhill House, Much
Wenlock, Shropshire (died by 1520), son of Edward Lawley of Spoonhill
House.

The Lawley pedigree from the 1623 Visitation of Shropshire says “Maria
fil. Tho. Cressett de Upton Cressett” married John Lawley, and had two
sons, Richard & Thomas:
http://archive.org/stream/visitationshrop01britgoog#page/n37/mode/2up

Each of their sons has a bio in HOP:
http://www.historyofparliamentonline.org/volume/1509-1558/member/lawley-richard-1515-69
http://www.historyofparliamentonline.org/volume/1509-1558/member/lawley-thomas-1524-59

Per HOP, Richard was born by 1515 & Thomas by 1524, and their father
John Lawley was dead by 1553. But in his August 1520 will, Thomas
Cressett says he is indebted to John Lawley “late deceased” £66 8s.
for Mary’s marriage. The Lawley Baronets of Spoonhill descend from
John & Mary’s elder son, Richard.

6) Elizabeth Cressett, married, as his 1st wife, Humphrey Onslow of
Onslow (died 2 June 1573), son of Edward Onslow of Onslow & Anne
Houghton, and died s.p. before 1520.

The Onslow pedigree from the 1623 Visitation of Shropshire says “….
filiam Tho. Cresset de Upton Cresset” married Humphrey Onslow:
http://archive.org/stream/visitationshrop01britgoog#page/n103/mode/2up

Apparently the Shropshire genealogist Joseph Morris, in the 19th
century, gives her the first name ‘Elizabeth’, and makes her
Humphrey’s second wife:
http://histfam.familysearch.org/getperson.php?personID=I131372&tree=Welsh

‘Elizabeth’ would be a natural first name for a daughter of Thomas
Cressett, named for maternal grandmother Elizabeth Hopton, countess of
Worcester. But Margaret Wrottesley, whom Morris makes Humphrey’s first
wife, was not yet married when her father Richard Wrottesley made his
will in 1518, and as Thomas Cressett makes no mention of a daughter
Elizabeth in his August 1520 will, she likely had married Humphrey
Onslow and died young by that date.

And so we have the children of Thomas Cressett & ‘Jane’ Corbet, all of
whose descendants, thanks to ‘Jane’ Corbet & her mother, Elizabeth
Hopton, can claim Edward I as an ancestor.

On Jan 5, 5:11 pm, John Higgins <jhiggins...@yahoo.com> wrote:
> This series on the Cressetts continues to be most informative and
> useful.  Keep it coming!!

On Jan 6, 6:55 am, willacton2...@yahoo.co.uk wrote:
> Many thanks for all of your hard work Brad! Your posts on the Cressetts have been fascinating and very useful. Looking forward to part 4.

Thanks guys. The final post of this Cressett series, Part 5, will lay
out the descendants of Thomas & Jane’s elder son, Richard Cressett of
Upton Cressett Hall & his wife Jane Wrottesley, a descendant of Edward
III thru her mother Dorothy Dudley.

Cheers, ------Brad

[Joe]

I have some scans of the George Morris Manuscripts. They are a
handwritten I find them difficult to read, especially when trying to
relate them to the many complicated issues in this thread. I haven’t
followed this discussion closely enough to know all the issues (they
are not in my line). Some points I did see which may or may not be
useful to those of you researching this family:

This thread started by pointing out some chronologic difficulties if
Richard Cresset and Jane Wrottesley had not married by August 1520.
Morris says “md before 23H7 1507”. Often I can find the document used
by Morris to support the date but I didn’t see it in this case. Do
the chronologic difficulties go away if Morris is correct?


With respect to Christina who married Robert Cresset being a
Stapleton:
Morris has “Cristina dau: & coh of Sr John Stepleton of Stepleton co.
Salop knt, living 17E4 1477/8” and in a deed from the privately held
Cresset Deeds “17E4 1477/8 Robert Cresset and Christina dau and coh of
John Stapelton jointly grant to Thos ????? of Salop gent. & Robert
Thornes(?) of Salop gent. their lands in Gameston, ??????? & ??????
wt Richard Corbet knt Thos Thornes Esq Richd Chorleston esq Wm
Leighton and Thos Leighton esqs.”


John Higgins wrote “It would interesting to see if Brice's sole source
for the Cresset widow Jane who married John Twynyho (George Morris,

4:450) specifically identifies her as Jane Corbet - that would

certainly complicate matters.”
George Morris cites
“13 Aug 4E4 Wm Twynyho & Ankaret his wife to John Twynyho their son &
Johanna (Jane) his wife daughter of Roger Corbet of Morton & Elizabeth
his wife – grant of the manor of Hawkestone”
There was a couple of similar grants following this one but this is
the one where Roger Corbet is mentioned.


Joe

PS: Brad I will try to email you the scans – you can probably get
more out of them than I can.

[Brad Verity]

On Jan 10, 6:27 pm, Joe <coch...@gmail.com> wrote:
> PS:  Brad I will try to email you the scans – you can probably get
> more out of them than I can.

Dear Joe,

I can't thank you enough for your generosity in sharing George
Morris's Cressett material. It is invaluable in sorting out several
issues that have hovered over the Cressett family since Brice Claggett
first made his newsgroup post in 2004.

I've had to time to read through and digest the George Morris
material, and will make posts in the various sections of this long
Cressett topic.

Thanks Again, and Cheers,

---Brad

[Brad Verity]

On Jan 4, 4:40 pm, Brad Verity <royaldesc...@hotmail.com> wrote:
> John Twynyho died in 1475, per his HOP bio.  Could George Morris in
> the 19th century and/or Brice Clagett have gotten mixed up, and Joan
> Corbet married 1st John Twynyho, then after his death in 1475, married
> Thomas Cressett of Upton Cressett (d. 1520)?
>
> At any rate, it’s certainly worth further research, but the key will
> be in tracking down George Morris’s Shropshire Genealogies manuscript
> series filmed at the FHL Library, and that will take some time.

For me, the most exciting aspect of receiving the George Morris
material on the Cressetts from Joe Cochoit is finally being able to
sort out the Corbet/Cressett/Twynyho marriage mess.

George Morris states on p. 450 of Volume 4 of his Shropshire
genealogies manuscript series, in a Cressett pedigree that he has
drawn up: "Thomas Cresset of Upton Cresset co. Salop Esq. ob. ante Aug
13 4 E4 1464 = Jane dau of Sr Roger Corbet of Morton Knt. remd John
Twynyho of Cayford & of Hawkstone castle Aug. 13 4 E4 Vol 3 p 134:
V-137VI".

So Brice Clagett did read George Morris correctly. George Morris
refers to another part of his manuscript series (Volume 3, page
134-137) for the Corbet/Twynyho marriage. Though Joe didn't make a
scan of that page, he did transcribe the relevant deed and posted it
last night:

> “13 Aug 4E4 Wm Twynyho & Ankaret his wife to John Twynyho their son &
> Johanna (Jane) his wife daughter of Roger Corbet of Morton & Elizabeth
> his wife – grant of the manor of Hawkestone”

This does indeed appear to be a marriage settlement. We have 15th-
century validation that Sir Roger Corbet & Elizabeth Hopton had a
daughter named Joan. We have proof that their daughter Joan Corbet
was married (with a settlement dated 13 April 1464) to John Twynyho of
Keyford (c.1445-1475), elder son & heir of William Twynyho of Keyford
(c.1420-1472) & Ankaret Hawkeston (d. 1477). I'd been wondering for
the past couple weeks why the Corbets, described by HOP as "the most
powerful family in Shropshire" would marry off a daughter to a
Somersetshire family, as the Twynyhos were. I had overlooked
Ankaret. She was an heiress of the Hawkeston family. Hawkstone
Castle is in Shropshire, and was one of the castles owned by the
baronial Tuchet family, Lords Audley. It has not yet been covered by
the VCH Shropshire series, but clearly Ankaret was the heiress of a
manor within the parish surrounding the castle. The Twynyho/Corbet
marriage now makes political and geographic sense. The Lords Audley
and the Corbets were both strong Yorkist families, and Ankaret
Hawkeston Twynyho herself was in the household of George, Duke of
Clarence (with ultimately tragic results). It was a way to cement the
three families together, and the fact that John Twynyho & Joan
Corbet's third son and eventual heir, George Twynyho, married a lady
of the Audley family further demonstrates that was a goal.

I'm very impressed with the scope of the research George Morris was
able to accomplish in the 19th century. We need to keep in mind that
this manuscript series of his was not ever published. It has several
notes he made throughout of inconsistencies he found in the evidence
and pedigrees he was transcribing. No doubt he would eventually have
come across the evidence that Elizabeth Hopton was born about 1427,
and put together that it was chronologically impossible for her
daughter Jane Corbet to have married a second time in 1464, and still
be the mother of the 8 children he gives to her with Thomas Cressett.

No, it's clear from the chronology, as well as from the wording of the
1464 settlement of Hawkstone manor, that John Twynyho was the first
husband of Jane Corbet. We know their third son (of four sons & five
children total) George Twynyho was born by 1472, so Jane was most
likely of an age to cohabit with her husband John when the settlement
was made. About age sixteen seems a fair guess for Jane's age in 1464,
so born about 1448. This fits in nicely with Jane's mother born about
1427.

A writ of diem clausit extremum was issued for John Twynyho in October
1475, so he had died not too much prior to that date. We then have
this gem from Cressett deeds transcribed by George Morris (page 447):
"17 E4 1477/8. Robert Cresset, and Cristina dau & coh. of John
Stapulton, jointly grant to Thos. Trentham of Salop gent. & Robert
Thornes of Salop gent. their lands in Garmston, Felanstow[?],
Onesley[?] Wit. Richd Corbet Knt Thos Thornes Esq Richd Chorleton
Esq Wm Leighton & Thos Leighton Esqs".

