Nicholas Blake of Eastontowne, Andover, Hampshire is a member of the well known (by me) Andover Hampshire family. Nicholas is the son of William Blake and Margaret Hibberd. William has left his will in 1606 and his mother Margaret Hibberd was buried 12 Sep 1613 at St Mary Parish Church, Andover, Hampshire. Margaret was the daughter of Robert and Alice Hibberd. William and Margaret had five children including Nicholas known by me: William who married Anne Tutt, Dorothy, Peter, and Thomas. The father of William who left his will in 1606 was William Blake married to Elizabeth and the first William Blake of this line to live at Eastontown. His father was Nicholas Blake of Enham (married to Margaret).
This will helped to link together the Blake lines at Andover correctly as he refers to his near Blake family there. Although I blogged this will over a year ago I have decided to repeat it looking at it with respect to the Blake family of Hampshire. Interestingly he makes reference to a kinswoman who lived in Southampton, Hampshire. Nicholas mentions his brother William of Eastontown (they are sons of William Blake and Margaret Hibberd), He refers to nephew as cousin; namely William the son of his brother William with son William and to his cousin William (he does not mention that he is the son of his Uncle Richard) with son Richard which is my line. He also mentions the children of his nephew William (son of William Blake and Anne Tutt)'s son William's children namely: Nicholas, Thomas, Sara, Anne and Mary.
He asks that William and his son Richard along with Joseph Hinxman another cousin to maintain a legacy for the Hibberd sisters (possibly nieces of his mother but does not state any relationship). This will reinforces the will of his grandfather William Blake married to Elizabeth (unknown) because it verifies the relationships between the children of this couple, their grand children and great grandchildren. How William Blake and Avis Ripley fit into this picture is unknown to me and perhaps part of it lies with the assumption that I have made that the eldest son of William Blake and Elizabeth was the John Blake who married Margaret Blake. My other assumption is of course that the Wiltshire Pedigree Chart of the Blake family has one small error in it. That John Blake who is named as the son of William Blake and Avis Ripley and Margaret also named as a child of William Blake and Avis Ripley but only mentioned in the information in the chart (no linkage shown other than to her husband John) is actually incorrect and that the correct version is that Margaret is a daughter of William Blake and Avice Ripley and John the son of William Blake and Elizabeth (unknown) and that they are indeed two different Blake lines and their mutual ancestry if any is unknown thus far. Unfortunately William in his will of 1582 does not mention his grandchildren with enough detail to determine if I am correct.
Nicholas in his will does not mention his Uncle John at all but then he didn't mention his Uncle Richard, Uncle Thomas or Uncle Peter. All of these men have been dead for at least a generation and in some cases more. his Aunts married Rombold, Jarvis, Kynton, Beale, and Rigges and for the most part are somewhat distant from Andover during their married lives although they left very large families in some cases.
The one other clue in this will is the mention of Mary Warberton as his kinswoman along with her children (she is widowed) living at Southampton. I have not yet discovered any information on Mary. Nicholas' also mentions a sister Dorothie Smith and brother in law William Smith who is his executor although I did not find a mention of Dorothie in his father's will. That too is a mystery to be solved in this family.
Nicholas' will is below and I would have estimated him to be in his eighties when he died. The priest does not record an age for anyone dying in the Parish Registers at Andover in the time period 20 Nov to 4 Feb 1641/42. The Register itself is difficult to read and a number of entries have not yet been determined to precise name but rather a few letters here and there.
Transcriber: Elizabeth Kipp
Recorded: 16 February 2011
Source: The National Archives PROB 11/188 Image Reference 126/114
Place: Eastontowne, Andover, Hampshire, England
Testator: Nicholas Blake, Gentleman of Andover, Hampshire
Type of Record: Will
Dated: 20 Nov 1641 and probated 4 Feb 1642
Read: Electronic copy
Condition: scan, smudges, old English writing good, contrast medium
T[estator] Nicholas Blake
1 In the name of the eternall and everliveing
2 God the father the sonne and the holy ghost in whose name I was baptized
3 and in whome only I hope and beleeve to be saved Amen, The twintith
4 day of November Anno D[o]m[n]i 1641 and in the seaventeenth yeare of the raigne
5 of our Soveraigne Lord Charles King of England Scotland Fraunce and
6 Ireland defender of the faith and etc I Nicholas Blake of Eastentowne w[it]hin
7 the parrish of Andever in the County of South[amp]ton gent being at the
8 makeing whereof sicke in body yet in good and p[er]fect remembrance for w[hi]ch as
9 for all the other good blessinges and benefits w[hi]ch yt hath pleased him to
10 bestowe uppon me I doe yeeld and give unto his divine nature most humble
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11 and hear to thankes beseeching him of his great mercie and goodnes to
12 pardon and forgive me all my sinnes and to receave my soule into his heavenly
13 kingdome And I doe make and declare this p[re]sente to be my last will and
14 Testament revokeing all former wills and Testaments And first and principally
