Bradshawe, who as his father’s son and heir had been in possession
of the estates, including the land in dispute, since the year 1483,
obtained a warrant against Reynold Legh to answer for a trespass
“upon a meadow in Bowden called Holmedowe,” which was followed by an
order made to the Sheriff, May 1st, 1499, at the instance of Reynold
Legh himself, to summon a jury to try the case. The jury, which was
composed of men well known in the county, such as Peter Pole and John
Gell, of Hopton, decided in favour of Henry Bradshawe of Bradshaw,
who was thenceforward left as undisputed owner of the field, which
is in the possession of his descendant to-day. Five years before
William Bradshawe’s death, his son Henry had been practically master
at Bradshaw, probably because his father had become conscious of the
infirmities of age, for he must have been exceedingly old when he was
troubled on his death-bed, in 1483, with the dispute about the Hollow
Meadow. A lease had been executed by Wm. Bradshaw,[43] which seems to
have been in lieu of a will, letting for twenty-one years to his son
“Hare,” “his place calde ye Bradsha, and all ye lade and meydo [land
and meadow] with ye apurtenances logyg yereto [belonging thereto],
except a wode calde ye Greyve Crofte,” but in making arrangements
for the maintenance of his widow, he stipulates that “unless it
plesse her bettur to be in any odr plase, ye seyde Hare shall fynde
and suffyshundeley kepe his Modr at things to hyr necessare to hyr
degre.” He also arranges for his son to relieve him of the worry of
paying the King’s taxes in the words, “and ye seyde Hare to pey ye
Kyge his dute for ye whole lynelode” [income]. He also gives to “ye
seyde Hare all his stuffe of Howsholde, wit all things of his yt
longus to husbodry” [that belongs to husbandry]. This curious lease
is dated at Chapel-in-ye-Frythe, 18 Edward IV. (1478). William’s wife
was Elizabeth, a member of the family of Kyrke, of Whitehough, near
Chapel-en-le-Frith[44].
[43] _Derbyshire Archæological Journal_, vol. xxiv., p. 42.
[44] In possession of the writer; printed in full in _Derbyshire
Archæological Journal_, vol. xxv., p. 58.
Henry appears to have been their only son, and probably lived with
his parents at Bradshaw Hall. He died in 1523, and his will, made two
years before, is a curiously worded one, with quaint spelling. Having
satisfied his conscience with regard to the Church, and dealt with the
two farms in his occupation, the testator proceeds:—
“I beqweyth to my wyff Elizabeyth to hyr dowary & joyntre a mesne
place off land callyd ye Tornecrofts w^t all the aportenās, and all ye
Bradmarchys w^t the aportenās unto the end of hyr lyffe & afft^r to
ye performacyon off my Wyll y^t ys to Wytt unto my too sonnes Wyllm &
Henry unto y^e tyme that Rych^d Bradsha son off John Bradsha cum to ye
age off xxi - zeres ffully.”
At the close of the will, the testator mentions John as his eldest son
at that time deceased. Richard therefore was legally the heir to the
estates, and, as a minor, was left under the guardianship of his two
uncles. Henry then expresses the desire that:
“my wyffe & my sayd sonnes kepe to scole the sayd Rych: unto he come
to ye age of xxi yeres fully yff he will, & mey be att theyr kepyng &
yf noo I wyll y^t my wyffe & my sayd sonnes Wyllam & Henre gyffe to
y^e sayyd Rych Bradsha xl^s off gud money yerely to hys ffynding unto
ye tyme y^t Rych Bradsha cum to y^e age of xxi yeres.”
His two sons, William and Henry, and his daughter, Margaret, have their
fair share of his estate, and he beseeches
“Sir Godfrey Foljamb of Walton Knt & Sir George Savage off y^e Spetyll
parson to be y^e Ouersears off thys sympull testamett & last Wyll & to
be gode maysturs to my wyffe & too my sonnes ffor Goddes sake & trew
preyars ffor them qwycke & ded.”
Henry Bradshawe’s wife Elizabeth was one of the daughters of Robert
Eyre, the second son of William Eyre, of North Lees, near Hathersage.