Garmeston in Shropshire was definitely a Cressett property. Thomas
Trentham & Robert Thornes were both Shrewsbury attorneys, and the fact
that they were being granted Cressett lands by fellow attorney Robert
Cressett and his wife looks like the first step of an enfeoffment.
Two of the witnesses, Sir Richard Corbet and Thomas Thornes (son of
the feoffee & attorney Roger), were the brother and brother-in-law
respectively of Jane Corbet Twynyho. This would appear to be the
first part of a marriage settlement. Unfortunately we don't have the
second part, where the feoffees turn around and re-settle the
properties for life on the married couple. But as it's far too late a
date for this to apply to the marriage of Robert Cressett & Christina,
it would seem to apply to another in the Cressett family. And since
Garmeston was one of the major Cressett holdings, it's likely it
applied to their son and heir Thomas. And since Sir Richard Corbet,
not an attorney, but one of the leading knights of Shropshire, took
the time to witness this enfeoffment, it was of importance to him. In
other words, this is very strong evidence that the Cressett/Corbet
marriage settlement took place in 1477/78. This fits nicely with John
Twynyho dying in 1475, and also explains why no Cressett was made a
feoffee in Sir Richard Corbet's own settlement of his inheritance
before leaving on the French expedition of 1475.

The only question which remains is which Corbet daughter Thomas
Cressett married in 1477/78. Was it Jane, widow of John Twynyho? Or
was it a fifth Corbet daughter, younger than Jane, born around 1460
say, named Eleanor, the first name of the wife whom we know survived
Thomas Cressett and married secondly Sir John Lingen in 1522?
Hopefully someday another document will surface providing the first
name of Thomas Cressett's wife in the 1480s. Until then, I'm going to
lean toward the fact that both the Corbet and the Cressett pedigrees
from the 1623 Visitation of Shropshire say that the first name of
Thomas's Corbet wife was Jane (though it's odd that both pedigrees
omit any mention of the Corbet/Twynyho marriage). So it would seem
that Jane Corbet, born about 1448, married 1st, 1464, John Twynyho of
Keyford and Hawkstone (c.1442-1475), and had four sons & 1 day; then
married 2nd, 1477/78, Thomas Cressett of Upton Cressett Hall (d.
1520), and had further issue, two sons and four daughters.

Cheers, ------Brad

[Brad Verity]

RICHARD CRESSETT of Upton Cressett Hall (born after 1480; died after
January 1546) married Jane Wrottesley, daughter of Richard Wrottesley
of Wrottesley Hall (1457-1521) & Dorothy Dudley (c.1463-1517,
descended from Edward III).

Estimating a birthdate for Jane Wrottesley is not easy. That she was
one of the elder daughters of her parents seems likely, since both the
Cressett pedigree from the 1623 Visitation of Shropshire, and Hon.
George Wrottesley in his 1903 book ‘History of the Family of
Wrottesley’, incorrectly make her the daughter of her grandparents,
Sir Walter Wrottesley (c.1430-1473) & Jane Baron (living 1501):
http://archive.org/stream/historyoffamilyo00wrot#page/238/mode/2up

Curiously, Wrottesley cites as his source for the Cressett/Wrottesley
marriage “a Deed at Wrottesley”. However, per the 1520 will of Thomas
Cressett we know that the father of his son Richard’s wife Jane was
Richard, not Sir Walter, Wrottesley. We also know from Richard
Wrottesley’s 1518 will that he had a daughter Jane then living.
Wrottesley in his book calls Eleanor “the eldest” daughter of Richard
& Dorothy Wrottesley, but doesn’t cite a source. Eleanor Wrottesley
(d. 1543) was a mother of three children in 1508, the year of the
death of her first husband Edward Leversedge of Vallis House,
Somersetshire, so married by 1505, and born about 1485, give or take a
couple years. Jane Wrottesley, no doubt named for her paternal
grandmother Jane Baron Wrottesley, was very likely close in age to
Eleanor. Jane’s own daughter Frances Cressett bore children after the
year 1565, so had to have been born not much earlier than 1525, which
in turn means Jane herself could not have been born much earlier than
1485.

George Morris in his manuscript (Vol. 4 p. 452) says that Richard
Cressett and Jane Wrottesley were “m[arrie]d before 25 H7 1507”. He
doesn’t cite a source for this, but it appears the marriage may have
been arranged as early as 1503, per the following deed from A2A:

3 Apr. 1503. “Quitclaim by Richard Lone of Hyde next to Brewoode.
Whereas Thomas Wyldecote hold to him and his heirs of Richard Lone and
his heirs a toft and half virgate of land and 1 noke of land in
Alvethley called the Lee for the rent of 7s p.a. to be paid at the 2
usual terms, and after the death of each tenant 6/8 heriot, now
Richard for 9 marks 6/8 from Thomas releases to Thomas all his right
in the rent and heriot. Warranty. Witnesses: Richard Wrottesley,
Thomas Cresset, Esq., Richard Lone snr., John Gravenor, Humffrey
Ferneall, chaplain, Thomas Reynolds, Thomas Potter. Part of
seal.” [A2A/Shropshire Archives/Messrs. Marcy Hemingway, Solicitors/
3950/15]

“Richard Lone of Hyde” in the above deed was Richard Lane of Bentley
(1474-1516), the nephew of Thomas Cressett (d. 1520). We know from
Thomas’s will that his nephew Richard Lane was a party to the marriage
contract of Thomas’s son Richard to Richard Wrottesley’s daughter
Jane. That both Richard Wrottesley and Thomas Cressett witnessed this
quitclaim of Richard Lane to one of his tenants, which otherwise had
nothing to do with either Wrottesley or Cressett, indicates that the
marriage contract which involved all three – Wrottesley, Cressett &
Lane – was likely negotiated at the same time.

Per Google Maps, it takes about a half an hour to drive the almost 18
miles between Upton Cressett and Wrottesley, but as the villages are
in two separate counties, the two families appear to have had nothing
to do with each other prior to this marriage. It would seem it was
Richard Lane who helped to broker it. In May 1501, Richard Wrottesley
arranged a marriage for his son and heir Walter to Isabel Harcourt.
Richard Lane was married to Isabel’s older sister Anne Harcourt, and
thus came into the kinship circle of the Wrottesleys. The ensuing
couple years would be sufficient time for Lane to arrange a union of
his uncle’s son and heir with one of Wrottesley’s daughters.

Richard Cressett succeeded his father as head of the family in 1520.
Other than serving as a sub-captain in Henry VIII’s expedition to
France in 1513, nothing is known of Richard. The Rev. Purton, in his
1916-17 article on the Cressetts, has nothing to say about Richard’s
career. We do know that by January 1546, Richard had gone lunatic,
because at that date custody of his body and his lands was granted to
his elder son and heir Robert Cressett. We also know that Jane
Wrottesley Cressett was still living at that date. We don’t know when
either Richard or Jane died, but both presumably had done so by 1562,
as their younger son Henry Cressett mentions neither in his will of
that year.

The Cressett pedigree from the 1623 Visitation assigns Richard
Cressett and Jane Wrottesley three sons (Robert, Henry & Edmund) and
six daughters (Jane, Mary, Frances, Dorothy, Cecily & Margaret).
George Morris in his Cressett pedigree gives them five sons (Robert,
Henry, Edmund, another Henry & James) and seven daughters (Jane, Mary,
Margaret, Dorothy, Cecily, Elizabeth & Frances). The Rev. Purton in
his 1916-17 article follows the 1623 Cressett pedigree, and assigns
Richard & Jane the exact same children. Of George Morris’s additional
children, Elizabeth (wife of Adam Butley) is an error: we know from
the 1565 will of John Cressett that she was a granddaughter, not a
daughter, of Richard Cressett & Jane Wrottesley. The additional Henry
and James, if they ever existed at all, would have died young, as they
don’t appear in the 1623 pedigree.

It would seem that the Issue of Richard Cressett & Jane Wrottesley was
3 sons & 6 daughters:

1) Robert Cressett, eldest son and heir – see below

2) Henry Cressett of Holdgate Castle, born about 1520, married Mary
Cheney (married 2ndly, as his first wife, Morris Ludlow of The
Moorhouse; died by 1572), daughter of William Cheney of Cheney
Longville, Shropshire. Henry was apparently living in January 1565
(his will dated 23 January 1562/3), and died without legitimate issue
by 1566.
Henry Cressett & his elder brother Robert were parties to a deed with
Edward More of Larden Hall in July 1543, which indicates both were of
age by that date. In 1551, Henry acquired by lease the manor and
castle of Holdgate, which he seems to have made his chief residence.
VCH Shropshire Volume 10 says that Henry died in 1563:
http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.aspx?compid=22864

But he appears to have still been alive when his nephew John Cressett
made his will in January 1565. George Morris says Henry’s “Will dated
15 Eliz. 1573”, but this is an error for 5 Eliz. 1563. Per his will,
Henry had an illegitimate son Edward, and an illegitimate daughter
Margaret. Henry’s widow Mary Cheney married Henry’s first cousin
Morris Ludlow (who died 25 May, buried 28 May 1595, St James Church,
Shipton, Shropshire). George Morris says that Mary was buried 5 Eliz.
1563, clearly an error. VCH Shropshire says she was living in
possession of Holdgate in 1566, but it had gone to Henry’s nephew
Richard Cressett by 1572. Mary appears to have been the last of the
Cheneys, a minor gentry family of Shropshire settled around Cheney
Longville Castle. I have been unable to identify Mary’s mother.

3) Edmund Cressett
Said to have died s.p. in the 1623 Cressett pedigree. The Rev. Purton
surmises that he died young, which was probably the case. There’s
certainly no mention of him in the 1562 will of his brother Henry or
the 1565 will of his nephew John Cressett.

4) Cecily Cressett, born about 1514, married before 1520, William
Acton of Aldenham (born about 1508; died 7 May 1567), son of Thomas
Acton of Aldenham & Elizabeth Dryden, and was buried 11 January 1581,
St Gregory Church, Morville, Shropshire, having had issue 6 sons & 6
daughters.
Chronologically, Cecily appears to have been the eldest daughter,
probably even the eldest child. We know her eldest son Robert Acton
was born by 1534. We also know from the testimony of her husband that
while he was still in wardship his marriage had been given to Thomas
Cressett. Our present day William Acton, who kindly shared the
National Archives document with me, estimates this testimony to have
been written about 1534, when several other documents challenging the
Acton inheritance were generated. As William testifies in the document
he was age 26, he was born about 1508. Thomas Acton, William’s father,
made his will on 26 February 1513, and must have died not long after,
for William’s testimony states he was a child at his father’s death,
though old enough to have some memory of him. His marriage was then
obtained by Thomas Cressett at some point before his death in 1520. In
his testimony, William specifically names Thomas twice, and states his
marriage was obtained in order for him to marry a daughter of “Thos.
Cressett”. But William’s young age must have suited better to a
granddaughter. Cecily could not have been a daughter of Thomas
Cressett, as we know from his 1562 will that she was definitely the
sister of Henry Cressett of Holdgate. And we know from the same will
that Henry refers to his Ludlow and Blayney kin as “cousins”, not
nephews or nieces, which they would’ve been had he & Cecily been
children of Thomas, not Richard, Cressett. If Cecily was about age 20
at the birth of her eldest son, she was born about 1514, and if her
mother Jane Wrottesley was born about 1485, Cecily would likely have
been her first child.

