Henry Fitzroy. Born Blackmore. June 1519

To commemorate the five hundredth anniversary of the birth of Henry Fitzroy, the illegitimate son of King Henry VIII, in Blackmore a display has been mounted around the eight sides of the Font in the Priory Church of St Laurence telling his story and connection with the village.  The display will remain in place throughout the month following its 'unveiling' at the Blackmore Village Fayre over the Spring Bank Holiday weekend.  For those unable to see this in person, the eight panels are repeated below.

Henry Fitzroy

Born June 1519, Blackmore

Birth

Henry Fitzroy, the illegitimate son of King Henry VIII was born at Blackmore Priory in June 1519.  His mother, Bessie Blount, a lady in the retinue of Queen Catherine of Aragon, was one of the King’s mistresses.  “Without the birth of Henry Fitzroy, Bessie’s own affair would have probably gone unrecorded”.  When Bessie became visibly pregnant Thomas Wolsey discreetly dispatched her to Jericho House in Blackmore, the home of the prior Thomas Goodwyn.  “Bessie made her final appearance at court early in October 1518”.

Baptism

There is no surviving record of Henry Fitzroy’s baptism anywhere.  It is possible that the ceremony was held here at Blackmore around this Font.  Cardinal Wolsey was a godparent. He was absent from Court from 19 June to 29 June 1519.  Wolsey had been godparent for the boy’s half-sister Mary, the only surviving child born of Queen Catherine.   Could this font have been the place where the ceremony quietly took place?

Royal Visitor

Henry VIII is alleged to have been a frequent visitor to Jericho House where Bessie stayed after Fitzroy’s birth.  The King is said to have given orders not to be disturbed hence the expression used in Court, “He has gone to Jericho”.  The Priory was one of the King’s “Houses of Pleasure”.   (The present Jericho Priory was rebuilt c.1712.)   Bessie Blount may have later had a daughter by the King around 1520 at Blackmore.  She was married off to Gilbert Tailbois (or Tailboys), who hailed from a rich Lincolnshire family.  They may have married in April 1522 because “the king began to be conspicuously generous to Gilbert Tailboys”.

Henry Fitzroy Coat of Arms

Priory

Blackmore Priory was dissolved in 1527 because of its immoral goings-on.  In that year there were only four Canons in residence.   From “the records of the dissolution … it does appear that the prior was somewhat more worldly than he should have been”: its debts ran to one third of the annual income.   Perhaps the expenditure was higher than usual, sheltering a future King?  Cardinal Wolsey was granted the income from the dissolution.

Honours

Much admired and spoilt by Henry VIII, Henry Fitzroy was, by the age of six, created Duke of Richmond with the titles Earl of Nottingham and Duke of Somerset.   This placed Henry Fitzroy in an honoured position because the title held precedence over all other Dukes except potential legitimate sons of the King.   By doing so, Henry VIII had elevated his son’s position in society such that he would be a more eligible bachelor.   By the age of eight Henry Fitzroy was Admiral of England, Ireland and Normandy.

Early Marriage & Early Death

Thomas Howard was the 3^rd Duke of Norfolk, a very powerful and ambitious man in the court of Henry VIII.  He brought about the marriage to Henry VIII of his nieces, Anne Boleyn and Catherine Howard and for good measure his daughter Mary was married to Henry Fitzroy.  Henry Fitzroy died in 1536 of tuberculosis.  He was 17 years old.  His body was buried at Thetford Priory but later transferred to Framlingham Church in Suffolk, where it lies in an ornate tomb alongside other members of the Norfolk family.  Had he survived the course of English history could have changed and Fitzroy crowned Henry IX.

Mother and Son: Bessie Blount and Henry Fitzroy of Blackmore

Two books closely related to the history of Blackmore have recently been purchased for the Library of the Essex Society for Archaeology and History. ‘Bessie Blount, Mistress of Henry VIII’ (told in the title of the book by Elizabeth Norton), a lady in the retinue of Catherine of Aragon, was sent in confinement to Blackmore Priory in 1519 where in the neighbouring house she bore his child, Henry Fitzroy (told in ‘Bastard Prince. Henry VIII’s Lost Son’ by Beverley A. Murphy).

