RECORDS OF THE
FAMILY
by Bryan I'Anson
CHAPTER I.
Introductory
Origin of Surname
Family Growth and Spread
Introductory
This Book of Records of the Wightman family does not claim to be a complete
history, but is a collection of Records gathered from manuscripts, books and
other papers found at the British Museum and Public Record Office, with
extracts from Wills in the Principal and other Registries, and entries taken
from registers of parishes in London and other parts of the country. The
last chapter contains a detailed pedigree put together with the aid of the
information to be found in the earlier chapters, and this should prove of
considerable assistance to any members of the family desirous of proving
their descent from the Thomas Wightman of Burbage, near Hinckley, who was
living in the reign of Richard II.
It has been the endeavour of the compiler to place before the readers of
this book all information procurable from the sources above-mentioned,
likely to be of interest, together with illustrations and descriptions of
ancient residences of the family. Monuments and Monumental Brasses in
churches in these neighbourhoods are items of very great interest. Those
illustrated are excellent examples of their period, and were found in a
splendid state of preservation. It is to be regretted that some of the
tombstones referred to in Nicholl's History of Leicestershire, are not now
to be found in the churches of that County, they, apparently, having been
removed or destroyed during the work of church restoration. In Burbage
church where many of the family have been interred during the 15th and 16th
centuries, and probably earlier, the only monument remaining is the
alabaster slab to Richard Wightman and his two wives, and it is some
compensation for the loss of a few of minor importance, to find that this
monument, which was in danger of destruction, in its original position on
the floor has been lifted and is now in safety on the wall of the church.
Unfortunately, this was not done before some detail had become illegible;
but it has not suffered to any great extent.
It has also been the endeavour of the compiler to give some account of
ancestors who have occupied prominent positions in the country, or who, for
other reasons, have become celebrated, and a chapter has therefore been
devoted to short biographies of these persons.
Origin of Surname
Another subject which is naturally one of importance, is the origin of the
surname, which is a somewhat peculiar one, and the writer has endeavoured in
the course of his researches, to collect evidence, which might either
support or contradict the legends as to the origin of the surname "Wightman"
and the motto "A Wight man never wanted a weapon", which are probably known
to most of the name.
It is said, on the one hand, that the Wightman family is of Saxon origin,
and, on the other, that they are descended from the famous Robert de
Beaumont, Earl of Leicester, (son of Robert Bossu), who drew is sword on
King Henry II., saying, "A Wightman never wanted a weapon", on the historic
occasion when the famous earl took part with King Henry's sons in rebellion
against their father.
So far as the first legend goes, no evidence is forthcoming in support of
the Saxon origin of the family. In a 12th century roll relating to the
County of Suffolk and the parish of Alteston (consolidated with the parish
of Trimley in 1362) the following entry is found:
"Land of Roger Bigot, - 2 freemen with 11 acres Turbin and Ulwin. A church
with 5 acres. Ralph de Turlivill holds 3 freemen Leverich, Almer and Raven
with 30 acres and half an acre of meadow and Wihtman holds a freeman named
Ulrich with 12 acres.
Some of the names in this record are certainly Saxon, but there is nothing
to show that the said "Wihtman" is of that origin any more than Roger Bigot
or Ralph de Turlivill. This record is the earliest which has been met with
where the surname (?) appears.
With the other legend, on the contrary, many things have been met with
which, although furnishing no definite proof, or showing the relationship,
if any, to the celebrated Earl, would yet appear much stronger than mere
coincidences. We find that less than a century after the death of the Earl,
from the Inquisition held on the estate of one Wyghtman, he died seized of
lands formerly owned by the Earl of Leicester. Robert de Beaumont, Earl of
Leicester, was surnamed "Blanchmains" or "Wyghtmains" owing, it is said, to
his having most beautifully shaped white hands. It will be observed (vide
Chapter 2) that, in the commission of oyer and terminer of 18th February
1326, Thomas Whiteman is there referred to as "de Beaumont".
It is recorded of the said Earl, that he granted the Manor of Wyken, in the
County of Leicester -- he is there referred to as "Blanchmains" -- to the
Monastery of Nuneaton, in the County of Warwich which was founded by his
wife Amicia, daughter of the Earl of Montfort. Strangely enough, this Manor,
after the dissolution of the Monasteries, was acquired by William Wightman,
one of the Burbage family. Again, from the Inquisitions held after the death
of other members of the family, in Leicester and neighbouring counties, they
are found to have owned other estates once part of this Earldom. The estates
of Robert de Beaumont came largely through the great house of de
Grantmeisnil, and the relationship with the house of Hastings is to be found
recorded in most histories of the period. It is possible that the connection
is to be found through this family, and it is of importance to observe here
the great similarity between the arms of Hastings and those of Wightman. The
principal and only charge on the shield in each case is a "Maunch" or
sleeve. In the Hastings coat the tincture of the field is different, but
variations in tinctures were, in the early days of Heraldry in England, of
very common occurrence.