His deceased eldest son, John Bradshawe, had married, according to
_Lincolnshire Pedigrees_,[45] Isabella, daughter of Peter Ashton, of
Halmear Grange, in Spalding, co. Lincoln. Both he and his wife had
apparently died leaving only one child, Richard, who could have been
little more than ten years of age when, in 1523, his grandfather’s
death placed him as heir to the estates, under the guardianship of his
two uncles.
[45] _Harl. Society_, vol. iv., page 1139.
Possibly Richard was not easy of control, and did not remain at school
sufficiently long to learn wisdom, for before he could have arrived at
the age of thirty he had come to grief, and his possessions had all
passed into the hands of his uncle William, who was thus the progenitor
of the future Bradshawes of Bradshaw.
Various circumstances, however, lead to the supposition that for some
time after he had attained his majority, which must have been about the
year 1534, Richard had his home at Bradshaw Hall with his uncle Henry,
who was, without doubt, living there with Elizabeth, his wife, as
tenant up to the year 1541. Before this event, however, the foolish lad
had entered upon the extravagant and downward career which ultimately
led to his ruin and to his banishment from the old home and lands. His
frequent appeals to his uncle William for money resulted in, first a
mortgage, and finally, in December, 1542, the absolute sale of his
interests in the whole of the Bradshaw domain to his uncle William,
of Marple, co. Chester. One of the sums of money sent to him by his
uncle was the result of a most piteous appeal, which ends thus: “For
I have no money bott off you, nor I cannot boro non but of you, nor I
wyll not, and therefore I prey you to be good to me of thys.” In an
exceedingly neat and educated handwriting are the few words written in
the spare space below Richard’s letter complying with the request, and
signed “Wylliam Bradsha.” After the 20th October, 1547, the date of a
sale of an annuity by him to a man at Stockport, nothing is known of
Richard Bradshawe except that by his wife, Katherine, daughter of Elys
Staveley, of Redseats, near Castleton, he left a son, Thomas, described
in 1582 as of Swindels, co. Chester.
William Bradshawe thus became possessed of the Bradshawe estates. He is
described as of Marple, co. Cheshire, as early as February, 1534, and
as late as November, 1549. The first deed in which he is described as
of Bradshaw is dated 15th July, 1547.
It is doubtful, however, whether he ever altogether abandoned Marple,
as his second son, Henry, appears to have succeeded him there. He must
have died about the year 1561, for the first mention of his wife,
Margaret, as a widow is in a deed concerning her dower, which is dated
2nd February, 1562. She was a daughter of Christopher Clayton, of
Strindes Hall, near Marple, co. Chester.
As the three eldest of their children were born before the times of
parish registers, it has been most helpful to discover among the family
deeds a long slip of parchment endorsed: “The sevrall ages of Wm.
Bradshawe’s children.” The information, which is in Latin, and in a
legal handwriting, is as follows:—
Birth of Godfrey Bradshawe, 29th September, the second hour after
noon, A.D. 1531.
Birth of Elizabeth Bradshawe, 24th August, in the morning, A.D. 1533.
Birth of Henry Bradshawe, 6th September, the eighth hour before noon,
A.D. 1535.
Birth of Margaret Bradshawe, 10th July, the third hour after noon,
A.D. 1539.
Birth of Francis Bradshawe, 14th June, the sixth hour after noon, A.D.
1543.
Birth of Anthony Bradshawe, 3rd February, the ninth hour after noon,
A.D. 1545.
Birth of Francis, son of Godfrey Bradshawe, 17th February, the eighth
hour after noon, A.D. 1555.