5) Dorothy Cressett, born about 1517, married William Mynd of
Myndtown, Shropshire, son of Richard Mynd of Myndtown & Ankaret
Leighton, and died after January 1565, having had issue 3 sons & 3
daughters.
Dorothy was no doubt named for her maternal grandmother Dorothy Dudley
Wrottesley, who died in 1517. The Mynd pedigree from the 1623
Visitation of Shropshire states that William Mynd married “Dorothy da.
of Rich. Cresset of Vpton Cresset”:
http://archive.org/stream/visitationshrop01britgoog#page/n95/mode/2up

I can’t uncover dates for William, but per HOP, his younger brother
Thomas Mynd of Isleworth was born 8 July 1510:
http://www.historyofparliamentonline.org/volume/1509-1558/member/mynd-%28myn%29-thomas-1510-77

So William was born by 1509, making it likely that his wife Dorothy
was one of Richard Cressett’s elder daughters. She is mentioned as
living in the January 1565 will of her nephew John Cressett, who lists
her first among his aunts, perhaps indicating that Dorothy was older
than her sister Cecily.

6) Margaret Cressett, born about 1523, married 1543, Thomas More of
Larden Hall (buried 29 February 1567, St James Church, Shipton,
Shropshire), son of Edward More of Larden Hall & Elizabeth Cludd, and
died 1555, having had issue 4 sons & 3 daus.
The More pedigree from the 1623 Visitation of Shropshire states that
Thomas More married “Margrett da. to Tho. (Richard) Cresset of Upton
Cresset”:
http://archive.org/stream/visitationshrop01britgoog#page/n89/mode/2up

That she was the daughter of Richard, not Thomas, Cressett, is proved
by chronology (her eldest son & heir Jasper More was born in 1546), by
the 1562 will of Henry Cressett of Holdgate who refers to “the
children of my sister Moore”, and by the following document from A2A,
which probably refers to the More/Cressett marriage settlement:
25 July 1543. “Edward More of Larden gentleman, Richard Lee of
Oxenbold esq and John Weale of Cotes yeoman, to Robert Cressett esq
and Henry Cressett gentleman, defeazance, performance of articles on
behalf of Edward More his heirs and assigns, as in indentures of same
date between Edward More and Richard Cressett of Upton esq and Jane
his wife. Signatures of Edward More, Rychard Lee, John Well.
Docketed. No 220.” [A2A/Shropshire Archives/1037/3/111]

If she was about age 20 at her marriage, she was born about 1523.
George Morris states, without citing a source, that Margaret Cressett
More died in 1555. This would explain why she is not listed alongside
her sisters Dorothy, Cecily, Frances and Mary in the January 1565 will
of their nephew John Cressett.

7) Frances Cressett, born about 1526, married 1st, by 1545, Roger
Smith of Morville Hall (born by 1522; died 25 June 1562), son of
Richard Smith of Morville Hall & Mary Gery, and had issue 3 sons & 2
daughters. She married 2nd, John Hopton of Rockhill, son of Edward
Hopton of Rockhill & Elizabeth Woolrich, and had further issue 4 sons
& 2 daughters. She m. 3rd, Francis Horde, third son of Richard Horde
of Bridgnorth & Elizabeth Mathew. She married 4th, William Clench of
Bridgnorth, son of Nicholas Clench of Dublin, and died 1589.
The Smith pedigree from the 1623 Visitation of Shropshire states that
Roger Smith married “Francis daur of Richard Cressett of Upton”:
http://archive.org/stream/visitationshrop01britgoog#page/n163/mode/2up

Per the HOP bio of Roger Smith, Frances’s eldest son & heir George
Smith was aged 16 at his father’s 1562 death, so born 1546:
http://www.historyofparliamentonline.org/volume/1509-1558/member/smith-roger-1522-62

If Frances was about age 20 at his birth, she was born about 1526. She
couldn’t have been born any earlier, as she went on to have six more
children with her second husband per the Hopton pedigree from the 1623
Visitation of Shropshire:
http://archive.org/stream/visitationshrop00britgoog#page/n312/mode/2up

George Morris states, without citing a source, that Frances died in
1589.

8) Jane Cressett
The 1623 Cressett pedigree states that Richard Cressett & Jane
Wrottesley had a daughter Jane who died s.p. She was certainly dead by
January 1565, as her nephew John Cressett doesn’t list her among his
aunts in his will of that date.

9) Mary Cressett, living January 1565, probably married as his 2nd
wife, Edward Blennerhassett, rector of Blunham, Bedfordshire (will
dated December 1569, proved March 1570), son of Robert Blennerhassett
of Princethorpe, Warwickshire & Margaret Kempe, and survived him.
The 1623 Cressett pedigree states that Richard Cressett & Jane
Wrottesley had a daughter Mary who died s.p. The last of his four
aunts named by John Cressett in his January 1565 will is “Mary
Cressett”. For the strong likelihood that the Mary Cressett, wife of
Edward Blennerhassett, was this Mary, see Part 6.

Cheers, ------Brad

[Brad Verity]

Here is the sixth and final part of the series on the Cressetts of
Upton Cressett. I'll have one more post on them, wrapping up some odds
& ends, that I'll make tomorrow. Thank you to everyone who has helped
me with this family, especially to William Acton & Joe Cochoit for
sharing the information & documents which they had gathered.

ROBERT CRESSETT of Upton Cressett Hall, born about 1510, married
(settlement dated 10 Aug. 1527), Katherine Charlton, daughter of
William Charlton of Apley & Alice Horde, and died 1561.
Both George Morris in his manuscript and The Rev. Purton in his
1916-17 article on the Cressetts, give the date of the Cressett/
Charlton marriage settlement as 10 August 19 Hen. VIII. Given that, a
birthdate of about 1510 for Robert seems reasonable. The following A2A
document from the Cressett Deeds that Will Johnson posted to the
newsgroup a couple weeks back shows that Robert Cressett was alive in
March 1560:
“Lease of 13 March 3 Eliz. [1560] by Robt Cressett late of Upton
Cressett, esq., decd., to Jn Marckes of Round Moor decd., Alice his
wife and the sd Jn Marckes, their son, of the messuage called Rownd
Moore in which Jn Marckes and Wm Shipman live in p. Upton Cressett for
3 lives and that of the longest liver.”

Robert died before January 1562, as he’s not mentioned in the will of
his younger brother Henry Cressett of Holdgate. The Charlton pedigree
from the 1623 Visitation of Shropshire gives William Charlton a
daughter “Alicia, ux. …. Cressett de Upton Cressett”:
http://archive.org/stream/visitationshrop00britgoog#page/n162/mode/2up

But the Cressett pedigree says her first name was Katherine, and as
that’s the name that both George Morris and The Rev. Purton give her,
presumably the 1527 marriage settlement confirms it. The 1623 Cressett
pedigree gives Robert Cressett & Katherine Charlton three sons (John,
Thomas & Peter) and four daughters (Cecily, Elizabeth, Jane &
Thomasine). George Morris gives the couple the same children, while
The Rev. Purton corrects both, adding a fourth son Richard, whom both
the 1623 Cressett pedigree & George Morris erroneously make a son of
John Cressett & Katherine Harley.

Issue of Robert Cressett & Katherine Charlton: 4 sons & 4 daughters

1) JOHN CRESSETT of UPTON CRESSETT HALL, elder surviving son and heir,
born about 1535?, married by 1563, Katherine Harley (born about 1543;
married 2nd, Thomas Cornewall of Burford (c.1538-1615, descended from
Edward I), had further issue, and died 16 February, buried 17 February
1623, St Mary Church, Burford, Shropshire), daughter of John Harley of
Brampton Bryan Castle, Shropshire (descended from Edward I) & Maud
Warnecombe, and died 20 March 1566, having had issue 2 sons.
George Morris in his manuscript (Vol. 4 p. 447) quotes from the IPM of
John Cressett, taken 27 Oct. 10 Eliz. (1568), which states that he
died 26 March 8 Eliz. (1566). The M.I. of Katherine Harley in Burford
Church says she died age 84, so born about 1538, but her parents did
not marry until 1541, so she was likely closer to age 80 at her death.
The 1623 Cressett pedigree & George Morris both give John Cressett &
Katherine Harley three sons (Thomas, John & Richard), but Richard is
an error. The Rev. Purton only mentions one son (Thomas) for the
couple.

Issue: 2 sons (1A & 1B)

1A) THOMAS CRESSETT of Upton Cressett Hall, born about 1564 (said to
be aged 4 in his father’s 1568 IPM), inherited the family estates as a
minor, and died young by 1571.

1B) John Cressett – if he existed he died young or in infancy, before
1571, as his uncle Richard Cressett was in possession of the
inheritance in that year.

2) RICHARD CRESSETT of UPTON CRESSETT HALL, born about 1545?, by 1571
had succeeded to the family estates after the death of his young
nephew, married Jane Hopton (married 2nd, Samuel Lewknor of Upton
Cressett Hall (1571-c.1613), and was buried 14 January 1611 St Michael
Church, Upton Cressett), daughter of John Hopton of Rockhill & his 1st
wife Katherine Peter, and was buried 20 November 1601, St Michael
Church, Upton Cressett), having been said to have had issue, one
daughter.
Richard Cressett was the last male descendant of Richard Cressett (d.
aft.1546) & Jane Wrottesley, and he settled Upton Cressett Hall and
the rest of the inheritance on the Cressetts of The Coates, a younger
branch of the family. Richard’s wife Jane Hopton was a stepdaughter of
his aunt Frances Cressett Smith Hopton. There is a bio of Jane’s
second husband Samuel Lewknor in HOP, here:
http://www.historyofparliamentonline.org/volume/1604-1629/member/lewknor-samuel-1571-1615

The latest Jane could have been born is 1564, as her father was
married to Frances Cressett Smith by January 1565, so she was likely
several years younger than her first husband and several years older
than her second. Richard Cressett’s burial date is from Joseph Morris:
http://histfam.familysearch.org/getperson.php?personID=I147990&tree=Welsh

Issue: ?1 daughter? (2A)

2A) Mary Cressett, married Edward Blennerhassett “of Norfolk”
The 1623 Cressett pedigree gives Richard Cressett & Jane Hopton one
daughter Mary, wife of Edward Blennerhassett of Norfolk, but as it
also erroneously gives them a son and heir Richard, this daughter Mary
could be a mistake as well. George Morris gives Richard Cressett &
Jane Hopton an only child, Mary, wife of Edward Blennerhassett “of
Northampton”, while his brother Joseph Morris says Richard died
without issue. The Rev. Purton in his 1916-17 Cressett article gives
Richard and Jane one child, Mary, wife of “Edward Blennerhasset of
Blunham (Beds)”.

