He was s. by his eldest son, SIR RALPH VERNEY, of Penley and Middle Claydon, sheriff for Bedford and Bucks in 3, 16, and 32 HENRY VIII. who m. Elizabeth, second daughter of Edmund, Lord Braye, and co-heir of her brother, John, last Lord Braye, who d. s. p. in 1557, and by that lady had issue, EDWARD, his heir. John, d. s. p. EDMUND, (Sir), inheritor of the estates after his elder brother. Francis. Ralph. Urian. Richard, (Sir), sheriff of the counties of Leicester Anne, m. to Sir Nicholas Pointz, of Acton, in the Jane, m. to Sir Francis Hynde, of Madingley, in The two elder sons dying issueless, the estates eventually devolved upon the third, SIR EDMUND VERNEY, of Middle Claydon, Bucks, who received the honour of knighthood, and was sheriff of Bedfordshire in 14 ELIZABETH, and for Hertfordshire in 19 and 31 of the same reign. He m. first, Frances, daughter of John Hastings, esq. of Elford, in Oxfordshire, by whom he had no issue; secondly, Audrey, daughter of William Gardiner, esq. of Fulmere, Bucks, (widow of Sir Peter Carew), and by that lady had, SIR FRANCIS VERNEY, of Penley, who m. Ursula, daughter and co-heir of William St. Barbe, esq. but d. abroad, without issue, having sold the estate of Penley. EDMUND. Sir Edward m. thirdly, Mary, daughter of John Blackney, esq. of Sparrowham. Sir Edmund's son, SIR EDMUND VERNEY, marshal and standard bearer to King CHARLES I. fell at the battle of Edgehill, 23rd October, 1642. As it was Sir Edward's duty to carry the royal standard in time of war, he attended the king in that capacity, in 1639, in the expedition against the Scots; and also at Nottingham in the unhappy difference between the king and parliament; and then declared," that by the grace of God, they that would wrest that standard from his hand, must first wrest his soul from his body." Accordingly, at the battle of Edgehill, he charged with it amongst the thickest of the enemy, to encourage the soldiers to follow him, and being surrounded, was offered his life, if he would surrender the standard, but he rejected the offer, and fell with great honour. He m. Marga. ret, eldest daughter of Sir Thomas Denton, knt. of Hillesden, Bucks, and had with six daughters, six sons, viz. RALPH, his heir. Thomas, d. in 1707, aged ninety-two. Edmund, (Sir), who being deputy governor of Drogheda, and colonel of a regiment of horse, was killed 11th September, 1649, in the storming of that town by Cromwell, s. p. Henry, a colonel also in the king's service, died unm. John, d. s. p. Richard, d. s. p. * She m. secondly, Richard Calvert, esq. and had with two sons, who both died s. p. a daughter, Catherine (m. to the Rev. Robert Wright), who eventually inherited the estates of Mary, Lady Fermanagh, and assumed the The eldest son, 1. RALPH VERNEY, esq. of Middle Claydon, member of the restoration parliament, was created a BARONET by CHARLES II. 16th March, 1660-1. Sir Ralph m. Mary, daughter and heir of John Blacknall, esq. of Waseing and Abingdon, in the county of Bucks, by whom he bad three daughters, who all died young, and three sons, viz. Edmund, who d. before his father, leaving a MARY, m. to John Kelynge, esq. Sir Ralph was s. by his elder surviving son, 11. SIR JOHN VERNEY, M. P. for the county of Bucks in 1710 and 1713, who was raised to the peerage of Ireland by Queen ANNE, as Baron Verney, of Belturbet, and Viscount Fermanagh. His lordship m. first, Elizabeth, daughter of Ralph Palmer, esq. of Little Chelsea; secondly, Mary, daughter of Sir Francis Lawley, bart. of Spoonhill, in Shropshire; and thirdly, Elizabeth, daughter