Terry Foreman on 17 Apr 2014  •  Link

Lady Catherine Mountagu (20 August 1661-January 15th, 1757), youngest daughter of Lord Sandwich, married, first, Nicholas Bacon, eldest son and heir of Sir Nicholas Bacon, K.B., of Shrubland Hall, co. Suffolk https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nic… ; and, secondly, the Rev. Balthazar Gardeman (1682 - 1740), vicar of Coddenham. She had three sons of Nicholas Bacon, the second of whom was Montagu Bacon, (1688–1749), scholar and critic. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mon…

San Diego Sarah on 4 Dec 2017  •  Link

In researching the Witch Finder General, Matthew Hopkins, I discovered Nicholas Bacon was one of his cohorts.

From http://www.witchtrials.co.uk/matt…

Matthew Hopkins is perhaps the most notorious name in English witchcraft, commonly called “The Witch-Finder General”. Throughout 1645-6, Hopkins acquired a reputation as a ‘fingerman’ (informer), paid by local authorities to commit perjury. In 14 months, Hopkins was responsible for the executions of some 230 alleged witches, more than all the other witch-hunters during the 160 years of England’s witchcraft hysteria.

Montague Summers (1880-1948) a Catholic Priest devoutly against witchcraft, an eminent scholar of Trinity College Oxford, and a prolific author who wrote about witchcraft, demonology and vampirism, and believed witches were evil servants of the devil 'Satan', describes Matthew Hopkins as: “an orthodox Puritan of narrowest views, which were certainly adopted for convenience rather than from conviction, he was energetic enough so far as his own pockets were concerned, and his crusade up and down the eastern counties, which created something like a reign of terror at the time, has caused his name to stink in the nostrils of all decent persons ever since”.

‘The Tendring Witchcraft Revelations’ (an unpublished manuscript by C. S. Perryman dated 1725, which compiled information by “divers informers” in 1645, 1646, 1647 and 1648-50) says Hopkins used the Thorn Inn, Mistley, Essex from which to conspired with informers against Witches. They included the Number One Argus, John Thurlow, and William Lilly, the astrological prophet and almanacker.”

John Thurlow was the son of Thomas Thurlow, rector of Abbess Roding, Essex. He was the same age as Matthew Hopkins, also studied law and, as the title of ‘Number One Argus’ indicates, he was Cromwell’s ‘Chief of Secret Service’. In 1645, John Thurlow was appointed one of the Secretaries to the Commissioners of Parliament at the Treaty of Uxbridge, and was probably Hopkins’ link to other sources of Government.

William Lilly was one of England's leading astrologers with both Royalist and Parliamentarian connections. The Tendring Witchcraft Revelations says Hopkins consulted with Lilly “on ... some darker aspects of the Signs of the Times appertaining to witchcraft ...”.

In Hopkins' fathers' will, one of the executors was Nathaniel Bacon (1593-1660), the third son of Edward Bacon of Shrubland Hall. According to Tendring Witchcraft Revelations he was an extreme Puritan and violently anti-Catholic. In 1643, Bacon was elected Recorder of Ipswich, and later Recorder of Bury St. Edmonds. He was also chairman of the Central Committee (sitting at Cambridge) which presided over the 7 counties of the Eastern Counties’ Association. In 1645 Bacon was one of the members of Parliament for Cambridge University.

Poor Katherine -- this would be about the time she was married to him. I wonder if Montague Summers was a descendant.

San Diego Sarah on 7 Jul 2024  •  Link

What was I thinking? Catherine wasn't born until 1661, so I now think a Nicholas Bacon was the nephew/much younger brother of the man (Nathaniel) I biographied above. The fact there were Montagues in the family already indicates established family connections.
A Nicholas Bacon MP (1622 - 1685) also of Shrubland Hall was given the Order of the Bath at the Restoration -- and he had 4 sons. It's much more likely her husband was one of them. https://www.historyofparliamenton…