Timeline

1801:
Ireland united in an “Act of Union” with the rest of Britain.

1812 - 1814:
USA declared war on Britain over Indian and Canadian territory.



1820:
George III died at Windsor Castle on 29th January at the age of 82 and was buried in the Royal Vault at St. George’s Chapel in Windsor Castle. He had been on the throne for 60 years and his eldest son, George IV succeeded him.

1821:
George IV was crowned king at Westminster Abbey, Middlesex, on 19th July.



1830:
George IV died from a series of strokes on 26th June at Windsor and was buried in the Royal Vault at St. George’s Chapel in Windsor Castle. He had been on the throne for 10 years and his younger brother, William IV succeeded him.

1831:
William IV’s coronation took place on 8th September at Westminster Abbey, Middlesex.

The only portrait of Charlotte Wyndham taken in her later years.

Daughter, Constance with three of her six children.

The above family photos are the property of the Dalwood Restoration Association and I am grateful to Hugh Wyndham for permission to use the images in these pages.

John Edward Andrew Starky was born on 6th March 1799, at Spye Park House, in the county of Wiltshire. When his grandfather, Sir Andrew Bayntun Rolt, died In 1816, his mother, Maria Barbara, inherited the Bayntun estate, but as was customary in those days, John Edward Andrew succeeded him as Lord of the Manor of Bromham. He included the Bayntun name as part of his surname and was known thereafter as John Edward Andrew Bayntun Starky.

He was greatly respected by his friends and was ever ready if they were in distress. However late in 1824 he had a disagreement with his neighbour, Charles Lewis Phipps – a highly respected Magistrate who lived at Wans House, Bromham.

The pair had been quarreling for some time, one accusing the other of allowing his gamekeeper to poach his game. Things got even worse when Starky asked another magistrate for a search warrant, which was granted and put into execution and this really furiated Phipps, claiming it tarnished his reputation as a magistrate and both had been bound over to keep the peace to the sum of £500.

But the anger between these two continued and as duelling had been outlawed a few years previously, the pair decided to travel to France to fight a duel. They set off for Southampton, intending to sail across the channel, however upon reaching the New Forest, they decided to fight there, with Starky agreeing to pay the fine should they be caught.

On the morning of the 22nd February 1825 they stood facing eachother in the forest. The first shot hit nothing but Starky's hat, missing his head by just one inch, but the second bullet hit Phipps in the right leg and he was unable to stand up. Both men reloaded their pistols and seeing that Phipps was unable to get back on his feet, Starky asked him if he were satisfied, to which he replied "Yes".

At that point, both men decided that enough was enough and Phipps apologised to Starky, saying that he regretted the language he had made use of a few days previous and they shook hands. Some time later a report of the duel was written in the Devizes Gazette, although the names of the men were not revealed.

On the 17th April 1833 John Edward Andrew married Charlotte Wyndham, the daughter of William Wyndham and Laetitia Popham, of Dinton House, Wiltshire. This stately house was built between 1814 and 1817 and is how owned by the National Trust. Charlotte was aged 27 at the time, four years younger than her husband.

She is said to have described the rest of her husband's family as wasteful and said her husband was an angel surrounded by devils. In a letter to her brother in Australia she is said to have wrote: "I believe him to be a worthy and well disposed young man and would be very clever if he took the slightest pains with himself".

At this time they were living in a small house in the Park about a mile from the Spye Park mansion, which was occupied by his mother and father. However a year after their marriage in 1834 his father died and John Edward Andrew and Charlotte moved into Spye Park House and his mother, Maria Barbara moved to Battle House – the Dower House.

Charlotte, in another of her letters, described Spye Park as: "One of the prettiest places in the world, or in all events it has more natural beauty than most. The views are so varied and the grounds so picturesque. The park is very large and one could wander about for hours admiring and exploring".

In 1841 things were not so rosy - John Edward had put on a lot of weight and by 1842 he was far from well and suffered terribly from gout. He went to Wiesbaden for a cure but at that stage he was afraid of drinking water or even bathing. After a long illness he died on the 12th January 1843, two months short of his 44th birthday.

In 1845 the church her husband was most anxious to have built near Spye Park was completed.

There is a stone in his memory in the south side of the chapel on the floor with the following inscription:.
Underneath lie the remains of John Edward Andrew Starky of Spye Park, Wilts, Esq., eldest son of the Revd. John Starky DD. Born 6th March 1799, died 12th January 1843, aged 43 years and 10 months. He married on the 17th April 1833, Charlotte, the fifth daughter of William Wyndham Esq., of Dinton, in this county by whom he had four children of whom three survived him – two sons and one daughter.

Pictured left: A display entitled "A Wiltshire Parlour c1825" in the Salisbury and South Wiltshire Museum. The model on the right is of Charlotte (nee Wyndham) Starky in her wedding dress. Charlotte's sister, Ella Wyndham, wrote to her family from Spye Park at the time of John Edward's death. In the letter she said he was a great loss to poor Charlotte, his own family and his immediate neighbourhood, where there is a large and not very moral population, for he looked after them narrowly without being over-officious and was ever ready if they were in distress, which caused him to be greatly respected.

After her husband's death, Charlotte discovered there were many difficulties with regard to his property. She continued to live at Spye Park for a number of years, taking great interest in improving and restoring it for the sake of her children. During this time she and her lawyer managed to sort out the problems and by the time her son reached the age of 21, his estate was entirely free of encumbrances apart from various jointures payable to elderly relatives.

In 1886 she bought the Bayntun family portraits, for a mere £100, to ensure they were kept in the Bayntun Starky family. These paintings were removed from Spye Park House in 1814 when Sir Andrew Bayntun Rolt had rented the family mansion, as the new tenant replaced the portraits in the house with those of his own. At the time, Andrew's nephew – Henry Bayntun – took charge of the portraits for him, but they were never returned to Spye Park House. Today these paintings are the property of Andrew Bayntun Starky and are housed at Brackenfield, New Zealand.

Some time around 1869, Charlotte's only daughter, Constance (aged 30 at the time), married William Wilmott – a widower with four children – much to the displeasure of her mother.

Kelly's Directory of Wiltshire 1880 lists a Mrs. Starky living at Battle House at the time of its publication, This was most likely Charlotte Wyndham.

Charlotte died at Battle House on the 20th October 1896, aged 90, and was the last person to be buried in the Bayntun family crypt at St. Nicholas Church, Bromham. This beautiful memorial to Charlotte Wyndham (pictured left) reads: In affectionate memory of Charlotte, widow of John Edward Starky esq, died 20th October 1896 aged 90 years. Her children arise up and call her blessed.

Charlotte Wyndham's signature

When John Edward Bayntun Starky died on 12th January 1843 he was succeeded by his eldest son and heir John Bayntun Starky