Thomas Wentworth, 1st Earl of Strafford

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PC
Portrait by Anthony van Dyck, 1639
Lord Deputy of Ireland
In office
1632–1640
Vice-admiral of Munster
In office
1634–1640
Custos Rotulorum of the West Riding of Yorkshire
In office
1630–1641
President, Council of the North
In office
1628–1641
Member of Parliament
for Yorkshire
1614–1621; 1625
In office
March 1628 – July 1628
Member of Parliament
for Pontefract
In office
January 1624 – February 1624
Personal details
Born13 April 1593
Execution
Resting placeWentworth, South Yorkshire
Spouses
Margaret Clifford
(m. 1611; died 1622)
Arabella Holles
(m. 1625; died 1631)
Elizabeth Rhodes
(m. 1632⁠–⁠1641)
Children
Parents
  • William Wentworth (father)
  • Anne Atkins (mother)
Alma materSt John's College, Cambridge
Signature
Coat of arms of Thomas Wentworth, 1st Earl of Strafford, KG

Thomas Wentworth, 1st Earl of Strafford,

N.S.) – 12 May 1641), was an English statesman and a major figure in the period leading up to the English Civil War. He served in Parliament and was a supporter of King Charles I. From 1632 to 1640 he was Lord Deputy of Ireland, where he established a strong authoritarian rule. Recalled to England, he became a leading advisor to the King, attempting to strengthen the royal position against Parliament. When Parliament condemned Lord Strafford to death, Charles reluctantly signed the death warrant and Strafford was executed.[1] He had been advanced several times in the Peerage of England during his career, being created 1st Baron Wentworth in 1628,[2][3] 1st Viscount Wentworth in late 1628 or early 1629, and, finally, 1st Earl of Strafford in January 1640.[2][4]
He was known as Sir Thomas Wentworth, 2nd Baronet, between 1614 and 1628.

Early life

Wentworth was born in London. He was the son of

Stowell, Gloucestershire.[5] He was educated at St John's College, Cambridge,[6] became a law student at the Inner Temple in 1607, and in 1611 was knighted. He married firstly Margaret, daughter of Francis Clifford, Earl of Cumberland and Grisold Hughes.[5]

Early parliamentary career

The young Sir Thomas Wentworth, 2nd

James I's foremost advisor and favourite,[7] but James's denial of the rights and privileges of parliament seems to have caused Wentworth to join in the vindication of the claims of the House of Commons, and he supported the protestation which dissolved the third parliament of James.[5]

In 1622 Wentworth's first wife Margaret Clifford died. Wentworth, according to his friends, was deeply grieved by her death; but in February 1625 he married Arabella Holles, daughter of

Happy Parliament of 1624, but appears to have taken no active part. He expressed a wish to avoid foreign complications and "do first the business of the commonwealth".[5]

In the first parliament of

High Sheriff of Yorkshire, a position which excluded him from the parliament which met in 1626. Yet he had never taken up an attitude of antagonism to the King. His position was very different from that of the regular opposition. He was anxious to serve the Crown, but he disapproved of the King's policy.[5]

In January 1626 Wentworth asked for the presidency of the Council of the North, and was favourably received by Buckingham. But after the dissolution of the parliament, he was dismissed from the justiceship of the peace and the office of custos rotulorum of Yorkshire—which he had held since 1615—probably because he would not support the court in forcing the country to contribute money without a parliamentary grant. In 1627, he refused to contribute to the forced loan, and was subsequently imprisoned.[5]

The Petition of Right and its aftermath

In 1628, Wentworth was one of the more vocal supporters of the Petition of Right, which attempted to curb the power of the King.[5] Once Charles had grudgingly accepted the Petition, Wentworth felt it appropriate to support the crown, saying, "The authority of a king is the keystone which closeth up the arch of order and government".[8] He was consequently branded a turncoat.[5]

In the parliament of 1628, Wentworth joined the popular leaders in resistance to arbitrary taxation and imprisonment, but tried to obtain his goal without offending the Crown. He led the movement for a bill which would have secured the liberties of the subject as completely as the Petition of Right afterwards did, but in a manner less offensive to the King. The proposal failed because of both the uncompromising nature of the parliamentary party and Charles's stubborn refusal to make concessions, and the leadership was snatched from Wentworth's hands by John Eliot and Edward Coke. Later in the session, he quarrelled with Eliot because Wentworth wanted to come to a compromise with the Lords, so as to leave room for the King to act unchecked in special emergencies.[5]