of Daniel Baker, esq. alderman of London. By the first he had issue, RALPH, his heir. Elizabeth, d. unm. Mary, m. to Colonel John Lovett, of Dublin, all her issue d. unm. MARGARET, M. to Sir Thomas Cave, bart. of Stanford Hall, in the county of Leicester. Her great grandaughter and representative (1838), SARAH CAVE, M. Henry Otway, esq. of Castle Otway, in the county of Tipperary, whose widow she survives, with issue. She as sumed, in 1818, the additional name of Cave, and as Mrs. Otway-Cave, claims the BARONY of BRAYE, as the descendant of ELIZABETH BRAYE, one of the co-heirs to that dignity. The Viscount d. 23rd June, 1717, and was s. by his son, III. SIR RALPH VERNEY, second Viscount Fermanagh, who was created by King GEORGE II. in 1742, Earl Verney. He m. Catherine, eldest daughter and co-heir of Henry Paschal, esq. of Baddow Hall, in Essex, by whom (who d. 28th November, 1748) he had issue, John, who m. in 1736, Mary,* daughter of Josias MARY, created in 1792, BARONESS FERMANAGH. RALPH, his heir. The Earl d. 4th October, 1752, and was s. by his son, IV. SIR RALPH VERNEY, second Earl Verney, F.R.S. who m. 11th September, 1740, Mary, daughter of Henry Herring, esq. a merchant of London, and director of the bank, but died issueless, 31st March, 1791, when all his honours, including the BARONETCY, EXPIRED. Arms-Az. on a cross arg. five mullets pierced gu. surname of VERNEY. She died s. p. in 1827, and was 8. in her estates by her cousin, SIR HARRY CALVERT, bart. who has also taken the name of VERNEY. HUMPHREY VERNON, third son of Sir Henry Vernon, K. B. of Haddon, in Derbyshire, by his wife, Lady Anne Talbot, daughter of John, third Earl of Shrewsbury, married in 1493, Alice, styled "The Ladye of Hodnet," eldest daughter and heiress of Sir John Ludlow, K. B. by Lady Elizabeth Grey, his wife, daughter of Richard, Earl of Powis, and acquired, with her, the estate of Hodnet, in Shropshire. Humphrey Vernon and Alice, his wife,t lived there after the death of Sir John Ludlow, in 1495, and were succeeded, in 1542, by their son, GEORGE VERNON, esq. of Hodnet, who m. Elizabeth, daughter of Thomas Pigot, esq. of Chetwynd, and was interred at Hodnet, in 1553. His eldest son, Richard, dying a minor, he was s. by his second son, JOHN VERNON, esq. of Hodnet, who being but seven years old at his father's death, was under the guardianship of George, Earl of Huntingdon, and Richard, Viscount Hereford. John Vernon was the acknowledged co-heir of his cousin, Henry, Earl of Powis, and one of the claimants of the barony of Powis, undecided at his death. He succeeded in recovering some of the estates of that deceased nobleman. He m. under age, in 1564, Elizabeth, daughter of Sir Richard Devereux, knt. by Lady Dorothy Hastings, his wife, daughter of George, Earl of Huntingdon, and had fourteen children, several of whom d. young. His fourth daughter, Elizabeth, m. to Henry, Earl of Southampton, was grandmother of Lady Rachael Wriothesley, wife of William, Lord Russell, and mother to the first Earl of Bedford. John Vernon died in 1592, was buried at Hodnet, and succeeded by his son, SIR ROBERT VERNON, of Hodnet, b. in 1577, created K. B. by Queen ELIZABETH, and made comptroller of her majesty's household. He m. Mary, daughter of Sir Robert Needham, of Shavington, sister to the first Viscount Kilmorey, and dying in 1625, was s. by his son, 1. HENRY, VERNON, esq. of Hodnet, b. in 1606, who was created a BARONET in 1660. During the civil wars, his devotion to the royal cause drew down upon him the hostility of the