The Frankland Family of Thirkleby

A Noble Lineage in Service and Tradition

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The Frankland Family of Thirkleby: A Noble Lineage in Service and Tradition.

The Frankland family, ennobled with the creation of a baronetcy in the seventeenth century, belongs to that select circle of English gentry whose fortunes rose alongside the Restoration monarchy. Rooted in Yorkshire, their legacy encompasses public service, naval distinction, political influence, and scientific curiosity, and their heraldic identity continues to reflect their enduring place within the fabric of the British aristocracy.

Sir William Frankland, 1st Baronet of Thirkleby (1639-97)

Sir Henry Frankland, the Eldest Son of William Frankland of Thirkleby

Sir Thomas Frankland
6th Baronet of Thirkleby (1750-1831)

Sir Robert Frankland Russell
7th Baronet of Thirkleby Hall

Watercolor Drawings
By Ann Frankland-Lewis

Origins and Ancestry.

The Franklands trace their lineage to Yorkshire in the later Middle Ages, where they established themselves among the prominent county families. Their seat became Thirkleby, near Thirsk, a region long associated with landed gentry whose wealth and influence derived from both agricultural estates and public appointments. By the mid-seventeenth century, the Franklands had accumulated sufficient standing to be recognised formally with a hereditary honour.

On 24 December 1660, shortly after the return of Charles II to the throne, William Frankland was created 1st Baronet of Thirkleby. The timing of the creation was significant: the monarchy, restored after the turbulence of the Civil War and Interregnum, sought to reward loyalty while reinforcing its social and political allies. Frankland, a man of property and influence, embodied the kind of gentry whose service was essential for the stability of the new order.

Parliamentary and Political Achievements.

The Franklands quickly established themselves in parliamentary life. Sir William, the 1st Baronet, represented Thirsk in Parliament from 1671 until 1685, embedding his family within the rhythms of governance. His son and heir, Sir Thomas Frankland, 2nd Baronet (1665–1726), extended this tradition. A loyal Whig, he sat in the House of Commons from 1685 to 1711 and achieved office as joint Postmaster General, a position of considerable significance given the centrality of communications to the state. His commitment to his local community was also manifest in his rebuilding of the parish church at Thirkleby.

The parliamentary influence of the family persisted through successive generations. The 3rd Baronet, Sir Thomas (c. 1685–1747), served as Member of Parliament for over three decades. Learned and cosmopolitan, he studied at Cambridge and at Padua, and was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society in 1707, reflecting the intellectual breadth cultivated within the family.

Naval Distinction and Imperial Service.

The family’s contributions were not confined to politics. The 5th Baronet, Sir Thomas Frankland (1718–1784), achieved eminence in the Royal Navy. Rising to the rank of Admiral of the White, he combined a distinguished service career with parliamentary representation of Thirsk for more than thirty years.

Alliance arms of the Frankland family, Baronets of Thirkleby.

In his dual roles, he exemplified the eighteenth-century model of the gentleman-officer, uniting martial service with civic duty. Another branch of the family also engaged in imperial and diplomatic service. Sir Charles Henry Frankland, 4th Baronet (c. 1716–1768), served as Consul-General in Lisbon, demonstrating the international reach of the family in the eighteenth century, as Britain’s overseas interests expanded.

Residences and Estates.

The family seat at Thirkleby Hall became both a symbol and a center of their influence. The estate was transformed in the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries under the 6th Baronet, Sir Thomas Frankland (1750–1831), a man of scientific curiosity and refined taste. He commissioned a major rebuilding of the Hall, creating a residence that matched his status and interests. His pursuits extended into botany, and he was sufficiently esteemed within scientific circles for the genus Franklandia to be named in his honour. His election to the Royal Society confirmed his position within the learned world.

The family’s landed base expanded in the nineteenth century. Through inheritance, the 7th Baronet, Sir Robert Frankland-Russell (1784–1849), came into possession of Chequers Court, an estate in Buckinghamshire that would later pass into national importance as the official country residence of British Prime Ministers. In recognition of this inheritance, he added “Russell” to his surname. Sir Robert also distinguished himself as an accomplished artist and served as Member of Parliament for Thirsk from 1815 to 1834, as well as High Sheriff of Yorkshire.

