Sir
Robert
"1st Baronet"
Kemp
aka Kempe
Born about in England
[uncertain]
Ancestors [uncertain]
Son of Robert Kempe Esq.
and Dorothy (Harris) Kempe
Brother of
Richard Kempe, John Kempe, Arthur Kempe, Dorothy (Kempe) Jackman, Elizabeth Kempe, Edmund Kempe, Edward Kemp, Thomas Kempe and Matthew Kempe
Husband of
Jane (Browne) Kempe
— married
before 1626 in London, England [uncertain]
Descendants [uncertain] 
Father of
Robert Kemp, Thomas Kemp, Jane (Kemp) Waldegrave, Matthew Kempe, Richard Kemp and Elizabeth (Kemp) Shelton
Died
at about age 49
in England [uncertain]
[uncertain]
Profile managers:
Magna Carta Project WikiTree 
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| Created 11 Mar 2011
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| Magna Carta Surety Baron Descendant (see text). Join: Magna Carta Project Discuss: magna_carta |
Sir Robert Kempe, 1st Baronet, is in a badged trail to several Magna Carta Surety Barons (see text below).
NOTE: Beware of possible conflation(s). See research notes below.
Contents |
Biography
Robert Kempe, Knt., 1st Baronet, of Gissing, Norfolk, was son and heir of Robert Kempe and Dorothy Harris.[1][2][3] His date and place of birth are unknown, his birth date is estimated to be about 1598.[4] Hitchin-Kemp states that Robert was about age 15 when his father died in 1612.[5]
Robert was admitted to Gray's Inn on 26 February 1604/5[3] as "son and heir of Robert Kempe, Esquire, of Gissing".[6] He succeeded his father 24 April 1614.[3] He may have been the Robert Kempe who held an office in the Court of Faculties (there was a Robert Kempe there who issued marriage licenses).[5] He was Gentleman of the Privy Chamber to King Charles I[1] in 1631 and was knighted 7 August 1641[7] at Whitehall.[3]
Marriage and Children
- Robert married Jane (Browne) Kempe,[2] daughter of Sir Matthew Browne, of West Betchworth/Beechworth, Surrey,[8] and Jane Vincent.[1][3] They were married before 1626.[5]
- Robert and Jane had children, four sons and two daughters.
- Robert,[8] Knt., 2nd Baronet[1] born at Walsingham Abbey on 2 February 1627.[5]
- Thomas[1][8]
- [Col.] Matthew,[8] Gent.[1]
- Richard[1][8]
- Jane, wife of Thomas Waldegrave, Esq.[1][8]
- Elizabeth, wife of Maurice Shelton[1]
1st Baronet
- On 14 March 1641/2, Sir Robert Kempe was recognized by the King for his long personal devotion, and he was created 1st Baronet of Gissing, Norfolk.[3] And, to further show his appreciation, the king bore all expenses involved with the patent (charges of the heralds scribes and other officials).[5]
- When the Civil War started in 1641/2, Sir Robert had raised a small force that was no match against Cromwell's forces. Robert was forced to flee to Rotterdam and "parts beyond the sea". It is unknown how long he was in hiding, but a warrant was issued on 16 October 1643 for the sequestration of his personal and real estate.[5] His fine for raising troops, £112 18 s. 4d., was paid 3 March 1645. To pay such a fine, he was forced to sell some of his estates.[5]
Will and Death
- Robert's will dated 29 April 1647 was proved 6 September 1647, and it named the following people:[5]
- his wife, Dame Jane Kempe
- his eldest son, Robert
- his second son, Thomas
- his third son, Matthew
- Maurice Shelton and his wife (Elizabeth), his daughter
- Dorothy, daughter of his late sister Dorothy Jackman
- his "brother", Sir Robert Kempe of Finchingfield, Essex (see below)
- his sisters
- his "son" [in-law], Thomas Waldegrave
- his grandchild, Jane Waldegrave
- He named as his executors, Dame Jane Kempe and Sir William D'Oyley, his friend.
- Sir Robert Kempe died on 20 August 1647[1][2] and was succeeded by his eldest son.[3][8] His will was proved in the Consistory Court in Norwich in 1647.[3]
- NOTE: After Robert's death, under an Act of Parliament dated 4 February 1651/2, all Baronetcies bestowed by Charles I after 4 January 1641/2 (the date of the commencement of the Civil War) were made "null and void" until the Restoration[3] in 1660, when Charles II returned from exile.
