Brickworth House from an engraving in Matcham's Hundred of Frustfield
A Whiteparish local history page from younsmere-frustfield.org.uk
This page is about the first Giles Eyre of Brickworth, 1572-1655, the first of five generations of identically named Giles Eyres at Brickworth, the other four each being the eldest son and probably eldest child of the previous Giles Eyre. The Giles Eyre line failed when Giles Eyre (5) died without issue and the estate passed to his brother John. There is a more detailed summary of the Giles Eyres and their descendants in the story of Brickworth here.
See here for Matcham's account of Giles Eyre on page 34 of his book (sometimes fails to go exactly to page 34 so scroll if necessary). Alternatively there is a transcription of Matcham's account by Matcham here.
It is worth noting that Giles Eyre has been and continues to be a very popular name in many branches of the Eyre family. There have been many Giles Eyres down through the centuries and still are.
Brickworth House from an engraving in Matcham's Hundred of Frustfield
The first Giles Eyre (1572-1655) is well known locally and connected with three key events, although a closer analysis shows that one of these is a misunderstanding that comes from a failure to appreciate that there were five identically named occupiers of Brickworth in succession.
Giles Eyre's christian name is often observed spelt as Gyles, and indeed is "Gyles" on his memorial in church. I'm seriously considering changing the spelling on this website, but need to research the subject carefully in order to get the spelling of his four successive descendants right as well and to check whether they themselves spelt their names consistently. In the meantime I've retained the modern spelling Giles.
In 1896 the Rev. Allen Stewart Hartigan, a cousin of Thomas Stratford Eyre of Eyreville, published a book entitled "The Eyres of Eyrecourt", giving an account of the Irish branch of the Eyre family. In the introduction he relates that up until 3 years earlier he knew little of his ancestors, the Eyres:
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The gate to Eyrecourt Castle at the east end of Eyrecourt's main street (copyright 2018, 2019 Google)
"I had a hazy idea that all Eyres came from Derbyshire originally, and I had never heard of the Eyres, of Wiltshire. Well, in 1896, my clerical duties took me to Whiteparish, and there a surprise awaited me. In the vestry over my head there hung suspended an ancient helmet, and over it a large leg cut off at the thigh, that was surprise number one. But a further surprise awaited me as looking round the church I came to the memorial of old Giles Eyre, of Brickworth, close by the west door of the church. Now I knew that Giles was a name of the Irish Eyres, for had I not read Charles O’Malley, and I had heard also that the Irish Eyres had come over in Cromwell’s army of invasion. So here before me was a memorial to an old Roundhead Eyre named Giles; surely he had some connection with the Galway family."
It was Giles Eyre's grandson John by his son John (baptised 22nd February 1623) who established the Irish branch of the family [see the Pedigree of the Family of Eyre in Matcham].
So the next question might be "where was the vestry in 1896?" The Butterfield restoration took place in 1870 and we know that there was a west gallery until that date (see the watercolour picture on the All Saints Church page). Whether it was retained in Butterfield's restoration is not yet clear, but it remains possible that the vesty might have been under the gallery? The obvious place to hang a helmet would have been somewhere near the memorial, but of course the helmet itself might have been moved by Butterfield.
When I initially visited the church in 1983 before moving here, the choir robes were hung within a curtained off area in the southwest corner - roughly where the font stands now. I later realised that the vestry had been much earlier, in 1969, so presumably something must have been going on in the current vestry, possibly redecoration or the construction of the cupboards? Another clue might lie in the curtained off area in the chancel immediately behind the font in the watercolour picture above, but even if this was the vestry of the time, it could very easily have been moved by Butterfield.
Patricia Boyle (earlier Pat Keeley) related to me [in 2018] that the helm was stolen from the vestry after Roger's time [d. Jan 1987], leaving just the leg coupée behind. I remember the event, but wasn't aware at the time what had been stolen. She has no knowledge of where it is now [2019] - I'll continue to make enquiries.
As for Eyrecourt Castle, the home of the Irish Eyre family, by 1883 the Eyres were considered insolvent and the was estate offered for sale. The house was falling into decay by 1920 and the grand staircase was exported to the United States around 1950. As seen below, all that remains today is a crumbling ruin [see this Wikepedia article].
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The ruins of Eyrecourt Castle (copyright An Taisce, the National Trust for Scotland)
Buried here Gyles Eyre Esqr. and Jane his wife. A man much oppressed by publick power for his laudable opposition to the measures taken in the Reigns of James and Charles the first. In the year 1640, for then well known Court reasons he was **** was afterwards plundered at Brickworth by the King's soldiers of £2000 value and imprisoned for refusing to pay the sum of £400 illegally demanded of him by two instruments under the privy Seal bearing date at Oxford 14th: Feb: 1643. He was Bapt: Feb: 1572 dyed Jan: 1655 having issue 7 Sons (3 of whom were likewise Members of Parliament) and 4 Daughters.
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Local folklore suggests the asterisks represent a public flogging, while it is held that the Eyre Court family records refer to much worse, and him having been castrated. [The Eyres of Eyrecourt by the Rev. Allen Stewart Hartigan, M.A. Trinity College, Dublin, as represented here makes no such reference that I can see.] [Brian Skelding claimed that a letter had been received in his time from an American relative that purportedly contained the original wording of the memorial, with the word "flogged". Investigate this further in my notes, although it would seem unlikely that we would be able to provide a sound basis for such a claim, given the clear intention of the family not to reveal the details.]
The reference to three of his sons being "likewise" Members of Parliament suggests that he was himself, but I can find no record of this. His father Thomas was MP for Salisbury in 1597 [HistoryOfParliament.org].
