Edward Littleton (died 1629)
Sir Edward Littleton (c. 1577 – 25 July 1629)
Background
Littleton's parents were Sir Edward Littleton (died 1610) of Pillaton Hall, near Penkridge, Staffordshire, and Margaret Devereux, the daughter of Sir William Devereux of Merevale Hall, Warwickshire .
The elder Sir Edward Littleton was an important and politically active member of the Staffordshire
Early life and education
Littleton was admitted to
Littleton married Mary Fisher, the daughter of a Warwickshire landowner: the marriage settlement is dated 15 January 1599.[1] At his marriage, Littleton was granted an annual allowance of £100 by his father.[1] Two years later, faced by a large fine because of his association with Essex, the elder Littleton protested to Cecil that:
- “My living is divided into three parts, of which my mother has one, my brethren and sisters another, and the third, which amounteth not to two hundred pounds per annum, must suffice for the maintenance of myself and thirteen children.”[8]
This was special pleading, designed to get easy terms, but his son's allowance was certainly a substantial sum for him to find.
On his accession, James I distributed honours widely. The younger Littleton received his knighthood on 23 April 1603,[1] while the king was still making his way from Scotland to the capital. He was made a justice of the peace for Staffordshire in 1605 – both signal honours for a man who was not yet in possession of his family's fortune. However, that came about fairly soon, with his father's death on 17 December 1610.
Landowner
The Littletons had been based at Pillaton since the early years of the 16th century. They were one of the gentry families that profited greatly from the
However, there were many calls on his resources and his financial situation was essentially similar to his father's. Again the estates had to support a vigorous and well-connected widow, as Margaret Devereux long outlived her husband, surviving until 23 January 1627. Mary Fisher bore eight children, four of each sex, and there were many more distant relatives with allowances. It seems also that Littleton himself was a generous host and kept a “bountiful and liberal house.”
He had lost his place as a justice of the peace, as this post could not be held simultaneously with that of sheriff. The move to Worcester might have threatened his future as a magistrate, but he was reappointed in Michaelmas 1615 and became active again as a justice from 1618, which may be when he returned to Pillaton.
Littleton now became closely involved in a long-running dispute between the minister of Penkridge and his parishioners. John Bowen was installed by Littleton in 1617.
Bowen created considerable enmity and numerous complaints were made by the parishioners of Penkridge. He was accused of nonconformity, which suggests that he was a
However, Littleton seems to have been considered basically loyal. He was regularly called on to perform the offices commensurate with his status as a leading member of the county gentry. For example, he was a commissioner for the subsidy, administering royal taxation, in 1611, 1621–2, 1624, 1625 and 1628. He became captain in the horse militia. He administered the Oath of Supremacy to justices. He was even commissioner for swans in the Midland counties in 1627.
Parliamentary career
Littleton was elected knight of the shire for
Littleton represented his county in what became known, sarcastically, as the
- The Somervile estate. The Parliament was presented with "An Act for Settling and Establishing of the Inheritance of Sir Will, Somervile, Knight, deceased."[12] This stemmed from the case of John Somervile, a Catholic landowner from Warwickshire, who had set off for London in 1583, openly threatening to kill the queen, and had attacked some bystanders with his sword.[13] Apprehended, he incriminated others and was condemned to death, but was found dead in his cell. His Protestant daughters and his brother, Sir William Somerville, were able to recover parts of his estates, but his son, also Sir William, was now seeking a final settlement. Apparently, the issue threatened to lead to intimidation and violence, as the House was soon demanding the presence of "the Party that gave Warning to Sir Will. Somervile's Brothers to be here To-morrow Morning, to acquaint the House with the Manner of it."[14]
- The Egerton affair. This involved the important Staffordshire estate of Wrinehill, acquired by the prominent MP Sir John Egerton (died 1614)[15] from his improvident cousin, Edward Egerton, but now the centre of a complex property dispute because of Sir John's disputed will. By this stage, Edward had gone so far as to introduce a bill to have the estate returned to him by John's son, Roland Egerton,[16] who defended his own interests by getting himself elected to the parliament of 1624. The case proved almost intractable, although Sir Roland's family was ultimately to keep the estate.
- The naturalisation of three Scotsmen.
On 27 April Littleton he named Sir William Powell, a Staffordshire magistrate, as a recusant officeholder.[1] This was the extent of his activity in what was a short-lived parliament. Although a partisan of Essex, a politician with a national profile, Littleton was thus confined almost entirely to matters of a regional importance, in which he probably had considerable knowledge and expertise.
It is possible that he considered contesting the 1628 election at Stafford, as the mayor and aldermen wrote to "Sir Edward Littleton" about the election. However, the contents of the letter are unknown, and the addressee might easily have been his son. He never again sat in parliament.
