WRIGHT Family

A Family Story of Henry VIII the Sheriff of York Gunpowder Treason and Plot

This is a collection of articles found on the internet and some original work

July 2008

Wright Family

Contents

3 The Wright Family Line 6 The Descendants of John Wright - Some Were Gunpowder Plotters

11 Welwick Yorkshire 11 Bolton on Swale Yorkshire 12 Will of John Wright d 1540

13 Prints of Gunpowder Plot Conspirators 15 Christopher Wright (1570 - 8 November 1605)

16 Christopher (Kit) Wright 18 John (Jack) Wright

20 Confession of Guy Fawkes 9 November 1605 21 Other References amp Documents

Compiled by Robert Hale wwwourgenealogycoukJuly 2008

Page 2 of 24

Wright Family

Contents

3 The Wright Family Line 6 The Descendants of John Wright - Some Were Gunpowder Plotters

11 Welwick Yorkshire 11 Bolton on Swale Yorkshire 12 Will of John Wright d 1540

13 Prints of Gunpowder Plot Conspirators 15 Christopher Wright (1570 - 8 November 1605)

16 Christopher (Kit) Wright 18 John (Jack) Wright

20 Confession of Guy Fawkes 9 November 1605 21 Other References amp Documents

Compiled by Robert Hale wwwourgenealogycoukJuly 2008

Page 2 of 24

Wright Family

The Wright Family Line

John Wright Steward to Henry VIII b c 1476 Kent m c 1499 d c 1540 Yorkshire

Francis Wright b c 1547 Sowerby m d

Alice Ryther b

Ann Thorton b d 28 Dec 1618

Markham b d

Married 2 Ursula Rudstone b

John amp Christopher Wright Gunpowder Plot Conspirators b 156667 amp 1570

Robert Wright Sheriff of Yorkshire b c 1501 Plowland m1 1526 M2 c 1567 d 18 Jul 1594

Married 1 Anne Grimstone b

William Wright b c 1523 Plowland m d 23 Aug 1621

G1 G2 G3 G4

Page 3 of 24

Wright Family

Rev Francis Wright b 1601 Bolton-on-Swale m 1626 d 1655

George Wright b 25 Aug 1629 m d 06 Jun 1674

John Wright b 1736 m d 20 Apr 1806 Leeds

Grace Beckwith b Aldborough d 1655

Anne Merriton b 1612 d 29 Mar 1690

Margaret Greathead b d 04 Aug 1748

Mary b d 02 May 1749

Eleanor Page b 1727 d 1822

John Wright b m d 09 Jun 1748

Francis Wright b c 1575 Aldborough m c 1596 d

G5 G6 G7 G8 G9

Page 4 of 24

Wright Family

George Nathan Wright b 1805 St Asalph Wales m 1834 Llangystennin Caernarfon d between 1861 and 1871

George Nathan Wright b 1839 Syresham Northants m 1869 Old St Pancras Church Londond between 1891 and 1901

James John Wright b 1903 St Pancras London m 1928 Barnet Register Office Herts d 1970 Bournemouth Dorset

Peter Wright Alan Wright Norman Wright June Wright

Catherine Griffiths

Hannah Short b 1805 Syresham Northants

Elizabeth Sarah Martin b 1846 St George Middlesex

Catherine (Kate) Mary Bass b 1878 Highgate London

Ivy Rose Sayers b 1907 Portsmouth d 2001 Faversham Kent

James John Wright b 1871 Middlesex m 1901 St Michael Highgate d 1916

George Nathan Wright b 1771 Bolton on Swale m 1801 St Asalph Wales d bef 1841

G10 G11 G12 G13 G14 G15

Page 5 of 24

Wright Family

The Descendants of John Wright - Some Were Gunpowder Plotters

By Daniel L Wright and David Herber (httpwwwgunpowder-plotorgwrighthistoryasp)

Introduction

Descendants of John Wright and Alice Ryther of Plowland Hall settled in Durham Chester and London others remained in the North Riding and the Holderness area of Yorkshire and Lincolnshire Between 1800 and 1900 over thirty farms halls and manors were owned or managed by members of the Wright family Today descendants through the line of William Wright half-brother to the Gunpowder Plot conspirators John and Christopher Wright live in the United States Canada Australia and New Zealand as well

This article relates some of the information Daniel Wright (who is descended from William Wright) and David Herber have found on the Wrights of Holderness how they established themselves in the area and the historical importance of some of their many descendants including the conspirators John and Christopher and the Venerable Mary Ward (neice to the plotters) who rose to prominance during and after the Gunpowder Plot of 1605

The Acquisition of Plowland Hall

According to several sources it was in the thirty-third year of the reign of King Henry VIII that John Wright of Kent a steward or seneschal to Henry moved to Holderness where as well as purchasing land he had been granted many lands [1] This is perhaps an erroneous comment as the thirty-third year of Henrys reign was 1542 two years after the death of John Wright Perhaps the source has been misleading and it was the thirty-third year of Johns life that he settled in the parish of Welwick or perhaps it was the thirty-third year of the 16th century for we know that around this time part of Thorpe became known as Ploughland (a ploughland is a measurement of land equal to a Hide or approximately 120 acres used in Danelaw and more frequently called a Carucate) and in 1533 John Wright bought a house and land there (Ploughland [Plowland] Hall) from Gerard Elwyn and George Thorpe and their wives and that he acquired other property there from the Thorpes in 1538

Descent of the Main Line

John married Alice Ryther the 2nd daughter and co-heiress of John Ryther This is a well documented family that we have traced back to the middle 1100s You can look at this genealogical line and that of other family members of the Gunpowder Plotter families on Daniels web pages at

bull httpwwwgeocitiescomheartlandplains1937

According to the Visitation of Yorkshire 158485 John and Alice had two sons Robert and John although there is mention of a third son Christopher of whom little is known

We know that John Wright senior died in 1540 (his will--a copy of which is transcribed below--is dated 16 August 1540 and was proved on 28 April 1541) and that according to The History of Yorkshire East Riding his eldest son and heir Robert was still a minor as the lands passed temporarily into the hands of the crown in 1542 (L amp P Henry VIII XVII p256) John Wrights will mentions a number of well-known recusant families in the Yorkshire area as well as mentioning other family members who have yet to be identified but who are probably his other children Other than Robert the eldest son and heir and of course his wife it would be natural for the next tier of beneficiaries to be his other children It is therefore probable that this will confirms two other children in John (whose existence we can prove from independant sources) and a daughter Elizabeth

In the name of God Amen The xvj day of Auguste 1540 I John Wright of Pleoghlande within the parishe of Welwicke holl of mynde and perfite of memorie make my will in this

Page 6 of 24

Wright Family

Rev Francis Wright b 1601 Bolton-on-Swale m 1626 d 1655

George Wright b 25 Aug 1629 m d 06 Jun 1674

John Wright b 1736 m d 20 Apr 1806 Leeds

Grace Beckwith b Aldborough d 1655

Anne Merriton b 1612 d 29 Mar 1690

Margaret Greathead b d 04 Aug 1748

Mary b d 02 May 1749

Eleanor Page b 1727 d 1822

John Wright b m d 09 Jun 1748

Francis Wright b c 1575 Aldborough m c 1596 d

G5 G6 G7 G8 G9

Page 4 of 24

Wright Family

George Nathan Wright b 1805 St Asalph Wales m 1834 Llangystennin Caernarfon d between 1861 and 1871

George Nathan Wright b 1839 Syresham Northants m 1869 Old St Pancras Church Londond between 1891 and 1901

James John Wright b 1903 St Pancras London m 1928 Barnet Register Office Herts d 1970 Bournemouth Dorset

Peter Wright Alan Wright Norman Wright June Wright

Catherine Griffiths

Hannah Short b 1805 Syresham Northants

Elizabeth Sarah Martin b 1846 St George Middlesex

Catherine (Kate) Mary Bass b 1878 Highgate London

Ivy Rose Sayers b 1907 Portsmouth d 2001 Faversham Kent

James John Wright b 1871 Middlesex m 1901 St Michael Highgate d 1916

George Nathan Wright b 1771 Bolton on Swale m 1801 St Asalph Wales d bef 1841

G10 G11 G12 G13 G14 G15

Page 5 of 24

Wright Family

The Descendants of John Wright - Some Were Gunpowder Plotters

By Daniel L Wright and David Herber (httpwwwgunpowder-plotorgwrighthistoryasp)

Introduction

Descendants of John Wright and Alice Ryther of Plowland Hall settled in Durham Chester and London others remained in the North Riding and the Holderness area of Yorkshire and Lincolnshire Between 1800 and 1900 over thirty farms halls and manors were owned or managed by members of the Wright family Today descendants through the line of William Wright half-brother to the Gunpowder Plot conspirators John and Christopher Wright live in the United States Canada Australia and New Zealand as well

This article relates some of the information Daniel Wright (who is descended from William Wright) and David Herber have found on the Wrights of Holderness how they established themselves in the area and the historical importance of some of their many descendants including the conspirators John and Christopher and the Venerable Mary Ward (neice to the plotters) who rose to prominance during and after the Gunpowder Plot of 1605

The Acquisition of Plowland Hall

According to several sources it was in the thirty-third year of the reign of King Henry VIII that John Wright of Kent a steward or seneschal to Henry moved to Holderness where as well as purchasing land he had been granted many lands [1] This is perhaps an erroneous comment as the thirty-third year of Henrys reign was 1542 two years after the death of John Wright Perhaps the source has been misleading and it was the thirty-third year of Johns life that he settled in the parish of Welwick or perhaps it was the thirty-third year of the 16th century for we know that around this time part of Thorpe became known as Ploughland (a ploughland is a measurement of land equal to a Hide or approximately 120 acres used in Danelaw and more frequently called a Carucate) and in 1533 John Wright bought a house and land there (Ploughland [Plowland] Hall) from Gerard Elwyn and George Thorpe and their wives and that he acquired other property there from the Thorpes in 1538

Descent of the Main Line

John married Alice Ryther the 2nd daughter and co-heiress of John Ryther This is a well documented family that we have traced back to the middle 1100s You can look at this genealogical line and that of other family members of the Gunpowder Plotter families on Daniels web pages at

bull httpwwwgeocitiescomheartlandplains1937

According to the Visitation of Yorkshire 158485 John and Alice had two sons Robert and John although there is mention of a third son Christopher of whom little is known

We know that John Wright senior died in 1540 (his will--a copy of which is transcribed below--is dated 16 August 1540 and was proved on 28 April 1541) and that according to The History of Yorkshire East Riding his eldest son and heir Robert was still a minor as the lands passed temporarily into the hands of the crown in 1542 (L amp P Henry VIII XVII p256) John Wrights will mentions a number of well-known recusant families in the Yorkshire area as well as mentioning other family members who have yet to be identified but who are probably his other children Other than Robert the eldest son and heir and of course his wife it would be natural for the next tier of beneficiaries to be his other children It is therefore probable that this will confirms two other children in John (whose existence we can prove from independant sources) and a daughter Elizabeth

In the name of God Amen The xvj day of Auguste 1540 I John Wright of Pleoghlande within the parishe of Welwicke holl of mynde and perfite of memorie make my will in this

Page 6 of 24

Wright Family

George Nathan Wright b 1805 St Asalph Wales m 1834 Llangystennin Caernarfon d between 1861 and 1871

George Nathan Wright b 1839 Syresham Northants m 1869 Old St Pancras Church Londond between 1891 and 1901

James John Wright b 1903 St Pancras London m 1928 Barnet Register Office Herts d 1970 Bournemouth Dorset

Peter Wright Alan Wright Norman Wright June Wright

Catherine Griffiths

Hannah Short b 1805 Syresham Northants

Elizabeth Sarah Martin b 1846 St George Middlesex

Catherine (Kate) Mary Bass b 1878 Highgate London

Ivy Rose Sayers b 1907 Portsmouth d 2001 Faversham Kent

James John Wright b 1871 Middlesex m 1901 St Michael Highgate d 1916

George Nathan Wright b 1771 Bolton on Swale m 1801 St Asalph Wales d bef 1841

G10 G11 G12 G13 G14 G15

Page 5 of 24

Wright Family

The Descendants of John Wright - Some Were Gunpowder Plotters

By Daniel L Wright and David Herber (httpwwwgunpowder-plotorgwrighthistoryasp)

Introduction

Descendants of John Wright and Alice Ryther of Plowland Hall settled in Durham Chester and London others remained in the North Riding and the Holderness area of Yorkshire and Lincolnshire Between 1800 and 1900 over thirty farms halls and manors were owned or managed by members of the Wright family Today descendants through the line of William Wright half-brother to the Gunpowder Plot conspirators John and Christopher Wright live in the United States Canada Australia and New Zealand as well

This article relates some of the information Daniel Wright (who is descended from William Wright) and David Herber have found on the Wrights of Holderness how they established themselves in the area and the historical importance of some of their many descendants including the conspirators John and Christopher and the Venerable Mary Ward (neice to the plotters) who rose to prominance during and after the Gunpowder Plot of 1605

The Acquisition of Plowland Hall

According to several sources it was in the thirty-third year of the reign of King Henry VIII that John Wright of Kent a steward or seneschal to Henry moved to Holderness where as well as purchasing land he had been granted many lands [1] This is perhaps an erroneous comment as the thirty-third year of Henrys reign was 1542 two years after the death of John Wright Perhaps the source has been misleading and it was the thirty-third year of Johns life that he settled in the parish of Welwick or perhaps it was the thirty-third year of the 16th century for we know that around this time part of Thorpe became known as Ploughland (a ploughland is a measurement of land equal to a Hide or approximately 120 acres used in Danelaw and more frequently called a Carucate) and in 1533 John Wright bought a house and land there (Ploughland [Plowland] Hall) from Gerard Elwyn and George Thorpe and their wives and that he acquired other property there from the Thorpes in 1538

Descent of the Main Line

John married Alice Ryther the 2nd daughter and co-heiress of John Ryther This is a well documented family that we have traced back to the middle 1100s You can look at this genealogical line and that of other family members of the Gunpowder Plotter families on Daniels web pages at

bull httpwwwgeocitiescomheartlandplains1937

According to the Visitation of Yorkshire 158485 John and Alice had two sons Robert and John although there is mention of a third son Christopher of whom little is known

