This story is inspired by the prompt “Quite a Character”, which was a 52 Ancestors in 52 weeks prompt a few weeks ago. I am a bit slow getting around to sharing the story.
George Elye* was probably born in Lincolnshire around
1544. I don’t know who his parents
were. There are some published family
histories that suggest various parents but these can easily be shown to be based
on dubious research.
According to Oxford University Alumni records, George Elye matriculated (enrolled) at Magdalen Hall age 19. He is described as a plebeian (commoner) from Lincolnshire. This suggests his origins were relatively humble. He graduated with a Bachelor of Arts on 25 June 1566. George then continued his studies, completing his Masters degree on 3 July 1569. By the way, Magdalen Hall was a separate institution to the well-known Magdalen College, Oxford. A fire in 1820 destroyed most of Magdalen Hall’s records, so I can't find out more about George's university days. Magdalen Hall more recently merged with Hertford College.
George was ordained in the Church of England on 8 Jul 1566
at the Chapel of Palace, Lincoln. Six
months later, on 1 December 1569, he became Curate of St Mary Magdalene Church,
Canterbury. The church has since been
demolished apart from the tower. Another
six months later, on 3 Jul 1570, George because a Sub Preceptor (an assistant
teacher or tutor) at Canterbury King’s School.
The school is thought to have been founded by St Augustine in 597 AD and
is still in operation.
On 16 April 1571, George Elye became Perpetual Vicar of St
Mildred’s Tenterden in Kent, only a few miles from where I live. George remained Vicar of Tenterden for the
rest of his life. This copy of his
signature is from the parish registers.
George Elye was known to have been a puritan and “non-conformist” in that he didn’t conform to the mainstream practices of the Church of England at the time although he was part of the church. In 1573, it was recorded that he used common bread rather than unleavened bread for communion, which was apparently a sign of puritanism at the time. He reportedly did not subscribe to Whitgift’s articles in 1584, however remained Vicar. Whitgift was the Archbishop of Canterbury who came up with 3 articles that clergy had to subscribe to in order to stay in their roles. The three articles were intentionally objectionable to puritans and non-conformists. Also in 1584, George was recorded as having caused unquietness in his parish, although the nature of the unquietness is unclear.
St Mildred’s Tenterden parish had a Chapel in Smallhythe that
caused George some problems. William
Raynoldes was a reader in the chapel in 1590 but was excommunicated by George
Elye on 5 April 1590 for not being properly licenced. Raynoldes successor, William Randall als
Boydell, was also excommunicated on 25 Feb 1593 (new style**) by George, this
time it appears it was for not holding services since the Summer.
What really caught my attention, was a story about George
and a door. In 1599, he had a dispute
with parishioner Martha Whitefield over her use of the north chancel door. The case ended up being heard by the
Archdeacon. George’s claim was that,
amongst other things, the north chancel door was for the use for the Vicar and
Mrs Whitefield had acquired a key by “sinister and indirect means”. The result of the case was the Mrs Whitefield
had to pay a gratuity for use of the key to the door and ensure that the door
was locked. Also during service the parish clerk was instructed to bolt the door closed so
that people couldn’t use the door and disturb the congregation. Some years later, Martha Whitefield got in
trouble for brawling with another woman in the church.
George Elye’s personal life also reflected his puritan views.
Sometime before 1572, when their first son was baptised,
George married Florence. Some of the
previously mentioned family histories give her surname as Tylden but I can’t
find any evidence for this. I have found
a marriage for George Elie and Florence Crase on 15 July 1598 in Corton Denham,
Somerset, that is a possibility in need of more investigation.
George and Florence had 9 children and gave them biblical names rather than more traditional English names, a puritan tradition. They were: Nathaniel,
Andrew (my ancestor), Zachariah, Samuel, Obadiah, Lydia (died in infancy),
Daniel, Lydia (died as a child) and Abigale.
It was common to reuse the names of deceased children.
Nathaniel Elye followed in his father’s footsteps and became
Curate of Biddenden parish, not far from Tenterden, after attending St Johns,
Cambridge. Sadly, Nathaniel died
relatively young in May 1615, aged about 43.
He had a posthumous son, also named Nathaniel, who died in infancy. This is noteworthy because a number of histories
claim that the Nathaniel Ely, an early settler in Connecticut, is the son of
George’s son Nathaniel. It is possible
that Nathaniel of Connecticut was the son of another of George’s sons. I
haven’t found out enough about their families to rule this in or out.
Andrew Elye also died young, about 1602, age 27. He left two young children, Lydia and Daniel.
George Elye wrote his will on 13 August 1615. Within days, both he and his wife, Florence
were dead. Florence was buried on 18 August 1615 and George was buried on 21
August 1615.
George’s will is a very useful document as it lists his
children, grandchildren, daughters-in-law and son-in-law. He does not appear to have been a wealthy man
as all of the bequests are for amounts in shillings or a few pounds.
One final intriguing thing of note, a Raphe (or Ralph) Elye
lived in Tenterden at the same time as George.
I wonder if they were brothers or otherwise related. Raphe didn’t appear
to be a puritan as he gave his children conventional English names.
*Also: Ely, Helie, Elie
**Until 1752, the year in England started on 25 March, which
can make dates a bit confusing. “New
Style” indicates that the year is as it would be now and not as written in the
records.
Notes on lineage (13 Generations): Me > Mum >
Daphne Madge Smith > Esther Ilma Lees > Fanny Sarah Eliza Briggs >
Sarah Elizabeth Playford > Henry Playford > Catherine Newman > Daniel
Newman > John Newman > Lydia Elye > Andrew Elye > George Elye
Bibliography
Archaeologia Cantiana Vol. 55 - 1942 page 29 (Accessed 12 Nov 2020)
The Records and Vicars of St Mildred Tenterden, Kent Arch Soc 2017 (Accessed 12 Nov 2020)
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