Margaret Skipwith

Notes:

She is widely shown, including in CP and similarly credible sources, as a daughter of Chief Justice William Skipwith and his wife Alice Hiltoft, notwithstanding that they had another daughter named Margaret who married Alexander Surtees and then Robert Constable. But in 2013 John Watson proved convincingly that she was in fact a daughter of William and Alice's son John Skipwith by his wife Alice Tilney.

Margaret married Henry Vavasour before Jun 1399. Henry (son of William Vavasour and Elizabeth de Cressey) died on 27 Mar 1413. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

1. Henry Vavasour was born about 1402; died before 15 Jan 1453.

Other Events and Attributes:

• Alternate birth: of South Ormsby, Lincolnshire, England
• Alternate death: 15 Jul 1415, of Calthorpe, Lincolnshire, England

Notes:

Knight of the shire for Lincolnshire 1406, 1407, Apr 1414. Sheriff of Lincolnshire 11 Nov 1394 - 9 Nov 1395.

A memorial brass in Covenham church reads Hic jacet, Johés Skypwyth Armiger qui obut xv die mensis Julii anno d'ni mill'imo ccccxvii, cui a' i' e' p' piciet Deus. Amen.

"During his term of office [as sheriff of Lincolnshire] he and his henchmen appear to have inflicted a virtual reign of terror upon the county, and as a result of six separate petitions submitted to the chancellor by his victims he was summoned to appear before the justices of assize at Lincoln in August 1397 to face charges of robbery with violence, blackmail, extortion, false imprisonment and intimidation. All these allegations were found to be true, although the court's verdict had little effect upon his career, and by November 1398 he was again serving as a royal commissioner." [History of Parliament, citation details below.]

John married Alice Tilney. Alice (daughter of Frederick Tilney and Margery) died after 1431. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Other Events and Attributes:

• Alternate death: Aft 1436

Other Events and Attributes:

• Alternate birth: Abt 1320
• Alternate death: Aft 1379
• Alternate death: Aft 1392
• Alternate death: Abt 1397

Notes:

Member of Parliament for the city of York, 1348. Assistant to the Alderman of Boston, 1350. Judge of Assize, 1353. King's Sergeant, 1355. Justice of Common Pleas in 1359. Chief Baron of the Exchequer, 1369 (or 1362-65). Lord Chief Justice of Ireland, 1370. Judge of Common Pleas, 1376. Chief Justice of England, 1378-88.

From Wikipedia:

William de Skipwith was a fourteenth-century English judge. He held the office of Chief Baron of the Exchequer 1362-5. He suffered temporary disgrace when he was removed from office for corruption, but was restored to favour, became Lord Chief Justice of Ireland 1370-2, and later returned to the English bench. He appears to have been the only High Court judge to escape impeachment by the English Parliament of 1388.

William married Alice Hiltoft before Apr 1351. Alice (daughter of William Hiltoft and Margaret le Muer) died after 1415. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Notes:

Entertainingly, Pishey Thompson's 1820/1856 history of Boston, Lincolnshire traces this Frederick Tilney's ancestry back to a Norman great-great-great grandfather at the time of Edward the Confessor named...wait for it...Frodo. More believable is the research of SGM regular John Watson reproduced below.

John Watson (citation details below):

His forebears probably originated in the village of Tilney, Norfolk. He may have been the son of a John de Tilney who occurs in the subsidy rolls for Boston in 1333 (Thompson, 374). In 1342, a John Tilney is mentioned in the Close Rolls as a collector of wool in Lincoln (CCR, Ed. 3, vi, 537), some of those in the same record were merchants of Boston. Frederick de Tilney of Boston, merchant, was a member of the Corpus Christi Guild of Boston in 1349, (Thompson, 374) which I think would place his birth date some time between 1320 and 1330. The first official record I can find of him is in January 1359, when William de Spayne and Frederick de Tylneye were elected as collectors of customs in the town and port of Boston (CPR, Ed. 3, xi, 320). In July 1360 they delivered 240 pounds into the exchequer (CCR, Ed. 3, xi, 45) and in August 1360 they were requested to purvey 4,000 stokfissh, called 'winterfissh' to Southampton for the royal household (CPR, Ed. 3, xi, 453). In February 1363, Frederick was appointed collector of customs in Boston and places along the coast between Grimsby, Lincolnshire and Blakeney, Nofolk (CFR, vii, 252). In 1369, the staple of Lincoln was transferred to Boston and Frederic de Tilney was the first mayor of the staple (VCH Lincs, ii, 320). In October 1372 Frederick de Tylneye and William de Spaigne were again appointed as collectors of customs and duties on wool, hides and cloth in the ports near Boston (CFR, viii, 187).

Between November 1363 and December 1377 Frederick served on several commissions of wallis and fossatis, commissions of the peace and a commission of oyer and terminer in Lincolnshire usually in the company of William de Spaigne [CPR]. From September 1372 to May 1378, Frederick Tilney appears in various records of property transactions in Boston and the manor of Thetford in Norfolk. In June 1376 Frederick de Tilney of Boston appointed his son Philip de Tilney to deliver seisin of the manor of Thetford to trustees (DD/4P/4/12). In November 1377 he was appointed deputy butler in Boston (CPR, Ric. 2, i, 67). The last record I can find of him is in 1378 and I assume that he died some time shortly afterwards. Despite numerous references in secondary works calling him Sir Frederick Tilney I have been unable to find any contemporary record where he is called a knight.

References:
Calendars of Patent Rolls, Close Rolls, Fine Rolls, Papal Registers,
etc.
Pishey Thompson, History and Antiquities of Boston (1856)

Frederick married Margery. Margery died before 1415. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Notes:

Walter Rye (citation details below) calls her "d. of Sir Walter Lyne".

Other Events and Attributes:

• Alternate death: 1366
• Alternate death: Bef 1370

William married Margaret Fitzsimon. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Other Events and Attributes:

• Alternate birth: of Hiltoft, Lincolnshire, England

William married Margaret le Muer. Margaret was born in of Covenham, Lincolnshire, England. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Notes:

The History and Antiquities of the County of Leicestershire calls her "Agnes." Sister and sole heir to Ralph le Muer, lord of Covenham and Calthorp.

John married Margaret Flynton. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Ralph married (Unknown) Ormesby. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

William married Agnes de Munby. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Other Events and Attributes:

• Alternate birth: of Thorp, Lincolnshire, England

Notes:

Sometimes styled John de Thorpe.

John married Isabel de Arches. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Herbert married Cecily de la Lynde. Cecily (daughter of Walter de la Lynde and Isabel) was born in of Laceby, Lincolnshire, England. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Notes:

Maddison's pedigree (citation details below; the mention is in "Skipwith of Skipwith"), and The History and Antiquities of the County of Leicestershire, give her no first name, calling her merely the daughter and coheir of Walter de la Lynde.

Notes:

He took his wife's surname.

Thomas married Margaret de Munby. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Notes:

Sister and coheir of Alun de Munby.