We know that John Wright senior died in 1540 (his will--a copy of which is transcribed below--is dated 16 August 1540 and was proved on 28 April 1541) and that according to The History of Yorkshire East Riding his eldest son and heir Robert was still a minor as the lands passed temporarily into the hands of the crown in 1542 (L amp P Henry VIII XVII p256) John Wrights will mentions a number of well-known recusant families in the Yorkshire area as well as mentioning other family members who have yet to be identified but who are probably his other children Other than Robert the eldest son and heir and of course his wife it would be natural for the next tier of beneficiaries to be his other children It is therefore probable that this will confirms two other children in John (whose existence we can prove from independant sources) and a daughter Elizabeth

In the name of God Amen The xvj day of Auguste 1540 I John Wright of Pleoghlande within the parishe of Welwicke holl of mynde and perfite of memorie make my will in this

Page 6 of 24

Wright Family

The Descendants of John Wright - Some Were Gunpowder Plotters

By Daniel L Wright and David Herber (httpwwwgunpowder-plotorgwrighthistoryasp)

Introduction

Descendants of John Wright and Alice Ryther of Plowland Hall settled in Durham Chester and London others remained in the North Riding and the Holderness area of Yorkshire and Lincolnshire Between 1800 and 1900 over thirty farms halls and manors were owned or managed by members of the Wright family Today descendants through the line of William Wright half-brother to the Gunpowder Plot conspirators John and Christopher Wright live in the United States Canada Australia and New Zealand as well

This article relates some of the information Daniel Wright (who is descended from William Wright) and David Herber have found on the Wrights of Holderness how they established themselves in the area and the historical importance of some of their many descendants including the conspirators John and Christopher and the Venerable Mary Ward (neice to the plotters) who rose to prominance during and after the Gunpowder Plot of 1605

The Acquisition of Plowland Hall

According to several sources it was in the thirty-third year of the reign of King Henry VIII that John Wright of Kent a steward or seneschal to Henry moved to Holderness where as well as purchasing land he had been granted many lands [1] This is perhaps an erroneous comment as the thirty-third year of Henrys reign was 1542 two years after the death of John Wright Perhaps the source has been misleading and it was the thirty-third year of Johns life that he settled in the parish of Welwick or perhaps it was the thirty-third year of the 16th century for we know that around this time part of Thorpe became known as Ploughland (a ploughland is a measurement of land equal to a Hide or approximately 120 acres used in Danelaw and more frequently called a Carucate) and in 1533 John Wright bought a house and land there (Ploughland [Plowland] Hall) from Gerard Elwyn and George Thorpe and their wives and that he acquired other property there from the Thorpes in 1538

Descent of the Main Line

John married Alice Ryther the 2nd daughter and co-heiress of John Ryther This is a well documented family that we have traced back to the middle 1100s You can look at this genealogical line and that of other family members of the Gunpowder Plotter families on Daniels web pages at

bull httpwwwgeocitiescomheartlandplains1937

According to the Visitation of Yorkshire 158485 John and Alice had two sons Robert and John although there is mention of a third son Christopher of whom little is known

We know that John Wright senior died in 1540 (his will--a copy of which is transcribed below--is dated 16 August 1540 and was proved on 28 April 1541) and that according to The History of Yorkshire East Riding his eldest son and heir Robert was still a minor as the lands passed temporarily into the hands of the crown in 1542 (L amp P Henry VIII XVII p256) John Wrights will mentions a number of well-known recusant families in the Yorkshire area as well as mentioning other family members who have yet to be identified but who are probably his other children Other than Robert the eldest son and heir and of course his wife it would be natural for the next tier of beneficiaries to be his other children It is therefore probable that this will confirms two other children in John (whose existence we can prove from independant sources) and a daughter Elizabeth

In the name of God Amen The xvj day of Auguste 1540 I John Wright of Pleoghlande within the parishe of Welwicke holl of mynde and perfite of memorie make my will in this

Page 6 of 24

Wright Family

manner followinge First I bequeathe my saull to God Almightie to oure blissed laidie and to the celestiall company of heven my bodie to be buried within the hallowed grounde Item I bequeathe to John Wright x li to Elisabethe Wright x li to Charles Wright fyve marke to John Cloughe v marc to William Buccler xl s to Richarde Beaniles wif xl s to every one of Richarde Smyth children who be fyve xl s to Georgie Cloughe xl s to William Picherde xl s to Margaret Hent fyve markes to William Battirsbie v marc to Richarde Curle xiij s iiij d to the vicare of Welwike vi s viij d to John Arcules vj s viij d to William Hirdman ij s to Thomas Carter vj s viij d to Rollande Murrey vj s viij d to Helin vj s viij d to Agnes xl d to Besse ij d to Julian ij s to Georgie Thorp wif iiij quarters whet to John Ferons wif iiij quarters whet to Sir John Foston to singe for my saull seven yeres xl s in the yere to waite one my wif with mett and drinke to the churche of Welwike vj s viij d to the churche of Pattrington v s to the churche of Hollym vi s viij d to the churche of Holmton vj s viij d Item I give to my wif all her plaite and the goodes that she brought with her To Robert Wright my sone all my plaite Also I will that Sir William Constable knyght Sir Rauf Ellerker knyght maister Babthorpe esquier and Mr Walter Grymstone esquier to be supervysors of this my laste will and evere one of them to have fyve markes The residue of all my goodes I bequeathe to Robert Wright my sone whom I ordan my full executor Thes being witnes and recordes the vicare of Welwike my curate Bartilmewe Thorp gentleman William Carr and John Parker yomen

Robert eventually became Sheriff of Yorkshire and was granted Arms by patent under the hand and seal of William Flower Norroy He married firstly Anne Grimston of Grimston Garth the daughter of Thomas Grimston and Ursula Podaton and secondly Ursula Rudston[e] of Hayton about 1567 Ursula was the daughter of Nicholas Rudston[e] and Jane Mallory

By his first wife Anne Robert had issue three children

[1] William Wright of Plowland in co Eborum (or York) was born in Plowland England and died August 23 1621 He married Ann Thornton of E Newton daughter of Robert Thornton and by her had issue

[1]Francis Wright of Sowerby in co Ebor (a quo Wright of Bolton-upon-Swale see Dugdales Visitation of Yorkshire in 15845 and 1612 p 98) born in Sowerby County of York England married into the Markham family (cousins) of Yorkshire England [2]Robert Wright of Foston b 1572 d 1620 married Ann Girlington of Sandal and had issue

[1]Mary Wright who married Ralph Crathorne of Ness and by him had a son Thomas Crathorne

[2]Anne Wright

[3]William Wright b abt 1560 d 1648 m Ann Mills [4]Nicholas Wright b abt 1550 d 1648 [5]John Wright [6]Anne Wright (Marked osp on Visitation of Yorkshire in 15845 and 1612 pg 145)

[2] Martha Wright

[3] Anne Wright

By his second wife he had issue five children

[1] John Wright of Twigsmore bapt Jan 16 1568 d Nov 8 1605 Holbeche House Staffordshire married Dorothy

[2] Christopher Wright b 1570 d Nov 8 1605 Holbeche House Staffordshire married Margaret Ward of Mulwith and had issue

[1] John Wright b abt 1593 married Miss BUSFIELD of Lincolnshire and had issue [1]John Wright

[3] Martha Wright married the conspirator Thomas Percy who was descended from the Percys of Beverley (and kin to the Earl of Northumberland) and had by him

Page 7 of 24

Wright Family

[1]Robert Percy who married Emma Mead 22 October 1615 in Wiveliscombe Somerset [2]Daughter Percy who married Robert Catesby son of Robert Catesby the conspirator

[4] Ursula Wright married Marmaduke Ward of the Wards of Mulwith and by him had a daughter

[1]Mary Ward b 23 January 1585 d 23 January 1645 Heworth York

[5] Alice Wright of Plowland secretly married William Readshaw of Oulston in 1593 in the home of her sister Ursula Ward

Robert initially increased the size of the family estates through the purchase of the manor of Weeton from Robert Rudston[e] in 1555-56 however his eldest son William conveyed property in Weeton probably including the manor to Richard Legard in 1579 as it is not included in the list of properties conveyed to William on Roberts death Robert was buried 18 July 1594 in Welwick seised of the manor of Plowland and lands in Weeton and Pensthorpe

Of Roberts younger brother John we know that John Wright was granted lands by the crown in Sancton in 1553 also parts of the former Acaster property in Selby

A curious entry is noted in Catholic Recusancy in the City of York 1558-1791 by JCHAveling

f6v 19 July Margaret wife of Jn Wright of Yorksuspected in religionshe promised to go to church and was enjoined to do so and certify no bond

This is almost certainly a reference to Roberts younger brother and his wife The entry occured along with entries regarding the arrest of Alice Oldcorne who we have noted below was imprisoned for recusancy between 1560 and 1580 along with Johns sister-in-law No further details of John are available but present research is attempting to determine if the Wrights of Skelton from whom the priests William Wright and his brother Thomas Wright are descended are descendants of either John or Christopher the younger brothers of Robert Wright of Plowland

Robert Wright of Fostons daughter Mary married Ralph Crathorne of Ness as we indicated in the tree above The estates of the Wright family were eventually devised by Francis Wright (son of Nicholas and great-grandson of Robert) on his death in 1664 to his cousin Thomas Crathorne and hence passed out of the Wright family curious indeed as there were several potential male heirs through other lines These properties included Plowland Hall the manor of Thorpe (purchased by William Wright from Robert Thorpe in 1608) the manors of Pensthorpe Welwick Thorpe and Thorpe Garth (the original covenant of sale for these four properties was dated 8 October 1607 but Robert Thorpe must have died soon after as the sale was confirmed on 20 April 1608 by Roberts widow Frances Thorpe) and the manor of Welwick Provost which was sold in 1623 to John Wright by William Whitmore and Edmund Sawyer and the rectory estate of Orwithfleet purchased in 1637 by William Wright from Francis Braddock and Christopher Kingscote

Faith and the Tainted Blood

The strength of the Wrights Catholic faith is well documented Ursula Wright wife of Robert was incarcerated for a total of 14 years chiefly in Hull prison with a number of other recusant wives including one of her Babthorpe cousins and Alice Oldcorne a relative of the Jesuit Father Edward Oldcorne It is said that the courage and cheerfulness of this forceful old lady provided great moral uplift for the other prisoners William and his wife Ann were likewise attainted several times for recusancy An interesting anecdote from The Yorkshire Papists says Ann was considered a lunaticke person and subsequently absented herself from church Whether she was indeed mentally unbalanced or merely employing thoughtful subterfuge against church services that were contrary to her belief we cannot say but given her previous record it is not difficult to believe her maintaining some charade to avoid attending church

John and Christopher were related not only to the Wintour brothers of Huddington through their Mallory grandmother but also to the Rookwoods and the Keyes through their Babthorpe and Tyrwhitt connections In fact John is occassionally referred to as John Wright of Twigsmore a manorial estate in the parish of Manton Lincolnshire owned in the latter part of the sixteenth century by the Tyrwhitt

Page 8 of 24

Wright Family

family Ex-school colleagues of Guy Fawkes and the priest Oswald Tesimond and tied by marriage through their sister to the Percys of Spofforth this completes the picture of these two young men and helps us in understanding how they became involved in Catesbys plot to kill James I

John Wright married Dorothy perhaps a close family friend and is said to have had a family (Poulsons work The History and Antiquities of the Seigniory of Holderness refers to him thus John an unfortunate victim to the Gunpowder Plot had issue ut pater Welwick Register but the source for this entry is still being researched His younger brother Christopher married Margaret Ward a sister of Marmaduke Ward of the Wards of Mulwith and by her he had issue a son John (born abt 1593) who married into the Busfield family of Lincolnshire and himself had a son called John (Visitation of Yorkshire 1612) As a point of interest Christopher Wrights widow then married a noted papist Sir Henry Curwen of Northumberland (the marriage is reported in Cecil Papers 19263 HMC Vol XIX accompanied by the date 8 January 1606) This would indicate that Margaret Wright (nee Ward) remarried less than two months after her first husbands death

The two brothers have variously been described as excellent swordsmen but hot-headed and often spoiling for a fight Whether this is a legend or merely propaganda to help explain their later actions is unsure but John Wright is described as one of the finest swordsmen of his day and is generally regarded as the first of Robert Catesbys recruits for the Gunpowder Plot John Wrights part in the Gunpowder Plot is somewhat unclear although his devotion to the cause was clear He had formed part of the entourage of the Earl of Essex along with his friend Catesby and after the aborted uprising in 1601 had spent time in solitary confinement for his crime

His younger brother Christopher (who was brought into the circle of the conspirators along with John Grant and Robert Wintour in March 1605) was selected by Catesby Garnet and several other discontented Catholics to plead their case to the King of Spain in 1603 by means of the Jesuit Joseph Creswell and to proceed with the invasion of England that had been negotiated by Thomas Wintour the previous year Wright may have met up with yet another old ally in Anthony Dutton although Father Albert Loomie SJ in his work Guy Fawkes in Spain The Spanish Treason argues that Anthony Dutton was merely an alias of Wrights much like Thomas Wintour had used the alias Timothy Browne Unfortunately no example of Christopher Wrights writing exists to prove either way

Christopher Wright is also acknowledged as the first of the plotters to learn of Fawkes capture and the discovery of the gunpowder beneath the Parliament building Escaping from London early on the morning of Tuesday 5 November 1605 the band of conspirators rode north then north-west eventually arriving at Holbeche House in Staffordshire where they planned to make their final stand On Friday 8 November the Sheriff of Warwick surrounded the house with the intention of arresting the men for a theft of horses from Warwick Castle whilst fleeing supposedly unaware that within lay most of those who had plotted to blow up the King three days before After a series of brief skirmishes the Wright brothers Robert Catesby and Thomas Percy lay dead Today no stone or plaque marks the spot where these men died

