A HISTORY OF LANCASHIRE 



and Tov neley was used for the surname of its lords. 

 In the year before a jurj- had found that Gilbert de 

 Legh might without loss to the king grant to feoffees 

 the fourth part of the bailiwick of Blackburn wapen- 

 take, held of the king in chief; he held also of the 

 Duke of Lancaster the manor of Hapton, two-thirds 

 of the manor of Towneley and the manors of Cliviger 

 and Birtwide. His share of Towneley was held by 

 knight's service and a rent of 6d. ; it was worth £ I o 

 a year clear." Gilbert died before his wife Alice, 

 who dying in 1388 was found to have held his estate ; 

 there being no issue of the marriage, the heir was 

 John son and heir of Richard de Towneley, brother 

 of Gilbert, then thirty-eight years of age." This 

 Richard had died in 1379 holding a fourth part of 

 the bailiwick of Blackburnshire." John son and heir 

 of Richard de Towneley had the usual protection in 

 1386 on engaging to go to Calais on the king's 

 business, but he forfeited it by staying in Kent 

 attending to his own affairs." In 1397 the feoifees 

 regranted to John de Towneley his manors of 

 Towneley and Cliviger," and two years later he died 

 in possession of them. He had married Isabel or 

 Elizabeth daughter and heir of William de Rixton, 

 and left a son Richard, aged twelve, as heir to 

 Towneley and the other manors and lands." 



Richard Towneley made a feoffment of his paternal 

 lands in i.fio," and accompanied Henry V in his 

 expedition to France in 141 5, taking part at Agin- 

 court." He and the Abbot of Whallcy in 14.46 held 

 the tenth part of a knight's fee in Towneley, Cold- 

 coats and Snodsworth, 5/. being due from each in 

 respect of relief.®" Richard died in 1454 holding 



the manor of Towneley of the king as of his duchy 

 of Lancaster by knight's service and a rent of 1 2/. ()J. ; 

 holding also two parts of the bailiwick of Blackburn- 

 shire and various manors and lands in the hundred. 

 His son John was over forty )ear8 of age." John 

 Towneley had in 141 8 been contracted to marry 

 Isabel daughter of Nicholas Boteler of Rawcliffe, but 

 this marriage having been declared null on the ground 

 of pre-contract,^ he in 1445 married Elizabeth 

 daughter of Richard Shirebume." Soon after suc- 

 ceeding he made a settlement of his manors and 

 lands, including some at Flint in North Wales." In 

 1456 he obtained the bishop's licence for a domestic 

 chapel at Towneley, Cliviger and Birtwisle." He 

 was living in 1472 when his son Richard was con- 

 tracted to marry Joan sister of Christopher South- 

 worth.** He died soon afterwards, for in 1474 

 Richard Towneley granted Willisill in Hapton and 

 Nutshaw in Birtwisle to his brothers Lawrence and 

 Nicholas." 



Richard Towneley took part in the Scottish ex- 

 pedition of 1482, and was in Hutton Field made a 

 knight by Lord Stanley on 24 July.'* He died in 

 the following September holding Towneley by 

 knight's ser\ice and many other manors, &c. His 

 heir was his son John, only nine ye.-irs old, but already 

 married to Isabel daughter of Sir Charles Pilkington."" 

 This John took part in the expedition into Scotland 

 in 1497, and was there made a knight." In the 

 following year he was summoned to show cause for 

 his claim to have free chase in Blackburnshire, as 

 appurtenant to his manor of Towneley." He did 

 not prove his age till i 500." Some of his charters 



Richard de Towneley and Ellen his 

 wife in I 345 claimed land by inheritance 

 against William son of Ralph de Stirz- 

 acre ; Assize R. 1435, m. 34. See also 

 m. 43d., 15 ; ibid. 1444, m. yd. In 

 1 346 John son of John de Catterall 

 granted to Richard de Towneley the third 

 part of the manor of Towneley, with lands 

 in Hur5twood, &c. ; C 8, 13, C123. In 

 1349 Richard de Towneley released his 

 lands in Cliviger to Gilbert de Legh and 

 Alice his wife for life ; ibid. T 73, 108—9. 



William de Scargill and Richard de 

 ToNvneley were in 1353 appointed re- 

 ceivers for Henry Duke of Lancaster ; 

 ibid. L 149. Richard was knight of the 

 shire in 1361 and 1 3 7 1 ; Pink and Beaven, 

 Pari, Repre. of Lanes. 33, 36. He was 

 sherifiFin 1375-7 ; P.R.O. Lht, 7;. 



'i" Inq. p.m. 4 Ric. II, no. S7. The 

 feoffment was for the use of Gilbert and 

 Alice his wife. 



'^ Inq. p.m. II Ric II, no. 33. Alice 

 also held lands in Briercliffe of Lawrence 

 de Legh. 



