People: Holford, Margery


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Surname

Holford

Forename

Margery

Sex

Female

Parish

Great Budworth

Marital Status

Widow

Spouse Name

Robert

Remarks


Margery Holford was the widow of Robert Holford, third son of Thomas Holford of Holford Hall. Margery and Robert had a number of children, including 6 sons, John, Phillip, Bartholomew, Owen, Matthew and Brian and at least 2 daughters named Martha and Katherine. Katherine was born about 1511.

Robert had died by 1538 as Margery, as his widow, was involved sometime between 1533 and 1538 in a lawsuit concerning land in Bosden (TNA C 1/827/17-19).

Margery herself had died by September 1541 as depositions in a cause relating to her will indicate.

Sources: 

The Visitation of Cheshire in the year 1580, ed. J. Paul Rylands (The Harleian Society, 18, 1882), p. 125

Depositions in the cause concerning the will of Margery Holford dec’d:
CALS EDC 2/2, pp. 394-398, 412-413

 

Causes

EDC 5/1/10 – defendant
EDC 5/1/11 – mentioned in the libel; grandmother of plaintiff

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People: Cotton, Sir George


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Surname

Cotton

Forename

George

Sex

Male

Marital Status

Married

Spouse Name

Mary

Occupation Status

Gentleman

Remarks

Career: George Cotton was born about 1495, the second son of John Cotton of Cotton in Shropshire. He became an esquire of the body to Henry VIII and obtained a number of official appointments, being knighted in 1542. By the time of his death, he had been appointed vice-chamberlain to the future Edward VI.

In August 1539 he and his wife, Mary (Onley), were granted the monastery and lands of Combermere Abbey, near Nantwich in Cheshire. The Cotton family built a house there which is thought to incorporate part of the old monastic buildings. The Tudor house survived until the early nineteenth century when it was extensively remodelled in the Gothic style by cladding the existing walls.

Sir George and Lady Mary Cotton were granted the manors of Wilkesley and Poulton in Cheshire by Henry VIII and, as indicated in EDC 5/1/10, other grants from the King included the farm of the parish of Great Budworth.

George Cotton died in 1545 and his will is held by The National Archives.

The images are of Combermere Abbey, the black and white image of the house in the Tudor period is from Ormerod’s Cheshire, courtesy of HathiTrust.

Sources: 

Pedigrees made at the Visitation of Cheshire, 1613, eds. Sir George J. Armytage and J. Paul Rylands (The Record Society of Lancashire and Cheshire, 58, 1909), p. 66

A P Baggs, Ann J Kettle, S J Lander, A T Thacker, David Wardle, ‘Houses of Cistercian monks: The abbey of Combermere’, in A History of the County of Chester: Volume 3, ed. C R Elrington, B E Harris( London, 1980), British History Online https://www.british-history.ac.uk/vch/ches/vol3/pp150-156 [accessed 28 December 2024]

George Ormerod, The History of the County Palatine and City of Chester (second edition, revised and enlarged by T. Helsby, London, 1882), vol. iii, pp. 404-405, 414-415

Will held by The National Archives, PROB 11/30/417: Will of Sir George Cotton, Vice Chamberlain to the Prince

 

Causes

EDC 5/1/10 – plaintiff

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Places: Lower Peover


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Place Type

Chapelry

County

Cheshire

Parish

Great Budworth

Deanery

Frodsham

Causes

EDC 5/1/10 – George Cotton, esquire, contra Margery Holford
EDC 5/1/11 – Francis Holford contra Phillip Holford

LOWER PEOVER 

Lower Peover was a chapelry in the extensive parish of Great Budworth. It was also known as Little Peover, Nether Peover and Peover Inferior. The chapelry comprised the townships of Plumley, Lower Peover and Allostock. It remained part of Great Budworth parish until 1814.

The parish of Great Budworth belonged to Norton Priory before the dissolution, and the Priory supplied a cleric to officiate in the chapel of Lower Peover every Sunday and Wednesday plus various feast days and also to perform baptisms because of the distance from the mother church. Tithes were payable to Great Budworth. Residents of the chapelry were required to supply books, vestments, vessels etc. for the chapel and after the dissolution of Norton Priory they also had to pay the minister.

The earliest parts of the chapel building are understood to date from the late thirteenth century and it remains an excellent example of a timber-framed church building, sympathetically restored in 1852. The brick tower had been added in 1582.

