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| eliza_skynner [2026/06/03 18:18] – judith | eliza_skynner [2026/06/03 22:11] (current) – judith |
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| Eliza's parents were William Augustus Skynner((TLM-P, genealogical notes in John & John B. Burke, //A Genealogical and Heraldic Dictionary of the Landed Gentry of Great Britain & Ireland: M to Z//, London: Henry Colburn Publisher, 1846; Robert M-P, //The Blood Royal of the Murray-Priors//, p.13; Thomas Bertram M-P, //Some Australasian Families Descended from Royalty//, ms, n.d., p.5; ‘Questions to be answered by T.L.M-P’, 6pp Memoranda to the Herald Office, Somerset House, London re Burke’s Colonial Gentry.)) and Mary Skynner nee Orlebar (1768-97). They married in 1790.((Bedfordshire archives, Mary Skynner, letter, Reference OR2071/394-396)) More information is in the Bedfordshire Archives, in the documents used by Frederica St. John Orlebar to compile //The Orlebar Chronicles in Bedfordshire and Northamptonshire, 1553-1733//, a detailed genealogical and historical work chronicling the lives, letters, and estate records of the Orlebar family. Elsewhere, the archives comment that "The Orlebars, who owned Hinwick, wrote a lot of poetry and Mary Orlebar was extremely prolific with her pen – the first volume we have of her poems has the contemporary label 'volume 41'."((https://bedsarchives.bedford.gov.uk/PathstoCrime/PoeticLicence.aspx))For a listing of the contents of the extensive Orlebar family Archives, see [[https://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/details/r/1cdebd53-81bf-4155-8842-64349f38106d]]. Sadly some revealing poems by Mary Orlebar were not purchased but initially catalogued. For more information see ((email from Dr Kirsty McGill to J. Godden, 28 May 2026: "Our records indicate that OR2175 (all of the poems noted in the items description) was not purchased when the majority of the Orlebar manuscripts were acquired in 1986. ... The Orlebar manuscripts, deposited at the County Record Office in several instalments since 1932, were offered for sale by private treaty to the County Council by Messrs Christies (on behalf of Michael Orlebar esq.) in February 1986. The purchase at a cost of £32,400 was made possible through a public appeal sponsored by the Bedfordshire Historical Record Society, which received generous support from Bedfordshire and beyond. The ownership of the collection passed to the County Council with the completion of the purchase on 26th August 1986 (reported to the Leisure Committee on 12th September). The documents included in the purchase were: OR 1-2070. The original collection and subsequent deposits (excluding nos. 1397-1405, 1864, 1878 and 1882 - previously withdrawn by the family and not held at the Record Office at the time of the purchase in 1986). OR 2071/1-621 three folio volumes containing about 620 documents (some missing) removed from the main archive and used by Mr[sic - Ms] Frederica Orlebar when writing the "Orlebar Chronicles" (new accession, August 1986) OR 2072, The Elizabethan Establishment book (new accession, August 1986). Further records of the family were deposited in 1980 with the summary listed at the time of the purchase in 1986 catalogued as OR2073-2394. However not all of these items were then included in the sale and this is indicated in the card catalogue as '(not purchased)'. Further deposits of material have been made by Mr Orlebar subsequent to the sale and these have been added to OR as fitting with this collection and in some cases originally forming part of it but not being included in the sale. It should be noted that ownership of these documents remains with Mr Orlebar.")) \\ | Eliza's parents were William Augustus Skynner((TLM-P, genealogical notes in John & John B. Burke, //A Genealogical and Heraldic Dictionary of the Landed Gentry of Great Britain & Ireland: M to Z//, London: Henry Colburn Publisher, 1846; Robert M-P, //The Blood Royal of the Murray-Priors//, p.13; Thomas Bertram M-P, //Some Australasian Families Descended from Royalty//, ms, n.d., p.5; ‘Questions to be answered by T.L.M-P’, 6pp Memoranda to the Herald Office, Somerset House, London re Burke’s Colonial Gentry.)) and Mary Skynner nee Orlebar (1768-97). They married in 1790.((Bedfordshire archives, Mary Skynner, letter, Reference OR2071/394-396)) More information is in the Bedfordshire Archives, in the documents used by Frederica St. John Orlebar to compile //The Orlebar Chronicles in Bedfordshire and Northamptonshire, 1553-1733//, a detailed genealogical and historical work chronicling the lives, letters, and estate records of the Orlebar family. Elsewhere, the archives comment that "The Orlebars, who owned Hinwick, wrote a lot of poetry and Mary Orlebar was extremely prolific with her pen – the first volume we have of her poems has the contemporary label 'volume 41'."