Robert Shirley, 1st Earl Ferrers

Robert Shirley, 1st Earl Ferrers From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Robert Shirley, 1st Earl Ferrers PC (20 October 1650 – 25 December 1717)—known as Sir Robert Shirley, 7th Baronet, from 1669 to 1677 and Robert Shirley, 13th Baron Ferrers of Chartley, from 1677 to 1711—was an English peer and courtier.

Shirley was born at East Sheen, the third son of Sir Robert Shirley, 4th Baronet and his wife Catherine Okeover. He was educated at Christ Church, Oxford. In March 1669, he inherited his baronetcy from his infant nephew, and received an M.A. from Oxford in 1669.[1] Shirley was suggested as a candidate for Lichfield in 1677 by Thomas Thynne,[2] husband of his second cousin Frances, but he preferred to accept a seat in the House of Lords, the barony of Ferrers of Chartley being called out of abeyance for him in December. He was also appointed a deputy lieutenant of Staffordshire shortly thereafter. In 1683, he was appointed high steward of Stafford, replacing the Duke of Monmouth.[1]

On 18 February 1684, Lord Ferrers was appointed Master of the Horse to the Queen Consort, Catherine of Braganza. After Charles II's death in 1685, he became the Dowager Queen's Lord Steward and "Chief Bailiff of the Revenues", in which post he served until her death in 1705.[1] Among the Queen's property was the honour of Higham Ferrers, part of the Duchy of Lancaster, which had been granted to her for life by Charles II with reversion to the Earl of Feversham, her Lord Chamberlain. Since Feversham avoided open politics after the Glorious Revolution in 1689, the offices of the honour were in Ferrers' gift. This allowed him to choose the Member of Parliament for Higham Ferrers until 1703, when Thomas Watson-Wentworth, whose brother had married Feversham's sister-in-law, purchased from him the reversion of the honour of Higham Ferrers and took over the electoral interest.[3]

At the coronation of King James II in April, Ferrers was assistant lord cupbearer. He was also the first colonel of The Princess Anne of Denmark's Regiment of Foot, raised in the summer of 1685, during the Monmouth Rebellion, but was removed in favor of James FitzJames, 1st Duke of Berwick on 1 November 1686. In September 1687, he was appointed Lord Lieutenant of Staffordshire,[1] replacing the Earl of Shrewsbury, who was unwilling to comply with James II's orders for purging the commission of the peace and packing Parliament with royalist candidates (to secure the repeal of the Test Act and the Penal Laws). However, Ferrers proved no more tractable, and was replaced in November by Walter Aston, 3rd Lord Aston of Forfar.[4] He was also dismissed from the high stewardship of Stafford in February 1688.[1]

In December 1688, after the outbreak of the Glorious Revolution, Ferrers, Lord Chesterfield, and a retinue of gentlemen attended Princess Anne in Nottingham and escorted her to Warwick.[5] Under William III and Mary II, Ferrers was re-appointed as high steward of Stafford.[1]

In 1692, Ferrers and Thynne (the latter now Viscount Weymouth) decided to partition the Barony of Farney in County Monaghan, both possessing an equal moiety of it as coheirs of Robert Devereux, 3rd Earl of Essex. The barony was surveyed and divided into lands of equal value, Weymouth taking the eastern moiety and Ferrers the western. However, the survey soon proved to be faulty, and Ferrers' share of lesser value. Weymouth generously deeded a portion of his share to Ferrers to equalize them, a process completed in 1706.[6]

Ferrers was admitted to the Privy Council on 25 May 1699. He was retained in the Privy Council of Queen Anne, and was again assistant lord cupbearer at her coronation.[1] John Macky described him during her reign:[7]

Is a very honest Man, a Lover of his Country, a great Improver of Gardening and Parking; a keen Sportsman, never was yet in Business, but is very capable; a tall, fair Man, towards sixty Years old.

