The Watwood Family Tree

02/04/2025

For all the Watwoods: The Watwood/Watwode Family: A Chronicle of Nobility, Faith, and Commerce (12th–18th Centuries). A short draft.

Prologue: The Researcher’s Journey
Jim Watwood’s 26-year quest—from Mormon library archives to digital databases—reveals a family bound by resilience. Whether through Thomas de Watwode’s Norman valor or John Watwood’s Reformation gambits, the Watwoods exemplify adaptability, their name echoing from Alnwick’s battlements to Virginia’s Cumberland Gap.

“Keeper of the Woods” may remain folk etymology, but the Watwoods’ true legacy lies in their unyielding reinvention. From Bamburgh’s windswept towers to the taverns of Tudor London, the Watwoods’ saga is a testament to reinvention and to survival across six turbulent centuries—a family as resilient as the castles they once defended. 🏰 🌍⚔️📜

Origins: Norman Knights and Border Service (12th–13th Centuries)
The Watwood lineage, originally styled de Watwode, emerged in the 12th century as Anglo-Norman knights under the patronage of the de Vescy lords of Alnwick Castle, Northumberland.

Thomas de Watwode (fl. 1174)
A knight bachelor under William de Vescy, Sheriff of Northumberland, Thomas fought in the 1174 Siege of Alnwick, aiding in the capture of William the Lion, King of Scots. His service secured a knight’s fee near Alnwick and Bamburg, where high-status prisoners like David Bruce (King of Scots) were later held. This service anchored the family in England’s volatile northern frontier¹.

The de Vescy family controlled strategic borderlands against Scotland. Thomas’s service at Alnwick during the 1174 capture of William the Lion suggests his lands were tied to military tenure.

Willelmi de Watwode (1311–1312)
Stationed at Roxburgh Castle during the Wars of Scottish Independence, Willelmi’s ownership of a prized white lancer (warhorse) underscored his status. His presence in Scottish Marches records highlights the family’s role in defending English strongholds against Robert the Bruce².

Bamburgh Castle: Strategic Stronghold
The family’s earliest documented ties to power lie at Bamburgh Castle, a royal fortress on the Northumbrian coast. By the 12th century, the Watwodes (then styled de Watwode) served as knights under William de Vescy, Sheriff of Northumberland, who oversaw Bamburgh’s defenses during the Anglo-Scottish wars.

Walter de Watwode
- Role: Castellan/Constable of Bamburgh Castle (early 13th century).
- Context: Likely appointed during the reign of William I of Scotland or his successor Alexander II, when Anglo-Scottish tensions flared over control of Northumbria.
- Source: Mentioned in regional charters or Pipe Rolls (financial records) as a custodian of Bamburgh. His name may appear in the Liber Feodorum (feudal tenant lists) for Northumberland.

Lands & Influence
- Northumbria/Yorkshire: Fees near Alnwick Castle under the de Vescy family; secondary ties to Malton (Yorkshire).
- Scottish Borders: Defense of Roxburgh Castle under Edward II.
-Bamburgh Castle: Key to England’s northern defenses; Watwodes likely managed garrisons and prisoners here.

Name Origin
Derived from de Watwode (Norman-French “of Watwode”), likely a lost toponym or heraldic description blending Middle English wat (hare) + wode (wood), later immortalized in Richard Watwode’s 1538 guild rebus³.

Medieval Transition: Ecclesiastical Rise and Civic Power (14th–15th Centuries)
By the 14th century, the family pivoted to ecclesiastical and civic roles, leveraging education and guild networks.

- Robert Watwood (fl. 1489–1493)
Chorister at St. George’s Chapel, Windsor, later Gentleman of the Chapel Royal under Henry VII, symbolizing integration into Tudor court culture⁴.
- William Watwood (b. c. 1485)
Chorister in Margaret Beaufort’s household chapel and scholar at Eton College (1502), epitomizing upward mobility through education⁵.