On 22 July 1628, not long after the prorogation, Wentworth was created Baron Wentworth,[2] and received the promise of the presidency of the Council of the North at the next vacancy. This implied no change of principle. He was now at variance with the Parliamentary Party on two great subjects of policy, disapproving both of the intention of Parliament to take the powers of the executive and also of its inclination towards Puritanism. When once the breach was made it naturally grew wider, partly from the energy each party put into its work, and partly from the personal animosities which arose.[5]

As yet Wentworth was not directly involved in the government of the country. However, following the assassination of Buckingham, in December 1628, he became Viscount Wentworth and not long afterwards president of the Council of the North.[5] In the speech delivered at York on taking office, he announced his intention, almost in the words of Francis Bacon, of doing his utmost to bind up the prerogative of the Crown and the liberties of the subject in an indistinguishable union. "Whoever", he said, "ravels forth into questions the right of a king and of a people shall never be able to wrap them up again into the comeliness and order he found them".[5] His tactics were the same as those he later practised in Ireland, leading to the accusation that he planned to centralise all power with the executive at the expense of the individual in defiance of constitutional liberties.[5]

The parliamentary session of 1629 ended in a breach between the King and Parliament, which made the task of a moderator hopeless. Wentworth had to choose between either helping the

Canterbury) in a team of key royal advisors (the "Thorough Party") during an 11-year period of total monarchical rule without parliament (known both as "the Personal Rule" and the "eleven-year tyranny").[9]

Lord Deputy of Ireland

Thomas Wentworth, 1st Earl of Strafford in an Armour, 1639, another portrait by Sir Anthony van Dyck

The 1st Viscount Wentworth, as he had become, became a

privy counsellor in November 1629. On 12 January 1632 he was made Lord Deputy of Ireland,[10] arriving in Dublin on 23 July the following year.[11] He had recently suffered the loss of his beloved second wife Arabella in childbirth. Despite his genuine grief for Arabella, his third marriage to Elizabeth Rhodes in 1632 was also a happy one; but through a strange lapse of judgement, he did not announce it publicly for almost a year, by which time damaging rumours about the presence of a young woman in his house (who was reputed to be his mistress) had gained wide circulation. Wedgwood remarks that it was typical of Wentworth to be oblivious to the bad impression which actions like this might make on the public.[12] Gossip later linked his name with that of Eleanor Loftus, daughter-in-law of The 1st Viscount Loftus, Lord Chancellor of Ireland, but although a warm friendship existed between them, and her death in 1639 caused him much grief, there is no evidence that their relationship went beyond friendship.[13]

In his government here he proved to be an able ruler. "The lord deputy of Ireland", wrote Sir

Elizabeth of Bohemia, "doth great wonders and governs like a king, and hath taught that kingdom to show us an example of envy, by having parliaments and knowing wisely how to use them." He reformed the administration, summarily dismissing the inefficient English officials.[citation needed] He succeeded in so manipulating the parliaments that he obtained the necessary grants, and secured their cooperation in various useful legislative enactments.[citation needed] He started a new victualling trade with Spain, promoted linen manufacture, and encouraged the development of the resources of the country in many directions.[5] The Court of Castle Chamber, the Irish counterpart of the Star Chamber, which up to that time had only operated intermittently, was transformed into a regular and efficient part of the Irish administration.[14]

Customs duties rose from a little over £25,000 in 1633–34 to £57,000 in 1637–38. Wentworth raised an army, put an end to

Loftus and Lord Mountnorris, the last of whom Wentworth caused to be sentenced to death to obtain the resignation of his office, and then pardoned. Promises of legislation such as the concessions known as 'The Graces' were not kept.[15]

The Earl of Strafford with his secretary, Sir Philip Mainwaring

Wentworth ignored Charles' promise that no colonists would be awarded land, to the detriment of Catholic landholders, in

Frances Walsingham had powerful English connections: Clanricarde's half-brother, Robert Devereux, 3rd Earl of Essex
, by 1641 was to become one of Wentworth's (who became Earl of Strafford in 1640) most implacable enemies.

