Thomas Blood

Born [date unknown] in Derbyshire, England [uncertain]

Descendants

Died before 18 Jun 1544 in Dalbury, Derbyshire, England

Problems/Questions Profile manager: Garry Blood [send private message]

Biography

Thomas Blood of Dalbury is first known from his last will & testament of 28 May 1544.^[1][2][3] In it, he identifies the following family members:

• His unnamed wife, who was made a co-executor of his will; his probate record (see below) identifies her as Elizabeth.
• Robert, his son.
• Harye (Harry), his son.
• Isabell, his daughter.
• John, his son and the other co-executor of his will.

By examining probable later records concerning John, Isabell, and Harry, and applying the averages for ages at first marriage for men and women in 16th century England, the likely birth sequence of Thomas' four known children is:

1. John
2. Robert
3. Isabell
4. Harry

According to a later index derived from the Diocese of Lichfield Consistory Court's probate book,^[4] Thomas' will was entered into probate on 18 Jun 1544, indicating he died sometime between 28 May and then. The original probate book entry from which the index entry was derived clarifies that his wife's name was Elizabeth and confirms her and his son John as executors.^[5]

Research Notes

Year of Birth: Based on the laws, customs, and practices that governed English wills in the 16th century, certain biographic details can be gleaned from Thomas' will that can better inform an estimate for his year of birth. Thomas makes no stipulations that any of his four children would be required to wait until adulthood (21 years of age in 16th century England) in order to receive their inheritance, as was both customary and a legal practice of the time. This would seem to indicate that the youngest of them was at least 21 in 1544. If we apply a normal two-year spacing between births, then the eldest was probably born in 1517. Of course, this assumes no missing children (stillbirths, died in infancy, etc.), no children written out of the will, and only one marriage, so it's a very conservative estimate for the YOB of the first child. English men in the 16th century married at 26 to 27 years of age and produced their first child about a year later, on average; this would indicate Thomas married in about 1516. Therefore, this allows us to estimate a year of birth for Thomas of 1489 or 1490. This is likely at the later end of possible dates based on the large range of variability in the preceding assumptions.

Origins: Thomas' place of origin is assumed to be somewhere in Derbyshire but even this is in reality completely unknown. He is the first Blood documented anywhere in the county since two Blood men witnessed a land grant in Rowarth over a century before, and it is uncertain if they were from Derbyshire. Therefore, it is possible Thomas was a member of the founding generation of Bloods in Derbyshire.

~Garry Michael Blood

Sources

1. ↑ "Staffordshire, Dioceses Of Lichfield And Coventry Wills And Probate 1521-1860," database with images, FindMyPast.co.uk (https://www.findmypast.co.uk/transcript?id=GBPRS%2FSTAFF%2FWILLS%2F285592 : accessed 15 Oct 2022); data from entry -- First name: Thomas; Last name: Blode; Will year: 1544; Probate year: 1544; Parish: Dalbury Lees; Place: Dalbury Lees, Derbyshire, England; County: Derbyshire; Country: England; Series description: Registered wills and original wills, administrations and inventories, 1494-1860, and, act books, 1532-1638 for Diocese of Lichfield Episcopal Consistory Court; Piece description: Original wills, administrations, inventories; Piece year range: 1543-1545; Record set: Staffordshire, Dioceses Of Lichfield And Coventry Wills And Probate 1521-1860.
2. ↑ "Staffordshire, Dioceses Of Lichfield And Coventry Wills And Probate 1521-1860," database with images, FindMyPast.co.uk (https://www.findmypast.co.uk/transcript?id=GBPRS%2FSTAFF%2FWILLS%2F061188 : accessed 15 Oct 2022); data from entry -- First name: Thos; Last name: Blode; Will year: 1544; Parish: Dalbury Lees; Place: Dalbury Lees, Derbyshire, England; County: Derbyshire; Country: England; Series description: Registered wills and original wills, administrations and inventories, 1494-1860, and, act books, 1532-1638 for Diocese of Lichfield Episcopal Consistory Court; Piece description: Calendar of wills and admons.; Piece year range: 1494-1650; Record set: Staffordshire, Dioceses Of Lichfield And Coventry Wills And Probate 1521-1860.
3. ↑ Will of Thomas Blode of Dalbury Lees, Derbyshire, 28 May 1544; digital images of probate copies of original documents; FindMyPast.co.uk (https://search.findmypast.co.uk/record/browse?id=gbprs%2fstaff%2f007620628%2f00048 : accessed 15 Oct 2022)
4. ↑ Probate Entry for Thomas Blode of Dalbury, 18 Jun 1544, image of copy of Diocese of Lichfield Probate Book, FindMyPast.co.uk (https://search.findmypast.co.uk/record/browse?id=GBPRS/STAFF/007620609/00070 : accessed 21 Oct 2022)
5. ↑ Probate Entry for Thomas Blode of Dalbury, 18 Jun 1544, image of Diocese of Lichfield Probate Book, FindMyPast.co.uk (https://search.findmypast.co.uk/record/browse?id=gbprs%2fstaff%2f007620604%2f00251 : accessed 24 Oct 2022)