History of saint Thomas More and the Cresacre family in barnburgh hall

St. Thomas More and Cresacres

The History of our notable families

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Did you know that the worlds most famous Chancellor of the Exchequer took his holidays in Barnburgh.

Did you know that one of his sons was regarded as little more than an idiot and that he lived in Barnburgh... No comment!

Did you know he fell for a local lass? Ok in those days things were arranged, but how more local can you get than Barnburgh Hall and to think British Coal knocked it down!

But first you need to know about the first family of Barnburgh read on!

The Cresacres

The Cresacres were Norman Barons who came over with William of Normandy, but history is silent concerning the family from that time until about 1260 when we find John d'Eyville and John de Cresacre mentioned in a deed in which Cresacre became possessed of lands in Darfield and Wombwell.

The first written evidence of the Cresacres occupying the Manor of Barnburgh is to be found in the Harlean manuscripts in which a document is preserved which gives a John Cresacre as Lord of Barnburgh in 1281.

Hunter must have missed this, for in his "Deanery of Doncaster" he states that the first notice he could find of the family was in 1316, when a John de Cresacre and Stephen de Bella Aqua were returned as joint Lords of Barnburgh. More of the Bella Aquas later.

From that time, the Cresacres can be traced without interruption, and in the reign of Henry the Sixth, we find Percival Cresacre as Lord. He married Alice, daughter of Thomas Mounteney, a family who were for a long period wealthy lords of a great part of Derbyshire. It is this Percival Cresacre around whom the most romance is cast and he it is who is named in connection with the famous " Cat and Man " Legend.

Both Percival and Alice are buried in Barnburgh Church. The tomb of Sir Percival has a magnificent oak effigy (one of the finest in the land) set in a beautiful canopy of stone. No date appears among the many Latin inscriptions, but it makes up for this deficiency by the elaborateness of the canopy. In addition to the numerous inscriptions, the tomb contains the arms of several notable families to whom the Cresacres had been joined in marriage, including Bosville, Wombwell, Fitzwilliam, Wortley and others.

The last Cresacre of the male line was Edward who was born in 1485 and came into possession of the estate at the age of 16 in 1501 on the death of his father, John, who died on February 3rd of that year. At that time the estate was worth £100 per annum, which in those days was a considerable sum.

In addition to his Barnburgh property he held lands in Harlington, Bilham, Hellaby near Maltby, Brampton in Worthing, Thorpe in Balne, Bolton-on-Dearne, Burghwallis, Moseley and Bramwith.

Edward Cresacre married Jane, the daughter of Sir Richard Bassett, of Fletborough, Notts, and they had a daughter Annie who was born in 1510, becoming heiress to the estate in 1512 at the age of two years.

Although the name of Cresacre died out as a surname with Annie, the name was not to be allowed to die out entirely, for a son of the Mores, born at Barnburgh on July 6th, 1572, was named Cresacre More, and the name was twice used in the succeeding century as a Christian name.

The arms of the Cresacres were three purple lions rampant on a golden shield, with a cat-a-mountain used as a crest. The arms may still be seen just under the battlements on the South wall of the Church Tower, although I am afraid they are now so much weathered as to be practically undecipherable.

The More Family

Annie Cresacre, the last of that name, married in 1528 at the age of 18 years, John More, son of the famous Sir Thomas More who was for some time Chancellor during the reign of Henry the Eighth whom he served faithfully and by whom he was executed... oops!

Through this marriage Barnburgh Hall and Estate passed into the possession of the More family who held it for the next three centuries during most of which time they were in residence there.

John More died in 1547 and his widow Anne re-married, 12 years later, a George West of Aughton near Rotherham, whose family was mixed up in the tragic feud with the D'Arcy's of Aston. An interesting feature is that shortly after she married George West, her daughter Annie married the son and heir of George West, thus mother and daughter married father and son. After thirteen years of married life with her second husband, the Cresacre heiress again became widowed, her husband dying on June 12th, 1572.

