Events
Date of Baptism: 15 July 1595.
Place of Baptism: Standish, Gloucestershire.
The baptism is recorded in the parish register.
Date of Burial: 5 January 1643/4.
Place of Burial: Standish, Gloucestershire.
The burial is recorded in the parish register.
Relationships
Father: Henry Beard.
Mother: Alice Baker.
See the Commentary section.
Spouse: Elizabeth Bower. Married 26 April 1624 in Moreton Valence, Gloucestershire.
The marriage is recorded in the parish register.
Children:
(Complete source citations for facts about the children on this page are currently outside of the scope of this project.)
Samuel Beard (baptized 13 February 1624 in Standish)
Elizabeth Beard (baptized 14 April 1628 in Standish - died 23 March 1673/4, buried 25 March 1674 in Standish) married John Bates.
Ambrose Beard (baptized 18 April 1630 in Standish)
Joan Beard (baptized 11 October 1635 - buried 26 January 1699/1700 in Standish) married John Eagles.
Evidence
from the Standish parish registers:
[1595]
Ambrosius Beard filius Henrici Beard Bapt’ erat 15o Julii Ao 1595o.
[1624]
Bapt Samuell Beard the sonn of Ambros Beard and of Elizebeth his wife was Baptized the 13th day of Febuary in the Yeare 1624
[1628]
Elizebeth Beard the dafter of Ambros Beard and of Elizebeth his wife was Baptized the 14 day of Aprill in the year 1628
[1630]
Ambros Beard the Sonne of Ambros Beard and of Elizebeth his wife was Baptized the 18th day of Aprill in the year 1630
[1635]
Joane Beard the daughter of Ambros Beard was Baptised the 11th day of October
[1643]
Ambros Beard was Bured the 5th day of January in the year 1643
from the Moreton Valence parish registers:
[1624]
The 26th day of Aprill were married Ambrose Bearde and Elsabeth Bower.
Ambrose’s will:
In the name of god Amen the Twentith daye of November in the of [sic] our lord god one Thousand six hundred Fortie three And in the Nyntenth yeare of [...] of our sou[er]aigne lord Charles by the grace of god of England Scotland France Ireland kinge deffendor of the Fayth Et’ I Ambrose Beard of Standishe in the Countie [...] Fishmonger beinge weake in body but of good and p[er]fect memorye god be praysed [...] doe here make my last will and Teastament as followeth, First I bequeath my soule [...hands] of Allmightie god my maker and redemer And my bodye to the earth Item [...] Ralphe Dutton of Standishe in the Countie aforesayd knight By his Indenture [...] beringe date the first daye of Maye in the yeare of our lord god one thousand six [...d] thiertie one And in the seaventh yeare of the Reigne of our sayd sou[er]aigne lord kinge Charles For the Considerat’on therin expressed did demise grant and to farme lett and sett unto me One Messuage or tenem’nt Called brownes brdige and a quarter of one yard land therunto belonginge with the app’rten’ts lyeinge and beinge in Standishe aforesayd And then and now in the tenure of Henrye Beard my father to be had and houlden unto me my executors administratos and assignes from and ymediately after this becominge voyd of an estate heretofore made of the sayd pr[e]misses by Copie of Courte role, by vertue wherof the sayd Henrye Beard doth now hould and enioye the same unto the full end and terme of fowerscore and Nynteene yeare fully to be Compleate and ended yf Samuell Beard and Ambrose Beard my sonnes did or should soe longe live as in and by the sayd Indenture whereunto relat’on beinge had move att large yt doth and maye apeare Item I geue and bequeath unto Elizabeth my wife the sayd Indenture of lease Together with the Messuage or Tenem’nt therin menconed and quarter of one yard land therunto belonginge with the app’rten’ts for soe manye of the sayd Fowerscore and Nyntene yeares as shee the sayd Elizabeth shall happen to live keepinge her selfe widowe and unmaried yf my estate in the sayd lease shall soe longe Contienewe, But yf yt shall happen that the sayd Elizabeth my wife shall dye and departe this naturall life or marye before my estate in the sayd lease be ended That then my will is that from and after the decease or seacond maridge of the sayd Elizabeth, All my estate and terme in the sayd Indenture of lease shall be and remayne unto soe manye of my Children as shall then be lievinge equaly to be devided betwene them Item all the rest of my goods and Chatteles I giue and bequeath unto the sayd Elizabeth my wife whom I doe make and apoynt to be my executrix of this my last will And I doe apoynt my brother Henrye Beard and my Cozen Daniell Beard to be my ou[er]seers to see the same p[er]formed accordingly And for their paynes takinge herin I giue unto them twelue peens apeice
signed Ambrose Beard
witnes here unto
signed George Beard [mark]
signed Henrye Beard [mark]
Danyell Beard
Richard Downey
A true Inventorye Indented of all the goods of Ambros Beard of Standish late deceassed taken before John Bower Richard Bower Hinry Bower Richard Bower Hinry Beard Nathanyell Beard and Danyell Beard prisers Indifferently the 30th day of Januarie in the xixth yeare of the Raigne of o’r sou[er]aigne lord king Charles by the grace of god of England Scotland France and Ireland king defender of the fayth &c 1643
Imprimes his aparell and his purse and mony – iij li - 00 - 00
Item three beds price - i li - 00 - 00
Item fiue Couerletts and a blanket - vij s - 00
Item two payer of Sheetes - xiiij s - 00
Item two bowsters fiue pillowes and three pillow peroes – vis - 00
Item two bedsteades and a press - ixs
Item two table bords with frames A Joyne forme and a Chayer – xijs
Item two table Clothes and a Dossen of Napkines – viijs
Item a Cow and a heyfer – iij li xvs
Item two horses – ij li -00
Item seaven sheepe – j li – 00
Item Fiue stere pigs – j li – 00
Item two Coffers and a trunke – 00 - vs - 00
Item Coperrie ware – 00 - xvjs
Item Wheate in the barne - j li - xs
Item beanes and fetches – j li - xs
Item two grist bags two sar plases and a sacke – 00 - iijs
Item brase – ij li - 00
Item pewter – 00 – viij s
Item butter and Chese – 00 - xiij s - iii d
Item bacon in the house - ij li - 00
Item Iron ware as Androns & Codgs to cary up the fire – iiij s
Item hatchet bill and pick - i s vj d
Item mill panes and Chesvates – ij s
Item dishes spones and treanchers – is vjd
Item a pewter Can and a sawlt seler – i s ij d
Item two Candel stickes the one brase and other pewter - i [...]
