(578) Berington of Little Malvern Court

Berington of Little Malvern 

The Beringtons are a complex clan of Recusant minor gentry families in the Welsh borders, whose seats in Shrewsbury, and at Moat Hall, Pontesbury (Shropshire) and Winsley, Hope-under-Dinmore (Herefordshire) were not quite country houses within the definition used by my project, although Moat Hall had good panelled 17th century interiors until they were sold in the early years of the 20th century. However, Thomas Berington (1673-1755), a younger son of John Berington (b. 1648) of Winsley (with whom the genealogy below begins), married Elizabeth Russell, the elder of two sisters who were the co-heirs of their brother, Thomas Russell of Little Malvern Court, and who brought him that estate. Little Malvern Priory had been acquired by the Russells in the aftermath of the dissolution of the monasteries, initially on a lease granted to John Russell (d. 1540), secretary to the Council of the Marches of Wales, and later by grant of Queen Mary I to his son, Henry Russell (d. 1558). Although John Russell was close to Thomas Cromwell and Richard Rich, Henry Russell was evidently in favour with Queen Mary and it seems likely that he cleaved to the Catholic faith. It is rather ironic that a family which in its descendants was to prove so staunchly recusant, should end up in possession of a formerly monastic site, and have been responsible for the demolition of most of the monastic buildings!

Thomas Berington and Elizabeth Russell had only one child, a daughter called Elizabeth (1715-89), who married Thomas Williams (d. 1766?), a Catholic pharmacist with lead mining interests in Flintshire. They inherited Little Malvern Court although it seems unclear how much they occupied the house. Elizabeth is said to have been somewhat eccentric, and to have charged her house guests for their food and lodging, as though she was running an inn. The Williamses in turn had only one child, a daughter called Mary (c.1750-1828), who did not marry until after her mother's death, by which time she was probably past childbearing age. Her husband, William Wakeman (d. 1800), was an elderly Tewkesbury physician, and died after just four years of marriage. Mary was responsible for the conversion of the prior's hall into a chapel, and may have made other changes to the house. When she died in 1828 she bequeathed the Court and its estate to a fairly distant kinsman, William Berington (1794-1847), a descendant of the Beringtons of Winsley. He undertook a programme of improvements and repairs to the house before moving in with his Spanish wife and small family. When William died in 1847, he left a sole surviving son, Charles Michael Berington (1830-97), who also inherited Winsley (Herefs), Moat Hall (Shrops.) and Trellynia (Flints), bringing together most of the family's scattered properties. He married twice, and although his first wife died after only a few years of marriage, leaving no surviving issue, his second wife produced three sons and nine daughters (four of whom became nuns) between 1869 and 1885. All three sons pursued successful careers in the army, with the younger two retiring as majors, but some mystery attaches to the marriages of Maj. Charles Michael Berington (1876-1946), which I should be grateful if any reader can help me to resolve.

The eldest son, and the heir to his father's portfolio of properties, was Capt. William Berington (1873-1940). He sold Winsley before 1900, but retained the rest. He and his wife produced three sons and two daughters, and his property passed to his eldest son, William James Charles Berington (1904-57), who served during the Second World War as an intelligence officer with the Special Operations Executive. He never married, and sold Trellynia in 1941 and Moat Hall in 1943, as well as outlying portions of the Little Malvern estate in 1947, no doubt at least partly to meet the death duties payable at this time. He lived at Wintercott (formerly 'The Farm'), which became the dower house to the estate, and let the Court to a religious order (until 1954) and later as an hotel. He died suddenly in 1957 and the estate passed to his next brother, Thomas Patrick Berington (1905-83), who had pursued a career in business in America and married a wealthy heiress, Olguita Queeny (1899-1981), daughter of the founder of the Monsanto Chemical Co. This background enabled him and his wife to undertake a restoration of the house in the 1960s and to return it to residential occupation. They were succeeded by their only son, Thomas Monsanto Berington (1933-94), who with his wife laid out a modern garden around the house in the 1980s. The couple had only one son, Thomas Patrick Monsanto Berington (b. 1978), who at the time of his father's death was a minor. The estate therefore passed to his widow for life, and has remained in her possession to the present day, although at the time of writing the property was on the market, potentially bringing to an end nearly five centuries of Russell and Berington ownership.

