Mainwaring

My Mainwaring ancestors

The surname Mainwaring is an Anglo-Norman territorial surname deriving from "Mesnil Warin" (or "Mesnilwarin", "Mesnilvarin", "Mesnil Varin"), from the village of Le Mesnil Varin (= "the manor of Warin"), now Saint-Paër, Normandy.  The following information on my early Mainwaring ancestors is summarized from the book "Medieval English Ancestors of Robert Abell" by Carl Boyer, 3rd.

01. Randulfus was lord of various towns in Cheshire and Norfolk, England, at the time of the Domesday survey in 1086.

02. Roger Mesnilwarin, son of Randulfus was born abt. 1071.  He gave Plumley to Chester Abbey, England before 1119.

03. William Mesnilwaren, son of Roger, was born abt. 1097.  He was a witness to his father's grant of Plumley to Chester Abbey in 1119, with his brother Randle, who was listed in William's place in the pedigree in Rylands' edition of the Visitation of Cheshire

04. Roger Le Mesnilwarin, son of William was born abt. 1130.  He gave one third of Nether Tabley to Chester Abbey in the time of Henry II.  He married Ellen.

05. Sir Ralph Le Mesnilwarin, son of Roger was born abt. 1155.  married Amicia De Meschines

06. Sir Roger Mainwaring, [1] son of Ralph was born abt. 1185.  His spouse is unknown.  He was knight, Lord of Warmincham, Cheshire, England and flourished during the reign of King Henry III, which was from 1216 to 1272.  He died in 1230.

07. Sir William Mainwaring, [1] son of Roger was born abt. 1205.  received Over Peover, Cheshire by gift from his father during the reign of King Henry III, which was from 1216 to 1272, as appeared by a charter transcribed by Sir Thomas Mainwaring in 1666.  He died in 1248.   His spouse is unknown.

08. William Mainwaring, [1] son of William was born abt. 1245. He married Agnes De Aderne.  He died in 1295.

09. Roger Mainwaring, [1] son of William and Agnes was born abt. 1263 and died before his father.  He married Christian De Birtles.

10. William Mainwaring, [1] son of Roger and Christian was born in abt. 1286.  He married Mary Davenport daughter of Henry Davenport.  He died between 1338-1350.

11. William Mainwaring, [1] "The Elder", son of William and Mary was born in 1316.  He married (1) Joan by whom he had William who succeeded him; (2) Elizabeth Leycester in 1350, the daughter of Nicholas Leycester and Mary Mobberly.  He died in 1364.

12. Sir Randall Mainwaring, [1] son of William and Elizabeth was born abt. 1367  in Over-Peover , Cheshire, England.  He married Margery Venables in 1391, the daughter of Hugh and Margery Cotton.  He succeeded to the family estates after the death of his brother John, entered the service of King henry IV, and, as a result of an attachment to the court of the Earl of Chester, was in 1405 granted for life the office of Equitator of the Forest of Mara and Mondrem, which tne included much of the Hundred of Nantwich and all of Edisbury.  Then, when the Earl succeeded as King Henry V, Randle was granted two parts of the serjeanty of Macclesfield during the minority of John Davenport, whose family held the hereditary serjeanty.  Randle died in 1456.  I descend from three of their children, Cecily, John and William which are outlined separately below.

13. Cecily Mainwaring (c1401-) [1] married Sir Thomas Foulesherst.  I descend from their son Sir Robert Foulesherst who married Jane Vernon and had daughter Elizabeth Foulesherst who married Peter Dutton.  See Dutton line for continuation.
This is the Over Peover line, descending from Randle and Margery through son John :

13. Sir John Mainwaring, [1] son of Randle and Margery was born abt. 1380.  He married Margaret Delves.  King Henry VI sent him a letter commanding him to deliver to Lord Stanley (his second wife's uncle), persons in custody at the castle at Chester, including Thomas and John Nevill (sons of the Earl of Salisbury), Sir Thomas Harrington of Hornby, his son James Harrington of Brierly, Raufe Rokeby, Thomas Ashton and Robert Evereus, esquires.

14. William Mainwaring, [1] son of John was born abt. 1410.  He married Ellen Boteler, a sister to John Boteler of Bewsey night Warrington in Lancashire, and daughter of Sir John Boteler.  William died in the lifetime of his father.

15. John Mainwaring, [1] of Over Peover, Cheshire, England, son of William and Ellen was born abt. 1445.  He married Maud Legh, a widow and daughter of Robert Legh and Isabel Stanley.  He died on July 8, 1495.

16. Sir John Mainwaring, [1] Knight, of Over Peover, Cheshire, son of John and Maud was born abt 1471.  He Married Katherine Honford.  John died in March of 1515/16.  His alabaster monument is a representation of a knight in plate armor, with his wife by his side, and over their legs and knees is a scroll depicting their 15 children.

17. Sir Randall Mainwaring, [1] son of John and Katherine was born abt 1495 and died September 6, 1557.  He married Elizabeth Brereton

18. Margaret Mainwaring, [1] daughter of Randall and Elizabeth was born abt 1521.  She married Arthur Mainwaring of Ightfield and son of Sir Richard Mainwaring and Dorothy Corbet. (Margaret's line continues at #17 below).

