Coventry Priory The
manor is not listed in the
Domesday Book of 1086. In the 13th century it was held by
Coventry Priory in Warwickshire, situated 9 miles to the north; a confirmation of the original charter by King
Henry III in 1267 implies that it was in possession of the Priory from its foundation in 1043. :
There is no private family in the kingdom has given more knights; none which has been more numerous in its branches; some of them have almost rivalled the eldest in consequence, and that fettled in France surpassed them, having many centuries ago been declared noble; the alliances they have contracted have been equal to themselves, and the many high offices held by them in the state, have been exceeded only by the very large possessions they have constantly had. The Knightley family originated at the Staffordshire manor of
Knightley, acquired by them shortly after the
Norman Conquest of 1066. In 1415 Sir Richard Knightley purchased the manor of
Fawsley in Northamptonshire, where the senior line of the family became seated. Sir Edmund Knightley of Fawsley was the third son, and eventual heir, of Sir Richard Knightley of Fawsley, who held 41 manors in the central midlands, by his wife Joan Skennard, daughter and heiress of Henry Skennard (or Skynnerton) of Alderton, Northamptonshire. He was a sergeant-at-law trained in the
Middle Temple who served as a
Member of Parliament for Reading in 1515 and for Wilton in 1529. He married Ursula de Vere, a sister and coheiress of
John de Vere, 14th Earl of Oxford. He acquired much land following the
Dissolution of the Monasteries, including in 1538
Studley Priory in Warwickshire. In 1538 he became the heir of his elder brother
Richard Knightley, of Fawsley and of
Upton near
Northampton, MP, who died without male issue, whose monument survives in
St Michael's Church, Upton. Sir Edmund Knightley, like his elder brother, also died childless, leaving as his heir his younger brother Sir Valentine Knightley, of Fawsley, who in 1561–2 received a new grant of the manor. He bequeathed Offchurch to his fourth son Edward Knightley. The descent of Knightley of Offchurch was as follows: • Edward Knightley (fl.1585/1604), fourth son of Sir Valentine Knightley, of Fawsley. The Offchurch branch of the family remained as
Roman Catholics after the
Reformation, which restricted their opportunities to serve in public life. Edward Knightley married three times, his second wife being Elizabeth Lenthall, a daughter of Sir William Lenthall of Latchford in Oxfordshire. • Richard Knightley, son by father's second wife, married Anne Pettus, a daughter of Sir John Pettus. In 1626 the manor was seized by the crown and was leased for 21 years to John Pecke, but subsequently reverted to the Knightley family.; who was the first Protestant in his family. He married but died without issue when the baronetcy expired. He had always promised faithfully to leave his property to his cousin Richard Knightley of Charwelton, but disregarding his promise, left it to his wife's grandson, by her first husband Thomas Wightwick. Sir John himself states in his will that he did this in consequence of the unkind behaviour of his Knightley male relations, who refused to go to him in his illness.
Wightwick (Knightley) (1666-1720). He inherited the estate aged 9 from his step-grandfather (d.1871) On his death in 1689 the 2nd Baronet bequeathed the manor to his 9-year-old step-grandson John Wightwick (his wife's grandson by her first husband), John Wightwick Knightley I married 22 year-old Mary Marow, a daughter and co-heiress of
Sir Samuel Marow, 1st Baronet Finch Jane Wightwick Knightley (Countess of Aylesford), heiress of Offchurch, married
Heneage Finch, 6th Earl of Aylesford.
Watson The buyer (via his company the Olympia Agricultural and Pure Stock Farms Ltd, based at Selby in Yorkshire),) for his venture into industrialised agriculture. He died unexpectedly in 1922 of a heart attack whilst hunting with the Warwickshire Foxhounds near Compton Verney and was buried at Offchurch. His son and heir
Miles Watson, 2nd Baron Manton, resided for a while at Compton Verney, which he sold in 1929, whilst Joseph's widow Claire, Baroness Manton, lived at Offchurch Bury until her death in 1936, the surrounding estate having been sold in 1923.
Johnson The manor of Offchurch Bury was purchased in 1923, with the reversion of the house, by Henry ("Harry") Johnson, a textile manufacturer and managing director of
Courtaulds Ltd at Coventry in Warwickshire, the son of a silk throwster at Macclesfield. He was "one of the builders and guiding figures of the great Courtauld organization". Following his death it became the seat of his son Henry Leslie Johnson, and chairman of the West Midlands Regional Board of the NFU (2010–14). Harry with his former wife Diana founded the Offchurch Bury Polo Club after having visited the notable polo coach Col. Raghvir Singh at Dundlod in India, and founded the Offchurch Bury Horse Trials. The estate remains today in the ownership of Harry Johnson, whose twin daughters Emily and Tessa run the polo stud and polo club respectively. The estate has hosted horse trials at all levels (including the British Riding Clubs National Championships 1999–2009), the Pony Club Tetrathlon Championships, film and TV location work, The Wolf Run, and the Young Farmers Festival amongst other diverse events. ==References==