Charles Fairfax (antiquary) facts for kids
Charles Fairfax (born 1597, died 1673) was an English expert who loved history and family trees. He spent his life studying old records and documents. He was especially interested in the history of his own family, the Fairfaxes. He was known as an antiquary, which means someone who studies old things, and a genealogist, someone who studies family histories.
Growing Up
Charles Fairfax was born in a place called Denton, Yorkshire, on March 5, 1597. He was the seventh son of Sir Thomas Fairfax. Sir Thomas later became the first Lord Fairfax. Charles had two older brothers who survived, Ferdinando and Henry. Four other brothers sadly died fighting in 1631.
Charles went to Trinity College, Cambridge in 1611. Later, in 1618, he became a lawyer at Lincoln's Inn. Around 1627, he married Mary, who was the only child of the Breary family. Her family owned land at Scough Hall and Menston in Yorkshire.
Charles spent most of his life at Menston, which was close to his family home in Denton. He worked on his family's history and kept records for them.
During the Civil War
The English Civil War was a big conflict in England during the 1640s. A few days before a major battle called battle of Marston Moor (on July 2, 1644), important leaders like Oliver Cromwell met at Charles Fairfax's house in Menston. They discussed their plans around a table that is now at Farnley Hall.
While his nephew, Sir Thomas Fairfax, worked to protect important buildings and records in York, Charles Fairfax was busy too. He worked with another historian, Roger Dodsworth, to find and save valuable books and documents.
In 1646, Charles's brother, Ferdinando, made him a manager of the courts in Ripon. Later, during the time when England was a republic (called the Commonwealth), Charles became a Colonel in the army. He served in George Monck's army in Scotland.
When the king returned to power in 1660 (this was called the Restoration), Charles was still with Monck's army. During Monck's march into Yorkshire, Charles was made governor of the town of Kingston-upon-Hull. He held this job for about a year. After that, he retired to Menston and received a pension from King Charles II.
Later Life and Family
Charles Fairfax passed away in Menston in December 1673. Records from the Fewston church show that he was buried there, and his wife had been buried in 1657. Both were laid to rest in the Fairfax part of the church in Otley. There was a special monument there to remember them.
Among his children were twin brothers, John and Henry. John was a captain in the army, and Henry became a dean at Norwich Cathedral. They looked so much alike that even their own mother couldn't tell them apart!
His Writings and Collections
Charles Fairfax wrote a special book by hand called Analecta Fairfaxiana. This book contained detailed family trees of all the different branches of the Fairfax family. It also included family trees of many families connected to them. He added many notes about history and family connections. The book also had about fifty short poems and riddles in Latin.
This important book eventually went to Leeds Castle, Kent. Later, it became part of a large collection owned by Sir Thomas Phillipps. In 1993, Leeds University Library bought Analecta Fairfaxiana and other related books.
In his will, written in 1672, Charles Fairfax also left some of his old handwritten documents to Lincoln's Inn, where he had studied law.
