Sir Edward Lewis of Edington Priory and The Van

Edward Lewis was born in 1586 in Llystabout, Wales, and died 10 October 1630 in Edington, Wiltshire, England. He was the son of Edward Lewis (1560 - 9 January 1628) and his wife Blanche Morgan. He was knighted at Theobalds on 7 May 1603.

Family

Edward Lewis married on 7 October 1622 to Anne Sackville, who was born in 1586 in Brecon, Wales, where she died on 25 Sep 1664. Anne was the daughter of Roger Sackville and Margaret Howard, and the widow of Edward Seymour, Lord Beauchamp (b abt 1586 - d abt 1620).

There were five children living of Anne and Edward Lewis at the time of his death in 1630:

1. Ann Lewis was born in Edington, Wiltshire, England. Married John Tregonwall, member of parliament. No children.
2. Edward Lewis, born about 1623, first son, succeeded to the estates. He seems to have died before 1648, when William Lewis was the owner of the Van.
3. William Lewis, member of parliament, second son, born circa 1625, married Margaret, the daughter and heir of Lawrence Banastre of Boarstall, Buckinghamshire on 24 June 1649;[1] [9]
4. Richard Lewis, member of parliament, born circa 1627, died 1 October 1706, in his 83rd year, buried at Corsham, succeeded his nephew, Edward Lewis, in his Glamorgan estate in 1674, married Mary, the daughter and heir of Giles James of Sherston, Wiltshire;[1]

Some sources say there was a fifth son Robert, but he must have been younger than Richard and at most about two years old when his father died in 1630. There are no certain records of him thereafter.

Origins

Eldest son and heir. When he wrote his will in 1623, Sir Edward Lewis said he’d been married for 39 years to Blanch, with 4 living sons and 1 living daughter.

From: http://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/2686136

Tomb of Sir Edward Lewys - priory church, Edington

This quite magnificent canopied tomb and monument was erected by the grieving widow in memory of her husband who died in 1630. The alabaster effigies of Sir Edward Lewys and his wife Anne Lady Beauchampe lie recumbent, she is raised a little higher than he in recognition of her superior rank. The principal inscription reads (in modern English):

'Here lye the Bodyes of the Right Worshipful Sir Edward Lewis late of the Vane in the County of Glamorgan Knight one of the Gentlemen of the Privy Chamber to Prince Henry and after to King Charles: and of the Right Hon’ble Anne Lady Beauchampe, His Wife, the Widow of Edward Lord Beauchampe Daughter of Robert Earle of Dorset, by the Lady Margaret Howard, Sole Daughter of Thomas Duke of Norfolk. They had issue Living Fower Sonnes, Edward, William, Richard and Robert, and One Daughter, Anne Lewys, He Departed this Life the 10 October 1630. In Memory of whom his Mournful Lady erected this Monument for Him and Her Selfe, who deceased the.. [remainder missing]' - 25th of September 1664.

From Welsh Biography Online:

LEWIS family, of Van, Glam. This was a prominent Glamorgan family which can be treated as a whole, as no one of its members was of great historical importance. Its distinguishing characteristics were a lengthy pedigree and a marvellous aptitude for the acquisition of property.

Sir EDWARD LEWIS ( 1560 - 1628 ), eldest son of Thomas Lewis [the man who gave the living of Llanfaches to William Wroth , q.v. ], was knighted in 1603 , and was sheriff of Glamorgan in 1601 and 1612 .

Sir EDWARD LEWIS (d. 1630 ), the second, was also knighted in 1603 . He lived at Edington, Wilts. , of which he was lessee. He was Gentleman of the Privy Chamber to prince Henry in 1610 and afterwards to prince Charles . He d. at Edington , 10 Oct. 1630 — two years after his father.

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• Anne SACKVILLE
• Born: 1586, Brecon, Wales
• Died: 25 Sep 1664
• Father: Robert SACKVILLE (2° E. Dorset)
• Mother: Margaret HOWARD
• Married 1: Edward SEYMOUR (B. Beauchamp) 1 Jun 1609, St Bride's, London, Middlesex, England
• Married 2: Edward LEWIS (Sir) (son of Sir Edward Lewis and Blanche Morgan) 7 Oct 1622
• Children:
  • 1. Robert LEWIS
  • 2. William LEWIS
  • 3. Anne LEWIS
  • 4. Edward LEWIS
  • 5. Richard LEWIS
• From: http://www.tudorplace.com.ar/SACKVILLE.htm#Anne SACKVILLE2 [comment: site claims she married Sir Henry Glemham, Kt., MP 3rd, but that was her aunt Ann Sackville, daughter of the 1st Earl of Dorset]

