Sir Lawrence Tanfield (c. 1551 – 30 April 1625)Victoria County History
/ref> was an English lawyer, politician and

Lord Chief Baron of the Exchequer The Chief Baron of the Exchequer was the first "baron" (meaning judge) of the English Exchequer of Pleas. "In the absence of both the Treasurer of the Exchequer or First Lord of the Treasury, and the Chancellor of the Exchequer, it was he who pre ...

. He had a reputation for corruption, and the harshness which he and his wife showed to his tenants was remembered for centuries after their deaths.

Background

He was the eldest son of Robert Tanfield of

Burford Burford () is a town on the River Windrush, in the Cotswolds, Cotswold hills, in the West Oxfordshire district of Oxfordshire, England. It is often referred to as the 'gateway' to the Cotswolds. Burford is located west of Oxford and southeas ...

by his wife, Wilgiford Fitzherbert. He was educated at

Eton College Eton College () is a public school in Eton, Berkshire, England. It was founded in 1440 by Henry VI under the name ''Kynge's College of Our Ladye of Eton besyde Windesore'',Nevill, p. 3 ff. intended as a sister institution to King's College, C ...

and the

Inner Temple The Honourable Society of the Inner Temple, commonly known as the Inner Temple, is one of the four Inns of Court and is a professional associations for barristers and judges. To be called to the Bar and practise as a barrister in England and Wal ...

. He was

called to the bar The call to the bar is a legal term of art in most common law jurisdictions where persons must be qualified to be allowed to argue in court on behalf of another party and are then said to have been "called to the bar" or to have received "call to ...

by 1579. His career flourished largely due to the patronage of his first wife's uncle, Sir

Henry Lee of Ditchley Sir Henry Lee KG (March 1533 – 12 February 1611), of Ditchley, was Queen's Champion and Master of the Armouries under Queen Elizabeth I of England. Family Henry Lee, born in Kent in March 1533, was the grandson of Sir Robert Lee (d.1539 ...

, the

Queen's Champion The Honourable The King's (or Queen's) Champion is an honorary and hereditory office in the Royal Household of the British sovereign. The champion's original role at the coronation of a British monarch was to challenge anyone who contested the ...

Career

He was elected

Member of Parliament A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house members of ...

for

Woodstock Woodstock Music and Art Fair, commonly referred to as Woodstock, was a music festival held during August 15–18, 1969, on Max Yasgur's dairy farm in Bethel, New York, United States, southwest of the town of Woodstock, New York, Woodstock. ...

in 1584, 1586, 1589, 1593, 1597 and 1601 and returned as a

knight of the shire Knight of the shire ( la, milites comitatus) was the formal title for a member of parliament (MP) representing a county constituency in the British House of Commons, from its origins in the medieval Parliament of England until the Redistributio ...

for

Oxfordshire Oxfordshire is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the north west of South East England. It is a mainly rural county, with its largest settlement being the city of Oxford. The county is a centre of research and development, primarily ...

in 1604. He was

knighted A knight is a person granted an honorary title of knighthood by a head of state (including the Pope) or representative for service to the monarch, the Christian denomination, church or the country, especially in a military capacity. Knighthood ...

in 1604. He was appointed

Serjeant-at-law A Serjeant-at-Law (SL), commonly known simply as a Serjeant, was a member of an order of barristers at the English and Irish Bar. The position of Serjeant-at-Law (''servientes ad legem''), or Sergeant-Counter, was centuries old; there are writ ...

in 1603, puisne judge of the King’s Bench in 1606 and Chief Baron of the Exchequer in 1607. As a judge, he was often accused of

corruption Corruption is a form of dishonesty or a criminal offense which is undertaken by a person or an organization which is entrusted in a position of authority, in order to acquire illicit benefits or abuse power for one's personal gain. Corruption m ...