This note unravels the research and establishes whether Henry VIII may have really “gone to Jericho”.

According to Beverley Murphy, the King’s affair with Elizabeth may have been brief and began following the pregnancy of Catherine in April 1518. “It is a sad irony that Katherine’s happy condition was probably the impetus for her husband to seek solace in the arms of Elizabeth Blount” (Murphy, 27).  Elizabeth Norton disagrees, because as early as autumn 1514 Bessie had met the King: “without the birth of Henry Fitzroy, Bessie’s own affair would have probably gone unrecorded” (Norton, 119).  The birth date of Henry Fitzroy is unclear other than he was six years of age in June 1525.  About the time that Bessie was to become visibly pregnant Thomas Wolsey discreetly dispatched her to Jericho House in Blackmore, the home of the prior Thomas Goodwyn (Murphy, 30).  “Bessie made her final appearance at court early in October 1518” (Norton, 131). 

Wolsey was charged with taking an active interest in Henry’s illegitimate child: Blackmore was “sufficiently quiet not to rouse unwelcome gossip” (Norton, 133). Henry VIII is alleged to have been a frequent visitor to Jericho House and is said to have given orders not to be disturbed hence the expression used in Court, “He has gone to Jericho”. This has entered into local folklore fuelled by Philip Morant who used these words in his ‘History of Essex’ (1768) adding that the Priory was one of the King’s “Houses of Pleasure”.  Subsequently historians have suggested that Blackmore Priory was dissolved in 1527 because of its immoral goings-on. From “the records of the dissolution … it does appear that the prior was somewhat more worldly than he should have been” (Norton, 134): its debts ran to one third of the annual income.  But then if a future King lived there perhaps the debts were with some justification? 

Henry VIII may have visited Elizabeth at Blackmore, contrary to the view expressed by Murphy. Bessie certainly did not resume her duties following the birth of Fitzroy (Murphy, 31) and there is no record of the King staying overnight (Norton, 134). But this should not suggest the King had nothing further to do with Bessie.  Blackmore is relatively close to Newhall, Chelmsford, which was renamed Beaulieu in 1523, from where the King “set out to visit her. This is once again evidence that Bessie’s departure from court was not the end of the affair between her and the King” (Norton, 134). It is possible that she later had a daughter by the King around 1520 (Norton, 139) perhaps conceived in Blackmore (Norton, 151). Fitzroy’s biographer disagrees (Murphy, 32).  

The King was delighted with the news of the birth of a son and whilst in Essex that summer might have held a formal celebration at the manor of Havering-atte-Bower (Murphy, 31).  Cardinal Wolsey was named the child’s godparent, as he had been for his half-sister Mary, the only surviving child born of Queen Catherine, some three and a half years earlier. Although no christening records survive Wolsey’s absence from Court from 19 June to 29 June 1519 may have been due to his attendance at Fitzroy’s baptism probably at Blackmore.  Could the font have been the place where the ceremony quietly took place?

Bessie Blount was married off to Gilbert Tailbois (or Tailboys), who hailed from a rich Lincolnshire family.  This may not have happened as quickly as historians have suggested: the first record of marriage is recorded in June 1522 (Murphy, 33; Norton, 139). They may have married in April 1522 because “the king began to be conspicuously generous to Gilbert Tailboys” (Norton, 141).

Historians are again divided as to whether Bessie had any involvement in Fitzroy’s upbringing. Her biographer suggests “it seems probable that she would have retained custody of her son … perhaps playing a part in raising both Henry Fitzroy and Elizabeth Tailboys until her marriage in 1522” (Norton, 151).

Much admired and spoilt by Henry VIII, Henry Fitzroy was, by the age of six, created Duke of Richmond with the titles Earl of Nottingham and Duke of Somerset. This placed Henry Fitzroy in an honoured position because the title held precedence over all other Dukes except potential legitimate sons of the King. By doing so, Henry VIII had elevated his son’s position in society such that he would be a more eligible bachelor. By the age of eight Henry Fitzroy was Admiral of England, Ireland and Normandy but died in 1536, aged seventeen of tuberculosis. He was buried at Thetford Priory.  Had he survived the course of English history could have changed and Fitzroy crowned Henry IX.

