The Reverend Henry Uthwatt Andrewes (1755-1812)
The Reverend Henry Uthwatt Andrewes had been left the estate at Great Linford by his godfather Henry Uthwatt, though he was not to lay claim to it until the passing of Henry’s widow, Frances, a long wait as it transpired, as Frances did not pass away until 1800.
The connection of Great Linford and the Uthwatts to the Andrewes family is somewhat labyrinthine, but can be explained as follows. In 1725, Elizabeth Andrewes, Henry Uthwatt Andrewe’s first cousin once removed, had married Richard Uthwat (1699-1749), a son of the Richard Uthwatt (1658-1719) who had inherited Great Linford Manor from Sir William Prichard in 1704. Their son Henry had held the manor from 1754 until his death in 1757.
Henry Uthwatt Andrewes was born on August 18th, 1755. His father was William Andrewes, a barrister at law of the prestigious Inner Temple at London. His mother we know to be Hannah Shillingford, who is rather cryptically referred to in family histories as, “a daughter of farmer Shillingford of Buckingham.” Henry had presumably been gifted the middle name Uthwatt in recognition that he was the godson of Henry Uthwatt. The Andrewes family were lords of the manor at Lathbury, only a few miles away from Great Linford, so this was very much a case of two prominent local families coming together.
Henry was educated at Trinity College, Cambridge, to which he was admitted aged 18 on June 9th, 1773. After achieving a B.A in 1777 he is next encountered in 1785, placing a notice in the Northampton Mercury of January 17th, 1785, announcing his appointment as the master of Blakesley grammar school in Northamptonshire. He was to take only, “four Young Gentlemen as boarders, to be instructed in the Classics and useful branches of Literature.”
It seems (unless he was juggling jobs) that this did not last long, as he was ordained a priest on December 20th, 1789, becoming the Curate of Plumpton in Northamptonshire (1789-1800), though it appears that he was also the Curate of Blakesley in much the same period.
Hemry married Judith Yates (daughter of Thomas Yates of Culworth in Northamptonshire) with the marriage taking place at Padbury in Buckinghamshire on March 10th, 1783. The book Buckinghamshire; a short history, with genealogies and current biographies, published 1911, asserts that Henry and Judith had six sons and two daughters, though research to date has only uncovered five sons and a single daughter. We can see from the baptism records of their children that two were born at Great Linford, Edolph in 1805 and Eusebius in 1807; the previous four were born in Blakesley.
The Grand Junction Canal
After a long wait to obtain the keys to the manor and to settle down to enjoy the estate gardens, fate would deal a cruel blow to Henry, with the unwanted arrival of the Grand Junction Canal, which cut a swathe of destruction through the heart of the manor pleasure gardens. Henry was furious, but there was next to nothing he could do to oppose the project, as it was backed by an act of Parliament which gave the canal company the power to make compulsory purchases of any land they desired. Henry fought hard, but progress was coming, like it or not. You can read more about Henry's resistance on the Grand Junction Canal page.
What’s in a name?
As a requirement of his inheritance, Henry was obliged to change his name to Uthwatt, with the result being that he became Henry Uthwatt Uthwatt. Although he had to go through a formal legal process to change his name, (which he did in 1803) it appears that he had already adopted Uthwatt as a surname by 1798, as his son Augustus Thomas, (born that year in Blakesley) was baptised as an Uthwatt.
The legal mechanism by which Henry changed his name required the assent of the King, hence we find the following announcement carried in the London Gazette of March 23rd, 1803.
The legal mechanism by which Henry changed his name required the assent of the King, hence we find the following announcement carried in the London Gazette of March 23rd, 1803.
The King has been pleased to grant unto Henry Uthwatt Uthwatt (late Henry Uthwatt Andrews) of Great Linford, in the county of Buckinghamshire, Clerk A B, second and only surviving son of William Andrews, late of the inner Temple, London, Esquire, deceased, his Royal Licence and Authority, that he, and his issue male may take, and henceforth continue to use, the surname of Uthwatt, when and as they shall respectively come into the actual possession of certain estates, devised by the will of Henry Uthwatt, late of Great Linford aforesaid, Esquire, deceased, bearing date the 16th Day of December, and also to order that his Majesty’s concession and declaration registered in his College or Arms.
While Henry would of course have the resources of the estate to finance his lifestyle, he had another iron in the fire, having established a private bank with his father, presumably run from the Manor House. We know frustratingly little of this enterprise and have only newspaper reports of the dissolution of the bank upon Henry’s death to confirm its existence. Hence, we find a notice in the Northampton Mercury of Saturday December 26th, 1812, which makes reference to “cash notes” still in circulation.
In October of 1812, Henry served notice that on the 26th of that month, he would be convening at the Manor House, a Court Leet and Court Baron, “at which time and place all Residents and Tenants of and within the said Manor, and all others owing Suit and Service to the said Court, are required to attend and pay their Arrears of Quit-Rent and perform their accustomed Suits and Services.”
The Courts of Leet and Baron date back to medieval times and were an integral part of the day-to-day control and administration exercised by the Lord of the Manor over his subjects, though it is perhaps surprising to find this tradition continuing into the early 1800s; a reminder of just how much control men like the Uthwatts exercised over the common folk of the village.
However, as fate would have it, Henry was not to hold court over his subjects that year, as he died just before the Courts could be convened, with his burial taking place on the 20th of that month at Great Linford. Perhaps it was his son and heir Henry Andrewes Uthwatt who stepped into his father’s shoes at the last minute and chaired the courts?
His wife Judith passed away in 1822 and was buried on November 7th, also at Great Linford.
In October of 1812, Henry served notice that on the 26th of that month, he would be convening at the Manor House, a Court Leet and Court Baron, “at which time and place all Residents and Tenants of and within the said Manor, and all others owing Suit and Service to the said Court, are required to attend and pay their Arrears of Quit-Rent and perform their accustomed Suits and Services.”
The Courts of Leet and Baron date back to medieval times and were an integral part of the day-to-day control and administration exercised by the Lord of the Manor over his subjects, though it is perhaps surprising to find this tradition continuing into the early 1800s; a reminder of just how much control men like the Uthwatts exercised over the common folk of the village.
However, as fate would have it, Henry was not to hold court over his subjects that year, as he died just before the Courts could be convened, with his burial taking place on the 20th of that month at Great Linford. Perhaps it was his son and heir Henry Andrewes Uthwatt who stepped into his father’s shoes at the last minute and chaired the courts?
His wife Judith passed away in 1822 and was buried on November 7th, also at Great Linford.
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