Whitmore Staffordshire Whitmore Hall inheritance

Date: [unknown] [unknown]
Location: Whitmore, Staffordshire, England
Surnames/tags: Whitmore Mainwaring

Whitmore Hall

Whitmore is one of very few properties in England that have not been sold in the last 935 years. The estate has remained in the same family since the Domesday Book was compiled in 1086, in the reign of William the Conqueror. The inheritance has sometimes passed through the female line, most recently in 1891 to Ellen Cavenagh nee Mainwaring (1845 – 1920). At least thirty-five generations have inherited Whitmore since a Saxon called Ulfac owned Whitmore and was usurped after the Battle of Hastings by a Norman knight who had supported William.

Source: Cavenagh-Mainwaring, J. G. The Mainwarings of Whitmore and Biddulph in the County of Stafford. An account of the family, and its connections by marriage and descent; with special reference to the Manor of Whitmore. about 1935. retrieved through archive.org https://archive.org/details/mainwaringsofwhi00main/

Wikitree profile	Date inherited	Notes	Mainwarings of Whitmore page reference	Major historical events and house history
Nigel (Stafford) de Stafford (bef.1065-bef.1124)	1086	At the time of the General Survey (20 Conq.), “ Ricardus Forestarius ” held Whitmore of the King. Nigel (de Stafford), the Gresley ancestor, held under him as mesne tenant. Ulfac held it in the time of King Edward the Confessor and was a free man.	page 3	Domesday Book: Whitmore is the second entry of Staffordshire page 10. The tenant in chief was Richard the forester. Lord in 1066: Ulfac or alternatively spelt Wulfheah. Lord in 1086: Nigel (of Stafford).
intervening generations not clear			page 24
John de Whitmore		John de Whitmore, in 1199, claimed to hold his land de domino rege i.e. as tenant in capite and as the father of Ralph and John presumably did hold Whitmore in capite ... probable that the first John was father of Ralph and John, and that he was a younger contemporary of King Henry II, and died between 1199 and 1203.	page 11
Ralph de Knutton son of John de Whitmore died by 1243 seems to correspond with Ralph Radulph (DeWhitmore) de Whitmore (abt.1171-abt.1243)	abt 1203	at 1212 Inquest of Service ... Radulph de Knutton is shown as holding 36 virgates in Cnoton, Dimsdal, Hanchurch, Claiton, Honeford and Witemor, ... Ralph de Knutton was lineal heir or co-heir of Richard Forester. ... In a deed of about 1225, John, son of Ralf de Cnotton, confirms to Ralf, son of John de Wytemore, all the tenements in Wytemore which John de Wytemore, father of Ralf, held of In a deed of about 1225, John, son of Ralf de Cnotton, confirms to Ralf, son of John de Wytemore, all the tenements in Wytemore which John de Wytemore, father of Ralf, held of Ralf de Cnotton.	page 11 page 16 page 18	In 1212 during the reign of King John there was a Great Inquest of Service. Randolph de Knutton held Whitmore with other land and paid £4. 11s. 6d. of “antient right”, that is, from the Conquest of England. It is thought that Ralph de Knutton was the lineal heir or co-heir of Richard the forester.
John de Whitmore died 1275	1243	John de Whitmore occurs, in various capacities, between 1275 and 1306, in Vols. VI and VII S.H.C. He was dead before 1314. He had two sons, Robert, who died without issue, and Ralph, son and heir, and an only daughter, Alice, on whom the Manor of Whitmore was settled, in remainder, in case her brother died without issue.	page 18 page 20
John de Whitmore		heir to his father John, one of three brothers, John, Ralph, and Roger.	page 20
Ralph de Whitmore son of John who died 1275		Ralph had a grant from his father of lands in Whitmore, and was living in 1286. He had issue three sons, Stephen, living 1316, Adam (Abbot of Dieulacress ?) and Roger, both living 1327. Stephen was father of Robert, living 1380-1388, father of Thomas who had a confirmation from James de Boghay of lands in Whitmore, in the latter year.	page 20
Ralph de Whitmore son of John son of John	before 1314	RALPH DE WHITMORE succeeded his father before 1314, for, in that year, probably on his marriage, he settled the Manor of Whitmore on failure of his own issue, on his sister Alice, with a remainder to Roger, son of Roger de Swynnerton, his first cousin. ... about the year 1300 John de Whitmore demised his manor of Whitmore to his son Ralph. ... Ralph de Whitmore came into an estate heavily encumbered, for, in 1308 (probably the year he succeeded) he mortgaged his manor mill, with all its profits less two pounds to Sir Roger de Swynnerton for twenty years, as security for a debt of £40. ... Ralph de Whitmore appeared as a juror, 1325-6, and in the Subsidy Roll of 1327. He probably died before 1332 as his name does not appear in the Roll for that year. As he had probably married in 1314, his son and heir would not have been of age until about 1336, but there is no record in the Historical Collections for Staffordshire, relating either to his wife or to the minority of his son.	page 21
