The Robe & Ward families of Great Linford
A particularly imposing memorial (at least in terms of its bulk) is located in the churchyard of St. Andrews Church, Great Linford, and provides a wealth of information and clues into the intertwined Robe and Ward families, though rather oddly makes no reference to any dates of birth or death. Also disclosed are several marriages that confirm ties to Norfolk and Devon, as well as a number of fascinating military connections.
The memorial reads as follows.
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TO THE MEMORY OF
FRANCES MILES WIFE OF JOHN THOMAS ROBE OF HER MAJESTY'S ARMY PAY OFFICE HORSE GUARD WHITEHALL YOUNGEST SON OF WILLIAM LAMB ROBE OF WACTON HALL OF NORFOLK ALSO TO SARAH THEIR ONLY DAUGHTER WIDOW OF JOHN ONLY SON OF THE LATE REAR ADMIRAL JOHN MONKTON OF TIVERTON AND TO SARAH WARD WIDOW MOTHER AND GRAND MOTHER OF THE ABOVE NAMED MANY YEARS A RESIDENT OF THIS PARISH |
Though the memorial lacks dates, we can use other records to identify all the persons named and expand on their biographies. Occupying pride of place at the top of the memorial is France Miles Robe, nee Ward, who was born in Great Linford in 1775, having been baptised at St. Andrews that year on October 19th. Her parents were John Ward and Sarah Hoddle, who had married in the village on July 6th, 1769. We can take the family back several more generations. John Ward was baptised at Great Linford on July 17th, 1744; this gives us the name of his father as Philip and his mother as Mary, which leads us to a marriage record for the couple dated September 12th, 1743. From this we learn that Mary’s maiden name was Lancaster. Tradition held that the bride should be married in her home parish, and indeed we find an Elizabeth born at Great Linford in 1719 to a Thomas and Ann Lancaster. The gravestones of Philip and Mary Ward survive in St. Andrew's Churchyard.
The Wards then are clearly a family with deep roots in Great Linford, and though we cannot as yet trace a baptism for Philip Ward, it seems entirely likely he was born in the village, as there are church parish records for Wards dating back as far as 1710. Intriguingly, a John Ward was married that year to a Mary Fountaine, which may well provide us a tenuous connection to John Fountaine, who was rector between 1663 to 1677.
As to what profession or professions the Wards pursued, and to what level of society they belonged, we can turn to a number of documents for clues. Philip Ward passed away in 1784 and was buried January 12th that year; he is described in the parish burial record as a Dairyman. Philip’s will proved June 27th, 1785 describes him as a Grazier, which is a person who rears or fattens cattle or sheep for market.
The name Ward crops up repeatedly in various legal documents held by Buckinghamshire Archives, which gives us some interesting details on our dairyman Philip Ward. We get a good indication of the scope of his activities from a deed relating to messuage (an old word for a house and outbuildings) and farm in Great Linford, with lands (215 acres in all), the property of the Uthwatt family, which was rented in 1755 by Philip. The Uthwatts were the Lords of Great Linford manor.
The will of his son John was proved on October 15th, 1792, and by contrast to his dairyman (or grazier) father, he is described as a “gentleman”, so implying an upwardly mobile family. It seems likely that this is the father of Frances Ward, as we have established that her mother was named Sarah, and it is to a wife named Sarah that John bequeaths all of his estate.
Frances had a brother, Philip Hoddle Ward born in 1770 at Great Linford. He was appointed a sheriff of Buckingham in 1805, (as announced in the London Gazette of 16th November) but of intriguing additional note, his abode is described as, “of Tickford Abbey” (in Newport Pagnell), so he appears to have been elevated to a position in the landed gentry. This is supported by the existence of a number of deeds which make reference to his ownership of land on the Tickford estate.
There is also an indenture drawn up in 1808 by Henry Uthwatt Uthwatt, to which Philip was a party, and furthermore, makes reference to seventy seven acres and twenty three perches of land in Great Linford, in the occupation of Philip and Sarah Ward, whom we can take to be his widowed mother.
Ominously however, the London Gazette of December 2nd, 1834, describes a court case in which Philip was the defendant, and that he appears to have failed to have appeared, having departed the country. The exact circumstances of the case are unclear, but obituaries for Philip makes passing reference to his troubles, the story being that he had provided security for a “ruinous sum”, and that his legal adviser had committed suicide (we might presume having had something to hide), leaving Philip liable. He had since lived in Paris, France, on a “trifling sum”, his estates having been sequestered, and then might have simply faded from the record, but for the sorry fact that his passing in 1844 was widely reported in the British press, as he had been murdered!