A very thorough website on the Blennerhassett family states that
Edward Blennerhassett, rector of Blunham (son of Robert Blennerhassett
of Princethorpe, Warwickshire & Margaret Kempe), left a will dated
8/10 Dec. 1569, proved 31 Mar. 1570, in which he wills, “that it be
truly paied unto Mary my wife if she shalbe then lyving and lyve also
in good name either married or widowe & wtout greate suspicion of
slander even by the judgement of her owne frends & kynne & of godly
people where she shall leade her lyfe…”, and identifies Edward’s wife
as Mary Cressett of Shropshire:
http://www.blennerhassettfamilytree.com/pages/BH03_Norfolk_N.pdf

Edward Blennerhassett & Mary Cressett are given two children, a son
Samuel & a daughter Susanna, both baptized in 1550 at St Martin at
Palace Gate, Norwich, Norfolk (they were less than a year apart). If
these dates for Edward Blennerhassett & his wife Mary are correct, and
they certainly seem to be, it is chronologically impossible for her to
have been the daughter of Richard Cressett (c.1545-1601) & Jane Hopton
(by 1564-1611)

If this Edward Blennerhassett of Blunham’s wife Mary was actually a
Cressett, it would seem she was the daughter instead of an earlier
Richard and Jane Cressett – Richard Cressett (d. aft. 1546) & Jane
Wrottesley, who are known to have had a daughter Mary alive in January
1565 when her nephew John Cressett of Upton made his will. But in his
will he apparently names her “Mary Cressett”. Either “Cressett” is
somehow a mistake for “Blennerhassett/Hassett”, or Mary Cressett
married Edward Blennerhassett as his second wife sometime after
January 1565, and before December 1569, making her the stepmother of
his children Samuel and Elizabeth.

3) Thomas Cressett & 4) Peter Cressett
If these sons existed, they died young and s.p.

5) Elizabeth Cressett, married Adam Lutley of Bromcroft, Shropshire
(buried 7 October 1590, St Catherine Church, Tugford, Shropshire), son
of John Lutley of Corfton & Katherine Jenkes, and had issue 4 sons & 6
daughters.
If John Cressett listed his sisters in age order in his January 1565
will, then Elizabeth was the eldest. Per the Lutley pedigree in the
1623 Visitation of Shropshire, Adam Lutley married “Elizabetha fil.
Robti Cresset de Upton Cresset in com. Salop”:
http://archive.org/stream/visitationshrop01britgoog#page/n69/mode/2up

Elizabeth was living in 1565, but dead by Michaelmas 1605 when her
second son & eventual heir John Otley was her representative in a fine
regarding the manor of Upton Cressett.

6) Cecily Cressett, married before 1565, Richard Leighton of Coats
Hall (buried 25 September 1605, St Peter Church, Rushbury,
Shropshire), son of Ralph Leighton of Coats Hall & Anne Trentham
(descended from Edward I), and was buried 27 May 1594, St Peter
Church, Rushbury, having had issue, 6 sons & 6 daughters.
Per the Leighton pedigree in the 1623 Visitation of Shropshire,
Richard Leighton married “Cecilia filia Robti Cresset de Upton Cresset
in co. Salop”:
http://archive.org/stream/visitationshrop01britgoog#page/n47/mode/2up

Cecily’s second son & eventual heir Nicholas Leighton was her
representative in a Michaelmas 1605 fine regarding the manor of Upton
Cressett.

7) Jane Cressett, married before 1565, Thomas Whitton of Lamberhurst,
Kent (married 2nd, Mary Finch (died 1612, descended from Edward I);
died 1606), younger son of Owen Whitton of Hensington, Oxfordshire &
Joan Whitehill, and had issue, at least 1 son.
The 1623 Cressett pedigree erroneously makes the Jane Cressett who
married Thomas Whitton a daughter of Thomas Cressett (d. 1520) & Jane
Corbet. The January 1565 will of John Cressett names his sister (the
3rd of 4) as “Johan Witton”. I haven’t yet located an online pedigree
of the Whittons of Lamberhurst, but Jane had at least one son and
heir, Henry Whitton, who was her representative in the Michaelmas 1605
fine regarding Upton Cressett.

8) Thomasine Cressett, married 1st before 1565, Richard Draper of
Walton (buried 20 November 1587), third son of Thomas Draper of Aston
& Anne Mynd, and had issue, 2 sons & 2 daughters. Thomasine married
2nd, Francis Holland of Burwarton (living 1606), younger son of
William Holland of Burwarton & Alice Ditton.
The Draper pedigree from the 1623 Visitation of Shropshire has Richard
Draper married to “Thomasin filia Robti Cressett (Cressy)”:
http://archive.org/stream/visitationshrop00britgoog#page/n222/mode/2up

The 1623 Holland pedigree doesn’t have the Holland/Cressett marriage,
but it’s proven by the following two Cresset deeds from A2A, which
also show that Thomasine and her second husband were still living in
January 1606:

Oct. 1605 “Fras Cressett, esq. and Edw. Cressett, gent., plts. Jn
Lutley, gent., Nich. Leighton, Hen. Whitton, gents, Fras Holland,
gent. and Thomasin his wife, defors. Manor of Upton and 40 messuages,
20 tofts, 3 water corn mills, 4 dovecots, 40 gardens, 40 orchards,
1500a land, 300a meadow, 1,500a pasture, 200a wood and 500a heath and
brush in Upton, Lighe alias Lye, Meduleighe, Stapley, Morvyld,
Cleobury North, Wistanstow, Criddon, Conde, Stepleton, Netley, Bache
and Felhampton and the advowsons and churches of Upton and Stepleton.
Fine: £600. Michaelmas 3 James I.” [A2A/Shropshire Archives/Cressett
Deeds/5460/3/10]

23 Jan. 1606 “1. Jn Lutley of Bromecroft, gent., Nich. Leighton of
the Cotes, gent., Hen. Whitton of Lamberhurst, Kent, gent., Fras
Holland of Burwardyne, gent. and Thomasyn his wife. 2. Fras Cressett
of Upton Cressett, esq., and Edw. Cressett, gent., son and heir
apparent of Fras Cressett. A fine was levied [see 5460/3/10] for
settling the manors and property to Fras Cressett for his life,
remainder to Edw. Cressett and his heirs forever, i.e.:- The Manor of
Upton alias Upton Cressett and lands and houses, etc. and the
patronages in Upton Cressett, and all rights, etc. belonging to the
Manor, late the property of Rd Cressett, esq. decd.; The capital
messuage in Upton Cressett in which Fras Cressett now lives with lands
belonging…It is agreed between the parties that the fine on the
property as described in the fine [5460/3/9] shall be judged that the
cognisees shall stand and be seised of the property to the use of Fras
Cressett for life, with remainder to Edw. Cressett and his heirs
forever. Signed: John Lutley, Nycholas Leyghton, Henry Whitton, F.
Holland, mark of Tomasin Holland. 2 seals, 1 part seal and 2 other
tags. Witnesses: H. Towneshend, Thomas Lyttleton, Willm Baldwyn of
Mounslowe, Jo: Yonge, Edw. Price, Francis Corser, Frauncis Fitchett,
Arthur Hopton, Elizabeth Grandsdon, Maudlen Walker, W. Baldwyn, Fr:
Phillips, Thomas Harrington.” [A2A/Shropshire Archives/Cressett Deeds/
5460/3/11]

Thomasine was the last surviving Cressett descendant of Edward III. At
her death that line became extinct.

Issue of Robert Cressett & an unknown mistress:

9) Jane Cressett, married as his 1st wife, Roland Fewtrell of Downe,
Shropshire, son of Leonard Fewtrell & ---- Bechcote, and died 1593,
having had issue 2 sons & 4 daughters.

The Fewtrell pedigree from the 1623 Visitation of Shropshire states
that Roland Fewtrell married “Jana filia Robt Cresset de Upton Cresset
in co. Salop Ar.”:
http://archive.org/stream/visitationshrop00britgoog#page/n238/mode/2up

The 1623 Cressett pedigree makes Roland Fewtrell’s wife Jane the
daughter of Robert Cressett & Katherine Charlton, with a first husband
Thomas Chetwynd. George Morris & The Rev. Purton follow the 1623
pedigree, with Purton adding the additional fact that Jane was “buried
at Chetton 1593”. We know however from the 1565 will of John Cressett
that his sister Jane was married to Thomas Whitton. Since Whitton
survived her and took a second wife, and Roland Fewtrell also survived
his Cressett wife and re-married, there must have been two separate
Jane Cressetts. Who then was the additional one, the Jane Cressett who
married Roland Fewtrell?

The answer lies also in the January 1565 will of John Cressett, where
he mentions “my three base sisters: Anne & Jane & Elizabeth & my base
brother Edward – the four beneficiaries of the will of my deceased
father Robert Cressett”. Fewtrell’s wife Jane had to have been Robert
Cressett’s illegitimate daughter of that name. This is supported by
the fact that the Michaelmas 1605 regarding Upton Cressett show that
the legal co-heirs to the Cressett inheritance were the
representatives of the four daughters of Robert Cressett & Katherine
Charlton: Elizabeth Botley, Cecily Leighton, Jane Whitton & Thomasine
Draper Holland. Had Jane Fewtrell been a fifth legitimate daughter,
her son & heir would have been included in that fine.

Cheers, --------Brad

[willac...@yahoo.co.uk]

Brad this is excellent, thank you so much for your in depth study of the Cressetts. You've corrected several mistakes I had and I can't thank you enough. But I will have to take issue with you're post re the Actons:


On Friday, 18 January 2013 04:35:47 UTC, Brad Verity wrote:

[snip]

> 4) Cecily Cressett, born about 1514, married before 1520, William
>
> Acton of Aldenham (born about 1508; died 7 May 1567), son of Thomas
>
> Acton of Aldenham & Elizabeth Dryden, and was buried 11 January 1581,
>
> St Gregory Church, Morville, Shropshire, having had issue 6 sons & 6
>
> daughters.

