Katherine More (bef. 1586 - aft. 1622)

Born before 23 Nov 1586 in Shropshire, England [uncertain]

Ancestors

Wife of Samuel More M.P. — married 4 Feb 1611 (to 1619) in St. James Church, Shipton, Shropshire, England

Descendants

Died after 24 Jun 1622 after age 35 in England [uncertain]

Problems/Questions Profile manager: Magna Carta Project WikiTree [send private message]

Magna Carta Surety Baron Descendant (see text). Join: Magna Carta Project Discuss: magna_carta

Katherine More is in trails badged by the Magna Carta Project to several surety barons (see text below).

Biography

Origins

Katherine More was the daughter and co-heiress of Jasper More, Esq. of Larden, Shropshire, and Elizabeth Smale, daughter of Nicholas Smale of London, clothmaker.^[1] She was baptized 23 November 1586.^[2]

Katherine descended from Malcolm III and David I of Scotland and probably from Edward I of England and, at age 23, she was to become the heiress to Larden Hall.^[3] Larden Hall, first known as "The Morehouse", was held by Katherine's family for many generations, being part of the manor of Shipton. The family expanded, acquiring lands in Laverden (Larden) and purchasing the Lordship of Larden in 1434, with Larden eventually becoming the family seat.^[2]

Marriage and Children

Katherine married Samuel More, Esq., of Linley, Shropshire,^[1] on 4 February 1611,^[2] she was aged about 25 and he was about 17.^[4] They were third cousins.^[5]

A marriage was arranged between Jasper More's daughter, Katherine, and Richard More's son, Samuel, his son and heir. This likely occurred because Samuel's father, Richard, was set to inherit the More estate at Larden on Jasper's death, as none of Jasper More's three sons had survived him.^[2] Their marriage settlement dated 18 October 1610^[1] outlined the terms of the Larden estate's transfer.^[2] On Jasper More's death, his wife, Elizabeth was to have use of Larden for her life and, afterward, the property was to be held "to the use of Samuel and Katherine More and the heirs of their bodies, in default of them to the heirs of the body of Samuel More."^[2]

Katherine More had four children,^[1] each of whom was baptized as a child of Samuel More in Shipton,^[3] at the church of St. James:^[2]

• Jasper^[1] baptized "Jasperus Moore" on 8 August 1613^[2]
• Ellen^[1] baptized "Elinora Moore" on 24 May 1612^[2]
• Richard^[1][3][6] baptized "Richardus Moore" on 13 November 1614^[2]
• Mary^[1] baptized "Maria Moore" on 16 April 1616^[2]

The family resided at Larden with Katherine's parents, Jasper and Elizabeth More. Jasper died in January 1614.^[4]

Katherine and Samuel's relationship was a tumultuous one that eventually led to divorce.^[3] It is widely believed that Jacob Blakeway, "a base fellow" is the biological father of Katherine's children; and Samuel himself believed the children to be the product of Katherine's and Blakeway's affair.^[7] Mayflower scholar Caleb Johnson writes:

"Katherine had a longstanding but secret extramarital affair with a neighbor by the name of Jacob Blakeway. At some point, husband Samuel More began to notice a resemblance between "his" children, and Jacob Blakeway whom he had come to suspect was with his wife. When he realized his four children were not actually "his", but were bastards, he and his wife engaged in a bitter divorce and Samuel ended up getting custody of the children he claimed were not his."^[8]

Divorce

In April 1616, after Samuel discovered his wife's adultery, he cut the entail on the Larden estate to prevent her children from inheriting and his father, Richard, did the same to protect the estates of Linley and Downton.^[4] At that time, Samuel boarded the children with his father's tenants,^[3][7] moving them from Larden to Lindley. Samuel also consulted with Lord Edward Zouche, 11th Baron Zouche of Harringworth and member of the king's privy council, "about the problem posed by the children".^[9] During that era, the husband had total control of his wife's children, "and in this case all were to be cast out for their mother's transgressions".^[4]

Katherine filed for an annulment on the grounds of having a pre-contract with Jacob Blakeway,^[1] applying to the Chancellor of the Consistory Court of the Diocese of Hereford in June 1616. She lost her case. Charges were brought against Jacob for adultery and he was fined, yet the adultery continued. In March 1619, Samuel sued him for trespassing and breaking and entering and won £400 in damages. As Jacob was unable to pay the damages, "Blakeway to prevent execucion fledd" (he would have been jailed for failing to pay the damages). No further record of Jacob Blakeway is found after this.^[4]