Little Malvern Court, Worcestershire

The core of what is now a complex and much altered courtyard house is a surviving fragment of the claustral buildings of Little Malvern Priory, a Benedictine house founded c.1127 and dissolved in 1534, when there were just six monks besides the prior. Following the dissolution, the nave of the church was pulled down and the transepts and eastern chapels were abandoned, but the central tower and chancel were retained for parochial worship and remain in use today. The buildings around the southern and eastern sides of the cloister have also been very largely lost, but the west claustral range, was adapted into a house by John Russell. This part of the conventual building contained the prior's lodging (so often the part preserved in monastic conversions because it was the easiest to adapt to lay domestic purposes), including a large first-floor hall or refectory, probably of the early 14th century, above a basement. 

Little Malvern Court: east front. The stone-built part on the right contains the medieval prior's hall.

The complex development of the house makes it very confusing for the visitor to understand, and it is probably easiest to describe the four external elevations in turn. The east front stands on the site of the west claustral range of the priory, and the stone section contains the prior's hall. The three-storeyed semi-timbered building to its left dates to the late 16th or early 17th century. The first floor was originally approached by a flight of steps and formed a porch giving access to the screens passage at the service end of the prior's hall. 

Little Malvern Court: an early photograph of the house showing the Georgian south-west wing, pulled down and rebuilt in 1859-60.

Little Malvern Court: south front in c.1912. Image: Victoria County History/Historic England

Little Malvern Court: south and west fronts after alterations in the 1960s, from an old postcard.

Turning the corner, the south front is composed of three sections: first the semi-timbered wing of c.1600, which contained service accommodation, and which was formerly rendered, then a three-storey stone block, which may be medieval in origin, but the features of which are now c.1600 and later. The prominent round tower at the corner of this block was originally a garderobe tower but now contains a spiral staircase; the top with its conical cap dates from a rebuilding of 1856. There is another spiral staircase in the diagonally opposite corner of this block, connecting it with the prior's hall. To the left of the round tower, and forming the corner of the south and west fronts  is a neo-Tudor block built in 1859-60 by Joseph Hansom & Son. This replaced a mid 18th century block on much the same footprint, which is recorded in the earliest known photograph of the house. The Victorian wing which replaced it originally had gables on both fronts which gave it more presence and dignity, but they were sadly removed in the 1960s.

Little Malvern Court: the west and north fronts.

The west front has the Victorian block at its southern end, but continues with two timber-framed blocks whose close studding suggests a 15th or 16th century date. Given the history of the site, it seems likely that these were constructed as part of the conversion of the site to domestic use. The block at the north-west corner has gables facing north and west and a massive external chimney-breast of stone on the north front. A single-storey flat-roofed dining room and vestibule were built in front of the range in the late 19th century. The final elevation is the north side, which was refronted in brick in the early 19th century, but the walling may incorporate some stonework from the south wall of the former priory church.

Little Malvern Court: the 14th century prior's hall.

The prior's hall is now approached by an external staircase on the east front, and was used as a chapel (with an inserted barrel vault) from 1791 until the 1960s. (Prior to that, a room over the porch was used as a chapel during the penal years). A legacy of this use is a large wooden reredos at the south end of the room, made up from fragments of mainly continental woodwork by Hardman & Co. in the late 19th century. The magnificent four-bay open timber roof was exposed during restoration work in 1964-67 which was planned by the great timber-framing expert Freddie Charles but carried out by Ivan Bellamy. The screens passage which formerly existed at the south end has disappeared, but its position is indicated by a narrow extra roof bay divided from the rest of the room by a spere truss with quatrefoil and dagger decoration in the spandrels, which may be a little earlier than the roof. Improvements to the domestic accommodation seem to have begun in the early 18th century, when a new staircase was inserted, and the additions made to the house in the late 19th century provided the spaces required for contemporary country house living, including a dining room, drawing room and library.

