Don Falkenburg's Knight Gregson manuscript

The link will take you to Don's family history of his branch of the Knight Gregson's.  His ancestry flows through Charles Edward Knight Gregson, son of Henry and Eliza. This manuscript is available as a free download on the iBooks Store.  

(1)Launch iBooks; (2)Select Featured; (3) Search: Knight Gregson.

If you do not have an Apple device, there is a pdf version available at:

link:  The Knight Gregson Family

This pdf version does not have all of the interactive capabilities as the iBook.  One of several problems:  If you follow a link in the pdf version and then use the BACK button on your browser, you will return to the beginning of the book.  In addition, the gallery which contains several pictures of Lowlynn is not work in the pdf version.

When Alfred committed suicide, the estate of Lowlynn was inherited by his son Clarence Knight Gregson. It was on the death of Clarence in 1930 that Clarence Anthony Knight Gregson should have inherited.

As we know the poem 'The Song of Lowlynn' was commissioned by Clarence Anthony in 1932 to celebrate the success of his court case to establish his ownership of Lowlynn against his great uncle Harold S Knight Gregson's claim.

Samuel Romilly was indeed a great supporter of legal reform against the bigotry and resistance to change of Lord Eldon. Other than a reference to the reverence given to such a legal reformer, it seems odd to me that Romilly's name should be associated in this poem to the claimant's legal action against his great uncle in the name of his right - by primogeniture - to the inheritance of Lowlynn after the death of his father Clarence. In a letter by Romilly published in the book "Memoirs if the Life of Sir Samuel Romilly p 318" Romilly seems to agree with Thomas Paine (The Rights of Man) that the aristocratic rule of primogeniture is archaic in that it only recognises the first born child and "the rest are begotten to be devoured" (Paine). While this court action was not brought against a sibling but rather against the younger brother of his grandfather, Alfred, it does seem an odd choice to use the name of Romilly in defence of primogeniture.

On page 10-18 of the narrative by Don of the Knight Gregson Family reference is made to the fact that four of Henry's daughters did not marry. These four young women were the surviving daughters out of seven. I know we should not judge previous generations by our own cultural norms but as a female descendant of the family I have often wondered why none married. The photograph of Frances illustrates what a fine looking woman she was. In the nineteenth century, women of the gentry would have had to be introduced to prospective men through careful planning of social occasions and the promise of a dowry. In 1881 Mary was aged 31, Katherine 20 and Frances 19. From 1881 to Henry's death in 1889 this should have been the period to arrange some suitors. Constantia appeared to be the only daughter out of all the children who attended boarding school. Katherine became a lady's companion to a Caroline Holland in Wales (1901 census). The girls did not appear to have very fulfilling lives compared to the boys. Was Henry a little myopic in terms of his social duty?