Sir Simon Degge (1612–1703) was

High Sheriff of Derbyshire High may refer to: Science and technology * Height * High (atmospheric), a high-pressure area * High (computability), a quality of a Turing degree, in computability theory * High (tectonics), in geology an area where relative tectonic uplift t ...

and served

North Wales , area_land_km2 = 6,172 , postal_code_type = Postcode , postal_code = LL, CH, SY , image_map1 = Wales North Wales locator map.svg , map_caption1 = Six principal areas of Wales common ...

as a Justice. It was said that he served his year as sheriff in "barrister robes and with a sword by his side". Degge was a Royalist and wrote a reference book on the law and rights of a parson called the ''Parson's Counsellor...''.

Simon Degge Sir Simon Degge (1612–1703) was High Sheriff of Derbyshire and served North Wales as a Justice. It was said that he served his year as sheriff in "barrister robes and with a sword by his side". Degge was a Royalist and wrote a reference bo ...

''Dictionary of National Biography''. Accessed 6 January 2023. The book includes advice on the income from a

glebe Glebe (; also known as church furlong, rectory manor or parson's close(s))McGurk 1970, p. 17 is an area of land within an ecclesiastical parish used to support a parish priest. The land may be owned by the church, or its profits may be reserved ...

Jus patronatus The right of patronage (in Latin ''jus patronatus'' or ''ius patronatus'') in Roman Catholic canon law is a set of rights and obligations of someone, known as the patron in connection with a gift of land (benefice). It is a grant made by the chu ...

and the crime of

Simony Simony () is the act of selling church offices and roles or sacred things. It is named after Simon Magus, who is described in the Acts of the Apostles as having offered two disciples of Jesus payment in exchange for their empowering him to imp ...

Life

Simon Degge was born on 5 January 1612, probably in or near

Uttoxeter Uttoxeter ( , ) is a market town in the East Staffordshire district in the county of Staffordshire, England. It is near to the Derbyshire county border. It is situated from Burton upon Trent, from Stafford, from Stoke-on-Trent, from De ...

Staffordshire Staffordshire (; postal abbreviation Staffs.) is a landlocked county in the West Midlands region of England. It borders Cheshire to the northwest, Derbyshire and Leicestershire to the east, Warwickshire to the southeast, the West Midlands Cou ...

. He was the first son of Thomas Degge. He was arrested as a Royalist during the

Long Parliament The Long Parliament was an English Parliament which lasted from 1640 until 1660. It followed the fiasco of the Short Parliament, which had convened for only three weeks during the spring of 1640 after an 11-year parliamentary absence. In Septem ...

and released in 1643–44 on condition that he remained at

Stafford Stafford () is a market town and the county town of Staffordshire, in the West Midlands region of England. It lies about north of Wolverhampton, south of Stoke-on-Trent and northwest of Birmingham. The town had a population of 70,145 in t ...

. Degge married Jane Orrell in 1652. He was called to the bar in 1653 and rose in seven years to be a judge in west Wales. He was a recorder at the court in Derby in 1661 and the following year he became a steward of the manor court of Peverel and a justice of the Welsh marshes. Kingstone Church, Staffordshire

After he was knighted he was fined twice by the courts for failing to do his duties. He was fined 100 marks for failing to "come to the bench" but he was still a

bencher A bencher or Master of the Bench is a senior member of an Inn of Court in England and Wales or the Inns of Court in Northern Ireland, or the Honorable Society of King's Inns in Ireland. Benchers hold office for life once elected. A bencher can ...

and by 1675 he was appointed by the King as

Stephen Glover. ''The History and Gazetteer of the County of Derby'' Vol 1 (1831) Appendix (p. 11, Charles I). after settling in Derby.'General history: Gentry families extinct since 1500', Magna Britannia: volume 5: Derbyshire (1817), pp. CXII-CLII. URL: http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.aspx?compid=50708 Date accessed: 22 February 2010. His home was Babington Hall which had been the "most eminent in

Derby Derby ( ) is a city and unitary authority area in Derbyshire, England. It lies on the banks of the River Derwent in the south of Derbyshire, which is in the East Midlands Region. It was traditionally the county town of Derbyshire. Derby gai ...

". Degge served as Sheriff while being a successful barrister. It was said that he served his year as Sheriff in "barrister robes and with a sword by his side". In 1674, he failed again in his duties but was able to avoid punishment as he has a letter from the King excusing him. That same year, he was fined two hundred pounds after he failed to serve after being elected as

Lent Reader A reader in one of the Inns of Court in London was originally a senior barrister of the Inn who was elected to deliver a lecture or series of lectures on a particular legal topic. Two readers (known as Lent and Autumn Readers) would be elected annu ...

. He was also removed from the list of judges. It is reported that Degge was involved with a case involving Noah Bullock of Derby. This man was reported to have given his sons the names of Shem, Ham, and Japhet, and to have built an ark which he kept on the River Derwent. Bullock was said to have been reported to Degge as an alleged forger. Degge was a friend of Bullock and he warned him that it was known that he was forging coins and the consequences of his crime. Bullock is said to have sunk the ark and escaped justice. A pub of that name still exists in Derby. However, Degge had already ceased to be a judge in 1676. In 1676, the ''Parson's Counsellor and law of Tithes'' was published and that was well regarded as a text book going through seven editions before 1720. The book dealt with

ecclesiastical law Canon law (from grc, κανών, , a 'straight measuring rod, ruler') is a set of ordinances and regulations made by ecclesiastical authority (church leadership) for the government of a Christian organization or church and its members. It is th ...

and custom concerning the parish, its vicar, his bishop and the causes and remedies for dispute. There were many chapters of the details of tithing as well as now obscure problems such as, the income from a

and

. Degge purchased the "ancient mansion" of Bowden Hall near

Chapel-en-le-Frith Chapel-en-le-Frith () is a town and civil parish in the Borough of High Peak in Derbyshire, England. It has been dubbed the "Capital of the Peak", in reference to the Peak District, historically the upperland areas between the Saxon lands (belo ...

in 1680.History
BowdenHall.co.uk. Accessed 23 February 2010. Degge's second wife died in 1696 and he died in 1703, leaving sons and a daughter. He was buried in a chapel he had had built at Kingstone.Stuart Handley, 'Degge, Sir Simon (1612?–1703)', ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'', Oxford University Press, September 2004; online edn, January 200
accessed 22 February 2010
/ref>

Works

*''Parson's Counsellor and Law of Tithes and Tithing'', (1676) *''Observations upon the Possessors of Monastery Lands in Staffordshire'', in

Sampson Erdeswicke Sampson Erdeswicke (born c. 1535x1540; died 1603) was an English antiquary and chorographer. Background Sampson's father, Hugh Erdeswicke claimed descent from Richard de Vernon, Baron of Shipbrook in the reign of William the Conqueror. The fami ...

's ''Staffordshire''.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Degge, Simon 1612 births 1704 deaths People from the Borough of East Staffordshire High Sheriffs of Derbyshire Knights Bachelor