The Daily Times.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1860-09-03 00:00:00

THE STANLEY FAMILY.

Having thus given—as far as we are able from
cursory perusal of the published records . (as far as we
have been enabled to refer upon this emergency) the
details of the house of Knowsley, we will now give a
fesi---rand what, we believe, will be found interesting—
historical,,faets
.ponnectitid. with the STNNLEY family, a
name that has for ages beettrecarded in the history of
this country with all that is noble, and lust,
The house of STANLEY is written ticif enl,4 14 Min
history of the county palatine of Lancaster, bit in that
of the empire. Few families have for such a lengthened
period been so distinguished, and so interwoven with
the stormy times, in which many of its Members have
ffourished as that from which the inheritor of Knowsley
claim's his long and noble descent. The origin of the
family is traced from the ancient Barons Aldelegh, in
Staffordshire, one of whom. had two. sons, Lydulpli and
Adatk atcompanied William Duke of Normandy
in. hi'S eipeditioh' to England. He Was born about the
27th year' otf., siard TTI.j and had for his whole patri-
mony the old seat of Newton,, in the hundred of Mac-
clesfield, and was one of the caigaioStinder the com-
mand of his relation, James Lord AtielleY, art tbe fahioue
battle of Poictiers, in France;fought 19th day of
September, 1357, by Edward the Black Prince, son: te.
King Edward 111., wherein John. King of4rance
taken prisoner and brought captive to England; but
Sir John Stanley; the Second: son of Lord Stanley, who
married Mary, daughter of Hugh Massey, Esq., of Tim-
perky, Chester, in the year 1375, there is much to be
observed, for h7e. was justly esteemed the commonfather
of the Earls of Derby, for from him theyare all sprung.
In the year 14%, Sir John obtained license to fortify a
spacious house, he was then building in Liverpool, with
embattled' walls, which he called the tower. This
building stood at the bottom of Chapel-street, and was
nesed as a place of confinement for offenders, but it is
entirely removed, and a modern building erected on its
site. The Isle of Man, being by Northumberland's late
rebellion forfeited to his family, it was, in April, 1407,
granted to Sir John Stanley and his heirs for ever, with all
the royalties and franchises thereto belonging, together
with the patronage of the bishopric under the style
and title of King of Man. The grant to' be held of the
Crown of England, per hentergtem legiym; and paying to the
king, his heir and successors, a cast of falcolasat their corce,
nation, and carrying the Lancaster sword on the left side
•of the King." Sir John was also appointed a' constable'
of Windsor Castle, and invested with the m'oef noble
Gisler of the Garter. He died at Ardee on the 6th' of.
jahnary, 1410. His arms or bearings were threeetags',
heads, together' with those of the Latham family, . into
which he married.
joint Stanley,. Esq.), eldest son of Sir John, succeeded.
his father' at the age of twenty.'three or twenty-four
years,. and being a youth of great genius, and vivacity,
he wasearly-taket notice- of a Court, and Made steward
of tke household to King IfejskVl. Sir Yebri,
made- all peaceahle ih Wales,. visited the Isle' of Mang
Which' was then in some disorder; where, on his afifival,.
he ton§ulted the' judges and others well skilled in the
ancient Paws Mad customs of the.island ; and, by 'their.
advice, con-Vetted the whole bOdY of the people to a'
certain place' in, the centre of the country (since called
the Tinwald) wieSe-their grand annual court has' ever
since been held on tbs. 24:th. of June, for the promulga-
tion of the laws and statutes. for the future government,
of that island and the several* officers necess-arilyemsdoyed
in the Isle of Man; but, having completed his system of
government, he returned to England and died soon after-
This earl (the fourth) was succeeded by his only son,
Sir Thomas Stanley, and was equally distinguished as
his predecessors, for in the rebellion in Ireland, in 1435',
'with the po's'er of Meath and other assistance, he took
Moyle.O'Neale prisoner' and slew great numbers of the
Irish. In the 26th of Henry VI. (being then comp'
troller of the King's household), he, with other officers,
obtained a grant of all the goods and chattels of Hum'.
phrey, Duke of Lancaster, with power to dispose of
them without account. In the next year, he was
appointed one of the conservators far the king in a truce'
with Scotland: In the twenty-eighth of Henry VI., be
was put in, comniision, with the Earl of Wiltshire and
others, for the custody and defence of the town and
castle of Calais and places adjacent, for the farm of tio
years. At the expiration of that term, he was created.
Baron Stmaley, and made Lord Chamberlain of the king''
household: He was the first of the family ennobled lvf
royal favour. He diedin the year 146?, leaving three sons,
Thomas, William, and John; and three daughters, Mar-
garet, the eldest, married to Sir Wm. Troutbeck of Che-
shire -,'Elizabeth, to Sir Richd. Molyneux of Sefton ; and
Catharine, the youngest, to Sir John Savage of Clifton, in
Cheshire., This earl, after his demise, was succeeded by
Tho Mas, his eldest son, who was summoned to Parliament
the first of Edward IV. by his title of Baron Stanley, of
Latham. This Lord Stanley commanded the right wing
of the army, under the Duke of Gloucester (afterwards
Richard III.), against the Scots, when he took Berwick
by assault, but with the loss of a great many men. Tn
the struggle for the crown, between the Earl of Rich-
mond and King Richard, at the battle of Bosworth, be
fearlessly declared in favour of the former, notwith-
standing Richard's threats of putting his son (Lord
Strange) to death, who was then under guard in the
rear of his army. But the battle terminated in favour
of the Earl of Richmond; and King Richard, with 11
great number of his followers were slain. Among the
spoils
of the field was found what Lord Bacon in his'
history calls an ornamental crown, which Richard used
to wear on particular occasions, which Sir William
Stanley placed upon the bead of Henry, Earl of Rich-
sneßd, and proclaimed him King, by the name of Henri
VII.