I don’t know where you got the name “Elizabeth Dryden”. The visitation gives her name as Elizabeth Dryland and in REQ 2/1/126 William gives his mother’s name as “Elizabet Isak al Driland” meaning Elizabeth Isak alias Dryland. In the same document, William “saith that one Isak was his grnntfather of his moders p[ar]te but he non know hym but by report he saith he did dwell in London & was a merchint” and also mentions his “uncle Antony Driland”. This Anthony Driland my have been the man of that name who was a servant to Henry VIII’s illegitimate son the Duke of Richmond:

http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.aspx?compid=77483
“981. Anthony Driland to Cromwell. [April 1532]
I thank you for your kindness, but I am not admitted by the Duke’s council, as I have had ill chance. I could not be at Powmfret this Easter, as I fell sick by the way. I sent you three letters with others to Mr. Par, and I hear he is good to me, but all lies in Mr. Magnus, to whom I have spoken. For your sake and other of your friends he is specially good to me, and by him all is ruled. I desire you will thank him. John Burwell has brought a subpæna against me, for debt, as he says; but he says untruly; for it is only taken out to hinder me, as I am bound for a gentleman on a statute, and he desires to bring me into Chancery that I may be arrested. I will do whatever you advise. I will be with you at Michaelmas.
Hol., p. 1. Add. : To the right worshipful Mr. Cromwell.”


http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.aspx?compid=75677
“779. H. Duke of Richmond to Cromwell. [6 November 1535]
I have granted to my servant Anth. Driland the keepership of the park of Coliweston in reversion. But as the King desires that the Queen should have it, Driland is in doubt whether he shall enjoy the same. As he has heretofore received no other recompense, I request your favour in his behalf. Windsor, 6 Nov. Signed.”

If anyone can tell me more about this Dryland family, I'd be very grateful.

> Chronologically, Cecily appears to have been the eldest daughter,
>
> probably even the eldest child. We know her eldest son Robert Acton
>
> was born by 1534. We also know from the testimony of her husband that
>
> while he was still in wardship his marriage had been given to Thomas
>
> Cressett. Our present day William Acton, who kindly shared the
>
> National Archives document with me, estimates this testimony to have
>
> been written about 1534, when several other documents challenging the
>
> Acton inheritance were generated.

It was Will Johnson who made that guess, I agree with him.

> As William testifies in the document
>
> he was age 26, he was born about 1508. Thomas Acton, William’s father,
>
> made his will on 26 February 1513, and must have died not long after,
>
> for William’s testimony states he was a child at his father’s death,
>
> though old enough to have some memory of him.

You’ve muddled your Thomas Actons here, easily done as there were several of that name. William’s father Thomas is said to have been “Srvante to my Lord of Shrewesbury” in REQ 2/1/126. This document is thought to date to around 1534 because several people tried to disinerhit William in that year and those that followed, and he must have had to prove his “parentage and family” at that time. It follows that his father Thomas had died in about 1533/4. Thomas was the oldest son and heir of John Acton, of Aldenham. John Acton, according to his IPM (dated 24 October 1496), died on 20 March 1494, and at the time of the IPM, his oldest son and heir Thomas was “aged 12 years and more”, which means he must have been born around 1484. So, William’s father Thomas was born around 1484 and died around 1533/4. The Thomas Acton, of Longnor, who died in 1513 was the older half brother of John Acton. They were both sons of Thomas Acton, of Longnor (1415-20 Mar 1480); Thomas (d. 1513) was the son of his first wife Mary Stapleton (d. bef 1455), while John was the son of his second wife Joan Downton. There are two beautiful wooden carvings of Thomas Acton (1415-80) and Joan Downton at The Moat House in Longnor, which was built in the 1460s.

[snip]

> Cheers, ------Brad


Thanks again Brad, this has all been very usefull.

All the best,

William Acton

[Matt A]

Brad, do you know anything about this Baron family? There were some Baron cousins of George Parkhurst (great-grandfather of the same-named emigrant), in Surrey, mentioned in the following grants:

Grant SHILLINGLEE/1/30 1516
These documents are held at West Sussex Record Office
Two seals.
Contents:
By Thomas Baron and Ann his wife, one of the daughters and heirs of Thomas Glover, late of Godalming, deceased, to Thomas Polstead, Henry Coper, George Parkherst and Richard Baron, of all the said Ann's portion &c in Godalming, which descended to the said Ann from the said Thomas Glover and Julian his wife.
Dated 2 October 8 Henry VIII.

Grant SHILLINGLEE/1/35 1528
These documents are held at West Sussex Record Office
Two copies
each with a small seal.
Contents:
By Thomas Baron and Ann his wife to John Baron their son, of a messuage &c called Medersshe and three acres of arable land in Godalming, formerly belonging to Julian Glover, widow, of 26/8 rent yearly.
Dated 30 December 20 Henry VIII.

It is hard to uncover clues as to this surname through any search engine I know of, for obvious reasons. Can you expand on these people (or the Berkshire Barons)?

Thanks,

Matt Ahlgren

[Wjhonson]

>From where do you get a birthyear for Dorothy ?

-----Original Message-----
From: Brad Verity <royald...@hotmail.com>
To: gen-medieval <gen-me...@rootsweb.com>

[Brad Verity]

On Jan 18, 4:43 am, willacton2...@yahoo.co.uk wrote:
> I don’t know where you got the name “Elizabeth Dryden”.

It was a typo - I meant to say "Dryland".

> You’ve muddled your Thomas Actons here, easily done as there were several of that name.

William, I got the date of Thomas Acton's will from Joseph Morris's
'Shropshire Genealogies':
http://histfam.familysearch.org/getperson.php?personID=I226089&tree=Welsh

William’s father Thomas is said to have been “Srvante to my Lord of
Shrewesbury” in REQ 2/1/126. This document is thought to date to
around 1534 because several people tried to disinerhit William in that
year and those that followed, and he must have had to prove his
“parentage and family” at that time. It follows that his father Thomas
had died in about 1533/4.

But per William's own testimony he spent some time in wardship, which
is when his marriage was sold to Thomas Cressett. William would only
have been in wardship if his father was dead. Since Thomas Cressett
died in 1520, he must have bought William Acton's marriage by that
year, so William Acton's father Thomas had to have died before 1520.

I do agree that William's testimony was likely taken about 1534, and
per the testimony, he was age 26 when it was taken. But William's
father Thomas Acton had to have died before William was age 21, or
William would never have been put into wardship. So William's father
had to have died at least 6 years before William gave his testimony.

> Thomas was the oldest son and heir of John Acton, of Aldenham. John Acton, according to his IPM (dated 24 October 1496), died on 20 March 1494, and at the time of the IPM, his oldest son and heir Thomas was “aged 12 years and more”, which means he must have been born around 1484.

Thank you for this birthdate for Thomas Acton, William, I didn't have
it.

On Jan 18, 5:15 am, Matt A <starwarsge...@gmail.com> wrote:
> Brad, do you know anything about this Baron family?  There were some Baron cousins of George Parkhurst (great-grandfather of the same-named emigrant), in Surrey, mentioned in the following grants: [snip]

Matt, I'm sorry, but the only information I have on the Baron family
is what I read in Hon. George Wrottesley's 1903 book 'History of the
Family of Wrottesley', here:
http://archive.org/stream/historyoffamilyo00wrot#page/238/mode/2up

I'm not certain how, or if, your Surrey Barons were related to Joan
Baron Wrottesley.

On Jan 18, 7:18 am, Wjhonson <wjhon...@aol.com> wrote:
> From where do you get a birthyear for Dorothy?

Will, the first husband of Dorothy Dudley's mother Maud Clifford was
killed at the battle of Wakefield on 30 December 1460, so the earliest
Dorothy could've been born is late 1461. The marriage of her eldest
son and heir Walter Wrottesley took place in 1501, so I estimated a
birthdate for him of about 1483, then estimated Dorothy to have been
about age 20 at his birth, so born about 1463. Hon. George Wrottesley
in his 1903 book thought Richard Wrottesley's marriage was likely
granted to Sir Edmund Sutton, Heir of Dudley (Dorothy's father), while
Richard was still in wardship, so sometime between 1473 and 1478
(which year Richard came of age). Dorothy may have been born a few
years later in the 1460s, but I would think definitely before 1470, as
her daughter Eleanor Wrottesley Leversedge was herself a mother of
three in 1508.

Cheers, -----Brad

[Brad Verity]

On Jan 4, 4:40 pm, Brad Verity <royaldesc...@hotmail.com> wrote:
> HUGH CRESSETT of Upton Cressett Hall
> There is a bio of him Wedgwood’s HOP, p. 235. Purton in 1916-17 says
> Hugh was the son of Thomas Cressett and his wife Alice, and that
> Hugh’s wife was named Florence.  HOP says Hugh was born about 1400,
> the son of Thomas Cressett and his wife Florence. It doesn’t attempt
> to identify Hugh’s wife.

Turns out HOP is the incorrect source in this case: Florence was the
wife, not the mother, of Hugh Cressett. Per George Morris's account of
the Cressetts (Vol. 4 p. 446): "19 H. 6 1440/1 Hugh Cresset of Upton
and Florence his wife parties to a deed".

> ? 2) Walter Cressett of Milson, Shropshire married Margaret, daughter
> & heiress of John Hatton.
> William Acton brought to the attention of the newsgroup yesterday an
> item from the Feet of Fines [CP 25/1/195/23, number 12] dated 5 May
> 1476, in which Walter Cresset, and Margaret his wife enfeoff the manor
> of Milson, Shropshire (apparently of Margaret’s inheritance) for the
> term of their lives. William had speculated that Walter may have been
> Robert Cressett’s younger brother. This is a good assumption, but as
> he was of age when this fine was made, Walter was born by 1455, which
> could also make him a younger son of Robert

George Morris (Vol. 4 p. 450) makes this Walter Cressett a son of
Robert Cressett & his wife Christian.

> 4) Joyce Cressett, married 1st, by 1473, Ralph Lane of Bentley & Hyde
> (born 1443; died 27 March 1477), and had issue, 1 son & 2 daus;
> married 2ndly, by 1480, Edward Burton of Longnor (died April 1524,
> buried St Chad Church, Shrewsbury).