The Venerable Mary Ward

Ursula Wright the eldest of Robert Wrights daughters by his second marriage first married John Constable of Hatfield Secondly she married Marmaduke Ward Lord of Givendale who was brother-in-law to her brother Christopher and they had a daughter Mary Ward who was born on 23 January 1585 and died on 23 January 1645 at Heworth near York

In 1590 Marmaduke Wards house was raised by fire and he took his daughter to live with her grandmother at Plowland before going on the run to avoid capture by Henry Hastings who had sworn to rid Yorkshire of all papists Mary then went to live with her cousins the Babthorpes who had a household of fifty-two including two priests She entered a convent of Poor Clares at St Omer as a lay sister in 1606 along with her cousin Barbara Babthorpe The following year she founded a house for Englishwomen at Gravelines where she became a lady of fashion and society and a harbourer of Jesuit priests In 1609 she and her devotees established themselves as a religious community at StOmer called the Institute of the Blessed Virgin Mary which was based along the lines of the Society of Jesus and opened schools for rich and poor

The venture was a success but it was a novelty and it called forth censure and opposition as well as praise Mary advocated things such as freedom from enclosure from the obligation of choir from

Page 9 of 24

Wright Family

wearing a religious habit and from the jurisdiction of the diocesan Moreover her scheme was put forward at a time when there was much division amongst English Catholics and the fact that it borrowed so much from the Society of Jesus increased the mistrust it inspired Pope Pius V had declared solemn vows and strict papal enclosure to be essential to all communities of religious women and this clearly went against what Mary was trying to achieve As her order gained ground in Flanders Austria and Italy she received great praise for her work from a number of quarters and was allowed to plead her case for formal approbation in front of the congregation of cardinals appointed by Pope Urban VIII Unfortunately there was also much opposition to her schemes and the order was supressed in 1630

In time the order gained more momentum and in 1703 was approved by Pope Clement XI and became an institute in 1877 under Pope Pius IX

Mary eventually returned to England in 1639 with letters of introduction from Pope Urban to Queen Henrietta Maria and established herself in London before moving north to Heworth near York in 1642 where she died

Holderness

Holderness was a wapentake [a historical subdivision of some counties in northern and central England equivalent to the hundred in other counties] and seigniory [lands of a feudal lord especially in medieval England] over which the family of Constable have resided as lords and chief bailiffs It was divided into three divisions or chief constabularies middle north and south each of which may be considered as separate wapentakes and contained the following number of townships parishes ampc viz Middle Division 36 townships 15 of which are parishes 11942 inhabitants North Division 30 townships 18 of which are parishes 7577 inhabitants South Division 22 townships 14 of which are parishes including Sunk Island 7007 inhabitants

Holderness is bounded on the east by the German ocean on the south by the Humber on the west by the divisions of Hunsley and Bainton-Beacon and on the north by the wapentake of Dickering Although the general surface of this district viewed from the Wolds appears low and flat when examined upon the spot it is found to possess a surface capable of being made dry and every part of it adapted to the purposes of cultivation The drainages in this district since the year 1762 have been very extensive and though effected at an immense expense not less than 190000L have proved very beneficial to the country The seigniory of Holderness was given by William the Conqueror to Drew de Bruerer a Fleming on whom William bestowed his niece in marriage it was afterwards given to Ode de Campania who had married the Kings sister at his death it devolved upon his son Stephen whom the King created Earl of Albermarle and Holderness and after passing through various hands we find it in 1682 in the family of the Coniers Lord Darcy and Coniers created Earl of Holderness by King Charles II in that family it continued many years and now belongs to Sir Thomas Constable Bart for whom the town of Hedon is obliged to find a prison for such malefactors as are taken in this liberty till they can be sent to the castle of York and an hall to hold therein a court called the wapentake court for the trial of actions under 40s (Source Magna Brit)

Sources and Bibliography

[1] Dictionary of National Biography [2] Dugdale ed Visitation of Yorkshire 158485 amp 1612 [3] The History of Yorkshire East Riding [4] North Country Wills [5] Aveling JCH Catholic Recusancy in the City of York 1558-1791 [6] The Yorkshire Papists [7] Poulson George The History and Antiquities of the Seigniory of Holderness [8] Cecil Papers - 19263 HMC Vol XIX [9] Loomie Albert J SJ Guy Fawkes in Spain The Spanish Treason [10] Magna Brit

Page 10 of 24

Wright Family

Welwick Yorkshire

Where is Plowland The village and parish of Welwick is situated in Yorkshire just north of the Humber and inland from the North Sea

Bolton on Swale Yorkshire

Page 11 of 24

Wright Family

Will of John Wright d 1540

Page 12 of 24

Wright Family

Prints of Gunpowder Plot Conspirators

Page 13 of 24

Wright Family

Christopher lsquoKitrsquo Wright and John lsquoJackrsquo Wright

Page 14 of 24

Wright Family

Christopher Wright (1570 - 8 November 1605)

Christopher Wright (1570 - 8 November 1605) was one of the conspirators in the Gunpowder Plot an unsuccessful attempt by a group of English Roman Catholics to blow-up Westminster Palace and kill the king James I (James VI of Scotland) and members of both houses of Parliament during the opening session on 5 November 1605 while the king addressed a joint assembly of both the House of Lords and the House of Commons He was also charged with Treason but escaped high punishment

Biography

Christopher Wright known as Kit was born sometime in 1570 in Welwick Yorkshire He was the third child of Robert Wright and his second wife Ursula Rudston His oldest brother John would later be a co-conspirator in the Gunpowder Plot and many of the details of their early lives have been confused He attended school at the free school of St Peter in York with his brother and Guy Fawkes as well as Oswald Tesimond and Edward Oldcorne who would later become Jesuits and be implicated in the plot Wrights family was devoutly Catholic his parents spent time in prison in York for their beliefs (a total of 14 years between them) and Wright himself was a zealous Catholic He was known to be taciturn and able to keep a secret

He was involved with Essexs unsuccessful rebellion against Elizabeth I in 1601 but escaped serious punishment

Wright may have been sent to Spain after the death of Elizabeth to try to elicit Spanish support for a rebellion against the new king James I and it at the trial of the surviving conspirators after the failure of the plot Edward Coke suggested that it was in Spain that he renewed his friendship with Fawkes who had been sent on a similar mission

A contemporary sketch of the conspirators The Dutch artist Crispijn van de Passe the Elder probably never met any of the conspirators but the sketch has become well-known nonetheless

According to Fawkes testimony Wright was the sixth member to join the conspiracy Robert Catesby Fawkes Thomas Percy Thomas Wintour and Christophers brother John had formed the core of group and Robert Keyes joined the group later but other sources suggest Keyes was the sixth member of the group and Wright Robert Wintour and John Grant joined sometime between late December 1604 and March 1605 Wrights role in the plot seems to have been minor he was probably chiefly involved in digging the mine from Percys rented house next to the House of Lords The mine was later abandoned when it was discovered that a coal cellar beneath the House of Lords was available for rent and the barrels of gunpowder could be moved in without arousing suspicion once the lease was secured

Wright was married to Margaret Ward the sister of Thomas Ward the servant of Lord Monteagle who informed the conspirators of the Monteagle Letter which betrayed the plot by warning Monteagle to find an excuse not to attend the opening of Parliament Because of this family connection to the Monteagle household Wright has been suggested as the writer or instigator of the letter although authorship is normally ascribed to Francis Tresham

Wright was apparently the first of the conspirators to discover that Fawkes had been arrested and suggested to Thomas Wintour that all the plotters should flee independently Wright was sent to warn Percy to flee London as he had been named in a proclamation after Fawkes arrest He accompanied Percy out of London and they met up first with Catesby and later with John Wright and Ambrose Rokewood The group went first to Ashby St Ledgers and then to Huddington Court the Wintours home They met with other of the conspirators at Dunchurch and on 7 November 1605 they arrived at Holbeach House in Staffordshire Here on 8 November 1605 they were surrounded by the men of Richard Walsh the Sheriff of Worcester In the ensuing battle the conspirators fared badly a stray spark from the fire ignited some gunpowder and in the resulting explosion some of the plotters were killed and others badly wounded The Sheriffs men took the opportunity to rush the house and Wright Percy and Catesby were shot Some records say Wrights dead body was stripped by the Sheriffs men after they entered the house but it is possible that although his wounds were mortal he may have

Page 15 of 24

Wright Family

[1]Robert Percy who married Emma Mead 22 October 1615 in Wiveliscombe Somerset [2]Daughter Percy who married Robert Catesby son of Robert Catesby the conspirator

[4] Ursula Wright married Marmaduke Ward of the Wards of Mulwith and by him had a daughter

[1]Mary Ward b 23 January 1585 d 23 January 1645 Heworth York

[5] Alice Wright of Plowland secretly married William Readshaw of Oulston in 1593 in the home of her sister Ursula Ward

Robert initially increased the size of the family estates through the purchase of the manor of Weeton from Robert Rudston[e] in 1555-56 however his eldest son William conveyed property in Weeton probably including the manor to Richard Legard in 1579 as it is not included in the list of properties conveyed to William on Roberts death Robert was buried 18 July 1594 in Welwick seised of the manor of Plowland and lands in Weeton and Pensthorpe

Of Roberts younger brother John we know that John Wright was granted lands by the crown in Sancton in 1553 also parts of the former Acaster property in Selby

A curious entry is noted in Catholic Recusancy in the City of York 1558-1791 by JCHAveling

f6v 19 July Margaret wife of Jn Wright of Yorksuspected in religionshe promised to go to church and was enjoined to do so and certify no bond

This is almost certainly a reference to Roberts younger brother and his wife The entry occured along with entries regarding the arrest of Alice Oldcorne who we have noted below was imprisoned for recusancy between 1560 and 1580 along with Johns sister-in-law No further details of John are available but present research is attempting to determine if the Wrights of Skelton from whom the priests William Wright and his brother Thomas Wright are descended are descendants of either John or Christopher the younger brothers of Robert Wright of Plowland

Robert Wright of Fostons daughter Mary married Ralph Crathorne of Ness as we indicated in the tree above The estates of the Wright family were eventually devised by Francis Wright (son of Nicholas and great-grandson of Robert) on his death in 1664 to his cousin Thomas Crathorne and hence passed out of the Wright family curious indeed as there were several potential male heirs through other lines These properties included Plowland Hall the manor of Thorpe (purchased by William Wright from Robert Thorpe in 1608) the manors of Pensthorpe Welwick Thorpe and Thorpe Garth (the original covenant of sale for these four properties was dated 8 October 1607 but Robert Thorpe must have died soon after as the sale was confirmed on 20 April 1608 by Roberts widow Frances Thorpe) and the manor of Welwick Provost which was sold in 1623 to John Wright by William Whitmore and Edmund Sawyer and the rectory estate of Orwithfleet purchased in 1637 by William Wright from Francis Braddock and Christopher Kingscote

Faith and the Tainted Blood

The strength of the Wrights Catholic faith is well documented Ursula Wright wife of Robert was incarcerated for a total of 14 years chiefly in Hull prison with a number of other recusant wives including one of her Babthorpe cousins and Alice Oldcorne a relative of the Jesuit Father Edward Oldcorne It is said that the courage and cheerfulness of this forceful old lady provided great moral uplift for the other prisoners William and his wife Ann were likewise attainted several times for recusancy An interesting anecdote from The Yorkshire Papists says Ann was considered a lunaticke person and subsequently absented herself from church Whether she was indeed mentally unbalanced or merely employing thoughtful subterfuge against church services that were contrary to her belief we cannot say but given her previous record it is not difficult to believe her maintaining some charade to avoid attending church

John and Christopher were related not only to the Wintour brothers of Huddington through their Mallory grandmother but also to the Rookwoods and the Keyes through their Babthorpe and Tyrwhitt connections In fact John is occassionally referred to as John Wright of Twigsmore a manorial estate in the parish of Manton Lincolnshire owned in the latter part of the sixteenth century by the Tyrwhitt

Page 8 of 24

Wright Family

family Ex-school colleagues of Guy Fawkes and the priest Oswald Tesimond and tied by marriage through their sister to the Percys of Spofforth this completes the picture of these two young men and helps us in understanding how they became involved in Catesbys plot to kill James I

John Wright married Dorothy perhaps a close family friend and is said to have had a family (Poulsons work The History and Antiquities of the Seigniory of Holderness refers to him thus John an unfortunate victim to the Gunpowder Plot had issue ut pater Welwick Register but the source for this entry is still being researched His younger brother Christopher married Margaret Ward a sister of Marmaduke Ward of the Wards of Mulwith and by her he had issue a son John (born abt 1593) who married into the Busfield family of Lincolnshire and himself had a son called John (Visitation of Yorkshire 1612) As a point of interest Christopher Wrights widow then married a noted papist Sir Henry Curwen of Northumberland (the marriage is reported in Cecil Papers 19263 HMC Vol XIX accompanied by the date 8 January 1606) This would indicate that Margaret Wright (nee Ward) remarried less than two months after her first husbands death

The two brothers have variously been described as excellent swordsmen but hot-headed and often spoiling for a fight Whether this is a legend or merely propaganda to help explain their later actions is unsure but John Wright is described as one of the finest swordsmen of his day and is generally regarded as the first of Robert Catesbys recruits for the Gunpowder Plot John Wrights part in the Gunpowder Plot is somewhat unclear although his devotion to the cause was clear He had formed part of the entourage of the Earl of Essex along with his friend Catesby and after the aborted uprising in 1601 had spent time in solitary confinement for his crime

His younger brother Christopher (who was brought into the circle of the conspirators along with John Grant and Robert Wintour in March 1605) was selected by Catesby Garnet and several other discontented Catholics to plead their case to the King of Spain in 1603 by means of the Jesuit Joseph Creswell and to proceed with the invasion of England that had been negotiated by Thomas Wintour the previous year Wright may have met up with yet another old ally in Anthony Dutton although Father Albert Loomie SJ in his work Guy Fawkes in Spain The Spanish Treason argues that Anthony Dutton was merely an alias of Wrights much like Thomas Wintour had used the alias Timothy Browne Unfortunately no example of Christopher Wrights writing exists to prove either way