A fine garden was laid out in 1983-88 by Michael Balston, in conjunction with Arabella Lennox-Boyd, consisting of small 'garden rooms' close to the house and a chain of descending lakes further south, presumably adapted from former monastic fish ponds. At the time of writing, the whole Little Malvern Court estate is on the market.

Descent: Crown leased 1538 to John Russell (d. 1540) and sold 1543 to Richard Andrews and Nicholas Temple, who sold 1552 to Henry Russell (d. 1558); to widow, Milbore Russell (d. 1575); to son, John Russell (d. 1588); to brother, Henry Russell (d. 1608); to son, John Russell (d. 1641); to son, Thomas Russell; to son, John Russell (d. 1700); to son, Thomas Russell (d. 1737); to sister, Elizabeth (1685-1743?), wife of Thomas Berington (1673-1755); to daughter Elizabeth (1715-89), wife of Thomas Williams (d. 1766?) of Trellynia (Flints.); to daughter Mary (c.1750-1828), wife of Walter Wakeman (d. 1800); to second cousin once removed, William Berington (1794-1847) of Hereford; to son, Charles Michael Berington (1830-97); to son, Capt. William Berington (1873-1940); to son, William James Charles Berington (1904-57); to brother, Thomas Patrick Berington (1905-83); to son, Thomas Monsanto Berington (1933-94); to widow, Alexandra Susan Caroline Berington (b. 1943).

Berington family of Little Malvern Court

Berington, John (b. 1648). Son of John Berington (1611-83) of Winsley (Herefs) and his wife Jane, daughter of Henry Cassy of Wightfield (Glos), born 1648. He married Margaret, daughter of Sir Thomas Wolrych (1598-1668) of Dudmaston (Shrops), and had issue:

(1) John Berington (d. c.1721);

(2) Thomas Berington (1673-1755) (q.v.);

(3) Fr. Simon Berington (1680-1755), born January 1679/80; educated at Douai College, where he was ordained a Roman Catholic priest; chaplain to St Thomas' Priory, Stafford (Staffs), c.1720-33; librarian of the clergy library in Grays Inn, London; author of some twenty literary and religious works, including The charms of Hampton Court [in Herefordshire]; died 16 April 1755;

(4) Elizabeth Berington (d. by 1755); married Richard Clough of Clough Hall, Myndtown (Shrops.), and had issue at least one son and three daughters;

(5) William Berington.

He inherited the Winsley estate from his father in 1683.

He was living in 1717 but his date of death is unknown. His wife's date of death is unknown.

Berington, Thomas (1673-1755). Second son of John Berington (b. 1648) and his wife Margaret, daughter of Sir Thomas Wolrych of Dudmaston (Shrops.), born 1673. He married, before 1715,  Elizabeth (1685-1743?), daughter of John Russell (d. 1700) of Little Malvern Court (Worcs), and had issue:

(1) Elizabeth Berington (1715-89) (q.v.).

His wife inherited Little Malvern Court after the death of her brother Thomas in 1737.

He died in London, and may be the 'Thomas Barrington' buried at St Pancras, Camden (Middx), 23 December 1755; his will was proved in the PCC, 29 December 1755. His wife is said to have died in 1744, but she may be the 'Elizabeth Barrington' buried at St George the Martyr, Bloomsbury (Middx), 16 May 1743.

Berington, Elizabeth (1715-89). Only child of Thomas Berington (1673-1755) and his wife Elizabeth, daughter of John Russell of Little Malvern Court (Worcs), born 1715. She married, 1748/9, Thomas Williams (d. 1766?) of Trellynia, Cilcain (Flints), a Catholic pharmacist with business interests in London and lead mining interests in Flintshire, and had issue:

(1) Mary Williams (c.1750-1828) (q.v.).

She and her husband inherited Little Malvern Court from her father in 1755.

She was buried at Little Malvern, 5 March 1789; her will was proved in the PCC, 12 June 1798. Her husband predeceased her and is said to have died in 1766, but may be the Thomas Williams buried at Cilcain, 23 April 1763.

