A HISTORY OF LANCASHIRE 



Leyl.ind Hall afterwarJi descended to another brother, 

 Robert, a priest,' who endeavoured to secure it to the 

 use ofthe secular clergy. But in 1686 this purpose was 

 made manifcit on trial, and 

 the Hall was declared forfeit, 

 ai devoted to 'superstitious 

 use;,' and was after the Re- 

 volution given to the vicar of 

 Leyland to increase his en- 

 dowment.' 



Leyland Old Hall, the 

 former residence of the Char- 

 nocks, and sometimes called 

 Charnock Hall, is now a farm- 

 house and coniiati of two 

 wings at right angles, respec- 

 tively we:t and south, with a 

 porch in the inner angle. 

 It is situated betv.een the 

 railway station and the 



church, facing east, and is architecturally almost 

 without interest, being a small two-storied brick 

 building with stone quoins and with half-timber 

 work in one of the gablc^ and in the north side 



Charnock of Ley- 

 l.nnd. Argent an a heni 

 sAile ihne cnyiUti of the 

 feid, a mullet of the 

 jc.'-; ';./ in r.r.ist^r chief for 

 J iT^.erce. 



of the south wing. The brickwork is now either white- 

 washed or covered with rough-cast, and a stone over the 

 porch with the arms of Charnock, and the initials and 

 date, R.c. 1660, is almost illegible. The south side 

 retains a five-light mullioncd window u ith diamond 

 quarries on the upper floor and traces of a six-light 

 window below ; there are also several other mullioned 

 \sindows now built up, but most of the windows are 

 modern. The roofs are covered with stone slate;, 

 except at the back where blue ones are used. The 

 building was restored in 1884, when several 'hiding 

 places ' were reported to have been discovered.' 



The Radcliftes and Bartons of Smithills, perhaps 

 as heir; of the Walton family, long held an estate in 

 the township.' This m.iy have been the Leyland 

 Hall which in 1688 was part of the lands of Thomas 

 Crook of Abram. From his heirs it was purchased 

 by Barton Shuttleworth, and sold to the Rev. Thomas 

 Baldwin, vicar of Le\'land, by Edmund Shuttleworth 

 about 1750.* 



Other families occur in pleadings and inqui- 

 sitions as holding land in the township, among 

 them being Shireburne of Stonyhurst," Bana-tre,' 

 Cla)-ton,» Knoll,' Ayscough,'" Hesketh," Moly- 



tant, Lilt 'since the beginning of these 

 times he was a recusj;u and never went 

 to church.* Other witncs<ics t^a'ni they had 

 Bccn him at mass in Loyland * about five 

 or six years ago.* 



Major James I"!-y, in the service of the 

 P3rliame.it, vho luJ purchased lands from 

 Charnock and wanted their discharge from 

 sequestration, bore v, .tness that *Charnock, 

 did usually frequent tlie worship of God 

 la a Protestant church, and exclaimed 

 bitterly against tlie Papists and their re- 

 ligion, and had done good sen'ice against 

 the Irish rebels, as appeared from a testi- 

 monial under the hand and seal of the 

 Marquis of Ormond, dated i 2 July i 647.* 

 The deeds concerning the sale by Thomas 

 Charnock to James Jolly are in Harl. MS. 

 2D4I, fol. I o'>, &c. Robert the brother 

 of Tnomas is named as 'liccrascJ.' 



A Captain Thomas Charnock, a Royalist, 

 is said to have been killed in the war \ 

 Castlemain, Cj:.'i. .Ip'.lj^y (tjuoted by 

 Ch.ili.mcr;. 



' * He wj-; sent to the English College, 

 I.:^b^n, and after his ordination came on 

 the mission to his native county in 1640. 

 For thirty years, during a time nf extreme 

 peril from the civil con\ ulsion which Issued 

 in the great Civil W.ir, he served the 

 Church in Lancashire, under his maternal 

 surname of Manley. He held the respon- 

 sible office of Vicar-General In the Lanca- 

 shire District, and resided at Blacklache 

 or Old Hall, Leyland. . . . He died 2 Feb. 

 1670-1' ; Gillow, op. cit. i, 47". 



•' Accounts from papers in the possession 

 of the vicars of Leyland may be seen in 

 Le\Ui.d Reg, (Rec. Soc, Lanes, and Ches.}, 

 2i'i-i2, and in Piccope MSS. (Chet. 

 Lib.), xiv, p. 45 ; see also Exch. Dep. (Rec, 

 Soc. Lanes, and Ches.}, 69, -c \ Put, 

 2 Will, and Mary, pt. v;, no. 18. 



Robert Charnock conveyed his estate, 

 on a secret trust, to Grace Bold, a convert 

 ( 1644) and servant to Lady Frances Tyl- 

 desley of Morley;, who lived at Leyland 

 Hall as a boarder. It had been intended 

 1-1 build a chapel, but * in case the Catholic 

 religion should come again to be established 

 in England the said Hall, &c., should go 

 to Jesus chapel in Leyland Church to be 

 d.sposcd of as the bi>hop should thir.k fit.' 