One of the leading authorities on the subject, "Cussans", may usefully be
quoted here. He says, "Paternal arms, being, by right, borne by all the sons
of a family, it is highly important that there should be some means by which
the various members may be distinguished ... In the early days of Heraldry,
differences were effected by a variety of arbitrary arrangements, -- such as
changing the tinctures of the Coat, ... by these methods, a Coat of Arms,
after a few generations frequently became so changed in appearance as to
lose all resemblance to the original, much confusion and uncertainly were
necessarily engendered ... It was not until the 14th century that cadency,
as the word is now understood, became general."
Robert de Bellomont was the first Earl of Leicester after the Conquest, but
was not so made until the time of Henry I. He was of kindred to the
Conqueror and was highly esteemed by him, as a person who, through his
gallant conduct in the battle of Hastings, had greatly contributed to the
success of that memorable day.
He was a son of Roger de Bellomont by Adelina, daughter of Waleran and
sister and heir to Hugh, Earl of Mellent in Normandy. He married Isabel,
daughter of Hugh, Earl of Vermandois, and died in the 18th year of the reign
of Henry I, leaving 3 sons and at least 4 daughters. Waleran, this eldest
son, became Earl of Mellent; Robert (twin with Waleran) became second Earl
of Leicester. Hugh, the third son (surnamed "Pauper"), became Earl of
Bedford. Of the daughters, Elizabeth married Gilbert Strongbow, Earl of
Pembroke, Adeline married Hugh de Montfort, and two others married
respectively Hugh de Novo Castello and William Lovell.
Robert, second Earl of Leicester, was surnamed "Bossu". He adhered to Henry
I against his brother, Curthose, and supported Henry II against King
Stephen. He was made Justice of England. He married Amicia, daughter of
Ralph de Warr, Earl of Norfolk, and died in 1167. He left one son, who
succeeded to the Earldom, and two daughters.
Robert, third Earl of Leicester, as before stated, was surnamed "Blanchmains",
or "Wytmains". He rebelled in 1173 against the King, and the town of
Leicester was laid waste. He was, however, received again into favor four
years later and his lands restored to him. At the Coronation of Richard I,
he bore the Sword of State.
He was in the Crusade and is said to have there contracted leprosy, and by
some to this is ascribed the surname "Wytmains". He married Petronil,
daughter of Hugh de Grantmeisnil, and thereby acquired the Honor of Hinckley
and the Stewardship of England. He died and was buried at Duras, in Greece,
in 1190, leaving three sons (Robert, Roger and William), and two daughters (Amicia
and Margaret).
Robert, surnamed "Fitzparnel" (in reference to his mother Petronil or Parnel),
attended Robert I in the Holy Land, and was created Earl of Leicester in
1191. He died sans issue, when the Earldom passed to Simon de Montfort,
husband to his sister Amicia.
Roger, the second son of "Wytmains", became Bishop of St. Andrew's, in
Scotland. William, the third and youngest son (said to have been a leper),
founded the Hospital of St. Leonard's, in Leicester, and was ancestor of the
great family of the Dukes of Hamilton, in Scotland.
At this point the subject must be left, and perhaps, at some future date
some member of the Wightman family may find an opportunity to conduct
researches with a view to getting at the root of the question. It seems very
probable that evidence would be forthcoming, to give additional support to
the legend.
The earliest spelling of the name, as has already been stated, is, perhaps,
"Wihtman". Somewhat later, we find the ancestors of Wightman of Leicester as
"Wyghtman", and in this form it is pretty general during the 14th century.
In the parish registers, the entries are variously "Wightman", "Whiteman",
Weightman" and "Whitman", according to the pronunciation of the particular
locality, or parish priest; and it is by no means uncommon to find, at quite
short intervals, the same person referred to by all four spellings.
Hugh Wightman, son of the William Wightman referred to in the Visitation of
Nottingham as aged 2 years in 1614 (see Chapter III) is described, on his
memorial tablet as "Whiteman", whilst, on the tablet to his son, is the
surname "Weightman".
In Chapter II will be found many interesting records of William Wyghtman,
the spigurnel of Chancery (sealer of the King's writs), a dignity which,
during the 12th and 13th centuries, and perhaps later, was hereditary,
descending through the family of de Bohun for some generations.
It is not clear at what time the first of the family settled in Scotland,
but probably this was not later than the 14th century. We have a difference
of "argent" for "or" (silver instead of gold) in the Scottish arms. Except
for the counterchanging these arms are identical with those of one branch of
the house of Hastings and probably the difference, as in certain other known
cases, is denoting the children of a second marriage.
Many of the Wightman family have, from time to time, settled in London, and
the younger members of the Leicestershire families have spread into the
neighbouring counties of Nottingham, Warwick, Stafford, Derby, Lincoln,
Yorkshire, Norfolk and Suffolk; and it should not prove a very difficult
task to trace descent to Wightman of Burbage, with the aid of the parish
register and will extracts. The first settlement in Norfolk would appear to
have been in association with the Purefoys, and in Suffolk, in the
Framlingham district, with relatives of the Reynolds family.
In a later chapter some notes of early settlers in the New World will be
found and it is believed that those now resident in Australia and New
Zealand were tempted by the gold discoveries, to break away from their
native country.
The compiler is indebted to many members of the family, for help and
information, without which, the detailed pedigree found in Chapter XV, on
which a great deal of time has been spent, would be much less complete.
From "Records of the Wightman Family" by Bryan I'Anson. Printed in London, 1917.