Williams, Mary (c.1750-1828). Only child of Thomas Williams (d. 1766?) of Trellynia (Flints) and his wife Elizabeth, daughter of Thomas Berington of Little Malvern Court (Worcs), born about 1750. She married, 19 September 1796 at Little Malvern, Walter Wakeman (d. 1800), physician and bibliophile, of Tewkesbury (Glos), but had no issue.

She and her husband inherited Little Malvern Court from her mother in 1789, and converted the lower half of the prior's hall into a chapel. At her death she bequeathed the estate to her second cousin once removed, William Berington (1794-1847) (q.v.).

She was buried at Little Malvern, 27 November 1828. Her husband died in 1800; his will was proved 19 June 1801.

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Berington, Charles (1747-1809). Fourth son of John Berington (c.1707-94) of Winsley, and his wife Winifred (d. 1791), daughter of John Hornyold of Blackmore Park (Worcs), born 5 April 1747. He married, 1 December 1770 at Hope-under-Dinmore (Herefs), Mary (1750-1810), youngest daughter and co-heir of William Jay of Wintercott (Herefs), and had issue including:

(1) Winifred Berington (1773-c.1847); a Franciscan nun at Bruges (clothed 1791; professed 1793); mother superior of Taunton Lodge Convent School (Som.), 1830-47;

(2) Frances Berington (c.1783-1867), born about 1783; lived in Hereford; died 3 July 1867; will proved 6 July 1868 (effects under £2,000);

(3) (Mary) Theresa Berington (c.1789-1864), born about 1789; lived in Hereford with her elder sister; died 27 December 1864; will proved 30 December 1865 (effects under £2,000);

(4) Joanna Berington (b. c.1792); married, 8 January 1812 at Abergavenny (Mon.), Clement Powell Lorymer (1790-1827), a surveyor who drowned while exploring in Tasmania, and had issue at least two sons; probably died in Australia;

(5) Jane Berington (d. 1820); will proved at Hereford, 14 April 1820 (effects under £2,000);

(6) William Berington (1794-1847) (q.v.).

He inherited Wintercott (Herefs) in right of his wife.

He died 9 February and was buried at Rushen (Isle of Man), 10 February 1809. His widow died 5 January and was buried at Leominster (Herefs), 10 January 1810; her will was proved at Hereford, 14 July 1810 (effects under £600).

Berington, William (1794-1847). Only surviving son of Charles Berington (1747-1809) and his wife Mary, youngest daughter and co-heir of William Jay of Wintercott (Herefs), born 13 February 1794. He married, 18 May 1829 at St James, Bath (Som.), Mary Frances (c.1796-1866), only child of Don Josef Brun of Cadiz (Spain), and had issue:

(1) Charles Michael Berington (1830-97) (q.v.);

(2) Mary Josephine Berington (c.1831-47), died 'in her sixteenth year', 12 June 1847;

(3) William Joseph Berington (1832-37), born 1832; died at Bruges (Belgium), 24 November 1837.

He inherited Little Malvern Court and Trellynia (Flints) from his distant cousin, Mary Wakeman in 1828 and undertook a programme of repairs and modernisation before moving in to the former c.1832.

He died 16 April and was buried at Little Malvern, 27 April 1847, where he and his wife and daughter are commemorated by a memorial brass. His widow died 12 October 1866.

Berington, Charles Michael (1830-97). Only surviving son of William Berington (1794-1847) and his wife Mary Frances, only child of Don Josef Brun of Cadiz (Spain), born at Bath (Som.), 15 February 1830. An officer in the Worcestershire Yeomanry Cavalry (Capt.); JP and DL for Worcestershire; High Sheriff of Worcestershire, 1868-69. After the death of his first wife and all her children he is reported to have considered becoming a Carthusian monk, but instead he married again. He married 1st, 2 July 1858, Ellen Mary (1833-66), daughter of James Balfe of Runnymede (Co. Roscommon), and 2nd, 3 February 1869 at Holy Apostles RC church, Clifton (Glos), Mary Louisa Patricia (1847-1916), eldest daughter of Michael Agnew Coxon, and had issue eight children by his first wife, who all died in infancy, and 

