By Stan Rawdon
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RAWDON.Am~S Ar\TD CrIEST. Arms Argent a fess between three pheons sable Crest - On a mural coronet argent a pheon sable with a laurel branch issuant thereout Motto - NEC IN ARIDODEFIT. proper. -1 - THE RAWOONS The surname Rawdon is a locative name frcxn the place Ra\'odonsltuated north of Leeds. My interest started in 1966 when driving north of Leeds I came across a signpost to Rawdon -little did I realise the fascinating story connected with the name. The following is an attempt to set out information from many sources into one manuscript. There is evidence of a British settlement and the name is ot Celtic origin and can be defined as Raw -a wild goat, Don -on a hill. The area around Ra~on formed part of the srrall British kingdom of Elmet which was occup.ied by the Saxons in A.D. 616. The Domesday Book l iU~b) says' Iibert de Lacey has 1t, and 1t 1S waste' The area was surveyed as Terra Regis -kings' land -being held in several m3.nors by Saxons. The m3.nor of Ra\\Uon was granted by William I to Paulynus in gratitude for services rendered by his band of archers at the Battle of Hastings. weaver in his funereal monuments gives the following:- 'I, William, King, the third year of my reign give to the Paulyn Roydon, Hope, and Hopetown etc etc.' 'lne ear~y Kawaons were Dur~ea a~ K1rKs~a~~ AODeY, ~WOm~les south ot Ra~on, they were benefactors of the Abbey and an early record reads as follows:- Grant by Michael de Roudoune during the reign of Edward I 'To God, St Mary and the m:)nks of Kirkstall Abbey of all the land at a place called Eslairode', among the witnesses is Henry, son of Walter de Roudoune. '.Lne ancJ.en't: resJ.aence or roe 1{a~ons was to roe east at the present parish church now known as Rawdon Old Hall. It passed out their owner- ship via Anne daughter of Michael. Anne rrarried Stephen paslewe who is said to have committed suicide .in the house, .it then passed to the aglethorpe f~ily who sold it in 1630 to the Layton's, whose descendants sold it to a Mr flTn1Ott. ~ 2 The present Rawdon low Hall was built by George Ra~on in the 17th century and placed the initials G.R./A. over the main porch (George and his wife Ann). The house was still in the possession of the Hastings family in 1914. Later in '_667 when Francj_s, who was a protector of the early non- conformists, lived at the hall, the Rev. Oliver Haywood preached there. The Rev. Samuel Marsden who was educated by the Rev. Stones, vicar at Rawdon in 1788, became sen.lor chaplain in Sydney, N.S.W. and was the first missionary to New Zealand in 1814. Francis Rawdon had the initials F.R./D. placed over a narrow doorway in the south front of the Hall. The early pedigree of the Rawdon family was recorded by Thoresby in 1702 as related to him by priscilla Rawdon who was then living at Rawdon Low Hall aged over 81 years:- Son and heir of Paul ynus was Thor de Roud.on, whose son, Serlo t lived in the tUne of King Stephen. He was father to Adam who lived in the reign of King Richard I. The aforesaid are all mentioned in charters belonging to Kirkstall Abbey. Then follows ~- Michael De Raudon during the reign of Henry III Simon De Ra~en """ "Henry III r-Bthaeus Ra~en """ "Edward I Ricardus de Ra~en """" Edward I Johannes de Ra~en """" Edward II & III Michael de Ra~en """ " Edward III who ma.rried Mary Franke of Alwoodley Co York Michael de Ra~en Edward III who ma.rried Ellenor Scott of Scott Hall, Leeds Thanas Ra~en of Ra~en Richard II who ma.rried Al ice, daugher of Sir Simon Ward of Guiseley, Co York Johannes Rawden Richard II the brother of Thanas vlho marrj_ed Alvia Folefait Johannes Ra~en Edward IV & Henry VI who married Arth ington daughter of Arthington 3 - and then John Ra~on of Ra~on in the parish of Guiseley Co York during the reign of Henry VII and VIII married the daughter of Thcxnas Fenton of Crake, Co York. In the book Rov,uon of Ro~on publ ished in Dublin 1870 it states that John married the daughter of Robert Thornton of Denby. I cannot say which is correct but from the marriage he had two sons, John and Ralph. This is where the pedigree splits, the elder branch attaining titles in the peerage of England, Scotland and Ireland, the younger gaining wealth and fortune by trade. I shall firstly follow the elder branch. John, the elder son who died