Of these children Godfrey, as the eldest son, inherited the Bradshawe
estates, as will be presently seen. Henry, the second son, eventually
purchased the Marple Hall estate, where he had been bred, and most
probably born. He founded the family of Bradshawe, of Marple Hall,
co. Chester, now represented by Mr. Bradshawe Isherwood; but he
is especially noted for being the grandfather of John Bradshawe,
President of the High Court of Justice which tried and sentenced King
Charles I. to the scaffold. President Bradshawe, the second son of
Henry, the elder of the two sons of Henry Bradshawe, of Marple, was
born at Wybersley in December, 1602. Against the entry of his baptism
in the Stockport registers for the 10th of that month, some loyalist
has written the word “traitor.” He was called to the bar in 1627, and
was a member of Gray’s Inn. In 1640 he was appointed Judge of the
Sheriff’s Court in Guildhall, London, and Serjeant-at-Law in 1648.
When the House of Commons had decided on the trial of the King, they
appointed a Court of Commissioners, the presidency of which was offered
to John Bradshawe. It is only fair to say that he earnestly pleaded to
be excused, though it is possible that this hesitancy may have been
due to the undoubted danger attached to the position, which he was
apparently aware of if we are to judge by the broad brimmed hat[46]
which he wore during the trial, still preserved at Oxford, for it is
lined with plated steel as a protection against personal violence.
[46] _Annals of Hyde_, by Thos. Middleton, p. 237.
The High Court began their work on the 20th January. The first few
days were entirely occupied by a lengthy dispute between the King and
John Bradshawe concerning the authority of the Court, which, as King,
Charles naturally refused to acknowledge. On the 29th of January,
however, the death warrant was signed, to which the signature of John
Bradshawe stands first as president. He did not live to witness the
Restoration, for he died 31st October, 1659, and was buried with great
pomp in Westminster Abbey. His body was, however, exhumed with those of
Cromwell and Ireton, and all three were hung and buried at Tyburn.
[Illustration: John Bradshawe, Serjeant-at-Law.
President at the Trial of King Charles I., 1649.]
John Bradshawe seems to have kept up friendly relations with his
Derbyshire kinsmen. His signature appears in more than one of the deeds
connected with family arrangements, and he acted as one of the
overseers to the will of George Bradshawe, of Eyam, the High Sheriff’s
brother, made 17th June, 1646.
Anthony Bradshawe the youngest son of William Bradshawe, of Bradshaw,
is perhaps better known than his brothers by reason of his quaint
monument in Duffield church, a photograph of which illustrates this
article. He was born on February 3rd, 1545; was educated at Oxford,
where he took his B.A. degree 3rd April, 1566;[47] and entered as a
student of the Inner Temple 25th May, 1573. He made his home, however,
in Duffield, where he lived in a house called Farley’s Hall. He owned
the Duffield mill, and lands in Duffield and Holbrook, and other
places in the neighbourhood. He was the author of various interesting
articles, which prove that not only was he an adept in his vocation
as a barrister, but also was an industrious and intelligent student
of the history of his own county. He wrote a most remarkable poem of
fifty-four stanzas, giving an interesting account of Duffield and
Duffield Frith. It is published at length in the _Reliquary_.[48] All
his MSS. were specially left to his son Jacynth, but with the exception
of that on his own family, of which a literal transcript is given, they
have all mysteriously disappeared. Some of them found their way, many
years ago, into the possession of Mr. Barber, of Smalley. Extracts from
these are quoted by Rev. C. Kerry, late rector of Upper Stondon, in the
article on the “History of Peak Forest” which he contributed to the
_Journal of the Derbyshire Archæological Society_ in 1893.[49]
[47] Forster’s _Alumni Oxonienses_.
[48] Vol. xxiii., p. 69.
[49] Vol. xv., p. 67.
One of these MSS., a great portion of which has been there transcribed,
supplies most curious and interesting information concerning the
customs and duties of the officers of the forest of the High Peak.
Other MSS. had been published ten years before by Mr. Kerry for the
_Reliquary_.[50] One of these contains “the Account of a Conference”
held between himself and a distinguished visitor, “W. N., a Sowthern
gent att the howse of the said A. B., called ffarley’s House, in
Duffield, in the County of Derby,” on 1st May, 1603.
[50] Vol. xxiii., p. 137.