Wentworth made many enemies in Ireland, but none more dangerous than

St. Patrick's Cathedral, Dublin. Cork, a patient and implacable enemy, worked quietly for Wentworth's downfall, and in 1641 recorded calmly in his diary that Wentworth (by then Earl of Strafford) had been beheaded "as he well deserved".[17]

Toward the native Irish, Wentworth had no notion of developing their qualities by a process of natural growth; his only hope for them lay in converting them into Englishmen as soon as possible. They must be made English in their habits, in their laws and in their religion. "I see plainly ... that, so long as this kingdom continues popish, they are not a people for the Crown of England to be confident of", he wrote.

Dublin, whose homely face, plain dress and lack of ostentation made a poor impression on him.[19]

Under Wentworth's patronage, the

Armagh. James Shirley, the English dramatist, wrote several plays for it, one with a distinctively Irish theme, and Landgartha, by Henry Burnell, the first known play by an Irish dramatist, was produced there in 1640.[20]

Wentworth's heavy-handed approach did yield some improvements, as well as contribute to the strength of the royal administration in Ireland. His hindrance in 1634 of 'The Graces', a campaign for equality by Roman Catholics in the Parliament of Ireland, lost him goodwill but was based on fiscal and not religious principles.[21] Wentworth regarded the proper management of Parliament as a crucial test of his success, and in the short term, his ruthless methods did produce results. Having settled on Nathaniel Catelyn as the most suitable Speaker, he coerced the voters of Dublin into returning him as member, and ordered the Commons to elect him Speaker.[22] The Parliament of 1634/5 did pass some useful legislation:[23] the Act against Fraudulent Conveyances remained in force into the 21st century. His second Parliament, however, having paid him abject compliments, began to attack his administration as soon as Wentworth left for England.[24]

The

Second Bishops' War in England, Ormonde was made commander-in-chief of the forces in Ireland.[26] Wedgwood concludes that whatever his intentions Wentworth/Strafford in Ireland achieved only one thing: to unite every faction in Ireland in their determination to be rid of him.[27]

Wentworth's rule in Ireland made him more high-handed at court than ever. He had never been consulted on English affairs until February 1637 when King Charles asked Wentworth's opinion on a proposed interference in the affairs of the Continent. In reply, Wentworth assured Charles it would be unwise to undertake even naval operations till he had secured absolute power at home. He wished that Hampden and his followers "were well whipped into their right senses". The judges had given the King the right to levy

ship-money, but, unless his majesty had "the like power declared to raise a land army, the Crown" seemed "to stand upon one leg at home, to be considerable but by halves to foreign princes abroad". When the Scottish Covenanters rebelled he advocated the most decided measures of repression, in February 1639 sending the King £2000 as his contribution to the expenses of the coming war, at the same time deprecating an invasion of Scotland before the English army was trained, and advising certain concessions in religion.[16]

Wentworth apparently intended to put down roots in Ireland: in the late 1630s he was much occupied with building a mansion,

Naas, County Kildare.[28] He is thought to have intended it to be his official residence where he could entertain the King, should he visit Ireland. The castle, which was to be built partly of red brick and partly of Kilkenny marble, would, had it been completed, have been probably the largest private house in Ireland, but after Wentworth's death, it quickly fell into ruin, although the ground floor still exists.[28]

He made some efforts also to build up a network of family alliances in Ireland: his brother George, to whom he was close, married Anne Ruish, sister of Strafford's great friend Eleanor Loftus,

Anglo-Irish nobility, remained staunchly loyal to the King during the Civil War. His son Wentworth Dillon, 4th Earl of Roscommon, was named for his distinguished uncle, and grew up to be a poet of some distinction. Strafford seems to have taken some interest in his nephew's education, and he spent part of his childhood at his uncle's Yorkshire home.[30]

Recall and impeachment

Wentworth was recalled to England in September 1639. He was expected to help sort out the problems that were growing at home: namely, bankruptcy and war with the Scottish

Covenanters
, and became the King's principal adviser. Unaware how much opposition had developed in England during his absence, he recommended the calling of a parliament to support a renewal of the war, hoping that by the offer of a loan from the Privy Councillors, to which he contributed £20,000, he would save Charles from having to submit to the new parliament if it proved truculent.

