otherwise known as Watlington-Colts and/or Trussbutts: its Descent and its place in the Bloodline of the Present Lord
The Lord of Watlington-West, Norfolk, is also known historically as Watlington-Colts, or often as Trussbutts, descends from an ancient Norfolk estate lying in the Watlington and Shouldham district, south of King’s Lynn. The former manorial estate has long since ceased to exist as a functioning medieval manor in the landed sense; what remains is the lordship, the incorporeal manorial dignity descending from that historic manor.
The descent of this lordship passes through a succession of Anglo-Saxon, Norman, medieval, Tudor, Stuart, and later landed families. Its named descent includes Ailid / Æthelgyth, Thurstan son of Wine / Lustwine, Ralph Baynard, William Baynard, Robert fitz Richard de Clare, Roger de Clare, Richard de Clare, Geoffrey FitzPiers, the Mandevilles, Shouldham Priory, the Trussbut / Trusbut family, the Colts, Thomas Shouldham, Sir Francis Gawdy, Frances Gawdy, Robert Rich, 2nd Earl of Warwick, the Hares of Stow Bardolph, the Plestow / Berners family, George Coote, Mary Humphreys, and Robert Holmes Edleston.
| Stage | Person | Role / evidence |
| 1 | Ailid | Saxon free woman; deprived before Domesday. |
| 2 | Ralph Baynard / Ralph Lord Bainard | Domesday holder of the manor. |
| 3 | William Baynard / William Lord Bainard | Forfeited after rebellion against Henry I. |
| 4 | [Likely] Robert fitz Richard de Clare | Blomefield only says it came “to the Earls of Clare.” For the Baynard forfeiture generally, Baynard’s Castle/Little Dunmow passed to Robert fitz Richard, son of Richard fitz Gilbert de Clare. This is the likely named Clare-holder, but I would mark it [Inference] for Watlington Colts specifically unless a charter confirms it. (British History Online) |
| 5 | Roger de Clare, Earl of Hertford / Earl of Clare | Blomefield names Roger Earl of Clare as confirming Geoffrey Fitz-Piers’ gift to Shouldham Priory as capital lord of the fee. (British History Online) |
| 6 | Richard de Clare, Earl of Hertford / Earl of Clare | Blomefield says Geoffrey Fitz-Piers held the churches/manor elements of Richard Earl of Clare. This is Richard de Clare, 3rd Earl of Hertford, son of Roger. (British History Online) |
| 7 | Geoffrey Fitz-Piers / Fitz Peter, Earl of Essex | Held of the honour of Clare; founder of Shouldham Priory; settled manor interests on that house. (British History Online) |
| 8 | Geoffrey de Mandeville, Earl of Essex | Son/heir of Geoffrey Fitz-Piers; assumed the Mandeville name; died without issue. Blomefield mentions him in the priory descent. (British History Online) |
| 9 | William de Mandeville, Earl of Essex | Second son of Geoffrey Fitz-Piers; confirmed his father’s gift and gave remaining demesne/homages/services to Shouldham Priory. (British History Online) |
| 10 | Shouldham Priory | Institutional holder after Fitz-Piers/Mandeville grants; the prior held here and in Watlington. (British History Online) |
| 11 | Roger Trussbut | Had an interest in the manor in 1255. (British History Online) |
| 12 | Adam de Botefoy | Held lands by knight service of the prior. This is more likely a tenant/interest-holder than full lord. (British History Online) |
| 13 | John, son of Adam | Held lands by knight service of the prior. (British History Online) |
| 14 | Robert de Bokenham | Held lands by knight service of the prior. (British History Online) |
| 15 | John Trussbut | Later had an interest and gave Shouldham All Saints church to the prior. (British History Online) |
| 16 | Nicholas Trussbut of Shouldham and Isabel his wife | Acquired lands and messuages from John son of Adam de Fincham, Thomas Rede, John Lok and John Rede. (British History Online) |
| 17 | Thomas Trussbut, Esq. | Died 1451; held the manor. (British History Online) |
| 18 | William Trussbut | Son of Thomas; inherited but died without issue. (British History Online) |
