Hendley family

The Hendley family was an English gentry and landowning family whose documented history in Kent extended from before 1344 to the death of William II Hendley in 1798. The family originally held the manor of Coursehorn in the parish of Cranbrook and later became associated with Gore Court in Otham. Over several centuries, its members occupied positions connected with the county's political, judicial, and military life, including service as Members of Parliament, High Sheriffs of Kent, and holders of knighthoods and a baronetcy. The family pedigree recorded a succession of prominent male heirs, including John I, Thomas I, Gervase, Sir Walter I, Thomas II, Walter II, Thomas III, Sir Thomas IV, Sir Walter III, John II, Bowyer, William I, and William II. Marriage alliances linked the Hendleys with other established families in Kent and Sussex, including the Ashburnhams, Culpepers, Hales, Fanes, Springetts, Filmer family, Vaux family, and others. These relationships helped place the family within the wider network of landed families that shaped local administration and parliamentary influence in early modern England. Sir Thomas IV Hendley served as High Sheriff of Kent in 1637. His children included Sir Walter III Hendley, who became the first baronet of the Hendley baronetcy, and John II Hendley, whose descendants continued the principal family line. Bowyer Hendley later served as High Sheriff of Kent in 1702. Through marriage, the family was also connected to ecclesiastical and political figures, including George Horne, who became Bishop of Norwich, and Sir Thomas Taylor, 1st Baronet, who descended through the family of Ann Hendley. The main branch ended with William II Hendley, born in 1743 and deceased in 1798. He was declared insane in 1781 and had no children. His death without a surviving male heir ended the principal male line. After the death of his wife in 1793, disputes and legal complications surrounded the handling of her property and the administration of William's estate. William's surviving sisters declined to undertake the settlement of his estate and goods, which ultimately passed to his nephew William Horne. The family is also recorded through heraldic material attributed to the antiquarian Thomas Philipot in 1619. The arms included quartered Hendley devices featuring martlets and a hind, with alternative quarters referring to the Bowyer and Vaux families. The Hendley family is therefore best understood as a historical English landed family rather than a commercial brand or continuing corporate enterprise.

The Hendley family belonged to the English landed class and maintained a documented presence in Kent from at least the fourteenth century. Its earliest principal holding was the manor of Coursehorn in Cranbrook. The family later acquired Gore Court in Otham, which became an important estate associated with the lineage. Its history reflects the operation of hereditary property, marriage alliances, county office, and parliamentary influence among England's landed families. The recorded genealogy begins with John I Hendley, who died in 1472 and whose wife Mercy had an heir named Thomas I. Thomas I, who died in 1495, married Joan, daughter of John Theobald of Seal, and was succeeded by Gervase Hendley. Gervase died in 1534 and married Elizabeth, daughter of Walter Roberts of Glassenbury in Cranbrook. Their sons included Sir Walter I and Thomas II. Sir Walter I Hendley died in 1550. His descendants and marriage connections tied the family to several notable regional families. His daughter Elizabeth married Walter Waller and later George Fane. His daughter Ellen married, among others, Sir Thomas Culpeper of Bedgebury and Sir George Somerset, son of the first Earl of Worcester. Another daughter, Anne, married Richard Covert of Slaugham. Thomas II, born in 1503 and deceased in 1590, became the ancestor of Walter II, born in 1532 and deceased in 1577. Walter II's heir was Thomas III, born in 1555 and deceased in 1590. Thomas III was succeeded by Sir Thomas IV, born in 1580 and deceased in 1656. Sir Thomas IV served as High Sheriff of Kent in 1637. His family included Sir Walter III, who was created the first Hendley baronet, and John II. Sir Walter III, born in 1612 and deceased in 1675, married Frances, daughter of Sir Thomas Springett of Broyle in Ringmer. His daughter Mary married Sir William More, 2nd Baronet, of Loseley, as her first husband. John II Hendley, born in 1617 and deceased in 1676, married Priscilla, daughter of Thomas Fludd of Gore Court in Otham. Their heir was Bowyer Hendley, born in 1655 and deceased in 1742. Bowyer served as High Sheriff of Kent in 1702 and married Mary, daughter of Thomas Sharpe of Benenden. His children included William I and Ann. Ann's marriage to Samuel Horne, rector of Otham, connected the Hendley family to George Horne, who later became Bishop of Norwich. William I Hendley was born in 1686 and died in 1762. He married Dorothea, daughter of William Singleton, and was succeeded by William II. His daughters included Dorothea, who married Sir Beversham Filmer, 5th Baronet, and Priscilla, who married Richard Hammett, rector of Clovelly. William II Hendley, born in 1743, was the last male member of the principal branch. He married Dorothea, a German woman whose background was not identified in the cited account. William II was declared insane in 1781 and had no children. His wife died in 1793. The account of the family includes a legal and financial episode in which a purported Irish major, Robert Molloy, and Esther Goldsborough obtained or attempted to obtain her belongings. They were found not guilty because the property was legally held for her husband's trustees. When William II died in 1798, his surviving sisters declined to administer the estate, and his nephew William Horne received the remaining estate and goods. The family was also documented heraldically. Thomas Philipot's 1619 account described Hendley arms with quartered designs containing martlets, a hind, and other heraldic charges. Alternative quarters incorporated devices associated with the Bowyer and Vaux families, while the recorded crests included a rising martlet and a lodged hind. The family ceased to function as a continuing principal male lineage after 1798.

• 1798

  End of the principal male line

  [1]Hendley familyen.wikipedia.org

  William II Hendley died childless, bringing the principal male branch of the Hendley family to an end.

• 1781

  William II Hendley declared insane

  [1]Hendley familyen.wikipedia.org

  William II Hendley was declared insane and never produced a child to continue the principal male line.

• 1702

  Bowyer Hendley serves as High Sheriff of Kent

  [1]Hendley familyen.wikipedia.org

  Bowyer Hendley held the county office of High Sheriff of Kent.

• 1675

  Death of Sir Walter III, first Hendley baronet

  [1]Hendley familyen.wikipedia.org

  Sir Walter III Hendley, identified as the first baronet of the family, died after maintaining the family's aristocratic and landed connections.

• 1637

  Sir Thomas IV serves as High Sheriff of Kent

  [1]Hendley familyen.wikipedia.org

  Sir Thomas IV Hendley held the office of High Sheriff of Kent, demonstrating the family's role in county administration.

• 1550

  Death of Sir Walter I Hendley

  [1]Hendley familyen.wikipedia.org

  Sir Walter I Hendley died, leaving a family network connected through marriage to several prominent regional lineages.

• Documented Kentish presence

  [1]Hendley familyen.wikipedia.org

  The Hendley family is recorded as having held land in Kent from before 1344, with the manor of Coursehorn in Cranbrook identified as an early possession.

Historical English landed family and Kentish gentry lineage.

• 1793

  Dispute over Dorothea Hendley's property

  After Dorothea Hendley was allegedly exploited by Robert Molloy and Esther Goldsborough, the pair faced legal proceedings concerning her belongings. They were found not guilty because the property was legally held for William II Hendley's trustees.

  Source

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1. 1Hendley familyen.wikipedia.org