(2.1) Frances Mary Berington (1869-1947), born 12 December 1869; lived latterly at Wintercott, Little Malvern; died unmarried, 22 August 1947; will proved 18 October 1947 (estate £1,051);

(2.2) Mary Josephine Berington (1871-1959), born 25 January 1871; a Carmelite nun at Lanherne Convent (Cornwall); died 7 April 1959;

(2.3) Ellen Mary Berington (1872-1948), born 27 February 1872; lived latterly at Wintercott, Little Malvern, with her elder sister; died unmarried, 18 April 1948;

(2.4) William Berington (1873-1940) (q.v.);

(2.5) Mary Gabriel Berington (1874-1951), born 2 September 1874; an Augustinian nun by 1901; prioress of St Augustine's Priory, Abbotskerswell (Devon) (as Mother Joseph Magdalene); died 16 March 1951;

(2.6) Maj. Charles Michael Berington (1876-1946), born 16 May 1876; an officer in the army (2nd Lt., 1900; Lt., 1900; Capt., 1903; retired 1908); in 1913 he and his wife emigrated to Bessemer, Ontario (Canada), but they returned to England in 1915, so he could rejoin his regiment (Capt., 1915; retired as Maj., 1920), and serve in the First World War; he then joined the auxiliary division of Royal Irish Constabulary, 1920-21 (wounded; discharged medically unfit); later in business as a wood merchant and timber feller at Malvern (partnership dissolved 1927); lived latterly at Stretton-on-the-Fosse (Som.); he married* 1st, c.1908, Ethel [surname uncertain but possibly Martyn**] (b. c.1877) and 2nd, 1915 (licence 5 January) at Toronto (Canada), Agnes Mary (1872-1951), daughter of Alexander Mackie of Worcester; died at Bath (Som.), 13 July 1946; buried at St Benedict's RC church, Stretton-on-the-Fosse, 16 July 1946;

(2.7) Winifred Mary Berington (1877-1955), born 13 June 1877; a Benedictine nun at St Mary's Priory, Princethorpe (Warks); died 13 March 1955;

(2.8) Milburga Mary Berington (1878-1936), born 12 October 1878; a Benedictine nun at Stanbrook Abbey (Worcs); died 26 October 1936;

(2.9) Agatha Mary Berington (1880-1959), born 11 February 1880; married, 24 November 1911 at Bath (Som.), her deceased younger sister's husband, Capt. Francis Mary Hodgson RN (1879-1965), second son of Lt. Thomas Tarleton Hodgson RN, and had issue two daughters; died 25 September 1959;

(2.10) Margaret Mary Berington (1881-1910), born 19 May 1881; married, 2 May 1907 at Buckfast Abbey (Devon), Capt. Francis Mary Hodgson RN (1879-1965), second son of Lt. Thomas Tarleton Hodgson RN, and had issue one daughter; died 8 February 1910;

(2.11) Maj. John Joseph Berington (1883-1955), born 10 March 1883; educated at Downside; an officer in the Royal Marines (2nd Lt., 1914; Lt., 1915; Capt., 1916; Maj., 1918); married, 26 May 1919 at St James' RC church, Spanish Place, Westminster (Middx), Florence Mary (1883-1941), third daughter of Edward Tierney Gilchrist Darell and widow of Archibald Fitzroy George Hay (1855-1916), 13th Earl of Kinnoull, and had issue one son; died 19 August 1955; will proved 15 October 1955 (estate £1,255);

(2.12) Angela Mary Berington (1885-1963), born 3 June 1885; died unmarried, 8 September 1963; will proved 29 November 1963 (estate £1,588).

He inherited Little Malvern Court and Trellynia from his father in 1847 and came of age in 1851. In 1859-60 he rebuilt the south-west corner of the house, apparently with funds provided by his first wife. He inherited Moat Hall, Pontesbury (Shrops.) and Winsley (Herefs) from his kinsman, John Berington (1822-92) in 1892.