The King created him Earl of Strafford in January 1640

Presbyterian Scots. An Irish army was to be levied to assist in the coming war. When Strafford returned to England, he found that the Commons were holding back from a grant of supply, so he tried to enlist the peers on the side of the King, and persuaded Charles to be content with a smaller grant than he had originally asked for.[16]

From April to August 1640, on his return from Ireland, Strafford occupied the newly built Leicester House, Westminster, in the absence of its owner Lord Leicester.[32]

Wenceslas Hollar
, labelling various people who were present

The Commons insisted on peace with the Scots. Charles, on the advice of—or perhaps by the treachery of—

Knight of the Garter, but he fell ill at a crucial moment. In the great council of peers, which assembled on 24 September at York, the struggle was given up, and Charles announced that he had issued writs for another parliament.[16]

A plaque affixed to the floor of Westminster Hall commemorating Strafford's trial

By late 1640, there was no option but to call a new Parliament. The Long Parliament assembled on 3 November 1640, and Charles immediately summoned Strafford to London, promising that he "should not suffer in his person, honour or fortune".[16] One of Parliament's first actions was to impeach Strafford for "high misdemeanours" regarding his conduct in Ireland. He arrived on 9 November and the next day asked Charles I to forestall his impeachment by accusing the leaders of the popular party of treasonable communications with the Scots. The plan having been betrayed, John Pym immediately took up the impeachment to the House of Lords on 11 November. Strafford came in person to confront his accusers, but was ordered to withdraw and taken into custody. On 25 November his preliminary charge was brought up, whereupon he was sent to the Tower of London, and, on 31 January 1641, the accusations in detail were presented. These were that Strafford had tried to subvert the fundamental laws of the kingdom. Much stress was laid on Strafford's reported words: "You have an army in Ireland you may employ here to reduce this kingdom".[16]

The failure of impeachment and the Bill of Attainder

An Answer to the Earle of Strafords Conclusion, likely printed at London, April 1641
Earl of Strafford's Attainder Act 1640
Act of Parliament
Strafford Attainder Act 1662
Status: Repealed

However tyrannical Strafford's earlier conduct may have been, his offence was outside the definition of

Sir Henry Vane the Younger, were validated by councillors who had been present on the occasion, including Henry Vane the Elder, who did ultimately corroborate them (but nearly disowned his own son for having found and leaked them in the first place), and partially by Algernon Percy, Earl of Northumberland.[33] This was not evidence which would convict in a court of law, and all parties knew this. Strafford's words, particularly the crucial phrase this kingdom, had to be arbitrarily interpreted as referring to the subjection of England and not of Scotland, and were also spoken on a privileged occasion. Strafford took full advantage of the weak points in his attack on the evidence collected. Over and over Strafford pointed to the fundamental weakness in the prosecution: how could it be treason to carry out the King's wishes? The lords, his judges, were influenced in his favour.[16] The impeachment failed on 10 April 1641.[34]
Pym and his allies increased public pressure, threatening members of Parliament unless they punished Strafford.

The Commons, therefore, feeling their victim slipping from their grasp, dropped the impeachment, and brought in and passed a

Oliver St. John was that Strafford should be regarded not a man, but as a dangerous animal who must be "knocked on the head". Nothing now remained but the King's signature.[16]

Still, Strafford had served Charles with what the King felt was a high degree of loyalty, and Charles had a serious problem with signing Strafford's death warrant as a matter of conscience, especially as he had explicitly promised Stafford that, no matter what happened, he would not die. However, to refuse the will of Parliament on this matter could seriously threaten the monarchy. When he summoned the bishops to ask for their advice, they were divided. Some, like

Lincoln, took the contrary view that reasons of State permitted the King to break his word where a private citizen could not.[37] Charles had, after the passing of the attainder by the Commons, for the second time assured Strafford "upon the word of a king, you shall not suffer in life, honour or fortune".[16]

According to

Cobbett's State Trials Strafford wrote releasing the King from his engagements and declaring his willingness to die to reconcile Charles to his subjects: "I do most humbly beseech you, for the preventing of such massacres as may happen by your refusal, to pass the bill; by this means to remove ... the unfortunate thing forth of the way towards that blessed agreement, which God, I trust, shall for ever establish between you and your subjects".[16] David Hume notes an account from Thomas Carte that the letter was "entirely a forgery of the popular leaders", although Hume states his own fidelity to the "common way of telling this story", calling Carte's evidence a "hearsay of a hearsay".[38]