This is the Ightfield line, descending from Randle and Margery through son William :

13. William Mainwaring, [1] "the Good", of Ightfield, Shropshire, England, son of Randle and Margery was born abt. 1396 in Over-Peover, Cheshire, England.  He married Margaret Warren,  daughter of John Warren and Matilda Cheney. 

14. Thomas Mainwaring , [1] son of William and Margaret was born abt. 1450 in Ightfield, Shropshire, England.  He married Jane De Sutton, daughter of Sir John De Sutton and Elizabeth Berkeley.  He was tenant of two copyhold estates in Edstaston and Cotton (in Wem parish), county Salop.  Thomas died in 1508. 

15a. Cicely Mainwaring, [1] daughter of Thomas and Jane was born abt. 1470 in Ightfield, Shropshire, England.  She married John Cotton, son of William De Cotton and Agnes Yonge.  She died before 1516.

15b. Sir John Mainwaring, [1] son of Thomas and Jane was born abt. 1478.  He married Joan Lacon, daughter of Sir Richard Lacon and Margery Horde.  He was among those who entered France on June 16, 1513; he was captain in the army of King Henry VIII and was knighted at Lille.  He was the heir of his uncle George Mainwaring.  He died in 1518.

16. Sir Richard Mainwaring, [1] Knight, of Ightfield, Shropshire, son of John and Joan was born in 1499.  He married Dorothy Corbet, daughter of Sir Robert Corbet and Elizabeth Vernon.  He was knighted by September 28, 1536, when he took a lease from John, late Abbott, and the convent of St. Mary, Combermere, Chester.  He served as Commissioner of Peace in May 1538, was among the knights who welcomed Anne of Cleves to England on January 3, 1539/40, and served as Sheriff of Shropshire in 1544 and at other times.  He died on September 30, 1558 in St. Albans, Hertfordshire.

17. Sir Arthur Mainwaring, [1] son of Richard and Dorothy was born abt. 1520.  He married (#18 above) Margaret Mainwaring, daughter of Randall and Elizabeth Brereton.  Knighted at Berwick by John, Earl of Warwick, Lieutenant of the King's Army, in 1547 he was probably engaged in the campaign which led to the battle of Pinkie.  He was Member of Parliament for Shropshire in 1558, Commissioner of Peace in 1561/2, and Sheriff in 1563 and 1577.  In 1577 he was a member of the Royal Commission of Musters, responsible for seeing that all the men of Shropshire aged between 16 and 60 were "armed, trained and inspected."  He died on Sep 4, 1590.

18. Mary Mainwaring, [1] daughter of Arthur and Margaret was born abt. 1541 in Ightfield, Shropshire, England.  She married Richard Cotton on January 6, 1559/60.  She died in 1578. I descend from their daughter Frances Cotton who married George Abell.

  

Surnames that married into my Mainwaring family

BRERETON

BOTELER CORBET COTTON

DAVENPORT

DE ADERNE DE BIRTLES DELVES

DE MESCHINES

DE SUTTON HONFORD LACON
LEGH LEYCESTER

VENABLES

WARREN

 
  

My Descent From The Mainwaring Line

Generation Father Mother
23 Roger Mainwaring (c1263-)  Christian De Birtles (c1235-)
22 William Mainwaring (1286-) Mary Davenport (c1361-)
21 William Mainwaring (c1316-) Elizabeth Leycester (c1318-)
20 Randall Mainwaring (c1367-1456) Margery Venables (c1369-1459)
19 William Mainwaring (c1396-1499) Margaret Warren (aft 1400-)
18 Thomas Mainwaring (c1450-1508) Jane De Sutton (c1455-)
17 Sir John Mainwaring (c1475-1516) Joan Lacon (c1478-1524)
16 Sir Richard Mainwaring (1499-1558) Dorothy Corbet (c1498)
15 Sir Arthur Mainwaring (c1520-1590) Margaret Mainwaring (c1521)
14 Richard Cotton (c1539-1602) Mary Mainwaring (1541-)
13 George Abell (1561-1631) Frances Cotton (1565-1630)
12 Robert Abell (1605-1663) Joanna (1610-1671)
11 Caleb Abell (1646-1731) Margaret Post (1653-1700)
10 Zachariah Loomis (1681-1751) Joanna Abell (1682-1759)
9 Ebenezer Jones (1718-1800) Zerviah Loomis (1724-1808)
8 Miles Jones (1764-1812) Mehitable Adams (1771-1812)
7 Miles Jones (1794-1885) Pamelia Turner (1805-1883)
6 Darius Benjamin Jones (1834-1918) Marquerite Cowan (1835-1906)
5 Nathaniel Henry Hawk (1858-1944) Anna Irene Jones (1868-1936)
4 Ernest August Schwiening (1873-1944) Grace Myrtle Hawk (1885-1984)
3 William Edward Marshall (1901-1981) Irene Sophia Schwiening (1908-1992)
2 William Edward Marshall
1 Tod Howard Marshall

This page was last updated on 12/22/23

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