The Monmouthshire Beacon of March 16th, 1844, was one of many newspapers that carried reports of the crime, here reproduced in full.
The Wards then are clearly a family with deep roots in Great Linford, and though we cannot as yet trace a baptism for Philip Ward, it seems entirely likely he was born in the village, as there are church parish records for Wards dating back as far as 1710. Intriguingly, a John Ward was married that year to a Mary Fountaine, which may well provide us a tenuous connection to John Fountaine, who was rector between 1663 to 1677.
As to what profession or professions the Wards pursued, and to what level of society they belonged, we can turn to a number of documents for clues. Philip Ward passed away in 1784 and was buried January 12th that year; he is described in the parish burial record as a Dairyman. Philip’s will proved June 27th, 1785 describes him as a Grazier, which is a person who rears or fattens cattle or sheep for market.
The name Ward crops up repeatedly in various legal documents held by Buckinghamshire Archives, which gives us some interesting details on our dairyman Philip Ward. We get a good indication of the scope of his activities from a deed relating to messuage (an old word for a house and outbuildings) and farm in Great Linford, with lands (215 acres in all), the property of the Uthwatt family, which was rented in 1755 by Philip. The Uthwatts were the Lords of Great Linford manor.
The will of his son John was proved on October 15th, 1792, and by contrast to his dairyman (or grazier) father, he is described as a “gentleman”, so implying an upwardly mobile family. It seems likely that this is the father of Frances Ward, as we have established that her mother was named Sarah, and it is to a wife named Sarah that John bequeaths all of his estate.
Frances had a brother, Philip Hoddle Ward born in 1770 at Great Linford. He was appointed a sheriff of Buckingham in 1805, (as announced in the London Gazette of 16th November) but of intriguing additional note, his abode is described as, “of Tickford Abbey” (in Newport Pagnell), so he appears to have been elevated to a position in the landed gentry. This is supported by the existence of a number of deeds which make reference to his ownership of land on the Tickford estate.
There is also an indenture drawn up in 1808 by Henry Uthwatt Uthwatt, to which Philip was a party, and furthermore, makes reference to seventy seven acres and twenty three perches of land in Great Linford, in the occupation of Philip and Sarah Ward, whom we can take to be his widowed mother.
Ominously however, the London Gazette of December 2nd, 1834, describes a court case in which Philip was the defendant, and that he appears to have failed to have appeared, having departed the country. The exact circumstances of the case are unclear, but obituaries for Philip makes passing reference to his troubles, the story being that he had provided security for a “ruinous sum”, and that his legal adviser had committed suicide (we might presume having had something to hide), leaving Philip liable. He had since lived in Paris, France, on a “trifling sum”, his estates having been sequestered, and then might have simply faded from the record, but for the sorry fact that his passing in 1844 was widely reported in the British press, as he had been murdered!
The Monmouthshire Beacon of March 16th, 1844, was one of many newspapers that carried reports of the crime, here reproduced in full.
Mr. Ward was gentleman 74 years of age, residing on the first floor of a house situated No. 40, Rue Londres, and was stated to be in easy circumstances. He kept one man servant, who lodged out. Being engaged on Thursday last to dine out, some surprise was excited that he had not arrived at six o’clock. His friends sent repeatedly to ascertain the cause of his absence, but the messenger declared that though he had knocked and rung for some length of time on every occasion, he could obtain no answer, and consequently concluded that he had gone elsewhere, or denied himself. On Friday morning when the servant came he found bis master dressed and lying dead the floor, with a log of wood by his side. From the appearance of the deceased it was evident the murderer had used the log of wood as the instrument of death, for on examination of the back part of the head, a portion of the skull had been literally beaten in, probably from one blow. A man in a blouse was seen to go into the apartment on Thursday, between three and four o’clock, but was not observed to go out again. According to the statement of a child, between seven and eight years of age, an individual of above description was seen on the staircase on that day, and the child reports that the man had such a repulsive aspect that it was afraid of him. If there be any truth in this, how comes it that the porter of the house did not perceive such a suspicious-looking person, and satisfy himself as to the object of his visit? The deceased expected a remittance of money, and this probably was known to the murderer; but was disappointed of his booty, for, in his pocket-book, Mr. Ward had made a memorandum of having, only a few days before, borrowed a small sum, to be returned receiving this remittance, which, in fact, did arrive the day after his death. The porter was at first suspected, he having been in the house only a week, but the testimonials of his integrity satisfied the police that he could not be concerned in such an affair, and was released. At present two persons are in custody on suspicion, and several arrests have been effected, but the case at present is involved in mystery, nor will the police authorities afford any information as what is going forward. It is to be hoped that the inhuman monster who perpetrated this foul deed will not be allowed escape the hands of justice.