Continuity into the Modern Age.

The line of the baronets continued unbroken through the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, with successive generations balancing local influence with service to the Crown and Parliament. The family’s heritage intertwined with other branches of the aristocracy, and their legacy became further enmeshed with the peerage when Sir James Assheton Frankland, 12th Baronet (1943–2022), inherited the Barony of Zouche in 1965. This elevation linked the historic baronetcy of Thirkleby with one of the oldest baronies in the realm, dating back to the thirteenth century. Today, the titles are held by Sir William Thomas Assheton Frankland, 13th Baronet (born 1984), who continues the family’s tradition as both baronet and Baron Zouche. The continuity of the line across centuries illustrates the enduring role of hereditary honour in English society, even as the nature of aristocratic life has evolved.

Heraldry and Identity.

The heraldic bearings of the Frankland family reflect both antiquity and adaptation. Their arms have appeared in different versions over the centuries, some bearing only two saltires on the chief, others adding a hand between them.

The red hand (a dexter hand couped at the wrist gules) is the well-known badge of a baronet of England, Ireland, Great Britain, or the United Kingdom. Its origin goes back to 1611, when King James I created the hereditary order of baronets as a means of raising funds for the defence of Ulster. To distinguish this new dignity from both knightly and noble ranks, James decreed that all baronets should bear the “Red Hand of Ulster” upon their arms as a mark of honour. From that time forward, the hand became inseparable from the title, serving as a clear heraldic signal that the bearer held the hereditary dignity of a baronet.

In the case of the Frankland baronets of Thirkleby, the presence of the red hand in the coat of arms is precisely such a mark. It is not a family emblem in the ancient sense, but a compulsory addition that proclaimed their baronetcy, created in 1660. Thus the hand functions as both a sign of honour and a visual reminder of the specific rank of baronet - distinct from both the peerage and mere knighthood - ensuring that the Franklands’ heraldic display unmistakably reflected their standing within the structured hierarchy of the English nobility. Heraldry functioned as more than decoration; it was a visual assertion of lineage, allegiance, and memory. For the Franklands, as for many noble families, their arms were not only displayed upon seals and plate but also woven into the fabric of their houses, churches, and monuments.

Ann Frankland Lewis: A Noblewoman’s Eye for Fashion and Art

Ann Frankland Lewis (d. 1842) occupies a curious and charming place in the cultural history of late eighteenth- and early nineteenth-century England. She was the third daughter of Admiral Sir Thomas Frankland, 5th Baronet of Thirkleby. Within the family, Ann developed her own form of expression: a refined practice of watercolour drawing, through which she recorded the fashions of her day with remarkable care and sensitivity.

Her surviving works, now preserved in collections such as the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, consist primarily of carefully labelled drawings of women’s dress, many titled “The Dress of the Year” or “Court Dress of the Year.” Executed with delicate line and subtle colour, these images depict the elaborate gowns, coiffures, and accessories that defined the evolving styles of the Georgian and Regency periods. They are not commercial fashion plates nor professional designs, but rather the cultivated observations of a woman of taste, attentive to the shifting codes of elegance in her social world.

What makes Ann Frankland Lewis significant is not that she pursued fashion as a trade, but that she treated it as a subject worthy of artistic record. Her drawings form a kind of private chronicle, charting the transformation from the structured, ornate gowns of the late eighteenth century to the neoclassical simplicity and high-waisted silhouettes that marked the turn of the nineteenth century. In this sense, she provides historians and costume scholars with a personal yet accurate record of style’s evolution, filtered through the eyes of a participant rather than a detached illustrator. Each drawing reflects not only an outfit but also the sensibilities of the circles in which she moved, courtly occasions, social assemblies, and the rhythms of genteel life.

According to available records, almost nothing is known about her physical appearance or whether any portrait of her was ever made...

Gerry's Collection of Antique Seal Stamps.