Medieval Pedigree Comparison
A side-by-side comparison of the two routes through the medieval Exley pedigree, from William de Dewsbury (c.1245) down to John Exley (m. Eliz. Tonge, 1555). Victor’s route descends through William (son of Wm de Dewsbury); the NZ pedigree descends through Richard (the second son). Both routes are documented in Pedigree Connections.
Side-by-Side Descent
| Gen. | Victor’s Route (via William) | Approx. Date | NZ Route (via Richard) | Approx. Date | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | William de Dewsbury (c.1245) | c.1245 | William de Ecclesley of Dewsbury | c.1245 | Both agree. Undated deeds before 1277. |
| 2 | William (m. Alice, dau. of Wm de Backhall) | c.1270 | Richard de Ecclesley (liv. 1277) | liv. 1277 | Divergence begins. Victor follows William; NZ follows Richard, the second son. |
| 3 | John (m. Ann de Copley) | c.1320 | William de Ecclesley (liv. 1284) | liv. 1284 | |
| 4 | John (Poll Tax 1379) | 1379 | Richard de Ecclesley (killed 1317) | d. 1317 | Victor: “Paid 6d in Poll Tax 1379. The only Exley recorded in Morley Wapentake.” |
| 5 | John (witness to 1404 deed) | 1404 | (name missing) | ? | NZ pedigree has a gap here; no name survives. |
| 6 | John (witness to 1417 deed) | c.1420 | Robert of Exley Hall (liv. 1424) | liv. 1424 | |
| 7 | Robert | c.1450 | Robert of Bankhouse (liv. 1456) | liv. 1456 | Victor: Wolsey petition confirms Robert (c.1450) as start of 4 verified generations. |
| 8 | John | c.1470 | James of Wortley (liv. 1481) | liv. 1481 | Victor disputes James as Robert’s son; says he was Robert’s cousin. |
| 9 | Richard | c.1500 | Thomas Exley (liv. 1501) | liv. 1501 | |
| 10 | Robert | c.1518 | James Exley (liv. 1516) | liv. 1516 | |
| 11 | Francis Exley (c.1539) | c.1539 | Thomas Exley (d. 1553) m. Pelagia (d. 1539) | d. 1553 | Different father for John. Victor: Francis. NZ: Thomas. |
| 12 | John Exley (m. Eliz. Tonge, 1555) | m. 1555 | John de S. (d. 1566) m. Elizabeth Tonge | d. 1566 | Both agree. John’s will names Robert and Francis as his sons. |
Where They Agree
- Both routes begin with William de Dewsbury (c.1245), the earliest known Exley ancestor at Exley Hall, Southowram.
- Both routes end at John Exley (m. Eliz. Tonge, 1555), whose will is the key connecting document linking the medieval pedigree to the Rawdon and Liversedge branches.
- Both confirm that all Exley branches descend from a single family at Exley Hall.
- The Wolsey petition (c.1519), cited by Victor, confirms four consecutive generations on his route: Robert (c.1450), John (c.1470), Richard (c.1500), and Robert (c.1518), establishing that Robert (1518) was the great-grandson of Robert (1450). See Victor Exley Pedigree Sketch.
Where They Diverge
Choice of main line. At generation 2, the routes split. Victor follows William (m. Alice), the eldest son of Wm de Dewsbury. The NZ pedigree, compiled by Edith Ellen Exley, follows Richard, the second son. Victor explains in his Oct 1990 letter: “I have taken Richard son of Wm de Dewsbury & his descendants as the main line, while I took the other son William (m. Alice) for my main line.”
Intermediate ancestors. The two routes pass through entirely different named individuals between generations 2 and 11. Victor’s route has a run of four Johns (c.1320 to c.1420); the NZ route passes through Roberts, Richards, Jameses, and Thomases via the Bankhouse and Wortley lines.
Paternity of John (m. Eliz. Tonge). Victor names Francis Exley (c.1539) as John’s father, based on a 1539 marriage entry in the Halifax Parish Register. The NZ pedigree names Thomas Exley (d. 1553), last Exley owner of Bankhouse, Skircourt, married to Pelagia (d. 1539). The NZ pedigree qualifies this with “Thomas and Pelagia were probably the parents of the following.”
Pre-Dewsbury ancestry. The NZ pedigree includes an earlier lineage not present in Victor’s work: Swaina de Ecclesley > Hugh de Ecclesley (liv. 1250) > Henry of Ecclesley Hall (m. Joan de Monte Alto), whose children Ellen and Robert left property to descendants of William de Dewsbury. Victor’s research begins at William de Dewsbury without tracing further back.
Victor’s own assessment. In his July 1990 letter, Victor wrote: “As a few of the links are a bit dicey either pedigree could be right. A combination of both may even be more correct.”
Evidence Quality
General limitations. Victor notes in his Oct 1990 letter that “in the absence of church registers at that early period the only source of relationships is what we can deduce from deeds & wills, which were not always clear. Some deeds were not even dated.” Parish registers in England generally begin in 1538; the medieval portion of both pedigrees relies entirely on pre-register sources.
Victor’s route. The strongest section is generations 7-10 (Robert c.1450 to Robert c.1518), confirmed by the Wolsey petition as four generations of the same line. The earlier generations (Johns of c.1320-1420) are supported by individual deeds and the 1379 Poll Tax, but the father-son links between them rest on inference rather than explicit documentary proof. Victor’s connection of the Halifax Antiquarian Society’s research to his own line is noted at generation 2.
NZ route. Victor observes that from Richard (liv. 1277) down to James (liv. 1516), “there are no birth dates, no death dates & no wives’ names.” The NZ pedigree also has a gap at generation 5, where the name of the individual between Richard (killed 1317) and Robert of Exley Hall (liv. 1424) is missing. The connection of Thomas and Pelagia to their supposed children is explicitly qualified as “probably” by the NZ compilers.
Specific errors noted by Victor. In his July 1990 letter, Victor states that James of Wortley (liv. 1481) “wasn’t” Robert of Bankhouse’s son but rather “Robert’s cousin.” He also corrects the location of Bankhouse: “Skirsote not Bailey Hall.”
Key Sources
- Victor Exley Pedigree Sketch — Victor’s hand-drawn pedigree
- Victor Exley Article Full PDF — published article with TABLE 3 showing the Southowram descent
- NZ Pedigree Sheets (Typed) — the NZ pedigree sheets compiled by Edith Ellen
- Victor Exley Letter July 1990 — Victor’s main discussion of the two routes
- Victor Exley Letter Sept-Oct 1990 — Victor’s comments on evidence quality
- Pedigree Connections — analysis of how both pedigrees relate