Staffordshire Ascendancy
- Richard Watwode (d. 1558)
As Master of the Guild of St. Mary and St. John the Baptist (1538), Richard oversaw the dissolution of Lichfield’s Franciscan Friary, aligning with Thomas Cromwell’s reforms. His rebus (hare + wood) became the family’s civic emblem⁶.

Richard Watwode’s Dissolution Role as Master of Lichfield Guild in 1538 was to oversee the surrender of Lichfield’s Franciscan Friary, retaining its bells, lead, and gravestones for civic use. Collaborated with Cromwell’s agents to pension displaced clergy⁷.

- John Watwood (fl. 1530s)
Chaplain to Henry VIII and Dean of St. Mary’s Collegiate Church, Warwick (1536–1540), John faced imprisonment at Warwick Castle in 1536 for defying Reformation injunctions (ringing bells on St. Laurence Day). His feud with the Bishop of Worcester exemplified Tudor-era religious strife⁷.

John later aligned with Thomas Cromwell, signing the 1539 declaration annulling Henry VIII’s marriage to Anne of Cleves. Bishop Latimer accused him of squandering college funds on “excessively long jaunts to London”⁶.

Legal & Economic Footprint
- Thomas Watwood (fl. 1565)
Stafford clothier partnered with London silkworker Mathew Bismere, reflecting diversification into Tudor trade networks⁸.
- Land Disputes: Legal battles over corn-mills in Baginton (Talans v. Clarke, 1533–1538) and property debts (Wilson v. Watwood, 1577) highlight the family’s entanglement in agrarian and urban economies⁹.

London Underworld: The Infamous Richard Watwood
- Richard Watwood (fl. 1570)
Notorious owner of a b***y house on Lime Street, London. His establishment, cited in Crime and Society in Whitechapel, highlights the family’s dual identity: civic leaders in Staffordshire and scandalous figures in Tudor London’s underworld⁵.

Reformation Turmoil and Guild Politics (16th Century)
The family navigated Tudor religious upheavals, balancing loyalty to the Crown with guild traditions.

- John Watwood’s Reformation Saga
Imprisoned in 1536 for bell-ringing “superstitions,” John later aligned with Cromwell, signing the 1539 declaration annulling Henry VIII’s marriage to Anne of Cleves. Bishop Latimer’s complaints of his “lechery” and financial mismanagement at Warwick College reveal the era’s ideological fractures¹⁰.
- Richard Watwode’s Dissolution Role
As Guild Master, Richard inventoried Lichfield Friary’s assets (1538), securing pensions for displaced clergy while retaining lead, bells, and gravestones for civic use¹¹.

Economic Foundations
- Wool & Textiles: Dominated Staffordshire’s wool trade, with London shops on Lime Street (notorious for Richard’s b***y house in 1570)¹².
- Education: William Watwood (1674) of Stockton, Staffordshire, admitted to Cambridge’s College of St. John the Evangelist, signaling intellectual aspirations¹³.

Legacy: From Tudor England to Colonial Virginia
By the 17th century, Watwoods diversified into global trade, reflecting England’s expanding horizons.

Elizabeth Watwood (1697)
Granted travel passes under William III to Portugal, likely engaging in Protestant/Huguenot merchant circles¹⁴.
- Colonial Roots: Family lore traces American lineage to George Watwood, Revolutionary War veteran (10th Virginia Regiment), though pre-Revolution records remain elusive due to fires in 1812¹⁵.

Conclusion: A Tapestry of Adaptation
The Watwood/Watwode journey—from Norman knights to Reformation-era power brokers—mirrors England’s metamorphosis. Their legacy, etched in guildhalls, court records, and transatlantic ventures, underscores resilience amid feudalism’s decline and religious upheaval.