It begins thus:—
“W. N of C in the Countie of Suffolk gent an auntient Scholar and
Companion of the said A B above 40 yeres past in the vniversitie of
Oxford (there p’ceding graduats togeather) & afterwords dyvers yeres
fealow student by practique w^{th} the said A B in the Inn^r Temple
London ... tooke paynes to repose himself for a few daies w^{th} the
said A B att his house aforesaid whenne he went to Buxton Well & so
to Bradshaugh Hall in Bradshaugh Edge a little there begyled where
the said A B was born & his auncestors whither the said A B verie
willinglie accompanyed him & the better occasioned to visit his
brother & friends there ...
“W. N. And what is that w^{ch} you call Bradshaugh Edge wherein your
brother now dwelleth
“A. B. Sr I take that to be a c^rten part of the p’ishe of Chapell de
le ffryth w^{ch} the King of England in time past gave vnto one of
my Auncestors for s^rvice done as p’tly appereth in some evidences
of my brothers w^{ch} are without date afore the conquest of England
and I fynd that that p’ish conteyneth three Edges vidlet Bradshaugh
Edge Bowdon Edge and Cambis Edge and that so the said Edge called the
Bradshaugh Edge conteyneth Ashford p’te of the said p’ishe and was all
graunted to my auncestors though my former auncestors were of like
vnthriftee and have in tymes past sold away most of the same, and so
my brother hath but a small remaynd^r therein And touchinge the Armes
of the said house of Bradshaughe I will not take upon me to blaze the
same leaving itt to the Heralds for avoyding of offence but the crest
is the Buck in his naturell couller vnder the hawthorne tree browsing
or rompant.”
With regard to the office he held, and his work as a barrister-at-law,
his remarks—greatly abbreviated and modernised in spelling—are as
follows:—
“Being in 38 Elizabeth Regina by the Hon^{ble} Gilbert Earl of
Shrewsbury her Majestys High Steward of the Honor of Tutbury charged
trusted & deputed to be understeward there and also having spent above
30 years time partly in the Inner Temple and partly in the C^t of the
Com:n Pleas at Westminster where I also practised above 30 years as
Attorney.... For the better instructing of my sons and clerks which
I employed under me in that office I ... collected certain little
books ... concerning my Service doing in the said courts as namely
one little book of such points & learning of the Forest lawes as I
supposed to be convenient,” etc.
Among other benefactions to the place in which he had chosen to reside,
he founded an almshouse. He alludes to it in these words:—
“Onlie this I ympose & devyse & hope ytt will not offend that where I
have erected a litel Almeshouse for harbouring of a ffew poore ffolks
in y^e towne of Duffeld aforesaid (as the pore widow offered her myte)
& have established for the same poore but thirtie shillings yerely
to buy them some symple cloth for coates: I say I have ordered the
auntient of the same poore for the tyme being shall keep the kay of
the box wherein the same book of Regist^r shall lye in my said house”
...
In the indenture, which he says he intends to leave within his will, he
alludes to it thus:—
“I have often ment & prposed & in my litle monument standing in the
Church of Duffield abovesaid do shew that I wuld p’vyde to allow an
hospithall or litle almeshouse in the towne of Duffeld w^{th} certen
allowance for harbouring of ffour poore p’sons widows or others to
contynue in man^r & forme in my last will & testem^t declared or to
be sett downe or referred and haue now devysed by my last will and
testament, God willing, my Tenemt in Derby in Full Streete there now
or late occupied by one Thomas Wright And my cotage and garden to
y^{tt} adjoyning and belonging in Duffeld abovesaid.... Therefore
now ... my desyre & intent is that that my heires & all myne & there
heres posteritie to whom the said Tenem^t & rents & cotage shall
descend or come by vertue of my said will shall for eu^r & from tyme
to tyme hereafter elect allow and admytt ffour poore p’sons of Duffeld
viz^t two aged or ympotent men and two like women widows or others of
honest behavior to be harboured lodged & dwell in my said hospitall
or almsehouse & to use the said garden therew^{th} for and during the
lyves & lyfe of any such poore p^rsons ev^ry one of them paying only a
godspeny a^{tt} there seu^ral admissions to my said heires,” etc.