After his second marriage to Selina Finch in 1699, he spent much of his time at a house he built in Twickenham, Heath Lane Lodge. On 3 September 1711, Lord Ferrers was created Earl Ferrers and Viscount Tamworth. On his death at Bath six years later, his earldom passed to his second (but eldest surviving) son Washington, whilst his barony passed to his granddaughter, Elizabeth, her father and elder brother having died in 1698 and 1714, respectively. Washington received the family's Northamptonshire estates in fee simple, while those in Derbyshire, Nottinghamshire, Leicestershire, and Staffordshire were to some extent encumbered by annuities to his four younger half-brothers and a jointure to the Dowager Countess Selina. She also received Heath Lane Lodge, which was then to go to her eldest son; he also inherited the Ettington Park estate near Stratford-on-Avon in Warwickshire, and he and his three full brothers were jointly left the Earl's Irish lands in County Monaghan. The estate of Garsdon in Wiltshire, inherited from the Washingtons, went to the Earl's third surviving son, Laurence.[8][9]

Family On 28 December 1671, Shirley married the heiress, Elizabeth Washington (d. 2 October 1693) and they had ten sons and seven daughters:[10][8]

Hon. Robert Shirley (1673–1698/9) Hon. Elizabeth Shirley (25 November 1674 – 10 October 1677) Hon. Katherine Shirley (31 May 1676 – 18 August 1679) Washington Shirley, 2nd Earl Ferrers (1677–1729) Lady Elizabeth Shirley (20 June 1678 – 7 March 1740), married Walter Clarges (d. 1723), younger son of Sir Walter Clarges, 1st Baronet Lady Anne Eleanora Shirley (12 November 1679 – 1754) Lady Katherine Shirley (17 February 1680 – October 1736), unmarried Hon. Charles Shirley (9 April 1682 – 28 May 1682) Lady Dorothy Shirley (25 May 1683 – 3 April 1721), married John Cotes in 1700 Hon. Charles Shirley (21 June 1684 – 12 September 1685) Hon. Lewis Shirley (13 July 1685 – 1710), unmarried Hon. George Shirley (21 October 1686 – 1694) Lady Barbara Shirley (5 February 1687 – 7 November 1768), unmarried Hon. Ferrers Shirley (23 April 1689 – 25 June 1707) Hon. Walter Shirley (27 May 1690 – aft. 1694; died young) Henry Shirley, 3rd Earl Ferrers (1691–1745) Hon. Laurence Shirley (26 September 1693 – 1743), married Anne Clarges, daughter of Sir Walter Clarges, 1st Baronet, and had issue, including: Laurence Shirley, 4th Earl Ferrers (1720–1760) V-Adm. Washington Shirley, 5th Earl Ferrers (1722–1778) Robert Shirley, 6th Earl Ferrers (1723–1787) Rev. Walter Shirley (1726–1786) R-Adm. Thomas Shirley (1733–1814) In August 1699, Lord Ferrers married Selina Finch (d. 20 March 1762) and they had ten children:[10]

Hon. Robert Shirley (1700–1738) Lady Selina Shirley (2 July 1701 – 14 December 1777), married Peter Bathurst Lady Mary Shirley (20 November 1702 – 17 May 1771), married Charles Tryon, of Bulwick, and had issue, including William Tryon Hon. George Shirley (1704–1704) Capt. Hon. George Shirley (23 October 1705 – 22 October 1787), married Mary Sturt, sister of Humphrey Sturt, and had issue Lady Frances Shirley (5 May 1707 – 15 July 1778), unmarried Lady Anne Shirley (24 May 1708 – 6 February 1779), married Sir Robert Furnese, 2nd Baronet Hon. Sewallis Shirley (1709–1765), married Margaret Rolle, 15th Baroness Clinton (1709–1781) Lady Stuarta Shirley (19 August 1711 – 31 December 1767), unmarried Hon. John Shirley (12 March 1712 O.S. – 15 February 1768), unmarried

Robert Shirley Birth: 20 Oct 1650 Surrey, England Death: 28 Dec 1717 (aged 67) Somerset, England Burial: St Marys The Virgin, Twickenham, London Borough of Richmond upon Thames, Greater London, England