adverse party in an especial degree, but he survived to see the Restoration. He m. in 1636, Elizabeth, daughter and heir of Sir Richard White, knt. of the Friers, in Anglesey, and had issue, THOMAS, his heir. Elizabeth, who m. in 1675, Robert Cholmondeley, eldest son of Thomas Cholmondeley, of Vale Royal, in Cheshire, and died in 1685, leaving an only daughter, ELIZABETH CHOLMONDELEY, who m. John Atherton, esq. of Atherton and Bewsey, in ELIZABETH ATHERTON, m. in 1722, to Tao- RICHARD HEBER, d. s. p. m. in 1766. REGINALD HEBER, father of the late RICHARD HEBER, esq. of Hodnet, one of the most accomplished schelars of his time; of Reginald Heber, the pious Bishop of Calcutta; of Thomas Cuthbert Heber, the deceased rector of Marton; and of Mary Heber, present possessor of Hodnet, wife of the Rev. CharlesCowper Cholmondeley. Sir Henry died in 1676, and was succeeded by his son, II. SIR THOMAS VERNON, of Hodnet, who d. in 1684, leaving, by Mary, his wife, daughter of George Kirke, esq. a son and successor, III. SIR RICHARD VERNON, of Hodnet, b. in 1678, who died in 1723, at the court of Augustus, King of Poland, where he had been accredited as envoy extraordinary by GEORGE I. With him the BARONETEY EXPIRED. He dissipated a large portion of his paternal estates, several of which he sold, but that of Hodnet passed to his sisters, Diana and Henrietta, who both died unm. and in 1752 the estate, manor and advowson of Hodnet, descended through ELIZABETH, only daugh ter of the first baronet, Sir Henry Vernon, to the family of HEBER, The family of VILLERS came in at the Conquest, and were eminent under the PLANTAGENETS. SIR JOHN DE VILLIERS, of Brokesby, who bere far his coat armour in the time of HENRY III. "five escal lops upon the cross of St. George," had a son, SIR JOHN DE VILLERS, served in the wars of Ep WARD II. and EDWARD III. His son and heir, GEOFFREY DE VILLERS, succeeded to the estate Brooksby, in the county of Leicester, 20 EDWARD III. and in the 26th of the same reign was one of th knights of the shire for the county of Leicester in the parliament held at Westminster. His son, JOHN DE VILLERS, married first, Joan, one of the sisters and co-heirs of Simon Pakeman, of Kirkby, the county of Leicester, by whom he had RICHA John, Alexander, and Beatrix, the wife of Bagot. He m. secondly, Margaret, who was living 15 RICHARD II. at which time, viz. on the Sunday before the Feast of the Nativity of St. John, his son and heir, + Their second son, Thomas, was ancestor of the present Lord Vernon, and their daughter, Catherine, m. John Pole, esq. of Radborne, Derbyshire. JOHN DE VILLERS, died seised of the manor of Brooksby and half a pound of pepper rent of assize issuing out of one virgate in Brooksby, which rent was parcel of the said manor. He m. Joan, daughter of William Meering, and died on the Feast of St. Catharine, 4 HENRY V. leaving his son and heir, JOHN DE VILLERS, then twelve years old. This John died in ward to the king, and was succeeded by his brother, WILLIAM DE VILLERS, who married Joan, sister and co-heir of John Beler, esq. and had, with other issue, JOHN, who died in his father's lifetime, leaving by Elizabeth, his wife, daughter of John Southill, esq. of Everingham, in the county of York, a daughter, Elizabeth, and four sons, viz. JOHN, heir to his grandfather. Thomas, who made his will 6 HENRY VII. and d. s. p. Christopher, of Burstal, sheriff of the counties of Leicester and Warwick 22 HENRY VIII. d. s. p. 5th August, in the 29th year of the same king, seised of the manors of Kilby, Cowdon