Friends of the Regicides

My cousin and fellow co-historian of the Pierpont Family Association, Bob Kraft, sent me an email recently. He had just read a new book, Regicide in the Family: Finding John Dixwell, by Sarah Dixwell Brown. She notes in the description of the book,

“In the 1660's three fugitives from justice came to New England to escape being drawn and quartered in London. They had been among the 59 judges in the trial of England's King Charles the First who found him guilty of betraying his own people and sentenced him to death by beheading. For the next eleven years, England was governed by men trying to create a different kind of government, one led not by a monarch with divine rights, but by the people. Their ideas helped the founding fathers of the United States, a century later, come up with our Bill of Rights. In 1660, the king's son, Charles the Second, was restored to the throne and began avenging his father. One of the three regicides who fled to North America was John Dixwell, my seven greats grandfather. My book tells the story of how being given Dixwell as a middle name and then given his key to Dover Castle (where he was governor of that military fortification) led me to spend decades digging up every possible scrap of information about his life and his decision to judge a king. The book details my discoveries in New England, England, and my family tree, where I figured out not only who had the key in each of the eight generations that preceded mine, but also how each key keeper likely felt about the man who consigned a king to death.”

Of particular note in the book was the friendship of John Dixwell with Rev. James Pierpont with whom he shared a backyard fence in New Haven. Although there was nearly a 50-year difference in their ages, they enjoyed talking together and when John Dixwell passed away, the Rev. James was mentioned in his will. It was this friendship that inspired the investigation behind this blog posting.

[John Dixwell book]

 

There is another related book about two other regicides, The Great Escape of Edward Whalley and William Goffe: Smuggled through Connecticut, that concentrates of those men. The description of this book reads,

“When Puritans Edward Whalley and William Goffe joined the parliamentary army against King Charles I in the English civil wars, they seized an opportunity to overthrow a tyrant. Yet when his son, Charles II, regained the throne, Whalley and Goffe were forced to flee to the New England colonies aboard the ship Prudent Mary--never to see their families or England again. Even with the help of New England's Puritan elite, including Reverend John Davenport, they struggled to stay ahead of the authorities in Boston, New Haven, and the outpost of Hadley, Massachusetts. Though forced to live out the rest of their lives fugitives, these former major generals survived frontier adventures in seventeenth-century New England, and became embedded in early United States history.”

[Edward Whalley book]

 

Finally, you can read a magazine article about these men here. In addition, there are other books available, one the best being A history of three of the judges of King Charles I which was written in 1794 by Ezra Stiles, then the president of Yale College. This book, written only a little more than 100 years after the events, includes a lot of source documents from CT history, including letters written by the regicides as well as by those who knew them.

This posting is not so much about the three regicides who fled to America, but focuses on the individuals in New England who harbored them or otherwise assisted them in their escape from the certain death they faced if caught.

 

Background

Charles I of England (1600-1649) believed in the divine right of kings and was determined to govern according to his own conscience. Many perceived him as acting like a tyrannical absolute monarch. His religious policies were the cause of so many Puritans fleeing England during the Great Migration beginning in 1630 where 20,000 settled in New England over the next 10 years.

Beginning in 1640, this led to a series of conflicts between the supporters of Charles and those who opposed him, culminating in the English Civil War with Oliver Cromwell leading many of the opposition. Charles was captured, jailed, and put on trial for treason against England for using his power to pursue his personal interest rather than the good of the country. He was found guilty and 59 of the commissioners signed his death warrant.  On January 30, 1649, Charles was beheaded.

Charles I’s son, Charles II, was only 18 when his father was beheaded. Nonetheless, he was appointed king of Scotland. Following the death of Cromwell in 1658, efforts began to have him installed as king of England and on his 30^th birthday, 29 May 1660, he was received in London to public acclaim. Although Charles and Parliament granted amnesty to nearly all of Cromwell’s supporters in the Act of Indemnity and Oblivion, 50 people were specifically excluded, including the 41 still living of the 59 men who had signed the death warrant of Charles I. Some were hanged, drawn and quartered, and some even dug out of their graves and their bodies posthumously decapitated. The fates of the 59 commissioners or regicides can be found here.

Some had fled to mainland Europe, but three of the men fled to America. This story is about them and the individuals who befriended or supported them in America.

