Will of Colonel Sir John Underwood Bateman-Champain, 1887

Date: [unknown] [unknown]
Location: [unknown]

This is a transcription of the register copy of the will of Colonel Sir John Underwood Bateman-Champain, of Halton Park, Lancaster written on 17 September 1878 when he still was at the rank of Major. The will was unrevised until his death 9 years later on 1 February 1877, and was proved at the Principal Probate Registry on 9 Mary 1877. ^[1]

This will is very dull. It is a legal directive for the appointment of trustees and setting up of trust funds for Sir John's children. Apart from his wife Harriet, no other member of his family is mentioned and no specific personal bequests are made. One of his eight children was yet to be born.

Persons mentioned:

• John Underwood Bateman-Champain of Halton Park in the County of Lancaster Testator
• my dear wife Harriet Sophia Harriet Sophie Bateman-Champain nee Currie, executrix of the will, co-guardian of Testator's children
• Reverend Sir Frederick Larkins Currie Harriet's brother, trustee, executor of the will, co-guardian of Testator's children
• Thomas Leach of Lincolns Inn Esquire Testator's brother in law, married to Testator's sister Caroline Eliza Champain. Trustee, executor of the will, co-guardian of Testator's children. Deceased before 9 March 1887.
• infant children at the time of writing the Testator was father to seven children, all under the age of 13 years.
• Richd. S Taylor of Grays Inn, Solicitor. Witness to will
• Richd. S Taylor Jun. of Grays Inn, Solicitor. Witness to will

Transcription conventions used in this text:
Spelling, punctuation and line breaks are as per the original document.
The text was originally in one block of text. Paragraph breaks at change of bequest ("Item"), and bold text for names have been added for ease of reading.
Where present, ff has been rendered as F, and the old letter Thorn has been rendered as th.
Abbreviations and breviographs have been expanded in [square brackets].
Additions and margin notes, where they occur, have been added where indicated in the text.
Crossings through, where they occur, have been included Struck out.
The image quality was acceptable, and the handwriting legible.

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This is the Last Will and Testament
of me John Underwood Bateman-Champain of Halton
Park in the County of Lancaster a Major in the Royal Engineers I
give all my plate linen china glass books pictures wines liquors furniture
jewellery articles of the person and other household effects and all
my carriages horses and harness unto my dear wife Harriet Sophia
absolutely And I also give to her the sum of five hundred pounds
to be paid to her immediately after my decease And subject thereto I
give devise and bequeath all my real estate and all other my per-
sonal estate (except estates vested in me as trustee or mortgage) unto
the Reverend Sir Frederick Larkins Currie of Petersfield in the County
of Hants Baronet and Thomas Leach of Lincolns Inn Esquire Barrister
at law their heirs executors administrators and assigns ^respectively according to
the nature and quality thereof respectively upon trust that they the
said Reverend Sir Frederick Larkins Currie Baronet and Thomas
Leach or the survivor of them or the heirs executors or administrators
of such survivor (hereinafter call my trustees or trustee) do and shall
call in sell and convert into money the same or such part thereof as
shall not consist of money and shall with and out of the money
produced by such calling in sale and conversion into money and
with and out of such part of my personal estate as shall consist of
money pay my debts funeral and testamentary expenses and legacies
and shall with the written consent of my wife during her life and
after her decease at the discretion of my trustees or trustee invest the
residue of the said moneys in the names or name of my trustees or trustee
in or upon any of the public stocks or funds or government
securities of the United Kingdom or India or any Colony of Dependency
of the United Kingdom or upon freehold copyhold leasehold or
chattel real securities in England or Wales or in or upon the stocks
Funds shares debentures debenture stock mortgages or securities of
any corporation company or public body municipal commercial or
otherwise in the United Kingdom or India or any Colony or Depen-
dency of the United Kingdom but in or upon no other investment