Magna, and lands in Harborough, having settled in trustees the said manors, after his own life, upon his younger nephews, George and Thomas, and their heirs male for ever, as also the manor of Howby upon them and their brother William by a similar entail. William, in holy orders. Bartholomew, m. Margaret, daughter and co-heir He d. 20 EDWARD IV. and was s. by his grandson, Anthony, of Cotness, in the county of York, died possessed of that manor 1 EDWARD VI. He d. 2nd September, 22 HENRY VII. and was s. by his eldest son, SIR JOHN VILLIERS, knt. of Brokesby, sheriff of Leicestershire and Warwickshire 23 and 29 HENRY VIII. This gentleman, in the 30th year of the same king, was found cousin and next heir to his uncle Christopher aforesaid, in the manor of Bourstal, being then aged fifty and upwards. He d. 8th December, 36 HENRY VIII. seised of the manors of Brokesby and Howby, and the advowsons of those churches, having, by a fine levied 32nd of the same reign, between Alexander Villers and Richard Holme, querents, the said Sir John and Dorothy, his daughter and heir apparent by Elizabeth, his wife, daughter of John Wingar), deforcients, settled the said manors and rent in Brokesby, Howby, and Sevelby, on himself in tail male; and, in default, to his brothers, GEORGE, THOMAS, WILLIAM, and LEONARD. He died seised also of lands and tenements in Rotherby, Tursington, &c. Dorothy, his daughter, the wife of Francis Brown, gent. being found heir to them, and aged twenty-eight years and upwards. The other lands devolved under the settlement upon his next brother, GEORGE VILLIERS, esq. of Brokesby and Howby, who was also seised of the manor of Siwolby in fee tail, and of the manor of Burstal upon the death of John Villers, alias Twyford. This George left issue, by Joane, his wife, daughter of John Harrington, of Bagworth, RICHARD, his son and heir, aged three years, died a minor; and a daughter, ELIZABETH, heir to her brother, wife of Sir Edward Waterhouse, who also died without issue; so that the estates passed to the next brother mentioned in the entail, THOMAS VILLIERS, esq. who left but one daughter, DOROTHY, the wife of William Smith, esq. of Leices tershire, when again, under the entail, the lands passed to the male heir, Thomas's next brother, WILLIAM VILLIERS, esq. of Brokesby, who m. Colletta, daughter and heir of Richard Clarke, esq. of Huntingdonshire (widow of Richard Beaumont, esq. of Coleorton, in the county of Leicester), and dying 1st November, 5 and 6 PHILIP and MARY, was s. by his son, SIR GEORGE VILLIERS, knt. of Brokesby, sheriff of Leicestershire 33 ELIZABETH, m. first, Audrey, daugh ter and heir of William Sanders, esq. of Harrington, in the county of Northampton, and by her, who died 29 ELIZABETH, had issue, WILLIAM (Sir), his heir. Edward (Sir), president of Munster, from whom Anne, m. to Sir William Washington, knt. of He m. secondly, Mary, daughter of Anthony Beaumont, esq. of Glenfield, in the county of Leicester, which lady having survived her first husband, was created Countess of Buckingham for life; by her he had JOHN, created BARON VILLIERS of Stoke and Vis- GEORGE, the celebrated favourite of JAMES I. and Susan, m. to William Fielding, Earl of Denbigh. Sir George d. 4th January, 1605, having entailed Brokesby, Howby, Godby Marward, and the Grange of Godby, upon the issue of his first marriage; and all the tythes of herbage, grain, and hay, and all other tythes arising in Cadwel and Wikeham, in the county of Leicester, upon the children of the second. His eldest son, I. SIR WILLIAM