John Roden

Apparently born at Shifnal, Shropshire, about 1743, and baptised there 21 July 1743, son of John and Alice Roden. Died 26 September 1816 at Shifnal, Shropshire.

DIED On Wednesday se'nnight, at Shiffnall, in the 73d year of his age, Mr. John Roden, lately of Greatford, and many years in the household of the Queen. Stamford Mercury, Friday 4 October 1816

Never married, but left an interesting will containing many family legacies, including to his nephews John, Thomas and William from Lincolnshire. In 1815 he was 'late of Windsor but now of Greatford'; in 1816 he was 'late of Greatford but now of Shifnal'. I rather suspect that at some point he had helped the Willis family with the King....

This is the last Will and testament of me John Roden late of Windsor but now of Greatford in the County of Lincoln Gentleman as follows that is to say whereof I am seized of a ffreehold Messuage at Hythe in the County of Kent now or late in the occupation of my Nephew William Roden now I do hereby Will and dispose of the same with its Appurts unto my Nephew John Roden of Stamford in the County of Lincoln Draper to hold to him my said Nephew his Heirs and Assigns for ever subject nevertheless to the mortgage incumbrance thereon and this I estimate at two hundred pounds but whatever the amount may be when sold which I think should be shortly after my decease I will and direct that the clear monies which he shall receive on Sale of the said Messuage shall go towards and be taken as part and parcel and an amount of his actual share with my other Nephews and Nieces of and in the property hereinafter left to them hereby intending that the sum shall be brought into and form part of my personal Estate and thereby will and declare that the Receipt of my said Nephew John Roden shall be a good and sufficient Receipt and discharge in the Law to the purchase thereof for the purchase money and that the purchaser shall not be bound required to see or attend to the application and disposal or division of the purchase money or any part thereof in any respect howsoever and whereas I made and am intitled to the sum of three thousand five hundred pounds Bank stock standing in my name in the four Per Cents in the Bank of England now I do give and dispose of the same to my Exors hereinafter mentioned that is to say I give unto my dear Sister Sarah Wife of John Cowen of London Gentleman the Interest and dividends of eight hundred pounds Bank Stock in the four percent part thereof the same to be paid to her half yearly or as the Interest and dividends shall become due and payable and this I give her for and during the term of her natural life independent of her Husband no ways subject to his power and ?? Or to his debts and Insolvency taking her receipt alone for the same and after her decease I give the said principal money or Bank Stock to my Nephews and nieces as hereinafter mentioned I give to my Sister in In law Margaret Roden of Shifnall in the County of Salop Widow for and during the term of her natural life the Interest and dividends of six hundred pounds in the four Cents Bank Stock of the Bank of England the same to be paid to her half yearly or as the Interest and Dividends may become due and payable and from and after the decease I give the said principal sum of six hundred pounds Bank Stock unto my Nephews and Nieces as hereinafter mentioned and subject thereto I give all and every the said money in the funds or Bank Stock and all and every other my ready monies Securities for monies Goods and Chattels Personal Estate and Effects of what ever nature or kind soever which I shall or may die possessed of or be entitled to at the time of my decease unto my Exors hereinafter named upon the special trust and confident nevertheless that they my said Exors after payment of my ffuneral expenses just debts the charges of this my Will and of proving the same and every other expense attendant thereon and divide the surplus monies and to pay the same in equal shares and portions unto and amongst all and every themselves and my other Nephews and Nieces share and share alike yet subject to the deductions with respect to some of them as hereinafter mentioned that is to say from the share of my Nephew and Exor John Roden of Stamford aforesaid Draper the clear sum he shall receive by the Sale of the before mentioned ffreehold Messuage from the share of my Nephew and Exor John Roden of Shifnall aforesaid the sum of two hundred pounds from the share of my Nephew Thomas Roden of Stamford aforesaid Bookseller the sum of one hundred and sixty pounds from the share of my Nephew William Roden of Birmingham Currier the sum of two hundred and sixty pounds from my Niece Alice Wife of John Masefield of Woodhouse near Shifnal aforesaid the sum of one hundred pounds from the share of my Niece Elizabeth Wife of Hugh Tipper of Rumford Common ffarmer the sum of three hundred and fifty-six pounds from the share of my Niece Elizabeth Harrison of Spinster [sic] the sum of twenty pounds and from the share of my Niece Sarah the Wife of James Ffell the sum of eighty pounds all