James ABNEY

     James ABNEY, son of George ABNEY and Margery Lowe, was born on 6 January 1599 in Tatenhill, Staffordshire, England.¹

James ABNEY was baptised on 14 February 1599 at St. Michael & All Angels Churchyard in Tatenhill, Staffordshire, England, son of George ABNEY and Margery Lowe.^2,3,4,5

James ABNEY was educated in 1616 at Emmanuel College in Cambridge, England. He studied law and became a member of the Inner Temple. The Honourable Society of the Inner Temple, commonly known as the Inner Temple, is one of the four Inns of Court (professional associations for barristers and judges) in London. To be called to the Bar and practise as a barrister in England and Wales, an individual must belong to one of these Inns.⁶ He was Lord of Willesley in1645, a lawyer, Member of Parliament, and High Sheriff of Derbyshire in 1656.

A house existed on the site of Willesley for over 500 years until the hall was demolished in 1953. Some of the most significant enlargements and improvements to the estate were undertaken by James Abney. The house was further enlarged by his son, Sir Edward Abney, early in the 18th Century and later in the same century the park was laid out and a 24 acre lake was created submerging, it is thought, the village of Willesley. The Abney family's ownership of the Manor of Willesley lasted from 1424 until the death of Thomas Abney in 1791. Many family members are buried in the adjacent Church of St. Thomas Willesley or the Church of St. Mary de Castro in Leicester.^7,8

James married first Jane Mainwaring on 8 August 1625 in St. Mary & All Saints, Whitmore, Staffordshire, England. She was the daughter of Edward Mainwaring of Whitmore in Staffordshire.^2,9,10,11

During the English Civil Wars (1642-1651) fought between the supporters of the king, known as the Cavaliers, and the supporters of the Parliament, James participated in the royalist defence of Ashby-De-La-Zouch Castle in 1645 and 1646 when after a yearlong siege of the castle by the Parliamentarian Army the Royalists surrendered.

Henry Hastings, Lord Loughborough, the second son of the fifth Earl of Huntingdon was the main champion of the Royalist cause in Leicestershire, and the regional commander. Shortly after the battle of Edgehill, Hastings occupied Ashby-de-la-Zouch Castle and placed the garrison on a war footing. For over three years it was the center of operations for most of Leicestershire, Nottinghamshire, Derbyshire and Staffordshire, becoming a critical lynch-pin of Royalist operations in the Midlands, and strengthened their hold on the port of Chester. This, together with the fact that cavalry from the garrison were involved in many actions in the Welsh Marches in 1645-46, including attempts to disrupt Parliament's siege of Newark, earned Hastings the nickname of 'Rob Carrier' amongst the Parliamentarians.

By the end of 1644, Parliamentary forces were gaining the upper hand in the county, the town being occupied and the castle closely besieged. For a year the fortunes of the opposing forces fluctuated, but after the battle of Naseby the situation became desperate for the Royalists. Although the castle proved too strong to be taken by storm, an outbreak of plague and dwindling food supplies took their toll of the garrison, which was finally compelled to surrender on 28 February 1646.

The terms of surrender were remarkably generous, suggesting that the Parliamentarians were relieved at the removal of a great thorn in their side. As was usual, terms included provision for "slighting" of the castle; one complete wall of each building being destroyed by undermining and gunpowder.⁷

Margaret Bromley née Lowe was a noted English Puritan of Staffordshire origins. She married Sir Edward Bromley, a noted lawyer and judge of the period. She was the sister of Margery Lowe, the wife of George Abney. Margaret Bromley died in 1657 and was buried at Loughborough on 23 March. In her will she asked for no solemnity of any kind, specifically prohibiting the use of bells, and asked that no relative be sent for, apart from her nephew Abney: she left small bequests to both James and Thomas Abney but it was James who was appointed executor, along with Sarah Bromskill.¹²

The Restoration in 1660, when Charles II restored the monarchy, left the Abney family in an uncertain position. During the Wars James had served in the Royalist army. But after 1649, he seems to have maintained his authority locally through the Derbyshire commission of the peace and also to bolster the family estate at Willesley Hall by being one of the first Derbyshire commissioners for the sequestration of royalist estates. He was also Sheriff of Derby in 1656. During the flux of the 1640s and 1650s, James Abney it seems played it both ways. With Charles II's government moving to punish the regicides and their families it must have been a nervous time for James.¹³

James ABNEY, living in Willesley, Leicestershire, England, entered his pedigree in the Visitaition of Derbyshire on 18 March 1662. That same year on October 8th, James Abney, Esq. was assessed for a hearth tax on 16 hearths. A hearth tax was an early property tax in certain countries, levied on each hearth or family unit. It was calculated based on the number of hearths, or fireplaces, within a municipal area.

In England, hearth tax, also known as hearth money, chimney tax, or chimney money, was a tax imposed by Parliament in 1662, to support the Royal Household of King Charles II. Following the Restoration of the monarchy in 1660, Parliament calculated that the Royal Household needed an annual income of £1,200,000.] The hearth tax was a supplemental tax to make up the shortfall. It was considered easier to establish the number of hearths than the number of heads, hearths forming a more stationary measure than people. This form of taxation was new to England, but had precedents abroad. It generated considerable debate, but was supported by the economist Sir William Petty. The bill received Royal Assent on 19 May 1662, with the first payment due on 29 September 1662, Michaelmas.

One shilling was liable to be paid for every firehearth or stove, in all dwellings, houses, edifices or lodgings, and was payable at Michaelmas, 29 September and on Lady Day, 25 March. The tax thus amounted to two shillings per hearth or stove per year. If that was the case, James Abney's tax would have amounted to 32 shillings.¹⁴

James ABNEY died in 1693 in Willesley, Derbyshire, England.⁶ He was buried on 1 June 1693 in St. Helen's Churchyard, Ashby-de-la-Zouch, Leicestershire, England.¹⁵