Knight of the Ancestors

Sir Richard Houghton was born in 1569 on the estate of Hoghton Tower in Lancashire, England. He was the eldest son to Sir William Houghton and therefore was given the estate once his father had died. Sir Richard Houghton is accounted for many different things throughout his extravagant life. To name a few, I will be discussing some of his life at Hoghton Tower, his relationship with the king, and his downfall into bankruptcy.

Sir Richard Houghton 

His life at the estate was average yet extravagant depending on one's perspective. To the common people of the day, his life was exciting and grandiose but to someone who is in the same class as him, it would seem ordinary. He became friends with the king during his life and even invited him over for dinner in hopes that he would be redeemed for his growing debt with his alum mines.

As it is said, he put down half a mile of red carpet on the road leading to his estate in preparation for King James I who was to be staying there for three days. He invited many close friends to stay and had exciting entertainment ranging from theatre to hunting. The food was also another thing to mention. One fun story was that one night during a feast, the king was so impressed by a meat being served he withdrew his sword and knighted the meat "Sir Loin Steak", thus sirloin steak. The event was said to be a glorious time and gave him the chance to try and appeal to the king.

Unfortunately, though, his luck did not last long and he was imprisoned after his debt was no longer tolerated or avoided. He was given bail multiple times and was finally released before his death in 1630. I was unable to find what exactly he died of but he was buried on the Houghton Tower estate. I got a lot of my information from my late grandfather and online with ancestry.com as well as some the links provided.

Hoghton Tower, Lancashire, England

Hoghton Tower, Lancashire, England