And shall or may with such consent or at such discretion as afore-
said vary the said investments into or for others of the same or a
like nature and shall stand possessed of the said residuary trust
moneys and the stocks funds and securities in or upon which the
same shall for the time being be invested (hereinafter called my residu-
ary estate) upon the trusts following that is to say upon trust to pay the
income thereof to my said wife during her life and from and after her
decease shall hold my residuary estate and the income thereof upon
trust for all or such one or more exclusively of the other or others of my
children living at my decease or any child born in due time afterwards
at such age or time or respective ages or times if more than one in such
shares and upon such conditions with such restrictions and in such
manner as my said wife shall by any deed or deeds or writing or
writings sealed and delivered with or without power of revocation and
new appointment or by her last will and testament or any codicil thereto
appoint and in default of such appointment and so far as any such
appointment if incomplete shall not extend In trust for all my chil-
dren living at my decease or any child born in due time afterwards
who being sons shall attain the age of twenty one years or being daughters
shall attain that age or marry in equal shares as tenants in common
and if by one such child the whole to be in trust for such one child
provided always (but without prejudice to the power of appointment herein
before given to my said wife) that if any child of mine shall die in
my lifetime leaving a child or children who shall survive me and
being a son or sons shall attain the age of twenty one years or being a
daughter or daughters shall attain that age and marry then and in every
such case such last mention child or children shall take if more than
one equally between them the share which his her or their parent would
have taken under the trust lastly herein before contained in such parent
had survived me and attained the age of twenty one years or married
provided always that no child who shall take any part of my residuary
estate under any appointment in pursuance of the power hereinbefore con-
tained shall in default of appointment to the contrary have or be entitled
to any share of the unappointed part of my residuary estate without
bringing the share or shares appointed to him or her into hotchpot
and accounting for the same accordingly And I hereby empower my
trustees or trustee from and after the decease of my said wife (and
during her lifetime with her consent in writing) to apply the whole or
such part as they or he shall think fit for the income of the share to
which any child or grandchild of mine being an infant shall or may
from time to time be entitled in expectancy under this my will for or
towards his or her maintenance and education with liberty to pay the
same to the Guardian or any of the Guardians of such infant for the
purposes aforesaid without being liable to see to the application thereof
and shall invest the residue of the said income and the resulting
income thereof in the names or name of my trustees or trustee in or
upon any of the stocks funds or securities aforesaid so as to accumulate
at compound interest with liberty from time to time to vary the said
investments into or for others of the same or a like nature and shall
stand possessed of the like accumulations in trust for the person or
persons who shall become entitled to the share from which the same
shall have proceeded with liberty nevertheless for my trustees and trustee
to resort to the accumulations of any preceding year or years and to
apply the same for or towards the maintenance or education of any
person for the time being presumptively entitled thereto and I also
empower my trustees or trustee with the written consent of my wife during
her life and afterwards at the discretion of my trustees or trustee to raise
any part not exceeding one half of the expectant share of any child or
grandchild of mine under this my will and to apply the same for his
or her advancement preferment or benefit as my trustees or trustee with such
consent or at such discretion as aforesaid shall think fit provided
always and I hereby declare that my trustees or trustee shall during the
lifetime of my said wife (unless she shall expressly request in writing to
the contrary) postpone the sale and conversion into money of my residuary
estate or any part or parts thereof and until the same shall be so sold
and converted into money as hereinbefore directed the rents and yearly
produce thereof shall be deemed annual income for the purposes of the
trusts hereinbefore declared and my real estate shall be transmissible as
personal estate under the ultimate trust hereinbefore contained and
during such suspense of conversion as aforesaid my trustees or trustee
shall be at liberty to grant leases of my real estate and generally to
superintend and do all acts and things necessary for the management
thereof as they or he shall in their absolute discretion think fit provided
always and I hereby declare that if the trustees hereby appointed or either
of them shall die in my lifetime or if they or either of them or any future
trustee or trustees of this my will shall die or be abroad or desire to
retire from or refuse or become incapable to act in the trusts of this my
Will before the same shall be fully performed then and in every such case it
shall be lawful for my said wife during her life and afterwards for the
surviving or continuing trustees or trustee for the time being (and for this
purpose every refusing or retiring trustee shall if willing to act in the
execution of this power be considered a continuing trustee) or for the act-
ing executors or executor administrators or administrator of the last
surviving or continuing trustee to appoint a new trustee or new trustees in
the place of the trustee or trustees so dying or being abroad or desiring to
retire or refusing or becoming incapable to act as aforesaid And upon every
such appointment the number of trustees may be increased but not reduced

And upon every such appointment the trust property shall (if and so far
as the nature of the property and other circumstances shall require or
admit) be conveyed and transferred so that the same may be vested in
the trustees or trustee for the time being and every trustee so appointed as
aforesaid may as well before as after such conveyance and transfer of the
trust property act or assist in the execution of the trusts of this my will
as fully as effectually as if he had been hereby constituted a trustee I
devise and bequeath all estates vested in me as trustee or mortgages unto
the said Reverend Sir Frederick Larkins Currie Baronet and Thomas Leach their
heirs executors and administrators subject to the trusts and equities affect-
ing the same

I appoint my said Wife during her life and after her
death the said Reverend Sir Frederick Larkins Currie Baronet and
Thomas Leach Guardian and Guardians of my infant children And
I appoint my said wife and the said Reverend Sir Frederick Larkins
Currie Baronet and Thomas Leach Executrix and Executors of this
my will and revoke all other wills by me made In witness whereof I
have hereunto set my hand this seventeenth day of September one thousand
eight hundred and seventy eight - J. U. Bateman-Champain Major
R.E. - Signed and declared by the said John Underwood Bateman-Champain
the testator as and for his last will and testament in the presence of us
both present at the same time who in his presence at his request and in the
presence of each other have hereunto subscribed our names as witnesses -
Richd. S Taylor - Richd. S Taylor Jun. Grays Inn Solicitor

On the 9th March 1887 probate of this Will was granted to Dame
Harriet Sophia Bateman-Champain widow and the Reverend Sir
Frederick Larkins Currie the surviving executors.

Sources

1. ↑ Will of John Underwood Bateman-Champain 1887 transcribed from a copy of the register copy held at the Principal Probate Registry, First Avenue House, London, England