In 1625 a dispute arose between Lady Mary Cholmondeley, who had inherited the property of the Holford family in Plumley, and Mrs Margaret Shakerley, widow of Peter Shakerley of Hulme in Allostock. Lady Mary claimed that Mrs Shakerley had nailed up a door of the chapel thus blocking her family’s usual access into their pew. Further details of this dispute, including some transcriptions of correspondence between Lady Mary and the bishop, can be found in volume 107 of Transactions of the Historic Society of Lancashire and Cheshire (see link below.)

There is a schoolhouse in the chapel yard which was built in 1710.

‘The Bells of Peover’, a hostelry adjoining the churchyard, was built in 1839 and is famous for its wisteria in the Spring. It was patronised by General Patton while he was billeted locally just before D-Day in 1944.

Sources:

William Fergusson Irvine, ‘Disputes at Nether Peover chapel in 1625’, Transactions of the Historic Society of Lancashire and Cheshire,  vol.107 (1955), pp. 141-148. Available online:
https://www.hslc.org.uk/journal/vol-107-1955/

George Ormerod, The History of the County Palatine and City of Chester (second edition, revised and enlarged by T. Helsby, London, 1882), vol. iii, pp. 140-143

CCEd location ID: 5097

 

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People: Brereton, John


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Surname

Brereton (Brearton)

Forename

John

Sex

Male

Parish

Tilston

Marital Status

Unknown

Occupation Status

Gentleman

Remarks

There were a number of Cheshire families with the surname ‘Brereton’ at this time, including one influential family who lived in Malpas, not far from Tilston. This family included the courtiers, Sir Randle Brereton and his sons, Urian and William. William had been executed by Henry VIII, accused of adultery with Anne Boleyn.

It is possible that John Brereton was a family connection of theirs.

 

Causes

EDC 5/1582/11 – defendant

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People: Massey, Richard


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Surname

Massey (Massy/Mascy/Massie/Massye)

Forename

Richard

Sex

Male

Parish

Tilston

Marital Status

Married

Spouse Name

Mary

Occupation Status

Gentleman

Remarks

Richard Massey was the son of Richard and Margery Massey, whose family had occupied Grafton Hall since the early sixteenth century. His family tree may be found in Ormerod’s Cheshire.

He died without leaving any children and Grafton Hall passed to his nephew, Gerard Massey, rector of Wigan. Gerard sold the Grafton estate to Sir Peter Warburton, a career lawyer, who rebuilt the Hall.

The image of Sir Peter Warburton’s Grafton Hall in the early nineteenth century is from Ormerod’s Cheshire, courtesy of HathiTrust.

Sources:

George T. O. Bridgeman, The history of the church and manor of Wigan in the County of Lancaster, Part 1, Chetham Society, new series, 15 (1888). 

George Ormerod, The History of the County Palatine and City of Chester, vol. 2 (second edition, revised and enlarged by T. Helsby, London, 1882).

Causes

EDC 5/1582/11 – plaintiff

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Places: Grafton


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Place Type

Township

County

Cheshire

Parish

Tilston

Deanery

Malpas

Causes

EDC 5/1582/11 – Richard Massey contra John Brereton

 

GRAFTON

Grafton was one of the townships of the parish of Tilston in the south west of Cheshire.

It was part of the barony of Malpas.

The image of Grafton Hall in the early nineteenth century is from Ormerod’s Cheshire, courtesy of HathiTrust.

 

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People: Leche, Ralph


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Surname

Leche

Forename

Ralph

Sex

Male

Parish

Tilston

Marital Status

Unknown

Causes

EDC 5/1560/2 – defendant

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People: Fitton, Joan


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Surname

Fitton (Fytton)

Forename

Joan

Sex

Female

Parish

Tilston

Marital Status

Married

Spouse Name

Robert

Causes

EDC 5/1560/2 – plaintiff

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Places: Carden


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Place Type

Township

County

Cheshire

Parish

Tilston

Deanery

Malpas

Causes

EDC 5/1560/2 – Joan Fitton, wife of Robert Fitton, contra Ralph Leche

 

CARDEN

Carden was one of the townships of the parish of Tilston in the south west of Cheshire.

The defamatory words alleged in EDC 5/1560/2 were said to have been uttered in ‘the Commen Town fylde of Carden’. A common field would have been available for use by inhabitants of the township.

 

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Places: Tattenhall


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Place Type

Parish

County

Cheshire

Parish

Tattenhall

Deanery

Malpas

Causes

EDC 5/1560/2 – Joan Fitton, wife of Robert Fitton, contra Ralph Leche

 

 

 

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