Descendants of William Newsom

Generation No. 1

Generation No. 2

2. John² Newsom (William¹) was born Abt. 1467 in Newsom Hall, Lancashire, England, and died Abt. 1516 in Newsom Hall, Lancashire, England.

Notes for John Newsom:

It was during John Newsom's residence in Newsham Hall that Thomas Stanley, 1st Earl of Derby, built Greenhalgh Castle six miles to the north (1490). The castle was razed some 159 years later (1649) by the Parliamentary and anti-Catholic forces of Oliver Cromwell during the English Civil War. John Newsom's great grandson Robert Newsom married Elizabeth Sherbourne of Greenhalgh Castle in about 1578 (see notes for Elizabeth Sherbourne).

Child of John Newsom is:

Generation No. 3

3. George³ Newsom (John², William¹) was born Abt. 1502 in Newsom Hall, Lancashire, England, and died Aft. 1567 in Newsom Hall, Lancashire, England. He married Alice Kighley Abt. 1519 in Newsom Hall, Lancashire, England, daughter of Sir Henry Kighley. She was born Abt. 1503 in Inskip, Lancashire, England, and died Unknown.

Notes for George Newsom:

It was George Newsom who was awarded the Coat of Arms, "Azure on a fess Argent three crosses-crosslet Gules" which has been passed down through the generations. According to the 'Miscellanea Genealogica et Heraldica,' the Arms were recorded in 1567 in Lancashire, which would be at or around the time of George Newsom's death. The Arms, along with those of nine other prominent Lancashire families, may be seen beautifully depicted in an ancient and recently restored stained glass window in the east wall at the Art Centre at the University of Central Lancashire at Preston.

Notes for Alice Kighley:

Alice Kighley's father, Sir Henry Kighley, is said to have commanded the bowmen in the English army against the Scots at the Battle of Flodden Field, 1513, in conjunction with Sir William Stanley (of the Royalist Stanleys of Greenhalgh Castle and the line of the Earls of Derby - see notes for Elizabeth Sherbourne) and Sir William Molyneux. These knights and their archers are said to have "forced the Scots to give ground..." (source: Miscellanea Genealogica et Heraldica, College of Arms, London, England). The following is an account of the battle excerpted from Encarta Encyclopedia:

"Flodden Field, plain in Northumberland, England, on the border with Scotland, at the base of Flodden Hill, the northeastern continuation of the Cheviot Hills. It is the site of a celebrated battle, fought on September 9, 1513, in which a Scottish army commanded by James IV, king of Scotland, was defeated by the English under Thomas Howard, earl of Surrey (later 2nd duke of Norfolk), chief lieutenant of King Henry VIII of England.

Upon Henry's refusal to accede to his demand to cease making war on France, an ally of Scotland, James raised an army of 100,000 and invaded England. By the time the Scottish army reached Flodden Field, it had dwindled to about 30,000 as a result of desertions. The opposing English army was of equal strength. By nightfall a decisive English victory was obvious. The total Scottish wounded and dead amounted to some 10,000; English losses were about 4,000. Among the Scottish dead were King James, the archbishop of St. Andrew, 12 earls, and men from every important family in Scotland. The King's Stone, an unhewn granite pillar, is believed to mark the spot where James was killed. The battle is re-created in the sixth canto of the metrical romance, "Marmion, A Tale of Flodden Field," by the 19th-century Scottish poet Sir Walter Scott." Microsoft® Encarta® 98 Encyclopedia. © 1993-1997 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved.

Children of George Newsom and Alice Kighley are:

Generation No. 4

4. John⁴ Newsom (George³, John², William¹) was born Abt. 1520 in Newsom Hall, Lancashire, England, and died Unknown in Newsom Hall, Lancashire, England. He married Grace Preston Abt. 1537 in Lancashire, England, daughter of Henry Preston.

Notes for John Newsom:

Referring once more to the work of Richard Cookson in his 'Goosnargh: Past and Present' (see notes for William Newsom), here is another of his excerpts from 'The History of the Parochial Chapelry of Goosnargh' (1871) by Henry Fishwick, which makes a substantial reference to a 'John Newsam.' Quoting from page 17 of Cookson's book:

"The tythes of Goosnargh are henceforth on several occasions the cause of litigation; and the records of these lawsuits (short and unsatisfactory as they are) furnish us with valuable evidence concerning the parish in this most interesting period of church history.