Item three Coshinges – i s
Item one hen and one Chick – 00 - 00 - vj
[proved 16 September 1646]
Commentary
Ambrose’s parentage:
In his will, Ambrose named his father Henry. Ambrose was married in 1624 and had children baptized in Standish, so the baptism in 1595 in Standish meets expectations with respect to time and place. I cannot find another plausible baptism in indexes. Since the baptism entry records the father’s name as Henry, which was also expected, the baptism must surely be the correct one.
There was more than one Henry Beard appearing in the Standish registers in the period. A Henry Beard married Cristen Dowel in Standish in 1588 and a Henry Beard married an Alice Baker in Standish in 1589.
These children are recorded as baptized in Standish with the father Henry in the relevant period:
Julian Beard (1588)
Richard Berd (1 March 1589/90)
John Beard (1 July 1590)
Catherine Beard (3 February 1593)
George Beard (13 June 1594)
Ambrose Beard (15 July 1595)
Alice Beard (16 December 1599)
George Beard (13 January 1599/1600)
Henry Beard (1 November 1601)
Thomas Beard (21 June 1602)
Henry Beard (8 March 1604)
Stephen Beard (28 December 1606)
Henry Beard (2 December 1607)
William Beard (23 February 1608) (mother Alice)
Nathaniel Beard 5 February 1614) (mother Alice)
Another Henry Beard seems to have been baptized about 1607, and there may have been other Beards baptized between 1608 and 1614, when the registers seem incomplete.
Evidence from wills helps us to go some distance in sorting out the families.
In his 1601 will, William Beard of Standish mentioned his brother Henry Beard (also called Harry in the will), and Henry’s children Margaret, George, John, Ambrose, and Catherine. He calls George Henry’s “young son”. This suggests that of the children above baptized by 1600, the following belong in Ambrose’s family:
John Beard (1590)
Catherine Beard (1593)
Ambrose Beard (1595)
George Beard (1599/1600)
and a Margaret Beard who does not appear in the register.
In his 1643 will, Ambrose Beard mentioned his brother Henry Beard and his “cousin” Daniel Beard.
In her 1671 will, Elizabeth Pryde mentioned a large number of Beards who seem to be comprised of the families of several of the children baptized in Standish around the year 1600 with a father Henry.
She named first four children of Stephen Beard, including a Daniel Beard.
Next she named a daughter of William Beard.
Next she named four daughters of the George Beard of Haresfield who left a 1670 will.
Then she named Nathaniel Beard’s children. She made Nathaniel’s son John her executor, and Nathaniel and his son Nathaniel the younger her overseers.
Then she named two women, probably Beards, but whose connections are unclear.
Then she named four children of Ambrose Beard.
Then she named two children of the widow Margaret Beard.
It seems likely that Elizabeth Pride was Ambrose’s sister, and the bequests were to her nephews and nieces.
That would suggest that we should extend the list of Ambrose and his siblings as follows:
Margaret Beard (date of baptism unknown)
John Beard (1590)
Catherine Beard (1593)
Ambrose Beard (1595)
George Beard (1599/1600)
Henry Beard (baptized in 1601, 1604, or 1607)
Stephen Beard (1606)
William Beard (1608)
Nathaniel Beard (1614)
Elizabeth Beard (date of baptism unknown)
Since the Standish register records the mother of William and Nathaniel as Alice, we can assume that the mother of all these children was the Alice Baker who married Henry Beard in Standish in 1589.
References
Parish registers of Moreton Valence, Gloucestershire. Digital images on Ancestry.com.
Parish registers of Standish, Gloucestershire. Digital images on Ancestry.com.
Will of Ambrose Beard of Standish. Proved 1646 in the Consistory Court of Gloucester. Digital images on Ancestry.com.
Will of Elizabeth Pryde of Standish. Proved 1683 in the Consistory Court of Gloucester. Digital images on Ancestry.com.
Will of William Beard of Standish. Proved 1601 in the Consistory Court of Gloucester. Digital images on Ancestry.com.