JOHN SUTTON 1400-1487

[Ancestral Link: Harold William Miller, son of Edward Emerson Miller, son of Anna Hull (Miller), daughter of William Hull, son of Anna Hyde (Hull), daughter of Uriah Hyde, son of Elizabeth Leffingwell (Hyde), daughter of Sarah Abell (Leffingwell), daughter of Joshua Abell, son of Robert Abell, son of Frances Cotton (Abell), daughter of Mary Mainwaring (Cotton), daughter of Arthur Mainwaring, son of Richard Mainwaring, son of John Mainwaring, son of Jane Sutton (Mainwaring), daughter of John Sutton.]

[Ancestral Link: Harold William Miller, son of Edward Emerson Miller, son of Anna Hull (Miller), daughter of William Hull, son of Anna Hyde (Hull), daughter of Uriah Hyde, son of Elizabeth Leffingwell (Hyde), daughter of Sarah Abell (Leffingwell), daughter of Joshua Abell, son of Robert Abell, son of Frances Cotton (Abell), daughter of Richard Cotton, son of George Cotton, son of Cicely Mainwaring (Cotton), daughter of Jane Sutton (Mainwaring), daughter of John Sutton.]

In the Middle Ages the Sutton family inherited the title and estate of Lord Dudley and lived in Dudley Castle.

Dudley Castle

John IV was born here. Today, it is a ruined castle in the town of Dudley, West Midlands, England. Dudley Zoo is located in its grounds. The location, Castle Hill, is an outcrop of Wenlock Group limestone that was extensively quarried during the Industrial Revolution, and which now along with Wren's Nest Hill is a Scheduled Ancient Monument as the best surviving remains of the limestone industry in Dudley.

Sir John De Sutton, Lord Dudley, aged 5 years in 8 of Henry IV, 1407. He was summoned to Parliament from 8 of Henry VI 1430, to 22 of Edward IV 1475, when he died. He had the honor of bearing the standard at the funeral of Henry V. In 1428 he was Treasurer of the Household and Lord Lieutenant of Ireland. In 26 of Henry VI, in consideration of his services, he received a grant of an annuity issuing out of the part of the customs of London, and being one of the King's Counsel he was sent as an ambassador to the Duke of Brittany and later to the Duke of Burgandy. Toward the end of the reign his services were rewarded with the Order of the Garter about 1459. He was wounded at the battle of Bloreheath and for this he received several honourable trusts and offices from his sovereign. He was summoned to Parliament from 18 of Henry VI, 1440, to 3 of Henry VII, 1485, but this is not clear, as the different books give his grandson John for part of this time. Sir John Sutton married Elizabeth Berkeley, daughter of Sir John Berkeley of Beverstone, County Gloucester, by his first wife Elizabeth, daughter of Sir John Bettishorne. She died shortly before December 8, 1478, and was buried in St. James Priory, Dudley. He died September 30, 1487, in his 87th year. They had children: Edmund, married Joyce Tiptoft, who died in the lifetime of his father, and his son John succeeded his grandfather. John, who assumed the name of Dudley, Wm. Bishop of Durham, and three daughters, Margaret, Eleanor and Jane.

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John Sutton, 1st Baron Dudley
John Sutton, 1st Baron Dudley, KG (25 December 1400 – 30 September 1487) was an English nobleman. A diplomat and councillor of Henry VI, he fought in several battles during the Hundred Years War and the Wars of the Roses, and acted as Lord Lieutenant of Ireland 1428–1430. Family and peerage John Sutton was born at 25 December 1400 and baptised at Barton-under-Needwood, Staffordshire, [1] became 1st Baron Dudley and a Knight of the Garter, and died at Stafford, Staffordshire. His father was Sir John de Sutton V and his mother was Constance Blount. John 1st Baron Dudley married Elizabeth de Berkeley, of Beverstone (died 1478), widow of Edward Charleton, 5th Baron Cherleton and daughter of Sir John Berkeley, of Beverstone, Gloucestershire (1349–1428) and Elizabeth Bettershorne[2] and sister of Eleanor FitzAlan, wife of John FitzAlan, 13th Earl of Arundel, sometime after 14 March 1420. The sons of Dudley by this marriage were:

Sir Edmund Sutton
John Sutton Dudley, Knight of Atherington, whose son was Henry VII's minister

Edmund Dudley, and whose grandson was John Dudley, 1st Duke of Northumberland.
William Dudley Bishop Of Durham: (1476–1483)
Oliver Dudley.

