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The earliest confirmed location for Neil's Berrington / Barrington ancestors, is Datchet, which is in Buckinghamshire. The family was among the gentry. Yet there are no Berrington entries in the Visitation of Buckinghamshire of 1634, presumably because the family had moved on by then. However, in view of the proximity of Berkshire and Buckinghamshire, a record in the 1566 Herald's Visitation of Berkshire could be significant. It gives a Berington [with one R] ancestral line in Streatley. The following version was translated into modern English for David Nash Ford's Royal Berkshire History and, unlike the pedigrees in other visitations I have seen, is in narrative rather than tree form:
The visitation gives no births, marriage or death dates, to confirm a link with the Datchet Berringtons, but British History Online does provide some pointers to dates by way of monumental inscriptions:
Another record which provides a helpful date is from the records of Exeter College, Oxford*:
As it suggests a birth date for Thomas Berington of around 1557. which does not fit any Thomas in the Datchet line of Berringtons, it must refer to one of the Thomas Beringtons in the Visitation of Berkshire. In view of the Herefordshire ancestry of the Streatley of Berkshire Beringtons, clearly Herefordshire was the next place to look for the ancestry of Thomas of Datchet. The Visitation of Herefordshire* visitation plugged some missing gaps but somewhat surprisingly did not give a pedigree for Robert Berington of Hereford East, although his existence was documented there through marriages in the pedigrees of other families. Thanks to the website of Hereford City Council, the ancestry of Robert can be taken back to a William Berrington (note double R) who was probably Robert's grandfather. William was 'The Right Worshipful the Mayor of Hereford' in 1442. So he was probably born about 1395. There was also a Thomas Berington (spelt with a single R) who had three terms in the same position - in 1462, 1465 and 1470. He must have been born about 1425; so it is reasonable to assume that he was William's son. It is inconceivable that the two were not, at the very least, related. Interestingly, in 1467, during a period when Thomas was not holding the mayoral position, it was held by an Oliver Cromwel [sic]. This was too early to be the Oliver Cromwell (1599 - 1658) who was Lord Protector of England, but the name does suggest a family relationship. As Robert Berington of Hereford East was also a 'The Right Worshipful the Mayor of Hereford', it is reasonable to assume that Thomas was his father. - and in view of their public appointments, it is rather surprising that William and Thomas were not included in the visitation pedigrees.
The descendancy chart is based on information from the 1566 Visitation of Berkshire with dates added from other sources. It shows those descendants of Robert Berington of Herefordshire who could seem to have been instrumental in passing on their surname to Thomas of Datchet - ie it does not carry through any female lines. Some information on females has come to light. For example, the Visitation of Herefordshire shows that Thomas (born c1481) had a daughter Anne who married Humfrey Howarth. The IGI fortuitously gives a date: she was married as Anne Buryington on 6 Feb 1558 at Saint Nicholas, Hereford. With reference to the chart and to anyone in it who might seem a candidate for fathering Thomas of Datchet:
John, the son of Robert of Hereford East (c1455 - ?) does, though, seem unaccounted for, but he was probably the John Berington of Stoke Lacy, Hereford, who has his own entry in the 1634 visitation. However, this line is not stated as going back to Robert of Hereford or anyone else. Tantalisingly it does show a Thomas Berington, youngest son of John. However, the Visitation references him on a later page as Thomas Berington of Cowarne with descendants who are not those of Thomas of Datchet.
This does not, of course mean that a link did not exist. As the Editor of the 1665-6 Visitation of Berkshire pointed out in the Introduction to Volume II: "It is clear that a Visitation was not an official record of the Gentry of a County, but comprised only the Pedigrees of those who were prepared to pay the Fees of Entry." It may be of interest to other researchers to flag the mentions of the Berington name by marriage in the pedigrees of other families in the Visitation of Herefordshire:
It may also be of interest to include two (contradictory!) pieces of additional information from the Hereford Record Office: |