| 19 | Jane Trussbut | Niece of William; daughter and heir of John Trussbut, elder brother of Thomas; married Thomas Colt. (British History Online) |
| 20 | Thomas Colt, Esq. | Held by marriage to Jane Trussbut. (British History Online) |
| 21 | George Colt, Esq. | Sold the manor in 29 Elizabeth I to Thomas Shouldham. (British History Online) |
| 22 | Thomas Shouldham, Esq. | Bought from George Colt; soon after conveyed it to Judge Gawdy. (British History Online) |
| 23 | Sir Francis Gawdy / Judge Gawdy | Acquired from Thomas Shouldham. (British History Online) |
| 24 | Frances Gawdy | Granddaughter/heiress of Sir Francis Gawdy; through her it passed to Robert Rich. The sales text calls her “Francis,” but as a woman married to Robert Rich this is almost certainly Frances Gawdy. |
| 25 | Robert Rich, 2nd Earl of Warwick | Held through the Gawdy descent; BHO says it came to the Earl of Warwick. (British History Online) |
| 26 | Sir John Hare of Stow Bardolph | Acquired from the Rich/Warwick side; manor united to Shouldham Priory manor. (British History Online) |
| 27 | Sir George Hare, Baronet | Present lord in 1763 after union with the priory manor. (British History Online) |
| 28 | Charles Berners Plestow | Externally confirmed as major Watlington Hall estate owner in 1845; likely holder of the manor by then, but I would still mark the specific lordship link as requiring confirmation from deeds/manorial records. |
| 29 | George Coote | Stated in the sales text as purchaser from the Plestows in 1869; I have not independently verified that transfer. |
| 30 | Mary Humphreys | Stated in the sales text as George Coote’s daughter and seller in 1929; I have not independently verified that transfer. |
| 31 | Robert Holmes Edleston | Stated in the sales text as purchaser in 1929; I have not independently verified that transfer. |
| 32 | Present Edleston-line owner | Sales text says present owner descends from Robert Holmes Edleston but does not name them. |
The Anglo-Saxon Origin: Ailid, Æthelgyth, and Thurstan son of Wine.
The earliest personal association of the lordship lies with Ailid, the Saxon free woman who held the estate before the Norman settlement. She is associated with Æthelgyth, also rendered Aelgyth or Ailid, wife of Thurstan son of Wine, otherwise identified as Thurstan son of Lustwine.
Thurstan belonged to the older Anglo-Saxon landed world of East Anglia. His will places him among the substantial landholders of the mid-eleventh century, with estates in Norfolk, Essex, Suffolk, and Cambridgeshire, including lands connected with Shouldham, the area central to the later lordship of Trussbutts and Watlington Colts.
In the bloodline of the present lord, Thurstan son of Wine / Lustwine stands as the present lord’s 33rd great grandfather’s second great nephew. The descent runs through the royal and East Anglian line.
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Through Thurstan, the earliest known pre-Conquest holder, Æthelgyth / Ailid, is also connected to the present lord by marriage, being the wife of Thurstan. In the present lord’s compiled relationship path she stands as the present lord’s 33rd great grandfather’s second great nephew’s wife:
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Thus the earliest stratum of the lordship is already situated within the present lord’s extended Anglo-Saxon family world: the royal house of Wessex, the Damerham connection, the East Anglian landed kindred, Thurstan son of Wine, and Æthelgyth / Ailid.
Ralph Baynard and the Norman Settlement
After the Conquest, the lordship passed into the hands of Ralph Baynard / Ralph Lord Bainard, the Domesday holder. Ralph represents the Norman phase of the lordship following the deprivation of Ailid / Æthelgyth.
Ralph Baynard also falls within the present lord’s wider family network. In the compiled relationship path, Viscount of Lude, Baron Ralph Bainard, is the present lord’s first cousin seven times removed’s husband’s twentieth great uncle.