He died 4 August 1897; his will was proved 14 October 1897 (effects £3,154). His first wife died at Boulogne (France), 18 August 1866. His widow died at Buckfast (Devon), 24 December 1916, and was buried at St Wulstan's RC church, Little Malvern, 5 January 1917; administration of her goods was granted 14 February 1917 (estate £1,856).

* His first marriage has not been found, but the 1911 census shows the couple living at Wintercott, and says they had been married 3 years. The licence for his second marriage describes him as a bachelor not a widower, which may imply that his first marriage was annulled. I can, however, find no record of either annulment or divorce in the sources available to me. It is also curious that according to the immigration records, he returned to England just a month after his second marriage with his first wife. Neither he nor either of his wives appears in the 1921 census for England (he was presumably in Ireland then) but he is living with his second wife in 1939, and only she attended his funeral.

** According to one internet source, she was a niece of Edward Martyn (1859-1923), who served as the first President of Sinn Fein in Ireland, 1905-08.

Berington, William (1873-1940). Eldest son of Charles Michael Berington (1830-97) and his second wife, Mary Louisa Patricia, eldest daughter of Michael Agnew Coxon, born 3 May 1873. An officer in the army (Capt.); JP for Worcestershire. Through the Malvern Festival, he became a friend of George Bernard Shaw, who was a frequent visitor to Little Malvern Court in the 1930s. He married, 30 April 1903 at the Convent of the Faithful Virgin, South Norwood (Surrey), Katherine Wilhelmina (1879-1966), eldest daughter of William Louis Purcell of South Norwood, and had issue:

(1) William James Charles Berington (1904-57) (q.v.);

(2) Thomas Patrick Berington (1905-83) (q.v.);

(3) John Louis Berington (1907-63), born 25 March 1907; educated at Downside; married, 29 March 1950 in Mexico, Gwendolyn (b. 1909), daughter of P.A. Alexander of Hendon (Middx) and formerly wife of Geoffrey Raoul de Havilland OBE (d. 1946), chief test pilot of the de Havilland Aircraft Corporation; died at St. Antonio, Texas (USA), 2 February 1963; administration of goods with will annexed granted 19 August 1964 (effects in England, £291);

(4) Ellen Mary Katherine Berington (1908-74), born 28 September 1908; married, 24 October 1934, Maj. John Allington Warburton Bate (1908-78), of The Old Rectory, Marchwiel (Flints), solicitor, only child of Joseph Henry Bate of Stansty (Flints), and had issue one son and two daughters; died 6 August 1974 and was buried at St Wulstan's RC graveyard, Little Malvern;

(5) Mary Consuelo Helena Josephine Berington (1914-86), born 2 June 1914; married, 11 September 1937 at Our Lady & St Alphonsus RC church, Blackmore End (Worcs), John Townshend (b. 1910; fl. 1960), corn merchant, son of Henry Townshend of Albion Mills, Worcester; died 2 July 1986; will proved 8 December 1986 (estate £365,243).

He inherited Little Malvern Court, Moat Hall, Winsley House and Trillynia from his father in 1897, but sold Winsley before 1900.

He died 14 April 1940; his will was proved 25 April and 16 October 1941 (estate £50,046). His widow died 9 March 1966; her will was proved 25 July 1966 (estate £31,141).

Berington, William James Charles (1904-57). Eldest son of William Berington (1873-1940) and his wife Katherine Wilhelmina, eldest daughter of William Louis Purcell of South Norwood (Surrey), born 17 May 1904. Educated at Downside and Magdalene College, Cambridge (MA 1930). He served in the Second World War as an intelligence officer with the Special Operations Executive. He was unmarried and without issue.

He inherited Little Malvern Court, Moat Hall and Trellynia from his father in 1940, but sold Trellynia in 1941, Moat Hall in 1943, and outlying portions of the Little Malvern estate in 1947. He lived at Wintercott, Little Malvern, and until 1954 let the Court to the Little Sisters of the Assumption, who used it as a rest and retreat house. It was subsequently let to Phillip Green as an hotel.