Christopher Wright is also acknowledged as the first of the plotters to learn of Fawkes capture and the discovery of the gunpowder beneath the Parliament building Escaping from London early on the morning of Tuesday 5 November 1605 the band of conspirators rode north then north-west eventually arriving at Holbeche House in Staffordshire where they planned to make their final stand On Friday 8 November the Sheriff of Warwick surrounded the house with the intention of arresting the men for a theft of horses from Warwick Castle whilst fleeing supposedly unaware that within lay most of those who had plotted to blow up the King three days before After a series of brief skirmishes the Wright brothers Robert Catesby and Thomas Percy lay dead Today no stone or plaque marks the spot where these men died

The Venerable Mary Ward

Ursula Wright the eldest of Robert Wrights daughters by his second marriage first married John Constable of Hatfield Secondly she married Marmaduke Ward Lord of Givendale who was brother-in-law to her brother Christopher and they had a daughter Mary Ward who was born on 23 January 1585 and died on 23 January 1645 at Heworth near York

In 1590 Marmaduke Wards house was raised by fire and he took his daughter to live with her grandmother at Plowland before going on the run to avoid capture by Henry Hastings who had sworn to rid Yorkshire of all papists Mary then went to live with her cousins the Babthorpes who had a household of fifty-two including two priests She entered a convent of Poor Clares at St Omer as a lay sister in 1606 along with her cousin Barbara Babthorpe The following year she founded a house for Englishwomen at Gravelines where she became a lady of fashion and society and a harbourer of Jesuit priests In 1609 she and her devotees established themselves as a religious community at StOmer called the Institute of the Blessed Virgin Mary which was based along the lines of the Society of Jesus and opened schools for rich and poor

The venture was a success but it was a novelty and it called forth censure and opposition as well as praise Mary advocated things such as freedom from enclosure from the obligation of choir from

Page 9 of 24

Wright Family

wearing a religious habit and from the jurisdiction of the diocesan Moreover her scheme was put forward at a time when there was much division amongst English Catholics and the fact that it borrowed so much from the Society of Jesus increased the mistrust it inspired Pope Pius V had declared solemn vows and strict papal enclosure to be essential to all communities of religious women and this clearly went against what Mary was trying to achieve As her order gained ground in Flanders Austria and Italy she received great praise for her work from a number of quarters and was allowed to plead her case for formal approbation in front of the congregation of cardinals appointed by Pope Urban VIII Unfortunately there was also much opposition to her schemes and the order was supressed in 1630

In time the order gained more momentum and in 1703 was approved by Pope Clement XI and became an institute in 1877 under Pope Pius IX

Mary eventually returned to England in 1639 with letters of introduction from Pope Urban to Queen Henrietta Maria and established herself in London before moving north to Heworth near York in 1642 where she died

Holderness

Holderness was a wapentake [a historical subdivision of some counties in northern and central England equivalent to the hundred in other counties] and seigniory [lands of a feudal lord especially in medieval England] over which the family of Constable have resided as lords and chief bailiffs It was divided into three divisions or chief constabularies middle north and south each of which may be considered as separate wapentakes and contained the following number of townships parishes ampc viz Middle Division 36 townships 15 of which are parishes 11942 inhabitants North Division 30 townships 18 of which are parishes 7577 inhabitants South Division 22 townships 14 of which are parishes including Sunk Island 7007 inhabitants

Holderness is bounded on the east by the German ocean on the south by the Humber on the west by the divisions of Hunsley and Bainton-Beacon and on the north by the wapentake of Dickering Although the general surface of this district viewed from the Wolds appears low and flat when examined upon the spot it is found to possess a surface capable of being made dry and every part of it adapted to the purposes of cultivation The drainages in this district since the year 1762 have been very extensive and though effected at an immense expense not less than 190000L have proved very beneficial to the country The seigniory of Holderness was given by William the Conqueror to Drew de Bruerer a Fleming on whom William bestowed his niece in marriage it was afterwards given to Ode de Campania who had married the Kings sister at his death it devolved upon his son Stephen whom the King created Earl of Albermarle and Holderness and after passing through various hands we find it in 1682 in the family of the Coniers Lord Darcy and Coniers created Earl of Holderness by King Charles II in that family it continued many years and now belongs to Sir Thomas Constable Bart for whom the town of Hedon is obliged to find a prison for such malefactors as are taken in this liberty till they can be sent to the castle of York and an hall to hold therein a court called the wapentake court for the trial of actions under 40s (Source Magna Brit)

Sources and Bibliography

[1] Dictionary of National Biography [2] Dugdale ed Visitation of Yorkshire 158485 amp 1612 [3] The History of Yorkshire East Riding [4] North Country Wills [5] Aveling JCH Catholic Recusancy in the City of York 1558-1791 [6] The Yorkshire Papists [7] Poulson George The History and Antiquities of the Seigniory of Holderness [8] Cecil Papers - 19263 HMC Vol XIX [9] Loomie Albert J SJ Guy Fawkes in Spain The Spanish Treason [10] Magna Brit

Page 10 of 24

Wright Family

Welwick Yorkshire

Where is Plowland The village and parish of Welwick is situated in Yorkshire just north of the Humber and inland from the North Sea

Bolton on Swale Yorkshire

Page 11 of 24

Wright Family

Will of John Wright d 1540

Page 12 of 24

Wright Family

Prints of Gunpowder Plot Conspirators

Page 13 of 24

Wright Family

Christopher lsquoKitrsquo Wright and John lsquoJackrsquo Wright

Page 14 of 24

Wright Family

Christopher Wright (1570 - 8 November 1605)

Christopher Wright (1570 - 8 November 1605) was one of the conspirators in the Gunpowder Plot an unsuccessful attempt by a group of English Roman Catholics to blow-up Westminster Palace and kill the king James I (James VI of Scotland) and members of both houses of Parliament during the opening session on 5 November 1605 while the king addressed a joint assembly of both the House of Lords and the House of Commons He was also charged with Treason but escaped high punishment

Biography

Christopher Wright known as Kit was born sometime in 1570 in Welwick Yorkshire He was the third child of Robert Wright and his second wife Ursula Rudston His oldest brother John would later be a co-conspirator in the Gunpowder Plot and many of the details of their early lives have been confused He attended school at the free school of St Peter in York with his brother and Guy Fawkes as well as Oswald Tesimond and Edward Oldcorne who would later become Jesuits and be implicated in the plot Wrights family was devoutly Catholic his parents spent time in prison in York for their beliefs (a total of 14 years between them) and Wright himself was a zealous Catholic He was known to be taciturn and able to keep a secret

He was involved with Essexs unsuccessful rebellion against Elizabeth I in 1601 but escaped serious punishment

Wright may have been sent to Spain after the death of Elizabeth to try to elicit Spanish support for a rebellion against the new king James I and it at the trial of the surviving conspirators after the failure of the plot Edward Coke suggested that it was in Spain that he renewed his friendship with Fawkes who had been sent on a similar mission

A contemporary sketch of the conspirators The Dutch artist Crispijn van de Passe the Elder probably never met any of the conspirators but the sketch has become well-known nonetheless

According to Fawkes testimony Wright was the sixth member to join the conspiracy Robert Catesby Fawkes Thomas Percy Thomas Wintour and Christophers brother John had formed the core of group and Robert Keyes joined the group later but other sources suggest Keyes was the sixth member of the group and Wright Robert Wintour and John Grant joined sometime between late December 1604 and March 1605 Wrights role in the plot seems to have been minor he was probably chiefly involved in digging the mine from Percys rented house next to the House of Lords The mine was later abandoned when it was discovered that a coal cellar beneath the House of Lords was available for rent and the barrels of gunpowder could be moved in without arousing suspicion once the lease was secured

Wright was married to Margaret Ward the sister of Thomas Ward the servant of Lord Monteagle who informed the conspirators of the Monteagle Letter which betrayed the plot by warning Monteagle to find an excuse not to attend the opening of Parliament Because of this family connection to the Monteagle household Wright has been suggested as the writer or instigator of the letter although authorship is normally ascribed to Francis Tresham

Wright was apparently the first of the conspirators to discover that Fawkes had been arrested and suggested to Thomas Wintour that all the plotters should flee independently Wright was sent to warn Percy to flee London as he had been named in a proclamation after Fawkes arrest He accompanied Percy out of London and they met up first with Catesby and later with John Wright and Ambrose Rokewood The group went first to Ashby St Ledgers and then to Huddington Court the Wintours home They met with other of the conspirators at Dunchurch and on 7 November 1605 they arrived at Holbeach House in Staffordshire Here on 8 November 1605 they were surrounded by the men of Richard Walsh the Sheriff of Worcester In the ensuing battle the conspirators fared badly a stray spark from the fire ignited some gunpowder and in the resulting explosion some of the plotters were killed and others badly wounded The Sheriffs men took the opportunity to rush the house and Wright Percy and Catesby were shot Some records say Wrights dead body was stripped by the Sheriffs men after they entered the house but it is possible that although his wounds were mortal he may have

Page 15 of 24

Wright Family

family Ex-school colleagues of Guy Fawkes and the priest Oswald Tesimond and tied by marriage through their sister to the Percys of Spofforth this completes the picture of these two young men and helps us in understanding how they became involved in Catesbys plot to kill James I

John Wright married Dorothy perhaps a close family friend and is said to have had a family (Poulsons work The History and Antiquities of the Seigniory of Holderness refers to him thus John an unfortunate victim to the Gunpowder Plot had issue ut pater Welwick Register but the source for this entry is still being researched His younger brother Christopher married Margaret Ward a sister of Marmaduke Ward of the Wards of Mulwith and by her he had issue a son John (born abt 1593) who married into the Busfield family of Lincolnshire and himself had a son called John (Visitation of Yorkshire 1612) As a point of interest Christopher Wrights widow then married a noted papist Sir Henry Curwen of Northumberland (the marriage is reported in Cecil Papers 19263 HMC Vol XIX accompanied by the date 8 January 1606) This would indicate that Margaret Wright (nee Ward) remarried less than two months after her first husbands death

The two brothers have variously been described as excellent swordsmen but hot-headed and often spoiling for a fight Whether this is a legend or merely propaganda to help explain their later actions is unsure but John Wright is described as one of the finest swordsmen of his day and is generally regarded as the first of Robert Catesbys recruits for the Gunpowder Plot John Wrights part in the Gunpowder Plot is somewhat unclear although his devotion to the cause was clear He had formed part of the entourage of the Earl of Essex along with his friend Catesby and after the aborted uprising in 1601 had spent time in solitary confinement for his crime

His younger brother Christopher (who was brought into the circle of the conspirators along with John Grant and Robert Wintour in March 1605) was selected by Catesby Garnet and several other discontented Catholics to plead their case to the King of Spain in 1603 by means of the Jesuit Joseph Creswell and to proceed with the invasion of England that had been negotiated by Thomas Wintour the previous year Wright may have met up with yet another old ally in Anthony Dutton although Father Albert Loomie SJ in his work Guy Fawkes in Spain The Spanish Treason argues that Anthony Dutton was merely an alias of Wrights much like Thomas Wintour had used the alias Timothy Browne Unfortunately no example of Christopher Wrights writing exists to prove either way

Christopher Wright is also acknowledged as the first of the plotters to learn of Fawkes capture and the discovery of the gunpowder beneath the Parliament building Escaping from London early on the morning of Tuesday 5 November 1605 the band of conspirators rode north then north-west eventually arriving at Holbeche House in Staffordshire where they planned to make their final stand On Friday 8 November the Sheriff of Warwick surrounded the house with the intention of arresting the men for a theft of horses from Warwick Castle whilst fleeing supposedly unaware that within lay most of those who had plotted to blow up the King three days before After a series of brief skirmishes the Wright brothers Robert Catesby and Thomas Percy lay dead Today no stone or plaque marks the spot where these men died

The Venerable Mary Ward

Ursula Wright the eldest of Robert Wrights daughters by his second marriage first married John Constable of Hatfield Secondly she married Marmaduke Ward Lord of Givendale who was brother-in-law to her brother Christopher and they had a daughter Mary Ward who was born on 23 January 1585 and died on 23 January 1645 at Heworth near York

In 1590 Marmaduke Wards house was raised by fire and he took his daughter to live with her grandmother at Plowland before going on the run to avoid capture by Henry Hastings who had sworn to rid Yorkshire of all papists Mary then went to live with her cousins the Babthorpes who had a household of fifty-two including two priests She entered a convent of Poor Clares at St Omer as a lay sister in 1606 along with her cousin Barbara Babthorpe The following year she founded a house for Englishwomen at Gravelines where she became a lady of fashion and society and a harbourer of Jesuit priests In 1609 she and her devotees established themselves as a religious community at StOmer called the Institute of the Blessed Virgin Mary which was based along the lines of the Society of Jesus and opened schools for rich and poor

The venture was a success but it was a novelty and it called forth censure and opposition as well as praise Mary advocated things such as freedom from enclosure from the obligation of choir from

Page 9 of 24

Wright Family

wearing a religious habit and from the jurisdiction of the diocesan Moreover her scheme was put forward at a time when there was much division amongst English Catholics and the fact that it borrowed so much from the Society of Jesus increased the mistrust it inspired Pope Pius V had declared solemn vows and strict papal enclosure to be essential to all communities of religious women and this clearly went against what Mary was trying to achieve As her order gained ground in Flanders Austria and Italy she received great praise for her work from a number of quarters and was allowed to plead her case for formal approbation in front of the congregation of cardinals appointed by Pope Urban VIII Unfortunately there was also much opposition to her schemes and the order was supressed in 1630

In time the order gained more momentum and in 1703 was approved by Pope Clement XI and became an institute in 1877 under Pope Pius IX

Mary eventually returned to England in 1639 with letters of introduction from Pope Urban to Queen Henrietta Maria and established herself in London before moving north to Heworth near York in 1642 where she died

