G11 Grandparents

Alexander Pettifer was buried in St Mary the Virgin, Bampton, West of Oxford, on 11 Jun 1586. His will, proved at Oxford was granted probate on 25 Jun 1586. Continue reading →

Jane Stanley was the second oldest daughter of Edward Stanley, 3rd Earl of Derby. She married Edward Sutton, 4th Baron Dudley in 1566 and bore him two sons. She died a few days after the birth of the second son, John Sutton, in Dec 1569. Continue reading →

Henry Finch was born in Dudley about 1525 and was probably a younger son of Hugh Finch. Henry is named as one of  a number of burghers of Dudley who by 1562 had leases of ‘Our Lady’s Lands’, which made him and his heirs one of the original feoffees of Dudley Grammar School. Continue reading →

There is an entry in the Holy Trinity, Much Wenlock parish register for the burial of Humphrey Slaney of “the Hemme” on 3 Oct 1603. It seems very likely he is the father of Richard Slaney also of the Hem who leaves a will dated 1620. Continue reading →

William Barnesley of Trysull in Staffordshire died and left a will written on 28 Mar 1571. He is described as a Yeoman and is the grandfather of the William Barnesley, who died in 1640. It would appear to be this grandson William, son of his eldest son Thomas, who succeeded in adopting the Coat of Arms of the Barnesley family of Bromsgrove in about 1597, proving the common line of descent with the Barnesleys of Barnesley Hall. Certainly his will shows a number of important connections with the landed and merchant classes in Elizabethan South Staffordshire. Continue reading →

Eleanor Harman who lived from about 1510 to 1579 did not leave a will but we can glean a fair amount about her life from the wills of her two husbands. As a wealthy widow in the Elizabethan era she achieved financial independence after 1565 and we can speculate she was able to espouse and promote certain views on religion and education – mainly to promote the memory of her Uncle Bishop Vesey.  Continue reading →

There are two versions of wills held in the National Archives relating to Robert Pudsey of Langley Hall, Sutton Coldfield, Warwickshire. The original was written on 10 Aug in the first year of the reign of Edward VI, i.e. 1547. Probate is granted in 1558 on this will but appears to be nullified. A further version written on 6 Jul is slightly different from the first but with Probate re-granted in 1561. There is also a Latin version of this second will. This is difficult to explain especially as the documents superficially seem similar and non contentious.  Continue reading →

Clare Coleborne married Richard Jones of Dudley in about 1520. They were a wealthy burgher family in Dudley and she died and left a will probate date 19 Oct 1568 in which she names her three daughters and their respective husbands. She is thus demonstrably the common ancestor of both James Shaw and Sarah Bendy who marry on 22 Oct 1734 in Pattingham. Continue reading →