The King did not release the letter to Parliament. Meanwhile, violent mobs threatened the palace with harm to the queen and her children. The King's inept efforts to overpower Parliament with military force were revealed by Pym and caused irresistible pressure.[39] Charles gave his assent on 10 May, remarking sadly "My Lord Strafford's condition is happier than mine".[16][40] Accounts of Strafford's reaction when he was told that he must die differ: by one account he took the news stoically; according to another he was deeply distressed, and said bitterly "Put not your trust in princes".[41] Archbishop Laud wrote that the King's abandonment of Strafford proved him to be "a mild and gracious prince, that knows not how to be, or be made, great".[42]

Death and aftermath

Strafford led to Execution, by Paul Delaroche, oil-on-canvas, 1836, depicts Laud giving his blessing to the Earl of Strafford
Wenceslas Hollar
depicting from a distance the execution of Strafford, with significant persons labelled

Strafford met his fate two days later on Tower Hill, receiving the blessing of Archbishop Laud (who went on to be likewise imprisoned in the Tower, and executed on 10 January 1645).[43] He was executed before a crowd estimated, probably with some exaggeration, at 300,000 on 12 May 1641 (as this number was roughly the population of London at the time, the crowd is likely to have been a good deal smaller).[44]

Following news of Strafford's execution, Ireland rose in sanguinary rebellion in October 1641, which led to more bickering between King and Parliament, this time over the raising of an army.[45] Any hope that Strafford's death would avert the coming crisis soon vanished: Wedgwood quotes the anonymous protest "They promised us that all should be well if my Lord Strafford's head were off, since when there is nothing better".[45] Many of Strafford's Irish enemies, like Lord Cork, found that his removal had put their estates, and even their lives, at risk. When Charles I himself was executed eight years later, among his last words were that God had permitted his execution as punishment for his consenting to Strafford's death:[46] "that unjust sentence which I suffered to take effect".[47] In 1660, the House of Lords voted to expunge the record of Strafford's attainder from its official Journal, with the intention of repudiating its legal validity.[48]

Assessment

In the course of his career, he made many enemies, who pursued him, with a remarkable mixture of fear and hatred, to his death. Yet Strafford was capable of inspiring strong friendships in private life: at least three men who served him in Ireland, Christopher Wandesford, George Radcliffe and Guildford Slingsby, remained his loyal friends to the end.[43] Wentworth's last letter to Slingsby before his execution shows an emotional warmth with which he is not often credited.[49] Sir Thomas Roe speaks of him as "Severe abroad and in business, and sweet in private conversation; retired in his friendships but very firm; a terrible judge and a strong enemy".[43] He was a good husband and a devoted father.[50] His appearance is described by Sir Philip Warwick: "In his person he was of a tall stature, but stooped much in the neck. His countenance was cloudy whilst he moved or sat thinking, but when he spoke, either seriously or facetiously, he had a lightsome and a very pleasant air; and indeed whatever he then did he performed very gracefully".[43] He himself jested on his own "bent and ill-favoured brow",[43] Lord Exeter replying that had he been "cursed with a meek brow and an arch of white hair upon it, he would never have governed Ireland nor Yorkshire".[43] Despite his terrifying manner, there is no real evidence that he was physically violent: even the most serious charge against him, that he ill-treated Robert Esmonde, causing his death, rests on disputed testimony.[51]

Thomas was the subject of a verse play by the poet Robert Browning entitled Strafford (1837).

Family

Strafford was married three times:[43]

Strafford's honours were forfeited by his attainder, but his only son, William, who was born on 8 June 1626, received them all by a fresh grant from Charles I on 1 December 1641. In 1662 Parliament reversed his father's attainder, and William, already 1st Earl of Strafford of the second creation, became also 2nd earl of the first creation in succession to his father.[52]

In addition to William, Strafford and Arabella had two daughters who outlived him:

Baron Rockingham; and Arabella, born October 1630,[52] who married Justin McCarthy, Viscount Mountcashel. Through his daughter Anne, Strafford was the ancestor of the prominent eighteenth-century statesman Charles Watson-Wentworth, 2nd Marquess of Rockingham. Strafford had a daughter, Margaret, with his third wife.[52] The hatred felt by so many for Strafford did not extend to his widow and children, who were generally regarded with compassion: even at the height of the Civil War Parliament treated "that poor unfortunate family" with consideration.[53]

Film portrayals

Strafford was portrayed by Patrick Wymark in the historical drama film Cromwell (1970).