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• William Lewis (1625–1661) was an English landowner and politician who sat in the House of Commons in 1660.
• Lewis was the second son of Sir Edward Lewis, a courtier, and his wife Lady Anne Sackville, daughter of Robert Sackville, 2nd Earl of Dorset and widow of Edward, Lord Beauchamp. His father was of The Van, Glamorgan and Edington Priory, Wiltshire and died in 1630. Lewis matriculated at Jesus College, Oxford on 12 October 1638, aged 14. His mother sent her eldest sons abroad during the English Civil War to prevent their uncles, the Marquess of Hertford and the 4th Earl of Dorset, engaging them in the royalist cause and he travelled in France and Italy between 1642 and 1646. In 1647 he succeeded to the family estates on the death of his elder brother.[1]
• Lewis was commissioner for assessment for Oxfordshire from January 1660 and was commissioner of militia fr Oxfordshire in March 1660. He was a J.P. from March 1660 until his death. In 1660, he was elected Member of Parliament for Devizes. He was Deputy Lieutenant from August 1660.[1]
• Lewis died at the age of about 35.[1]
• Lewis married Margaret Banastre, daughter of Lawrence Banastre of Boarstall, Buckinghamshire on 24 June 1649, and had two sons and two daughters. The marriage enabled him to buy an estate at Bletchington in 1656 for £10,000. His son Edward was MP in 1669. His brother Richard was MP for Westbury.[1]
• From: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Lewis_(MP) ____________________
• LEWIS, Richard (c.1627-1706), of Edington Priory, Wilts. and The Van, Glam.
• b. c.1627, 3rd s. of Sir Edward Lewis of Edington Priory and The Van by Lady Anne Sackville, da. of Robert Sackville†, 2nd Earl of Dorset, wid. of Edward, Lord Beauchamp; bro. of William Lewis. m. Mary, da. and h. of Giles James of Sherston, Wilts., 3s. (2 d.v.p.) 2da. suc. nephew Edward Lewis in Glam. estate 1674.1
• From: http://www.historyofparliamentonline.org/volume/1660-1690/member/le... ________________________
• Robert Sackville, 2nd Earl of Dorset (1561–1609) was an English aristocrat and politician, with humanist and commercial interests.
• He was the eldest son of Thomas Sackville, 1st Earl of Dorset, by Cecily, daughter of Sir John Baker. His grandfather, Sir Richard Sackville, invited Roger Ascham to educate Robert with his own son, an incident inn 1563 that Ascham introduced into his pedagogic work The Scholemaster (1570) as prompting the book.[1] .... etc.
• Dorset married first, in February 1580, Lady Margaret, by then only surviving daughter of Thomas Howard, 4th Duke of Norfolk, then suspected as a crypto-Catholic. By her he had six children, including:
  • .... etc.
  • Anne, married Sir Edward Seymour, eldest son of Edward Seymour, Viscount Beauchamp, and, secondly, Sir Edward Lewis (d.1630) by whom she had issue [4]
  • .... etc.
• From: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Sackville,_2nd_Earl_of_Dorset ______________________________
• Richard Lewis (c 1627 - 1 October 1706) was an English landowner and politician who sat in the House of Commons between 1660 and 1702.
• Lewis was the third son of Sir Edward Lewis, a courtier, and his wife Lady Anne Sackville, daughter of Robert Sackville, 2nd Earl of Dorset and widow of Edward, Lord Beauchamp. His father was of The Van, Glamorgan and Edington Priory, Wiltshirehire and died in 1630. He was commissioner for assessment for Wiltshire from January 1660 to 1680 and commissioner for militia for Wiltshire in March 1660.
• In April 1660, he was elected Member of Parliament for Westbury in the Convention Parliament. He was J.P. for Wiltshire from July 1660 to June 1688. In 1661 he was re-elected MP for Westbury in the Cavalier Parliament. He was lieutenant-colonel of foot militia for Wiltshire in 1661. From 1662 to 1663 he was commissioner for corporations. He was Deputy Lieutenant from 1668 to June 1688.[1]