, though none of the charges against him were ever proved. Tanfield bought

Burford Priory Burford Priory is a Grade I listed country house and former priory at Burford in West Oxfordshire, England owned by Elisabeth Murdoch, daughter of Rupert Murdoch, together with Matthew Freud. History Origin The house is on the site of a 13th-ce ...

in 1586, and the manors of Burford and

Great Tew Great Tew is an English village and civil parish in Oxfordshire, about north-east of Chipping Norton and south-west of Banbury. The 2011 Census gave a parish population of 156. This qualifies it for an annual parish meeting, not a monthly p ...

in 1611, which he partially

enclosed Enclosure or Inclosure is a term, used in English landownership, that refers to the appropriation of "waste" or "common land" enclosing it and by doing so depriving commoners of their rights of access and privilege. Agreements to enclose land ...

in 1622, causing a bitter conflict with his neighbours and tenants (he was a notoriously harsh landlord). He appears to have had a collection of paintings at Burford, some of which subsequently passed to

William Lenthall William Lenthall (1591–1662) was an English politician of the English Civil War, Civil War period. He served as Speaker of the House of Commons (United Kingdom), Speaker of the House of Commons for a period of almost twenty years, both before ...

, who was a relative by marriage, and became part of the

Lenthall pictures The Lenthall pictures were a number of paintings owned by the Lenthall family and housed at Burford Priory. The collection was publicly commented on by art historians and tourists. It was largely dispersed in two sales in 1808 and 1833, although s ...

.''The Lenthall Pictures'', Nicholas Cooper, Victoria County History
/ref> Tanfield memorial, St John, Burford

He married firstly, before 1585, Elizabeth, daughter of Gyles Symonds (died circa 1596) of

Cley next the Sea Cley next the Sea (, , is a village and civil parish on the River Glaven in England, English county of Norfolk, England, Norfolk, north-west of Holt, Norfolk, Holt and east of Blakeney, Norfolk, Blakeney. The main A149 road, A149 coast road ...

Norfolk Norfolk () is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in East Anglia in England. It borders Lincolnshire to the north-west, Cambridgeshire to the west and south-west, and Suffolk to the south. Its northern and eastern boundaries are the No ...

and his wife Katherine Lee, daughter of Sir

Anthony Lee Sir Anthony Lee (c. 1510 – 24 November 1549) was an English courtier and Member of Parliament, and the father of Elizabeth I's champion, Sir Henry Lee. He was at the court of Henry VIII in his youth, and served as a Justice of the Peace and ...

and sister of Sir Henry Lee, with whom he had a daughter Elizabeth, and secondly, before 1620, Elizabeth Evans of

Loddington, Northamptonshire Loddington is a village and civil parish about west of Kettering, Northamptonshire, England. The 2001 Census recorded a parish population of 477 people including the neighbouring parish of Orton. The 2011 Census recorded the parish populatio ...

Death and legends

He died in 1625 and was buried in the Church of St John the Baptist, Burford. His widow commissioned a magnificent memorial which was completed in 1628. True to her combative nature, she was said to have appropriated the north aisle of St John the Baptist to hold the memorial, without seeking permission. He left his estates to his grandson,

Lucius Cary, 2nd Viscount Falkland Lucius Cary, 2nd Viscount Falkland PC (c. 1610 – 20 September 1643) was an English author and politician who sat in the House of Commons from 1640 to 1642. He fought on the Royalist side in the English Civil War and was killed in action at the ...

. His only daughter

Elizabeth Elizabeth or Elisabeth may refer to: People * Elizabeth (given name), a female given name (including people with that name) * Elizabeth (biblical figure), mother of John the Baptist Ships * HMS ''Elizabeth'', several ships * ''Elisabeth'' (sch ...

had married

Henry Cary, 1st Viscount Falkland Henry may refer to: People *Henry (given name) *Henry (surname) * Henry Lau, Canadian singer and musician who performs under the mononym Henry Royalty * Portuguese royalty ** King-Cardinal Henry, King of Portugal ** Henry, Count of Portugal, ...

and became a writer and Catholic convert; this led to a breach with her father, and may explain his decision to leave his property to the next generation. Great Tew in the 1630s was the centre of a celebrated intellectual circle. The ghosts of Tanfield and his second wife have been reportedly sighted racing around

in a fiery coach bringing death to all who see them. This is testimony to the hatred they had aroused in their tenants during their lifetime: it is also said that for 200 years after Tanfield's death, he and his wife were burnt in effigy on his anniversary.

Background

Career

Death and legends

References

Further reading