> For the excellent argument by David Topping that Joyce was the
> daughter of Robert Cressett, see his post from March 2010

George Morris (Vol. 4 p. 450) reports two scenarios for Joyce's
parents: that she was the daughter of Robert Cressett & his wife
Christian, and that she was the daughter of Christian and a second
husband --- Coyney, but favoured Joyce being Robert Cressett's
daughter. We know now from chronology that Joyce was born during
Christian's marriage to Robert Cressett: it is impossible for her to
have been a daughter of any subsequent marriage of Christian.

> 2B) Francis Cressett of the Coates, born about 1525, died March 1605,
> buried 6 March 1605, St Michael Church, Upton Cressett.

> For a man whose mother was born by 1489 to live to the year 1605 is
> quite a feat, and it means Francis was likely born about 1525, when
> his mother was nearing age 40. He seems definitely to have been born
> several years after his sister Joyce, and isn’t even mentioned in the
> book on the Cornewall family.

George Morris states (Vol. 4 p. 454) states this Francis Cressett was
"aet. 25 Oct. 31 6 Eliz. 1564", so born about 1539. Morris doesn't
cite a source for this, and has Elizabeth Cornewall as the mother of
Francis. But if this age for him is correct, it would be impossible
for Elizabeth Cornewall (born before 1489) to bear a child in 1539,
and Francis would necessarily be the son of Thomas Cressett of The
Coates (d. 1565) by a second wife. This would explain why the
Cornewall book only gives one child - a daughter - to Elizabeth
Cornewall & Thomas Cressett.

A Few Statistics
During the course of the 16th century, from the time Edward III
descendant Jane Wrottesley married Richard Cressett of Upton Cressett
Hall, until the extinction of their Cressett line in the first decade
of the 17th century, a total of 25 Cressett descendants of Edward III
were born, 6 of whom were illegitimate.

Of these 25 Cressetts, we know that 14 went on to marry, 6 definitely
did not marry, and the later lives of 5 (all illegitimate) are
unknown.

There are a total of 18 spouses marrying the Edward III-descended
Cressetts.

Of the spouses, none are descended from Edward III, and 2 are
descended from Edward I, which works out to 11%.

Jane Wrottesley's 6-step line of descent from Philippa of Clarence,
Countess of March & Ulster, firstborn legitimate grandchild of Edward
III, is entirely female-to-female, save for one generation (#3 -
Thomas, 8th Lord Clifford). This is the sole line of descent from
Edward III for all of Jane's Cressett descendants.

By 1605, around the time the Cressett line from Edward III went
extinct, at least 15 families could claim their sole descent from
Edward III thru Jane Wrottesley Cressett:
Acton of Aldenham
Billingsley of Astley
Brooke of Church Stretton
Bullock of Sidnell
Draper of Walton
Edwards of Lydham
Hockleton
Holland of Purslow
Hopton of Cherbury
Leighton of Coats Hall
Lutley of Bromcroft
More of Larden Hall
Mynd of Myndtown
Smith of Morville Hall
Whitton of Lamberhurst, Kent

All are minor gentry from Shropshire, save the last which is from
Kent. There has been lively discussion about the frequency and rate at
which royal descents spread throughout levels of society, so I thought
the above may be of interest.

With this post, I'm closing the book on the Cressetts. I'm very glad
the detailed look into this family & the discussions around it have
been useful to some. It's been interesting for me, and another lesson
in how important it is to not take the Visitation pedigrees at face
value, but instead research with whatever wills, deeds and other
original documents of the family that can be found.

Now I return to the ancestry of Lady Anne Luttrell, wife of George
III's younger brother Prince Henry, Duke of Cumberland. Looks like
I'll be digging into several Irish lines back to Edward I on her
father's side.

Cheers, ----Brad

[willac...@yahoo.co.uk]

> You’ve muddled your Thomas Actons here, easily done as there were several of that name.

>> William, I got the date of Thomas Acton's will from Joseph Morris's
>> 'Shropshire Genealogies':
>> http://histfam.familysearch.org/getperson.php?personID=I226089&tree=Welsh

Joseph Morris made a mistake. Here is an extract from Thomas' will of 1513/4:

“Item I will that my said feoffees or the overlyvers of them and their heires after my deth paide and my will and testament in any thing accomplisshed and fulfilled stande and be taxsed of the forsaid maner __ landes and tenements and other hereditamentes afore named wt all and singular their appurtenances in the townes of Longnor Acton Burnell Acton Pegott Golding & Betton Strange wt thappurtenance to the use and behove of Greffyn Acton son and heire to Thomas Acton and to the heires of his body lawfully begotten And for lak of such heires to the use and behove of the next heires of me the forsaid Thomas Acton forever”

The Thomas Acton who wrote this will was the son and heir of Thomas Acton (1415-1480) and his first wife Mary Stapleton.

Transactions of Shropshire (1927), p. 24, tells us that:
“from a deed of Rev. Joseph Corbett, quoted in Mr. Blakeway’s History of Shrewsbury Liberties, it would appear that Thomas Acton’s first wife was named Mary… The deed in question was a marriage settlement dated in 1449, whereby Longnor and Betton Strange Vills which had been granted by this member [Thomas Acton] to Thomas Horde and Thomas Rugge were by them settled on Thomas Acton and Mary in fee tail.”

Thomas and Mary were still married in 1451/2:

http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/a2a/records.aspx?cat=166-10932&cid=30-1&kw=Acton#30-1

According to‘History of Parliament, Biographies of the Members of the Commons House 1439-1509’ (1936), Thomas Acton “D. 8 Feb. 1480, when Thomas, aged 26, was his s. and h.” So the Thomas whose will was proved 26 February 1513/4 was born about 1453/4. His mother Mary Stapleton probably died giving birth to him, as she was dead by 1455:

Antiquities of Shropshire, VOL 6, p. 118
“ROGER SHELE dying in 1455 was succeeded on July 17 of that year by–
SIR JOHN MASON. The Patrons were John Leighton, Robert Mounford and Maria his wife, Robert Cresset and Cristina his wife, Thomas Hord and Jocosa his wife, Thomas Walwen and Johanna his wife, and Thomas Acton (Tenant by custom of England), being coheirs and participators in the lands and tenements of John Stepulton, Esq.”

Thomas (1415-80) married Joan Downton as his second wife. She was still married to her first husband William Wood in 1457:

http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.aspx?compid=18214

"the manor passed to Thomas Downton, nephew of Thomas St. Owen and then a minor. (fn. 52) At his death, before 1456, he was succeeded by his three daughters, one of whom married William Wood. (fn. 53)"

A scan of C.P. 40/786 rot. 476d. is available at:

http://aalt.law.uh.edu/AALT1/H6/CP40no786/bCP40no786dorses/IMG_1950.htm


Thomas Acton (1453/4-Bef 26 Feb 1513/4) married Jane Lingen (who is frequently mentioned in his will proved 1514), daughter of Sir John Lingen and Isabel de Burgh in about 1501:

Collectanea Archaeologica, VOL I, pp. 225-226 (1862)
“The estates of Sir John Burgh were not divided between his coheirs until some years after his death. Among the Loton papers is preserved a singular letter on the subject of the partition, from Sir John Lyngen to Sir Thomas Leighton, written in 16 Hen. VII. [1500/01] “To my right worshipfull cosen Sir Thomas Leghton [be] this delivered in all hast. Right worshipfull Syr, I recomaunde me unto you desiring to here of yor prosperitie, whiche Jh’u p’serve, Amen. Lettyng you to underston, that my brother Mytton and my nevow John Newporte hath wryttyn unto me to have partycon of all the londs that wher my fader in law Sir John Bourgh’s, and my lady ys wyff: and I have wryttyn unto them under this form; that we shold have a mettyng, and there to have a comynycac’on for the party’con of said londs, and to put the 4 partyse of the londs equally devydyd in waxe, and so to take the parts thereof as fortune comythe: yf so be that they fynde eny defaute in the mackyng of the books of partyc’on let them amend hytt. Also I have pointed the plase of mettyng at Lodlow, the 7th day of the monythe of May, and yf so be that ye wylle be greable therto, praying yow to sende me in wryttyng under yor seale whethr ye wylle be greable or no, by my servt, the whyche shalle bring yow aonswere betwixte this and Estyr, as avoute the maryage betwixte my cosyn Acton and my dortye Jane. No more unto yow at this tyme, but Jh’u p’serve, Amen. Yor loving wncull, John Lyngen, knight.”

It is also important to note that Thomas Acton (1453/4 - Bef 26 Feb 1513/4) was of Longnor. His half brother John was of Aldenham, as was John’s son Thomas, the servant to Lord Shrewsbury (presumably George Talbot, 4th Earl of Shrewsbury).

> William’s father Thomas is said to have been “Srvante to my Lord of
> Shrewesbury” in REQ 2/1/126. This document is thought to date to
> around 1534 because several people tried to disinerhit William in that
> year and those that followed, and he must have had to prove his
> “parentage and family” at that time. It follows that his father Thomas
> had died in about 1533/4.

>> But per William's own testimony he spent some time in wardship, which
>> is when his marriage was sold to Thomas Cressett. William would only
>> have been in wardship if his father was dead. Since Thomas Cressett
>> died in 1520, he must have bought William Acton's marriage by that
>> year, so William Acton's father Thomas had to have died before 1520.

>> I do agree that William's testimony was likely taken about 1534, and
>> per the testimony, he was age 26 when it was taken. But William's
>> father Thomas Acton had to have died before William was age 21, or
>> William would never have been put into wardship. So William's father
>> had to have died at least 6 years before William gave his testimony.

You’re right. So Thomas must have died before 1520 and left his older son Griffith as his heir. Griffith must have died in about 1533/4, leaving William to fight it out for his inheritance. Thank you for your attention to detail!

> Thomas was the oldest son and heir of John Acton, of Aldenham. John Acton, according to his IPM (dated 24 October 1496), died on 20 March 1494, and at the time of the IPM, his oldest son and heir Thomas was “aged 12 years and more”, which means he must have been born around 1484.

>> Thank you for this birthdate for Thomas Acton, William, I didn't have
>> it.

My pleasure, thanks for all your analysis of the Cressetts/Actons etc.