((https://bedsarchives.bedford.gov.uk/PathstoCrime/PoeticLicence.aspx))For a listing of the contents of the extensive Orlebar family Archives, see [[https://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/details/r/1cdebd53-81bf-4155-8842-64349f38106d]]. Sadly some revealing poems by Mary Orlebar were not purchased but initially catalogued. For more information see ((email from Dr Kirsty McGill to J. Godden, 28 May 2026: "Our records indicate that OR2175 (all of the poems noted in the items description) was not purchased when the majority of the Orlebar manuscripts were acquired in 1986. ... The Orlebar manuscripts, deposited at the County Record Office in several instalments since 1932, were offered for sale by private treaty to the County Council by Messrs Christies (on behalf of Michael Orlebar esq.) in February 1986. The purchase at a cost of £32,400 was made possible through a public appeal sponsored by the Bedfordshire Historical Record Society, which received generous support from Bedfordshire and beyond. The ownership of the collection passed to the County Council with the completion of the purchase on 26th August 1986 (reported to the Leisure Committee on 12th September). The documents included in the purchase were: OR 1-2070. The original collection and subsequent deposits (excluding nos. 1397-1405, 1864, 1878 and 1882 - previously withdrawn by the family and not held at the Record Office at the time of the purchase in 1986). OR 2071/1-621 three folio volumes containing about 620 documents (some missing) removed from the main archive and used by Mr[sic - Ms] Frederica Orlebar when writing the "Orlebar Chronicles" (new accession, August 1986) OR 2072, The Elizabethan Establishment book (new accession, August 1986). Further records of the family were deposited in 1980 with the summary listed at the time of the purchase in 1986 catalogued as OR2073-2394. However not all of these items were then included in the sale and this is indicated in the card catalogue as '(not purchased)'. Further deposits of material have been made by Mr Orlebar subsequent to the sale and these have been added to OR as fitting with this collection and in some cases originally forming part of it but not being included in the sale. It should be noted that ownership of these documents remains with Mr Orlebar.")) \\ |
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| {{:mourn_ring_on_my_finger_20260513_175634.jpg?300|}}((Provenance: J. Godden from ES M-P)) This is an elegant, classically inspired [[wp>Mourning_ring|mourning ring]], worn to indicate (along with the strict wearing of black) the recent death of a loved one. The black enamel underneath one side of the urn is chipped, showing the gold underneath. The writing above the centre funeral urn states ‘Mary Skynner OB [who died]'. The writing below the urn gives her date of death '14 Nov 1797’ and age (AE) 29.\\ | {{:mourn_ring_on_my_finger_20260513_175634.jpg?300|}}((Provenance: J. Godden from ES M-P)) This is an elegant, classically inspired [[wp>Mourning_ring|mourning ring]], worn to indicate (along with the strict wearing of black) the recent death of a loved one. The black enamel underneath one side of the urn is chipped, showing the gold underneath. The writing above the centre funeral urn states ‘Mary Skynner OB [who died]'. The writing below the urn gives her date of death '14 Nov 1797’ and age (AE) 29. Mary was buried in the family vault in the churchyard of the Church of England St Gregory by St Paul, on 22 November 1797.((Ancestry, City of London, St Gregory by St Paul, Church of England Burials, 1538-1812)).\\ |
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| The Bedfordshire Archives collection includes three letters from Mary Skynner to her 'Dearest Brother' Richard Orlebar, two in 1795 and one (a page added to her husband's letter, in 1797((Reference OR2071/394-396))and a letter from Mrs Catherine Jones to Mary's sister Anne Orlebar after Mary's death in 1797.((Reference: OR2071/449)) \\ | The Bedfordshire Archives collection includes three letters from Mary Skynner to her 'Dearest Brother' Richard Orlebar, two in 1795 and one (a page added to her husband's letter, in 1797((Reference OR2071/394-396))and a letter from Mrs Catherine Jones to Mary's sister Anne Orlebar after Mary's death in 1797.((Reference: OR2071/449)) \\ |
| The next letter was from William Skynner, on 17 February 1797, in a more serious tone writing to Richard that his wife Mary, Richard's sister, much wishes to see him. He also refers to Richard's debts, admonishing him not to get in debt again. Mary was expecting her fourth child around the end of February or early March. She was, William write, tolerably well (meaning not completely well). Perhaps to soften his stern advice to Richard to curb his expensive lifestyle, William mentioned that they were happy that Richard would be the expected baby's godfather. It is not known if this baby survived. In her letter Mary expected him to escort 'our dear Anne' (their sister) to visit them.\\ | The next letter was from William Skynner, on 17 February 1797, in a more serious tone writing to Richard that his wife Mary, Richard's sister, much wishes to see him. He also refers to Richard's debts, admonishing him not to get in debt again. Mary was expecting her fourth child around the end of February or early March. She was, William write, tolerably well (meaning not completely well). Perhaps to soften his stern advice to Richard to curb his expensive lifestyle, William mentioned that they were happy that Richard would be the expected baby's godfather. It is not known if this baby survived. In her letter Mary expected him to escort 'our dear Anne' (their sister) to visit them.\\ |