Gilbert de Legh and Alice his wife had 

 made provision for a chantry in Burnley 

 Church in 1372 ; Add. MS. 32104, 

 no. 818—33. 



** Lanes, Inq, p,ni, (Chet. Soc), i, 153. 

 John son and heir of Richard de Towneley 

 in 1379 made a feoffment of all his lands 

 in Bumlev, &c. ; C 8, 13, T 77. John 

 son of William de Hargreaves in 13S7 

 released to John de Towneley all claim to 

 the lands which Richard de Towneley 

 (father of John) had had from grantor's 

 father ; ibid. H 2^3. 



" Cal. Fat, 11S5-9, p. 157. 



*« Towneley MS. C 8, 1 3, R 60 ; John's 

 wife Elizabeth is named. 



'• Lanes. Inq, f,m, (Chet. Soc), i, 157, 



158. The two parts of the bailiwick 

 of Blackburnshire with the manors of 

 Towneley and Cliviger were stated to be 

 held of the king in socage, an annual rent 

 of £^ I2J. 8^J. being paid. 



The wardship of the heir was in 1399 

 granted to Thomas Fleming, but in 

 1402 to William de Rigmaiden, who had 

 married Elizabeth widow of John de 

 Towneley ; Dtp. Keeper^ Rep, xl, App. 

 528, 531. She had died in 1401 ; Lanes. 

 Inq. p.m. (Chet. Soc), i, 1 60. 



It appears that Richard was born at 

 Stydd in 1387 and baptized at Ribchestcr ; 

 ibid. 158. A complaint about waste in 

 the manor of Towneley, by its custodian 

 Roger Banastre, was made in 1407 ; ibid. 

 84. 



'8 Towneley MS. C 8, 1 3, T 72. 



'■' Nicolas, Agincourt (1827), 56, 95 ; 

 he took only two footmen with him. 

 Another document appears to assign to 

 him three archers ; HarL MS. 21 12, fol. 

 177/212*. 



Richard Towneley had been imprisoned 

 in 141 1 for some offence ; Dep. Keeper's 

 Rep. xxziii, App. 10. Returning from 

 France he was a juror in 1425 and in 

 1433 was one of the custodians of the 

 manor of Read ; Lanes. Inq. p.m. (Chet. 

 Soc), ii, 9, 39. 



w Duchy of Lane. Knights' Fees, 

 bdle. 2, no. 20. Richard said he had 

 been in ward to the Duke of Lancaster 

 for nine years, so that no relief was due 

 from him. 



p.m. (Chet. Soc), ii. 



Inq 



a Lanes. 

 58-61. 



«2 Ibid, ii, 25. 



" Ibid, ii, 60. 

 is among the 

 Lib. 



The original indenture 

 Raines D. in the Chet. 



"0 8, 13, T74, 141. The date is 

 1456 ; his sons Richard, Lawrence, Nicho- 

 las, Henry and Bernard arc named in the 

 remainders. In 1462 his wife was named 

 Alice ; ibid. T 151. 



"' Lich. Epis. Reg. xi, fol. 72. The 

 licence was to continue during the bishop's 

 good pleasure. 



«» Dods. MSS. liii, foL 24*. A dispen- 

 sation for the marriage was granted in 

 1474 ; Lich. Epis. Reg. xii, foL 156. 



I" C8, 13, T83. 



<* Metcalfe, Bk. of Kis. 7. 



" Lanes. Inq. p.m. (Chet. Soc), ii, 

 1 1 0-12. In 148 1 the custody of the 

 manors of Richard Towneley and the 

 marriage of his son John had been granted 

 to Sir Charles Pilkington ; Towneley MS. 

 RR, no. 1475. Later in the same year 

 feoffees regranted to Richard Towneley 

 various lands in Great Marsden, &c., with 

 remainder to John Towneley ; C 8, 13, 

 T84. 



Dame Jonet, widow of Sir Richard, in 

 1484 paid various sums to Lavn"ence and 

 Nicholas Towneley, who paid £z to 

 Robert Boyes, priest, to James Wood 1 61. 

 * for costs made at the mining of the said 

 Richard Tov.neley,' i 31. ^d. to ' the nurse 

 that kcepeth the children of the said 

 Dame Jonet and for their clothing ' ; ibid. 

 T 148. The widow was living in 1495 ; 

 ibid. T 152. 



™ Metcalfe, op. cit. 31. 



'' Pah of Lai.c Writs. 



'' Duchy of Lane. Inq. p.m. iii, no. 53. 

 It was stated that Sir John was twenty- 

 six rn 31 July 1499, '"' birthdjy being 

 written in a missal in Burnley Church, 

 where he was baptized. Richard Shire- 

 burne and Lawrence Towneley were god. 

 fathers. 



458 