Sadly, we do not know if justice was ever served.
Frances had married John Thomas Robe on June 23rd, 1796, at Great Linford. We do not know for sure where John was born, there are no Robes baptised at St. Andrews prior to this marriage, so we can rule out Great Linford as his place of birth. However, thanks once again to the copious biographical information on the family memorial at St. Andrews, we know his father was William Lamb Robe, of Wacton Hall, in Norfolk. This is an impressive 16th century timber framed house that still stands to this day, though exactly how the Robes came to be associated with Wacton remains presently unclear, as the name does not seem to figure in the parish records.
Of passing interest, William Lamb Robe wrote poetry, which was posthumously published in 1824 by another of his sons, the Reverend Francis William Robe. You can download a copy of the book entitled Poems on various subjects and on several occasions. The cost of publication was raised by subscription, which in modern terms we would describe as crowdfunding, with those who subscribed receiving a copy of the book. The list of subscribers in the book is worth a glance, as we find John William Robe and Mrs Ward of Great Linford, but also a Mr Uthwatt of Great Linford. This would almost certainly be Henry Andrewes Uthwatt (1787-1855) who was then Lord of the Manor.
There is a rather curious postscript to this story, that in April of 1844, several newspapers published a tale concerning the arrest of a person claiming to be the Reverend Francis William Robe. An account carried in the April 17th evening edition of a London newspaper, The Globe, reports that, “a person of venerable appearance, but most wretchedly attired” had been arrested in the village of Lewisham for begging. The arresting constable testified that he had observed the defendant going from house to house, claiming to be a clergyman fallen on hard times, and begging to, “bestow a trifle on him to meet his urgent necessities.”
In his defence, the “Reverend” claimed that he was not actually begging, but soliciting funds to pay for the publication of a 3rd edition of his father’s book of poems.
An Inspector Douglas then testified that he had known the defendant for some six or seven years, and that Robe had been living in Birmingham in some affluence, “by obtaining from one to ten guineas from eminent divines and noblemen, under pretence of bringing out a valuable theological work, but which was never done.” Douglas further testified that Robe had since switched to soliciting funds for the book of poems, and had in recent months appeared before magistrates at Rochester and Croydon for begging. Yet despite the evidence of a prolonged attempt at fraud, Robe was discharged with only a warning.
Was this really the Reverend Robe fallen on hard times, or was it case of something we would call in modern times, identify theft?
Turning again to the churchyard memorial, we learn that John Thomas Robe worked at the Army Pay Office at Horse Guards Parade, Whitehall, a fact confirmed by successive entries in a publication known as “The Royal Kalendar.” We find him listed in editions between 1808 to 1820 as one of many clerks employed at the pay office. The entry in the 1820 volume seems likely to have been a posthumous one, as we find no further record of him in this publication and a John Thomas Robe died in London in December of 1819. He was buried at Kennington Green on the 21st, aged 45. His widow Frances died a little less than a year later in December 1820 also at the age of 45, and was buried on the 19th of that month at Great Linford. It seems possible then that the couple were maintaining two households, one in London so John could attend to his duties, and one at Great Linford.
However John must have spent time at Great Linford, as we can find evidence for his appointment to the role of parish constable in 1798. To learn more about the job of parish constable and John’s tenure, visit the policing in Great Linford page of this website.
France and John had two children that we know of both, both presumably born at Great Linford as we can find their baptism records. John William Robe was baptised October 23rd, 1799, and Sarah Robe on January 1st, 1801.
John William was married February 21st, 1833 at the church of Saint James at Westminster to Frances Charlotte Blunt, nee Orlebar. Her first husband Colonel William Oakes Blunt had died in 1831. Frances died On November 10th, 1860 at the Orlebar estate at Hinwick House in Podington in North Bedfordshire.
