Er ist verheiratet mit Audrey Poyntz.
Sie haben geheiratet
Kind(er):
chief justice of North Wales
Adam Littleton is currently (April 2003) a bit of a mystery man. I have discovered that the only source I possess for his ancestry is that of my grandfather's notes and he was of the classical genealogist breed who gave no sources. Let's review what I have:
Adam was definitely a baronet, the first thereof. His three sons William, Thomas and Edward, the second being second baronet, went to Oxford and are recorded as Adam's sons in Foster's Alumni Oxonienses.
Burke in his Extinct Baronets has one of his priceless phrases that Adam was descended of the marriage of Anne Botreaux and a Thomas Lyttleton. There are several errors in this article of Burkes, not least being that Anne is recorded as of Botreaux castle in Cornwall when the Visitations clearly record her as of Salford or Abbot's Salford in Warwickshire (I suspect my grandfather was following Burke for he too said Anne was of Botreaux Castle). But Burke does not even dare to suggest Adam's parentage.
My grandfather, with lots of rubbings out on the page concerned, recorded that Adam's parents were Thomas Littleton of Munslow and Frances dau. of Adam Lutley, and further that this Thomas was that son of John Littleton, parson of Munslow and Alice (surname unknown). I simply do not know where he got this from.
These ancestors of Adam's are to be found, individually, in various visitations. But the odd thing is that Adam himself is not to be found in the 1634 visitation, when he was definitely alive. Anyhow the Visitation records I have found are:
Shropshire of 1623, p. 344 of the Harleian edition of 1889: "Francesca uxor Thomae Litleton" was the daughter of "Adam Luttleey de Bromecroft in Com. Salop 2 fil" and "Elizabeth fil. Rob'ti Cresset de Upton Cresset in com. Salop" and loads of ancestors are given of Adam Lutteley.
Shropshire of 1623, p. 460 of the Harleian edition of 1889: For the Thornes, "Alicia vx Johannis Littelton militis" and she was the daughter of "Ricardus Thornes 2 fil" and a fairly long ancestry before that.
Worcester of 1569, p. 93 of the Harleian edition of 1888: For the Littletons of Franckley, there is "Thomas Lyttleton 3 sonne m. Anne da. & heire to John Botreux of Salford in com. Warwick" who had a son "John a prest".
Worcester of 1634, p. 64 of the Harleian edition of 1938: For the Littletons of Spetchley and Elmley, there is "Thomas Littleton of Stoke Milborough, co. Salop. Died s.p. Will pr. 1622. P.C.C." who is the son of "John Littleton of Munslow, co. Salop., Clerk, after of Spetchley. Died 30 Nov 1560. Will pr. 1562. P.C.C." and "Alice, dau of Richard Thornes of Shelvrock, co Salop." and which John L. is the son of "Thomas Littleton of Spetchley and Elmley Castle. Died in London. Will proved 1535. P.C.C." and "Anne, dau. and heir of John Botreaux of Abbot's Salford, co Wark."
So far, what can we make of all that? My immediate thought is that Adam might have been illegitimate, though it is tempting to see him named after a grandfather Adam Lutley.
However there are a few leads that need to be followed up. First is G E Cokayne's excellent Baronetage, published by Pollard in five volumes from 1900 - and where I have failed, so far, to photocopy the page for this Littleton baronetcy. Second there are the wills listed in the Worcester 1634 visitation, particularly that for Thomas whose will was proved in 1622. Third I wonder if Adam left a will, though the Civil War might have confused things then. And it would be interesting to know what the master copy, in the College of Arms, of the 1634 Worcester visitation says.
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May 2003:
Three positive results from the Society of Genealogists' Library:
1. Cokayne's Baronetage: Indeed has him and includes that his father was Thomas Littleton of Stoke Milburge, Salop and that his mother was Frances, dau. of Adam Lutley of Bronscroft Castle, Salop.
2. Victoria County History of Shropshire, Vol X, for Munslow, shows this sequence of lords of the manor Munslow:
John Littleton, rector, d. 1560
His son, Thomas Littleton, d. 1622
His son Sir Adam Littleton, d. 1647
His son Sir Thomas Littleton or Poyntz, d. 1681
His son Sir Thomas Littleton, Speaker from 1698-1700 who sold it to his cousin Sir Littleton Powys, d. 1732.
3. "The Littleton heritage" by Matthew M Wise, pub 1997 by Wentworth Printing Corporation, West Columbia, South Carolina which clearly shows the same sequence from John Littleton, rector of Munslow to Sir Adam Littleton.
I think the descent is adequately cast iron.
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May 2003: The next problem is what Adam did for a living. Powys family history says he was a lawyer. But I can find no evidence of this, not that I have looked very hard. He is not in the records of pupils at Oxford or Cambridge, though his three sons definitely went to Oxford; so I assume he did not go there. Further none of the better biographies say he was any form of lawyer.
What we do know is that he and his wife were not short of a bob or two. He owned the manor of Munsford, Shropshire and passed it on through his son and grandson (VCH for Shropshire), he also owned a residence at Stoke St Milborough, Shropshire and at the end of his life, or certainly by the end of his wife's life, they came into the Poyntz manor of Ockenden in Essex.
He was made a baronet in 1642, in the thick of the Civil War. Parliament refused to recognise any of these civil war honours and their recognition had to await the restoration in 1660. So presumably Adam was on the side of Charles I and was of the many who were rewarded or cajoled by honours; perhaps he bought the baronetcy with a large "loan" to the king?
I think he was just a country squire and not a lawyer at all, much as his various relations, and sons, were steeped in law.
One day I must look up Foster's lawyers records to see what might be there.
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ARMB @N138@
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