In 1527 the vicar of Kirkham, 'in most humble and lamentable wise sheweth and complayneth' to the Sir Thomas More, Knt., Chancellor of the Duchy, that he has by payment of 'gret and notable somes of money' obtained from the abbot of Vale Royal a lease, whereby he holds for some years yet to come the 'church benefice or parsonage of Gosenarghe' as well as all the tythes and other advantages; and that John Newsam of Plumpton, gentleman, and Richard Wilson and George Dilworth, of the same place, yeomen, and many other riotous and evil disposed persons to the number of 20 or more (to him unknown) did 'in mein of werr arrayed, that is to say withe clubbs, swords, buckeleres, dagerrs and other unlawfull wepons' on the 20th December 1527, and at many other times, seize the tenth part of corn and grains in the townships of Newsam and Hollow-forth, which belonged to the benefice of Goosnargh, and which was worth upwards of ten marks.

The vicar further pleads that John Newsam is a 'gentleman of gret substance and power and abilitie in the said countrey,' whilst he (the orator) is 'not of abilitie and dar not sew for his remedie by cose of comen lawe;' he therefore requested that Newsam and his companions may be summoned to appear before the Chancellor of the Duchy."

Though after more than 400 years it is difficult to be certain, it is likely that the aforementioned dispute arose out of the fact that the Newsams were Catholic and the vicar was a prelate of the relatively new Church of England under Henry VIII. We may imagine that John Newsam and his colorful companions Richard Wilson and George Dilworth were disinclined to accept taxes in the form of "tythes" demanded by the Anglican Church, especially since the trio were, no doubt, already giving ten percent of their goods to the Catholic Church.

The Thomas More, knight and Chancellor of the Duchy, written to by the hapless vicar of Goosnargh is, of course, the famous Sir Thomas More of English history - "A Man for all Seasons." An excerpt from the article on More in the Encarta Encyclopedia follows:

"More, Sir Thomas (1478-1535) English statesman and writer, known for his religious stance against King Henry VIII that cost him his life.

More was born in London on February 7, 1478, and educated at Canterbury Hall (now Christ Church), University of Oxford. He studied law after leaving Oxford, but his primary interests were in science, theology, and literature. During his early manhood, he wrote comedies and spent much time in the study of Greek and Latin literature. In 1499 he determined to become a monk and subjected himself to the discipline of the Carthusians. Four years later More gave up this plan, and in 1504 he entered Parliament. One of his first acts was to urge a decrease in a proposed appropriation for King Henry VII. In revenge, the king imprisoned More's father and did not release him until a fine was paid and More himself had withdrawn from public life. After the death of the king in 1509, More became active once more. In 1510, he was appointed undersheriff of London.

During the next decade, More attracted the attention of King Henry VIII, and served frequently on diplomatic missions to the Low Countries. In 1518 he became a member of the Privy Council; he was knighted in 1521. Two years later, More was made Speaker of the House of Commons. During this period Henry VIII made More one of his favorites and often sought his company for philosophical conversations. More became lord chancellor in 1529; he was the first layman to hold the post. His fortunes changed, however, when he refused to support Henry's request for a divorce from Catherine of Aragon. More's religious scruples made him unwilling to sanction any defiance of papal authority. He resigned from the chancellorship in 1532 and withdrew from public notice. The king resented the attitude of his former friend and had him imprisoned in 1534. More was tried the following year; he refused to take an oath of supremacy, asserting that Parliament did not have the right to usurp papal authority in favor of the king. Condemned for his stand, More was decapitated on July 7, 1535. In 1935 he was canonized by the Roman Catholic Church.

More is best known for Utopia (1516), a satirical account of life on the fictitious island of Utopia. On this island the interests of the individual are subordinate to those of society at large, all people must do some work, universal education and religious toleration are practiced, and all land is owned in common. These conditions are contrasted with those of English society, to the substantial disadvantage of the latter. Utopia was the forerunner of a series of similar books. Among the best-known of these are Candide by the French author and philosopher Voltaire, Erewhon by the English novelist Samuel Butler, and A Dream of John Ball by the English poet and artist William Morris." Microsoft(R) Encarta(R) 98 Encyclopedia. (c) 1993-1997 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved.

So we see the beginning of a pattern, of Newsomes through the centuries becoming entangled in the great affairs of their day - in this case, a Newsome ancestor mentioned in detail in a surviving letter to Sir Thomas More. But the year 1527 is problematic. By that year, John's grandfather John was already deceased, and John was only about seven-years-old. Yet the author of the "History of Goosnargh" is adamant about the familial relationship, stating unequivocally on page 194, "No doubt it was one of this family (the Newsams of Newsham Hall) who is mentioned in the proceedings relative to the gathering of the tithe corn, &c., of Newsham in 1527..." If the birth dates we have are accurate, then the John Newsam mentioned here is likely a cousin, or perhaps a heretofore "undocumented" uncle in the line.

Children of John Newsom and Grace Preston are:

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