Clifton: The House and Family
October 2006 Meeting Report
Guest Speaker - Ann Bloomfield
The October 2006 meeting of the Keyworth & District Local History Society was held in the Centenary Lounge Keyworth on 6th October 2006. The guest speaker was Anne Bloomfield and the subject for the evening was “The Clifton Dynasty”. Anne Bloomfield has written a book on the Clifton family and it was from this book that most of her presentation was taken. A slide presentation was also given in which various line drawings, maps and photographs were used to complement the oral presentation.
The Clifton family appear to be one of Nottingham’s oldest families. They can trace their ancestry to the time of the Norman Conquest. One of William’s knights named Alvared appears to be the founder of the dynasty. The name of Clifton was assumed when the family purchased the village of that name in South Nottinghamshire from the De Rhodes family in 1272. Over the years the Clifton family became famous, so much so that by the time of The Wars of the Roses Sir John Clifton is mentioned by name in Shakespeare’s Henry IV. Sir John was to lose his life in 1403 at the Battle of Shrewsbury.
The Wars of the Roses, fought between the houses of York and Lancaster for the English throne affected many of the great families in the land. The Clifton family was no exception and, at various times, supported both rival camps. It required a very astute political brain to survive the possible consequences of being on the losing side in any of the many battles that occurred during this conflict. In 1485 Sir Gervase Clifton was The Sheriff of Nottingham and was a supporter of Richard III. After the victory of Henry Tudor over Richard many of the families who had supported Richard lost their lands and possessions, somehow Sir Gervase managed to hang on to the Clifton estates which shows that he must have been decidedly smart to avoid the pitfalls that befell most of the losing side.
There have been several prominent members of the Clifton family. Amongst these is Sir Gervase Clifton who lived from 1515 to 1588. Gervase was a favourite Christian name in the Clifton family, so much so that over the years no less than eleven other prominent members of the family were so named. Sir Gervase served at the Courts of Henry VII, Edward VI and Queen Elizabeth and acquired a reputation as a distinguished and courteous man, so much so that he acquired the epithet of Sir Gervase the Gentle. He fought in France in 1544 at the siege of Boulogne and also defended Doncaster in 1569 when there was a rebellion against Queen Elizabeth. Sir Gervase heir, George, died whilst only twenty years of age in 1587 but he had a son born after his death and shortly before Sir Gervase died. This son was also named Gervase, he lived from 1587 to 1666.
The Sir Gervase that inherited the title in 1588 was destined to become on of the most famous of the Clifton family. So much so that he was acquire the epithet of Sir Gervase the Great. In his early life he gained the reputation of being something of an eccentric but he was universally popular and well respected amongst his peers. He was knighted when only sixteen years of age and also became the first member of the Clifton family to hold the hereditary title of Baronet, though this was bought from James I for £1,000. During his lifetime Sir Gervase served as a Member of Parliament on eight occasions. He had a great love of bowling and established a bowling green on one of the terraces at Clifton Hall, which still survives to this day.
Sir Gervase was a Royalist and during the English Civil War was a supporter of the Cavaliers. However, when Cromwell’s forces finally secured victory Sir Gervase found himself on the losing side. Cromwell had Sir Gervase locked in the Tower of London and was not released until he had paid a very substantial fine. During his lifetime Sir Gervase was married seven times, though six of these wives died. Legend has it that Sir Gervase deliberately married older, wealthy women so that he would inherit their wealth and this helped him to pay off his huge debt that had been incurred with his release from The Tower of London.
Another prominent member of the Clifton family was Sir Arthur Clifton who fought with Wellington at the Battle of Waterloo. Sir Arthur was Colonel of the 1st Dragoons and went on to live to the ripe old age of 99. Sir Robert Clifton was the next prominent member of the dynasty. He lived from 1826 to 1869. He seems to have been a charismatic person but a bit of a rascal. He was very fond of horse racing, even competing himself at various times. He seems to have been an inveterate gambler, and like most of that ilk lost heavily. Indeed, for many years he lived abroad, reputedly to avoid his many creditors. It was to help to pay off some of these debts that Sir Arthur had Wilford Toll Bridge built and also the colliery at Clifton although both of these were not completed until 1870, the year after Sir Arthur died of typhoid. In the event, neither the toll bridge or the colliery generated very much revenue. Sir Arthur represented Nottingham as a Member of Parliament being first elected in 1861. He stood again in 1865, an election made memorable for the riots that developed between Sir Arthur’s supporters and those of his rival, a Mr Morley. When Sir Arthur died he had no heir and the Baronetcy died with him. He was the ninth and last Baronet Clifton.
Over the years various relatives of the Clifton family inherited the estate and changed their names to Clifton. Several of the “new” Cliftons also died without heirs and other cousins inherited the estate and they too changed their name to Clifton. The last member of the Clifton family to live at Clifton Hall was Sir Peter Clifton who lived from 1911 to 1997. Sir Peter was educated at Eton and served with honour in the Grenadier Guards. He rose to the rank of Lieutenant Colonel in his military career. After the end of the Second World War Nottingham City Council purchased the Clifton estate and used it to build the new Clifton Council Housing Estate. At the time the new estate was one of the largest of it’s kind in Europe.
The ancestral home of the Clifton family, Clifton Hall, stills stands though it is no longer in Clifton hands.