As Lord Steward in 1422 he brought home the body of King Henry V to England, and was chief mourner and standard bearer at his funeral. He fought in several campaigns throughout the period of the wars with France and was a resolute defender of the House of Lancaster early on in the Wars of the Roses, but changed his aliegance for political safety along with many others later on.

Dudley was summoned to Parliament from 15 February 1440, by writs directed to "Johanni de Sutton de Duddeley militi", whereby he obtained a Barony by writ as Lord Dudley. He was the first of his family to adopt the surname of Dudley as an alias for Sutton. "John Dudley, Knyght, Lord Dudley" died testate in his 87th year. His will is dated 17 August 1487.

The barony was inherited by his grandson, Edward Sutton, 2nd Baron Dudley, Lord Dudley, son of Edmund de Sutton who was the heir but died after 6 July 1483 but before his father.[2] Royal service

As Lord Steward in 1422 Sutton brought home the body of King Henry V to England, and was chief mourner and standard bearer at his funeral. From 1428–1430 he served as Lord Lieutenant of Ireland.[3] Dudley fought in several campaigns throughout the period of the wars with France, and on several occasions acted as a diplomat in the mid-1440s, when he also met Charles VII of France.[4] In 1443 he was made a king's councillor and became one of the favourite companions of King Henry VI.[5] In 1451 he became a Knight of the Garter.[3] Early on in the Wars of the Roses he was a resolute defender of the House of Lancaster, but changed his allegiance to York before the Battle of Towton in 1561.Wars of the Roses At the Battle of St Albans 1455 John Lord Dudley took part with his son Edmund, where he was taken prisoner along with Henry VI. At the Battle of Blore Heath he was present on 23 September 1459, equally with his son Edmund Sutton. Dudley was wounded and again captured. At Towton (1461) he was rewarded after the battle for his participation on the side of Edward, Earl of March, son of Richard, Duke of York. On June 28 of that year, Edward IV was proclaimed King in London. Following the Battle of Bosworth Field in August 1485, Dudley was created Sheriff of Sussex by the new King Henry VII.
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Only in 1432 with the succession of John de Sutton VI did the barony come to prominence for he had a long and successful career in the service of the royal court. Amongst his many appointments he held the lieutenancy of Ireland. In the Wars of the Roses he supported the Lancasterian faction under Henry VI and was imprisoned at Ludlow Castle.

In 1455 he was captured at the battle of St Albans and again imprisoned. Despite his previous loyalty to the Lancastrian cause he was soon employed on diplomatic missions for the Yorkists acting as ambassador in negotiations with Burgundy and Brittany.

John de Sutton VI survived the slaughter of these wars and died in 1487 after a long and most distinguished career.

As Lord Steward in 1422 he brought home the body of King Henry V to England, and was chief mourner and carried the standard of King Henry V at his funeral. he fought throughout the wars with France and was a firm supporter of the House of Lancaster in the Wars of the Roses. He was summoned to Parliament from 15 Feb 1439/40 by writs directed Johanni de Sutton de Duddeley militi, whereby he is held to have become Lord Dudley. He was the first of his family to adopt the surname of Dudley as an alias for Sutton. He was taken prisoner with King Henry VI on 23 May 1455 at the first Battle of St. Albans, and was wounded at Blore Heath on 23 Sep 1459.

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John Sutton born 1400
John was the first Baron of Dudley. He fought in wars. This family is hard to track as they addopted the last name of Dudley, s the castle had previously been owned by the Dudleys. One Sutton was married into the Gray family or the Lady Jane Gray line. This was also when this country was struggleing with religious problems.