• In 1674 Lewis succeeded to the family estates on the death of his nephew Edward Lewis and became a J.P. for Glamorgan until 1682. He was commissioner for assessment for Monmouthshire and Glamorgan from. 1677 to 1680. He was r-elected MP for Westbury in the two elections of 1679. He became a colonel in the militia in 1681 and was sheriff from 1681 to 1682. In 1684 he was freeman of Devizes. In 1685 he was elected MP for Westbury again. He was J.P. for Glamorgan from 1685 to 1696 and commissioner for rebels’ estates in Wiltshire in 1686. He was displaced as freeman of Devizes by order-in-council in 1687. He was J.P. for Wiltshire and Deputy Lieutenant from October 1688 to 1696. He was commissioner for assessment for Monmouthshire, Wiltshire and Glamorgan from 1689 to 1690. He was re-elected MP for Westbury in 1689, 1690, 1695 and 1698. In 1696 he was removed from the lieutenancy for refusing the Association. He was J.P. for Glamorgan and Wiltshire from 1700 until his death. In February 1701 he was elected MP for Westbury again.[1]
• Lewis died in 1706, in his "eighty-third year", and was buried at Corsham.[1]
• Lewis married Mary James, daughter of Giles James of Sherston, Wiltshire and had three sons and two daughters. His son Thomas sat for various Hampshire and Wiltshire constituencies. His brother William was MP for Devizes.[1]
• From: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard_Lewis_(MP) ______________________________
• "Year Books of Probates" (from 1630) abstracts of probate acts in the Prerogative Court of Canterbury ([1902])
• https://archive.org/details/yearbooksofproba01cantuoft
• https://archive.org/stream/yearbooksofproba01cantuoft#page/98/mode/1up
• LEWIS, SIR EDWARD, of Van, (p. Bedwas,) co. Glam., (and co. Mon.,) Kt.
• Admon Jan. 13, 1630-1 to ANNE, Lady BEAUCHAMPE, relict of SIR EDWARD LEWIS Kt., the younger, d.b n. latter.
• (Will [31 Barrington] pr. Mar. 26, 1628 by son SIR EDWARD L., Kt.) _____________________
• LEWIS, William (c.1625-61), of Bletchington, Oxon. and The Van, Glam.
• b. c.1625, 2nd s. of Sir Edward Lewis (d.1630) of The Van and Edington Priory, Wilts., and bro. of Richard Lewis. educ. Jesus, Oxf. matric. 12 Oct. 1638, aged 14; travelled abroad (France, Italy) 1642-6. m. 24 June 1649, Margaret, da. and h. of Lawrence Banastre of Boarstall, Bucks., 2s. 2da. suc. bro. 1647.1
• Offices Held
  • Commr. for assessment, Oxon. Jan. 1660-d., militia Mar. 1660, j.p. Mar. 1660-d., dep. lt. c. Aug. 1660-d.
• Lewis was head of a very old, but thoroughly Anglicized Glamorgan family, distinguished chiefly for prudent marriages, but not previously aspiring to a seat in Parliament. His father, a courtier, married the widow of the 1st Earl of Hertford’s heir, and bought the remainder of a long lease of Edington in 1629, dying there in the following year. Lewis’s mother was careful to preserve neutrality in the Civil War, sending her eldest sons abroad lest their uncles, the Marquess of Hertford and the 4th Earl of Dorset, should engage them in the royalist cause. The Glamorgan committee testified in 1648 that Lewis was well-affected and had made large contributions to their funds; but it was probably a paternal uncle of the same name who sat with them throughout the Interregnum. Lewis’s marriage to a Buckinghamshire heiress enabled him to buy an estate at Bletchington in 1656 for £10,000. He probably owed his election for Devizes, ten miles from Edington, to his mother, whose lavish hospitality at the Priory was notable chiefly for her excellent brew of beer. As she also secured the return for Westbury of another son, it is impossible to distinguish his record in the Convention, but he was clearly inactive. Lord Wharton seems to have regarded him as a moderate Anglican. One or other of the brothers was appointed to the committees for altering the entail on Lord Hertford’s estates, attainting Oliver Cromwell, and considering the petition of a former serjeant-at-arms; but they made no speeches. He lost his seat at the general election, and died later in the same year. His widow brought Bletchington and other lands worth in all £38,000 to her second husband, the 5th Duke of Richmond; but on her death in 1667 the Boarstall estate went to her son Edward Lewis.2
