The much-married Margaret

Edward Derehaugh’s second wife – her Lightfoot family and her other two husbands and children. With a potential link to the Gurdons of Dedham.

Margaret was the daughter of Humfrey Lightfoot, a Merchant of the Staple of Calais who had been born in Roxwell in Essex. The name of her mother isn’t known, although her maiden name presumably had been Baynham or Baynam.^[1]Humfrey Lightfoot’s 1549 PCC left money to the poor of Roxwell, saying it was where he had been born. He mentions his late wife’s brother Bartholomew Beynham and his late wife’s … Continue reading She had two brothers, William and John Lightfoot, and a sister, Alice. Margaret’s siblings were under 21 in 1549, when their father wrote his will, so Margaret was probably born in the late 1520s or early 1530s.

Clement Clarke, husband #1

We first meet Margaret Lightfoot in a Faculty Office marriage licence, dated 30 Dec 1548, when she married her first husband, Clement Clarke. They were perhaps married in London – her husband Clement was the son of John Clarke, citizen and draper of London, and the year before their marriage, Clement had been made free and was a citizen and draper too.

Clement and Margaret had four sons: Andrew, John (died before 1583), Clement (died 1584) and William (died about 1589). Clement owned a lot of property in around Bocking in Essex, presumably moving out of London having made money in the city. He died in Bocking in early 1562,^[2]See Clement Clarke’s will. He mentions his four sons in the will, as well as Frances “Sachsby” – perhaps a relative of William Saxsby, mentioned in Margaret’s … Continue reading and soon afterwards, Margaret married again.

John Cole, husband #2

John Cole had already been married and had a son called William.^[3]William appears in John’s will as his son, evidently under 21 as John asks Margaret to ensure William is educated. Then he appears again in Margaret’s as her son-in-law, which at that … Continue reading He and Margaret married in the early 1560s – by the time he died in 1567 or 1568,^[4]John Cole wrote his PCC on 25 Sep 1567, and it was probated on 25 May 1568. He was “sick in body” when he wrote the will, so perhaps died soon after writing his will. He wanted to be … Continue reading they had had three children: Robert, Anne and Jane.

John had bought the manor of Markshall on 1 May 1562 from John Markeshall, whose family had owned the manor for nearly 500 years.^[5]Morant’s History of Essex, vol 2, p167. See also Feets of Fines for Essex, vol 5, 1547-1580, Leopard’s Head Press, 1991: p 95. John Cole, gent, bought the Manor of Markshall for £220 … Continue reading Perhaps he had bought it in advance of his marriage to Margaret – they must have been married not long after Clement’s death bearing in mind that the couple had three children before he died in 1568. After John’s death, the manor passed to his son, William.^[6]Morant, ibid.

It’s possible that we can identify John. Two of the witnesses to his will, written in September 1567, were William Cardynall and Robert Veysey. William is likely to be William Cardinall of Great Bromley (1536-1598), son of William Cardinall and his first wife Joan Gurdon. Robert Veysey is likely to be William Cardinall’s brother-in-law – he was the husband of William’s sister Joan. Joan Gurdon’s first husband John Cole, a clothier who lived in Dedham, died in 1535, and they had had a son called John, who was a minor at his father’s death. It seems entirely possible that John Cole of Markshall, Margaret Lightfoot’s second husband, was Joan’s son, and therefore William Cardinall’s half-brother, and Robert Vesey’s brother-in-law.

William Cardinall’s half-sister Julian^[7]The 1558 Essex Visitation for Cardinall says that Julian, daughter of William and his second wife Lettice Knightley/Clippesby, married Robert “Deranger”, son of Thomas. Other evidence … Continue reading was Edward Derehaugh’s first wife. And Edward’s half-sister Joan Cutler had become William Vesey’s second wife^[8]Edward’s brother Robert Derehaugh mentions William Vesey’s son William several times in his will as his nephew, so it seems that the Derehaughs’ mother had married twice – to … Continue reading – Robert Vesey was his son by his first wife. If John Cole was indeed Joan Gurdon’s son, it would provide connections between Margaret and Edward Derehaugh, and explain how they knew each other and eventually married.

I haven’t yet traced William and Robert, although they were both still living at the time Margaret wrote her will nearly forty years later. John and Margaret’s daughter Jane married Ambrose Gilberd in 1588 – Ambrose was a brother of Dr William Gilberd, the scientist known as the father of electricity and magnetism, who was also Elizabeth I’s personal physician. Ambrose and Jane had three children: Ambrose, William and Jane. Ambrose senr died in Harwich and 1604, and Jane then married Robert Milddleton. It’s possible he’s connected to Arthur Middleton, who lent money to Jane’s step-nephew Francis Derehaugh.

Jane’s marriage to Ambrose Gilberd is represented on the memorial to his brother William in Trinity church, Colchester. The arms of Gilberd appear on it, but so do several arms which are impaled, showing marriages of William’s siblings. This includes Gilberd impaled with Cole – three scorpions with a chevron.^[9]From the Essex Visitation, 1634: “Argent, a chevron gules between three scorpions reverse sable.” The arms appear in the Essex Visitation for 1634, for Thomas Cole, MA, of Saffron Walden and of the Middle Temple. Unless these arms were used improperly, which seems unlikely on the memorial of such an important man (thought not impossible!), it means that John Cole, Jane’s father, was probably related to Thomas Cole.^[10]The tree for the Cole (pg 379 of The Visitations of Essex, ed Walter C Metcalfe, shows Thomas’ parents as John Cole of Walden and Lidia Golding of Thaxted. Then John’s parents were James … Continue reading

John and Margaret’s daughter Anne married a man called Plaile. They had a son called William.^[11]According to Margaret’s will, written in 1601. Anne Plaile married John Throgmorton at Thaxted on 10 May 1607 – there are no marriage statuses in the record. However, given that there is … Continue reading It’s possible he was Robert Plaile, one of the witnesses to her stepfather, Edward Derehaugh’s, 1598 will.