VILLIERS, of Brooksby, in the county of Leicester, sheriff of that shire 6 JAMES I. received the honour of knighthood from that monarch, and was afterwards created a BARONET, 19th July, 1619. He m. first, Anne, daughter of Sir Edward Griffin, knt. of Dingley, by whom he had no male issue; secondly, Anne, daughter of Richard Fiennes, Lord Say and Sele, which lady died issueless; and thirdly, Rebecca, daughter of Robert Roper, of Heanor, in the county of Derby. He d. 12th June, 1629, and was s. by his only son, Her ladyship m. secondly, Sir William Rayner; and thirdly, Sir Thomas Compton, K. B. + For details, refer to BURKE'S Extinct Peerage. II. SIR GEORGE VILLIERS, who m. Penelope, daughter and co-heir of Sir John Denham, knt. of Blechington, in the county of Oxford, and had WILLIAM, his heir. PENELOPE, m. to Sir William Jesson, of New house, in the county of Warwick, and had two daughters, viz. PENELOPE JESSON, m. to George Hewet, esq. of Stretton, in the county of Leicester. ANNE JESSON, m. to Sir James Robinson, bart. and was great-great-grandmother of the pre sent SIR GEORGE-STAMP ROBINSON, bart. He died about the year 1682, and was succeeded by his son, III. SIR WILLIAM VILLIERS, M.P. for the county of Leicester, who m. Anne, daughter and heir of Charles Potts, esq. but died without issue 27th February, 1711, aged sixty-seven, when the BARONETCY EXPIRED. Sir William sold the manor of Brooksby to the Lord Keeper Sir Nathan Wright. To his other possessions his sister's daughters became his heirs. Arms-Arg. on a cross gu, five escallops or. VINER, OF LONDON. VITUS, OF LIMERICK. CREATED 29th June, 1677.-EXTINCT (unknown). Lineage. I. SIR IGNATIUS VITUS, otherwise WHITE, of Lime rick, a count of the Holy Roman Empire, was created a BARONET in 1677, with remainder to his nephew, Ignatius Maximilian Vitus, alias White, who obtained the title of Marquis D'Abbeville from JAMES II. He m. first, a lady whose christian name was Mary; and secondly, a daughter of Patrick Fitz-Thomas, lord of Kerry, but of Sir Ignatius or of the subsequent desti nation of the BARONETCY we have not been able to ascertain further. 1. SIR THOMAS VINER, descended of a Gloucestershire family, filled the civic chair of the city of London in 1653, and was created a BARONET in 1660. He m. first, Anne, daughter of Richard Parsons, merchant; secondly, Honor, sister of Sir William Humble, bart.; and thirdly, Alice Robinson, widow of Mr. Alderman John Perrin, of London. Sir Thomas died 11th May, 1665, aged seventy-seven, and was s. by his son, II. SIR GEORGE VINER, who m. Abigail, daughter and co heir of Sir John Lawrence, knt. alderman of London, and dying in 1673, was s. by his son, III. SIR THOMAS VINER, at whose decease, under age, the title became EXTINCT. Arms-Az. a bend or, on a chief arg. a saltier engrailed gu. between two Cornish choughs ppr. VINER, OF LONDON. CREATED 10th May, 1666.-EXTINCT 1680. Lineage. 1. SIR ROBERT VINER, lord mayor of London in 1675, was created a BARONET 10th May, 1666. He m. twice: his last wife, was Mary, daughter of John Whitchurch, esq. of Walton, Berks, and relict of Sir Thomas Hyde, bart. of Albury, Herts, but died without issue in 1688, when the title became EXTINCT. Arms-As preceding article. Lineage. SIR WALTER WALKER, knt. of Bushey Hall, Herts and of Stretham, in the Isle of Ely, LL.D. a lawyer of considerable eminence, and advocate to Kathari queen consort of CHARLES II, was born at Barte under-Needwood, in the county of Stafford, where it is conjectured he was interred, and to which parish he