The Wentworth Dynasty

The Wentworth Dynasty - 1200's to the 1600's

The Wentworth family name is key to the 15th, 16th and 17th Century history of Belchamp Walter.

So far I have managed to find information from a wide range of sources.

The history of Belchamp Hall as told by Thomas Wright (or possible the listing for Belchamp Hall)
Information from Geni.com - there was a lot of notes in the profile on geni - many links to follow on archive.com and others
Essex Archaeological Society - found making a search and links on the geni profile - By Wm. Loftie Rutton
The Wentworth genealogy: English and American (1878) Vol. 1 - by Wentworth, John, 1815-1888
Visitations of Suffolk and Yorkshire
Various Wikipedia pages

Ancient Family

Undoubtedly the Wentworths are an old English family and there are dates from the 1200's. The Family is from Nettlestead, Suffolk and Yorkshire but I have found many references to Gosfield, Codham, Braintree, Bocking and Mountnessing, Felsted and Great Maplestead.

At the time of Conquest the family name was de Wynterwade (Reynold De WYNTERWADE). There were many William Wentworths, in 1440 Wiliam Wentworth was born at Wentworth-Woodhouse in Yorkshire. A branch of the family is recorded as residing in Nettlestead, Suffolk. Sir Roger Wentworth was born in Gosfiled, Essex in 1460 and married Anne Tyrell in 1492

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The Historic listing England - about the Wentworths and the Wentworths

The statement:

Under the de Veres it was held by a number of families until in 1539 it came to Sir Roger Wentworth. Sir Roger's grandson, John Wentworth, commissioned the surveyor Walker to prepare a map of his estate, which was completed in 1605 and showed that the house was surrounded by a garden with an orchard, a rectangular pond, and a dovecote, and was enclosed to west and north by a ditch. John Wentworth sold the manor (still officially held by the de Veres) to John Raymond I in 1611.

.... is an over simplification. "under the de Veres" - Aubrey De Vere was the Tenant in Chief but under the Fuedal System all land was owned by the crown.

Similarly, the statement in some of the village histories created for the Church, Sir John de Botetourt was not an "overlord" for the De Vere's as the Botetourt family had its own place in the history of the country and this area was only a small part of Botetourt's history.

Sir John was an Admiral (Edward II) and also the Governor of St. Braviels Castle (the Kings Armoury) living in Medlesham, Suffolk and marrying a Fitz Otho from Gestingthorpe. The manor and Advowsen for Belchamp (Otten and William/Walter) was his but it does not mean that he lived in Belchamp Walter. The fact that he had a chantry erected in his honour in St. Mary's Church may not mean that he lived in the manor house near the Church or even if there was a dwelling there during his life. The manor house is described as 16th C., Botetourt was not alive then and the house is more likely to have been built for a Wentworth or a relative (Tirrell)

The Wentworth Dynasty - 1200's to the 1600's

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