• From: http://www.historyofparliamentonline.org/volume/1660-1690/member/le... __________________________
• EDWARD LEWIS was the first that took the surname. He built the older portions of Van , near Caerphilly, Glam. , and enclosed the park . He purchased the manor of Roath-Keynsham , part of the estate of Keynsham abbey , and was sheriff of Glamorgan in 1548 , 1555 , and 1559 . His wife was Ann , daughter of Sir William Morgan , of Pencoyd, Mon. , a member of the Tredegar family .
• THOMAS LEWIS , his son, was sheriff of Glamorgan in 1569 . His first wife was Margaret Gamage of Coity , at the time widow of Miles Mathew of Llandaff . He added to the Van and built the Lewis house in S. Mary Street , Cardiff , which was finally demolished about 1865 . He d. at Cardiff 2 Nov. 1594 . The ‘inquisitiones’ taken on his death are of considerable local interest.
• Sir EDWARD LEWIS ( 1560- 1628 ), eldest son of Thomas Lewis [the man who gave the living of Llanfaches to William Wroth , q.v. ], was knighted in 1603 , and was sheriff of Glamorgan in 1601 and 1612 . He indulged in a good deal of litigation and added considerably to the family estates. The most interesting of his purchases was S. Fagans castle , bought from Sir William Herbert of Cardiff in 1616 , and now the Folk Museum of Wales . This included the present house built by Dr. John Gibbon about 1590 . He d. 9 Jan. 1628 .
• Sir EDWARD LEWIS (d. 1630 ), the second, was also knighted in 1603 . He lived at Edington, Wilts. , of which he was lessee. He was Gentleman of the Privy Chamber to prince Henry in 1610 and afterwards to prince Charles . He d. at Edington , 10 Oct. 1630— two years after his father.
• WILLIAM LEWIS (d. 1661 ), succeeded to the estate and d. in 1661 . His wife was Margaret , heiress of the estates of Brill and Boarstal , to both of which he added. He was a strong Parliamentarian .
• EDWARD LEWIS ( 1650- 1674 ), who was born 30 July 1650 , bequeathed the Glamorgan estate to his uncle Richard Lewis in tail male.
  • The uncle, RICHARD LEWIS ( 1623- 1706 ), purchased the manor of Corsham and was buried there. He certainly neglected and possibly dismantled Van . He d. 7 Oct. 1706 .
• From: http://wbo.llgc.org.uk/en/s-LEWI-VAN-1548.html ___________________________________
• Sir Edward Lewis, Knight[1, 2]
• Born Abt 1590 of, Y Fan, Bedwas, Monmouthshire, Wales
• Father Sir Edward Lewis, Knight, b. 1559/1560, of, Y Fan, Bedwas, Monmouthshire, Wales , d. 1628
• Mother Blanche Morgan, b. Abt 1570, of, Machen, Monmouthshire, Wales
• Family Anne Sackville, b. Abt 1590, of, , Monmouthshire, Wales
• Married Type: Wife - 2nd Marriage
• Children
  • 1. William Lewis, b. Abt 1610, of, Y Fan, Bedwas, Monmouthshire, Wales , d. Yes, date unknown
  • 2. Richard Lewis, b. Abt 1610, of, Y Fan, Bedwas, Monmouthshire, Wales
• Sources
• 1.[S2411] #11915 British Genealogy (filmed 1950), Evans, Alcwyn Caryni, (Books A to H. National Library of Wales MSS 12359-12360D. Manuscript filmed by the Genealogical Society of Utah, 1950), FHL microfilms 104,355 and 104,390 item 2., book 5 p. E31*.
• 2.[S2420] #11886 The Golden Grove books of pedigrees (filmed 1970), (Manuscript, National Library of Wales manuscript number Castell Gorfod 7. Filmed by the Genealogical Society of Utah, 1950), FHL microfilms 104,349-104,351., book 4 p. C577*.
• 3.[S2420] #11886 The Golden Grove books of pedigrees (filmed 1970), (Manuscript, National Library of Wales manuscript number Castell Gorfod 7. Filmed by the Genealogical Society of Utah, 1950), FHL microfilms 104,349-104,351., book 4 p. C577.
• From: https://histfam.familysearch.org/getperson.php?personID=I205815&tre... ______________________________