15 I comend my soule into the hands of god the father the sonne and the holy
16 ghost by whose mercifull promises and by the only merrits death and
17 passion of Jesus Christ my only Saviour and Redeemer I hope to be
18 saved and to be made an inheritor of his heavenly kingdom My body yf
19 comend[ed] to be buried unto the earth in the Church of Andever neere unto the place where
20 my Ancestors have beene buried Item I give to the Church of Andever
21 thirty shillings Item I give to the Church of Knights Enham twentye
22 shillings Item I doe make my cosen William Blake of Eastentowne
23 aforesaid eldest sonne of my elder brother William Blake of Eastentowne
24 aforesaid my sole executor of this my last will and Testament Item I give
25 to all my godchildren twenty shillings a peece to be payed w[i]thin six months
26 after my decease they requireing the same Item I give to the poore people
27 of Andever such as are most ancient and have most need fourtye
28 shillings to be delivered to them at my funerall Item I give to Winnifred
29 Hibberd and her foure other sisters tenn pounds to be payed by my executor
30 unto my cosen Joseph Hinxman senior and Joseph his sonne and unto my cosen
31 William Blake of Andever and Richard Blake his sonne or to some of
32 them whome I doe desire soe to dispose and ymploy the same to at yt may
33 Be p[re]served and kept in stocke to keepe them in worke Item I give to
34 widow Hibberd their mother five shillings Item I give to Nicholas
35 Blake and Thomas Blake two of the sonnes of my cosen William
36 Blake of Eastontowne aforesaid fyftie pounds a peece to be payed unto
37 them when they shall attaine to the age of twenty one yeares Item I
38 give unto Sara Blake Anne Blake and Mary Blake three of the
39 daughters of my said cosen William Blake of Eastontown fyftie
40 pounds a peece to be payed unto them when they shall attayne to the
41 age of twenty one yeares or att such tyme as they shal[l ]be married
42 And my will and meaneing is that yf any of the Children of my said
43 cosen William Blake to whome I have by this last will given my
44 legacie unto shall happen to depart this life before such legacie shal[l ]be
45 growe due and payable then the legacie or legacies of him her or them
46 soe dyeing shal[l ]be paid and equally distributed amongst the survivors of
47 them Item I give to my kinswoman Mary Warberton widdowe of the towne
48 and county of Southampton twenty pounds to be payed unto her within
49 six moneths after my decease Item I give to the five children of the
50 said Mary Warberton now liveing twenty pounds a peece to be payed unto
51 them when they shall severally attaine to the age of twenty one yeares
51 or be married And yf any of them shall happen to depart this life before
52 they shall attaine that age or shall be married And yf any of them shall
53 Then my will and meaneing is that the legacie or legacies hereby given to
54 him her or them soe dyeing shal[l ]be paed and equally devided amongst the
55 survivors of them. Whereas Mrs. Venables of Andever doth owe unto
56 me divers sommes of money as by specialty remayning in my custody and
57 otherwise doth and may appeare. My will and meaneing is that for so much
58 thereof as will discharge the severall legacies hereby given to the children
59 of my cosen William Blake of Eastontowne and to the Children of my
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60 said kinswoman Mary Warberton shall remaine and continue in the hands of
61 the said Mrs. Venables at six pounds p[er] centum until such tyme as the same
62 shall severally and respectively growe due and payable unto them and either of
63 them she the said Mrs. Venables giving sufficient secureties to my executor
64 before named for the true payment thereof together w[i]th the interest and
65 profite for the only use and benefitt of the said Children Item I give to my
66 Sister Dorothie Smithe peece of gould of twenty two shillings of Queene
67 Elizabeths Coyne nowe in my custody And I give to my brother in lawe
68 William Smithe desireing him as my overseer of this my
69 last will to ayd and assist my executor the best he can All the rest of
70 my goods and Chattles I doe hereby give and bqueath to my said executor
71 requireing and chargeing him to be carefull in the performance of this my
72 last will and testament. In witness that this shall stand and remaine my
73 last will I have hereunto sett my hands the daye and yeare first above
74 written Nich: Blake [signed] And the same daye and yeare first w[i]thin
75 written I the said Nicholas Blake doe hereby further declare my will
76 and meaneing in manner and forme followeing that is to saye Item I doe
77 forgive unto Mrs. Venables w[i]thin named the somme of one hundred
78 pounds of the moneys she oweth me by specialty and otherwise And
79 doe desire that this clause may be counted and taken as part and p[a]rcell
80 of my wish in written last will and testament And in witnes that this
81 is my will and meaneing I have hereunto sett my hands the daye and
82 yeare first w[i]thin written Nich: Blake [signed] Published in the p[re]sence
83 of William Smith The same Legacies given by the Testator wer
84 e desired a little before his death might be subscribed to this his last will
85 Will and be reputed as part and parcell thereof. To Mr Matkins
86 vicar of Andever twenty shillings To his brother Mr. William Blake in
87 gould for remembrance twenty shillings To Tho: Blake the son of the said
88 Mr William Blake fyve pounds To Elizabeth Cload that attended
89 him in his sicknes twenty shillings William Smith [signed]
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