bequeathed a benevolent memento. Hem. Mary, daughter of Lynne, of Southwick, in Northamptesshire, and had issue, GEORGE (Sir), his heir. William, who m. Mary, daughter of — Price, of Newtown, in Montgomeryshire, and had is only son, NATHANIEL, of Middlesex, who m. Elizabeth Jane, daughter of Peter Pytot, esq. and was father of NATHANIEL, a major in the army, who m Henrietta, daughter and heiress of Cap tain John Bagster, R. N. of the 1st of Wight, and dying at Hampton Court Palace in May, 1829, left issue, GEORGE TOWNSHEND, the present Lieutenant-General SIR GROS TOWNSHEND WALKER, hart. G.C.E (See BURKE'S Peerage and Berv netage.) Frederick, of Bushey, Herts, a mi nel in the army, . and has issu (See BURKE's Commoners, vai p. 313.) Charles-Montagu, of Hampton Cour captain R. N. m. and has issue. Mary, m, to Stawell Chudleigh, e», of Furze Place Farm, Hants. Harriet-Louisa, m. to James Gra The elder son, 1. SIR GEORGE WALKER, of Bushey Hall, Herts, was knighted at Whitehall, 22nd November, 1676, and created a BARONET 28th January, 1679. He m. Susannah, daughter and co-heir of John Byne, esq. of Rowdell, in Sussex, and had issue, WALTER, his heir. ELIZABETH, under age in 1690, m. to Brown, of Horsemonden, in Kent. SUSANNAH, who also married. BYNE, m. to John Spence, esq. of South Malling, Sussex, and of Lebury Manor, Herts, and dying in 1721, aged thirty-nine, left issue, LUKE SPENCE, a magistrate for Sussex, who HENRY SPENCE, b. 26th February, 1747-8, Harriet, m. to the Rev. R. Hare. Henry Spence, d. s. p. Byne Spence, married Thomas Beale, esq. of Shropshire, and had issue, Thomas-Henry, and Byne, wife of John Oakley, esq. Sir George Walker, having wasted his large property, died in the King's Bench prison in 1690, and was buried at St. George the Martyr's. His estate of Bushey Hall became, by purchase, the property of Sir Robert Marsham. Sir George's only son, II. SIR WALTER WALKER, who inherited his mother's estate, died unm. in his minority, when the title be came EXTINCT. Arms-Or, on a pile az. three gal traps of the first. WALTER, OF SARESDEN. John. Mary, m. to Sir John Cope, bart. Elizabeth, m. to Sir Francis Burdett, bart. Catherine. Margaret. Sir John m. secondly, Anne, daughter of William Wytham, esq. of Ledstone, in Yorkshire, and relict of Sir Thomas Bigges, of Lenchwike, in the county of Worcester, but had no other issue. He d. 18th November, 1630, and was s. by his eldest son, J. WILLIAM WALTER, esq. of Saresden, in the county of Oxford, who was created a BARONET by King CHARLES I. Sir William m. Elizabeth, daughter of Thomas Lucas, esq. of St. John's, near Colchester, and dying 23rd March, 1674, was s. by his son, II. SIR WILLIAM WALTER, who m. first, Lady Mary Bruce, daughter of Robert, Earl of Ailesbury; and secondly, Lady Mary Tufton, daughter of John, Earl of Thanet; by the latter he had William, b. in 1671, died unm, aged twenty-one. ROBERT, heir to his brother. Mary, m. to Sir Robert Rich, bart. of Sunning, in He d. 5th March, 1693, and was s. by his son, 111. SIR JOHN WALTER, M. P. for Oxford, clerk of the green cloth, m. Elizabeth, daughter of Sir Thomas Vernon, knt. by whom (who m. secondly, Viscount Harcourt,) he had no issue. He d. 11th June, 1722, and was s. by his brother, IV. SIB ROBERT WALTER, who m. Elizabeth, daughter of Henry Brydges, D.D. archdeacon of Rochester, and niece of James, Duke of Chandos, but died 20th November, 1731, without issue, when the BARONETCY became EXTINCT. Arms-Az. a fesse dancetté or, between three eagles displayed arg. WANDESFORD, OF KIRKLINGTON. |