Richard Gratwicke (bef. 1662 - bef. 1709)

Born before 20 May 1662 in Angmering, Sussex, England [uncertain]

Ancestors

Died before 12 Sep 1709 at about age 47 in Sompting, Sussex, England [uncertain]

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Biography

Richard Gratwicke was born in Sussex, England.

Overview

Richard Gratwicke was born in 1662 in the county of Sussex in southern England, soon after the Stuart Restoration of the British monarchy with the enthronement in 1660 of King Charles II. (See Research notes.) His family were members of the landed gentry, with a level of wealth associated with that social standing. He spent much of his life in the south-west corner of Sussex, not far from the coast and just to the east of Arundel with its medieval castle. On the map of the county (below), this area is marked with a yellow letter A. Richard married in 1691 and died in 1709 in Sompting, Sussex, where he owned land and property; he left his estate to his four daughters.

Moule's map of Sussex, 1837

Childhood

Richard Gratwicke was baptised in St Margaret's Church in Angmering, Sussex on 20 May 1662, the son of Humphrey Gratwick and Anne Edsaw. ^[1] The family had lived for several generations in that part of the county, where Sir William Gratwicke had been granted a coat of arms on 1 May 1607. ^[2] They were closely associated with St Margaret's Church, where Humphrey was a churchwarden in 1659 ^[3] and several members of the Gratwicke family are buried in the chapel to the right of the chancel. ^[2].

St Margaret's Church, Angmering, Sussex

Richard's parents had married in 1647. ^[4] He was one of their 10 children, of whom 8 died in infancy or childhood. ^[3] Why this high level of mortality amongst the children? The most likely explanation is from infectious disease. There were outbreaks of smallpox every 5-7 years in rural areas of England in the 17th and 18th centuries, with up to 1 in 5 deaths then caused by the illness, mostly affecting young children. ^[5] Another significant cause of death at that time was bubonic plague. Ever since the Black Death of 1348, there had been regular epidemics of the disease. Mortality statistics for London, 1603-1670, show at least 6 peaks of disease - which was not confined to the capital - including one in 1665. ^[6] When one looks at the dates of baptism and burial of the Gratwicke children of Angmering over the period 1652-1678, one sees a particularly high level of mortality in the 1660s: ^[3] Humphrey 1652-1669; John 1654-1669; Henry 1656-1660; William 1658-1669; Mary 1660-1678; Charles 1664-1665; Edward 1666-1671; and Anne 1668-1670. Only Richard (1662-1709) and his older brother William (1650-1711) are known to have survived to adulthood.

Adult life

When Humphrey Gratwicke died, he made bequests in his will of 1686 to his eldest son William and to his three grandchildren, all of them the children of William. ^[7] To his son Richard he left the sum of £1000, a considerable amount of money at that time - worth about £250,000 in modern-day terms. ^[8] Five years later Richard wed the then unmarried Ann Wilson of Angmering, shortly after 28 December 1691 when the marriage licence was granted. ^[9] From the married couple's land and property dealings, one can see how they moved from Angmering by 1697 to Steyning ^[10] and by 1699 to Sompting, ^[11] all three being villages in south-west Sussex to the east of the town of Arundel (see map, below). The couple had benefited from the fact that on the death in 1680 of Ann's father, Thomas Wilson, she and her sister Mary had inherited land and property in Steyning. ^[12]

Cary's map of west Sussex, 1794 (portion)

Richard Gratwicke and Ann went on to have 5 children: Mary, baptised on 26 July 1694 in Clapham, Sussex; ^[13]; Anne, born on 30 August 1696 and baptised on 9 September 1696 in Clapham; ^[14] Thomas, baptised on 8 November 1698 in Steyning; ^[15] Emma (known as Amy), baptised on 3 August 1701 in Sompting; ^[16] and Jane, baptised on 22 January 1707 in Sompting. ^[17]

Richard Gratwicke and Ann undertook several transactions of land and property over the period 1697-1700, some of them involving members of her family. Her widowed mother, Joan Wilson, had re-married after Thomas's death in 1680; her second husband was William Longmore, a butcher of Steyning. ^[10] They, together with Richard Gratwicke and Ann, and Richard Champion of Steyning, sold a "messuage, smith's shopp and meaddow" in 1697. In 1699 Richard Gratwicke bought land and property in Sompting and nearby Cokeham: "Messuage, garden, orchard, 2 barns, and 73a. land, with common of pasture and several leases and other appurtenances". ^[11] Ann's sister, Mary Wilson, had married Thomas Dennett, a glover of Steyning; in 1700 the couple sold a property for £95 to her brother-in-law. ^[12]

Richard Gratwicke died in 1709 and was buried in Sompting on 12 September 1709. ^[18] In his will, proved 7 October 1709, he bequeathed property to his four daughters: Mary, Anne, Amy and Jane. ^[12]

Research notes

• The family surname of Gratwicke is spelled in various forms in the historical documents: Gratwick and Gratwicke are the most common variants, but Gratwike, Gretwike and others also appear. There was another wealthy and extended Gratwicke family in the 17th and 18th centuries in the Cowfold district of Sussex, about 16 miles north-east of Angmering. There was even a Richard Gratwicke there, a gentleman of Kirdford near Cowfold, who left a will in 1718. ^[19] One needs to be careful, therefore, when consulting the historical records that one distinguishes between these two groups of families.
• Richard Gratwicke's will of 1709 has been difficult to locate. It is mentioned in a bundle of deeds at West Sussex Record Office ^[12] that apparently contains an attested copy.