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Birth: 1586, Wales Death: Oct. 10, 1630 Wiltshire, England

Notes from http://home.comcast.net/~smccaslin2/AncestryofC.S.Lewis.html ( No longer a valid address.)

"Sir Edward Lewis, of Van, and Edington, Wiltshire, eldest son and heir, was knighted by King James I at Theobalds, 26 April, 1603 His wife was Ann Sackville, daughter of Robert, second Earl of Dorset. He died 10 October, 1630, and was buried, with his wife, in the church at Edington, where a fine monument is inscribed:

?'Here lye the bodies of?Sir Edward Lewis of the Vane?and his wife, the Right Honble, Anne, daughter of Robert, Earl of Dorset, by the Lady Margaret Howard, sole daughter of Thomas, Duke of Norfolk. They had issue living, fower sonnes, Edward, William, Richard, and Robert, and one daughter, Anne Lewis. His mournefull deceased the 25th of Sept., 1664.'

Family links:

Spouses:

 Ann D. Sackville (1586 - 1664)*

 Lady Anne Sackville (1586 - 1664)*

Children:

 John Lewis (1592 - 1657)*

*Calculated relationship

Burial: Edington Priory Church Edington Wiltshire Unitary Authority Wiltshire, England

Created by: Beverly Smith Harker Record added: Oct 30, 2014 Find A Grave Memorial# 138025802

Tomb of Sir Edward Lewis and his wife, Anne, Lady Beauchampe

Inscription on the tombstone erected by his grieving widow:

Here lye the Bodyes of the Right Worshipful Sir Edward Lewis late of the Vane in the County of Glamorgan Knight one of the Gentlemen of the Privy Chamber to Prince Henry and after to King Charles: and of the Right Hon’ble Anne Lady Beauchampe, His Wife, the Widow of Edward Lord Beauchampe Daughter of Robert Earle of Dorset, by the Lady Margaret Howard, Sole Daughter of Thomas Duke of Norfolk. They had issue Living Fower Sonnes, Edward, William, Richard and Robert, and One Daughter, Anne Lewys, He Departed this Life the 10 October 1630. In Memory of whom his Mournful Lady erected this Monument for Him and Her Selfe, who deceased the.. [remainder missing]' - 25th of September 1664.

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References

1. John Tregonwall, MP. Family and Education b. 3 Sept. 1632, o.s. of Thomas Tregonwell of Anderson by Dorothy, da. of Hon. Henry Hastings of Woodlands, Dorset, wid. of Sir John Ryves of Damory Court, Dorset. m. (1) Anne, da. of Sir Edward Lewis of Edington, Wilts., s.p.;
2. http://www.tudorplace.com.ar/MORGAN.htm#Blanche MORGAN3
3. http://www.bathintime.co.uk/image/411555/1630-monument-of-sir-edwar...
4. http://www.werelate.org/wiki/Person:Edward_Lewis_%2815%29
5. BBurke Genealogical and Heraldic History page 743 < image >
6. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard_Lewis_%28MP%29
7. https://www.wikitree.com/wiki/Lewis-2612 cites
   1. William Arthur Shaw, George Dames Burtchaell, The Knights of England. A complete record from the earliest time to the present day of the knights of all the orders of chivalry in England, Scotland, and Ireland, and of knights bachelors, incorporating a complete list of knights bachelors dubbed in Ireland Page 104. < link >
   2. History of Parliament online 1660-1690: LEWIS, William (c.1625-61), of Bletchington, Oxon. and The Van, Glam < link >
   3. The Lewis Family of Wales and America, by Edward Simmons Lewis, publ. in The Journal of American History, Volume XXII, Third Quarter, Number 3, 1926
   4. History of Parliament online 1660-1690: LEWIS, Richard (c.1627-1706), of Edington Priory, Wilts. and The Van, Glam < link >
   5. Find A Grave Index Name Edward Lewys Place Edington, Wiltshire, England Age 44 Birth 1586 Death Date 10 October 1630 Cemetery Edington Priory Church https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:W6LM-WDW2
   6. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Sackville%2C_2nd_Earl_of_Dorset
   7. Annals and Antiquities of the counties and county families of Wales: containing a record of all ranks of the gentry with many ancient pedigrees and memorials of old and extinct families. Page 587 gives history of the Thomas Family in Wenvoe page 634 shows relationship to the Lewis family
8. Randall, H. J., (1959). LEWIS family, of Van, Glamorganshire. Dictionary of Welsh Biography. Retrieved 24 Nov 2022, from https://biography.wales/article/s-LEWI-VAN-1548