Honour of Grafton
Encyclopedia
The Honour of Grafton is a collection of manors
in the south east of Northamptonshire
, England
. The Honour is historic, dating back at least as far as 1542 when a bill for its management was before parliament.
Modern villages within the Honour include all or part of Abthorpe
, Alderton
, Ashton
, Blakesley
, Blisworth
, Cold Higham
, Furtho
, Grafton Regis
, Greens Norton
, Hartwell
, Passenham
, Paulerspury
, Potterspury
, Roade
, Stoke Bruerne
, Shutlanger
, Silverstone
, Towcester
, Whittlebury
, and Yardley Gobion
, and also encompass Whittlewood Forest
.
In 1673 the Honour was granted to Catherine of Braganza
, the queen of Charles II of England
.
On her death it was intended to pass to Henry Bennet, 1st Earl of Arlington
but the time the Queen died (in 1705) Arlington was also dead so the Honour passed to Charles FitzRoy, 2nd Duke of Grafton
his grandson and heir. The Dukedom of Grafton
had been created for one of Charles II's natural sons by Lady Castlemaine
. Wakefield Lodge, near Potterspury, was rebuilt by the 2nd Duke as his residence in Northamptonshire but the main Ducal seat is Euston Hall
in Suffolk
. The Dukes of Grafton kept their Northamptonshire estates until 1921.
Manorialism
Manorialism, an essential element of feudal society, was the organizing principle of rural economy that originated in the villa system of the Late Roman Empire, was widely practiced in medieval western and parts of central Europe, and was slowly replaced by the advent of a money-based market...
in the south east of Northamptonshire
Northamptonshire
Northamptonshire is a landlocked county in the English East Midlands, with a population of 629,676 as at the 2001 census. It has boundaries with the ceremonial counties of Warwickshire to the west, Leicestershire and Rutland to the north, Cambridgeshire to the east, Bedfordshire to the south-east,...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. The Honour is historic, dating back at least as far as 1542 when a bill for its management was before parliament.
Modern villages within the Honour include all or part of Abthorpe
Abthorpe
Abthorpe is a village and civil parish in the valley of the River Tove in South Northamptonshire, about west of Towcester, northwest of Silverstone and about midway between London and Birmingham....
, Alderton
Alderton, Northamptonshire
Alderton is an English village and civil parish about south of Northampton, and north of Milton Keynes, along a road between the A5 and A508 main roads in the southwest and northeast respectively. The nearest large town is Towcester, about north...
, Ashton
Ashton, South Northamptonshire
Ashton is a village in South Northamptonshire about southeast of Roade village close to the Northampton to Milton Keynes A508, ca. south of junction 15 of the M1 motorway, south of Northampton and north of Milton Keynes. The village is about north of London via the M1 junction 15...
, Blakesley
Blakesley
Blakesley is a village and civil parish in the South Northamptonshire district of Northamptonshire, England. It is about = west of Towcester. It is about above sea level according to Ordnance Survey...
, Blisworth
Blisworth
Blisworth is a village and civil parish in the South Northamptonshire district of Northamptonshire, England. The West Coast Main Line, from London Euston to Manchester and Scotland, runs alongside the village partly hidden and partly on an embankment...
, Cold Higham
Cold Higham
Cold Higham is a village and civil parish in Northamptonshire, England. It is adjacent to Weedon Bec, Pattishall, Eastcote and Astcote. The A5 runs along the eastern boundary of the parish, along the route of Watling Street, a former Roman road...
, Furtho
Furtho
Furtho was a medieval village in south Northamptonshire. It became deserted after the land enclosures took place.-Location:Furtho lies between the villages of Potterspury and Cosgrove about north west of Stony Stratford and south east of Towcester along the A5 road, the nearest towns...
, Grafton Regis
Grafton Regis
Grafton Regis is a village and civil parish in the south of the English county of Northamptonshire. The village is east of the A508 road, on which it has a short frontage and two bus stops. It is ca. south of Northampton and north of Milton Keynes....
, Greens Norton
Greens Norton
Greens Norton is a village in South Northamptonshire, England, just over from Towcester. At the time of the 2001 census, the parish's population was 1,587 people.-Facilities:It has a pub called the Butchers Arms, a post office, and a...
, Hartwell
Hartwell
Hartwell is a village in central Buckinghamshire, England. It is to the south of Aylesbury, by the village of Stone.The village name is Anglo Saxon in origin, and means "spring frequented by deer". In the Domesday Book of 1086 it was recorded as Herdeuuelle and Herdewelle.The ruined Hartwell...
, Passenham
Passenham
Passenham is a small village in the civil parish of Old Stratford in South Northamptonshire, England. It is just north of the River Great Ouse, which forms the boundary with Buckinghamshire, and close to Stony Stratford in Milton Keynes.-Governance:The village parish council is joined with the...