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| The next letter is from Catherine Jones to Anne Orlebar, on 3 December 1797. Mary, as the mourning ring indicates, had died some 9 months after she expected to give birth. Birth was then hazardous with around one birthing woman for every 200-250, dying as a result. It was not helped by the frequency of births - Mary, for example, had 4 births in 7 years of marriage. She survived, but it is not known if she was weakened in the process. Catherine Jones' letter refers to Mary and her family moving to a new house and asks 'do you think her cold was caught from that?' Did she catch a cold which then resulted in a lung infection which killed her? In any case, her husband was 'much afflicted' which Catherine Jones thought, showed her valued 'the __Treasure__ he has lost', his wife. She also mentioned how Mrs Orlebar, presumably Mary's mother, insisting her grandchildren all go into mourning. The three little children in black 'sickened' her to her heart.\\ | The next letter is from Catherine Jones to Anne Orlebar, on 3 December 1797. Mary, as the mourning ring indicates, had died some 9 months after she expected to give birth. Birth was then hazardous with around one birthing woman for every 200-250, dying as a result. It was not helped by the frequency of births - Mary, for example, had 4 births in 7 years of marriage. She survived, but it is not known if she was weakened in the process. Catherine Jones' letter refers to Mary and her family moving to a new house and asks 'do you think her cold was caught from that?' Did she catch a cold which then resulted in a lung infection which killed her? In any case, her husband was 'much afflicted' which Catherine Jones thought, showed he valued 'the __Treasure__ he has lost', his wife. She also mentioned how Mrs Orlebar, presumably Mary's mother, insisting her grandchildren all go into mourning. The three little children in black 'sickened' her to her heart.\\ |
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| Mary Skynner was not forgotten. The Bedfordshire Archives noted the existence of poems written by her aunt Mary Orlebar (1730-1821)((Loose Poems by Mary Orlebar in four packets (numbered 1 to 70) further poems not in packets, written 1762-1821.Sadly, though initially catalogued with the Bedfordshire Archives the collection of poems "was either not included in the auction sale or not purchased in 1986 when the majority of the other items were purchased by Bedfordshire Archives.", Dr Kirsty McGill, Bedfordshire Archives Service, email to J. Godden, 27/5/2026. Mary Orlebar's poems are also noted by the University of Oklahoma which states that the 'Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire County Record Offices' have 'No fewer than 13 volumes [which] describe the lives of Mary, Harriet, Charlotte and Anne Orlebar ... from 1751 to 1830. As well as their daily observations on their households, their children and their social lives, there is much of literary interest - including the poetry of Mary, their unofficial poet laureate, who commemorated important family events in verse.' The collection is not listed as being in the Hertfordshire Archives. (([[https://static.lib.ou.edu/microformguides/Ampltd_399.pdf]])) One of Mary Orlebar's poems was written on 29 December 1819 to celebrate her 89th birthday. Another poem (item 133) is about her namesake: 'On Contemplating the picture of my beloved niece Mary Skynner, some years after her death'. It would be wonderful to discover the whereabouts of these poems. The Bedfordshire archives also has this miniature portrait thought to be Mary Skynner in c.1797:{{:mary_skynner_bedfordshire_archives.jpg?300|}} They also have a photo of a painting of Mary Skynner but unfortunately it is not available online.(([[http:////bedsarchivescat.bedford.gov.uk/Details/archive/110323733item|OR2211/2]]))\\ | Mary Skynner was not forgotten. The Bedfordshire Archives noted the existence of poems written by her aunt Mary Orlebar (1730-1821)((Loose Poems by Mary Orlebar in four packets (numbered 1 to 70) further poems not in packets, written 1762-1821.Sadly, though initially catalogued with the Bedfordshire Archives the collection of poems "was either not included in the auction sale or not purchased in 1986 when the majority of the other items were purchased by Bedfordshire Archives.", Dr Kirsty McGill, Bedfordshire Archives Service, email to J. Godden, 27/5/2026. Mary Orlebar's poems are also noted by the University of Oklahoma which states that the 'Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire County Record Offices' have 'No fewer than 13 volumes [which] describe the lives of Mary, Harriet, Charlotte and Anne Orlebar ... from 1751 to 1830. As well as their daily observations on their households, their children and their social lives, there is much of literary interest - including the poetry of Mary, their unofficial poet laureate, who commemorated important family events in verse.' The collection is not listed as being in the Hertfordshire Archives. (([[https://static.lib.ou.edu/microformguides/Ampltd_399.pdf]])) One of Mary Orlebar's poems was written on 29 December 1819 to celebrate her 89th birthday. Another poem (item 133) is about her namesake: 'On Contemplating the picture of my beloved niece Mary Skynner, some years after her death'. It would be wonderful to discover the whereabouts of these poems. The Bedfordshire archives also has this miniature portrait thought to be Mary Skynner in c.1797:{{:mary_skynner_bedfordshire_archives.jpg?300|}} They also have a photo of a painting of Mary Skynner but unfortunately it is not available online.(([[http:////bedsarchivescat.bedford.gov.uk/Details/archive/110323733item|OR2211/2]]))\\ |
| In his 1882 diary, TLM-P recalls when on a trip between Uxbridge (now in west London) and Amersham, it was near where 'Uncle Augustus Skynner was taking us to [Birds?]'(19 August).((‘Questions to be answered by T.L.M-P’, 6pp Memoranda to the Herald Office, Somerset House, London re Burke’s Colonial Gentry; TLM-P's Family Bible; John Burke, //A Genealogical and Heraldic History of the Commoners of Great Britain and Ireland Enjoying Territorial Possessions Or High Official Rank, But Uninvested with Heritable Honours//, 1834; Thomas Bertram M-P, //Some Australasian Families Descended from Royalty//, ms, n.d., p.5.)) In May-June 1882, TLM-P visited the Orlebar family at [[http://www.hinwickhouse.com/|Hinwick House]], Bedfordshire (at time of writing, it had become a luxurious hotel). It was at a sad time: the current Orlebar (a little man 'ferretty with red hair') had been doing what 'he could to retrieve what his father had done but heavy interest on mortgages, bad seasons one after another, rents unpaid etc., so with all their striving has failed and now they have to shut up the House and leave.' Though the Orlebars had two 'steady' sons in professions, Mr Orlebar had only an agency which would bring in £100 p.a. income. TLM-P thought that it would need an income of £20,000 p.a. to maintain Hinwick House. Among the portraits owned by the Orlebars was one of Eliza's Orlebar grandfather, 'nothing like the miniature of my Grandfather, W.A. Skynner who married his daughter Mary O[rlebar]'. He also mentioned that nearby Pollington Church contained the graves of his maternal ancestors.((TLM-P, Diary, 1 June 1882)) TLM-P was sufficiently impressed with this past grandeur that, two years later, he named his youngest son Julius Orlebar M-P.\\ | In his 1882 diary, TLM-P recalls when on a trip between Uxbridge (now in west London) and Amersham, it was near where 'Uncle Augustus Skynner was taking us to [Birds?]'(19 August).((‘Questions to be answered by T.L.M-P’, 6pp Memoranda to the Herald Office, Somerset House, London re Burke’s Colonial Gentry; TLM-P's Family Bible; John Burke, //A Genealogical and Heraldic History of the Commoners of Great Britain and Ireland Enjoying Territorial Possessions Or High Official Rank, But Uninvested with Heritable Honours//, 1834; Thomas Bertram M-P, //Some Australasian Families Descended from Royalty//, ms, n.d., p.5.)) In May-June 1882, TLM-P visited the Orlebar family at [[http://www.hinwickhouse.com/|Hinwick House]], Bedfordshire (at time of writing, it had become a luxurious hotel). It was at a sad time: the current Orlebar (a little man 'ferretty with red hair') had been doing what 'he could to retrieve what his father had done but heavy interest on mortgages, bad seasons one after another, rents unpaid etc., so with all their striving has failed and now they have to shut up the House and leave.' Though the Orlebars had two 'steady' sons in professions, Mr Orlebar had only an agency which would bring in £100 p.a. income. TLM-P thought that it would need an income of £20,000 p.a. to maintain Hinwick House. Among the portraits owned by the Orlebars was one of Eliza's Orlebar grandfather, 'nothing like the miniature of my Grandfather, W.A. Skynner who married his daughter Mary O[rlebar]'. He also mentioned that nearby Pollington Church contained the graves of his maternal ancestors.((TLM-P, Diary, 1 June 1882)) TLM-P was sufficiently impressed with this past grandeur that, two years later, he named his youngest son Julius Orlebar M-P.\\ |
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| **=== Portraits of Eliza Skynner (later Prior) ===** | === Portraits of Eliza Skynner (later Prior) === |
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| {{:eliza_s_1816.jpg?250|}} This sketch of 'Miss E. Skynner, Moor Hall Berks 1816' is by an unknown artist.((Provenance: J. Godden.))\\ | {{:eliza_s_1816.jpg?250|}} This sketch of 'Miss E. Skynner, Moor Hall Berks 1816' is by an unknown artist.((Provenance: J. Godden.))\\ |