Memorial #: 130626323

Bio: Sir Robert, the First Earl Ferrers, married Elizabeth Washington, on Deb 28,1671 who was the daughter and heiress of Laurence Washington of Garesdon, Wiltshire, grandson of Robert Washington of Northampton, from whom the first president of the United States is descended. From Wikipedia, the free encyclopediaRobert Shirley, 1st Earl Ferrers PC (20 October 1650 – 25 December 1717), known as Sir Robert Shirley, 7th Baronet from 1669 to 1677 and Robert Shirley, 13th Baron Ferrers of Chartley from 1677 to 1711, was an English peer and courtier.Shirley was born at East Sheen, the third son of Sir Robert Shirley, 4th Baronet and his wife Catherine Okeover. He was educated at Christ Church, Oxford. In March 1669, he inherited his baronetcy from his infant nephew, and received an M.A. from Oxford in 1669.[1] Shirley was suggested as a candidate for Lichfield in 1677 by Thomas Thynne,[2] husband of his second cousin Frances, but he preferred to accept a seat in the House of Lords, the barony of Ferrers of Chartley being called out of abeyance for him in December. He was also appointed a deputy lieutenant of Staffordshire shortly thereafter. In 1683, he was appointed high steward of Stafford, replacing the Duke of Monmouth.[1]On 18 February 1684, Lord Ferrers was appointed Master of the Horse to the Queen Consort, Catherine of Braganza. After Charles II's death in 1685, he became the Dowager Queen's Lord Steward and "Chief Bailiff of the Revenues", in which post he served until her death in 1705.[1] Among the Queen's property was the honour of Higham Ferrers, part of the Duchy of Lancaster, which had been granted to her for life by Charles II with reversion to the Earl of Feversham, her Lord Chamberlain. Since Feversham avoided open politics after the Glorious Revolution in 1689, the offices of the honour were in Ferrers' gift. This allowed him to choose the Member of Parliament for Higham Ferrers until 1703, when Thomas Watson-Wentworth, whose brother had married Feversham's sister-in-law, purchased from him the reversion of the honour of Higham Ferrers and took over the electoral interest.[3]At the coronation of King James II in April, Ferrers was assistant lord cupbearer. He was also the first colonel of The Princess Anne of Denmark's Regiment of Foot, raised in the summer of 1685, during the Monmouth Rebellion, but was removed in favor of James FitzJames, 1st Duke of Berwick on 1 November 1686. In September 1687, he was appointed Lord Lieutenant of Staffordshire,[1] replacing the Earl of Shrewsbury, who was unwilling to comply with James II's orders for purging the commission of the peace and packing Parliament with royalist candidates (to secure the repeal of the Test Act and the penal laws). However, Ferrers proved no more tractable, and was replaced in November by Walter Aston, 3rd Lord Aston of Forfar.[4] He was also dismissed from the high stewardship of Stafford in February 1688.[1]In December 1688, after the outbreak of the Glorious Revolution, Ferrers, Lord Chesterfield, and a retinue of gentlemen attended Princess Anne in Nottingham and escorted her to Warwick.[5] Under William and Mary, Ferrers was re-appointed as high steward of Stafford.[1]In 1692, Ferrers and Thynne (the latter now Viscount Weymouth) decided to partition the Barony of Farney in County Monaghan, both possessing an equal moiety of it as coheirs of Robert Devereux, 3rd Earl of Essex. The barony was surveyed and divided into lands of equal value, Weymouth taking the eastern moiety and Ferrers the western. However, the survey soon proved to be faulty, and Ferrers' share of lesser value. Weymouth generously deeded a portion of his share to Ferrers to equalize them, a process completed in 1706.[6]Ferrers was admitted to the Privy Council on 25 May 1699. He was retained in the Privy Council of Queen Anne, and was again assistant lord cupbearer at her coronation.