Antigua and the Antiguans Volume II Part 26

Richard Boraston, &c. &c.

Falmo July ye 25th, 1676.

To ye Honble. his Maties. justices of Oyer and terminer appointed for the triall of Collo Phillip Warner in ye Island of Barbadoes

These humbly are sent.

It was not Col. Warner alone who was implicated in this affair, although he plays the most prominent part. Many of the offenders had their lands taken from them, until the issue of their trial was known; but Col. Warner and Lieut. Ffrye, of their own free will, delivered up their possessions, immediately upon their being charged with the crime already narrated, as may be learnt from the following pa.s.sage extracted from an old record (speaking of those persons who had been dispossessed of their lands):-

"Excepted the lands of Collo Phillip Warner at the ffig tree, and at the Road being resigned up freely by himself. Also excepted the lands of Lieut. John Ffrye, lying and beinge in the body of this Island beinge resigned up freely by him."

[81] Christopher Reynall.

[82] St. Christopher's.

[83] Lynch.

No. 7.

GENEALOGY OF THE WILLIAMS FAMILY.

The family of the Williams' trace their colonial descent from

- Williams, Esq., who was supposed to have emigrated from England under the auspices of William Herbert, Earl of Pembroke, and, by tradition, is said to have been the first Englishman who set foot in the Island of Antigua. He planted and settled the family estate at Old Road, and dying, left a son,

Rowland, colonel in the army, and the first white child born in the colony, about the year 1632. He fulfilled for some time the office of governor of Antigua, and in the attack upon the French, to recover St Christopher's, in 1690, he gallantly distinguished himself, having under his command a body of eight hundred Antiguan troops. He died in 1713, at the advanced age of eighty, universally lamented by all who knew him, and was interred in the parish church of Old Road, of which edifice he was the princ.i.p.al founder. His will is now to be seen in the Prerogative Court of Canterbury. He left issue, by his wife, two sons, Thomas, his heir, and Samuel, student of Christ's College, Oxford, of which university he was a distinguished member. He is honourably mentioned by Oldmixon, in his "British Empire." He died at an early age (probably in his father's lifetime) s. p.

Thomas, son and heir of the above Col. Rowland Williams, was a colonel in the army, of Old Road estate, Antigua, and of Newlands, co. Surrey, m. in 1705, Mary, dau. of Edward Byam, (then fulfilling the government of Antigua,) by his first wife, Mary, dau. of Samuel Winthorpe, Esq., and granddau. of John Winthorpe, first governor of New England, and of Groton Hall, co.

Suffolk. The likeness of this lady (Mary, the wife of Col. Thomas Williams) was in possession of the late Rowland-E. Williams, at Newlands. Col. Thomas Williams dying, left issue, by Mary, his wife, i. Edward, son and heir.

ii. Rowland, died s. p.

iii. Samuel, entered at University College, Oxon, 3 November, 1737, died s. p.

iv. Sarah, died s. p.

Edward, son and heir, of Old Road. Antigua, and Newlands, in the parish of Thames Ditton, co. Surrey, born 9 May, 1710, m. in 1747, Mary, dau. of - Bennet, of Penryth, co. c.u.mberland. He, dying 6 April, 1784, was buried at Thames Ditton, aforesaid, leaving issue by his wife, i. Rowland-Edward, son and heir.

ii. Samuel, who possessed an estate in Hampshire, and dying s.

p. in 1825, was buried at Lyndhurst, in that county.

Rowland-Edward, as eldest son, inherited the family estates of Old Road, Antigua, and Newlands, co. Surrey, born 18 Dec 1784, m.

Mary, dau. of Robert Symes, of the Island of Jamaica, Esq., and dying 28 Nov. 1826, in the seventy-eighth year of his age, left issue two sons,

i. Rowland-Edward, son and heir.

ii. Samuel Williams, captain in the Royal Navy, and two daus.

Rowland-Edward Williams, as eldest son, possesses the family estates in England and Antigua, the patrimonial domains of his ancestors, who came in among the first settlers; member of her Majesty's privy council in that island, and late captain in the 10th regiment of Hussars, m. Mary-Anne, dau. of Sir Patrick Ross, K.C.B., (then captain-general and governor-in-chief of the Leeward Caribbee Islands,) who, dying at the early age of thirty-two, left issue by him two sons, one of which only survives.

Nos. 8 & 9.

GENEALOGY OF THE CODRINGTON FAMILY.

One of the great ancestors of the Codrington family was John de Codrington, grandson of Geoffrey Codrington, standard-bearer to Henry V., 1415; he afterwards purchased the manor of Wapeley in 1455, living to the great age of 112; died in 1475. From this source descends the family of Codrington connected with Antigua.

