Nocton Hall - Revelations of an Imp - Chapter 6

The Towneleys of Nocton

Sir Richard Towneley and his wife, Frances, began the Towneley years at Nocton in 1536 and their following heirs remained at the Hall for a further six generations.

In 1660, Richard Towneley, of the fifth generation, was forced to sell the estate to recover debts amassed defending the family faith in the Courts and extracting his great grandfather, John Towneley from gaols.

Richard's eldest son Clement, born at Nocton Hall, was the last of at least 45 Towneleys born during their 124 years at Nocton. John (1528-1608) in spite of his years in gaol, or because of his penal career, fathered 14 children of which another Richard inherited Nocton.

The history of the Towneley era would not be complete without focusing on two events. Firstly, the marriage of Richard's brother Charles' grandson of the persecuted John, to Mary, daughter of Sir Francis Trappe, an early ancestor of the now famous Von Trappe whose career inspired the 'Sound of Music'. An appropriate melody to be associated with Nocton with all its beauty under the Towneley ownership. Secondly, its hardly necessary to remind the boys and girls of Nocton who have now grown up that the 17th century was a rugged and unsettled time in our history - the mid part of this period evolving into the Civil War, culminating in the execution of Charles I.

The Towneleys did not escape the blood shed by our countrymen fighting their fellow brothers in a cruel and uncivilised contest. Charles, the husband of Mary Trappe, was killed at Marston Moor and was buried on the battlefield. Perhaps one of our ghosts at Nocton Hall may be our beloved Charles. His body was not to return home. Let us hope his gallant spirit did and has found rest in the peaceful landscape of Nocton which he so dearly loved. Nocton, through the centuries, was continually involved in the government of our country, either because the Lords of the Manor were either soldiers or politicians and it is interesting to note that John Towneley, after periods of confinement because of his staunch Catholic beliefs, was imprisoned in Chester Castle, Marshelsea, York Castle and the Blockhouses in Hull. He was further confined at the Gatehouse in Westminster, then Manchester, Broughton in Oxfordshire and twice at Ely. Enough gaol service to break the staunchest heart and soul, but not John, who through his time of tribulation was legally assisted by a lawyer of Burnley by the name of Waddington. This noble gentleman and gentle advocate, eventually persuaded the Courts to release John for all time, provided he remained within five miles of his home. Nocton to Lincoln is seven miles. Did John venture into the County town? Perhaps by then he was too old at 73 and records say his eyesight was failing. At such an advanced age, he was probably content to rest in his Hall and look out on the Park and freedom.

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