Andrew Smith

Principal Sources:

Murphy, Beverley. A.. Bastard Prince. Henry VIII’s Lost Son (Sutton Publishing, 2001)

Norton, Elizabeth. Bessie Blount. Mistress to Henry VIII (Amberley, 2011)

Blackmore: Annals of England

Annales of England – John Stow

The following are extracts from a book published in 1605, the year of John Stow’s death.  The book is introduced as “A BRIEFE DESCRIPTION OF ENGLAND, SCOTLAND, WALES AND CORNWALL”, set out in chronological order and running to 1437 pages, abruptly ending in July 1605.

Page 966

“1536

Henry, Duke of Richmond

The 22 of July, Henry Duke of Richmond and Somerset, earle of Nottingham, a bastard son of K. Henry, borne at Blakamore in Essex, of the lady Tailboise, that time called Elizabeth Blunt, died at St James, and was buried at Thetford in Norfolke.”

Page 1112

“1563

Tempest at London.

The 8 of July, in the morning, hapned a great tempest of lightning & thunder, wherethrough a woman and three kine were slaine in the Covent garden neere to Charing crosse.  At the same time in Essex a man was torne to peeces as he was carrying hay, his barne being borne downe, and his hay brent: both stones and trees were rent in many places.”

Transcribed with acknowledgement to the Essex Society for Archaeology and History.

Blackmore: Henry Fitzroy

Blackmore Priory has a royal association because it was to the neighbouring house that a mistress of Henry VIII was sent when it was realised that she was carrying his child. Her name was Elizabeth Blount, a lady in the retinue of Catherine of Aragon. In 1519, she gave birth to a son, taking his father’s name Henry, and the surname for illegitimate offspring, Fitzroy. Henry VIII is said to have been a frequent visitor to the neighbouring Jericho House, so must have known the Priory well. He gave orders not to be disturbed hence the expression used in Court, “He has gone to Jericho”. The original house is no more. The stream that feeds the moat around Jericho House is nicknamed the Jordan.

The King was delighted with the news, which proved his ability to father a son. His previous attempts with Catherine had ended in miscarriage or infant death. Cardinal Wolsey was named the child’s godparent, as he had been for his half sister Mary, the only surviving child born of Queen Catherine, some three and a half years earlier. Elizabeth Blount was quickly married off and had no involvement in Fitzroy’s upbringing.

Henry Fitzroy was much admired and spoilt by his father. At the age of six, when it was considered that a child entered adulthood, and the likelihood of death greatly diminished, Henry Fitzroy was created Duke of Richmond with the titles Earl of Nottingham and Duke of Somerset. This placed Henry Fitzroy in an honoured position because the title held precedence over all other Dukes except potential legitimate sons of the King. By doing so Henry VIII, had elevated his son’s position in society such that he would be a more eligible bachelor. His stepfather, Gilbert Taillebois (or Talboys), was knighted. By the age of eight Henry Fitzroy was Admiral of England, Ireland and Normandy. At 14 he married Mary Howard, daughter of Thomas, Duke of Norfolk. On 23rd July 1536 he died of tuberculosis. He was seventeen. It was said that he was poisoned on the orders of Anne Boleyn, but he witnessed her execution in London just weeks beforehand. Henry was distraught and, following an offer from Thomas, Duke of Norfolk, accepted an offer to have his son discreetly buried at Thetford with other family members. It was an event for which Thomas was not thanked when the King changed his mind. Following the Dissolution of Thetford Priory in 1540, Fitzroy’s final resting place became St Michael’s Church in the shadow of Framlingham Castle in Suffolk.