Research Note
Possible Conflation
- The "Sir Robert Kempe of Finchingfield, Essex" (aka of Heydon and of Spains Hall, Essex) named in the will above was actually this Robert's brother-in-law. Robert of Finchingfield married Elizabeth Kempe, sister to this Robert (1st Baronet). The brother-in-law Sir Robert Kempe of Finchingfield came from a different line of Kempe's further confusing the relationships.[5]
Sources
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 1.7 1.8 1.9 Richardson, Douglas. Magna Carta Ancestry: A Study in Colonial and Medieval Families, 4 vols., ed. Kimball G. Everingham. 2nd edition. (Salt Lake City, UT: the author, 2011), vol. II, page 470, KEMPE 16.i.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 Richardson, Douglas. Royal Ancestry: A Study in Colonial and Medieval Families, 5 vols., ed. Kimball G. Everingham. (Salt Lake City, UT: the author, 2013), vol. III, page 412.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 3.5 3.6 3.7 3.8 Cokayne, George E. Complete Baronetage. Vol. II, 1625-1649 (Exeter: W. Pollard & Co., 1900), online at Archive.org, pages 162-163, see also memorandum page 152 and page 161 footnote b.
- ↑ Lewis, Marlyn. Sir Robert Kempe, 1st Baronet entry in Our Royal Titled Noble and Commoner Ancestors website, accessed 5 Jan 2020.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 5.4 5.5 5.6 5.7 5.8 Hitchin-Kemp, Frederick. A General History of the Kemp and Kempe Families of Great Britain. (London: The Leadenhall Press; New York: C. Scribner’s Sons, 1902), online at Archive.org, Chapter IX, pages 36-39: NOTE: H-K gives INCORRECT dates of adm. to Grays (26 Feb 1614) and knighthood (12 Nov 1618)
- ↑ Foster, Joseph. The Register of Admissions to Gray's Inn, 1521-1889. (London: p.p., 1889), online at Archive.org, page 109.
- ↑ Shaw, W. A. The Knights of England. Vol. 2, (London: Sherratt and Hughes, 1906), online at Archive.org, page 210.
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 8.3 8.4 8.5 8.6 Wotton, Thomas, et al. The Baronetage of England. Vol. 1. (London: Printed for G. Woodfall, 1771), online at Archive.org, page 439: Sir Robert Kemp.
- Richardson, Douglas. Magna Carta Ancestry: A Study in Colonial and Medieval Families, 4 vols., ed. Kimball G. Everingham. 2nd edition. (Salt Lake City, UT: the author, 2011). See also WikiTree's source page for Magna Carta Ancestry.
- Richardson, Douglas. Royal Ancestry: A Study in Colonial and Medieval Families, 5 vols., ed. Kimball G. Everingham. (Salt Lake City, UT: the author, 2013). See also WikiTree's source page for Royal Ancestry.
- See also:
- Rye, Walter: Visitations of Norfolk, Harleian Soc. 32 (1891), online at Archive.org, page 176, citing Mundy's compilation (Harl. 1552). Date about 1612, Sir Robert is "1. Robert" at the bottom left corner.
- Faris, David. Plantagenet Ancestry of Seventeenth-Century Colonists. (Baltimore, MD: Genealogical Publishing Co., 1996), online at Ancestry.com, pages 151-152.
- ThePeerage.com: Sir Robert Kemp, 1st Bt.
Acknowledgements
Click the Changes tab to see edits to this profile. Thank you to everyone who contributed.
Magna Carta Project
- This profile was re-reviewed by Thiessen-117 20:24, 5 January 2020 (UTC)
- Robert Kempe appears in badged trails (reviewed in 2014 by the Magna Carta project and re-reviewed Dec 2019 by Thiessen-117) from his son, Gateway Ancestor Matthew Kempe, to Magna Carta surety barons William d'Aubigné, Richard de Clare, Gilbert de Clare, John de Lacy, Saher de Quincy, and Robert de Ros. This profile also appears in a Richardson-documented trail to Magna Carta Surety Barons Hugh le Bigod and Roger le Bigod (vol. II, pages 468-470 KEMPE) that has not yet been developed on WikiTree. See the Magna_Carta_Trails|Magna Carta Trails section on Richard Kempe's profile, where all these trails are all set out.
- See Base Camp for more information about identified Magna Carta trails and their status. See the project's glossary for project-specific terms, such as a "badged trail".