Holderness

Holderness was a wapentake [a historical subdivision of some counties in northern and central England equivalent to the hundred in other counties] and seigniory [lands of a feudal lord especially in medieval England] over which the family of Constable have resided as lords and chief bailiffs It was divided into three divisions or chief constabularies middle north and south each of which may be considered as separate wapentakes and contained the following number of townships parishes ampc viz Middle Division 36 townships 15 of which are parishes 11942 inhabitants North Division 30 townships 18 of which are parishes 7577 inhabitants South Division 22 townships 14 of which are parishes including Sunk Island 7007 inhabitants

Holderness is bounded on the east by the German ocean on the south by the Humber on the west by the divisions of Hunsley and Bainton-Beacon and on the north by the wapentake of Dickering Although the general surface of this district viewed from the Wolds appears low and flat when examined upon the spot it is found to possess a surface capable of being made dry and every part of it adapted to the purposes of cultivation The drainages in this district since the year 1762 have been very extensive and though effected at an immense expense not less than 190000L have proved very beneficial to the country The seigniory of Holderness was given by William the Conqueror to Drew de Bruerer a Fleming on whom William bestowed his niece in marriage it was afterwards given to Ode de Campania who had married the Kings sister at his death it devolved upon his son Stephen whom the King created Earl of Albermarle and Holderness and after passing through various hands we find it in 1682 in the family of the Coniers Lord Darcy and Coniers created Earl of Holderness by King Charles II in that family it continued many years and now belongs to Sir Thomas Constable Bart for whom the town of Hedon is obliged to find a prison for such malefactors as are taken in this liberty till they can be sent to the castle of York and an hall to hold therein a court called the wapentake court for the trial of actions under 40s (Source Magna Brit)

Sources and Bibliography

[1] Dictionary of National Biography [2] Dugdale ed Visitation of Yorkshire 158485 amp 1612 [3] The History of Yorkshire East Riding [4] North Country Wills [5] Aveling JCH Catholic Recusancy in the City of York 1558-1791 [6] The Yorkshire Papists [7] Poulson George The History and Antiquities of the Seigniory of Holderness [8] Cecil Papers - 19263 HMC Vol XIX [9] Loomie Albert J SJ Guy Fawkes in Spain The Spanish Treason [10] Magna Brit

Page 10 of 24

Wright Family

Welwick Yorkshire

Where is Plowland The village and parish of Welwick is situated in Yorkshire just north of the Humber and inland from the North Sea

Bolton on Swale Yorkshire

Page 11 of 24

Wright Family

Will of John Wright d 1540

Page 12 of 24

Wright Family

Prints of Gunpowder Plot Conspirators

Page 13 of 24

Wright Family

Christopher lsquoKitrsquo Wright and John lsquoJackrsquo Wright

Page 14 of 24

Wright Family

Christopher Wright (1570 - 8 November 1605)

Christopher Wright (1570 - 8 November 1605) was one of the conspirators in the Gunpowder Plot an unsuccessful attempt by a group of English Roman Catholics to blow-up Westminster Palace and kill the king James I (James VI of Scotland) and members of both houses of Parliament during the opening session on 5 November 1605 while the king addressed a joint assembly of both the House of Lords and the House of Commons He was also charged with Treason but escaped high punishment

Biography

Christopher Wright known as Kit was born sometime in 1570 in Welwick Yorkshire He was the third child of Robert Wright and his second wife Ursula Rudston His oldest brother John would later be a co-conspirator in the Gunpowder Plot and many of the details of their early lives have been confused He attended school at the free school of St Peter in York with his brother and Guy Fawkes as well as Oswald Tesimond and Edward Oldcorne who would later become Jesuits and be implicated in the plot Wrights family was devoutly Catholic his parents spent time in prison in York for their beliefs (a total of 14 years between them) and Wright himself was a zealous Catholic He was known to be taciturn and able to keep a secret

He was involved with Essexs unsuccessful rebellion against Elizabeth I in 1601 but escaped serious punishment

Wright may have been sent to Spain after the death of Elizabeth to try to elicit Spanish support for a rebellion against the new king James I and it at the trial of the surviving conspirators after the failure of the plot Edward Coke suggested that it was in Spain that he renewed his friendship with Fawkes who had been sent on a similar mission

A contemporary sketch of the conspirators The Dutch artist Crispijn van de Passe the Elder probably never met any of the conspirators but the sketch has become well-known nonetheless

According to Fawkes testimony Wright was the sixth member to join the conspiracy Robert Catesby Fawkes Thomas Percy Thomas Wintour and Christophers brother John had formed the core of group and Robert Keyes joined the group later but other sources suggest Keyes was the sixth member of the group and Wright Robert Wintour and John Grant joined sometime between late December 1604 and March 1605 Wrights role in the plot seems to have been minor he was probably chiefly involved in digging the mine from Percys rented house next to the House of Lords The mine was later abandoned when it was discovered that a coal cellar beneath the House of Lords was available for rent and the barrels of gunpowder could be moved in without arousing suspicion once the lease was secured

Wright was married to Margaret Ward the sister of Thomas Ward the servant of Lord Monteagle who informed the conspirators of the Monteagle Letter which betrayed the plot by warning Monteagle to find an excuse not to attend the opening of Parliament Because of this family connection to the Monteagle household Wright has been suggested as the writer or instigator of the letter although authorship is normally ascribed to Francis Tresham

Wright was apparently the first of the conspirators to discover that Fawkes had been arrested and suggested to Thomas Wintour that all the plotters should flee independently Wright was sent to warn Percy to flee London as he had been named in a proclamation after Fawkes arrest He accompanied Percy out of London and they met up first with Catesby and later with John Wright and Ambrose Rokewood The group went first to Ashby St Ledgers and then to Huddington Court the Wintours home They met with other of the conspirators at Dunchurch and on 7 November 1605 they arrived at Holbeach House in Staffordshire Here on 8 November 1605 they were surrounded by the men of Richard Walsh the Sheriff of Worcester In the ensuing battle the conspirators fared badly a stray spark from the fire ignited some gunpowder and in the resulting explosion some of the plotters were killed and others badly wounded The Sheriffs men took the opportunity to rush the house and Wright Percy and Catesby were shot Some records say Wrights dead body was stripped by the Sheriffs men after they entered the house but it is possible that although his wounds were mortal he may have

Page 15 of 24

Wright Family

wearing a religious habit and from the jurisdiction of the diocesan Moreover her scheme was put forward at a time when there was much division amongst English Catholics and the fact that it borrowed so much from the Society of Jesus increased the mistrust it inspired Pope Pius V had declared solemn vows and strict papal enclosure to be essential to all communities of religious women and this clearly went against what Mary was trying to achieve As her order gained ground in Flanders Austria and Italy she received great praise for her work from a number of quarters and was allowed to plead her case for formal approbation in front of the congregation of cardinals appointed by Pope Urban VIII Unfortunately there was also much opposition to her schemes and the order was supressed in 1630

In time the order gained more momentum and in 1703 was approved by Pope Clement XI and became an institute in 1877 under Pope Pius IX

Mary eventually returned to England in 1639 with letters of introduction from Pope Urban to Queen Henrietta Maria and established herself in London before moving north to Heworth near York in 1642 where she died

Holderness

Holderness was a wapentake [a historical subdivision of some counties in northern and central England equivalent to the hundred in other counties] and seigniory [lands of a feudal lord especially in medieval England] over which the family of Constable have resided as lords and chief bailiffs It was divided into three divisions or chief constabularies middle north and south each of which may be considered as separate wapentakes and contained the following number of townships parishes ampc viz Middle Division 36 townships 15 of which are parishes 11942 inhabitants North Division 30 townships 18 of which are parishes 7577 inhabitants South Division 22 townships 14 of which are parishes including Sunk Island 7007 inhabitants

Holderness is bounded on the east by the German ocean on the south by the Humber on the west by the divisions of Hunsley and Bainton-Beacon and on the north by the wapentake of Dickering Although the general surface of this district viewed from the Wolds appears low and flat when examined upon the spot it is found to possess a surface capable of being made dry and every part of it adapted to the purposes of cultivation The drainages in this district since the year 1762 have been very extensive and though effected at an immense expense not less than 190000L have proved very beneficial to the country The seigniory of Holderness was given by William the Conqueror to Drew de Bruerer a Fleming on whom William bestowed his niece in marriage it was afterwards given to Ode de Campania who had married the Kings sister at his death it devolved upon his son Stephen whom the King created Earl of Albermarle and Holderness and after passing through various hands we find it in 1682 in the family of the Coniers Lord Darcy and Coniers created Earl of Holderness by King Charles II in that family it continued many years and now belongs to Sir Thomas Constable Bart for whom the town of Hedon is obliged to find a prison for such malefactors as are taken in this liberty till they can be sent to the castle of York and an hall to hold therein a court called the wapentake court for the trial of actions under 40s (Source Magna Brit)

Sources and Bibliography

[1] Dictionary of National Biography [2] Dugdale ed Visitation of Yorkshire 158485 amp 1612 [3] The History of Yorkshire East Riding [4] North Country Wills [5] Aveling JCH Catholic Recusancy in the City of York 1558-1791 [6] The Yorkshire Papists [7] Poulson George The History and Antiquities of the Seigniory of Holderness [8] Cecil Papers - 19263 HMC Vol XIX [9] Loomie Albert J SJ Guy Fawkes in Spain The Spanish Treason [10] Magna Brit

Page 10 of 24

Wright Family

Welwick Yorkshire

Where is Plowland The village and parish of Welwick is situated in Yorkshire just north of the Humber and inland from the North Sea

Bolton on Swale Yorkshire

Page 11 of 24

Wright Family

Will of John Wright d 1540

Page 12 of 24

Wright Family

Prints of Gunpowder Plot Conspirators

Page 13 of 24

Wright Family

Christopher lsquoKitrsquo Wright and John lsquoJackrsquo Wright

Page 14 of 24

Wright Family

Christopher Wright (1570 - 8 November 1605)

Christopher Wright (1570 - 8 November 1605) was one of the conspirators in the Gunpowder Plot an unsuccessful attempt by a group of English Roman Catholics to blow-up Westminster Palace and kill the king James I (James VI of Scotland) and members of both houses of Parliament during the opening session on 5 November 1605 while the king addressed a joint assembly of both the House of Lords and the House of Commons He was also charged with Treason but escaped high punishment

Biography

Christopher Wright known as Kit was born sometime in 1570 in Welwick Yorkshire He was the third child of Robert Wright and his second wife Ursula Rudston His oldest brother John would later be a co-conspirator in the Gunpowder Plot and many of the details of their early lives have been confused He attended school at the free school of St Peter in York with his brother and Guy Fawkes as well as Oswald Tesimond and Edward Oldcorne who would later become Jesuits and be implicated in the plot Wrights family was devoutly Catholic his parents spent time in prison in York for their beliefs (a total of 14 years between them) and Wright himself was a zealous Catholic He was known to be taciturn and able to keep a secret

He was involved with Essexs unsuccessful rebellion against Elizabeth I in 1601 but escaped serious punishment

Wright may have been sent to Spain after the death of Elizabeth to try to elicit Spanish support for a rebellion against the new king James I and it at the trial of the surviving conspirators after the failure of the plot Edward Coke suggested that it was in Spain that he renewed his friendship with Fawkes who had been sent on a similar mission

A contemporary sketch of the conspirators The Dutch artist Crispijn van de Passe the Elder probably never met any of the conspirators but the sketch has become well-known nonetheless

According to Fawkes testimony Wright was the sixth member to join the conspiracy Robert Catesby Fawkes Thomas Percy Thomas Wintour and Christophers brother John had formed the core of group and Robert Keyes joined the group later but other sources suggest Keyes was the sixth member of the group and Wright Robert Wintour and John Grant joined sometime between late December 1604 and March 1605 Wrights role in the plot seems to have been minor he was probably chiefly involved in digging the mine from Percys rented house next to the House of Lords The mine was later abandoned when it was discovered that a coal cellar beneath the House of Lords was available for rent and the barrels of gunpowder could be moved in without arousing suspicion once the lease was secured

Wright was married to Margaret Ward the sister of Thomas Ward the servant of Lord Monteagle who informed the conspirators of the Monteagle Letter which betrayed the plot by warning Monteagle to find an excuse not to attend the opening of Parliament Because of this family connection to the Monteagle household Wright has been suggested as the writer or instigator of the letter although authorship is normally ascribed to Francis Tresham

Wright was apparently the first of the conspirators to discover that Fawkes had been arrested and suggested to Thomas Wintour that all the plotters should flee independently Wright was sent to warn Percy to flee London as he had been named in a proclamation after Fawkes arrest He accompanied Percy out of London and they met up first with Catesby and later with John Wright and Ambrose Rokewood The group went first to Ashby St Ledgers and then to Huddington Court the Wintours home They met with other of the conspirators at Dunchurch and on 7 November 1605 they arrived at Holbeach House in Staffordshire Here on 8 November 1605 they were surrounded by the men of Richard Walsh the Sheriff of Worcester In the ensuing battle the conspirators fared badly a stray spark from the fire ignited some gunpowder and in the resulting explosion some of the plotters were killed and others badly wounded The Sheriffs men took the opportunity to rush the house and Wright Percy and Catesby were shot Some records say Wrights dead body was stripped by the Sheriffs men after they entered the house but it is possible that although his wounds were mortal he may have

Page 15 of 24

Wright Family

Welwick Yorkshire

Where is Plowland The village and parish of Welwick is situated in Yorkshire just north of the Humber and inland from the North Sea

Bolton on Swale Yorkshire

Page 11 of 24

Wright Family

Will of John Wright d 1540

Page 12 of 24

Wright Family

Prints of Gunpowder Plot Conspirators

Page 13 of 24

Wright Family

Christopher lsquoKitrsquo Wright and John lsquoJackrsquo Wright

Page 14 of 24

Wright Family

Christopher Wright (1570 - 8 November 1605)

Christopher Wright (1570 - 8 November 1605) was one of the conspirators in the Gunpowder Plot an unsuccessful attempt by a group of English Roman Catholics to blow-up Westminster Palace and kill the king James I (James VI of Scotland) and members of both houses of Parliament during the opening session on 5 November 1605 while the king addressed a joint assembly of both the House of Lords and the House of Commons He was also charged with Treason but escaped high punishment