Geoffrey Codrington, of Codrington, co. Gloucester, left issue a son, Robert, of the same place, and also of Sodbury. Robert had issue three sons, Morvail, Humphry, and John.

John, m. and had issue, Christopher, and Edward.

Edward, m. and had a son,

Thomas, who m. and had a son,

Simon, who died in 1618, leaving by his wife, Anne, co-heiress of Richard Seacole, of Didmarton, co. Gloucester, three sons,

i. John. ii. Giles. iii. Robert.

Robert Codrington, m. Anne, co-heiress of Richard Stubbs, and left issue, Christopher, and John. John was of Didmarton, and died in 1670.

Christopher, the eldest son, was a lieutenant-colonel in the army, and settled in Barbados in the year 1649, after having contended in the Royal cause; he married and had two sons, Christopher, and John, the latter colonel of the Life-guards in Barbados, of whom presently.

Christopher, the elder son, was governor of the Leeward Islands in 1689, and died in 1698, leaving, by ---, his wife, two sons, Christopher, the celebrated founder of All Souls', Oxford, and John, who died in the lifetime of his brother.

Christopher, the elder son, was the purchaser, from his cousin, Samuel, of Doddington, in Gloucestershire, and was appointed to succeed his father in the government of the Leeward Islands, in 1698. Among his great possessions in the West Indies, he had an estate called "Betty's Hope," in Antigua, from whence, 22 Feb.

1702, was dated his will, making such munificent bequests for the foundation of a college in Barbados, and to All Souls' College, Oxford, which is thus described in a contemporary work, among the remarkable events of the year 1710:- "About the same time (21 July, 1710) came advice from the Leeward Islands of the death of Col. Christopher Codrington, for some time captain-general of those Islands. He left the bulk of his estate to his cousin-german, Col. William Codrington, of Barbados, (and also of Antigua,) which is reckoned to amount to 40,000l. and upwards. He most generously bequeathed 20,000l. to the Society for Propagating the Faith in that part of the world; and having for many years been Fellow of All Souls', Oxford, gave that college 10,000l., as also his n.o.ble library, valued at 6000l. more. He ordered his body to be buried there, and allowed only 20l. for a gravestone upon it, but left 1500l. for erecting a monument for his father in _Westminster Abbey_." And to his remaining estates, his cousin, Col. William Codrington succeeded accordingly. He was a Member of the Council of the Island of Antigua, and son of Col.

John Codrington, of the Life-guards, Barbados, by his wife, the dau. of Col. Bates, of the same island. Col. William Codrington is spoken of in very high terms by "Oldmixon," in his "British Empire in America," _as one of the two men of the best heads and best fortunes in British America_, (Col. Edward Byam, as already mentioned, being the other,) and was very deservedly created a Baronet, 21 April, 1721. He died 17 Dec. 1738, leaving by his wife, Elizabeth, dau. of William Bethel, of Swindon, co. York, Esq., four sons, i. William, second Bart., who succeeded him, and of whom hereafter.

ii. John-Archibald, died s. p. in 1759.

iii. Christopher, m., and died s. p. in 1797.

iv. Edward.

To John Archibald he bequeathed his Barbados estates. To Christopher he bequeathed an estate called "Rooms's," in Antigua.

To Edward the Folly estate in that island, (now modernized into "Bath Lodge,") and comprising "Betty's Hope," the "Cotton Estate," and the "Cables," all in the Island of Antigua, and the entire Island of Barbuda, in the general bequest to his eldest son and successor.

Sir William, second Bart., M.P. for Minehead, co. Somerset, dying 11 March, 1792, left, by Anne, his wife, the dau. of - Acton, Esq., a son and heir of his own name-viz.,

Sir William, third Bart., who died in France in 1816, whereupon his cousin,

Christopher-Bethel Codrington, of Dodington Park, co. Gloucester, a.s.sumed the t.i.tle, a.s.serting his cousin to have died in France, without lawful issue. He was the son of Edward, by his wife, Rebecca Le Sturgeon, and grandson of Sir William, the first Bart., the son of Col. John Codrington, Treasurer of Barbados, by his wife, the dau. of Col. Bates, of the same island, as already mentioned. Besides Christopher-Bethel, of Dodington Park, Edward was the father of Sir Edward Codrington, the hero of Navarino, G.C.B., K.S.L., K.S.G., and Rear-Admiral of the Blue; and also of Caroline, the wife of Joseph-Lyons Walrond, of Walrond's and Lyon's Estates, in Antigua, and of Dulford House, co. Devon, and by whom she has, Bethel Walrond, Esq., formerly M.P. for Sudbury, who m. in 1829, Lady Janet Erskine, dau. of the Earl of Rosslyn.