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Rejected matches › Robert Kemp (1627-1710)
Featured Female Poet connections: Robert is 10 degrees from Anne Bradstreet, 18 degrees from Ruth Niland, 26 degrees from Karin Boye, 25 degrees from 照 松平, 12 degrees from Anne Barnard, 28 degrees from Lola Rodríguez de Tió, 19 degrees from Christina Rossetti, 12 degrees from Emily Dickinson, 28 degrees from Nikki Giovanni, 18 degrees from Isabella Crawford, 21 degrees from Mary Gilmore and 15 degrees from Elizabeth MacDonald on our single family tree. Login to find your connection.
There is also an Edward Kemp who is "everywhere in VA, MD, NJ, and PA as a surveyor and landowner." [1]. Edward appears to have been born in the late-1600s. If you have not read this historical blog, it is wonderful, well documented, and presents good information including some researchers theorize that Edward may have been the son of Edmund and Denise Watson of Norfolk, England, therefore pointing that Edward may not have been connected to the Kemps from VA.
According to other researchers, Dan Kemp, Marlene (Kemp) Woods, and my piecemeal, handed-down collection, some of this information works with what we know from more solid sources, i.e written histories from Somerset (PA) Historical Society, wills, land ownership, etc. However, I'm not comfortable the family group KEMP-8635 is correct.
I am hopeful this Thomas Kemp in Calvert County is related to the Charles Kemp family in Stafford VA.
Any comments or guidance is so appreciated.
Thank you, Karen
My approach on these sorts of occasion is to assume no connection between families unless and until clear evidence emerges. That seems to me the only safe thing to do.
edited by Michael Cayley
I think there is a possibility that the son named in 1647 his will, Thomas Kemp (b. 1620s) went to Calvert County, Maryland and died there in 1684.
Thomas Kemp of Calvert County was transported to Maryland in 1651. I've researched this man extensively in the Maryland archives. He made several trips back to England in the 1650s through the 1670s and may have been in London in 1671. He held significant land and appears to have jointly held property in Calvert County with a Robert Kemp, purchased in 1679, likely his brother. Thomas Kemp declared himself bankrupt in 1677 and died in 1684 leaving orphaned children to his (likely) son in law, Simon Stacy, administrator of what remained of his estate.
These children pop up in later records of Calvert County--there were at least three sons: Thomas Kemp (d. 1695), Robert Kemp (d. 1694) and William Kemp (d. after 1720).
Simon Stacy moved to Stafford County, Virginia in 1687. Robert Kemp and Thomas Kemp are both named in records of Stafford County between 1691 and 1702 (one of those being posthumous). Both men died across the river in Calvert County, where their probates were recorded.
On May 11, 1692, George Brent (burgess) sued another burgess named Matthew Kemp (c.1655-1717) over the thieving of pigs from his property in Stafford County on Potomac Creek. The thief named was not Matthew but Thomas Kemp. No relationship is spelled out in the suit. Thomas Kemp was found guilty and fined, but the implication seems to be that he was broke and Matthew may have paid his hefty fine for him.
Now its possible that the Thomas Kemp of Stafford was not the man from Calvert but instead Thomas Kemp, Gentleman Justice of Middlesex County (bef. 1666-aft. 1695) whom we know to have been a son of Matthew Kemp Sr. (1630-1683). But I haven't found any evidence he was in Stafford County, and really, why would a Gentleman Justice steal pigs?
If Thomas Kemp Sr. of Calvert County was long lost the son of Sir Robert Kempe 1st Baronet, that would make Matthew Kemp Jr. of Middlesex and Thomas Kemp Jr. of Stafford first cousins. I wonder if Thomas told the court "I don't have any money and my father is dead, why don't you sue my rich cousin?"
There's only one thing that doesn't fit well: Thomas Kemp Sr. gave his age as 52 in a deposition of 1673, placing his birth as 1621. In the will he is named second after his brother Robert, who we know was born Feb. 2, 1627 by his gravestone. It's possible Thomas misremembered his year of birth, but to be off by a whole six or seven years is a stretch. Maybe he was a disinherited older son? He was given only sixty pounds in his father's will, so it makes sense that he had to make his own way in life. The official Kemp genealogies don't seem to know what happened to Thomas, son of Robert, he just sort of vanishes.
Thoughts?
edited by Jason F.
edited by Traci Thiessen