Ancestry

Notes

  1. S2CID 236317185
    .
  2. ^ a b c Dictionary of Irish Biography: Wentworth, Sir Thomas (see 'Early career'). https://www.dib.ie/biography/wentworth-sir-thomas-a8968.
  3. ^ C.P. Hill, Who's Who in Stuart Britain, p. 70. Shepheard-Walwyn, London, 1988.
  4. ^ C.P. Hill, Who's Who in Stuart Britain, p. 72. Shepheard-Walwyn, London, 1988.
  5. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q York 1911, p. 978.
  6. ^ "Wentworth, Thomas (WNTT609T)". A Cambridge Alumni Database. University of Cambridge.
  7. ^ Wedgwood 1961, pp. 48, 117.
  8. ^ Wedgwood 1961, p. 74.
  9. ^ Sharpe 1996, p. [page needed].
  10. ^ Asch 2004, p. 146, right column, line 23. "Wentworth was appointed lord deputy on 12 January 1632 ..."
  11. ^ Wedgwood 1961, p. 126. "... reached Dublin Bay early in the morning of July 23rd [1633]."
  12. ^ Wedgwood 1961, p. 125.
  13. ^ a b Wedgwood 1961, p. 242.
  14. ^ Wedgwood 1961, pp. 143–4.
  15. ^ York 1911, pp. 978, 979.
  16. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o York 1911, p. 979.
  17. ^ Wedgwood 1961, p. 175.
  18. ^ Kenyon, J.P. The Popish Plot, Phoenix Press reissue (2000), p. 224
  19. ^ Wedgwood 1961, p. 158.
  20. ^ Wedgwood 1961, pp. 226–227.
  21. ^ Wedgwood 1961, pp. 148–58.
  22. ^ Wedgwood 1961, p. 150.
  23. ^ Wedgwood 1961, p. 160.
  24. ^ Wedgwood 1961, pp. 320–1.
  25. ^ Wedgwood 1961, pp. 157–8.
  26. ^ Wedgwood 1966, pp. 74–5.
  27. ^ Wedgwood 1961, p. 391.
  28. ^ a b Wedgwood 1961, p. 226.
  29. ^ Wedgwood 1961, p. 324.
  30. ^ Chalmers, Alexander General Biographical Dictionary Vol. 12 (1813) p.91
  31. ^ "He became earl of Strafford in 1640, taking the title from the name of the hundred in which Wentworth Woodhouse was situated" (Kearney 1989, p. xxxiv footnote 1)
  32. ^ "Leicester Square, North Side, and Lisle Street Area: Leicester Estate: Leicester House and Leicester Square North Side (Nos 1–16)" in Survey of London, vols. 33–34 (St Anne Soho, 1966), pp 441–472
  33. ^ Upham 1844, pp. 187–198.
  34. ^ Wedgwood 1961, pp. 353–355.
  35. ^ Wedgwood 1961, p. 367.
  36. ^ Orr 2004.
  37. ^ Wedgwood 1961, p. 377.
  38. ^ Hume, David. The History of England,Vol 6
  39. ^ Wedgwood 1961, pp. 372–377.
  40. ^ Abbott 1876, "Downfall of Strafford and Laud".
  41. ^ Wedgwood 1961, p. 380.
  42. ^ Trevor-Roper, Hugh (2000), Archbishop Laud 1573–1645 (reissue), Phoenix Press, p. 409
  43. ^ a b c d e f g York 1911, p. 980.
  44. ^ Wedgwood 1961, pp. 383–389.
  45. ^ a b Wedgwood 1961, p. 389.
  46. ^ Wedgwood 1983, p. 190.
  47. ^ Kenyon 1966, p. 97.
  48. ^ Handler, Nicholas (May 2019). "Rediscovering the Journal Clause: The Lost History of Legislative Constitutional Interpretation". University of Pennsylvania Journal of Constitutional Law. 21: 1251–52.
  49. ^ Wedgwood p.384
  50. ^ Wedgwood 1961, pp. 43, 39, 50, 103, 125–6, 384–5.
  51. ^ Wedgwood 1961, pp. 246–7.
  52. ^ a b c d e Gardiner 1899, p. 283.
  53. ^ Wedgwood 1961, p. 393.
  54. ^ "Some Descendants of the WENTWORTH Family Related to George Washington 1st US President". Washington.ancestryregister.com. Retrieved 14 December 2012.
  55. ^ Burke's Peerage, see page 564–5 of this edition
  56. ^ "Mayor of Oxford". Oxfordhistory.org.uk. 20 November 2012. Retrieved 14 December 2012.

References

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