which said several sums so to be deducted as aforesaid I have already and heretofore given and paid unto my said several Nephews and Nieces as there necessities and occasions seem to require and which I advanced to them accordingly and whereas I have great reason to believe that the share of my property which I have given to my Niece Sarah Ffell would be spent and consumed if it got into the hands of her Husband my Will is and I do hereby direct that my said Exors shall retain her said share their hands in place the same out at Interest paying to her such interest only during the time of her natural life and from and after her decease that they do pay the principal money and the amount of her said share unto her daughter Charlotte Ffell now at Greatford aforesaid and whereas I have lent and advanced divers sums of money to my nephew William Roden of Hythe aforesaid and have proved a debts under his commission of Bank to the amount of six hundred pounds or thereabouts I do not think it right and fair that he should share with my other Nephews and Nephews [sic] in a division of my property and I hereby exclude him therefrom but as he hath been unfortunate in business and with a view to set him forward in life again I hereby direct my said Exors after they have received my dividend or dividends on such debts under the said commission forthwith to pay the same to my said Nephew William Roden which I hereby give to him accordingly and whereas I have two Annuity Bonds the one of Charles Barton Esquire for fifty pounds a year during his life and the other of Brockbridge Esquire for the life sum of fifty pounds a year during his life with several years Annuities due thereon now I do hereby give the same Annuity Bonds and the arrears due thereon unto my Exors hereinafter named to be sold and disposed of as they shall think proper and all the monies arising therefrom I give to my said Nephews and Nieces to be equally divided and shared between them as aforesaid and whereas my Sister Sarah Cowen hath been very good to me in my illness I hereby will and direct that my Exors to permit and suffer heard to have and maintain out of this my Will all my household Goods and ffurniture to and for her own use independent of her Husband and without his having any right property or power in or over the same and I hereby give the same to her accordingly I give to James Futterrell and Catherine Futterell his Sister the small legacy or sum of five pounds each to be paid to them respectively within six months next after my decease and lastly I do hereby make nominate constitute and appoint my said Nephews John Roden of Stamford aforesaid Draper and John Roden of Shifnal aforesaid Butcher Exors jointly of this my Will and trustees for my said Sisters and my other Nephews and Nieces hereby revoking and making void all other Bills by me heretofore made and do declare this only to be my last Will and Testament In Witness whereof I have hereunto set my hand and Seal that is to say to the first four sheets thereof my hand only and to this the fifth or last sheet my hand and Seal the tenth day of January in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and fifteen Jno Roden Signed Sealed published and declared by the said Testator John Roden as and for his last Will and Testament who in his presence and at his request and in the presence of each other have set and subscribed our names as Witnesses the interliniations in the third and fourth sheets being first made and committed Wm Redifer Thomas Gilbert Wm Woodward
Whereas I John Roden late of Greatford in County of Lincoln but now of Shifnal in the County of Salop Gentleman did in and by my last Will and Testament in writing bearing date the tenth day of January one thousand eight hundred and fifteen give unto my Nephew John Roden of Stamford in the County of Lincoln Draper the freehold Messuage at Hythe in the County of Kent then the late in the occupation of my Nephew William Roden to hold to my said Nephew John Roden his Heirs and Assigns for ever subject to the incumbrances thereon which I estimated at two hundred pounds but whatever the amount might be when sold which I directed should be shortly after my decease I thereby directed that the clear monies which he should receive on Sale of the said Messuage should be taken as part and an amount of his equal share with my other Nephews and Nieces in the property by my said Will bequeathed to them intending that the same should be brought into and form part of my Personal Estate and whereas I have some time since sold and disposed of the said ffreehold Messuage and Premises at Hythe aforesaid and after paying off all incumbrances I had two hundred pounds clear which I paid to my Nephew the said John Roden now I do this by my Codicil to my said Will and which I direct shall be taken as part thereof direct that the said sum of two hundred pounds shall be taken out of and deducted from the share of my property which my said Nephew John Roden shall become intitled to under and by virtue of my said Will so that he shall not receive any greater share of