For more on Henry Fitzroy go to: http://tudorhistory.suite101.com/article.cfm/henry_fitzroy

Blackmore: Jericho Priory

Many visitors to the church are intrigued by the house behind the wall known as Jericho Priory. Whilst some know that this was the birthplace of Henry Fitzroy (1519 – 1536), King Henry VIII’s bastard son, others are then disappointed to learn that the building subsequently was reconstructed. Revd. Philip Morant, one of Essex’s earliest historians in print (1768) suggested that, “This is reported to have been one of K. Henry the Eighths Houses of Pleasure; and disguised by the name of Jericho. So that when this lascivious Prince had a mind to be lost in the embraces of his courtesans, the cant word among his courtiers, was, that He was gone to Jericho. Here was born his natural son, by Elizabeth Tailbois, daughter of Sir John Blount” [Morant. p57]. It is highly unlikely that Henry Fitzroy was conceived in Blackmore, as some locals would like to claim. What is more probable was that Elizabeth Blount, later married to Gilbert Tailbois, was sent for a period of confinement to Blackmore Priory when clearly seen in Court she was with child. Blackmore Priory in 1518 was a small, quiet, Augustinian Priory which nine years later was suppressed by Wolsey having only four Canons in residence. The Nave of the former Priory still exists as the Nave of the Church. The remainder was pulled down by the Smyth family around 1540 – 1543 after acquisition of the site. The footprint of the Priory foundations is now in the garden of the private house, referred to as ‘Jerico’ in the will of John Smith, dated 1543. The family built Smyth Hall, to the south of Wenlocks Lane, and were present in Blackmore for five generations until 1721. Smyth Hall was also known as Blackmore Manor. Morant says that the site of the Priory was sold by Thomas Smyth about 1714 to a ship builder, Jacob Acworth. William Holman (1719), from whose manuscript work Morant drew material, wrote, “The manor of the priory of Blackmore lyes by the Church and be called Jericho most of it is pulled down & new built under the foundations … they dug up bones & found a coffin of lead about a yard away full of … bones. Jacob Ackworth of London Kgt a Shipwright bought the Estate of Mr Smith about 7 years ago” [ERO T/P 195/9 #20 f10]. Holman adds that Ackworth was “knighted at Portsmouth August 30 1722 by Kg George [IV]”. Down the years the house has had various names: Manor of the Priory of Blackmore (or Blakemore), Jericho Priory, Jericho and, Blackmore House. Architectural historian, Nikolaus Pevsner in the first edition of ‘Buildings of England – Essex’ (1954) referred to the building as Blackmore House. In the latest edition, updated by James Bettley (2007), it is referred to as Jericho Priory, giving it a date of c1715-20, perhaps a little later, and adding to Pevsner’s commentary, “On the garden front deep plaster coving fills the recess between the tower arches” [Bettley/Pevsner. p142]. Pevsner though thought the building akin to the mid-sixteenth rather than the early eighteenth century, giving Syon House near London and Ince Castle in Cornwall as examples. David Coller in ‘The People’s History of Essex’ (1861) adds that the house subsequently underwent “many changes, improvements and enlargements, to adapt it to modern requirements. Sir Jacob Ackworth, who purchased it, at the beginning of the last [eighteenth] century … made many additions to it; and in the course of the works a small lead coffin, about a yard in length, and filled with bones was exhumed. Other memorials of the past have occasionally been turned up on this spot; but, save for the church near, not a stone or other fragment of the Priory now remains. Even the foundations have gone. We recollect some forty years ago [c1821] observing a stone which appeared to have been taken from the old ruins, upon which an inscription was still half legible, used as a door-step for a house in the neighbourhood. The shrubberies and lawns of Blackmore House have long since extended, and flower-beds have been planted, and kitchen gardens flourish in luxuriance over the very spots where the friars feasted and monks prayed” [Coller. p221]. The stream that feeds the moat around Jericho House is nicknamed the Jordan. The proximity of the garden to the church appears to have been a problem. In 1817, the Archdeacon of Essex made a Visitation to inspect the church building. A catalogue of failure is recorded [ERO. D/AE/V36. Vol I. f95]: Remove the Earth and Rubbish from the Church and Chancel where necessary as much as may. The Tiling is getting very indifferent and must from time to time be repaired and at such times new Lathed. Weather boarding and shingling wants painting. Shingling wants repair. Underpinning of Tower wants repair. West end Wall of Tower wants a whole colour. Remove the Ivy from the South wall. Grub up the Fig and other Trees on South side and stop the Eaves. Same side window frames so[uth] side want repair and paint. Fruit Trees East End of Chancel must be taken down and the Wall repaired and well secured. NE Buttress wants repair and a Pipe placed to take off the Water. Remove the Gutters from eaves on South side unless the drain is properly attended and kept clean by Mr Preston. Solution of Vitriol. Vestry must be repaired with White Brick. Owing to the general bad state and conditions of the Church the Archdeacon did not make any Order but deferred doing so until he had considered the same more fully. The margin note states: The Chancel pavement of this Church as green as a Pasture Field and the Church the most cold wet and comfortless of any in the Archdeaconry there being only two loop hole windows on south. Earlier (1766), Revd Thomas Smith described Blackmore as “a small village con[sis]ts about 50 families”, having “about 80 houses” in 1790 and “about 100 families – about 500 souls” by 1810, with “three families of note, Mr Crickett, Mr Waller of Fingrith & Mr Fearths of Jericho House” [Guildhall Manuscripts ms9558. Diocesan Book 1766 – 1811]. White’s Directory (1848) states that W.T Longbourne, gent, occupied the Priory, and Kelly’s Directory (1856) confirms the name as William Thomas Longbourne. Coller says that in 1861, “the manor of Blackmore, and that of Fingrith … belong to James Parker Esq.” [Coller p222]. About this time Jericho came under the ownership of Edgar Disney. It formed part of a more substantial estate covering Copyhold Farm, High House, Hardings Common Farm on Paslow Common and Burgess. This was a total of 255 acres in Blackmore and 207 acres in High Ongar. The assignment of the lease of the Jericho Priory Farm estate in 1872 referred to the vendor’s obligation to leave “all hay, corn, and straw in ricks, bins or on the threshing floors” [ERO D/Dw T73]. In the north aisle of the church are two memorials recalling Edgar Disney:

