Vincent Grantham (abt. 1544 - bef. 1581)

Born about 1544 in South Kelsey, Lincolnshire, England

Ancestors

Husband of Elizabeth (Ayscough) Grantham — married 20 Oct 1569 in South Kelsey, Lincolnshire, England

Descendants

Died before 9 Nov 1581 before about age 37 in London, England [uncertain]

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Biography

Vincent Grantham was born in Lincolnshire, England.

Vincent was born in about 1544. His family had been leading lights in the wool trade in Lincoln since the beginning of the fifteenth century, and both his father, Thomas and grandfather, Vincent had been Members of Parliament for the constituency of Lincoln.^[1]

He probably grew up in both South Kelsey, Lincolnshire, England and in Lincoln. South Kelsey is in the North of Lincolnshire, about thirty miles North of Lincoln. His father had acquired both St Katherines Priory in Lincoln after the dissolution of the monasteries in the late 1530s, and an Estate at Goltho about ten miles North East of Lincoln.^[2]

He was married on October 20 1569 in South Kelsey to Elizabeth Ayscough the daughter of Sir Francis Ayscough.^[3]. The Ayscough family were local to South Kelsey, and the fact that Vincent's sister Hester had married Elizabeth's brother Edward in 1563 suggests there was a close relationship between the families.^[4]

According to "Burke's Family Records" (1897) they had four sons, Thomas later Sir Thomas Grantham^[2], who was also the Member of Parliament for Lincoln, Francis, Vincent and Edward^[5]

Maddisons "Lincolnshire Pedigrees" (1902) states that Vincent had died before November 9 1581 when his wife was living as a widow. ^[6]. This may have been sourced from the Inquisition post Mortem for Vincent Grantham which is dated to the regnal year Elizabeth 24 (November 17 1581 to November 16 1582). ^[7] According to Burke's Family Records, his widow remarried George Hatcliffe (or Harcliffe) after his untimely death. ^[5]. However, also according to Burke's Family Records, she died soon afterwards on May 2 1583. ^[5]

It is noteworthy that after his death. his son Thomas, who cannot have been more than about seven years old at the time, was made a ward of Sir Thomas Cecil, Earl of Exeter, the son of Queen Elizabeth's chief adviser William Cecil, Lord Burghley and the half brother of James I's chief adviser Robert Cecil, Earl of Salisbury. ^[2] The Cecils had been notables in the South of Lincolnshire and during this period had built Burghley House near Stamford, one of the finest Elizabethan stately homes in England.

Research Note

There is no record of Vincent being knighted. This prefix has therefore been deleted. The earliest recorded knighthood for a person with the surname Grantham is in 1603 for his son Sir Thomas Grantham ^[8](Kennedy-14080 18:22, 14 July 2020 (UTC))

Sources

1. ↑ Thomas Grantham in The History of Parliament: the House of Commons 1509-1558, ed S.T.Bindoff, 1982 - online - Author of this biography S.M.Thorpe https://www.historyofparliamentonline.org/volume/1509-1558/member/grantham-thomas-1525-58
2. ↑ ^{2.0 2.1 2.2} Sir Thomas Grantham in The History of Parliament: the House of Commons 1604-1629, ed. Andrew Thrush and John P. Ferris, 2010 - online - Authors of this biography Paula Watson / Rosemary Sgroi https://www.historyofparliamentonline.org/volume/1604-1629/member/grantham-sir-thomas-1573-1630
3. ↑ Marriage of Vincent Grantham and Elizabeth Ayscough in St Mary's South Kelsey https://www.familysearch.org/library/books/records/item/376825-lincolnshire-parish-registers-marriages-v-3?viewer=1&offset=0#page=91&viewer=picture&o=info&n=0&q= (Accessed July 14 2020)
4. ↑ Marriage of Edward Ayscough and Hester Grantham in St Mary's South Kelsey https://www.familysearch.org/library/books/records/item/376825-lincolnshire-parish-registers-marriages-v-3?viewer=1&offset=0#page=90&viewer=picture&o=info&n=0&q= (Accessed July 14 2020)
5. ↑ ^{5.0 5.1 5.2} Grantham in Burke Family Records (1897) Page 277 https://www.ancestry.com/mediaui-viewer/tree/106325654/person/140052862791/media/1860_burkefamilyrecs-00285?_phsrc=bcb198&_phstart=successSource Subscription required (Accessed July 15 2020)
6. ↑ Vincent Grantham in Lincolnshire Pedigrees (1902) Page 64 https://archive.org/stream/LincolnshirePedigreesV50/LincolnshirePedigrees_Maddison_v50#page/n81/mode/2up (Accessed July 15 2020)
7. ↑ Vincent Grantham Inquisition Post Mortem in The National Archnives, Kew, England, Reference C 142/196/7. https://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/details/r/C7828369. (Accessed 17 July 2020)
8. ↑ The Knights of England (1906) by William Arthur Shaw Vol 2 Page 103. The earliest Grantham Knight was in 1603 https://archive.org/details/knightsofengland02shawuoft/page/n111/mode/2up?q=Grantham

Acknowledgements

• This profile has been improved by a member of the England Project's Orphan Trail