Biography

Christopher Wright known as Kit was born sometime in 1570 in Welwick Yorkshire He was the third child of Robert Wright and his second wife Ursula Rudston His oldest brother John would later be a co-conspirator in the Gunpowder Plot and many of the details of their early lives have been confused He attended school at the free school of St Peter in York with his brother and Guy Fawkes as well as Oswald Tesimond and Edward Oldcorne who would later become Jesuits and be implicated in the plot Wrights family was devoutly Catholic his parents spent time in prison in York for their beliefs (a total of 14 years between them) and Wright himself was a zealous Catholic He was known to be taciturn and able to keep a secret

He was involved with Essexs unsuccessful rebellion against Elizabeth I in 1601 but escaped serious punishment

Wright may have been sent to Spain after the death of Elizabeth to try to elicit Spanish support for a rebellion against the new king James I and it at the trial of the surviving conspirators after the failure of the plot Edward Coke suggested that it was in Spain that he renewed his friendship with Fawkes who had been sent on a similar mission

A contemporary sketch of the conspirators The Dutch artist Crispijn van de Passe the Elder probably never met any of the conspirators but the sketch has become well-known nonetheless

According to Fawkes testimony Wright was the sixth member to join the conspiracy Robert Catesby Fawkes Thomas Percy Thomas Wintour and Christophers brother John had formed the core of group and Robert Keyes joined the group later but other sources suggest Keyes was the sixth member of the group and Wright Robert Wintour and John Grant joined sometime between late December 1604 and March 1605 Wrights role in the plot seems to have been minor he was probably chiefly involved in digging the mine from Percys rented house next to the House of Lords The mine was later abandoned when it was discovered that a coal cellar beneath the House of Lords was available for rent and the barrels of gunpowder could be moved in without arousing suspicion once the lease was secured

Wright was married to Margaret Ward the sister of Thomas Ward the servant of Lord Monteagle who informed the conspirators of the Monteagle Letter which betrayed the plot by warning Monteagle to find an excuse not to attend the opening of Parliament Because of this family connection to the Monteagle household Wright has been suggested as the writer or instigator of the letter although authorship is normally ascribed to Francis Tresham

Wright was apparently the first of the conspirators to discover that Fawkes had been arrested and suggested to Thomas Wintour that all the plotters should flee independently Wright was sent to warn Percy to flee London as he had been named in a proclamation after Fawkes arrest He accompanied Percy out of London and they met up first with Catesby and later with John Wright and Ambrose Rokewood The group went first to Ashby St Ledgers and then to Huddington Court the Wintours home They met with other of the conspirators at Dunchurch and on 7 November 1605 they arrived at Holbeach House in Staffordshire Here on 8 November 1605 they were surrounded by the men of Richard Walsh the Sheriff of Worcester In the ensuing battle the conspirators fared badly a stray spark from the fire ignited some gunpowder and in the resulting explosion some of the plotters were killed and others badly wounded The Sheriffs men took the opportunity to rush the house and Wright Percy and Catesby were shot Some records say Wrights dead body was stripped by the Sheriffs men after they entered the house but it is possible that although his wounds were mortal he may have

Page 15 of 24

Wright Family

Will of John Wright d 1540

Page 12 of 24

Wright Family

Prints of Gunpowder Plot Conspirators

Page 13 of 24

Wright Family

Christopher lsquoKitrsquo Wright and John lsquoJackrsquo Wright

Page 14 of 24

Wright Family

Christopher Wright (1570 - 8 November 1605)

Christopher Wright (1570 - 8 November 1605) was one of the conspirators in the Gunpowder Plot an unsuccessful attempt by a group of English Roman Catholics to blow-up Westminster Palace and kill the king James I (James VI of Scotland) and members of both houses of Parliament during the opening session on 5 November 1605 while the king addressed a joint assembly of both the House of Lords and the House of Commons He was also charged with Treason but escaped high punishment

Biography

Christopher Wright known as Kit was born sometime in 1570 in Welwick Yorkshire He was the third child of Robert Wright and his second wife Ursula Rudston His oldest brother John would later be a co-conspirator in the Gunpowder Plot and many of the details of their early lives have been confused He attended school at the free school of St Peter in York with his brother and Guy Fawkes as well as Oswald Tesimond and Edward Oldcorne who would later become Jesuits and be implicated in the plot Wrights family was devoutly Catholic his parents spent time in prison in York for their beliefs (a total of 14 years between them) and Wright himself was a zealous Catholic He was known to be taciturn and able to keep a secret

He was involved with Essexs unsuccessful rebellion against Elizabeth I in 1601 but escaped serious punishment

Wright may have been sent to Spain after the death of Elizabeth to try to elicit Spanish support for a rebellion against the new king James I and it at the trial of the surviving conspirators after the failure of the plot Edward Coke suggested that it was in Spain that he renewed his friendship with Fawkes who had been sent on a similar mission

A contemporary sketch of the conspirators The Dutch artist Crispijn van de Passe the Elder probably never met any of the conspirators but the sketch has become well-known nonetheless

According to Fawkes testimony Wright was the sixth member to join the conspiracy Robert Catesby Fawkes Thomas Percy Thomas Wintour and Christophers brother John had formed the core of group and Robert Keyes joined the group later but other sources suggest Keyes was the sixth member of the group and Wright Robert Wintour and John Grant joined sometime between late December 1604 and March 1605 Wrights role in the plot seems to have been minor he was probably chiefly involved in digging the mine from Percys rented house next to the House of Lords The mine was later abandoned when it was discovered that a coal cellar beneath the House of Lords was available for rent and the barrels of gunpowder could be moved in without arousing suspicion once the lease was secured

Wright was married to Margaret Ward the sister of Thomas Ward the servant of Lord Monteagle who informed the conspirators of the Monteagle Letter which betrayed the plot by warning Monteagle to find an excuse not to attend the opening of Parliament Because of this family connection to the Monteagle household Wright has been suggested as the writer or instigator of the letter although authorship is normally ascribed to Francis Tresham

Wright was apparently the first of the conspirators to discover that Fawkes had been arrested and suggested to Thomas Wintour that all the plotters should flee independently Wright was sent to warn Percy to flee London as he had been named in a proclamation after Fawkes arrest He accompanied Percy out of London and they met up first with Catesby and later with John Wright and Ambrose Rokewood The group went first to Ashby St Ledgers and then to Huddington Court the Wintours home They met with other of the conspirators at Dunchurch and on 7 November 1605 they arrived at Holbeach House in Staffordshire Here on 8 November 1605 they were surrounded by the men of Richard Walsh the Sheriff of Worcester In the ensuing battle the conspirators fared badly a stray spark from the fire ignited some gunpowder and in the resulting explosion some of the plotters were killed and others badly wounded The Sheriffs men took the opportunity to rush the house and Wright Percy and Catesby were shot Some records say Wrights dead body was stripped by the Sheriffs men after they entered the house but it is possible that although his wounds were mortal he may have

Page 15 of 24

Wright Family

Prints of Gunpowder Plot Conspirators

Page 13 of 24

Wright Family

Christopher lsquoKitrsquo Wright and John lsquoJackrsquo Wright

Page 14 of 24

Wright Family

Christopher Wright (1570 - 8 November 1605)

Christopher Wright (1570 - 8 November 1605) was one of the conspirators in the Gunpowder Plot an unsuccessful attempt by a group of English Roman Catholics to blow-up Westminster Palace and kill the king James I (James VI of Scotland) and members of both houses of Parliament during the opening session on 5 November 1605 while the king addressed a joint assembly of both the House of Lords and the House of Commons He was also charged with Treason but escaped high punishment

Biography

Christopher Wright known as Kit was born sometime in 1570 in Welwick Yorkshire He was the third child of Robert Wright and his second wife Ursula Rudston His oldest brother John would later be a co-conspirator in the Gunpowder Plot and many of the details of their early lives have been confused He attended school at the free school of St Peter in York with his brother and Guy Fawkes as well as Oswald Tesimond and Edward Oldcorne who would later become Jesuits and be implicated in the plot Wrights family was devoutly Catholic his parents spent time in prison in York for their beliefs (a total of 14 years between them) and Wright himself was a zealous Catholic He was known to be taciturn and able to keep a secret

He was involved with Essexs unsuccessful rebellion against Elizabeth I in 1601 but escaped serious punishment

Wright may have been sent to Spain after the death of Elizabeth to try to elicit Spanish support for a rebellion against the new king James I and it at the trial of the surviving conspirators after the failure of the plot Edward Coke suggested that it was in Spain that he renewed his friendship with Fawkes who had been sent on a similar mission

A contemporary sketch of the conspirators The Dutch artist Crispijn van de Passe the Elder probably never met any of the conspirators but the sketch has become well-known nonetheless

According to Fawkes testimony Wright was the sixth member to join the conspiracy Robert Catesby Fawkes Thomas Percy Thomas Wintour and Christophers brother John had formed the core of group and Robert Keyes joined the group later but other sources suggest Keyes was the sixth member of the group and Wright Robert Wintour and John Grant joined sometime between late December 1604 and March 1605 Wrights role in the plot seems to have been minor he was probably chiefly involved in digging the mine from Percys rented house next to the House of Lords The mine was later abandoned when it was discovered that a coal cellar beneath the House of Lords was available for rent and the barrels of gunpowder could be moved in without arousing suspicion once the lease was secured

Wright was married to Margaret Ward the sister of Thomas Ward the servant of Lord Monteagle who informed the conspirators of the Monteagle Letter which betrayed the plot by warning Monteagle to find an excuse not to attend the opening of Parliament Because of this family connection to the Monteagle household Wright has been suggested as the writer or instigator of the letter although authorship is normally ascribed to Francis Tresham

Wright was apparently the first of the conspirators to discover that Fawkes had been arrested and suggested to Thomas Wintour that all the plotters should flee independently Wright was sent to warn Percy to flee London as he had been named in a proclamation after Fawkes arrest He accompanied Percy out of London and they met up first with Catesby and later with John Wright and Ambrose Rokewood The group went first to Ashby St Ledgers and then to Huddington Court the Wintours home They met with other of the conspirators at Dunchurch and on 7 November 1605 they arrived at Holbeach House in Staffordshire Here on 8 November 1605 they were surrounded by the men of Richard Walsh the Sheriff of Worcester In the ensuing battle the conspirators fared badly a stray spark from the fire ignited some gunpowder and in the resulting explosion some of the plotters were killed and others badly wounded The Sheriffs men took the opportunity to rush the house and Wright Percy and Catesby were shot Some records say Wrights dead body was stripped by the Sheriffs men after they entered the house but it is possible that although his wounds were mortal he may have

Page 15 of 24

Wright Family

Christopher lsquoKitrsquo Wright and John lsquoJackrsquo Wright

Page 14 of 24

Wright Family

Christopher Wright (1570 - 8 November 1605)

Christopher Wright (1570 - 8 November 1605) was one of the conspirators in the Gunpowder Plot an unsuccessful attempt by a group of English Roman Catholics to blow-up Westminster Palace and kill the king James I (James VI of Scotland) and members of both houses of Parliament during the opening session on 5 November 1605 while the king addressed a joint assembly of both the House of Lords and the House of Commons He was also charged with Treason but escaped high punishment

Biography

Christopher Wright known as Kit was born sometime in 1570 in Welwick Yorkshire He was the third child of Robert Wright and his second wife Ursula Rudston His oldest brother John would later be a co-conspirator in the Gunpowder Plot and many of the details of their early lives have been confused He attended school at the free school of St Peter in York with his brother and Guy Fawkes as well as Oswald Tesimond and Edward Oldcorne who would later become Jesuits and be implicated in the plot Wrights family was devoutly Catholic his parents spent time in prison in York for their beliefs (a total of 14 years between them) and Wright himself was a zealous Catholic He was known to be taciturn and able to keep a secret

He was involved with Essexs unsuccessful rebellion against Elizabeth I in 1601 but escaped serious punishment

Wright may have been sent to Spain after the death of Elizabeth to try to elicit Spanish support for a rebellion against the new king James I and it at the trial of the surviving conspirators after the failure of the plot Edward Coke suggested that it was in Spain that he renewed his friendship with Fawkes who had been sent on a similar mission

A contemporary sketch of the conspirators The Dutch artist Crispijn van de Passe the Elder probably never met any of the conspirators but the sketch has become well-known nonetheless

According to Fawkes testimony Wright was the sixth member to join the conspiracy Robert Catesby Fawkes Thomas Percy Thomas Wintour and Christophers brother John had formed the core of group and Robert Keyes joined the group later but other sources suggest Keyes was the sixth member of the group and Wright Robert Wintour and John Grant joined sometime between late December 1604 and March 1605 Wrights role in the plot seems to have been minor he was probably chiefly involved in digging the mine from Percys rented house next to the House of Lords The mine was later abandoned when it was discovered that a coal cellar beneath the House of Lords was available for rent and the barrels of gunpowder could be moved in without arousing suspicion once the lease was secured

Wright was married to Margaret Ward the sister of Thomas Ward the servant of Lord Monteagle who informed the conspirators of the Monteagle Letter which betrayed the plot by warning Monteagle to find an excuse not to attend the opening of Parliament Because of this family connection to the Monteagle household Wright has been suggested as the writer or instigator of the letter although authorship is normally ascribed to Francis Tresham

Wright was apparently the first of the conspirators to discover that Fawkes had been arrested and suggested to Thomas Wintour that all the plotters should flee independently Wright was sent to warn Percy to flee London as he had been named in a proclamation after Fawkes arrest He accompanied Percy out of London and they met up first with Catesby and later with John Wright and Ambrose Rokewood The group went first to Ashby St Ledgers and then to Huddington Court the Wintours home They met with other of the conspirators at Dunchurch and on 7 November 1605 they arrived at Holbeach House in Staffordshire Here on 8 November 1605 they were surrounded by the men of Richard Walsh the Sheriff of Worcester In the ensuing battle the conspirators fared badly a stray spark from the fire ignited some gunpowder and in the resulting explosion some of the plotters were killed and others badly wounded The Sheriffs men took the opportunity to rush the house and Wright Percy and Catesby were shot Some records say Wrights dead body was stripped by the Sheriffs men after they entered the house but it is possible that although his wounds were mortal he may have