The relatives of Grace Bold (d. 16S5) 

 disregarded the secret trust, and treated 

 the estate as their own properly, where- 

 upon the defrauded Catholics discovered 

 the matter to the government. 



■• * During the improvements great 

 interest has been di'^playcd in the exami- 

 n.itlon of a recess used as a sanctuary by 

 the priest (and possessor), Father Robert 

 Charnock, and in exploring four lilding 

 places. Two of these are in the roof and 

 a third adjoins the chimney. The fourtli 

 is a passage between the first and gri und 

 floors on the west side ' j Preston Cuait/.-j'/^ 

 April 5, 1884., quoted in I.juci. a-ui Clus. 

 Ar.rij. A';/fr, ii, I I. 



* Some part of the Walton estate in 

 Leyland appears to have gone to the 

 Northlegh family ; Fir.dl Cone, ii, 31,43 ; 

 sec also A'^izc R. 427, m. 3d. It de- 

 scended to Radcliffc of Smithills ; Lar.c. 

 In^.p.n:, (Chet. Soc), II, 35 (1415). The 

 tenure was described as by knights' service. 



'•' Abstract of title in possession of W. 

 Farrer. 



^^ The lists of Duchy tenants in 1398 

 and Hospitallers' tenants in 1 540 will 

 provide earlier or add tional references. 



Richard Shireburne in 1441 held a 

 messuage, &c., of the king as Duke of 

 Lancaster ; Lanes. Rec. Inq. p.m. no, 30, 

 31. In 1492 and later the Shireburne 

 tenement was held by a rent of 6*/. ; 

 Duchy of Lane. Inq. p.m. iii, no. 93 ; iv, 

 no. 46. Part was sold to Clayton of Crook, 

 but the later inquisitions show that the 

 Shireburnes retained some. 



' Ralph Banastre died in 1518 holding 

 a messuage, &c., in Leyland of the king 

 as of his duchy in socage by the rent of 6j. 

 Francis Banastre, his son and heir, was 

 about eleven years of age ; Duchy of Lane. 

 Inq. p.m. ■\, no. 29. Francis has been 

 named before among the heirs of James 

 Anderton of Worden. He and his wife 

 Elizabeth in 1537 sold their lands to 

 John Clayton ; Pal. of Lane. Feet of F. 

 bdle. 1 1, m. 64. 



^ Thomas Clayton purchased land from 

 Sir Richard Shireburne in 1569; Pal. of 

 Lane. Feet of F. bdle. 31, m. 130. 



Peter Clayton, clerk, in 1585 purchased 

 two messuages and lands from William 



16 



Goslin, Anne his wife, J.ane Forahaw, 

 Margaret Forshaw, Williani Blacklaclie 

 and Margaret his wife, and JoI)n Sumner 

 alias Forshaw ; ibid. bdle. 47, m. 1.^4. 



Williani Clayton of Creole in 1632 

 held a messuage in Leyland of William 

 Farington as of his manor of Leyland in 

 socage ; Ducliy of Lane. Inq. p.m. xxviii, 

 no. 7,j. See also Miic. (Rec. Soc. Lanes, 

 and Ches.), i, 170. William Clayton had 

 compounded on refusing knighthood in 

 l6jl ; ibid. 214. 



** Williamson of Adam del Knoll called 

 Adam del Knoll to warrant him in 1337; 

 De Banco R. 3 1 1, m. 42 d. 



Ednivind Knoll died in 1441 holding 

 a messuage and land of the king as duke 

 as of his moiety of the manor of Leyland, 

 by a rent of 1 zd. His heir was his niece 

 Elizabeth, vrife of John Coler of Cuerden, 

 and daughter of Oliver, brother of Edmund 

 Knoll ; Townelcy MS. DD, no. 1493. 



'" Joan widow of Adam son of John 

 de Ayscough (Aykescough) unsuccessfully 

 sued Adam son of John de Ulbas for 

 dower in 1292 ; Assize R. 408, m. 57 d. 



John son of William de Ayscough in 

 1305 claimed a messuage anJ land in 

 Leyland by Euxton against his brother 

 Richard, Robert de Leyland and Margery 

 his wife, &c. The defence was that 

 Margery liad a third part as dower by 

 assignment of Master Adam de Walton, 

 chief lord of the fee ; Assize R. 420, 

 m. 9d. In 1308-9 Richard son of 

 William Ward claimed land against John 

 son of William de Ayscough, alleging 

 that a certain William son of Ughtred 

 had granted it to William son of Richard 

 de Ayscough and Alice his wife, and that 

 it had descended to William Ward, son of 

 the said William and Alice, and then to 

 the plaintiff as son and heir ; De Banco 

 R. 173, m. 425 d.; 179, m. 210 d. See 

 also ibid. 18:;, m. 147 d. 



John Ayicough died in 1636 holding 

 a mesiuage, &c., of William Farington ; 

 his heir was a son Thomas, seven yea:j 

 of age ; Towneley MS. C 8, 1 3 (Chet. 

 Lib.), 8. A settlement is recited in the 

 inquisition. 



" Thomas Hesketh of RufTord died in 

 1523 holding a little land in LeylanJ, 