my Estate and Effects than my other Nephews and Nieces and whereas since the date and execution of my said Will I have given to my Niece Charlotte Roden of Shifnal in the County of Salop Spinster the sum of one hundred pounds and to my Niece Alice Masefield the Wife of John Masefield of the Woodhouse in the Parish of Shifnal in the County of Salop ffarmer the further sum of fifty pounds in addition to the sum of one hundred pounds making together the sum of one hundred and fifty pounds now I do will and direct that the said several sums of one hundred pounds and one hundred and fifty pounds so given to the said Charlotte Roden and Alice Masefield as aforesaid shall be deducted out of their shares which they will become entitled to under my Will in manner as the deductions from the shares of my said Nephews and Nieces are therein directed to be made preparatory to their shares being paid to them and whereas I have stated in my said will that I had great reason to believe that the share of my property which I have given to my Niece Sarah Ffell would be spent and consumed if it got into the hands of her Husband and I did thereby direct my said Exors to retain the said share in their hands and place the same out at interest paying to her such Interest only during the time of her natural life and after her decease to pay the principal money and the amount of her share unto her daughter Charlotte Ffell and whereas since the date and ?? Of my said Will the Husband of my said Niece Sarah Ffell hath departed this life I do therefore hereby revoke the said Annuity or legacy as given by my said Will to my said Niece Sarah Ffell and also to her daughter Charlotte Ffell as aforesaid and I do by this my Codicil to my said Will give and bequeath and I do direct that the shares which my said Niece Sarah Ffell shall under and by virtue of my said will become intitled to of my said property and effects equally with my other Nephews and Nieces shall be paid to her absolutely after deducting thereout the sum of eighty pounds as therein mentioned and whereas since the date and execution of my said Will my Niece Catherine Hartly wife of William Hartly of Sutton in the County of Surrey Blacksmith have received of me the sum of one hundred pounds which I do hereby direct shall be deducted out of the share of my Estate and Effects under and by virtue of my said Will and this my Codicil in manner as the deductions from the shares of my said Nephews and Nieces are therein directed to be made preparatory to their shares being paid to them and I do give and bequeath to my said Nieces Charlotte Roden and Catherine Keatley and also to my Nephews William Cowen Peter Cowen and John Cowen and equal share of my estate and Effects with my several Nephews and Nieces as mentioned in my said Will and which I intended they should have been entitled under and by virtue thereof but I have deemed it proper to describe them particularly in this my Codicil and I do hereby declare that I have not given any sum or sums of money in my life time to either of my said Nephews William Cowen Peter Cowen or John Cowen and I do thereby direct that the shares which they will become entitled to of my Estate and Effects together with my other Nephews and Nieces shall be paid to them without any deductions ?? Save and except the legacy duty which will be payable on their respective shares and whereas the dividend upon the debt proved by me under the commission of Bankrupt issued against my Nephew William Roden of Hythe in the County of Kent and which by my said Will I have given to the said William Roden have been since the date and execution thereof received and paid by me to him now I do hereby declare such payment to be in full satisfaction of the provision I intended to be thereby made for his benefit and to therefore excluding from all further claims or Interest under the same and whereas I have appointed my said Nephew John Roden of Stamford aforesaid Draper one of the Exors of my Will I do hereby revoke the appointment and I do substitute and appoint John Cuxson of Shifnal aforesaid Gentleman to be one of the exor is of my said Will and Codicil to his place and stead and I do ordain and declare this present writing to be a codicil to my said Will and that the same shall be annexed thereto and taken as part their of and do confirm my said Will in every particular thereof that is not hereby altered or revoked In Witness whereof I have to this Codicil set my hand and to this second and last sheet thereof set my hand and Seal the nineteenth day of September in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and sixteen Jno Roden Signed Sealed Published and Declared by the said John Roden as and for a Codicil to be annexed to his last Will and Testament and to be taken as part thereof in the presence of us Peter Osborne Samuel Phillips
Proved at London with a Codicil 17th April 1817 before the judge by the Oaths of John Roden the nephew and Exor named in the Will and John Cuxson the exor named in the Codicil to whom admon was granted having been first sworn duly to administer