Sacred to the memory of Edgar Disney of The Hyde Ingatestone Essex and of Jericho Blackmore Esquire Born 22nd December 1810 Died 8th December 1881 He that believeth in the Son hath everlasting life, he that believeth not the Son shall not see life St John chap iii, ver. xxxvi Also: This tablet is erected by the Rev W Callendar Vicar of Black more in grateful recognition of the kindly munificence of Edgar Disney Esq of the Hyde Ingate stone to whose generosity (independently of various donations from Parishioners and others) the successful restoration of the Church of St Lawrence is mainly due 1878 The churchyard was enlarged in 1885, through a gift of land by “Edgar John Disney of Jericho House … Lieutenant Colonel of the 3rd Battalion Essex Regiment” [HALS. DSA 1/15/3 f395]. Presumably this was the son of the above. E J Disney was churchwarden in 1885. Thomas Reed Hull was certainly living at Jericho in 1885. His family resided there for some while. He gave land for a churchyard extension in 1899 [ERO D/C/C50/2]. Thomas Reed Hull, of The Priory Blackmore, was buried on 4 February 1915. The final record appears in 1927 when James Henry Hull, again, gave land for a churchyard extension but reserving exclusive right of a portion, but it was never used [ERO D/C/C78/2]. He was the Vicar’s Warden in 1926. The Minutes of the Annual Parochial Church Meeting for 1940 record that, “Lady Reckitt also offered the gardens of Jericho Priory to augment in any way Church funds, either by way of a small charge for admission on Sunday evenings, or to hold a Sale of Work” [ERO A10631]. The house was used during the war for military purposes. On the social side, in the 1960s the Church held an annual Garden Fete and a Flower Festival. The Rose Garden at Jericho Priory was also used “by kind permission of Mr & Mrs E B Marriage”. The Marriage family were owners of Jericho Priory until the late 1970s. Andrew Smith Bibliography Bettley & Pevsner. The Buildings of England. Essex (2007) Coller. The People’s History of Essex (1861) Morant. The History and Antiquities of the County of Essex. Volume I (1768) Essex Record Office Guildhall Library Manuscripts Hertfordshire Archives and Local Studies