A HISTORY OF LANCASHIRE 



a messuage and land in Cunscough, in the tenure of 

 Thomas Tatlock, held of the queen in chief by the 

 service of the sixtieth part of a knight's fee, the value 

 being ^^ > s. \d. Lawrence Ireland, his son and heir, 

 was eighteen years of age. 1 



The heir was engaged in many lawsuits. 2 He 

 died 6 May, 1609, leaving a widow and ten young 

 children, for whose benefit he had in 1605 enfeoffed 

 Sir Richard Molyneux and others, of Lydiate Hall, 

 Lydiate chapel near the manor-house, the dove-house, 

 barns, &c. Lydiate and Eggergarth are stated in the 

 inquisition to be held of Thomas Ireland of Warring- 

 ton in socage by the rent of a rose yearly, their value 

 being 5 clear ; he also had tenements in Cunscough, 

 Melling, Aughton and Maghull. 3 



Edward Ireland, his son by his second wife Mary 

 Scarisbrick, was his heir, but only sixteen years of 

 age, and his wardship was granted by James I to 

 Barnaby Molyneux and Hugh Nelson. 4 He was 

 twice married ; by his first wife he had two daughters ; 

 by his second Margaret Norris, a granddaughter of 

 Edward Norris of Speke he had a son and heir 

 Lawrence. 5 He died on I April, 1637, and the 

 inventory of his property has been preserved. 7 



His son and heir Lawrence was only about three 

 years of age, 8 and was still under age in 1651, when 

 his mother Margaret sent a petition to the Parlia- 

 mentary Commissioners touching the sequestration of 

 his estate. Like many others of his faith he was 

 sent to one of the colleges abroad to be educated. 

 On account of religion two-thirds of the Ireland 

 estate was sequestered, and the widow was allowed a 

 fifth in 1651, to be increased to a third should she 

 prove that she was not a delinquent ; ' Gilbert Ireland 

 of the Hutt, a distant relative and a strong partisan 

 of the Parliament, was made guardian. Mr. Ambrose, 



the Parliament's agent, ' had given reasons which 

 induced him to believe that young Mr. Ireland was 

 being brought up in popery ; namely, that his mother 

 demanding from him how her son should be main- 

 tained, he answered that if she would please he should 

 be brought up in the Protestant religion he might be 

 provided for according to his rank and quality, she re- 

 plied "she had rather see him hanged" ; that he could 

 never hear of him going to church, but that he had been 

 kept secret and conveyed from one papist's house to 

 another, whereof Mr. Ditchfield, a papist at Ditton, was 

 one ; and that it had then lately been given out that he 

 had been sent beyond the seas, where Mr. Ambrose 

 believed he then was.' It was replied that he had 

 been educated at Oxford, 10 and only sent abroad by 

 licence from the Council of State. Colonel Gilbert 

 Ireland refused to stir ; ' he had heard they were 

 about to marry him (Lawrence) with Mr. Ditchfield 

 of Ditton's daughter, an arch-papist, signifying his 

 dislike thereof.' It appears therefore that the widowed 

 mother secured no better terms." 



Lawrence came of age in 1655, in which year he 

 granted a lease of Cunscough Hall to John Tatlock. 

 He married, about the beginning of 1658, Anne, 

 daughter of Edward Scarisbrick, but she died within 

 six years, leaving two daughters, Margaret and 

 Katherine. In 1 664 he settled his estates on his elder 

 daughter and her heirs, with remainder to the younger 

 daughter and her heirs, and further remainders ; 

 gave the children into the guardianship of his mother, 

 and for himself sought admission into the Society of 

 Jesus. He made his profession in 1666, and was 

 ordained priest, but there is little further record of 

 his career,'* and his only connexion with Lydiate was 

 his settling a messuage in the place upon his younger 

 daughter Katherine in 1673 ; she afterwards became 



i Duchy of Lane. Inq. 



25- 



5 The settlement of the estates he 

 nade provided that in case of failure of 



are interesting ; they begin with * one 

 tree framed for a milne post, and one top 