The route passes through the Nutting, Twyman, Wilmshurst, Fowle, Cruttenden, Byne, Culpepper, Wakehurst, Thorpe, and Baynard line:
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After the Conquest, the lordship passed into the hands of Ralph Baynard / Ralph Lord Bainard, the Domesday holder. Ralph represents the Norman phase of the lordship following the deprivation of Ailid / Æthelgyth.
Ralph Baynard also falls within the present lord’s wider family network. In the compiled relationship path, Viscount of Lude, Baron Ralph Bainard, is the present lord’s first cousin seven times removed’s husband’s twentieth great uncle.
The route passes through the Nutting, Twyman, Wilmshurst, Fowle, Cruttenden, Byne, Culpepper, Wakehurst, Thorpe, and Baynard line:
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The Norman holder of the lordship therefore appears within the collateral and marriage-linked family structure of the present lord.
William Baynard and the Forfeiture
The lordship then passed to William Baynard, successor in the Baynard line. William forfeited his lands after rebellion against Henry I, an event which shifted the lordship out of Baynard possession and into the orbit of the Clare honour.
In the present lord’s compiled genealogy, William Baynard is connected as the present lord’s first cousin seven times removed’s husband’s second cousin nineteen times removed. The route follows the same Baynard line to Ralph Bainard, then proceeds through:
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This connects both the Domesday holder and the forfeiting successor to the present lord’s extended family network.
Robert fitz Richard de Clare
After the Baynard forfeiture, the lordship came into the sphere of the Clare family. The likely named figure in this transition is Robert fitz Richard de Clare.
Here the connection is direct. Robert fitz Richard de Clare is placed as the present lord’s 27th great grandfather. The relationship path runs through the Mallory, Norton, Stapleton, FitzHugh, Grey, Longespée, FitzWalter, and Clare line:
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The Clare phase is therefore one of the first clear points where the lordship passes into the hands of a direct ancestor of the present lord.
Roger FitzGilbert de Clare, Earl of Hertford
The Clare connection continues through Roger FitzGilbert de Clare, Earl of Hertford, who is also placed as the present lord’s 27th great grandfather.
This path descends through the Scottish and de Burgh line:
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The lordship’s Clare overlordship is therefore represented in the present lord’s bloodline by more than one ancestral route.
Geoffrey FitzPiers, Earl of Essex
The next principal figure is Geoffrey FitzPiers / Fitz Peter, Earl of Essex, who held under the honour of Clare and was closely connected with the foundation and endowment of Shouldham Priory.
Geoffrey FitzPiers is placed as the present lord’s 26th great grandfather. The line again descends through the Scottish, de Burgh, FitzJohn, and FitzGeoffrey route:
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Through Geoffrey FitzPiers, the lordship entered the world of royal administration, justiciarship, and religious patronage. He is not only a major historical holder in the lordship’s descent, but a direct ancestor of the present lord.
Geoffrey and William de Mandeville
The Mandeville phase follows from Geoffrey FitzPiers.
William FitzGeoffrey Mandeville, 3rd Earl of Essex, is placed as the present lord’s 26th great uncle, being a son of Geoffrey FitzPiers.
The route proceeds:
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Geoffrey de Mandeville, Earl of Essex and Gloucester, Surety of Magna Carta, is likewise placed as the present lord’s 26th great uncle, also being a son of Geoffrey FitzPiers:
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Thus the Mandeville holders are collateral to the present lord’s direct FitzPiers ancestry. The lordship passed through the sons of a direct ancestor, placing the Mandeville phase within the same close medieval family structure.
Shouldham Priory and the Trussbut Interest
Following the FitzPiers and Mandeville period, Shouldham Priory held an important interest. The lordship then enters the orbit of the Trussbut / Trusbut family, from whom the name Trussbutts derives.
The named Trussbut sequence includes Roger Trussbut, John Trussbut, Nicholas Trussbut of Shouldham, Isabel his wife, Thomas Trussbut, William Trussbut, and Jane Trussbut.
