John Temple

JOHN TEMPLE of Bishipstrowe, County Wilts, gentleman. Will 4 March 1635-6; proved 23 January 1637-8. To be buried in the Chancel of Bishopstrowe Church. To the church 40s. To poor 20s. To my wife and executrix Mary Temple all household stuff, Plate, etc., in my house at Bishopstrowe. To my wife until my son William Temple shall be 22 my lands in Hachbury, Parish of Warminster, and my mills, he to pay her 1000 pounds when he reaches 22 to enable her to pay the legacies. To my daughters Mary, Elizabeth, and Hester Temple 500 pounds each. Overseers: My brothers in lawe William Seaman, Clearke, and Samuell Seaman, gentlemen. Witnesses: Tho. Seaman, Samuell Seaman. Commissary for oath, William Seaman, rector of Upton Skidmore. - Lee, 4.

The National Archives, Kew — Prerogative Court of Canterbury, Will Registers, PROB 11/176/58. Register LEE (PROB 11/176 = quires 1-51, calendar 1638). Catalogue title: "Will of John Temple, Gentleman of Bishopstrow, Wiltshire"; catalogue date 23 January 1638 (the PROBATE). Ordered from TNA and READ IN THE ORIGINAL 31 Jul 2026. PDF and extracted page images: ancestry/sources/john-temple-bishopstrow-1638-will-PROB-11-176-58.pdf OPENING: "John Temple of Bishopstrowe in the Countie of Wiltes Gentleman knowinge that theire is nothinge more certaine then the tyme of death, And to the intent that I may settle my estate in my lyfe tyme doe hereby make and declare my last will and testament..." BURIAL: "...to be buried in the Chancell of the parishe Church of Bishopstrowe aforesaid in such decent manner as my Executrix hereafter named shall thinke fitt." — 40s to the church, 20s to the poor of Bishopstrow, distributed as the executrix thinks fit. WIFE AND EXECUTRIX: "unto my welbeloved wife MARY TEMPLE whome I make sole and onely Executrixe of this my last will and testament All my Plate, householdstuffe and implements of household which shall be remaininge in my house at Bishopstrowe aforesaid, and all my goods and chattles moneyes debts speciallties and Bonds whatsoever..." ⭐ THE PROPERTY — THREE SEPARATE HOLDINGS, verbatim: "...unto my beloved wife untill my sonne WILLIAM TEMPLE shall accomplishe his age of two and twenty yeares All those my lands and tenements which I have in HA[CH]BURY in the said County of Wilts AND all those my lands and grounds called THE MARSHES in the Parrishe of WARMINSTER in the said County of Wiltes, AND LIKEWISE MY MILLES with the appurtenances." The remainder to William and his heirs at 22, "so as hee doe pay to my said wife... the somme of ONE THOUSAND POUNDES of lawfull money WITHIN THIRTY DAIES after hee shall accomplishe his sayd age... for the better enablinge of my said Executrixe to paie the legacies"; on default the executrix has "full power... to sell the said landes in Ha[ch]bury and the said Marshes in Warminster and Milles in Bishopstrowe." DAUGHTERS: "unto my Daughters MARY TEMPLE, ELIZABETH TEMPLE and HESTER TEMPLE the somme of FIVE HUNDRED POUNDES A PEECE of lawfull money, to be payd unto them by my said Executrixe at their severall and respective ages of eighteene yeares or at their severall and respective marriages, PROVIDED ALWAYES THAT THEY MARRIE WITH MY SAID EXECUTRIXE CONSENT." OVERSEERS: "my lovinge brethren WILLIAM SEAMAN Cleark and SAMUELL SEAMAN". DATED: "In witnes whereof I have hereunto sett my hand and Seale this FFOWERTH DAIE OF MARCH In the yeare of the raigne of our Soveraigne Lord Kinge Charles of England Scotland and Ireland Kinge defendor of the ffaith &c the ELEAVENTH, &c Annoq Dom one thousand six hundred THIRTY FIVE. JOHN TEMPLE." Witnesses: "Tho. Seaman, Samuell Seaman." PROBATE: granted at London 23 January 1637[/8] before Sir Henry Marten, to "Marie Temple", relict and executrix named in the will. ⭐⭐ WHAT THIS SETTLES, AND THE ONE THING IT CORRECTS. (1) THE 1910 ABSTRACT IS VINDICATED ON DATE. "Will 4 March 1635-6; proved 23 January 1637-8" is exactly right: 4 March, 11 Car. I, A.D. 1635 Old Style = 4 March 1635/6, and the regnal year cross-checks it (Charles acceded 27 Mar 1625, so 11 Car. I ran 27 Mar 1635 - 26 Mar 1636). The apparent conflict with register Lee (calendar 1638) was never real: one date is the MAKING, the other the PROVING. (2) "LEE, 4" = PROB 11/176/58. The folio number in the upper-right margin of the page reads 27; at 8 folios to a quire, folios 25-32 are quire 4. (3) ⛔ THE ABSTRACT'S ONE ERROR: it reads "my lands in HACHBURY, PARISH OF WARMINSTER, and my mills", merging two distinct devises. The original keeps them apart, and "in the Parrishe of Warminster" attaches to THE MARSHES. Heytesbury is its own parish — which is why the abstract never fitted the geography. ⚠ THE SPELLING OF "Ha[ch]bury" IS NOT RESOLVED at the available resolution (ch/tch/sb indistinguishable) and was NOT normalised in this tree; the structural finding does not depend on it. Compare William 1686 "Hatchbury" and Joseph 1699 "Haytſbury". (4) It confirms WILLIAM WAS UNDER 22 on 4 Mar 1635/6, i.e. born after 4 Mar 1613/14 — consistent with the tree's "between 1614 and 1625" and with his being a MINOR when VCH says the Temples bought Bishopstrow in 1635. ⚠ NOTHING IN THE TREE REQUIRED CHANGING: wife Mary SEAMAN, and all three daughters, were already recorded, as were the 1637 death and the 21 Jul 1637 burial. This citation replaces a printed abstract with the register itself.