PREFACE TO THE SECOND EDITION. KING JAMES THE FIRST instituted the order of Baronet in 1611, two hundred and thirty years ago; and within that period, brief in the estimation of an antiquary, nearly a thousand patents have become obsolete; nearly a thousand Baronetcies have ceased to exist: not all, perhaps, become absolutely extinct, but all virtually so. The personages who enjoyed those honours have left behind them, however, numerous and widely spread connexions, who, although excluded, by the tenour of the royal grant, from their dignity, inherit, in many instances, their name, in more their lands, in all, their blood:-to those this book especially belongs; to rescue them from the fate of their titled predecessors it is produced, and to their interests it is mainly devoted, under an impression, at the same time, that a work directly appertaining to so large and influential a portion of the community must indirectly be of value to the whole that it might prove so, much time and vast labour have been bestowed upon its composition; the public records have been carefully explored, private collections and private authorities referred toin fine, nothing has been left undone to render its statements full, clear, and accurate. In addition to these few prefatory words, it is necessary to say that, in this Second Edition, various corrections have been made through that part which comprises the Extinct Baronetcies of England, from the further researches of the authors and the communications made to them; and that the work may be rendered complete within itself, the Extinct and Dormant Baronetcies of Ireland and Scotland, which have never before been collected or published, are now added. The Authors have only farther to express their acknowledgments for the facilities afforded them in every channel, public and private, through which it was necessary to seek for information; they would willingly express their thanks to many individuals, but so many occur, that they are obliged to forego the pleasure. NOTE. The red hand of Ulster, which is carried upon the shield of a Baronet, is omitted in the armorial ensigns of this work, from the necessity of the engravings being upon a narrow scale. London, July 1, 1841. EXTINCT AND DORMANT BARONETAGE. This family, one of considerable antiquity, is presumed to have derived its surname from Abdy, in the county of York, where RICHARD ABDY was seated at a very remote period. ANTHONY ABDY, a lineal descendant of the Yorkshire house, entering into commercial pursuits, established himself in London, and became an alderman of that city. He married Abigail, daughter of Sir Thomas Campbell, knt. and left at his decease, in 1640, three sons and one daughter, viz. 1. THOMAS, of Felix Hall, Essex, created a BARONET in 1641, which honour is now enjoyed by his descendant, SIR WILLIAM ABDY, bart. of Chobham Place, Surrey. See BURKE'S Peerage and Baronetage. II. ROBERT. II. JOHN, see AEDY, OF MOOres. 1. Alice, m. to Sir John Bramston, K.B. of Skreens, ancestor of the present Thomas William Bramston, esq. of Skreens, M.P. for Essex. Mr. Alderman Abdy's second son, ROBERT ABDY, esq. of Albins, in Essex, was created a BARONET 9th June, 1660. He m. Catherine, daughter of Sir John Gayer, knt. and by her, who died in 1662, had several sons and daughters, of whom the third daughter, Sarah, wedded John Pennington, esq. and the eldest son, SIR JOHN ABDY, second baronet, of Albins, succeeded his father in 1670. He m. Jane, only daughter of George Nicholas, esq. youngest son of Sir Edward Nicholas, knt. secretary of state to Charles I., (one of the ill-fated monarch's most faithful adherents), and left at his decease a daughter, JANE, m. to the Rev. EDWARD CRANK, and a son and successor, SIR ROBERT ABDY, third baronet, of Albins, whom Morant describes as "a man of deep knowledge in antiquity and natural history, a great connoisseur in medals, of which he had a fine collection; and, what is more valuable, a true patriot, and a person of unshaken integrity, and remarkable humanity." He was chosen M. P. for the county of Essex in 1727, and continued to represent that shire in parliament until his demise. He m. Theodosia, only daughter and heir of George Bramston, LL.D. and had, to survive youth, one son and one daughter, namely, JOHN, his heir. Theodosia, m. in 1752, to the Rev. Stotherd Abdy, rector of Theydon Gernon, a younger son of Sir William Abdy, fourth baronet, of Felix Hall. She died issueless in 1758. Sir Robert died in 1748, and was succeeded by his son, SIR JOHN ABDY, fourth baronet, of Albins, M.P. for Essex, who died unmarried 2nd April, 1759, when the BARONETCY became EXTINCT. He bequeathed his estates to his aunt, Mrs. Crank, for life, with remainder to Sir Anthony Thomas Abdy, bart. of Felix Hall, to the Rev. Stotherd Abdy, that gentleman's brother, and eventually, on failure of the issue of both, to Thomas, son of the Rev. Dr. Rutherford, by their sister, Charlotte Abdy. The last named devisee ultimately inherited, and, assuming the surname and arms of ABDY in 1775, became The Rev. THOMAS ABDY ABDY, of Albins. He m. in 1778 a daughter of James Hayes, esq. of Holliport, bencher of the Middle Temple, and died in 1798, leaving issue, I. JOHN-RUTHERFORD-ABDY HATCH-ABDY, esq. of 11. Anthony-Abdy, captain R. N. a widower with Lineage. 1. SIR THOMAS ADAMS, knt. sheriff of the city of London in 1644, and lord mayor in 1648, having suffered in the royal cause, by imprisonment in the Tower of London, and having further evinced his fidelity to his exiled sovereign by remitting to his majesty in his hour of need £10,000, was created a BARONET in a few days after the Restoration. Sir Thomas, although advanced in years, was deputed by the city to accompany General Monk to Breda, and to attend the exiled monarch to his restored realms. He endowed several schools, particularly that of Wem, in Shropshire, where he was born, and founded an Arabic lecture in Cambridge, of which University he had been a member. Sir Thomas died president of St. Thomas's Hospital and father of the city, 24th February, 1667, aged eighty-two, by a fall in stepping out of his coach. He m. Anne, daughter of Humphrey Mapstead, esq. of Trenton, in Essex, and was s. by his son, II. SIR WILLIAM ADAMS, who wedded first, Anne, daughter of John Rushout, esq. and sister of Sir James Rushout, bart. of Northwick, by whom he had nine sons and a daughter. The eldest son, WILLIAM, died in the lifetime of his father, leaving by his wife, Mary, daughter of Sir John Maynard, and relict of Captain Butler, of Saltash, in Cornwall, (she afterwards m. Sir Rushout Cullen, bart.), an only daughter, JANE, who wedded Sir Erasmus Norwich, bart. Burnet, Sir William m. secondly, Jane, daughter of and widow of Alderman Allington, of London, but had no other issue. He d. in 1687, and was s. by his eldest surviving son, III. SIR THOMAS ADAMS, who d. unmar. in August, 1690, and was s. by his brother, IV. SIR CHARLES ADAMS. This gentleman, who was the sixth son of his father, resided at Sprowston Hall, in Norfolk. He m. Frances, one of the six daughters of Sir Francis Rolle, knt. and granddaughter of the Lord Chief Justice Rolle, but d. s. p. 12th August, 1726, when the estates passed to his niece, Jane, Lady Norwich, and the title devolved upon his only surviving brother, V. SIR ROBERT ADAMS, who m. first, Dorothea, daughter and co-heir of Piercy Wiseman, esq. but by that lady had no issue. He wedded, secondly, Diana --, and by her left at his decease, about the year 1754, a son and successor, VI. SIR THOMAS ADAMS, Capt. R. N. who died on the Virginia station 12th April, 1770, issueless, when the BARONETCY became EXTINCT. Arms-Erm. three cats passant in pale az. |