A brass to the memory of this Annie Cresacre is to be found on the wall of the Cresacre Chapel in Barnburgh Church and seems to hold some mystery. When first made this brass would probably hang in the Hall as it is not of the ecclesiastical style one usually meets with in churches. The inscription is in Latin and one or more words have disappeared, the brass having been cut away. Why?

A translation is :

" Anna the only daughter and heiress of Edward Cresacre of Baronburgh near Doncaster in the County of Yorkshire, Esquire, was married to John More, only (son and heir) of Thomas More Knight, formerly Chancellor of England, which Anna departed this life December 2nd 1577 age 67."

The More family were ardent Catholics and during the reign of Elizabeth the First, at least one of them was imprisoned as a recusant.

The More family continued in possession of the Barnburgh property until circa 1820-1822 and the last to reside at the Hall was Thomas Peter More

In 1820 Thomas Peter More was recorded as Lord of the Manor but was residing in Warwick... hey! a he was a Brummie too!

The More family continued in possession of the Barnburgh property until circa 1820-1822 and the last to reside at the Hall was Thomas Peter More

By clicking on the picture you will be taken to an excellent site which breaks down elements of the painting into each person and their family tree but remember to come back!

Read the full history of the painting here

Read the Full More Family Connections with Barnburgh here

The Bella Agua Family

Whilst Cresacre is the most important name in the story of Barnburgh, there was another great Norman family connected with the Parish in those early days.

This was the Bella Aqua family (or as they later became known, the Bellews). They owned a considerable amount of land in Barnburgh and a Sir Thomas de Bellew is mentioned as having possessions in Barnburgh in 1242.

At that time he was probably a sub-tenant of the Newmarsh family, but in 1316 Stephen de Bella Aqua and John de Cresacre were returned as joint Lords of the Manor.

In addition to their Barnburgh estates there are charters existing which record the Bella Aquas as having lands in Bolton, Swinton, Rawmarsh and Wildthorpe. This latter village, which was mentioned in Domesday Book, once stood on the cliffs overlooking Cadeby Colliery, but has now vanished entirely.

The Bella Aqua arms are to be seen on the East wall of the Church Tower and although now in an advanced state of decay, it could be seen some years ago to be of lozenge form with a mantle and a crest. The family had a Chantry Chapel in Barnburgh Church which may be still seen in the South Aisle.

An interesting theory was that the family had their residence on the high ground which lies between the Barnburgh-Goldthorpe road and Hickleton, known to this day as " Bella Wood." A careful examination of the place has brought nothing to light, but if an aerial picture could be taken of the site any covered foundations would most likely be shown up.

Bella Wood is certainly very ancient, for a deed of nearly 700 years ago proves that the wood was in existence then and had the same name. I give the following translated extract from the deed :

" Thomas Fitzwilliam grants to Randolf son of Thomas de Thorpe, Gunnelscroft in the territory of Barnburgh, lying between the lands of Walter de Harlington on the South, and the lands which Hugh Paulmer holds of me in the North, the East end abutting on a pasture of mine and on a wood of Thomas de Bella Aqua, and the west end upon Gilbersyke, as is the course of water which divides Barnburghe and Goldthorpe and between Barnburghe and Hickleton."

This clearly shows that Bella Wood must have stood where it is today, the land to which this refers being that which lies between Barnburgh Colliery and Bella Wood, and terminating near the railway bridge in Barnburgh Lane.

Hunter, the South Yorkshire historian, thought the Bella Aqua family resided at Bolton, but there is no evidence to support this, apart from the fact that they held lands in Bolton and had a Chantry Chapel in Bolton Church. Furthermore if they had their mansion in Bella Wood, Bolton is comparatively near, across country, it being remembered that in those days there would be no such things as railways and the like to impede a cross country passage to Bolton.

The records of the family are very meagre and I believe their connection with Barnburgh was severed shortly after the above record was made.

Read more here and see the supposed family connections!