The present lord’s family network includes the wider Trussebut family. Roger Trussebut is placed as the present lord’s 27th great uncle through the de Ros and Trussebut line:
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The present lord is also connected to William de Trussebut, Lord Hunsingore, who is placed as the present lord’s 27th great grandfather:
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William de Trussebut is recorded in the compiled material as born circa 1121 at Warter, Yorkshire, and dying circa 1176 at Hunsingore, Yorkshire. He was son of Geoffrey Trusbut, husband of Albreda Trussebut, and father of Rohese de Ros, Hilaria Trussebut, Geoffrey Trussebut, Roger Trussebut, Robert Trussebut, and others.
The family which gave the lordship the name Trussbutts is therefore present in the bloodline and collateral kinship of the present lord.
Thomas Trusbut and the Parr Connection
The later Trusbut connection appears again through Thomas Trusbut, who is placed as the present lord’s first cousin nineteen times removed’s wife’s grandfather.
The relationship path runs through:
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This connects the later Trusbut inheritance to the present lord’s extended family through the Parr and Tunstall lines.
Jane Trussbut, Thomas Colt, and John Colt of Newhall
The lordship passed from the Trussbut family to the Colt family through the Trussbut heiress Jane Trussbut, also appearing in the compiled Geni material as Jane Parr / Jane Trusbut.
Jane is given as daughter of John Trusbut and Elizabeth Cateryke, born circa 1435 at Runcton Holme, Norfolk, and dying in 1476 at Netherhall, near Roydon, Essex. She was wife of Thomas Colt Jr. of Roydon, Essex, and also wife of Sir William Parr, 1st Baron Parr of Kendal. She was mother of John Colt of Newhall.
Jane Parr / Jane Trusbut is placed as the present lord’s first cousin nineteen times removed’s wife:
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Her son, John Colt of Newhall, is placed as the present lord’s first cousin nineteen times removed’s wife’s son:
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John Colt is recorded in the compiled material as born in 1463 at Netherhall, near Roydon, Essex, dying on 22 October 1521, and being buried at St Mary the Virgin Churchyard, Cavendish, Suffolk. He was son of Thomas Colt Jr. of Roydon and Jane Parr, husband of Joane Colt, and father of Lady Joan Colt, Mary Kempe, Thomas Colt, Alice Colt, Bridget Colt, and others.
Through Jane Trussbut’s marriage to Thomas Colt, the lordship acquired the name Watlington Colts, while preserving the older Trussbut identity.
Thomas Shouldham
The lordship, later transferred from the Colt family to Thomas Shouldham, Esq.
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In the present lord’s compiled records, Thomas Shouldham remains one of the few figures for whom no relationship path has yet been identified. He stands as a ‘transitional’ holder between the Colt family and the Gawdy family.
Sir Francis Gawdy / Judge Gawdy
The lordship next passed to Sir Francis Gawdy, Justice of the King’s Bench.
In the present lord’s compiled genealogy, Sir Francis Gawdy, MP, is placed as the present lord’s 16th great grandfather’s nephew’s wife’s husband’s half brother.
The route runs through:
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The Gawdy phase is therefore also within the extended kinship of the present lord.
Frances Gawdy and Robert Rich, 2nd Earl of Warwick
Through Frances Gawdy, the lordship passed into the Rich family, specifically to Robert Rich, 2nd Earl of Warwick.
Robert Rich is placed as the present lord’s 7th cousin thirteen times removed.
The route runs through:
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The lordship’s Rich phase is therefore linked to the present lord through the Beaufort, Carey, Knollys, Blount, and Rich descent.
Sir John Hare of Stow Bardolph
The lordship then passed to the Hare family of Stow Bardolph, beginning with Sir John Hare, MP.
Sir John Hare appears in the present lord’s compiled tree by both blood and marriage.
By blood, Sir John Hare, MP, is placed as the present lord’s 11th cousin fifteen times removed. The path runs through the Beevor, Batte, Horton, Munshull, Dutton, Beauchamp, Fortescue, and Hare families:
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By marriage, Sir John Hare is also placed as the present lord’s second cousin nine times removed’s wife’s third great grandfather, through the Beevor and Hare of Hargham line:
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The Hare phase is thus strongly represented in both blood and marriage connections.