Page 15 of 24

Wright Family

Christopher Wright (1570 - 8 November 1605)

Christopher Wright (1570 - 8 November 1605) was one of the conspirators in the Gunpowder Plot an unsuccessful attempt by a group of English Roman Catholics to blow-up Westminster Palace and kill the king James I (James VI of Scotland) and members of both houses of Parliament during the opening session on 5 November 1605 while the king addressed a joint assembly of both the House of Lords and the House of Commons He was also charged with Treason but escaped high punishment

Biography

Christopher Wright known as Kit was born sometime in 1570 in Welwick Yorkshire He was the third child of Robert Wright and his second wife Ursula Rudston His oldest brother John would later be a co-conspirator in the Gunpowder Plot and many of the details of their early lives have been confused He attended school at the free school of St Peter in York with his brother and Guy Fawkes as well as Oswald Tesimond and Edward Oldcorne who would later become Jesuits and be implicated in the plot Wrights family was devoutly Catholic his parents spent time in prison in York for their beliefs (a total of 14 years between them) and Wright himself was a zealous Catholic He was known to be taciturn and able to keep a secret

He was involved with Essexs unsuccessful rebellion against Elizabeth I in 1601 but escaped serious punishment

Wright may have been sent to Spain after the death of Elizabeth to try to elicit Spanish support for a rebellion against the new king James I and it at the trial of the surviving conspirators after the failure of the plot Edward Coke suggested that it was in Spain that he renewed his friendship with Fawkes who had been sent on a similar mission

A contemporary sketch of the conspirators The Dutch artist Crispijn van de Passe the Elder probably never met any of the conspirators but the sketch has become well-known nonetheless

According to Fawkes testimony Wright was the sixth member to join the conspiracy Robert Catesby Fawkes Thomas Percy Thomas Wintour and Christophers brother John had formed the core of group and Robert Keyes joined the group later but other sources suggest Keyes was the sixth member of the group and Wright Robert Wintour and John Grant joined sometime between late December 1604 and March 1605 Wrights role in the plot seems to have been minor he was probably chiefly involved in digging the mine from Percys rented house next to the House of Lords The mine was later abandoned when it was discovered that a coal cellar beneath the House of Lords was available for rent and the barrels of gunpowder could be moved in without arousing suspicion once the lease was secured

Wright was married to Margaret Ward the sister of Thomas Ward the servant of Lord Monteagle who informed the conspirators of the Monteagle Letter which betrayed the plot by warning Monteagle to find an excuse not to attend the opening of Parliament Because of this family connection to the Monteagle household Wright has been suggested as the writer or instigator of the letter although authorship is normally ascribed to Francis Tresham

Wright was apparently the first of the conspirators to discover that Fawkes had been arrested and suggested to Thomas Wintour that all the plotters should flee independently Wright was sent to warn Percy to flee London as he had been named in a proclamation after Fawkes arrest He accompanied Percy out of London and they met up first with Catesby and later with John Wright and Ambrose Rokewood The group went first to Ashby St Ledgers and then to Huddington Court the Wintours home They met with other of the conspirators at Dunchurch and on 7 November 1605 they arrived at Holbeach House in Staffordshire Here on 8 November 1605 they were surrounded by the men of Richard Walsh the Sheriff of Worcester In the ensuing battle the conspirators fared badly a stray spark from the fire ignited some gunpowder and in the resulting explosion some of the plotters were killed and others badly wounded The Sheriffs men took the opportunity to rush the house and Wright Percy and Catesby were shot Some records say Wrights dead body was stripped by the Sheriffs men after they entered the house but it is possible that although his wounds were mortal he may have

Page 15 of 24

Wright Family

survived for a day or two The fate of his body is not recorded and if he is buried the location of the grave is unknown

References

bull Jardine David (1847) Criminal Trials Volume II London M A Nattali 409 Spink Henry Hawkes [1902] (2005) The Gunpowder Plot and Lord Mounteagles Letter Kessinger Publishing 452

bull ISBN 1417930837

bull Christopher Wright Gunpowder Plot Society Retrieved on 25 July 2007 bull The Kings Book Gunpowder Plot Society Retrieved on 25 July 2007

Retrieved from httpenwikipediaorgwikiChristopher_Wright

Christopher (Kit) Wright

by David Herber

Born 1570 Welwick Yorkshire Died 8 November 1605 Holbeche House Staffordshire

Christopher (Kit) Wright was the third and youngest son of Robert Wright of Plowland in Holderness and the second son of Roberts second wife Ursula Rudston of Hayton He was probably born at Plowland Hall in the parish of Welwick along with his elder brother John He also attended the free school of St Peter in York with John Guy Fawkes Oswald Tesimond Edward Oldcorne and Robert Middleton

Christopher was tall and strongly built his large features having a somewhat ruddy tan He was discreet a man of few words in fact and well able to keep a secret He was also devoted and fervent in religious matters and after he became a Catholic lived a life that was exemplary Tesimond also says of him He resembled his brother in all his valour and gallantry and was a close and loyal friend of Mr Catesby

He was very like to the other [his brother John] in conditions and qualities and both esteemed and tried to be as stout a man as England had and withal a zealous Catholic and trusty and secret in any business as could be wished

Christopher Wright was married to Margaret Ward sister of Marmaduke Ward of Mulwith who married his sister Ursula Wright He was thus brother-in-law to Thomas Ward the servant in Lord Monteagles household who told the plotters about the letter By her he had at least one son John who married into the Busfield family of Lincolnshire Henry Hawkes Spink in his book The Gunpowder Plot and Lord Mounteagles Letter (London 1902) makes the claim that four children born between 1589 and 1601 in the parish of Ripon were also his - Edward baptised 6 October 1589 Elizabeth baptised 23 July 1594 Francis baptised 12 July 1596 and Marmaduke baptised 3 February 1601

Spink uses this strong family connection between Christopher Wright the Wards and Monteagle as the basis for his argument that Christopher Wright was the Gunpowder Plot conspirator who betrayed his friends and coerced the Jesuit Oldcorne into writing the famous letter

In 1601 Kit Wright was one of a number of Catholics involved in the failed rebellion of Robert Devereux 2nd Earl of Essex and like his brother he escaped a more serious punishment

Edward Coke claimed at the conspirators trial that in 1603 upon the death of Elizabeth Christopher Wright was sent into Spain in accordance with the arrangement made by Thomas Wintour and John

Page 16 of 24

Wright Family

QueenGerard to inform Phillip III of the s death and to solicit the aid of the Spanish forces in a catholic uprising He was like Thomas Wintour who was also earlier sent on a similar mission furnished with letters of introduction and recommendation by Garnet to Father Joseph Creswell the Jesuit Superior in that country It is believed that during this visit Christopher Wright rekindled his old school friendship with Guy Fawkes who had been sent on a similar mission by Sir William Stanley Hugh Owen and the Jesuit Superior of Flanders Father William Baldwin

Like the missions of Fawkes and Wintour Christopher Wrights failed to gain the support the catholics had hoped for Although they supported the uprising against the new monarch they would not commit resources to an invasion By 31 July 1603 the date of their final verdict the time was well passed to act anyway as Spain was by now negotiating peace with her old enemy

Christopher Wright was not drawn into the Gunpowder Plot until after Christmas 1605 as late as 25 March according to Fraser at the same time as Robert Wintour John Grant and when it is believed the original five plus Robert Keyes had become weary and needed additional help in the mine

He spent a great amount of time in London probably at the property he owned in Lambeth but towards the end of October he was residing temporarily at White Webbs with his brother and Robert Catesby

Thomas PercyUpon the discovery of the plot Kit was sent by Thomas Wintour to warn and bid him begone who had been named in a proclamation through the capture of Fawkes He and Percy left London together before daylight eventually meeting up with Catesby and John Wright and Ambrose Rookwood travelling firstly to Ashby St Ledgers Holbeche House then Huddington and lastly in the late evening of 7 November

On the morning of the 8th November the house was surrounded and laid siege to by the Sheriff of Worcesters men In a brief stand Christopher was killed outright along with Catesby and Percy while his brother John received a mortal wound lingering at deaths door for almost a day In the fracas surrounding the storming of the house the moribund bodies of the traitors were crudely stripped Kits boots and fine silk stockings were taken as well as a number of souvenirs Fraser claims that even though the victims were in extremis they might have been kept alive despite their many and grievous wounds had a surgeon been available

Reproduced by kind permission of the Gunpowder Plot Society

Sources

Dictionary of National Biography 1895 Edwards Francis SJ Guy Fawkes the real story of the Gunpowder Plot 1969 Edwards Francis SJ The Gunpowder Plot the narrative of Oswald Tesimond alias Greenway trans from the Italian of the Stonyhurst Manuscript edited and annotated 1973 Fraser Antonia Faith amp Treason - The Story of the Gunpowder Plot 1996 Gerard John The Autobiography of a Hunted Priest tr Philip Caraman Poulson George The History and Antiquities of the seignatory of Holderness Vol II Simons Eric N The Devil of the Vault 1963 Spink Henry Hawkes 1902 The Gunpowder Plot and Lord Mounteagles Letter

httpwwwbritanniacomhistoryc-wrighthtml

Page 17 of 24

Wright Family

John (Jack) Wright

by David Herber

Born 13 January 1568 Welwick Yorkshire Died 8 November 1605 Holbeche House Staffordshire

The son of Robert Wright of Plowland Holderness and his second wife Ursula Rudstone daughter of Nicholas Rudstone of Hayton (near Pocklington) John (Jack) Wright was probably born at Plowland Hall in Holderness [in the parish of Welwick] Along with his younger brother Christopher he was said to have been a school fellow of both Oswald Tesimond and Guy Fawkes at the free school of St Peters in York known as Le Horse Fayre

Robert and Ursula were staunch Catholics who suffered imprisonment in Hull Prison in York for a period of fourteen years together during the time which Henry Hastings the Puritan Earl of Huntingdon was Lord President of the North They had three daughters also including Martha who married Thomas Percy the conspirator and Ursula who married firstly John Constable of Hatfield and secondly Marmaduke Ward of Mulwith the suspected brother of Thomas Ward servant to William Parker Lord Monteagle By his first marriage to Anne Grimston Robert Wright also had a son William and two daughters Martha and Anne

Very little is known of the early life of the two Wright brothers and a great deal of what is written is often attributed to either or both of them so accuracy and specifics in detail between the two brothers are often blurred but later Father John Gerard described John as a strong stout man and of very good wit though slow of speech Renowned from his youth for his courage he was somewhat taciturn in manner but very loyal to his friends even if his friends were few

By all accounts he was an excellent swordsman considered by some to be the best swordsman of his day He was purported to be much disposed to fighting until he was reconciled to the Catholic faith which according to Gerard occurred during or just prior to the time of the Essex Rebellion

Prior to the Essex Rebellion however John his brother Christopher and a number of others including Robert Catesby Francis Tresham and were arrested as a precautionary measure during an illness of Queen Elizabeth I This was later dubbed the Poisoned Pommel incident although no evidence of a plot or conspiracy was ever truly uncovered that implicated either these four or any others

Both John and his wife Dorothy then seemed to endure a great deal of harassment and persecution by the authorities and they appear more than once on the recusancy rolls for their profession of the Catholic faith

John along with his friend Robert Catesby had formed part of the entourage for Robert Devereux the Earl of Essex After the abortive Essex Rebellion of 1601 John spent an amount of time imprisoned in solitary confinement After his release he moved his family from the ancestral home of Plowland Hall to Twigmore Hall in northern Lincolnshire which even before the Essex Rebellion was noted as a resort of priests for his [Johns] spiritual and their corporal comfort which seems to imply his religious position was established even before Father John Gerards claim (Henry Hawkes Spink also makes the claim in his book The Gunpowder Plot and Lord Mounteagles Letter (London 1902) that it would be difficult for the son of such devout religionists who suffered persecution for their faith to be brought up with anything other than a Catholic background) A government report put it in less flattering terms This place is one of the worst in her Majestys dominions and is used like a Popish college for traitors in the northern parts

Gunpowder Esteemed by Catesby for his valour and secrecy John was the third to be initiated into the Plot some time in May 1604 Along with Thomas Wintour he was given the task of officially telling Guy Fawkes of the conspirators intentions to blow up the Houses of Parliament at which time he removed his family from Twigmore Hall to a house belonging to Catesby at Lapworth in Warwickshire Johns official position in the conspiracy is somewhat unclear although by all accounts he was an active participant in all its events

Page 18 of 24

Wright Family

Sir On 4 November the eve of the plots discovery John fled London with Catesby to take the news to Everard Digby and the hunting party which had gathered at Dunchurch in Warwickshire Meeting several of their confederates on the way to the Midlands their party eventually numbered almost 60 strong After receiving Mass at Huddington Court on November 6th they finally reached Holbeche House the home of Stephen Littleton in the late evening of 7 November The conspirators by now were weary and according to their confessions had all but given up hope that their plans would succeed

On the morning of 8 November the house was surrounded and laid siege to by the Sheriff of Worcesters men In a brief stand Christopher Wright was killed outright along with Catesby and Percy However according to Tesimond who was later told by the Wintours priest Father Hart (alias Hammond) who had administered the Mass two days previous John was also mortally wounded but lingered for a day if not longer

After the capture and imprisonment of the conspirators the bodies of those who had died at Holbeche were exhumed and the heads removed for display at Westminster Palace

Reproduced by kind permission of the Gunpowder Plot Society

Sources

Catholic Record Society Recusants in the Exchequer Pipe Rolls 1581-1592 Cross Claire The Puritan Earl Henry Hastings 3rd Earl of Huntingdon 1536-1595Dictionary of National Biography 1895 Durst Paul Intended Treason what really happened in the Gunpowder Plot 1970 Edwards Francis SJ The Gunpowder Plot the narrative of Oswald Tesimond alias Greenway trans from the Italian of the Stonyhurst Manuscript edited and annotated 1973 Fraser Antonia Faith amp Treason - The Story of the Gunpowder Plot 1996 Gerard John The Autobiography of a Hunted Priest tr Philip Caraman Oxford University Press A History of Yorkshire East Riding Vol I-VI Simons Eric N The Devil of the Vault 1963 Spink Henry Hawkes The Gunpowder Plot and Lord Mounteagles Letter 1902 Toyne SM Guy Fawkes and the Powder Plot History Today I 1951 Poulson George The History and Antiquities of the seignatory of Holderness Vol II

httpwwwbritanniacomhistoryj-wrighthtml

Page 19 of 24

Wright Family

Confession of Guy Fawkes 9 November 1605

Guy Fawkes signed two confessions on 8 and 9 November in the second of which he named his fellow conspirators