Key References
1. The Red Book of the Exchequer (1896), p. 312.
2. Calendar of Documents Relating to Scotland, vol. III (1887), p. 543.
3. Staffordshire Record Office, Guild Charter (1538).
4. Bowers, Music and Musical Establishment (2001), p. 208.
5. Kisby, Mirror of Monarchy (2000), p. 234.
6. Letters and Papers of Henry VIII, vol. XIII(2), p. 15.
7. Cartulary of St Mary's Collegiate Church, Warwick (2004), pp. 172–173.
8. Late Medieval Catholicism and the Impact of the Reformation (1565), p. 314.
9. TNA: C 1/907/9-15; SP 46/31/fo40.
10. Letters and Papers of Henry VIII, vol. 11, pp. 172–173.
11. Hibbert, Dissolution of the Monasteries (1910), pp. 252–254.
12. Crime and Society in Whitechapel (1570).
13. Admissions to the College of St. John the Evangelist (1882).
14. Calendar of State Papers Domestic: William III (1697).
15. Family oral histories; Revolutionary War pension records.

26/12/2024

Found where Thomas Watwood worked from 1779 through the 1780s. SEE COMMENTS FOR HISTORICAL DETAILS FROM THOMAS HIMSELF.

UCL Homepage

25/12/2024

London Part 3, St. Margaret Lothbury: Robert Watwood and Mary Watwood gave birth to Thomas (6 Dec 1649) and Robert (16 July 1651). Robert dies 5 Nov. 1663. It is important to not that the plague hits London hard from 1665 to 1666 and the great Fire of London occurs in 1666. The first Watwood (an Andrew Watwood) is recorded as holding a land grant in Virginia in 1663. Robert’s son Thomas Watwood marries Mary Denton 11 Nov 1666. Thomas’ brother, Robert, marries Margret Evan’s 12 April 1664. Robert and Margaret have a son, Andrew Watwood (11 Feb 1667)—Andrew dies at age 4. Robert dies (is buried) 2 May 1707.

25/12/2024

London Part 2: St. Andrew Under Shaft. It is possible that Richard Watwood attended this church, because his son, Thomas Watwood, was married at this church in 5 July 1577 to Susanna Cunnye.

25/12/2024

London Part 1: My journey into walking (over 16,000 steps) the Watwood London neighborhood of 1421 through the late 1790’s began at Lime Street where, in 1576, Richard Watwood operated a B***y House. His “establishment” was near the Mayor of London’s home. Primary sources state that Richard transported bawds as far as Ratcliff, which is near the A13 and Lipton Road today. In these first pictures you will see Lime Street today (which, despite having modern buildings, is about the same size and follows the same pathway as it did then). Off Lime Street, which was a merchant’s area then and financial center today, is Leadenhall Market.

Leadenhall Market dates back to 1321 and is situated in what was the centre of Roman London. Originally a meat, poultry and game market, it is now home to a number of boutique retailers, restaurants, cafes, wine bars and an award-winning pub.

Starting as the site of a manor, Leadenhall Market has survived changes in use, rebuilding, and even the Great Fire to become a popular destination for city residents, visitors and workers. Leadenhall Market stands in the very centre of Roman Londinium – underneath its arches and cobblestones lie the remains of the Forum (market) and Basilica (courts). Bishopsgate, Cheapside and Leadenhall Street all follow the route of the old Roman roads. In 1408 the former Lord Mayor Richard ‘Dick’ Whittington acquired the lease of the building, and then the site in 1411, gifting it to the City; City of London Corporation have been running it ever since. It quickly became one of the best places in London to buy eggs, meat, game, grain, poultry and fish. The meat and fish market occupied a series of courts behind the grand lead-roofed mansion of Leadenhall Market on Leadenhall Street. By 1600, the market included sellers of poultry, grain, eggs, butter, cheese, foodstuffs, wool, leather, and cutlery. It was the most important market in medieval and early modern London, especially for meat and poultry. The market would have been very similar to markets today: noisy, full of activity, and packed with people. The medieval street plan was preserved when the Market was rebuilt in the 19th Century – meaning visitors today can experience the same historic thoroughfares as medieval.

The primary business of the Watwoods in 1500-1600 was wool and clothing (clothiers). By 1700, they made shoes. One Watwood, in the 1780’s made muskets and even wrote to John Adams back when Adams was Ambassador in England.