Turning back briefly to the murder of Philip Hoddle Ward, a story carried in the Oxford Chronicle and Reading Gazette of March 16th, 1844, adds the detail that John William Robe had travelled to Paris on learning of his relative’s demise. There he had attempted to get to the bottom of matters, as well as recover various items of family jewellery believed to have been purloined by the murderer.
We can find the widowed John William on the 1861 and 1871 census records at Biddenham in Bedfordshire. He died aged 90 years at Biddenham on Christmas day 1888. A brief death notice in the Morning Post newspaper of December 30th tells us that he had been a captain in the Bucks Yeomanry and a member of the Honourable Corps of Gentlemen at Arms, the bodyguard to the British Monarch.
Sarah was married on August 23rd, 1831 to John Monkton, with the ceremony occurring at St. Andrews, Great Linford. Once again, the churchyard memorial comes up trumps, providing the information that by the time of its installation she had been widowed and that her late husband had been the son of Rear Admiral John Monkton of Tiverton in Devon. John Jnr’s mother had been Charlotte Slade and he been born October 7th, 1798 at Burstock in Dorset. John was apprenticed in 1815 to a solicitor in Dorset and was buried in St. Pancras Old Churchyard on November 1st, 1850.
As to John’s Rear Admiral father, he is a figure of minor note in naval circles. John Monkton's Wikipedia entry states he was born circa 1754 and served in the French Revolutionary Wars as a commander of a ship of the line seeing action in several engagements, particularly the Battle of Groix in 1795. Monkton was later embroiled in Admiralty politics and fell out with Earl St. Vincent which resulted in his enforced retirement.
The final entry on the memorial stone is for Sarah Ward, nee Hoddle, who died December 4th, 1839 at the advanced age of 95 and was buried at Great Linford on December 20th. As the memorial states, she was a resident of the parish of Great Linford for many years, though exactly where she was born remains uncertain, though a Sarah Hoddle was baptised at Newport Pagnell on September 6th, 1747 to a Stephen and Frances. Traditionally name were reused generation after generation, and that Sarah named her daughter Frances seems to offer compelling evidence that this is one and the same person.
The 1841 census has no mention of the name Ward in the parish, suggesting that Sarah’s passing represented the end of the line in Great Linford. The surname crops up intermittently in later years, notably on the 1871, 1891 and 1911 census records, however it seems likely that these were newcomers with no blood relationship to the earlier Wards of Great Linford.
Frances had married John Thomas Robe on June 23rd, 1796, at Great Linford. We do not know for sure where John was born, there are no Robes baptised at St. Andrews prior to this marriage, so we can rule out Great Linford as his place of birth. However, thanks once again to the copious biographical information on the family memorial at St. Andrews, we know his father was William Lamb Robe, of Wacton Hall, in Norfolk. This is an impressive 16th century timber framed house that still stands to this day, though exactly how the Robes came to be associated with Wacton remains presently unclear, as the name does not seem to figure in the parish records.
Of passing interest, William Lamb Robe wrote poetry, which was posthumously published in 1824 by another of his sons, the Reverend Francis William Robe. You can download a copy of the book entitled Poems on various subjects and on several occasions. The cost of publication was raised by subscription, which in modern terms we would describe as crowdfunding, with those who subscribed receiving a copy of the book. The list of subscribers in the book is worth a glance, as we find John William Robe and Mrs Ward of Great Linford, but also a Mr Uthwatt of Great Linford. This would almost certainly be Henry Andrewes Uthwatt (1787-1855) who was then Lord of the Manor.
There is a rather curious postscript to this story, that in April of 1844, several newspapers published a tale concerning the arrest of a person claiming to be the Reverend Francis William Robe. An account carried in the April 17th evening edition of a London newspaper, The Globe, reports that, “a person of venerable appearance, but most wretchedly attired” had been arrested in the village of Lewisham for begging. The arresting constable testified that he had observed the defendant going from house to house, claiming to be a clergyman fallen on hard times, and begging to, “bestow a trifle on him to meet his urgent necessities.”
In his defence, the “Reverend” claimed that he was not actually begging, but soliciting funds to pay for the publication of a 3rd edition of his father’s book of poems.