He died 8 June 1957; his will was proved 11 July 1957 (estate £54,671).

T.P. Berington (1905-83) 

Berington, Thomas Patrick (1905-83). Second son of William Berington (1873-1940) and his wife Katherine Wilhelmina, eldest daughter of William Louis Purcell of South Norwood (Surrey), born 14 June 1905. Educated at Downside and Magdalene College, Cambridge (to which he left £25,000 in his will). Employed as a director of Monsanto Chemicals Ltd, the British arm of the American conglomerate, to 1963; Chairman of Mazapil Copper Co., Uganda, from 1953. He served in the Second World War as an intelligence officer with the Special Operations Executive. High Sheriff of Worcestershire, 1973-74. He married, 30 August 1928, Olguita (1899-1981), daughter of John Queeny of St. Louis, Missouri (USA), the founder of the Monsanto Chemical Company, and had issue:

(1) Thomas Monsanto Berington (1933-94) (q.v.).

He lived mainly in America until he inherited Little Malvern Court from his elder brother in 1957, but he maintained a house in Kensington for occasional residence in the 1930s. He terminated the lease of the Court as an hotel and restored it in 1964-67.

He died 12 January 1983; his will was proved 13 September 1983 (estate £1,151,701). His wife died 17 May 1981; her will was proved 26 August 1981 (estate £1,072,299), but by a trust deed of 1964 she had already established the Hawthorne Charitable Trust with a substantial capital endowment.

Berington, Thomas Monsanto (1933-94). Only child of Thomas Patrick Berington (1905-83) and his wife Olguita, daughter of John Queeny of St. Louis, Missouri (USA), born 25 February 1933. Educated at Eton and Magdalene College, Cambridge. High Sheriff of Hereford & Worcester, 1988-89. He married 1st, 24 January 1959 at Holy Trinity, Brompton (Middx)  (div. 1965), Patricia Mary (b. 1929), daughter of Lt-Col. Frank Charles Laxton (1894-1970) of Mapperley Park, Nottingham, and 2nd, 1977, Alexandra Susan Caroline (b. 1943), daughter of Lt-Col. Patrick Charles Britten (1917-2001) of Wichenford Court (Worcs), and had issue:

(2.1) Thomas Patrick Monsanto Berington (b. 1978), born October 1978; company director.

He inherited Little Malvern Court from his father in 1983. At his death it passed to his widow for life.

He died 4 May 1994; his will was proved 5 August 1994 (estate £4,861,877). His first wife's date of death is not known. His widow is now living.

Principal sources

Burke's Landed Gentry, 1969, pp. 43-45; VCH Worcs, vol. 3, 1913, pp. 449-53; W.J.C. Berington, Little Malvern Court, Worcestershire, 1948; A. Brooks & Sir N. Pevsner, The buildings of England: Worcestershire, 2nd edn., 2007, pp. 433-34; A.M. Hodgson & M. Hodgetts, Little Malvern Letters, 1482-1737, Catholic Record Society, 2011, pp. xl-xli; G. Williams, The country houses of Shropshire, 2021, pp. 446-47.

Location of archives

Berington of Little Malvern Court: deeds, manorial records, family, estate, legal and household papers, 1260-19th cent. [Worcestershire Archives & Archaeology Service, 705:24]

Coat of arms

Sable, three greyhounds courant argent, collared gules, within a bordure of the last, a crescent for difference.

Can you help?

• Can anyone resolve the apparently incompatible evidence of the records about the two wives of Maj. Charles Michael Berington (1876-1946)?
• Can anyone provide photographs or portraits of the people whose names appear in bold above, for whom no image is currently shown?
• If anyone can offer further information or corrections to any part of this article I should be most grateful. I am always particularly pleased to hear from current owners or the descendants of families associated with a property who can supply information from their own research or personal knowledge for inclusion.

Revision and acknowledgements

This post was first published 8 June 2024 and was updated 9 June 2024.