Anne Bland

Anne Moseley (1662-1734) was the daughter and sole heir of Sir Edward Moseley and his wife Lady Jane Merial Moseley (Saltonstall). She was baptised at the Collegiate Church on 28th August 1664.

In 1685 she was married to Sir John Bland, 4th Baronet of Kippax Park, Yorkshire, though the bridegroom was 'not yet of legal age' at the time of the marriage. Sir John does not appear to have been a very satisfactory husband: dissipated and addicted to gaming on the strength of his wife's money. Sir John died in 1715. They had nine children but four did not survive infancy.

In 1693, following the death of her father, Lady Bland inherited the lordship of the manor of Manchester. She lived at Hulme Hall, near the junction of the rivers Medlock and Irwell. A leader of fashion, supporter of the Low Church, Whig Party and the Hanoverians, her chief rival was Lady Drake, of the opposing High Church, Tory faction, who supported the Stuarts. She was reputed to be very affable, amiable, popular - even with the opposition - but self-willed and passionate.

It is reported that on one occasion, when attending the New Assembley Room above St Ann's Passage, she was so annoyed by the display of Stuart Tartan that she led her party into the street and danced in the moonlight in Orange ribbons. She was a friend of John Byrom, despite his Jacobite leanings.

Lady Bland had attended Pool Fold, now Cross Street, Chapel with her mother. Following the death of her mother and that of the minister, Henry Newcombe, she began to look for somewhere else to worship. She was a 'thoroughgoing Churchwoman', but the Collegiate Church (now Manchester Cathedral) was at that time the centre of the High Church party. As we have seen, she would have been extremely annoyed by the open support of the Jacobite cause to be found there.

The increasing population of Manchester was leading to demands for a second church, which the Whigs saw as an opportunity to set up a centre of opposition. Lady Bland gave them her support and helped found St Ann's, giving up part of her manorial rights and providing most of the money.

Lady Bland died on July 26, 1734 and was buried August 3, 1734 at Didsbury Chapel, now St James', Didsbury Parish Church. Unfortunately, her burial place was lost when the church was extended, but there is a memorial to her in the North-East corner of the nave.

She left a will dated June 20, 1761. Her will is lengthy, but can be read in Remains, historical and literary, connected with the palatine ..., Volume 42 By Chetham Society, free Google book.

Links to additional material:

• http://thepeerage.com/p17093.htm#i170926
• http://www.archive.org/stream/collectionsforhi00carl#page/42/mode/1up
• http://www.stannsmanchester.com/content/view/123/132/
• http://books.google.com/books?id=nu8MAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA166&lpg=PA166&dq... (for her will)