 

The American Regicides

There were three regicides who fled to America:

·        John Dixwell (1613-1689). Initially fled to Germany for a few years, then to America. He spent some time with Whalley and Goffe in Hadley, MA, then moved to New Haven Colony where he lived under the assumed name of James Davids for the remainder of his life. Because those tracking down the regicides believed that he had died in Germany, they were not looking for him in America and so he had an easier time once he began using an alias. However, his supporters knew his real identity.

·        Edward Whalley (c. 1607-c. 1675). Initially fled to Cambridge, MA, briefly to Dedham, MA, then to New Haven Colony, and finally to Hadley, MA. While in New Haven Colony they were being pursued by English agents and so spent time in several different places (I’ll not go into all the details here).

·        William Goffe (c. 1605-c. 1679). Son-in-law of Edward Whalley and accompanied him throughout his years in America. Believed to have moved to Hartford, CT, following the death of Whalley.

As you read the stories of these men, both in the above books, and in the above linked Wikipedia articles, you will find the names of many who helped these men during the final decades of their life spent hiding in America. Listed below, in alphabetical order, are all those mentioned as either harboring or otherwise assisting these regicides. For each individual, I have documented the connection to the greater Pierpont family of CT (in some cases there are multiple connections).

There are 24 individuals listed below. Of these 20 are connected to the greater Pierpont Family (to Rev. James Pierpont or his descendants). It is possible that there are other connections that I have not found, or even connections for those for whom I have not been able to identify any. Genealogical research for individuals back in the 1600s is fraught with difficulty, especially when often I had only a last name and place but no first name. And I had no dates of birth or death for any of these individuals to start with.

Nonetheless, it is obvious that the members of the Pierpont family have more than a few connections to these three men.

 

The Friends of the Regicides

·        Gov. James Bishop (1625-1691)

o   Great*9 uncle of my aunt, Barbara Leete [Bishop] Pierpont, who I have also noted below under William Leete

 

·        Thomas Bull (c.1605-1684), Hartford

o   My great*10 grandfather via the mother of my grandfather, Harold Pierpont

 

·        ??? Burrill, accompanied William Jones and Richard Sperry in hiding regicides at Judge’s Cave, believed to have been a laborer on Sperry’s farm

o   Only last name known, not enough to establish any connection

 

·        Rev. John Davenport (1597-1670), first pastor of New Haven, CT

o   Grandfather-in-law of Rev. James Pierpont as James’ first wife was Abigail Davenport

 

·        Elizabeth [Allerton] Eyers/Ayers (1653-1740)

o   My second cousin, 10 times removed, through common ancestor, William Brewster

 

·        Benjamin Fenn (1612-1672)

o   Father-in-law of William Leete (below) with all those connections

 

·        Daniel Fisher (1618-1683) and his sister Lydia in Dedham, MA

o   First cousin of Thomas Buckingham who was the step-father of Mary and James Hooker listed below with William Leete

 

·        William Goodwin (1591-1673), One of the founders of Hadley, MA

o   Married Susanna [Garbrand] Hooker, the widow of Rev. Thomas Hooker of Hartford, making him the step-great*9 grandfather of most of the members of the Pierpont family

 

·        Daniel Gookin (1612-1687), MA Assistant

o   No known connection to Pierpont family

 

·        Rev. Samuel Hooker (1633-1697)

o   Father of James Pierpont’s third wife

 

·        Bathsheba Howe (1648-1729), 2^nd wife of John Dixwell

o   Her brother, Jeremiah Howe, was married to Elizabeth Peck and Elizabeth’s sister, Hannah Peck, is my great*8 grandmother through my grandmother Sarah [Blackman] Pierpont

o   Great*11 aunt of my wife

 

·        William Jones (1624-1706), Dep. Gov. of CT

o   He was married to Hannah Eaton, daughter of Gov. Theophilus Eaton, first governor of New Haven Colony. Theophilus Eaton is my great*10 grandfather via my great-grandfather, Wilson Pierpont. Thus, William is my great*10 uncle.

 

·        William Leete (1612-1683), Governor of the New Haven Colony

o   His daughter, Mary Leete, married James Hooker, the brother of Mary Hooker, third wife of Rev. James Pierpont, making her an aunt of most of us in the Pierpont family

o   Rob Pierpont, is descended from William Leete as his mother was Barbara Leete [Bishop] Pierpont and she was the great*8 granddaughter of William Leete

o   His daughter, Anna Leete, married John Trowbridge. John is my first cousin (10x removed) as one of his descendants married into the Blackman line and thence to Sarah [Blackman] Pierpont. (Note that this connection came because of Ezra Stiles’ extensive conversations with Sarah [Cooke] Sherman (1713-1802), a granddaughter of Anna [Leete] Trowbridge.)