Sir George Hare, 5th and Last Baronet
The lordship later appears under Sir George Hare, 5th and last Baronet.
By marriage, Sir George Hare is placed as the present lord’s third cousin thirteen times removed’s great nephew. The path runs through the Mallory, Fairfax, Belasyse, Crane, and Hare families:
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By blood, Sir George Hare is also placed as the present lord’s 9th cousin eleven times removed. This path runs through the Horton, Hanson, Brooke, Carew, Crane, and Hare line:
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The Hare family held the lordship for generations and united it with the priory manor. Their place in the descent is therefore substantial, and their connection to the present lord is present through more than one route.
Charles Hugh Berners and the Plestow / Berners Phase
The later history of the lordship includes the Plestow / Berners phase, associated with Watlington Hall.
In the present lord’s compiled tree, Charles Hugh Berners is placed as the present lord’s 12th cousin nine times removed.
The path runs through:
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This connects the later Berners-associated estate phase to the present lord’s wider bloodline.
George Coote
The lordship later passed to George Coote.
The compiled material identifies George Coote as born in 1860 at Raymond Terrace, New South Wales, Australia, dying on 6 August 1928 at Chatswood, New South Wales, and buried at General Cemetery, Morpeth, New South Wales. He was son of John T. Coote and Rachel Coote, husband of Annie Elizabeth Coote, and father of Annie Berenice Coote.
George Coote appears in the present lord’s tree by both marriage and blood.
By marriage, he is placed as the present lord’s first cousin four times removed’s husband’s great uncle’s wife’s first cousin once removed’s husband’s first cousin once removed’s husband.
The marriage path runs through:
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By blood, George Coote is placed as the present lord’s 14th cousin nine times removed.
The blood path runs through the Beevor, Batte, Horton, Gledhill, Harrison, Leiche, Babington, Dethick, Pettus, Flack, and Coote lines:
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The Coote phase, though late in the descent, is therefore also connected to the present lord’s family network.
Mary Humphreys
After George Coote, the lordship passed to Mary Humphreys, his daughter.
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Robert Holmes Edleston
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The lordship transferred in 1929 to Baron de Montalbo, Rev. Robert Holmes Edleston who would have been 13th cousin 6 times removed of the current holder, the Edleston, Edleston-line held the title for a period, before it returned to descendent line of King Edmund I (rather than Edmund I nephew line which has since gone extinct).
Its current holder being West line some 36 Generations later
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The Descent in Sequence
The descent of the lordship may therefore be set out in broad personal sequence as:
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Conclusion
The Lordship of the Manor of Watlington Colts, otherwise Trussbutts, carries a descent in which almost every principal phase is connected to the bloodline, collateral ancestry, or marriage-linked kinship of the present lord.
The connection begins before Domesday with Thurstan son of Wine / Lustwine and Æthelgyth / Ailid, passes through the Norman holders Ralph Baynard and William Baynard, then through the directly ancestral Clare and FitzPiers figures Robert fitz Richard de Clare, Roger de Clare, and Geoffrey FitzPiers. It continues through the collateral Mandeville earls, the Trussbut and Trussebut families, the Colt inheritance, the Gawdy legal family, the Rich earls of Warwick, the Hares of Stow Bardolph, the Berners / Plestow phase, and the Coote family.
Only a small number of later transitional names remain without an identified relationship path, chiefly Thomas Shouldham, Mary Humphreys, and Robert Holmes Edleston. The broader pattern is clear: the historical descent of the lordship repeatedly passes through families already present in the bloodline and wider kinship of the present lord.
The lordship has therefore not merely been purchased as an isolated modern dignity. Its descent has returned into the same family current through which it has passed for nearly a thousand years. From the Anglo-Saxon holding of Ailid / Æthelgyth, through Norman, medieval, Tudor, Stuart, and later landed families, the Lordship of Watlington Colts / Trussbutts has come back within the bloodline and family world to which so many of its former holders already belonged.
