Thursday 25 April 2013

By far the ablest of the Lancashire Royalists...


In 1973, R N Dore published a second edition of Ernest Broxap's The Great Civil War in Lancashire 1642-1651. This work includes the following notice of Sir Thomas Tyldesley 1612-1651:
By far the ablest of the Lancashire Royalists, and next to Derby the most prominent, was Thomas Tyldesley. He was a Roman Catholic, of a younger branch of the Tyldesleys of Tyldesley, and resided at Myerscough Hall near Garstang. He married Bridget Standish [FN1], whose mother was sister of Richard, first Viscount Molyneux, and was therefore a cousin by marriage of the second Viscount. He is better known as Sir Thomas Tyldesley, being knighted for his services when with the Queen at Burton Bridge in July, 1643. Tyldesley was concerned in all the early Royalist movements in Lancashire. He was in command at Liverpool when it was first surrendered to the Parliament in 1643; and attended Rupert in the following year at the sack of Bolton, the recapture of Liverpool, and the relief of Lathom House. When the Royalist cause in Lancashire was finally lost, Tyldesley was active in other parts of the country, and was three times taken prisoner. He was Governor of Lichfield when that town was captured in 1646; he then served in Ireland, and took part in Hamilton's invasion in 1648. Afterwards Tyldesley found refuge in the Isle of Man, joined Derby's invasion in 1651, and was killed at the Battle of Wigan Lane. He was a good specimen of the best type of chivalrous Cavalier. He never compounded for his estates, and considering the very prominent part which he took in the War, the ruling powers treated him very lightly, for no forfeiture is known to have followed his death.(1) 
1. "Dict. Nat Biog." "C. W.T.," pp. 306, 353. 44 Discourse," p. 92. Myerscough Lodge lies just aside from the main road from Preston to Garstang, and about half way between the two. Until comparatively recently some parts of the old house remained, but in 1887 the Lodge was entirely re-built. Clarendon's estimate of Tyldesley is a very high one ("Hist. Rebell.," ed. Macray, Vol. 5, p. 186; bk. 13, par. 70).

  1. It appears that Broxap has confused the generations here. Sir Thomas Tyldesley married Frances Standish, who was the daughter of Ralph Standish and Bridget Molyneux.  Bridget was the daughter of Sir Richard Molyneux of Sefton and Frances Gerard and was indeed the sister of Richard, the first Viscount Molyneux.Lady Frances Tyldesley was therefore named after her grandmother, and as can be seen from the Tyldesley Pedigree, she in turn gave her mother's name Bridget to one of her daughters.

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