Sources

1. ↑ "England, Sussex, Parish Registers, 1538-1910", database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:Q2QQ-YMH3 : 11 March 2018), Richard Gratwike, 1662.
2. ↑ ^{2.0 2.1} Skeet, Francis John Angus. A history of the parish of Angmering in the county of Sussex : with some account of the manors, churches, & families connected therewith. Arundel : West Sussex Gazette and South of England Advertiser, 1921. Chapter on Angmering, page 5: Manor of Ham - available online at: https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:S3HY-DRVT-JX?i=77&cat=1198973 [accessed 27 April 2022]
3. ↑ ^{3.0 3.1 3.2} Edward W.D. Penfold (ed.) The first book of the parish registers of Angmering, Sussex, 1562-1687. Worthing, England : Sussex Record Society, 1913; Sussex Record Society (series), volume 18. Available online at: https://www.familysearch.org/library/books/viewer/211409/?offset=130960#page=13&viewer=picture&o=&n=0&q= [accessed 30 April 2022]
4. ↑ "England, Sussex, Parish Registers, 1538-1910", database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:Q2Q7-Q96F : 7 December 2017), Humphrey Gretwick and Ann Edsaw, 1647.
5. ↑ Wills, Simon. How our ancestors died. Barnsley, Yorkshire, England: Pen and Sword Family History, 2013. Page 158.
6. ↑ Wills, Simon. How our ancestors died. Barnsley, Yorkshire, England: Pen and Sword Family History, 2013. Page 141.
7. ↑ Will of Humphrey Gratwick, gentleman of Angmering, Sussex. (The National Archives, Kew, Surrey, England. https://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/details/r/D745262: [accessed 26 April 2022]), Ref: PROB 11/383/336, Date: 18 June 1686.
8. ↑ Inflation calculator, Bank of England. Available at: https://www.bankofengland.co.uk/monetary-policy/inflation/inflation-calculator [accessed 2 May 2022]
9. ↑ Dunkin, Edwin H.W., F.S.A. Calendar of Sussex Marriage Licenses recorded in the Consistory Court of the Bishop of Chichester for the Archdeaconry of Chichester, June 1575 to Dec. 1730. Sussex Record Society, 1909. Sussex Record Society (series) volume 9, page 110. Available at: https://archive.org/details/publications09suss/page/110/mode/2up
10. ↑ ^{10.0 10.1} Assignment of lease for residue of a term of 2000 years, in consideration of £70. (Cited by The National Archives, Kew, Surrey, England. https://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/details/r/091874d3-b877-43e3-963a-818647ad6cf8: [accessed 28 April 2022]), Ref: Add Mss 45785, Date: 19 March 1697.
11. ↑ ^{11.0 11.1} Deed to Lead the Uses of a Fine. (Cited by The National Archives, Kew, Surrey, England. https://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/details/r/9eac7669-db46-44a5-84dd-8a3bd3106273: [accessed 28 April 2022]), Ref: Add Mss 28820, Date: 10 October 1699.
12. ↑ ^{12.0 12.1 12.2 12.3} Assignment of lease for residue of a term of 2000 years, in consideration of £70. (Cited by The National Archives, Kew, Surrey, England. https://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/details/r/091874d3-b877-43e3-963a-818647ad6cf8: [accessed 28 April 2022]), Ref: Add Mss 45785, Date: 19 March 1697.
13. ↑ "England Births and Christenings, 1538-1975", database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:ND63-1LG : 19 September 2020), Mary Gratwicke, 1694.
14. ↑ Bishop's Transcripts for Clapham, Sussex. Available at: https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:S3HT-D1QW-X71?i=525&cat=478022 [accessed 2 May 2022].
15. ↑ "England, Sussex, Parish Registers, 1538-1910", database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:Q2Q7-W62N : 7 December 2017), Thomas Gratwick, 1698.
16. ↑ "England, Sussex, Parish Registers, 1538-1910", database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:Q2Q7-CR3Q : 7 December 2017), Emma Gratwick, 1701.
17. ↑ "England, Sussex, Parish Registers, 1538-1910", database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:Q2Q7-CPY8 : 7 December 2017), Jane Gratwick, 1707.
18. ↑ "England, Sussex, Parish Registers, 1538-1910," database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:Q2Q7-CRFP : 7 December 2017), Richard Gratwick, 12 Sep 1709; citing Burial, Sompting, Sussex, England, 00164, The Keep, East Sussex Record Office; West Sussex County Record Office, Chichester.
19. ↑ Will of Richard Gratwicke, gentleman of Kirdford, Sussex. (The National Archives, https://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/details/r/D703914: [accessed 28 April 2022]), Ref: PROB 11/563/369, Date: 05 May 1718

Acknowledgements

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