.
.

Previous:     Chapter 4.D Cheltenahm, Cirencester & Wilthire

Section 4 : Gloucestershire
and thereabouts, 1454 - 1623

Chapter 4.E

Early Gloucestershire conclusions

In addition to the established family group at Tewkesbury (the six children of Richard T1, as discussed in chapter 3.A) we have an assortment of other family groups and individuals in Gloucestershire and Wiltshire. There are at least eighteen children who appear to be born in the period 1510 to 1570, and possibly more. They include two from the Wotton under Edge area (in the south-west of the county) discussed in chapter 6.A . This might suggest, say, 3 or 4 family groups.

Too many of these dates depend on counting back from marriages - which is OK as a rule of thumb for first marriages but quite useless for remarriages which can happen at any age. My impression is that remarriage late in life was more common in this period than it is today - in a world without care homes or state benefits and even before the establishment of the workhouse.

It seems safe to assume that Margaret[G12], Anthony[G14] and at least one Giles [G11 or G15] form a family group at Brockworth/Painswick - either siblings or cousins and that they are probably early members of generation (3). Whether Giles[G11] and Giles[G15]are cousins or whether they are the same man remarrying four years later, or whether one of them is actually Giles[G2] remarrying late in life is anyone's guess.

Similarly we may assume that Agnes[G10], Marjerie[G17] and Thomas[G18] are all linked somehow prior to their marriages around Wotton. However their projected birth dates are quite widely spread. Marjerie and Thomas look like generation (3) but is Agnes from one generation back? Thomas[G18] marrying in 1593 could be Thomas[Txx] the son of Humphrey baptised 1662 but Marjerie[G17] married in 1580 cannot be the daughter of Lewes baptised 1567.

What of the others? Walter G6, Thomas G8, and William G9 all look to be the same generation as Agnes G10. Walter[G4] could be early in that generation or late inthe previous one.   Is Thomas[G8] the brother[G101] of Richard of Fairford[G100] who could also easily fit in the same generation? Whether this is generation (2) or (3) we can't yet say though John[T501] of Tewkesbury looks to be the same generation, and we have him marked firmly as generation(2). It is conceivable that John[T501] and John[G5] of Marlborough are one and the same person. If they are not then they cannot be brothers.

Giles[G2] of Brockworth, father of Isabel[G7], could certainly be the father or uncle of any of the 'G' children born from the late 1530s through to the late 1560s.

Walter[G6], Thomas [G8], William[G9], Agnes[G0], Giles[G11], Margaret[G12], Anthony [G14], Giles[G15], William[G16], Marjerie[G17], Thomas[G18] and Thomas[G19]. Possibly even Walter[G4] and John [G5].

But not father of them all. The name repetition indicates at least two families. John[G1] and the father[G3] at Painswick are possible brothers or cousins of Giles[G2] who could have fathered children in the 1530s to mid 1550s. , Walter[G4] and John[G5] , maybe even Thomas[G8] could be the father of those born in the 1560s.

One marginal character also deserves a passing mention just in case her register entry is a spelling error and she is really a BRUSH.  Thomasine BRATCH[G400] married in Wotton under Edge in 1572, which gives an estimated birth c.1547, sitting right in the middle of the 1530-1570 period we have been looking at.

At the moment the best we can do is to form a chart based on suggested generational groups: In generation 1 there are at least two or three separate households and it seems possible that there is a common root household in generation(0) or maybe generation(-1). Compton Abdale and Tewkesbury are just 15 miles apart and Cheltenham lies between them. Adding Brockworth forms a triangle around Cheltenham

Add T502 and T503 to table also Thomas who held Pcjer land at Cheltenham Returning for a moment to Thomas G14 who marries at Charfield since he appears to be my direct ancestor. Frustrating as it is, there is just too little information to make any firm supposition.

There seem to be four options - Thomas G14 was a) the son of Giles, b) the brother of Agnes /Marjerie ( which may be the same thing as the son of Giles) c) the son of Thomas of Brockworth ( which may make him a grandson of Giles) or d) the son of Humphrey of Tewkesbury. Tempting though it is, I would not like to bet money on the Humphrey option. I also believe it unlikely that Thomas of Brockworth was his father - we know several of the children of and there is no Thomas in there.

But the will of Richard of Fairford does suggest that his brother Thomas also has a son called Thomas. Is the son Thomas BRISH who marries in Elkstone in 1593?. Our formula birth date for a 1593 marriage is 1565. Which would make it perfectly possible for brother Thomas to be Thomas G5 of Brockworth.

Although Richard T1(1) must have been born around 1500 we do not have the evidence of him being in Tewkesbury before 1542 when he is recorded as the leaseholder at the Dissolution of the Abbey. [when was lease granted?] We do not know how long he or his forebears had lived at Tewkesbury. The next earliest firm references in Gloucestershire are both in 1551 - the birth of Anthony in Painswick and the appearance of John as a witness at Compton Abdale. Neither of these locations appear to represent deep roots as they are the only entries for those places.

West or East We have, thus far, assumed that Tewkesbury and other locations within Gloucestershire are the point of origin and looked for evidence of individuals moving east from the family home in the late 16th century/early 17th century. It is very possible that the main movement in the 16th century or earlier was actually the other way.

Although Richard T1(1) must have been born around 1500 we do not have the evidence of him being in Tewkesbury before 1520 when he is recorded as the owner of a boat. We do not know how long he or his forebears had lived at Tewkesbury. The next earliest firm references in Gloucestershire are both in 1551 - the birth of Anthony in Painswick and the appearance of John as a witness at Compton Abdale. Neither of these locations appear to represent deep roots as they are the only entries for those places. Meanwhile in the period 1530- 1600 (and before) we have evidence of households in at least 3 other areas; Berkshire, Suffolk and Cornwall.

TEXT

This section has focused on the search for a common root for the tree within Gloucestershire. The best guess we can make is the Cheltenham area. The earliest entry we have is for Walter in 1454/5. By the early 1600s the circle has a diameter of some 20 or 30 miles. In subsequent sections we see the BRUSH families of Gloucestershire moving north towards Birmingham and east towards London over the next two centuries.

It is however possible that the main movement in the 16th century or earlier was the other way. In the period 1530- 1600 (and before) we have evidence of households in at least 3 other areas; Berkshire, Suffolk and Cornwall.

Or it may be that these four family groups all acquired the BRUSH name independently and that there is no famiy connection between them at all.  I fear we will never know.

Next:     Section 5 East Midlands

(1) back to text   

(2) back to text   

(3) back to text