21/12/2024

Hi All, I am in London through Christmas. Will be looking at all the Historic Watwood places in London and Warwick. Not sure if I’ll make it to Staffordshire this time around with the trains not at full capacity. Posts to come First up is Westminster, where Richard and William Watwood (after and son) were members of the Chapel Royal.

08/10/2022

WATWOOD SURVEY: WATWOOD MEN (WATWOOD WOMEN, FEEL FREEL TO ANSWER FOR THEM), ARE YOU A TALKER OR QUIET, A MAN OF FEW WORDS??

28/01/2022

I’m constantly coming back to Litchfield, because it is a central place for WATWOODS and all Watwood roads connect to it and Richard Watwood, who was Master of all the Guilds of Litchfield in 1538. I will definitely go here and do some digging when I get back to the UK. Soon, I hope! The below is about the complete connection between the Guild and local government.

https://www.lichfield.gov.uk/History_792.aspx

The Guildhall has been central to the government of the City for over 600 years, and in former times was not only the meeting place of the Corporation but also at various times the court, prison, police station, theatre, and fire station. The first Guildhall was erected on this site about 1387, when...

08/01/2022

FINALLY connected my 7th Great Grandfather, father to George Watwood Sr (father of USA Watwoods). George’s father was William and his mother was Dorothy Jones. He was born in St. Mary Newington (pictured here) in London, in the Kennington Park area. William was born to George and Mary Watwood on 15 July, 1694 and baptized at St. Dunstan, Stepney, Tower Hamlets, London. He had other sons, Richard, William, and a daughter named Sarah. I believe that either William was a Reverend or his uncle was. Still in the early phase of digging in. Lots of Williams.

01/01/2022

To All The Watwoods! I have taken a bit of a break from research, but there will be more to come in 2022!

15/08/2021

“The (American) Highlander is a Southerner not only in geographic situation but largely in sentiment as well, although the circumstances of his environment have sometimes aligned him with the North. He is, however, first of all a Highlander, and those without his favored land are ‘foreigners,’ be they from North or Lowland South. If the question were submitted to an impartial jury as to what is the chief trait of Highland people the world over, the answer would be INDEPENDENCE… His dominant trait is independence raised to the fourth power.” John Campbell, The Southern Highlander and his Homeland-1921 (picture is a home built on the outskirts of George Watwood’s Tenn. land on Watwood Creek.)

25/07/2021

Only my family from the hills of Alabama, Tennessee and Kentucky will truly understand. I’m reading THE SOUTHERN HIGHLANDER and HIS HOMELAND, a 25-year study on the Highland people of Alabama, Tennessee, Georgia and Virginia begun in 1892 by John Campbell. I must quote a section, because it describes my own family visit to Delta Alabama!

Clustered about the cross-roads were the four buildings which constituted our business section. Naturally the post-office was an edifice of importance, for there we called daily for the letter someone might chance to write us, and we never could be sure when the package of seed from our congressman might arrive. But of first importance, and dearest to the hearts of all, were our three emporia that competed with each other in a leisurely way in the sale of coffee, coal, sidemeat, sugar, flour, calico, s***f, to***co, and a few other necessities.

Our complacency in matters of mere getting and spending was occasioned by our deep interest in subjects of real importance—politics and religion. The prominent place according our marts of trade, in fact the reason of their being, was that they were, after all, council lodges, or fora, if you please, where vital topics were discussed in daily sessions by the Solons of the countryside…Each building commanded an angle of the cross-roads, and the four together the cardinal points of the compass…Such was the visible center of our municipal life, which ministered to our bodily and intellectual need.

The chance traveler over the Big Road would know little of the teeming life hidden away in the nearby coves and clearings…

The local Professor (schoolteacher) would be dismayed to find that he was called upon to instruct not only Polly Ann, Victoria, and Australia, but Noah, Isaac, Joseph, Daniel, Malachi, and Elisha, JOHN WESLEY and his little brother Luther, Virgil, Homer, and Pliny; Cyrus, Alexander, and Napoleon, Columbus, and our own George Washington and Grover Cleveland. “Whence these names?” Was the instinctive query.