Back then to that curious epitaph in the church and the background to the story of Giles Eyre and his suffering at the hands of Lord Goring's troops.
It could be said that the root of Giles' problem was that he lived through the English Civil War (1642 to 1651), a series of disturbances and battles between the Parliamentarians (Roundheads) and Royalists (Cavaliers). Many of the landowners and gentry of this area supported the King (Charles I), but Giles sided openly with the Parliamentarians and attracted a certain amount of notoriety locally as a result.
As we'll see now, it isn't easy to reconcile the information given in this epitaph with the known facts, although in substance it is accurate. The two "instruments" referred to by the epitaph are letters from Charles I to Giles Eyre demanding loans. When writing his book "Hundred of Frustfield", Matcham was given access to the Eyre family records and copied for us the two letters. Matcham's full text is reproduced here. The first of these letters was dated 2nd November 1625, the first year of Charles I's reign. In it he demands a loan of £10, to be repaid within eighteen months. The second letter, dated 14th February 1643 as correctly stated on the memorial, required the loan of £100, with the option to substitute "toucht Plate" at five shillings per ounce or "untoucht Plate" at four shillings and fourpence per ounce, to be paid within seven days.
There seems little doubt that he probably paid neither. In 1640 Giles had been made a Sheriff for the County of Wiltshire, and this may have had a bearing on subsequent events, although Matcham was of the opinion that this appointment was simply to prevent him becoming a Member of Parliament. The memorial seems to suggest that the roughing up, of whatever nature, took place in 1640, rather than at the time of the 1644 visit to Brickworth by Goring's troops.
Matters came to a head in 1644. George Goring had been a popular commander of English troops fighting for the Prince of Orange, but an injury forced his retirment and he was appointed governor of Portsmouth in 1639. Nevertheless, he was given command of a regiment in 1639 and a brigade in 1640, gaining a reputation as a popular officer. By 1640 he had been elected MP for Portsmouth in the Long Parliament. Goring attempted to hold Portsmouth for the King in August 1642, but surrendered in September after a siege. From exile in the Netherlands he assisted the Royalist cause by buying weapons and raising troops. Returning to England he defeated Fairfax in March 1643 but was taken prisoner in a surprise attack on Wakefield two months later. This resulted in imprisonment in Tower of London until April 1644, when he was released in exchange for the Earl of Lothian. Lord Clarendon's assessment of George Goring was that he was a thoroughly wicked man [Wikipedia] and Clarendon was on the same side in the Civil War. To be fair, George Goring attacted a wide range of reactions, "admired by some for his brilliance and charm; reviled by others for his drunkenness, debauchery and irresponsibility" [Biography of George Goring in bcw-project/org.]
It was in January 1644 while he was in the Tower that Goring's troops found themselves at a loose end over the winter and occupied themselves with harrying the area around Salisbury [Matcham page 36, quoting "History of the Rebellion", vol. ix. pp487-488]. Turning up at Brickworth on 30th January they clearly subjected Giles Eyre to somewhat of an ordeal, although as mentioned above, whether the **** took place then as popularly assumed is unclear from the record. Jasper Cornelys signed a receipt for half of the sum demanded on the back of Charles's second letter in the following terms:
"Received of Giles Eyre, Esq. in plaite one hundred and sixty ounces at five shillings the ounce, and tenn pounds in money, which make the sum of fifty pounds, and is in part of this letter. I saye received by virtue of a warrant to me given from the right hon.ble the Lord Seemor and John Ashburnham, Esqre. for the use of the army under the command of the right Honble the Lord Goring, the sum of fifty pounds as abovesaid, the xxxh of January 1644".
Turning back to the memorial, we see that it refers to the date of 1640, the sum of £2000 and mentions that the two letters demanded not £10 and £100, but £400. The words "and afterwards" are then consistent with the date of January 1644. Plundered of £2000? Well, is it possible that the soldiers simply helped themselves to rather more than the £50 for which they left a receipt, and that possibly the sum may have been exaggerated on the memorial as well? We can only speculate.
Lord Clarendon's assessment of George Goring was that he was a thoroughly wicked man [Wikipedia] and Clarendon was on the same side in the Civil War. To be fair, George Goring attacted a wide range of reactions, "admired by some for his brilliance and charm; reviled by others for his drunkenness, debauchery and irresponsibility" [bcw-project.org]
Matcham recounts that with the execution of Charles I in 1649 and the establishment of the Commonwealth with Oliver Cromwell as Lord Protector, Giles Eyre (1) and three of his sons were called to the Council of the Commonwealth. This Wikipedia article lists 37 people as "the" members of the first council, although states that 41 were elected by Parliament. None of the Eyres are listed. The Council only lasted for four years and was abolished and reconstituted in 1653 with just 14 members. More research will be needed here.
Matcham also states that Giles Eyre's (1) subsequent purchases attest to his increasing prosperity. So far I've found no references to these purchases - again, more research is required.
The Pepperbox
As mentioned above and discussed in detail on the Brickworth page, the early 18th century date of the Pepperbox coincides well with the inheritance of the estate by Giles Eyre (4), the great grandson of Giles Eyre (1), in 1695. His son Giles Eyre (5) didn't inherit the estate until 1734, which seems a little late for an "early" eighteenth century date. My conclusion is that it was almost certainly Giles Eyre (4) who built the Pepperbox.
When the turnpike through Whiteparish was established from 1756, one of the stages was at "Mr Eyre's Pond". This pond stood at the Brickworth junction between the A36 and A27, in front of the garage/car wash on the area now grassed. For further details see Turnpikes and Brickworth [need to make this section more accessible on the latter page as it is shown on the map but not referred to in the text].
... and a few dates after his death too ...
A useful link Giles Eyre family