Samuel filed for a divorce on the grounds of adultery and Katherine fought against it.^[4] The divorce was granted in 1619^[1] and Katherine unsuccessfully appealed the sentence^[7] to the High Court of Delegates, her appeal being dismissed on 8 July 1620.^[4] After that date, Samuel and his father quickly dispensed with Katherine's children.^[9] In order to spare Katherine's children from the "great blotts and blemishes [that] may fall upon them", Samuel put them in the care of Thomas Weston, Robert Cushman and John Carver, "honest and religious people", to be sent to the New World. Samuel gave the men payment for the children's travel, food, clothing and arranged for each to eventually receive 50 acres of land.^[3][9] It is likely that Lord Zouche played a pivotal role in facilitating the childrens' removal to Virginia, as he had been a member of the Virginia Company and was one of the first members of the Council for New England.^[9]

Samuel and Katherine's dispute did not end with the removal of the children in 1620. It continued on, until Katherine was barred from all "rights, titles, interests and demands" relating to Larden, and she renounced her claims to the estates on 24 June 1622.^[4] A 1622 document spelling out the dispute between Samuel and Katherine, the July 1620 terms of the children's "delivery" to Carver and Cushman to be sent to "Virginia", and the reasons behind it can be seen in The New England Historical and Genealogical Register, vol 114 (July 1960), pages 165-166.^[7]

Sadly, by 1622, Richard More was the only one of Katherine's children who survived their relocation to New England. It is unknown if Katherine ever learned of her childrens' fate.

Death

Nothing more is known of Katherine's life after she signed the renunciation of her claim to the Larden estates on 24 June 1622.^[4]

Samuel More remarried on 11 June 1625 to Elizabeth Worsley in Hampshire.^[9] It is assumed that Katherine had died by that date^[4] as, although they were divorced, neither was allowed to remarry until one had died.^[7]

Sources

1. ↑ ^{1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 1.7 1.8 1.9} Douglas Richardson. 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. III, page 174-175, MORE 15.
2. ↑ ^{2.00 2.01 2.02 2.03 2.04 2.05 2.06 2.07 2.08 2.09 2.10} Harris, Donald F. "The More Children of the Mayflower" in 3 parts, published in The Mayflower Descendant. Online at American Ancestors.org, Part I: vol. 43, no. 2 (July 1993), pages 123-132 (with subscription): background of the More families and estates.
3. ↑ ^{3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 3.5} Sherman, Robert Moody et. al. Mayflower Families Through Five Generations. Volume Fifteen Family of James Chilton and Family of Richard More. General Society of Mayflower Descendants, 1997, pages 151-155. Not available online.
4. ↑ ^{4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 4.5 4.6 4.7 4.8 4.9} Harris, Donald F. "The More Children of the Mayflower" in 3 parts, published in The Mayflower Descendant. Online at American Ancestors.org, Part II "A Spurious Broode" (with subscription): vol. 44, no. 1 (January, 1994), pages 11-20 (with subscription): background on Blakeway family.
5. ↑ Royal Ancestry: A Study in Colonial and Medieval Families, vol IV, pages 147-148.
6. ↑ Robert Charles Anderson, The Great Migration Begins: Immigrants to New England, 1620-1633, 3 vols., Boston, MA: NEHGS (1995). Online at AmericanAncestors.org, Vol. II, pages 1283-1287 (with subscription).
7. ↑ ^{7.0 7.1 7.2 7.3 7.4} Wagner, Anthony R. "The Origin of the Mayflower Children: Jasper, Richard and Ellen More" in The New England Historical and Genealogical Register. (Boston, MA: New England Historic Genealogical Society, 1847-). Online at AmericanAncestors.org, vol. 114 (July 1960), pages 163-168 (with subscription).
8. ↑ Caleb Johnson. MayflowerHistory.com: Richard More and Ellen, Jasper, and Mary More.
9. ↑ ^{9.0 9.1 9.2 9.3 9.4} Harris, Donald F. "The More Children of the Mayflower" in 3 parts, published in The Mayflower Descendant. Online at American Ancestors.org, Part III "Samuel Came to London": vol. 44 no. 2 (July, 1994), pages 109-118 (with subscription): Lord Zouche, removal of children, Richard More of Linley - Puritan.