The document ends with the rules to be observed by the occupants of
the almshouse regarding their language and their attendance at church,
where they were to sit “att the backe of my pewe,” which pew, as well
as his monument, they were to dust and keep clean. The “monument”
referred to here is in the church, and in good preservation. The
“almshouses,” which stood in the Town Street between “Duffield Hall
and the road, were pulled down in 1804,” says Dr. Cox in his work on
_Derbyshire Churches_, and he remarks: “They were most improperly
bought of the parish in 1804 by Mrs. Bonnell, of the Hall, for £120,
and pulled down, in order to enlarge the grounds.” Quoting a letter
written to Mr. Lysons in 1816 he adds: “The annexed lines are inscribed
on a stone now making part of the fence in Bonell’s pleasure grounds at
Duffield, but formerly placed in front of Bradshaw’s almshouses, which
I have heard stood near the same spot, but is now entirely erased.”
“B ehold Lord of Life this myte I restore
R endering thanks unto thee for all that we have
A nd this little Harbour I leave for the poore
D evised to lodge four who else may alms crave
S hure trust I repose & myne I exhort
H enceforth this Hospital as it needs to renew
A llowing such things as my will doth purport
W e meane & pray God for ay to continew
G od grant that others more able than I
H ereafter may better pore people supply.”
[Illustration: Duffield Church: Monument of Anthony Bradshawe.]
Anthony Bradshaw’s monument to himself, his two wives, and twenty
children, was erected in 1600; he did not die until 1614, having had
in the meantime three additional children. It stands against the
east wall of the north transept of Duffield church, and is in a fair
state of preservation. At the top of the monument is the Bradshaw
coat—_arg._, two bendlets between as many martlets, _sab._, surmounted
by the crest of a hart standing under a vine bough. Across the centre
of the monument, between the inscription proper and the acrostic, are
the small incised effigies (half length) of himself, his wives, and
children distinguished by their respective initials. The following are
the inscriptions:—
“Parvū monumentū An^{ij} Bradshawgh interioris templi L. generos.
(quarti filü W^i Br. de Bradshawgh in hoc comitatu Derb. gent.) nup.
coron, ac subvic. com. ejusd. Ac etiam uni. atturn. cur. de banco
apud Westmr necuon dep. slli totius feodi de Duffield Hic qui dnas
hūit uxores & xx^{ti} liberos subscript. quibus et pro quibus (inter
multa) ut sequitur oravit et [~p]cepit, Ac postea p’ult. volun. ac.
testm. sua in scriptis remanem unam [~p]vam domum cum gardino sumtu
suo proprio in Duffeld hic conditam pro hosp. quatuor pauperum istius
ville (per heredes suos de tempore in tempus eligend. et locand.)
inter alia volvit et legavit ac devisavit cum allocaoñ in dcō testō
mancōnatis impp̄m continuand. ac per heredes suos manutend. modo et
forma in eodem testō limitat, et content. et sic obüt hicque sepelit’
... die ... A^o Jesu X̄r Salutis suæ....
“Griseld Blackwall (daughter & Heire of Richard Blackwall of Blackwall
in this county of Derby Gent. & of Anne sister of Thomas Sutton of
Over Haddon Esq.) was his first Wief by whom he had 4 sonnes W^m Fra
Exupie. & John. W^{ch} Richard was one of the cozeyns & heires of Mr.
Boyfield of Barford in the countie of Northton Esq.
“Elizabeth the daughter of Richard Hawghton was his second wyfe by
whom he had xvj children, viz. Jacincth, Antonie, Michaell, Elizabeth,
Felix, Quyntin, Petronilla, Athanasia, Isadora, Mildrede, Brandona,
Erasmus, Josephe, Millicent, Cassandra, Vicesim.
“Quorum cuique A. Br. dixit viz.
“Deum tunc Regem honora ac parentes cognatos cole magistratos metue
maiore cede minori parce prox̄mum dilige sicut teipu et cum boni
ambula.