Edward Derehaugh, husband #3

Edward’s first wife was Julian Cardinall, daughter of William Cardinall (c1509-1568). Edward and Julian had a son, William, baptised in Great Bromley in 1561.^[12]Baptism 28 June 1561, William Deero son of Mr Edward Deero, gent. He seems to have had another son called Edward, although it’s not clear whether he was the son of Julian or Margaret. Edward junior predeceased both Edward and Margaret.^[13]Edward was buried at Markshall on 2 Feb 1595/6. Morant, History of Essex vol 2 under Markshall, says that both William and Edward were Edward senr and Margaret’s children. William … Continue reading

When their marriage took place isn’t clear – it may well have taken place in Markshall, and the register doesn’t go back far enough. Their marriage must’ve happened after 1567, as Margaret’s second husband died in late 1567 or early 1568. There is a Chancery suit between Edward Derehawghe and John Lyghtfoote, dated between 1558 and 1579, involving a marriage contract for Markshall, Essex. So we can date the marriage between 1567 and 1579.

Although it seems very likely that the marriage came about by Edward Derehaugh and John Cole being related via the Gurdons and Cardinalls, there had already been a link between the Derehaughs and Lightfoots. Back in the mid-1540s, three daughters of John Lightfoot (son a man called Hugh or Hugo Lightfoot) were the plaintiffs in a Chancery case against Robert Derehawh or Derrow and John Johnson, regarding land in Suffolk and Norfolk.^[14]TNA ref C 1/1114/35-38. The women were Emma, wife of Thomas Cordall; Margery, wife of William Godbold; and Anne, wife of John Page alias Baxter. The land was in Dennington (Donyngton, Dynyngton), … Continue reading Robert Derehaugh is possibly Edward’s father. Some years earlier, between 1518-1529, the same three women had been plaintiffs in another Chancery case, against Edward Lyghtfote of Roxwell.^[15]TNA ref C 1/510/46. This involved land and rent in Writtle, Roxwell, Willingale Doe, Willingale Spain, Dennington (Donyngton), Brundish Morningthorpe, Fritton, Long Stratton, and Shelton. Bearing in … Continue reading Bearing in mind we know that Margaret’s father was born in Roxwell, Edward must be one of his relatives – perhaps his father or uncle. Why was Robert Derehaugh involved with descendants of the Lightfoots? Is it coincidence, or does it give us a clue as to the identity of Robert’s wife – was she a Lightfoot too, perhaps a fourth sister? Without looking at the Chancery document, I don’t know at the moment.

William Cole, Margaret’s stepson, sold the manor of Markshall to Edward Derehaugh on 8 October 1581.^[16]Morant, ibid.

Edward died at the end of May 1598, having written his will only a few of days before his death.^[17]Edward Derehaugh’s will is dated 20 May 1598, and he was buried at Markshall five days later. In his will he mentions his son William and his wife Margaret, and Margaret’s brother “Master Lightfoote”, as well as John Holmsteede. Edward had entered into a bond with John Lightfoot to provide Margaret with either a £20 annuity or £400-worth of goods – this is probably the outcome of the Chancery suit. Edward mentions indentures between himself and John Holmesteede, “wherein I and William [his son] stand bound for saving Holmsteede harmless” of a £40 annuity to Margaret.

As to who John Holmsteede was – Agnes Holmesteed married Thomas French at Farnham, Essex, on 26 July 1587. She appears in the 1611 will of Robert Derehaugh, Edward’s brother, as his niece. It seems there was a Derehaugh sister who married a Holmesteed/Holmsteede/Ompsted (there are many ways to spell their name, which makes them hard to track down). Perhaps it was John.^[18]ERO will of John Hompstede of Stebbing, 1598, doesn’t mention anyone called French or Agnes. Some of his children are under 21, so if he is connected, then he might be Agnes’ brother … Continue reading Though why he would be paying Margaret’s annuity, I don’t know, unless it had something to do with marriage settlements.

Margaret’s children

Margaret died in 1604, and three of her children predeceased her, all sons from her first marriage to Clement Clarke.

When her son Clement Clarke of Stisted wrote his will in 1583, he named his brothers and his three half-siblings, and mentioned his stepfather’s brother Robert Derehaugh of Gray’s Inn as his “trusty and loving friend.” He mentions a legacy left to his brother William by his brother John, who had presumably died before 1583 leaving a will (although I’m still tracking it down).

William Clarke of Gray’s Inn, Margaret’s son, wrote his will in 1588, and made Robert Derehaugh his executor along with his half-brother Robert Cole.^[19]William’s will was written on 10 Dec 1588, naming his sister Jane as Jane Cole, but she married Ambrose Gilberd at Markshall on 7 Nov 1588. Either William made a slip and forgot she was … Continue reading

By the time Margaret died in February 1604,^[20]Margaret was buried at Markshall, where her last two husbands were also buried, on 21 Feb 1603/4., she had had three husbands and been the mother of at least seven children, and stepmother to at least two. She named eight grandchildren in her will, which she wrote on 19 September 1601.

First published: 30 January 2021, during the third lockdown.