An Inspector Douglas then testified that he had known the defendant for some six or seven years, and that Robe had been living in Birmingham in some affluence, “by obtaining from one to ten guineas from eminent divines and noblemen, under pretence of bringing out a valuable theological work, but which was never done.” Douglas further testified that Robe had since switched to soliciting funds for the book of poems, and had in recent months appeared before magistrates at Rochester and Croydon for begging. Yet despite the evidence of a prolonged attempt at fraud, Robe was discharged with only a warning.
Was this really the Reverend Robe fallen on hard times, or was it case of something we would call in modern times, identify theft?
Turning again to the churchyard memorial, we learn that John Thomas Robe worked at the Army Pay Office at Horse Guards Parade, Whitehall, a fact confirmed by successive entries in a publication known as “The Royal Kalendar.” We find him listed in editions between 1808 to 1820 as one of many clerks employed at the pay office. The entry in the 1820 volume seems likely to have been a posthumous one, as we find no further record of him in this publication and a John Thomas Robe died in London in December of 1819. He was buried at Kennington Green on the 21st, aged 45. His widow Frances died a little less than a year later in December 1820 also at the age of 45, and was buried on the 19th of that month at Great Linford. It seems possible then that the couple were maintaining two households, one in London so John could attend to his duties, and one at Great Linford.
However John must have spent time at Great Linford, as we can find evidence for his appointment to the role of parish constable in 1798. To learn more about the job of parish constable and John’s tenure, visit the policing in Great Linford page of this website.
France and John had two children that we know of both, both presumably born at Great Linford as we can find their baptism records. John William Robe was baptised October 23rd, 1799, and Sarah Robe on January 1st, 1801.
John William was married February 21st, 1833 at the church of Saint James at Westminster to Frances Charlotte Blunt, nee Orlebar. Her first husband Colonel William Oakes Blunt had died in 1831. Frances died On November 10th, 1860 at the Orlebar estate at Hinwick House in Podington in North Bedfordshire.
Turning back briefly to the murder of Philip Hoddle Ward, a story carried in the Oxford Chronicle and Reading Gazette of March 16th, 1844, adds the detail that John William Robe had travelled to Paris on learning of his relative’s demise. There he had attempted to get to the bottom of matters, as well as recover various items of family jewellery believed to have been purloined by the murderer.
We can find the widowed John William on the 1861 and 1871 census records at Biddenham in Bedfordshire. He died aged 90 years at Biddenham on Christmas day 1888. A brief death notice in the Morning Post newspaper of December 30th tells us that he had been a captain in the Bucks Yeomanry and a member of the Honourable Corps of Gentlemen at Arms, the bodyguard to the British Monarch.
Sarah was married on August 23rd, 1831 to John Monkton, with the ceremony occurring at St. Andrews, Great Linford. Once again, the churchyard memorial comes up trumps, providing the information that by the time of its installation she had been widowed and that her late husband had been the son of Rear Admiral John Monkton of Tiverton in Devon. John Jnr’s mother had been Charlotte Slade and he been born October 7th, 1798 at Burstock in Dorset. John was apprenticed in 1815 to a solicitor in Dorset and was buried in St. Pancras Old Churchyard on November 1st, 1850.
As to John’s Rear Admiral father, he is a figure of minor note in naval circles. John Monkton's Wikipedia entry states he was born circa 1754 and served in the French Revolutionary Wars as a commander of a ship of the line seeing action in several engagements, particularly the Battle of Groix in 1795. Monkton was later embroiled in Admiralty politics and fell out with Earl St. Vincent which resulted in his enforced retirement.
The final entry on the memorial stone is for Sarah Ward, nee Hoddle, who died December 4th, 1839 at the advanced age of 95 and was buried at Great Linford on December 20th. As the memorial states, she was a resident of the parish of Great Linford for many years, though exactly where she was born remains uncertain, though a Sarah Hoddle was baptised at Newport Pagnell on September 6th, 1747 to a Stephen and Frances. Traditionally name were reused generation after generation, and that Sarah named her daughter Frances seems to offer compelling evidence that this is one and the same person.
The 1841 census has no mention of the name Ward in the parish, suggesting that Sarah’s passing represented the end of the line in Great Linford. The surname crops up intermittently in later years, notably on the 1871, 1891 and 1911 census records, however it seems likely that these were newcomers with no blood relationship to the earlier Wards of Great Linford.
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