 

·        Benjamin Ling (c. 1618-1673)

o   Upon his death, his wife married John Dixwell, but she then also died just a few weeks later. No known connection to the Pierpont family, except that the Ling’s home which John Dixwell inherited shared a backyard fence with the home that Rev. James Pierpont moved into a few years later.

 

·        Rev. Increase Mather (1639-1723))

o   His father, Rev. Richard Mather, is my great*11 grandfather

 

·        Rev. Samuel Nowell (1634-1688)

o   No known connection to Pierpont family

 

·        Rev. James Pierpont (1659-1714) third pastor of New Haven, CT

o   Progenitor of all the New England Pierpont Family (my great*7 grandfather)

 

·        Edward Riggs (c. 1619-1668), Derby CT, Founder of Newark, NJ

o   His son Samuel married Sarah Baldwin, my great*11 aunt

 

·        Rev. John Russell (1626-1692), pastor in Hadley, MA

o   His son, Rev. Samuel Russell, was the pastor of the Branford, CT, church and one of the men who helped co-found Yale with the Rev. James Pierpont

o   Rev. John was a great-great-grandson of Sir Francis Russell, 2^nd Earl of Bedford, and another great-great-grandchild of Sir Francis was Hannah Russell, daughter of the Rev. Noadiah Russell of Middletown, CT. Not only was Noadiah another of the co-founders of Yale along with the Rev. James Pierpont, but Hannah Russell married Joseph Pierpont, son of the Rev. James. Thus, Hannah [Russell] Pierpont, the 3^rd cousin of the Rev. John Russell, is a direct ancestor of many of us in the PFA.

o   Finally, and more personally for me, the grandfather of John Russell was Lord Edward Russell who is also my direct ancestor through the following path: my grandmother, Sarah [Blackman] Pierpont was the daughter of Alice [Talmadge] Blackman; Alice’s grandmother was Anna [Sperry] Talmadge; and Anna’s mother was Mary [Russell] Sperry who is also a descendant of Lord Edward Russell, making John Russell my first cousin, 12 times removed.

 

·        Richard Saltonstall (1610-1694), gave funds to regicides in 1672, uncle of Gov. Gurdon Saltonstall

o   Gurdon’s daughter, Sarah Saltonstall, married John Gardiner, my second cousin (9x removed) through my Talmadge ancestors (see connection under Rev. John Russell above)

 

·        Richard Sperry (1606-1698)

o   My great*8 grandfather via the Sperry-Talmadge-Blackman-Pierpont line outlined above

 

·        Rev. Nicholas Street (1603-1674), second pastor of New Haven, CT

o   My great*9 grandfather via Todd and Talmadge families down through my grandmother Sarah [Blackman] Pierpont

 

·        Peter Tilton (1620-1696), Hadley MA

o   His daughter, Mary, married Joseph Eastman. Joseph’s uncle was John Blackman, my great*9 grandfather via Sarah [Blackman] Pierpont

o   Joseph Eastman is also a first cousin, 10x removed, of my wife

 

·        Michael Tomkins (1616-1690), sympathizer in Milford, CT

o   Michael’s daughter, Elizabeth, married Lt. Gov. James Bishop (see above).

o   Their son, Samuel Bishop, married Hannah Yale Talmadge. Hannah’s first husband, Enos Talmadge, is a first cousin (9 times removed) of my grandmother, Sarah [Blackman] Pierpont, who I have noted above.

o   Great*9 uncle of my aunt, Barbara Leete [Bishop] Pierpont, who I have also noted above.

 

 

Concluding Remarks

As the description of one of the above books notes, these three regicides had the help of New England’s “Puritan elite” – which is a good description of my New England ancestors. Those of us in the Pierpont Family Association can be proud of our connections to these individuals.

Some of the referenced Wikipedia pages note that the three regicides are recognized in New Haven today by streets which are named for each of them; Dixwell Avenue which runs out to Hamden, CT; Whalley Avenue which turns into Route 69 and heads north toward Prospect, CT; and Goffe Street which heads toward Southern Connecticut State University.  All three streets merge at a single point in a complicated intersection just two blocks from the New Haven Green where the former home of Rev. James Pierpont today serves as the Visitor Center for Yale University.

[New Haven Street Signs]

 

Finally, I can’t resist noting that the author of the first book, Sarah Dixwell Brown, is a 9^th cousin of myself and a 10^th cousin of my wife.