[willac...@yahoo.co.uk]

There must be a mistake with one of my dates. Thomas Acton (1453/4-1513/4) must have been the son of Joan Downton, because Sir John Lingen refers to him as "my cosyn Acton". Joan Downton's mother was Margaret Lingen, so Thomas must have been Joan's son, rather than Mary Stapleton's son. I'll review all my material and see if I can work out where I've gone wrong.

Best,

William Acton

[Brad Verity]

On Jan 19, 4:14 am, willacton2...@yahoo.co.uk wrote:
> “Item I will that my said feoffees or the overlyvers of them and their heires after my deth paide and my will and testament in any thing accomplisshed and fulfilled stande and be taxsed of the forsaid maner __ landes and tenements and other hereditamentes afore named wt all and singular their appurtenances in the townes of Longnor Acton Burnell Acton Pegott Golding & Betton Strange wt thappurtenance to the use and behove of Greffyn Acton son and heire to Thomas Acton and to the heires of his body lawfully begotten And for lak of such heires to the use and behove of the next heires of me the forsaid Thomas Acton forever”

Dear William,

Since this other Thomas Acton in his will above was bequeathing his
lands to Griffin Acton, could this mean that Thomas Acton, the father
of Griffin & William, was dead by this time?

> It is also important to note that Thomas Acton (1453/4 - Bef 26 Feb 1513/4) was of Longnor. His half brother John was of Aldenham, as was John’s son Thomas, the servant to Lord Shrewsbury (presumably George Talbot, 4th Earl of Shrewsbury).

And the grandmother Benet Acton that William mentioned in his
testimonial - the one who went to the commissioners after Griffin's
death and informed them that William was the next heir - she was the
widow of this John Acton of Aldenham, right?

Thanks & Cheers, ----Brad

[willac...@yahoo.co.uk]

On Saturday, 19 January 2013 18:29:14 UTC, Brad Verity wrote:

[snip]

> Since this other Thomas Acton in his will above was bequeathing his
>
> lands to Griffin Acton, could this mean that Thomas Acton, the father
>
> of Griffin & William, was dead by this time?

Yes, I think you're right. Well spotted!

> > It is also important to note that Thomas Acton (1453/4 - Bef 26 Feb 1513/4) was of Longnor. His half brother John was of Aldenham, as was John’s son Thomas, the servant to Lord Shrewsbury (presumably George Talbot, 4th Earl of Shrewsbury).
>
>
>
> And the grandmother Benet Acton that William mentioned in his
>
> testimonial - the one who went to the commissioners after Griffin's
>
> death and informed them that William was the next heir - she was the
>
> widow of this John Acton of Aldenham, right?

Yes, the will of "Benet Acton of Morfellde" (ie Morville, next to Aldenham) was proved 20 Jan 1539/40, her son Humfrey Acton was her executor. See 'Calendar of Hereford Probates 1407-1550', p. 290, edited by M.A. Faraday

> Thanks & Cheers, ----Brad

My pleasure. Thanks again.

Best,

William Acton

[willac...@yahoo.co.uk]

Here is some more information on the Cressetts from 'Calendar of Hereford Probates 1407-1550', edited by M.A. Faraday

p. 130
“89/114 Robert Cressett gentleman of Upton E: Thomas Cresset his son; Morville 27 Apr. 1490 (149)”

p. 221
“523/127 Thomas Cressett E: Thomas Cressett of Upton his son & Lawrence; Ludlow of Shipton; Morville 12 Apr. 1524 (148)”

p.381
“565/4 Thomas Cressett of Stawnton Lacye, esquier, W: “made 25 Feb. 1563; E: my son & heir Frauncis Cressett & Thomas Hopkyns parson of Ludlow; B: my base daughters Margaret & Elisabethe Cressett & my base sons Thomas Cressett & William Cressett & my four servants: Thomas Reynoldes & George & William Page & Margery Wynne, & Mawde Heynes & Peter Heynes & Thomas Coles; Witn: Richard Starkye clerk & John Harryes”


Who is the Thomas Cressett whose will was proved in 1524? Could he be the younger son of Thomas Cressett and Jane Corbet, and the father of Thomas Cressett of Stanton Lacy?

[Brad Verity]

On Feb 12, 8:49 am, willacton2...@yahoo.co.uk wrote:
> Here is some more information on the Cressetts from 'Calendar of Hereford Probates 1407-1550', edited by M.A. Faraday

Many thanks for sharing these, William.

> p. 221
> “523/127      Thomas Cressett E: Thomas Cressett of Upton his son & Lawrence; Ludlow of Shipton; Morville 12 Apr. 1524 (148)”

> Who is the Thomas Cressett whose will was proved in 1524? Could he be the younger son of Thomas Cressett and Jane Corbet, and the father of Thomas Cressett of Stanton Lacy?

I think he was the Thomas Cressett of Upton who married Jane Corbet.
His will was written in August 1520, and doesn't appear to have been
probated until April 1524. The executors were his younger son Thomas
Cressett, later of The Coates & Stanton Lacy (the elder son & heir
Richard Cressett may already have been showing signs of mental
illness), and a son-in-law Lawrence Ludlow of the Moorhouse & Shipton
Morville.

Cheers, -----Brad

[willac...@yahoo.co.uk]

But we know that Eleanor, widow of a Thomas Cressett, married John Lingen in 1522. Who was this Thomas Cressett (d. bef 1522)?

[willac...@yahoo.co.uk]

> But we know that Eleanor, widow of a Thomas Cressett, married John Lingen in 1522. Who was this Thomas Cressett (d. bef 1522)?

Ah, I see I'm being stupid. He had died by 1522 but his will wasn't proved till 1524. Thanks Brad!

[willac...@yahoo.co.uk]

Going back to Hugh Cressett (Abt 1399-Abt 1448); his wife Florence must have been a Coyney.

According to William Horde’s HoP biography:

http://www.historyofparliamentonline.org/volume/1386-1421/member/horde-william-1435

Hugh Cressett was named as the brother in law of Robert Coyne and Katherine Coyne, widow of William Horde in KB9/227/1 m. 41, 228/2 m. 1; C1/9/296.

Florence and Katherine’s brother Robert is named as the son and heir of Robert Coyne and Hugolina Burnell in the IPM of Robert Coyne in 1400:

Calendar of the Inquisitions Post Mortem, Henry IV, 1399-1405, p. 118
“ROBERT COYNE
375 Writ 18 Nov. 1400.
SHROPSHIRE. Inquisition. Market Drayton. 13 Dec.
He held by the courtesy of England after the death of Hugelina his wife, who held in her demesne as of fee:
Langley, a third part of the manor with the advowson, of the king in chief by knight service as a twelfth part of a knight’s fee, annual value 51s. 9d.
E [sic], the manor, of the lord of Woodcote by rent of a rose, annual value 41s. 7d.
Shrewsbury, a burgage with garden, of the king in free burgage, annual value 6s. 3d.
Leighton and Garmston, various lands and tenements, of the lady of Leighton, service unknown, annual vaue 46s. yd.
Brockton, certain lands and tenements, of the king in chief, service unknown, annual value 13d.
He held in his demesne as of fee: Garmston, lands and tenements called 'Dounctonesplace', of the lady of Leighton, service unknown, annual value 2 1 s. 1 1 d. ; various lands and tenements of the inheritence of Thomas Cresset, deceased, of the same lady, service unknown, annual value 49s. 7d.; and a pasture called 'Banasteresclos', of William Banastre by a rent of 1 3s. 4d., annual value beyond the rent nd. He died on 12 Oct. last. Robert his son and heir is aged 8 years and more.

376 Stafford. Inquisition. Tyrley. 13 Dec. 1400.
He held in his demesne as of fee:
Weston Coyney, the manor, of the earl of Arundel by a rent of 6s. 8d., annual value 1 06s.
Holme, the manor, of the lord of Careswall, service unknown, annual value 46s. 2d.
Bucknall Marsh, various lands and tenements, of John Delves, service unknown, annual value 18s.9d.
'Smytheslond' in Halfhide, a toft and lands so called, with other adjacent lands, of the lord of Alton, service unknown, annual value 29s.3d.
Date of death and heir as above.”


This means that Robert Cressett was the second cousin once removed of his wife Christiana, as both were descended from the daughters of Edward Burnell, of Langley and his wife Margaret Lee (daughter of Reginald Lee of Hughley):

Edward Burnell, father of Hugolina Burnell, mother of Florence Coyne, mother of Robert Cressett.

Edward Burnell, father of Katherine Burnell, mother of John Stapleton, mother of Margaret Stapleton, mother of Christiana.


That still leaves the identity of Christiana's father as a total mystery, but eliminates the possibility that he was a Coyney.

[Wjhonson]

http://books.google.com/books?id=p_yzpuWi4sgC&pg=PA515
PA by DR

http://www.historykb.com/Uwe/Forum.aspx/medieval/4932/Descendants-of-King-John-s-alleged-illegitimate-daughter-Isabel

http://books.google.com/books?id=DG5KAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA157
Vis Shropshire 1623

[willac...@yahoo.co.uk]

On Friday, February 15, 2013 4:15:05 PM UTC, wjhonson wrote:
> http://books.google.com/books?id=p_yzpuWi4sgC&pg=PA515
>
> PA by DR
>
>
>
> http://www.historykb.com/Uwe/Forum.aspx/medieval/4932/Descendants-of-King-John-s-alleged-illegitimate-daughter-Isabel
>
>
>
> http://books.google.com/books?id=DG5KAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA157
>
> Vis Shropshire 1623

If you're trying to tell me that Robert Cressett's wife Christine was a Stapleton then I disagree. Christine's mother Margaret was "the daughter and fourth heir of John Stapleton", but we don't know who Christine's father was:

Transactions of the Shropshire Archaeological and Natural History Society, p. 221, published 1914
“De Banco, Easter, 10 Edw. 4., No. 343.
SALOP. John Leghton, Richard Bondes & Joan his wife, Robert Cresset & Christine his wife,– Robert Mountfort & Thomas Acton were summoned at the suit of Thomas Horde & Joyce his wife in a plea that they should permit a partition to be made of the manors of Stepulton, Armegrove & Folhampton which formerly belonged to John Stepulton, Armiger, the father of the said Joyce, and of whom she was one of the heirs, between the said Joyce & the Said John Leghton son & heir of Elizabeth, daughter and the second of the heirs of the said John Stepulton and the said Richard & Joan the daughter and the third heir of the said John Stepulton & Robert Cresset and Christine the daughter of Margaret, the daughter and the fourth heir of the said John Stepulton, and the said Robert Mountfort in right of Mary late his wife and another of the heirs of the said Margaret, & Thomas Acton in right of Mary late his wife, the daughter and fifth heir of the said John Stepulton. The defendants did not deny that they held “pro indiviso” the said manors, as stated by the plaintiffs and conceded that a partition should be…”

[Wjhonson]

How do you have a partition amongst five co-heiresses (of the same man) without them being sisters and half-sisters?

