Family > Dingley > Lancashire DINGLEYs

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DINGLEYS in Lancashire

1. Dineley and other places

The Dingley family from Lancashire were originally called DE DYNELEY. This surname was taken from the village of Dineley. The following are several places that are mentioned in connection with the DE DYNELEYs.

• Dineley itself is a couple of miles south east of Burnley, to the west of the river Calder. Dineley is named soon after 1218, when Henry son of Richard DE ELLAND gave land there to Robert son of Siward DE WORSTHORNE. [VCH Lancs]
• Cliviger is just north of Dineley, to the east of the river Calder
• Towneley is also to the north of Dineley, but to the west of the river Calder
• The river Calder rises in the hills south east of Burnley and runs past Dineley and Cliviger.
• The Forest of Rossendale lies to the south of Burnley.
• The town of Whalley lies about 8 miles to the N.W. of Burnley. Whalley was also the name of an extensive parish which included Blackburn, Burnley, Clitheroe, Cliviger, Downham, etc.
• Padiham lies between the town of Whalley and Burnley.
• Clitheroe is about 12 miles to the N.W. of Burnley.
• Downham is about 3 miles to the N.E. of Clitheroe.
• Blackburnshire was the name of an area around Blackburn. There was significant geographical overlap between Blackburnshire and the parish of Whalley.

2. Early DYNELEYs

The earliest DYNELEY record in Lancashire appears to be:

The 'lands east of Calder' are probably in Cliviger. The DE DYNELEY family are presumed to have taken the name of Dineley which is to the S.E. of Burnley.

I am not aware of any record which mentions Matthew's children, so it is a matter of deducing who they are. One of the main sources of information are the Towneley deeds which I have not yet had a chance to see. However, the following documents draw upon the Towneley deeds and other documents, and form my starting point:

• VCH for Lancashire
• 'Loidis and Elmete' by T D Whitaker, 1816
• 'History of the Original Parish of Whalley' by T.D. Whitaker, revised 1872

The latter reference proposes a descent from Henry DE DINELAY - see Pedigree fragment below.

One branch of the DYNELEY family which owned property in Clitheroe was headed by Adam DE DYNELEY - see below for details

A possible descendant of Matthew was William DE DYNELEY. He and his son John held lands in the Cliviger area. William and his descendants had a close connection with Adam and his descendants, which is discussed below. I currently believe that William was probably the ancestor of Robert DYNELEY of Kingsclere - see Robert & Richard DINGLEY for details.

There are links between the DE DYNELEYs, the DE LA LEIGHs, and TOWNELEY families all of whom seem to have shown a very similar Coat of Arms - see DE LA LEIGH and TOWNELEY connection below.

3. Pedigree fragment

T.D. Whitaker in History of Whalley gives the following DYNELEY pedigree fragment:

Henry DE DYNELEY, vix. temp Hen.III
- Matthew DE DYNELEY, first grantee under the Abbey of Kirkstall
-- Oliver DE DYNELEY, Rector of Thornton, in Lonsdale
-- William DE DYNELEY, 1316
-- John DE DYNELEY
--- Robert DE DYNELEY
---- John DE DYNELEY
----- Margaret DE DYNELEY, dau and heiress = Henry TOWNLEY, c. 8 Hen V [1420]
------ Thomas TOWNLEY, 1445
------- Richard TOWNLEY

As VCH Lancashire points out, Whitaker may have had access to documents which did not survive until the 20th century. Whether Whitaker actually had access to documents which showed Matthew's children is a bit doubtful.

4. William DE DINELEY (son of Matthew?)

VCH Lancashire gives evidence for a William DE DYNELEY and his descendants as follows (my numbering):

[A] William DE DYNELEY (fl. 1319, 1331)
[A1] - John DE DYNELEY (fl. 1319, 1361)
[A11] -- Robert DE DYNELEY(fl. 1361)
[A12] -- Richard DE DYNELEY

The above people were contemporaneous with Adam DE DYNELEY and his descendants, summarised below, again with my numbering:

[B] Adam DE DYNELEY
[B1] - John DE DYNELEY (c.1290-1367) of Downham m1. Margaret DE DOUNAM; m2. < 1318 Isabella
[B11] --Richard DE DYNELEY (1317-1369) of Downham

The following are records mentioning William and his descendants, Adam and his descendants, and others, with my interpretation of who they might be.

Although from the above table it seems likely that William and Adam were related, it is not possible to tell what the relationship was. It looks as though William may have died between 1331 and 1349. I suspect that he was younger than Adam - Adam gave his son all his lands in Clitheroe and around Burnley, in 1313-4 (see Adam DE DYNELEY) and this was possibly not long before he died.

5. Oliver DE DYNELEY, Rector of Thornton

I am unsure about the position of Oliver DE DYNELEY, Rector of Thornton in Lonsdale, in Whitaker's pedigree fragment.

