The Lincoln Club was an enigmatic gentleman’s club established in the mid-18th century. Members were some of the most notable county gentlemen of the time. The lack of information about this club adds to the mystery surrounding it.
The club met at the Green Man Inn, which closed in the 1870s and is now a private residence.
A description of the club was given in the “Gentleman’s Magazine of 1786 (p.837). I found the extract on the MACLA (Metheringham Area Community Leisure Association) website and am very grateful.
The LINCOLN CLUB, GREEN MAN INN, BLANKNEY HEATH
The Green Man is a small inn, eight miles from Lincoln, on the London road, is situated in the parish of Blankney, and belongs to Charles Chaplin, of Blankney Esq. From the sign which represents a man dressed in a suit of green, one should suppose that it was originally kept by a servant of the family, probably the gamekeeper or huntsman, and thence derived the appellation of The Green Man. About the year 1741, the club room, 30 feet by 18, with lodging-rooms and garrets, were added by Thomas Chaplin, Esq., and a bowling-green and summer-house were placed contiguous thereto.
The busts of the principal members of the club (cast in plaster) with the arms and names of each painted on an escutcheon, within a medallion, are as follows:- Lord Monson of Burton . 1st Baron (cr. 1728 - d. 1748). Lord Robert Manners of Bloxholm. Son of 2nd Duke of Rutland. M.P. Kingston-on-Hull (1747-1780). A General Officer in the Army. Buried at Bloxholme 1782; aged 64. Lord Sherard Manners; brother of above. M.P. Tavistock 1741. d. 1741/2 Lord Charles Manners; another brother, d.1761 Lord Vere Bertie of Branston; son of 1 st Duke of Ancaster, and his 2nd wife. M.P. Boston (1741-1747). d. 1768. Lord Tyrconnel of Belton; Sir John Brownlow. Bart. Created Baron and Viscount 1718, d. 1754. Thomas Whichcot of Harpswell. M.P. Lincs (1741-1768). d. 1776. John Chaplin of Blankney; son and heir of above named Squire Thomas. d. 1764. Charles Chaplin of Blankney; probably a younger brother of John. Robert Dashwood, brother of Samuel Dashwood of Wells. Thomas Noel. M.P. Rutland (1727-1784) Bent Noel; brother of above, Colonel 43rd Regt.
For what purpose the club met is unknown. The influence and power of the men named is indisputable, and such men generally get together to further their ambitions and entertain themselves. Seven of the members were titled, and nine were Members of Parliament. It could be the start of a story in a tabloid newspaper today.
The members of the Lincoln Club explored
Robert Dashwood and Francis Dashwood
In the article, Robert Dashwood is said to be the brother of Samuel Dashwood of Wells. But who exactly Robert Dashwood may have been, I still need to pin down. Sir Francis Dashwood is not included on the list in the Gentleman's magazine but is identified elsewhere as a member. The Dashwood family originating from Somerset, had limited but interesting connections to Lincolnshire.
Sir Francis Dashwood, MP and famed founder of the Hellfire Club, built the enigmatic Dunston Pillar less than two miles towards Lincoln from the Green Man Inn after marrying the widow Sarah Ellis of Nocton Hall. His Wikipedia entry claims that he was a member of the Lincoln Club. This claim has no citation attached to it, but it does seem a reasonable claim. That the founder of the Hellfire Club was a member and possibly founder of the Lincoln Club may give us a clue as to the proceedings and activities undertaken at the remote Green Man Inn. It is also possible that Dunston Pillar was somehow connected, but that is conjecture.
Samuel Dashood of Wells is a confusing clue to the identity of Robert Dashwood. Wells in Somerset is close to the centre of the Dashwood family at Bicknoller (near Taunton), and Samuels are recorded there. However, there is a Well in Lincolnshire, near Alford. At the time of the Lincoln Club, Well Vale Hall was occupied by Samuel Dashwood and his wife, Ann Bateman. This Samuel Dashwood was Francis Dashwood’s 1st cousin once removed. Linking Samuel to Francis seems to confirm that this is the correct Samuel referred to in the list of members. Also, his wife’s mother was a Chaplin, presumably related to the Chaplin club members. However, Samuel was either an only child or had two sisters, depending on which family tree you look at on Ancestry.com. Therefore, it is unlikely, but not impossible, for Robert to have been his brother. There are few Robert Dashwoods, and it will take more research to pinpoint who he is. A potential Robert I found was born in 1701 and died in 1769. He is a second cousin to Francis ‘Hellfire’ Dashwood. The main problem with this person is that there is no apparent connection to Lincolnshire. He spent most of his life in the Dashwood homelands of Somerset and is undoubtedly not a brother of Samuel Dashwood of Well.