, Paulerspury
Paulerspury
Paulerspury is a civil parish and small village in South Northamptonshire, England. It is approximately south of Towcester and north of Milton Keynes along the A5 road...
, Potterspury
Potterspury
Potterspury is a village and civil parish in the district of South Northamptonshire. The nearest main town is Milton Keynes, the centre of which is about 7 miles south-east...
, Roade
Roade
Roade is a village in Northamptonshire, England and in the area of the South Northamptonshire District Council where it is in the two-member Blisworth and Roade ward.-Location:...
, Stoke Bruerne
Stoke Bruerne
Stoke Bruerne is a small village and civil parish in South Northamptonshire, England about north of Milton Keynes and south of Northampton.-History:...
, Shutlanger
Shutlanger
Shutlanger is a small village and civil parish in south Northamptonshire, England. The village is 5 miles east of Towcester and 7 miles south of Northampton....
, Silverstone
Silverstone
Silverstone is a village and civil parish in Northamptonshire, England. It is about from Towcester on the former A43 main road, from the M1 motorway junction 15A and about from the M40 motorway junction 10, Northampton, Milton Keynes and Banbury...
, Towcester
Towcester
Towcester , the Roman town of Lactodorum, is a small town in south Northamptonshire, England.-Etymology:Towcester comes from the Old English Tófe-ceaster. Tófe refers to the River Tove; Bosworth and Toller compare it to the "Scandinavian proper names" Tófi and Tófa...
, Whittlebury
Whittlebury
Whittlebury is a village and civil parish in the south of the English county of Northamptonshire close to its border with Buckinghamshire. It is due south of the town of Towcester to which it is connected by main roads. At the time of the 2001 census, the parish's population was 586 people.Little...
, and Yardley Gobion
Yardley Gobion
Yardley Gobion is a village in the south of the English county of Northamptonshire off a by-pass of the A508 Northampton to Milton Keynes road.-Facilities:The Grand Union Canal runs nearby east of the village....
, and also encompass Whittlewood Forest
Whittlewood Forest
Whittlewood Forest is a former medieval hunting forest in the south of the county of Northamptonshire in England. There are tracts of ancient woodland within the forest, and old ditch boundaries can be found at the edges of several of the individual woods...
.
In 1673 the Honour was granted to Catherine of Braganza
Catherine of Braganza
Catherine of Braganza was a Portuguese infanta and queen consort of England, Scotland and Ireland as the wife of King Charles II.She married the king in 1662...
, the queen of Charles II of England
Charles II of England
Charles II was monarch of the three kingdoms of England, Scotland, and Ireland.Charles II's father, King Charles I, was executed at Whitehall on 30 January 1649, at the climax of the English Civil War...
.
On her death it was intended to pass to Henry Bennet, 1st Earl of Arlington
Henry Bennet, 1st Earl of Arlington
Henry Bennet, 1st Earl of Arlington KG, PC was an English statesman.- Background and early life :He was the son of Sir John Bennet of Dawley, Middlesex, and of Dorothy Crofts. He was the younger brother of John Bennet, 1st Baron Ossulston; his sister was Elizabeth Bennet who married Robert Kerr,...
but the time the Queen died (in 1705) Arlington was also dead so the Honour passed to Charles FitzRoy, 2nd Duke of Grafton
Charles FitzRoy, 2nd Duke of Grafton
Charles FitzRoy, 2nd Duke of Grafton KG PC was an Irish and English politician.He was born the only child of Henry FitzRoy, 1st Duke of Grafton and Isabella Bennet, 2nd Countess of Arlington...
his grandson and heir. The Dukedom of Grafton
Duke of Grafton
Duke of Grafton is a title in the Peerage of England. It was created in 1675 by Charles II of England for his 2nd illegitimate son by the Duchess of Cleveland, Henry FitzRoy...
had been created for one of Charles II's natural sons by Lady Castlemaine
Barbara Palmer, 1st Duchess of Cleveland
Barbara Palmer, 1st Duchess of Cleveland was an English courtesan and perhaps the most notorious of the many mistresses of King Charles II of England, by whom she had five children, all of which were acknowledged and subsequently ennobled...
. Wakefield Lodge, near Potterspury, was rebuilt by the 2nd Duke as his residence in Northamptonshire but the main Ducal seat is Euston Hall
Euston Hall
Euston Hall is a country house, with park by William Kent and Capability Brown located in Euston, small village located just south of Thetford in Suffolk, England. It is the family home of the Dukes of Grafton....
in Suffolk
Suffolk
Suffolk is a non-metropolitan county of historic origin in East Anglia, England. It has borders with Norfolk to the north, Cambridgeshire to the west and Essex to the south. The North Sea lies to the east...
. The Dukes of Grafton kept their Northamptonshire estates until 1921.