in 1516 renained at Rawdon living at Rawdon Hall, he married the daughter of Thomas Bradford of Stainley. His son, Michael, who died 9 August 1588 married daughter of Richard Thornton, of Tyersal, Co York. Mary, their daughter, married Richard Rookes of Rodes Hall. Michael had a son, George, and a daughter, Anne, who married Stephen paslawe, joint Lord of the manor of Rawdon. George, buried at Guiseley 15 May 1624, who built the present Rawdon Low Hall, rrarr.ied his first wife Anne Beckwith of the Shaws, Co York. His second wife was Jane Stanhope, rrarried at Bradford 15 June 1602. She died 28 March 1648, buried at Guise1ey. The arms of Rawdon, Fo11ifoot, Aldborough and Beckwith were depicted in a window of the north transept - of Guise1ey church but now in 1988 has been replaced by a memorial window to the second ~r1d war. By Anne he had three sons, Frances, Toby and Richard, and by Jane, Walter baptised 7.4.1605, killed in Germany 30 years war, 1634 or before; Joseph (a Spanish merchant in London) baptised Guiseley 22.3.1.1607 rrarried Rose wright, had t~ daughters Mary and Anne; Dorothy; Anne baptised 3.4.1603 Guiseley, died 26.8.1650 unmarried, ~ buried Guiseley; and Samuel. The Guiseley records show that Toby was r baptised 28 May 1592, he died unmarried. Walter was baptised in 1605 and Samuel 8 June 1589, and Joseph 22 November 1607. Richard married Isabella, daughter of John Bilton of Brameham co York on 17 October 1609, I sons Richard, a London grocer, Walter, a London goldsmith, and daughter Veritas baptised Guiseley 31.J_..1613. Frances lived at Rawdon Low Hall and died aged 86 years on 25 April 1668, buried at Guise1ey. He married Dorothy Aldborough in 1603, she died in 1660 and was also buried at Guiseley. I r -4 The children of this marriage were -George, Anne, Elizabeth, Mary, Mercy, baptised Guiseley 23.5.1619, and Priscilla. Thoresby notes in his diary for 26 September 1702 that he walked by Kirkstall Abbey to the new laithes where he stayed awhile to view the stately ruins, then by the forge pleasantly along the banks of the river to visit MadamePriscilla Rawdon, sister of the famous Sir George Rawdon. The old lady then above 81 years, gave him a full account of her brother's fight with the rebels (Irish) in 1641, and much information abount the Rawdon family. She gave him a portrait of her brother and , . a case for a pair of spectacles in silver with silk flowers. Priscilla died in 1707 -she was the last of the family to live at Rawdon. In the book 'Life of M3.rnladuke Rawdon of York' Camden Society 1863, it says 'during his stay in England M3.rmaduke visited Rawdon Hall and ancient house where he found his kinsman Frances aged about 80 years. Anne Rawdon, baptised at Calverley 9.1.1606, married John Stanhope of Horsforth, Elizabeth married Philip Tandy, vicar of Glanavy, Mary married John Dunbar. Mary was baptised at Guiseley on 23 May 1619 and Priscilla also at Guise1ey on 6 January 1622. Both died unmarried. 5 GEORGERAWDON, son of Frances, was born at Rawdon in 1604, created a baronet 20 May 1665, and died August 1683/4. As a young man he was at the court of King James I, becoming private secretary to Lord Conway who had extensive estates in Ireland. Lord Oonway being one of the IMny absentee land owners \AK)uldhave needed a trust\AK)rthy person to act as his agent. George became his a.gent and lived at Brookhil.l a few miles east of Lisburn. Life in Ireland was very unsettled and troops were required to keep order. George was first a sergeant, then a captain in command of a troop of horse. It was her with 200 men, repulsed Sir Ph.ilem O'Neil and 2000 Irishmen in the rebellion of 1641 at Lisburn where they had IMssacred 40,000 Protestants. In a petition from Colonel Edward Conway to the committee for the affairs of Ireland at Derby House, dated 1646, states that 7,000 men commanded by Sir Phelomy 0' Neil were totally defeated at Lisburn November 1641. George was one of the Horns against the Kirk in Ulster (Daniels vision of the beast with horns that rrade war against the people of God). In 1639 he was required to administer the I black I oath by King Charles I to all Scots in Ulster. A letter fran Colonel George r-bnk in Exeter to Major George Rawdon at Lisburn dated 16 December 1649 I That you suffer no Scots ministers to preach in the country again I .