-----Original Message-----
From: willacton2001 <willac...@yahoo.co.uk>
To: gen-medieval <gen-me...@rootsweb.com>
Cc: gen-medieval <gen-me...@rootsweb.com>; willacton2001 <willac...@yahoo.co.uk>
Sent: Fri, Feb 15, 2013 8:42 am
Subject: Re: Jane Wrottesley, Mother of Cecily Cresset?

[willac...@yahoo.co.uk]

On Friday, February 15, 2013 5:40:38 PM UTC, wjhonson wrote:
> How do you have a partition amongst five co-heiresses (of the same man) without them being sisters and half-sisters?

Their relationships are very clearly expressed.
One of the five co-heiresses (Margaret) had two daughters (Christine and Mary), who were her two co-heiresses.

[Brad Verity]

On Feb 15, 7:08 am, willacton2...@yahoo.co.uk wrote:
> Going back to Hugh Cressett (Abt 1399-Abt 1448); his wife Florence must have been a Coyney.

Great research, Will! It's very helpful to have Florence's identity
solved.

> That still leaves the identity of Christiana's father as a total mystery, but eliminates the possibility that he was a Coyney.

Something will hopefully turn up once more 15th-century research gets
published (the 1422-1504 HOP series and the CIPM series for Henry VI -
some of which has been very recently published - and Edward IV/Richard
III, for starters).

Cheers, -----Brad

[Wjhonson]

Who can connect this Lawrence Ludlow to his extended family?

-----Original Message-----
From: Brad Verity <royald...@hotmail.com>

To: gen-medieval <gen-me...@rootsweb.com>
Sent: Tue, Feb 12, 2013 10:25 am
Subject: Re: Jane Wrottesley, Mother of Cecily Cresset?

[Wjhonson]

>From where in particular do you get 1522 ?

-----Original Message-----
From: willacton2001 <willac...@yahoo.co.uk>

To: gen-medieval <gen-me...@rootsweb.com>
Sent: Tue, Feb 12, 2013 10:55 am
Subject: Re: Jane Wrottesley, Mother of Cecily Cresset?

[willac...@yahoo.co.uk]

On Sunday, February 17, 2013 2:39:58 AM UTC, wjhonson wrote:
> >From where in particular do you get 1522 ?

His widow Eleanor married Sir John Lingen in 1522.

[Wjhonson]

What is your source for that particular year

-----Original Message-----
From: willacton2001 <willac...@yahoo.co.uk>
To: gen-medieval <gen-me...@rootsweb.com>

Cc: gen-medieval <gen-me...@rootsweb.com>; willacton2001 <willac...@yahoo.co.uk>

Sent: Sat, Feb 16, 2013 7:45 pm
Subject: Re: Jane Wrottesley, Mother of Cecily Cresset?

On Sunday, February 17, 2013 2:39:58 AM UTC, wjhonson wrote:
> >From where in particular do you get 1522 ?

His widow Eleanor married Sir John Lingen in 1522.

[willac...@yahoo.co.uk]

On Sunday, February 17, 2013 3:46:22 AM UTC, wjhonson wrote:
> What is your source for that particular year

'Registrum Caroli Bothe: Episcopi Herefordensis, 1516-1535', p. 349, published by the Selden Society (1921):

"Nov 26- Sir John Lingen, knight, and Elinora, relict of Sir Thomas Cresset, of Upton, within the manor of Sutton"

[Wjhonson]

I suggest this is that Eleanor "Milewater" who is given as marrying John Lingen in 1514
and heiress of her father of Stoke Edith, Herf.

Even though some other chron. might have to be adjusted a bit....

-----Original Message-----
From: willacton2001 <willac...@yahoo.co.uk>
To: gen-medieval <gen-me...@rootsweb.com>
Cc: gen-medieval <gen-me...@rootsweb.com>; willacton2001 <willac...@yahoo.co.uk>
Sent: Sat, Feb 16, 2013 8:00 pm
Subject: Re: Jane Wrottesley, Mother of Cecily Cresset?

[willac...@yahoo.co.uk]

On Sunday, February 17, 2013 4:12:14 AM UTC, wjhonson wrote:
> I suggest this is that Eleanor "Milewater" who is given as marrying John Lingen in 1514
>
> and heiress of her father of Stoke Edith, Herf.
>
>
>
> Even though some other chron. might have to be adjusted a bit....

I suggest you read Brad Verity's post of 5 Jan in this thread, particularly the part that concerns Eleanor Milewater:

"Since we know that the manor of Stoke Edith descended to Sir John
Lingen (d. 1546), we know that Eleanor Milewater had to have been his
mother. And since we know that Eleanor Milewater was born by 1473, she
could not have borne children after 1522. So we know that Eleanor,
widow of Thomas Cressett, who married Sir John Lingen in 1522, could
not have been Eleanor Milewater."

[Wjhonson]

There's a flaw in this logic.
The line given for the Lingen's here is not accurate.
In particular it's extended by an extra fictitious generation

-----Original Message-----
From: willacton2001 <willac...@yahoo.co.uk>
To: gen-medieval <gen-me...@rootsweb.com>
Cc: gen-medieval <gen-me...@rootsweb.com>; willacton2001 <willac...@yahoo.co.uk>
Sent: Sat, Feb 16, 2013 8:30 pm
Subject: Re: Jane Wrottesley, Mother of Cecily Cresset?

[John Higgins]

On Feb 16, 8:56 pm, Wjhonson <wjhon...@aol.com> wrote:
> There's a flaw in this logic.
> The line given for the Lingen's here is not accurate.
> In particular it's extended by an extra fictitious generation
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> -----Original Message-----

> From: willacton2001 <willacton2...@yahoo.co.uk>
> To: gen-medieval <gen-medie...@rootsweb.com>
>
> Cc: gen-medieval <gen-medie...@rootsweb.com>; willacton2001 <willacton2...@yahoo.co.uk>

> Sent: Sat, Feb 16, 2013 8:30 pm
> Subject: Re: Jane Wrottesley, Mother of Cecily Cresset?
>
> On Sunday, February 17, 2013 4:12:14 AM UTC, wjhonson wrote:
> > I suggest this is that Eleanor "Milewater" who is given as marrying John
> Lingen in 1514
>
> > and heiress of her father of Stoke Edith, Herf.
>
> > Even though some other chron. might have to be adjusted a bit....
>
> I suggest you read Brad Verity's post of 5 Jan in this thread, particularly the
> part that concerns Eleanor Milewater:
>
> "Since we know that the manor of Stoke Edith descended to Sir John
> Lingen (d. 1546), we know that Eleanor Milewater had to have been his
> mother. And since we know that Eleanor Milewater was born by 1473, she
> could not have borne children after 1522. So we know that Eleanor,
> widow of Thomas Cressett, who married Sir John Lingen in 1522, could
> not have been Eleanor Milewater."
>
> -------------------------------

And the evidence for this assertion is...??? Explain yourself.

Which specific generation is fictitious - and why?

[John Higgins]

On Feb 16, 8:12 pm, Wjhonson <wjhon...@aol.com> wrote:
> I suggest this is that Eleanor "Milewater" who is given as marrying John Lingen in 1514
> and heiress of her father of Stoke Edith, Herf.
>
> Even though some other chron. might have to be adjusted a bit....
>
>

1514? What's your source for this marriage date? At least one source
says it was earlier - which makes more sense, given the marriage date
of their son.

[Wjhonson]

The theory I'm now looking at, is that the wife of Sir John Lingen named "Eleanor" is not the heiress of Stoke Edith, and is not the mother of his heir John Lingen esq.

So the correction, to be more plain would be

Sir John Lingen (d 1530) +1 the heiress of Stoke Edith (d before 1523)
their son: John Lingen esq died 1544
+2 in 1522 Eleanor the widow of Thomas Cressett

I have discovered the IPM of Sir John Lingen in extenso, but I haven't finished reading it yet.

[willac...@yahoo.co.uk]

The heiress of Stoke Edith was Eleanor Milewater, daughter of Thomas Milewater, and she was married to Sir John Lingen by at least 1507:

http://www.medievalgenealogy.org.uk/fines/abstracts/CP_25_1_83_58.shtml

[Brad Verity]

On Feb 16, 5:33 pm, Wjhonson <wjhon...@aol.com> wrote:
> Who can connect this Lawrence Ludlow to his extended family?

Will, from a post I made upthread on Jan. 9th.

> 4) Anne Cressett, married Lawrence Ludlow of the Moorhouse (died
> 1538), son of Moris Ludlow of Stokesay Castle & Constance Griffith.
>
> The Ludlow of Stokesay pedigree from the 1623 Visitation of Shropshire
> has “Anne da. of Tho. Cressett of Vpton” married to Lawrence Ludlow,
> with 4 sons and 6 daughters:
http://archive.org/stream/visitationshrop01britgoog#page/n65/mode/2up

The Ludlow pedigree from the 1623 Shropshire Visitation, linked to
above, should be a good starting point if you want to look further
into that family.

Cheers, -----Brad

[Wjhonson]

The Robert White mentioned third here I wonder if he is not that one who married an Elizabeth Englefield, their son being
Thomas /White/ of South Warnborough, Southampton; Knt
heir of his father and "aged 18" at Ipm dated 9Nov 17h8 (1525-6)

Then I assume for the moment, that if Elizabeth and Thomas Englefield also mentioned here, were siblings, that would explain Robert's being here as well.

-----Original Message-----
From: willacton2001 <willac...@yahoo.co.uk>
To: gen-medieval <gen-me...@rootsweb.com>
Cc: gen-medieval <gen-me...@rootsweb.com>
Sent: Sun, Feb 17, 2013 7:30 am
Subject: Re: Jane Wrottesley, Mother of Cecily Cresset?

The heiress of Stoke Edith was Eleanor Milewater, daughter of Thomas Milewater,
and she was married to Sir John Lingen by at least 1507:

http://www.medievalgenealogy.org.uk/fines/abstracts/CP_25_1_83_58.shtml