• Oliver did not take up his position at Thornton (in Lonsdale, Yorks.) until about 1348 [CPR], and was still there in 1355. [CAD]
• Oliver DE DINELAY (son of John), rector of Thornton in Lonsdale, gave a release, in 1362, of the capital messuage in Cliviger granted to John son of William. [VCH Lancs]

I cannot tell which of the several Johns was the father of Oliver.

6. Robert & Richard DINGLEY

Of particular interest to me is where Robert DINGLEY of Kingsclere might fit into the Lancashire pedigree. Evidence that Robert was from Lancashire is shown in the pages relating to Robert. Evidence that his son and heir disposed of his Lancashire property is shown in TOWNELEY and De LA LEIGH connection below.

There appear to be several options for Robert's ancestors:

1. The Dingley Pedigree shows Robert DINGLEY as the son of Richard (son of Matthew) and Beatrix.
2. Whitaker shows Richard DINGLEY of Charleton, Worcs, as the son of Richard DE DYNELEY [B11] of Downham. If one also accepts that Robert was brother of Richard of Charlton (see Robert DINGLEY of Kingsclere) this would also place Robert with the DINGLEYs of Downham.
3. John DE DYNELEY [A1] could be the father of both Robert DINGLEY of Kingsclere and Richard DINGLEY of Charlton who would therefore be A11 and A12 respectively.

These options are discussed below.

6.1 Robert son of Richard DINGLEY and Beatrix?

I have not found any evidence for this Richard in VCH Lancs or Whitaker.

6.2 Robert and Richard sons of Richard DE DYNELEY [B11] of Downham?

I have not seen any direct evidence that Richard DE DYNELEY [B11] of Downham had sons Robert or Richard, other than Whitaker showing Richard DINGLEY of Charlton as a son, and this may only have been Whitaker's opinion of what was most likely.

There are two circumstantial pointers in favour of this option, and one against.

Pro. GASCOIGNE. There is substantial evidence that Robert DINGLEY of Kingsclere had a close connection with the GASCOIGNE family - see GASCOIGNE connection. I have not done much research on the GASCOIGNEs, but web searches suggest that
- they were of Lancashire and Yorkshire
- William, Nicholas and Richard GASCOIGNE were all sons of William GASCOIGNE and Margaret FRANK.

Richard DE DYNELEY's [B11] second wife was Alicia FRANK of Alwoodley, Yorks, so a family connection with the GASCOIGNEs via the FRANKs is a possibility.

Pro. Yorkshire. Robert and Richard DINGLEY held property in Yorkshire (see Robert DINGLEY of Kingsclere). Richard DE DYNELEY [B11] and his father John [B1] also held property in Yorkshire (see Yorks Dingleys), quite possibly obtained via their marriages.

Con. Inheritance. Richard DE DYNELEY's [B11] eldest son, by his first wife, was Henry (1343-84) who inherited Downham. Henry's heir was his only child Margaret who was born after he died. There then followed a long-running dispute over the inheritance of Downham, with John DE DYNELAY, a son of Richard [B11] by his second wife (Alicia FRANK), eventually inheriting in the early 1400s. This John DE DYNELAY was born about 1368.

This Inheritance issue makes it looks pretty difficult to make a case for Robert of Kingsclere and/or Richard of Charlton to be a son of Richard [B11] of Downham. Firstly, on grounds of age: Robert of Kingsclere was probably born in the 1330s. Dates for Richard of Charlton are scarce and I only have evidence for he and his wife inheriting Charlton about 1383-7 - it looks unlikely that he would have had an elder brother (John) born in 1368. Secondly, I would have thought that at least Robert would have had a claim in the dispute over the Downham inheritance, unless he had foregone his rights. Finally, in the unlikely event that Richard of Charlton was a younger brother of John (who was born in 1368), he could not be the same Richard who was Robert's brother as shown in the several records from 1374 to 1379.

6.3 Robert and Richard sons of John [A1] son of William [A] ?

There are two circumstantial pointers in favour of this option which is my current favourite.

Pro. Robert and Richard. There are several Rolls records between 1374 and 1379 which show Robert and Richard DINGLEY acting jointly concerning their property in Yorkshire and financial dealings in London and Warwick (see Robert DINGLEY of Kingsclere). Theoretically, these could all be different people, but I think that is unlikely. Robert of Kingsclere was undoubtedly a man of some standing who travelled widely, so I have no problem in believing that the records apply to him. Robert, usually being mentioned first, looks like the elder brother.

The fact that John DE DYNELEY [A1] had at least two sons Robert [A11] and Richard [A12] certainly allows the possibility that they were Robert of Kingsclere and Richard of Charlton, but of course does not prove it.

Pro. Harbouring a felon. In 1359 John son of William DE DINELAY and Robert his son had been accused of harbouring a felon (see above). [VCH Lancs] This is probably the same crime that Robert received a pardon for in 1360 (see link). Robert is pardoned because of "good service done in the war of France". This recognition of military service fits well with other records acknowledging Robert's service to the king and his wife's service to the queen. Again, this is not proof, just a pointer.