He supported the house of Lancaster in the war of the roses. They fought against the house of York. When Henry V died he brought the body home. He also carried the standard and wore the kings colors at the funeral. The standard is a staff that was carried into battle for the king on the top was a pendent which displayed the crest of the kings family.
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extra info
John Sutton married Elizabeth de Berkeley, she was first married to Edward de Charleton, who was born in 1371, at Powis, England; he died on March 14, 1420/21. in England. After his death she married John Sutton. She was the daughter of John de Berkeley and he was a descendent of Charlemagne. (John de Berkeley, Thomas de Berkeley, Maurice de Berkeley, Thomas de Berkeley, Isabel Fitz-Roy, Richard Fitz-Roy, John Lackland, Henry II, Geoffrey V. Plantagenet, Fulk V, Fulk IV, Ermengarde, Fulk III, Adelaide de Vermandois, Robert, Herbert, Herbert, Pepin, Bernard, Pepin, Charlemagne)John Sutton, 1st. Baron Dudley (took the name of Dudley).

John Sutton, 1st. Baron Dudley, born before or on December 25, 1400. According to Ormerods's (Hist. Cheshire) Stow, Dugdale, etc. The first of the Sutton Dudley family, that is worthy of a particular notice is John Sutton, Lord Dudley, who had the honor of bearing the standard at the funeral of King Henry V., 1422. He was for 2 years Lord Lieut. of Ireland, being appointed Jan. 1428, in which for employment and other services, his merit was so conspicuous, that, in the 18th of Henry VI., 1439, he was summoned to Parliament then held at Reading, and in the same year he was appointed one of the commissioners to treat with the Duke of Burgundy upon a truce.

In 1446, being of the King's Council, he was sent as ambassador, with the bishop of Chichester, to the duke of Brittanny, and on another embassy to the Duke of Burgundy. In 1447, in consideration of his services, he received a grant of an annuity of one hundred pounds issuing out of the customs of the port of London. In 1451, as a staunch adherent to the house of Lancaster, he was surprised by Richard, Duke of York, at Gloucester, on his return from Ireland, he was sent to prison at the castle of Ludlow. He was taken prisoner with Henry VI on May 23, 1455 at the Battle of St. Albans. Soon afterwards he fought in the battle of Blore Heath, September 23, 1459, and being wounded, received thereupon, and for other services, honorable trusts and offices from his Sovereign, and grants of more the £200 per annum for life. Henry VI. also appointed him treasurer of his household, and was elected a Knight of the Garter before April, 23 1459. We are not told how long he remained in prison, but the House of Commons being mostly Yorkist, prayed the king to remove Sir John Sutton and some other noted persons from among them and exclude Sutton forever from his royal counsels, and ever to prohibit him from approaching within twelve miles of the court. Henry VI. refused this petition. Lord Dudley fought at the battle of St. Albans, May 23, 1455, where the king was defeated by the Duke of York and taken prisoner. Dudley was also taken a prisoner of war and sent to the Tower of London; but he was soon released, as peace prevailed shortly afterwards. He still, however, preserved in the Lancastrian cause for Henry VI. Leland, the noted antiquary, thus describes that action: "At Blore Heath, was a field fought between the Earl of Salisbury and northern men on Kings Edward's part, who overcame the lords Audley (slain) and Dudley (wounded) with Queen Margaret and Chestershire men, who lost the field." Lord Dudley was one of the Knights taken prisoner. By singular good fortune he was equally honored in the next reign by Edward IV., who granted Lord Dudley a pardon in his first year from all debts upon accounts due from him in the exercise of his office, and, afterwards, another grant of one hundred marks yearly to issue from the Duchy of Cornwall, and lastly, one hundred pounds per annum from customs of the port of Southampton.