The connections between these influential families are very confusing and require detailed research. For example, Francis Dashwood’s father’s full name is Francis John Bateman Dashwood suggesting further connections between the Dashwoods and the Batemans. These relationships are a bottomless rabbit hole to disappear down.
The Manners brothers
The three listed Manners brothers were sons of the 2nd Duke of Rutland, John Manners. Their grandmother was a Noel, relating them to two other club members, Thomas and Bent Noel.
General Lord Robert Manners (c. 1721 – 31 May 1782)
Robert Manners was primarily a soldier who saw active duty in Flanders during the war of the Austrian succession, which Britain entered in support of the Habsburg claim to the throne. Robert became an aide-de-camp to King George II.
Robert was brother-in-law to Henry Pelham (married to Lady Catherine Manners, Robert’s sister), Prime Minister of Britain from 1743 - 1754. It has been assumed that this relationship was why Robert Manners became MP for Kingston upon Hull, a city he had no connection with.
Close to the King and closely related to the Prime Minister, Robert Manners was a man with influence and power. His home was Bloxholm Hall, and the church of St Mary, built on the grounds, is where he is buried.
Lord Sherard Manners (c. 1713 – 13 January 1742)
Sherard was MP for Tavistock in Devon. Appointed in 1741, he only served for one year before his early death. I have yet to identify whether he was resident in Lincolnshire or if he was married.
Major-General Lord Charles Manners (died 5 December 1761)
Charles was the youngest son of the 2nd Duke of Rutland. Aside from his military history, little is recorded of his life.
Thomas Whichcote
Thomas (c.1700 - 1776) resided in Harpswell Hall near Gainsborough. He was an MP for Lincolnshire from 1740 to 1774. The History of Parliament website records that he “obtained his influence in the constituency ‘by always standing up for the privileges of the people’” and that he kept an open house for a week every Christmas.
The Chaplin Brothers
The Chaplin family owned many thousands of acres of land in Lincolnshire. They were high gentry, and the family's sons married into the aristocracy. A thorough history of branches of the family can be found here. In Lincolnshire, the family invested in developing canals, railways, and resorts on the coast.
John Chaplin (1728 - 1764)
John was heir to the fortune of Thomas Chaplin (1684 - 1747) along with Blankney Hall. The Gentleman’s Magazine list is misleading as it says that John Chaplin was the son of the above-named Squire Thomas. The entry being below that for Thomas Whichcote, which suggests that he is the father. This is, of course, incorrect. John’s father is Thomas Chaplin, named in the introduction to the article, and his mother is Diana Archer, daughter of Lord Andrew Archer of Umberslade, Warwickshire. John married Lady Elizabeth Cecil, daughter of the 8th Earl of Exeter. The family was extremely well-connected. This suggests that Thomas Chaplin should also be identified as a member of the Lincoln Club. If we assume the list was collated over the 1740s, John would have been a young teenager. This may suggest that the list was not a snapshot of members at a particular time but one of the notable members over an extended period.
John was MP for Lincoln between 1754 and 1761 and Stamford from 1761 to 1764.
Charles Chaplin (1730 - 1795)
Charles seems to have been a less memorable family member, and little is known about him. He married Elizabeth Thornton in 1755 in the church of St George, Hanover Square, London. His brother John was a witness.
Lord John Monson, 1st Baron of Burton
John Monson (1708 - 1748) was elected MP for Lincoln from 1722 to 1728. He married Lady Margaret Watson, youngest daughter of the 1st Earl of Rockingham, and they had three sons. In 1728 he was made a peer after inheriting a baronetcy from his uncle. He was made a Knight of the Bath in June 1725. King George I created the order in May 1725, and Monson was among the first to receive the honour. He was appointed the First Lord of the Board of Trade and Plantations—a position he held between 1737 and 1748. I have seen references to the possibility of the Chaplin family having interests in and perhaps acquiring some of their wealth from overseas plantations. This makes Lord Monson's membership an interesting one. As a point of interest, there are many woods in the area of Blankney known as plantations.
