Nigel Bowyer Gresley (1753 - abt. 1808)

Ancestors

Descendants

Died about 26 Mar 1808 at about age 55 in Bath, Somerset, England

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The Gresleys of Drakelowe

Biography

Nigel, son of Sir Nigel, 6th Baronet and Elizabeth, was born on 18 March 1753 ^[1] and educated at Manchester Grammar School^[2]. We know little of his life before his father's death, except in connexion with his marriage. In 1780 however he was High Sheriff of Derbyshire ^[3] (one of five of the Gresley Baronets to hold this postion)^[4] and in 1783 obtained a private Act enabling him to lease part of his Staffordshire estates to persons interested in iron works. From this Act it appears that Nigel had already interested himself in iron works on his estates, following the example of his father. He also endeavoured to improve the pottery made at Gresley, which had previously been a coarse brown ware made from a bluish-white superficial clay known as ' Rough Tom.' In 1795, in conjunction with Mr. Adderley, Sir Nigel established a porcelain factory at Church Gresley, employing Staffordshire men, and succeeded in producing the Gresley China, for which the Miss Gresleys used to paint the patterns. Several sets of this ware are still at Drakelowe, but the factory was unremunerative, and was sold in 1825. About £80,000 are said to have been lost in this unfortunate venture.^[5] Miss Seward was staying at Drakelowe in July 1794, and testifies that 'Sir Nigel knows well how to animate and diversify the longest summer day.' She mentions also that he personally designed a monument in Lichfield Cathedral erected to the memory of a Mr. Saville , a Vicar Choral, who died in 1803.

At a bye-election early in 1799 Sir Nigel unsuccessfully contested a Parliamentary seat at Lichfield in the Conservative interest, his successful opponent being Sir J. Wrottesley. Among the public posts which he held were the Recordership of Lichfield from 1802, a Trusteeship of Raunston Hospital in the same year, and a Governorship of Appleby School. At Drakelowe he kept open house, and delighted the neighbourhood with masqued Balls. Sir Nigel himself had literary tastes, and contributed some papers about the Civil War as it affected Staffordshire to Shaw's History of the County. At the end of his life he resided at Bath, and died there of dropsy on March 26, 1808, and on April 4 was buried in the Abbey, where there is a monument to his memory.

Sir Nigel married first at Croxall on January 26 1776 his first cousin Wilmot only child and heir of Sir Thomas Gresley the 5th Baronet. There are some graceful verses On the Marriage of Nigel Bowyer Gresley Esq. with Miss Gresley of Drakelow "By a Friend" probably by Miss Seward. Wilmot died at Bristol on December 3, 4, or 5, 1790^[6] and was buried at Gresley on December 13. Elizabeth Gresley was living at Worcester at the time, and records that on Saturday December 11 "the Funeral of Lady Gresley pass'd thro' on their way to Gresley—the hearse, two mourning coaches and six, their own chaise and pair, and her saddle horse led with saddle covered with black and three men on horseback. The family came to Worcester, and stay'd all night." She left three daughters, but in order to keep the property and title together bequeathed the bulk of the estates to any son of Sir Nigel by a future wife. The issue of this marriage was as below :-

1. Wilmot Maria, born at Drakelowe April 7 1778, baptized at Walton May 20, was married at Gresley Church on September 21 1802 to the Rev. Thomas Levett, second son of Thomas Levett Esq. of Packington. He died without issue on October 9 1843 at Leamington in his seventy-fourth year, and was buried at Whittington where he had been for forty years curate. She died on December 17 1845 at Packington, and was buried at Whittington.
2. Emma Sophia, born at Lichfield April 17 1785 and baptized in the Cathedral on July 18. Was married at Scarborough on September 15 1808 to Richard Edensor Heathcote, MP, her first cousin, and had three children. She died in September 1813.
3. Elizabeth Augusta, born at Drakelowe December 5, 1787, christened at Walton on February 20 1788, died on or about October 4 1808 unmarried, and was buried at Gresley on October 10.

Sir Nigel married secondly Maria Eliza, only daughter and heir of Caleb Garway Esq., of Worcester. The marriage was at St. James's, Piccadilly, London, on June 25 1796. She died at Cheltenham on November 9 1840 in her seventieth year, having had four children :-

1. Almeria Georgiana Eliza, born April 9 1797^[7] christened at Gresley September 22 in that year. Died on January 6, 1798 and was buried at Gresley on January 10.
2. Louisa Georgiana Maria, born at Drakelowe on July 18, 1798, married on March 2 1822, at Leamington the Rev. Edward Woodyat M.A. and had eight children, of whom the eldest son was the Rev. George Woodyat, who on July 4 1865, married Ella (Pendrill), and the eldest daughter was Georgiana Louisa who on January 10 1843, married the Rev. Dennis L. Cousins of Cheltenham. Edward was of Kempsey in Worcestershire, and son of George Woodyat of Ledbury.
3. Roger (born December 27 1799) 8th Baronet
4. Nigel, born at Worcester on March 15 1801, died of consumption at the Hotwells near Bristol on May 19 1816 and was buried at Church Gresley on the 29th.

Sources

1. ↑ All sources are Madan pages 117-120, Cokayne pages 40-41 and Debrett pages 246-247 unless otherwise stated
2. ↑ Madan refers to "Manch Sch Reg" - Manchester Grammar School Regeristers are not available online, but are in the school archive
3. ↑ The High Sheriff of Derbyshire website directs to Wikipedia for a complete list.
4. ↑ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gresley_baronets
5. ↑ It is suggested (unsourced) that "... most of the pottery cracked in firing and the experiment proved a failure. An order for a magnificent dinner service was obtained from Queen Charlotte through her Chamberlain, Col. Disbrowe, of Walton Hall, but it was never completed as the china came out of the ovens cracked and crazed. So far as the writer is aware Gresley china bore no distinctive markings. Specimens were preserved at Drakelow Hall and others can be seen in Museums at Derby and Birmingham. In the possession of Lord Gretton at Staple ford Hall, is a dessert service comprising 34 pieces with flower springs in colour on a yellow and gold background."
6. ↑ Madan gives sources for the 3rd as Gresley Monument, and family notebooks for the 4th and 5th. Debrett and Cockayne both state the 4th.
7. ↑ Debrett has birth Jun 1797

• Madan, Falconer. The Gresleys of Drakelowe. Oxford, 1899. Accessed via Internet Archive

• Cokayne, G.E. The Complete Baronetage - Volume I (1611-1625). Exeter, 1900. Accessed via Internet Archive

• Debrett, John & Collen, George William. The Baronetage of England. London, 1840. Accessed via [https://books.google.co.uk/books?lr=&id=mvIDAAAAQAAJ&dq=%22rev.+thomas

Gresley Baronets on Wikipedia

Netherseal Village website

Netherseal Conservation Area Character Statement, South Derbyshire District Council, 2011

Netherseal Hall

Drakelow Hall

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