7. DE LA LEIGH and TOWNELEY connection

There is almost certainly an early connection between the DYNELEY, DE LA LEIGH and TOWNELEY families. This can be seen from:

• they used the same Coat of Arms, three mullets and a fess
• property transactions between the families

The following is an extract from 'Tracing the Towneleys' [www.burnley.gov.uk/towneley], with my numbering. It can be seen that Richard DE TOWNELEY [D213] was a male descendant of the DE LA LEIGH family and that he assumed the name of DE TOWNELEY.

[C] Geoffrey, Dean of Whalley
Had 3 sons, Geoffrey, Henry, Robert, of whom Geoffrey is shown below
[C1] - Geoffrey (fl. 1223), Dean of Whalley
[C11] -- Roger, last Dean of Whalley
[C12] -- Richard DE TOWNELEY (-1295) m. Cecilia
Children were 1 son (d.s.p.) and 3 daughters including:
[C121] --- Cecilia DE TOWNELEY (d. <1323) m. John DE LA LEIGH (fl. 1340)

[D] Michael DE LA LEIGH
[D1] - Adam, a burgess in Clitheroe
[D2] - Gilbert DE LA LEIGH (fl. 1295, 1336)
[D21] -- John DE LA LEIGH (fl. 1340) m. Cecilia DE TOWNELEY (as above)
[D211] --- Gilbert DE LA LEIGH (d.s.p.)
[D212] --- Lawrence DE LA LEIGH (also called DE TOWNELEY)
[D213] --- Richard DE TOWNELEY (-1379) m. Elena
[D2131] ---- John DE TOWNELEY (1350-1399) m. Isabella
[D21311] ----- their children continue the line of descent
[D2132] ---- Robert DE TOWNELEY, chaplain
[D2133] ---- Henry DE TOWNELEY, chaplain

Richard DE TOWNELEY [D213] exhibited the arms of 3 mullets and a fess in 1374-77. A grant by Henry DE DINELAY (1343-84), see Downham Dyneleys, had his armorial seal appended, showing a fesse and in chief three mullets pierced. [VCH Lancs]

Some property transactions involving DYNELEY, TOWNELEY and DE LA LEIGH, with my interpretations of who they are:

In the above 1409 record, the description 'Robert DE DYNELAY son and heir of Robert DE DYNELAY, Esq.' fits well with other descriptions around this time for Robert the son of Robert of Kingsclere.

However, it does not seem possible to form any definite conclusions about the DYNELEY connection with TOWNELEY and DE LA LEIGH from any of this, only more questions.

Maybe Adam DE DYNELEY was the burgess in Clitheroe, son of Michael DE LA LEIGH? Amongst the property that Adam DE DYNELEY gave to his son John was land in 'la Leye' - is this just a coincidence of name?

8. Adam DE DYNELEY

Adam DE DYNELEY was the ancestor of the DYNELEYS of Downham - see Downham Dyneleys. In the 16th century, descendants of this branch settled in Yorkshire, in particular Bramhope - see Yorks Dingleys.

Adam was known to be of Clitheroe; he also held land in Cliviger. The following are some references to Adam and Clitheroe in some documents.

• The DYNELEY's manor house in Clitheroe was known as Wivers. [VCH Lancs]
• In 1295 Ade [Adam] DE DYNELEY was fined 40s in Clitheroe "pro transgressione facta in foresta". [Henry De Lacy]
• Hugh son of Hugh DE CLITHEROE granted to Adam DE DINELAY a toft &c., the description naming the King's way leading to the church of Clitheroe. [VCH Lancs]
• In 1313, Adam son of [a] Hugh DE CLITHEROE was called to warrant Adam DE DINELAY in the possession of 8 acreas in Clitheroe claimed by Richard PARIS. [VCH Lancs]
• Adam gave all his lands in Clitheroe and his lands around Burnley (viz. la Leye and Holerodes in Cliviger) to his son John and John's wife Margaret. [Lancs. Inq.] VCH Lancs gives the date as 1313-4.
• To John DE DINELAY Robert son of Adam gave the land in Salthill appertaining to the grantor's 4d burgages in Clitheroe at a rent of 14d. [VCH Lancs]
• In 1340 Cecily DE DINELAY obtained two messuages and 7 acres of land in Clitheroe against John DOUENAY and Agnes his wife. These messuages were in dispute in 1346. John DE DINELEY in 1357 recovered a free tenement in Clitheroe against William NOWELL, Margaret his wife, John DE GREENACRES, Maud his wife and others. Richard Dinelay died in 1511 holding two messuages there. [VCH Lancs]

9. Conclusion

So far, I cannot draw any definite conclusions over the linkages between the above Lancashire DYNELEYs. Currently I would just say the following:

• Robert DINGLEY of Kingsclere was probably a descendant of Matthew DE DINELEY who acquired Dineley and Cliviger in the 13th century.
• Adam DE DYNELEY was probably a descendant of the DE LA LEIGH family.
• Matthew DE DINELEY and Adam DE DYNELEY were probably related either by blood or marriage.