• 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.
• Anderson, Robert Charles. The Great Migration Begins: Immigrants to New England, 1620-1633, 3 vols., Boston, MA: NEHGS (1995). Online at AmericanAncestors.org, Vol. II, pages 1283-1287 (with subscription).

See also:

• Richard More biography at Mayflower 2020, online at AmercanAncestors.org.
• Wikipedia: Richard More (Mayflower passenger).
• Revell, Phil. The Mayflower Children. (Ascribe Publishing, 2013), page 9.
• Lindsay, David. Mayflower Bastard: A Stranger Among the Pilgrims. (New York: Thomas Dunne Books, 2002). Not available online. See TAG 77:318-319 for review by Robert Charles Anderson.

Acknowledgements

Click the Changes tab to see the edits to this profile. Thank you to everyone who contributed.

Magna Carta Project

This profile was reviewed/approved for the Magna Carta project by Michael Cayley on 28 May 2020.

Katherine More appears in Magna Carta Ancestry in a Richardson-documented trail from her son, Gateway Ancestor Richard More, to Magna Carta Surety Baron William de Mowbray (vol. III, pages 173-175 MORE). This trail was developed by the Magna Carta project in February 2020 by Thiessen-117 and was reviewed/approved/badged 28 May 2020. Also at this time, other badged trails were identified by the Project from More to surety barons Gilbert de Clare, Richard de Clare, John de Lacy, Saher de Quincy, Hugh le Bigod and Roger le Bigod. All of these trails are set out in the Magna Carta Trails section below.

See Base Camp for more information about Magna Carta trails. See the project's glossary for project-specific terms, such as a "badged trail".

Magna Carta Trails

Badged Richardson-documented trail to Mowbray (MCA III:173-175 MORE):

Gateway Ancestor Richard More (badged 2020)

1. Richard is the son of Katherine More (badged 2020)

2. Katherine is the daughter of Jasper More (badged 2020)

3. Jasper is the son of Margaret Cressett (badged 2020)

4. Margaret is the daughter of Richard Cressett (badged 2020)

5. Richard is the son of Jane Corbet (badged 2020)

6. Joan is the daughter of Elizabeth Hopton (badged/100% 5-star)

7. Elizabeth is the daughter of Eleanor Lucy (badged/100% 5-star)

8. Eleanor is the daughter of Walter Lucy (badged/100% 5-star)

9. Walter is the son of Margaret de Mowbray (badged/100% 5-star)

10. Margaret is the daughter of John de Mowbray (badged/100% 5-star)

11. John is the son of John de Mowbray (badged/100% 5-star)

12. John is the son of John de Mowbray (badged/100% 5-star)

13. John is the son of Roger de Mowbray (badged/100% 5-star)

14. Roger is the son of Roger de Mowbray (badged/100% 5-star)

15. Roger is the son of Magna Carta Surety William de Mowbray

Badged trails to the Clares, Lacy, Quincy, the Bigods:

13. John de Mowbray is the son of Rose de Mowbray (badged/100% 5-star)

14. Rose is the daughter of Richard de Clare (badged/100% 5-star)

15. Richard is the son of Magna Carta Surety Gilbert de Clare

16. Gilbert is the son of Magna Carta Surety Richard de Clare

14. Rose de Mowbray is the daughter of Maud de Lacy (badged/100% 5-star)

15. Maud is the daughter of Magna Carta Surety John de Lacy

15. Maud de Lacy is the daughter of Margaret de Quincy (badged/100% 5-star)

16. Margaret is the daughter of Robert de Quincy (badged/100% 5-star)

17. Robert is the son of Magna Carta Surety Saher de Quincy

11. John de Mowbray is the son of Joan Plantagenet (badged/100% 5-star)

12. Joan is the daughter of Maud Chaworth (badged/100% 5-star)

13. Maud is the daughter of Isabel de Beauchamp (badged/100% 5-star)

14. Isabel is the daughter of Maud FitzJohn (badged/100% 5-star)

15. Maud is the daughter of Isabel le Bigod (badged/100% 5-star)

16. Isabel is the daughter of Magna Carta Surety Hugh le Bigod

17. Hugh is the son of Magna Carta Surety Roger le Bigod