Later years and death
In 1625 Littleton's eldest son and heir, also Edward, married Hester Courten, daughter of Sir
By this time, the king's need for money had led to deadlock with both Houses of Parliament and a political crisis that was to become systemic. Charles imposed a forced loan on the country arbitrarily. Essex was one of the leaders of the opposition to this measure. He was stripped of his offices and in July 1627 Littleton was appointed
Littleton died on 25 July 1629 at Pillaton Hall, his Staffordshire home. He was buried the next day in St Michael's church, Penkridge. In his will, dated 1 June 1629, he left his wife 200 sheep, as well as cattle and agricultural equipment. He left instructions that a monument be erected to himself, his wife, his father and mother. This was duly completed by his son, the 1st baronet. an impressive two-tiered structure, it features effigies of Littleton and Mary Fisher on the upper tier, with his parents below. It was installed against the north wall of the chancel, but has since been relocated to the east wall.[17]
Marriage and family
Edward Littleton married Mary Fisher. She was the daughter of a Warwickshire landowner, Clement Fisher of Packington and Mary Repington, daughter of Sir Francis Repington,[18] also of Warwickshire gentry background. The Fishers, like the Littleton's, had risen in the world by acquiring ecclesiastical lands (mainly those of Kenilworth priory) and allying themselves to the most important local magnate (in their case, Ambrose Dudley, 3rd Earl of Warwick), so the couple were well-matched socially and politically. Fisher was used for several generations by the Littletons as a name for younger sons.
They had four sons and four daughters.[1][19]
- Sir Edward Littleton, 1st Baronet, married Hester Courten. They were the ancestors of the further three Littleton baronets of Pillaton and of the Barons Hatherton
- Fisher Littleton married Anne Baynton of Wiltshire.
- Sir Walter Littleton married Priscilla Pemberton of Rushden, Northamptonshire.
- William Littleton married the daughter, name unknown, of John Webster, a resident of Amsterdam in the Netherlands.
- Lettice Littleton married in turn two Worcestershire landowners: William Washbourne of Washbourne and John Clent of Knightwick.
- Mary Littleton married Euseby Shuckburgh of Naseby, Northamptonshire.
- Margaret Littleton married in turn two Warwickshire knights: Sir George Browne of Radford Semele and Sir Francis Fisher of Packington, her cousin.
- Anne Littleton married Sir Thomas Holte of Aston Hall.
See also
- History of Penkridge
- Littleton Baronets
References
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j Thrush, Andrew; Ferris, John P. "The History of Parliament: Members 1604–1629 – LITTLETON, Sir Edward II (c.1577–1629), of Pillaton Hall, Staffs. (Author: Ben Coates)". Historyofparliamentonline.org. Retrieved 26 June 2013.
- ^ a b Andrew Thrush and John P. Ferris (editors). "The History of Parliament: Members 1604–1629 – LITTLETON, Sir Edward I (c.1548–1610) (Author: Ben Coates)". Historyofparliamentonline.org. Retrieved 26 June 2013.
{{cite web}}
:|author=
has generic name (help) - ^ Joseph Foster (1891): Alumni oxonienses – the members of the University of Oxford, 1500–1714; their parentage, birthplace, and year of birth, with a record of their degrees. Page 919.
- ^ The Inner Temple: Legal education to 1920 Archived 25 December 2012 at archive.today
- ^ Inner Temple Admissions Database Archived 24 December 2012 at archive.today
- ^ Dictionary of National Biography
- ^ Calendar of State Papers, Domestic Series, 1598–1601, page 577.
- ^ "Cecil Papers, 1–15 June 1601". British-history.ac.uk. 22 June 2003. Retrieved 26 June 2013.
- ^ "Victoria County History: Staffordshire: Volume 3: 34". British-history.ac.uk. 22 June 2003. Retrieved 26 June 2013.
- ^ Andrew Thrush and John P. Ferris (editors). "The History of Parliament: Constituencies 1604 – 1629, Staffordshire (Author: Ben Coates)". Historyofparliamentonline.org. Retrieved 26 June 2013.
{{cite web}}
:|author=
has generic name (help) - ^ Andrew Thrush and John P. Ferris (editors). "The History of Parliament: Members 1604–1629 – BOWYER, Sir William II (1588–1641), of Knypersley, Staffs. (Author: Ben Coates)". Historyofparliamentonline.org. Retrieved 26 June 2013.
{{cite web}}
:|author=
has generic name (help) - ^ "Journal of the House of Commons, Volume 1, 23 April 1624". British-history.ac.uk. 22 June 2003. Retrieved 26 June 2013.
- ^ Dictionary of National Biography
- ^ "Journal of the House of Commons, Volume 1, 11 May 1624". British-history.ac.uk. 22 June 2003. Retrieved 26 June 2013.
- ^ Andrew Thrush and John P. Ferris (editors). "The History of Parliament: Members 1604–1629 – EGERTON, Sir John (c.1551–1614) (Author: Ben Coates)". Historyofparliamentonline.org. Retrieved 26 June 2013.
{{cite web}}
:|author=
has generic name (help) - ^ Andrew Thrush and John P. Ferris (editors). "The History of Parliament: Members 1604–1629 – EGERTON, Sir Roland (Author: Ben Coates)". Historyofparliamentonline.org. Retrieved 26 June 2013.
{{cite web}}
:|author=
has generic name (help) - ^ "Victoria County History: Staffordshire: Volume 5: 17, s.5". British-history.ac.uk. Retrieved 26 June 2013.
- ^ P.W. Hasler (ed.). "The History of Parliament: Members 1558–1603 – FISHER, Clement (Author: J.E.M.)". Historyofparliamentonline.org. Retrieved 26 June 2013.
- ^ "FamilySearch Community Trees, retrieved 29 November 2012". Histfam.familysearch.org. Archived from the original on 7 September 2014. Retrieved 26 June 2013.