[1] John Macky described him during her reign:[7] Is a very honest Man, a Lover of his Country, a great Improver of Gardening and Parking; a keen Sportsman, never was yet in Business, but is very capable; a tall, fair Man, towards sixty Years old.After his second marriage to Selina Finch in 1699, he spent much of his time at a house he built in Twickenham, Heath Lane Lodge. On 3 September 1711, Lord Ferrers was created Earl Ferrers and Viscount Tamworth. On his death at Bath six years later, his earldom passed to his second (but eldest surviving) son Washington, whilst his barony passed to his granddaughter, Elizabeth, her father and elder brother having died in 1698 and 1714, respectively. Washington received the family's Northamptonshire estates in fee simple, while those in Derbyshire, Nottinghamshire, Leicestershire, and Staffordshire were to some extent encumbered by annuities to his four younger half-brothers and a jointure to the Dowager Countess Selina. She also received Heath Lane Lodge, which was then to go to her eldest son; he also inherited the Ettington Hall estate in Warwickshire, and he and his three full brothers were jointly left the Earl's Irish lands in County Monaghan. The estate of Garsdon in Wiltshire, inherited from the Washingtons, went to the Earl's third surviving son, Laurence.[8][9]ncestors and heirsSir Robert Shirley, Baron Ferrers, Viscount Tamworth was created 1st Earl Ferrers in 1711. He was born at East Sheen and baptised at Mortlake, his father being a prisoner in the Tower of London at that time, where he died. Robert married twice, having seventeen children by his first wife who died in 1693. In 1699 he married Selina Finch, the daughter of a London merchant, described as "a young girl who has no portion". She provided him with five sons and five daughters. It has been said that he sired a further thirty children out of wedlock.At this time the principal residence of the family was Staunton Harold, north of Ashby de la Zouche in Leicestershire. There was also property at Tamworth and Ettington, in Warwickshire and an Irish estate. Robert was descended from, among others, Robert Devereux, Earl of Essex, executed for treason by Queen Elizabeth.^ top ^Staunton Harold, Leicestershire, the Ferrers' principal seat in the MidlandsStaunton Harold, Leicestershire, the Ferrers' principal seat in the MidlandsThe largest mansion in TwickenhamIn 1711 he bought Heath Lane Lodge and it came with about 24 acres of ground; its modest name did not truly describe what was an enormous mansion, the largest in Twickenham. The land extended north across what is now Heath Road, up to the river Crane and south down to adjoin what became Alexander Pope's garden. The property had been owned and perhaps built by Thomas Boucher, reputed to have made, and lost, a fortune by gambling. He died in 1708 leaving a widow who remained in Twickenham until 1734. Boucher's antecedents are not known and it has been suggested that he had been, at one time, a footman in service.Earl Ferrers extended the estate further by buying the meadow across the road (Cross Deep) at the southern end of his garden and running along the riverside, in 1716. This 1½ acre piece cost him £960, a high price, perhaps reflecting competition for riverside land in Twickenham. He died, in Bath, on Christmas Day 1717.^ top ^Countess Ferrers' Summerhouse. Detail from Peter Tillemans' A Prospect of Twickenham, c1725Countess Ferrers' Summerhouse. Detail from Peter Tillemans' A Prospect of Twickenham, c1725Countess Ferrer's summerhouseCountess Ferrers remained at Heath Lane Lodge for the next 45 years, dying there in 1762 in her 81st year and she is buried in the churchyard of St Mary's, Twickenham.In about 1719, she built a summerhouse facing the river. The earliest picture of this building is on Peter Tillemans' A Prospect of Twickenham painted in about 1725. For size it compares with the Octagon built by James Johnston to the design of James Gibbs, farther down the river. Nothing is known of its designer. When, in 1788 the Heath Lane Lodge estate was sold it was described as a "temple" in the Particulars, but by this time it was probably derelict and shortly after, demolished.discrepancy: History & Antiq. of Leicester states he is interred in the churchyard at Staunton Harold

Family Members

Parents

 Robert Shirley                 1629-1656

 Katherine Okeover Shirley                 Unknown-1672

Spouse

 Selina Finch Shirley*                 1681-1762

Children

 Washington Shirley*                 1677-1729

 Robert Shirley*                 1700-1738 Created by: Debbie Shirley (47635900) Added: 31 May 2014 URL: https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/130626323/robert-shirley Citation: Find A Grave, database and images (https://www.findagrave.com : accessed 28 May 2018), memorial page for Robert Shirley (20 Oct 1650–28 Dec 1717), Find A Grave Memorial no. 130626323, citing St Marys The Virgin, Twickenham, London Borough of Richmond upon Thames, Greater London, England ; Maintained by Debbie Shirley (contributor 47635900) .

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