I confess that a practise in generall was first broken unto me against his Maiestie for reliefe of the Catholic cause and not invented or propounded by my selfe And this was first propounded unto me about Easter Last was twelve moneth beyond the seas in the Lowe Countreyes of the Archdukes obeisance by Thomas Winter who came thereupon with mee into England and there we imparted our purpose to three other Gentlemen more namely Robert Catesby Thomas Percy and John Wright who all five consulting together of the means of how to execute the same and taking a vow among our selves for secrecie Catesby propounded to have it performed by Gunpowder and by making a Myne under the upper House of Parlialnent which place we have made a choice of the rather because Religion having been unjustly suppressed there it was fittest that justice and punishment should be executed there

The five that first entred into the worke were Thomas Percy Thomas Catesby Thomas Winter John Wright and myselfe and soone after wee tooke another unto us Christopher Wright having Sworne him also and taken the Sacrament for secrecie

When we came to the very foundation of the Wall of the House which was about three yards thicke and found it a matter of great difficultie we tooke unto us another Gentleman Robert Winter in like manner with oath and sacrament as afore said

It was about Christmas when we brought our myne unto the Wall and about Candlemas we had wrought the wall halfe through and whilst they were in working I stood as Sentinell to descrie any man that came neere whereof I gave them warning and so they ceased until I gave notice againe to proceede

All we seven lay in the House and had Shot and Powder being resolved to die in that place before we should yield or be taken As they were working upin the wall they heard a rushing in the cellar of remooving of Coales whereupon we feared that we had been discovered and they sent me to go to the Cellar who finding that the Coales were a-selling and that the Cellar was to bee let viewing the commoditie thereof for our purpose Percy went and hired the same for a yeerely rent

We had before this provided and brought into the House twentie Barrels of Powder which we removed into the Cellar and covered the same with Billets and Faggots which were provided for that purpose

About Easter the Parliament being prorogued till October next we dispersed ourselves and I retired into the Low countreys by advice and direction of the rest as well to aquaint Owen with the particulars of the Plot as also lest by my longer stay I might have growen suspicious and so have come in question

In the meantime Percy having the key of the cellar laide in more Powder and wood into it I returned about the beginning of September next and then receiving the key againe of Percy we brought in more Powder and Billets to cover the same againe and so I went for a time into the Countrey till the 30 of October

It was a further resolve amongst us that the same day that this act should have been performed some other of our Confederates should have surprised the person of Lady Elizabeth the Kings eldest daughter who was kept in Warwickshire at Lo Harringtons house and presently have her proclaimed as Queen having a proiect of a Proclamation ready for that purpose wherein we made no mention of altering of Religion nor would have avowed the deede to be ours untill we should have had power enough to make our partie good and then we would have avowed both

Concerning Duke Charles the Kings second sonne we had sundry consultations how to seise on his Person But because we found no means how to compasse it (The Duke being kept neere London where we had not Forces y-nough) we resolved to serve our turn with the Lady Elizabeth

Page 20 of 24

Wright Family

Other References amp Documents

From National Archives website Settlement in tail male relating to Welwick zDDX3191 26 Mar 1621 Parties 1) William Wright of Plowland esquire 2) William Wright of the City of London gentleman son and heir male apparent of the said William Wright the father Property manors of Plowland Penstropp and Thorpe Garth otherwise Thorpe and lands etc in Plowland Penstropp Thorpe Thorpe Garth Welwick Thorpe Thorpe juxtaposed to Welwick Waykfield Waykfeyld Closes and Hollam and all other of his lands in the realm of England Witnesses Roger Catherall Francis Wright John Duncalfe Robert Thorgitson John Thompson Thomas Bucke Thomas Handcock William Turner and Roger Lowrie Probate of will of William Wright of Plowland esquire zDDX3192 4 Oct 1621 Executor eldest son William Wright Beneficiaries sons William John Francis and Nicholas grandchildren Marie and Peggie Wright nephew Robert Thorneton godsons William Nelson William Humfrey William Sagg William Turner god daughter Marie Holmes servants William Turner and Thomas Handcoke Anne Bellanie Marie Bellanie Francis Bellanie Jane Tayler Wesalie Tayler Stephen Gibson John Tompson Thomas Bucke Thomas Smyth John Winter Roger Lowrie Dorothy Fischer Vicar Gerrard Talke Ursula Talke Robert Thorgitson Marie Jefferson Lord and Lady Constable Joseph and Ralph Constable the poor of Welwick Patrington Hollym and Holmpton Witnesses Robert Thorgitson Thomas Handcock William Turner John Thompson and Thomas Bucke Date of Will 25 Feb 1620-21 Inquisition post mortem of William Wright of Plowland esquire zDDX3193 22 Mar 1622 Refers to land at Welwick Plowland Pensthorpe Holmpton Hollym and Easton and the manors of Plowland Pensthorpe and Thorpe Garth or Thorpe Bargain and sale of property relating to the Manor of Welwick zDDX3194 19 Feb 1623 Parties 1) Sir William Whitmore of Apley Salop Knight and Edmund Sawyer esquire one of the auditors of the Kings Exchequer 2) John Wright of Plowland esquire Property manor of Welwick or Welwyke with its rights members and appurtenances land tenements cottages and hereditaments in Welwick and rents land and buildings as described in the deed Witnesses Francis Ingram Richard Hethersall and Tobie Mathew Grant and release relating to the Rectory and Church of Welwick zDDX3195 18 May 1637 Parties 1) William Hinton esquire Thomas Skynner William Burgis Robert Chambers gentleman and Sidenham Lukins scrivener 2) William Wright Property rectory and church of Welwick with rights members and appurtenances and the tithes oblations obventions and profits to the same appertaining by the particulars thereof mentioned to be then lately demised to William Wright esquire under the yearly rent of pound29 12s 6d (with 12s 3d for part of an increased rent of 16s) Consideration pound500 1s Witnesses Humfrey Shalcrosse scriviner Henry Bradshaw Richard Taylor William Milliett Francis Braddocke and Edward Jarvis Bargain and sale for property as described in DDX3195 zDDX3196 18 May 1637 Parties 1) Francis Braddock and Christopher Kingdcote 2) William Wright of Plowland esquire Consideration pound500 7s Witnesses Sideham Lukins scrivener William Burgis Edward Jarvise and Henry Bradshaw

Page 21 of 24

Wright Family

Final agreement for pound1600 relating to the manors and lands in Plowland Penstropp Thorpe Garth Welwick Thorpe and Humpton zDDX3197 2 May 1655 Parties 1) William Blunt gentleman and Christopher Coates plantiff 2) Francis Wright esquire deforceant Property manors of Plowland Penstropp Thorpe Garth Welwick Thorpe and Humpton with appurtenances and 16 messuages 6 cottages 600 acres of land 230 acres of meadow 740 acres of pasture 40 acres of woods 200 acres of furze and heath 80 acres of moor 34 s 7 and a half pence rent and common of pasture with appurtenances in Plowland Penstropp Thorpe Garth Welwick Thorpe Humpton Hallam Welwick and Easton Deed to lead to the uses of a recovery relating to the manors and lands in Plowland Pensrtopp Thorpe Garth Welwick Thorpe and Humpton zDDX3198 12 May 1655 Parties 1) Francis Wright of Plowland esquire William Blunt of Beverley gentleman Christopher Coate of Easton yeoman 2) John Heron and William Robinson both of Beverley gentlemen Property manors of Plowland Penstropp Thorpe Garth Welwick Thorpe and Humpton with land arable meadow and pasture woods moors furze and heath and houses cottages and appurtenances thereto and lands cottages etc at Hollam Welwick and Easton Witnesses William Blount junior Edmund Lynsey Gregory Watson Common recovery relating to the manors and lands in Plowland Pensrtopp Thorpe Garth Welwick Thorpe and Humpton zDDX3199 4 Jul 1655 Parties 1) John Heron esquire and William Robinson gentleman demandants 2) William Blunt gentleman and Christopher Coates tenants Property manors of Plowland Penstropp Thorpe Garth Welwick Thorpe and Humpton with appurtenances and 16 messuages 600 acres of land 230 acres of meadow 740 acres of pasture 40 acres of wood 200 acres of furze and heath 80 acres of moor 34s 7 and a half pence rent and common pasture with appurtenances in Plowland Penstropp Thorpe Garth Welwick Thorpe Humpton Hollam Welwick and Easton Vouchee Francis Wright esquire Indenture relating to the manors and lands in Plowland PensrtoppThorpe Garth otherwise Thorpe Welwick Thorpe Thorpe juxtaposed Welwick and Holmpton zDDX31910 25 Jun 1656 Parties 1) Francis Wright of Plowland 2) Thomas Crathorne of Welwick gentleman Property Plowland PensrtoppThorpe Garth otherwise Thorpe Welwick Thorpe Thorpe juxtaposed Welwick and Holmpton with rights members and appurtenances and messuages lands tenements and heritaments in Plowland Penstropp Thorpegarth Welwick and Thorpe juxtaposed Welwick Holmpton Wakefield Wakefield Closes and Hollam to Francis Wright for life and his heirs and in default to the use and behoof of Thomas Crathorne and his heirs forever Witnesses John Thorpe Gregory Creyk and Hentry Shimelly

Page 22 of 24

Wright Family

Page 24 of 24

• The Wright Family Line
• The Descendants of John Wright - Some Were Gunpowder Plotters
• Welwick Yorkshire
• Bolton on Swale Yorkshire
• Will of John Wright d 1540
• Prints of Gunpowder Plot Conspirators
• Christopher Wright (1570 - 8 November 1605)
• Christopher (Kit) Wright
• John (Jack) Wright
• Confession of Guy Fawkes 9 November 1605
• Other References amp Documents

Wright Family

Final agreement for pound1600 relating to the manors and lands in Plowland Penstropp Thorpe Garth Welwick Thorpe and Humpton zDDX3197 2 May 1655 Parties 1) William Blunt gentleman and Christopher Coates plantiff 2) Francis Wright esquire deforceant Property manors of Plowland Penstropp Thorpe Garth Welwick Thorpe and Humpton with appurtenances and 16 messuages 6 cottages 600 acres of land 230 acres of meadow 740 acres of pasture 40 acres of woods 200 acres of furze and heath 80 acres of moor 34 s 7 and a half pence rent and common of pasture with appurtenances in Plowland Penstropp Thorpe Garth Welwick Thorpe Humpton Hallam Welwick and Easton Deed to lead to the uses of a recovery relating to the manors and lands in Plowland Pensrtopp Thorpe Garth Welwick Thorpe and Humpton zDDX3198 12 May 1655 Parties 1) Francis Wright of Plowland esquire William Blunt of Beverley gentleman Christopher Coate of Easton yeoman 2) John Heron and William Robinson both of Beverley gentlemen Property manors of Plowland Penstropp Thorpe Garth Welwick Thorpe and Humpton with land arable meadow and pasture woods moors furze and heath and houses cottages and appurtenances thereto and lands cottages etc at Hollam Welwick and Easton Witnesses William Blount junior Edmund Lynsey Gregory Watson Common recovery relating to the manors and lands in Plowland Pensrtopp Thorpe Garth Welwick Thorpe and Humpton zDDX3199 4 Jul 1655 Parties 1) John Heron esquire and William Robinson gentleman demandants 2) William Blunt gentleman and Christopher Coates tenants Property manors of Plowland Penstropp Thorpe Garth Welwick Thorpe and Humpton with appurtenances and 16 messuages 600 acres of land 230 acres of meadow 740 acres of pasture 40 acres of wood 200 acres of furze and heath 80 acres of moor 34s 7 and a half pence rent and common pasture with appurtenances in Plowland Penstropp Thorpe Garth Welwick Thorpe Humpton Hollam Welwick and Easton Vouchee Francis Wright esquire Indenture relating to the manors and lands in Plowland PensrtoppThorpe Garth otherwise Thorpe Welwick Thorpe Thorpe juxtaposed Welwick and Holmpton zDDX31910 25 Jun 1656 Parties 1) Francis Wright of Plowland 2) Thomas Crathorne of Welwick gentleman Property Plowland PensrtoppThorpe Garth otherwise Thorpe Welwick Thorpe Thorpe juxtaposed Welwick and Holmpton with rights members and appurtenances and messuages lands tenements and heritaments in Plowland Penstropp Thorpegarth Welwick and Thorpe juxtaposed Welwick Holmpton Wakefield Wakefield Closes and Hollam to Francis Wright for life and his heirs and in default to the use and behoof of Thomas Crathorne and his heirs forever Witnesses John Thorpe Gregory Creyk and Hentry Shimelly

Page 22 of 24

Wright Family

Page 24 of 24

• The Wright Family Line
• The Descendants of John Wright - Some Were Gunpowder Plotters
• Welwick Yorkshire
• Bolton on Swale Yorkshire
• Will of John Wright d 1540
• Prints of Gunpowder Plot Conspirators
• Christopher Wright (1570 - 8 November 1605)
• Christopher (Kit) Wright
• John (Jack) Wright
• Confession of Guy Fawkes 9 November 1605
• Other References amp Documents

Wright Family

Page 24 of 24

• The Wright Family Line
• The Descendants of John Wright - Some Were Gunpowder Plotters
• Welwick Yorkshire
• Bolton on Swale Yorkshire
• Will of John Wright d 1540
• Prints of Gunpowder Plot Conspirators
• Christopher Wright (1570 - 8 November 1605)
• Christopher (Kit) Wright
• John (Jack) Wright
• Confession of Guy Fawkes 9 November 1605
• Other References amp Documents