The seventh Lord Stanley was, on. the 27th of
October, 1485, created Earl of Derby, which title has
remained in the family from that time. He was consti
tuted one of the Lords Commissioners for executing the
office of Lord High Steward of England at the corona-
tion :of, Henry VII. And on the coronation of his.
Queen, three years afterwards, he filled the same office,
He-was also one of the godfathers to Prince Arthur,
their first-born son. In - the sixth year of that
King's reign hex was commissioned to borrow money in
the county of Lancaster, for the support of his expedi-
tion to France. This earl was put :to death by the
King, and was succeeded by his eldest son, who, how-
ever, hopped the title of Earl Derby, and choose that
of Lord of Man sad the Isles, the second title. J 1
married Ann, daughter of Edward, Lord Hastings,
sister to the Earl of Huntingdon. He was succeeded IV.
his son Edward, who was only fifteen years of age when
his father died, and for the better security of his (the
son's) rights,-he appointed nine ecclesiastics and tour
laymea as executors and trustees ; one amongst whom
was Cardinal Wolsey, the Archbishop of York, and
the Lord Chancellor of. England. This young lord,
when he attained his majority, was one of the principal
persons who attended the Cardinal in the embassy to
France concerning making- war with Italy, to set the
Pope, who was at that time a prisoner, at, liberty. 00,
the accession of Queen Mary to the Crown, she appointed
him Lord High Steward of England, and upon Queen
Elizabeth's accession to the throne, although she knew the
Earl of Derby to have been one of the late Queen's
Privy Council, she was so well satisfied with his prudence
and loyalty, that she appointed him one of her -own ,
and granted to him the high office of Chamberlain of
.Chester for six years. Being aged and infirm. he retired
to his seat at Latham, where he died on the 24th of
August, 1572. He was buried with great pomp and
solemnity in the parish church of Ormskirk ; where,
agreeably to his will, a chapel was erected and a tomb
prepared for that purpose. He was so celebated for
good housekeeping and his extensive charity, that Queen
Elizabeth used to Kay that he and Lord. Bedford made
all beggars by their liberality. His table was constant,
where all were welcome and none invited. He had 220
servants in a cheque roll for 42 years, and twice a dal'
60 aged and decrepid people were fed with meat. Ana
every Good Friday, for 35 years, 2,700 persons were
:relieved with meat, drink, and money. Every gentle-
man in his service had a man and horse to attend him
and his allowance for the expense of his house ont,
was £4,000 a year, besides the produce of his two largo
parks, and very large demesnes his house was styled
the Northern Court.
The fourth Earl of Derby was Lord Stanley. and
Strange of Knocking, son of the last-mentioned Earl,
who took his seat in the House of Peers in February,
distinguished and promoted
rveoaurtly.
In
1790,
having occasion t°
as
visit the Isle of Man, he was detained some time in
blys7 ml a r k Hes
of was
Royal favour.
Liverpool, when the Corporation complimented him by
erecting and adorning 'a sumptuous seat for his reception
•at church, where he several times honoured them with
his presence. He departed this life on the 25th 0,
1
:-September, 1594, and his body was deposited in the
family vault at Ormskirk, according to his desire.
He was succeeded by Ferdinand, his only son, in the
baronies of Stanley and Strange, and as Fifth Earl of
Derby. But this nobleman was cut off in the flower of
his age. He left issue three daughters, his heirs general,
under the guardianship of four Bishops and four ten'
poral Lords.
• We do not find that the successor of the late earl, wh°
spent much of his time abroad, achieved much greatness in
this country ; but after escaping the sentence of death,
three days before the time fixed for his execution in
Turkey, he proceeded to Moscow, where, it is said, b 0
accidentally met with a Doctor Dee, from Manchester:
Who had been sent for from England purposely to atteno!
the Emperor. It was from this gentleman, who Ia!
acted in the capacity of physician to the Earl of Derby
and his family, that Sir William was acquainted of hid
father's death, and likewise of that of his brother; an
who at the same time informed bin that his friends I:I
England had long since concluded him dead also. al
/
SAC
deplored the extinction of the family. He imme