The Elusive 5th Baron Craven

 

You don’t hear much about the 5^th Baron Craven. Sandwiched between Fulwar the 4^th Baron, a supreme sportsman, and William, the 6^th Baron, whose personal life has eclipsed much of the rest of his story, William, 5^th Baron Craven seems at the same time both stolid and shadowy. 

The History of Parliament, noting that he served as MP for Warwickshire between 1746 and 1764, comments that “William Craven was returned unopposed as a Tory for the county. He is not known to have spoken nor is any vote of his recorded.” It’s not much of a tribute to a man who served for eighteen years. In fact, he has two entries on the record and both agree that he appears to have contributed nothing to any debate or had any kind of influence.

In dynastic terms as well, the 5^th Baron was something of a side step. He married Jane Berkeley in 1749 but they had no children together. He was the cousin of his predecessor, who was unmarried, and was succeeded by his nephew. However, no man is an island and the 5^th Baron’s family played a crucial role in forming both the man and his role.

William Craven was born in 1705, the son of John Craven. John, who died in 1726, was a younger brother of the 2^nd Baron Craven and uncle to the 3^rd and 4^th barons. He was one of the many children of Sir William Craven of Coombe Abbey and his wife Margaret Clapham, and grew up at Benham in Berkshire and then Coombe Abbey in Warwickshire. He benefitted from his relationship to the Earl of Craven by gaining a commission in the army whilst still in his teens and when he was looking to marry and settle on a country estate, he was granted land at Whitley in Warwickshire, close to Coombe Abbey. The 2^nd Baron Craven had taken a lease on the estate of Cheylesmore in Coventry shortly before. (The manor house is pictured above, painted by Brooke.)

John Craven married in 1700 to Maria Rebecca Berkeley Green. It made sense to make an alliance with another local well-connected gentry family and the Greens held land at Wyken in Warwickshire and at Cotheridge in Worcestershire. Their history was an interesting one. Henry Green, Maria’s father, was the grandson of a prosperous yeoman from Wyken in Warwickshire. His father had taken the leap into local and then national politics, buying land and property along the way. Their manor house has been identified as being the extant “Wyken Manor Farm” on Henley Road which has an L-shaped ground plan and contains some early 17^th century features. It seems probable that this was the original Green family house before they purchased the manor of Wyken from the Willoughby family in 1596, after which it became the manor house. (Picture of Wyken Manor farm from Geograph.org). 

Henry Green married well, to Elizabeth, daughter of Sir Rowland Berkeley of Cotheridge. The Berkeleys were a junior branch of the Barons Berkeley of Berkeley Castle in Gloucestershire and they owned Cotheridge Court, an ancient manor in Worcestershire. When Sir Rowland’s only son died, his daughter Elizabeth inherited the manor and her husband Henry Green adopted the name Berkeley. Their son Rowland went on to inherit Cotheridge whilst their daughter Maria Rebecca inherited Wyken. The Wyken estate passed to her eldest son William Craven on her death in 1729.

When William Craven was born in 1705, there was no indication or expectation that he would one day inherit the Craven barony. William, 2^nd Baron Craven, was still alive and he had no fewer than three sons to follow in him. The children of John and Maria Craven therefore followed a typical upbringing for their period and their class; William studied and Emmanuel College, Cambridge (pictured below) and went on to become an MP whilst two of his surviving brothers went into the church and a third into the Navy. The only surviving daughter, Maria Rebecca, made a very good match to the 4^th Baron Leigh of Stoneleigh in Warwickshire.

With his family annuities plus the Wyken estate, William Craven would have lived very comfortably. He showed no urge to marry young, being forty-three when he married Jane Berkeley, who was ten years younger than he. In fact, she was a first cousin of his, one of the daughters of his mother Maria’s brother Rowland Berkeley Green. 

The 2^nd Baron Craven had died young and intestate in 1711 leaving his son William a minor, which had cause a great deal of litigation. When William 3^rd Baron died without a male heir in 1739, his younger brother Robert was already dead, leaving only Fulwar Craven to carry on the line. This, Fulwar (pictured) seemed disinclined to do; whilst he had a long-time female companion, he did not marry. As time progressed, it must have become apparent that his second cousin William would be next in line. Yet he too was childless.

In the event, William, 5^th Baron Craven lived only five years longer than Fulwar, dying in 1769 at the age of sixty-three. His short tenure of the barony was spent largely at Coombe Abbey. He was one of the trustees of his nephew Edward, 5^th Baron Leigh, and the correspondence between him and Lord Leigh, and also with the agent for the Stoneleigh estate, suggests a man of sound and steady character and influence.

Newspaper reports from the era also give an insight into the 5^th Baron and his activities. In April 1765

the Coventry Standard reported that Lord Craven had been sworn into the office of High Steward of Newbury and gave a very handsome entertainment to the corporation and gentlemen of Newbury to celebrate the occasion. An interesting side note was that the Recorder for the Corporation requested that Lord Craven have a portrait painted so that they could hang it in the town hall; his lordship agreed and it was to be painted by Mr Taylor. There are no portraits of the 5^th Baron, as far as I know, so I wonder whether this was completed. Perhaps there is still a portrait of Lord Craven hanging in the council offices, or perhaps it was sold long ago.

The same newspaper report went on to note that Lord and Lady Craven subsequently travelled from Berkshire to their house in Upper Grosvenor Street in London. This was number 11, previously occupied by Fulwar Craven and after the death of the 5^th Baron, by his brother Rear Admiral Thomas Craven.

In sporting terms, it seems that the 5^th Baron had the family interest in the turf. Reports of race meetings record a number of his horses running; many of these had been bred by his predecessor Fulwar Craven.

In January of 1769 the newspapers reported the 5^th Baron Craven to be dangerously ill and he died in March of that year after what was described as a “tedious illness”. The obituaries were generous, observing that “his many eminent virtues rendered his death universally lamented.” He was buried at Binley having requested a quiet funeral with no pomp, leaving in his will a substantial annuity to his widow Jane and also a sum to enable her to buy and furnish a suitable house of her own choosing. He also left her his private effects including silver, china and his best carriage and horses for her use. There were other annuities for family members and recognition of all the servants. The bulk of the estates and possessions, of course, went to his nephew William Craven who was to become the 6^th Baron on his death. Jane, Dowager Baroness Craven, lived until 1791. Hers is another story I hope to tell in the future. 

There is one other rather nice way in which the 5th Baron Craven has made his mark on history and that is via an apple. It is said that when Thomas Craven returned from a tour with the Navy he brought with him the seeds of an apple from Holland which were planted in his brother's garden at Wyken Manor. From these grew a yellowish-green apple with a sweet aroma and a tangy flavour, which became popular in orchards of the 18th and 19th centuries. This apple was the Wyken Pippin, an ancestor of many popular modern apples.