“Dum fueris fœlix, multos numerabis amisos, tempora si fuerint nubila
solus eris. Ergo sic utere tuo ut alieno ne indigens, ac semper
intende [~p]. Dē. [~p]cede et regna.”
Nam.
A s God dyd give this man,
N o small charge as you see,
T o trayne them he began,
H ere ech in there degree,
O ft wishing them such grace,
N o future course to take,
I njurious to there race,
E Is end of lief to make.
B less them oh Lord with peace,
R esist there adverse fates,
A lways them well increase,
D efendyng them from hates,
S uch lyvelode to them gyve,
H ere whylest on earth they bee,
A s they may love & lyve,
W ee praye O God q^{th} He.
G.
H.
A. {Different tyme I wishe thee But put thy hous in order} B.
{Q^{th} he which here doth lye For surely thou shalt dye}
#/
It is of some interest to print for the first time a quaint Bradshaw
pedigree, which is an exact copy of one in my own possession, in the
handwriting of Anthony Bradshaw; it was too much worn to permit of
reproduction in facsimile.
Several of his twenty-three children settled in the neighbourhood,
not only at Duffield, but at Makeney, Idridgehay, and Belper, and the
Duffield registers[51] record their existence during the whole of the
seventeenth century.
[51] _Reliquary_, vol. xxiii., p. 134.
Vicesimus, the last of the children recorded on the monument, was
baptized 10th March, 1600, and married Ellen, daughter and heiress
of Richard Fletcher, of Makeney. Their descendants intermarried with
various local families, and one of them married Thos. Ward, curate of
Duffield, early in 1800. Peregrine, born in 1602, after the monument
had been erected, was perhaps one of the best known to the world at
large of this big family. He settled in London, and later on was of
Wymondham, and acted as page to Anne of Denmark, wife of James I., and
afterwards as “Esquire to the body of King Charles I.”[52]
[52] _Lincolnshire Pedigrees_, _Harl. Society_, p. 109.
Anthony Bradshawe died 1614. His will was proved on the 3rd May in
that year. He leaves legacies to “Francis Bradshawghe, of Bradshawghe,
Peter and Henry Bradshawghe,” and a ring is left to John Curzon, of
Kedleston, who was father of the first baronet, and ancestor to the
present Lord Scarsdale. Jacynth is the fortunate inheritor of his
signet ring, furniture, books, and MSS.
[Illustration:
Com. Derby { Will̄m Bradshawghe of Bradshawghe in the County aforesaid
ffebr. 1610. { gent (who and his Ancestors have beene lawfull and right
{ Inheritors and owners thereof by antient desent ever
{ synce afore the Conquest whiche auntient evidences thereof
{ doe shew) maryd Margret the daughter of M^r Cleyton of
{ Stryndes hall in Cheshire, by whome hee had yssue
{ liueinge—
1 2 3 4 5 6
---------+---------+---------+----------+-----------+-----------
Godfrey | Henerie | Francis | Anthony | Elizabeth | Margret
G1 | H2 | F3 | A4 | E5 | maried to
| | | | | Littlewood
---------+----+----+---------+ +-----------+
francis | Henerey |
f1 | H3 |
+--------------+----------------------------------
| Anthony
| A3
--------------+-------------------------------------------------
| The same ffrancis the sonne had |
| yssue by the said Anne his |
| wife diu^rs sonnes and daughters |
| here under menconed viz |
G1. Godfrey his eldest sonne maryed to Em daughter to Anthony
Shalcrosse of Shalcrosse in the said County Esq^r by whome hee had
yssue ffrancis Leuon^rd Godfrey Peeter & Henerie and divers daughters
whose names and matches are here und^r mencioned
H2. Henerie maried to Dorotha daughter of Xpofer Baghau of the townhed
in y^e Chapell of ffryth gent by whome hee had ishew one sonne Henerie
and oy^r daughters by dyu^r venters Elizabeth maryed to
F3. Francis maried to Mary the sister of Juxe Esq^r servante to the
late Queene Elizabeth by whome he had issue ffrancis and other Children
now dwelling att Wakesay by Charleton in the County of Willtesh^r
purchased by the said ffrancis the father