John lord of Whitmore		John, lord of Whitmore appears as a witness in 1342, and about the same date, as son of Ralph formerly lord of Whitmore, confirms to William de Bromleye all his right in certain lands in Whitmore formerly acquired by his father. ... He had two sons William and Thomas, who both died in the lifetime of their father, and two daughters, coheiresses, Joan and Elizabeth. ... John de Whitmore must have been dead in 1385, for in 8 Ric. II Henry Clerk of Coventry and Joan his wife, daughter of John de Whitmore, settled their moiety of the manor of Whitmore on James de Boghay and Elizabeth his wife for 100 marks of silver. Thus the manor of Whitmore passed from the family of that name to the de Boghays.	page 23	Black Death 1346- 1353
James de Boghay (-1404) and Elizabeth his wife	1385	James de Boghay was dead before 1411, probably died 1404.	page 24 page 34
John Boughay died 1454	1404-1411	JOHN BOUGHAY, son and heir, succeeded, he was probably the John Boughay of Whitmore, who with Roger Boughay the elder, Richard Boughay, and Roger Boughay the younger of Hatton (near Swynnerton) was charged by Thomas de Swynner- ton, in 1407, with breaking into his close at Swynnerton, digging in his soil, and taking 100 rabbits worth 40 shillings, and carrying away the soil excavated to the value of 100 shillings. ... An Inquisition was carried out in 1428 by John Boughay of Whitmore, and seven others, to enquire into the condition and value of various churches round Stafford. ... John Boughey must have been over seventy years of age at this period, and was probably making a final settlement of his affairs including a provision for his newly married grandson. He was dead in 1454, for, in that year, Amice (Anne) formerly wife of John Bowghey, was suing James Bowghey of Whitmore, Gentilman, for dower in Whitmore, Buckenhal and Andesley.	page 35
James Bowghey (-1481)		James Boughey had an elder brother, John, who had no issue, and who predeceased his father. This was obviously a post-nuptial settlement made shortly after his succession to the estates, as he must have married about 1425, since his son was married in 1447.	page 37
Robert Boghay (abt.1450-abt.1490)
Humphrey Boghay (-1540)
Alice (Boughey) Mainwaring (abt.1520-bef.1573)		grand daughter and heiress of Humphrey de Boghey
Edward Mainwaring (bef.1516-1586)	1546	Edward 1 - married the heiress Alice De Boghay in 1546
Edward Mainwaring (abt.1544-1604)	1586	In 37 Eliz. (1595), Edward Manwaringe, then mesne Lord of the Manor of Whitmore, probably seventeenth in descent from Richard Forester, the tenant in capite, and sixteenth in descent from Nigel, the mesne tenant of the same manor in 1086, purchased the Manor of Knotton, and certain lands and rights in Knotton, Dymesdale and Wolstanton, from John Brett, grandson and heir of Edward Brett of Keele for the sum of one hundred and forty pounds.	page 15	Edward 2 married Jane Craddock
Edward Mainwaring (1577-1647)	1604	Edward 3 married Sarah Stone - have portrait		English Civil War 1642 - 1651
Edward Mainwaring (1603-1674)	1647	Edward 4 married Anne Lomas - have portrait
Edward Mainwaring (1635-1703)	1674	Edward 5 married bridget Trollope - have portrait
Edward Mainwaring (1681-abt.1738)	1703	Edward 6 married jemima Pye - have portrait
Edward Mainwaring (1709-1794)	1738	Edward 7 married sarah Bunbury - have portrait		Jacobite Rising 1745; French Revolution 1789
Edward Mainwaring (1736-1825)	1794	died without issue. Eight Edward Mainwarings in a row and then the 8th Edward married but had no children. His brother William had 11 children but all the sons died and had no children. Charles, son of William, was actually passed over in his uncle Edward’s will by codicil (I wonder what he had done!) and Sarah, who was unmarried was named the heir. Charles acted as Lord of the manor anyway. Then the estate passed to Rowland Mainwaring, who had definitely not been expected to be in line for the inheritance being the second son of a third son, with plenty of older male cousins. At one stage he was 10th in line.		Napoleonic Wars 1803 - 1815
Sarah Mainwaring (1774-1837)	1825	niece, daughter of Edward's brother William	page 103
Rowland Mainwaring (1782-1862)	1837	nephew of Edward who died 1825. Rowland Mainwaring had definitely not been expected to be in line for the inheritance being the second son of a third son, with plenty of older male cousins. At one stage he was 10th in line. In turn Gordon, who was his third son inherited and was also not expected to inherit. Gordon had a few sons and two of them did inherit but they had no sons and eventually his daughter Ellen Cavenagh nee Mainwaring inherited.	page 104	Reign of Queen Victoria
Gordon Mainwaring (1817-1872)	1862		page 117	Did not live in the Hall after he inherited it but leased it. In 1863 the Hall and grounds were let to Mr. Michael Daintry Hollins who remained as tenant for over thirty years.
Charles Henry Mainwaring (1850-1889)	1872	son of Gordon, died without issue, did not live at the Hall	page 119
Frederick Rowland Mainwaring (1859-1891)	1889	son of Gordon, died without issue. Did not live at the Hall	page 119
Ellen Jane (Mainwaring) Cavenagh-Mainwaring (1845-1920)	1891	daughter of Gordon, did not live at the Hall	page 119	World War 1
James Gordon (Cavenagh) Cavenagh-Mainwaring (1865-1938)	1920		page 123
Rafe Gordon Dutton Cavenagh-Mainwaring (1906-1995)	1938		page 125	World War 2
Guy Cavenagh-Mainwaring (1934-2021)	1995		page 125	Covid pandemic 2020 - 2022
Guy's son	2021

Sources