In the 17th of King Edward IV., he was employed as a Commissioner, with his brother-in-law, the Earl of Arundell, who married Dudley's wife's sister, Eleanor Berkeley to treat respecting the prorogation of the truce between France and England. In the Register of the Order of the Garter, it is recorded, that in 1461, Lord Dudley had the stall of the deceased Earl of Longueville. He was a prominent figure in the reigns of Henry VI and Edward IV. In his will he calls himself "John Dudley, Knight, Lord Dudley." The date is August 17, 1487, and it is registered in P.C.C. 8 miles. He died in Sept. 30, 1487.

The arms on his seal are two passant, but on either side is a smaller shield, that on the dexter side being a cross patonce or flory, and that on the sinister side being a blue lion rampant, which the herald, Glover, probably intended for the Sutton's paternal coat; but, if so, the lion should be green.

John Dudley and his wife, Elizabeth were buried in St. James's Priory, Dudley

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Source of title Baron
Baron Dudley is a title in the Peerage of England. It was created in circa 1440 for John Sutton, a soldier who served as Lord Lieutenant of Ireland. According to Debrett's Peerage and Baronetage he was actually summoned to Parliament as "Johanni de Sutton de Duddeley militi", whereby he is held to have become Baron Dudley. The title is sometime referred to as Baron Sutton of Dudley. The peerage was created by writ, which means that it can descend through both male and female lines.

It is in fact arguable that the title arose even earlier, as his ancestor John Sutton (died 1359) had a writ of summons to the Council on 25 February 1342, but neither he nor his son (died c.1370), grandson (died 10 March 1396) or great grandson (all called John Sutton of Dudley) were summoned,[1] so that they can probably not be regarded as peers.

Lord Dudley's great grandson, the third Baron, managed to get himself severely into debt and lost the family seat of Dudley Castle to his cousin John Dudley, 1st Duke of Northumberland. He became known as "Lord Quondam" ("Lord Has-been" or "Lord Formerly"). However, Dudley Castle and the other family estates were restored to his son, the fourth Baron. He was succeeded by his son, the fifth Baron, who like his grandfather came heavily into debt. To clear his debts he married off his granddaughter and heir, Frances, to Sir Humble Ward, the son of a wealthy jeweller. Frances succeeded him and became the sixth holder of the title. In 1644 her husband Humble Ward was created Baron Ward, of Birmingham in the County of Warwick, by letters patent.

They were both succeeded by their son, the seventh and second Baron respectively. On the death in 1740 of the latter's grandson, the tenth Baron Dudley and fifth Baron Ward, the two titles separated. The barony of Ward, which could only be inherited by males, was passed on to the late Baron's kinsman, the sixth Baron (see the Earl of Dudley for later history of this title). The barony of Dudley was inherited by the Baron's nephew, Ferdinando Lea, 11th Baron Dudley, the eleventh Baron. He was the son of Frances, sister of the tenth Baron, and her husband William Lea. However, on Ferdinando's death in 1757 the peerage fell into abeyance between his sisters. It remained in abeyance for 159 years, but in 1916 the abeyance was terminated in favour of Ferdinando Dudley William Lea Smith, who became the twelfth Baron. He was the great-great-grandson of Anne, sister of the eleventh Baron, and her husband William Smith. As of 2010[update] the title is held by his grandson, the fifteenth Baron, who succeeded his mother in 2002 (who in her turn had succeeded her elder brother).

The holders of the title (until 1740) were the owners of Dudley Castle and an extensive estate around it, including the manors of Dudley, Sedgley, Kingswinford and Rowley Somery in Rowley Regis. By the 16th century, their main home was Himley Hall. On the death of the tenth Baron in 1740, the barony of Dudley passed to a female-line heir (see above), whereas the main estates were entailed to follow the barony of Ward and passed to a cousin. However, certain estates that had recently been purchased passed with the title Lord Dudley to the aforementioned Ferdinando Dudley Lea, the eleventh Baron Dudley.

The family surname of the first five barons was formally 'Sutton', but in practice they seem always to have been called 'Dudley'. In title deeds and other formal documents, the surname often appears as 'Sutton otherwise Dudley'.
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