Lord Tyrconnel of Belton
Sir John Brownlow (1690 - 1754) was the fifth Baronet of Belton House near Grantham. His Tyrconnel title was from his Irish heritage. He was MP for Grantham between 1718 and 1740. The History of Parliament records his first marriage was to his cousin, one of the daughters and coheiresses of his uncle, Sir John Brownlow, 3rd Baronet, through which he obtained four manors in Lincolnshire and property in London.
The Noel Brothers
Thomas Noel (1705 - 1788) was MP for Rutland for two periods between 1728 and 1788. An obituary note in the Gentleman’s Magazine (1788, p. 566) describes him as ‘father of the House of Commons’ and as ‘the oldest fox-hunter in the kingdom, having kept up his hounds [the Cottesmore pack] from 1730 till his death’.NOEL, Thomas (?1705-88), of Exton, Rutland | History of Parliament Online
Bent Noel is Lieutenant General Bennet Noel (1715 - 1766), the younger brother of Thomas. The church at the family home of Exton in Rutland has an impressive memorial to Bennet and his wife, amongst other monuments for family members. He was married to Elizabeth Adams, a daughter of Robert Adams, Director of the East India Company and Governor of Tellicherry in India. When Robert Adams died, he left a will valued at £100,000 split between his two daughters. Bennet, through his wife, therefore, inherited £50,000. By comparison, Sir John Brownlow (above) inherited £12,000 through his wife, which was considered a fortune.
Lord Vere Bertie
Vere Bertie (1712 - 1768) was the third son of Robert Bertie, 1st Duke of Ancaster and Kesteven. He was educated at Westminster School and was MP for Boston between 1741 and 1754. His wife was Anne Casey, daughter of Sir Cecil Wray, 11th Baronet, whose family home was Branston Hall.
Summary
The Lincoln Club is a fascinating organisation. Its members combined wealth and influence were astronomical. It was likely simply a gentlemen’s club for recreation and networking, but with the involvement of Francis Dashwood, anything was possible. The Dunston Pillar entry on the Wikishire website suggests that the Lincoln Club was established to organise entertainment on the grounds of Dunston Pillar. It seems somewhat unlikely that these wealthy and powerful men would involve themselves in such menial efforts. Their self-interests would be significantly enhanced through the connections made and deals done. It would be fascinating to discover more about this club. Hopefully, unfound documents lying somewhere will one day come to light.
A New Lincoln Club?
The Green Man Inn closed in the 1870s. Green Man, Blankney (closedpubs.co.uk) When the Club ceased to meet there or exist is unknown. Interestingly, a Lincoln Club, described as a gentleman’s club, was established in Lincoln city centre before the 1870s, situated opposite the railway station. The timing of the closure of the Green Man Inn and the establishment of a clubhouse in the city with the same name may be more than coincidental.
The Lincoln Club House was built for the Lincoln Club Company Ltd in 1867 to replace an existing clubhouse on the site. Lincoln architect Michael Drury designed it. In 1873 the building was sold and became the Club Hotel before changing again in 1876 to the Albion Hotel. It traded under this name until 1983, when it became the Barbican Hotel. After being empty for several years, in 2022, work began to turn the building into a creative hub. Barbican Hotel, Non Civil Parish - 1475731 | Historic England
Whether the Lincoln Club Company Ltd was a continuation of the Lincoln Club based at Blankney or not, I cannot be certain. It is a fairly obvious name choice for a gentleman’s club in Lincoln. Further research is required.
The Lincolnshire Archives contain records of two £5 share certificates dating from 1867 (numbers 618 and 619). This would suggest that at least £3,100 was collected through a share issue, presumably to fund the new building. Officialdata.org calculates £1000 in 1860 to be worth £155,000 today. This means approximately half a million pounds was raised to establish the new clubhouse. The archives also contain a copy of “The Rules and Regulations of the Lincoln Club” from the same year. There may be some clues as to the club's origins in there if anyone reads through them.
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