Lord Byron's Nottinghamshire

Silhouette of Byron as a boy

Newstead Abbey, Hucknall and Southwell

By Ralph Lloyd-Jones

The Byrons and Newstead

The Byron family had been associated with Nottinghamshire ever since Sir Ralph de Burun, a Norman knight, was given land in the county by William the Conqueror. After the Dissolution of the Monasteries (1536-41), Henry VIII granted Newstead Abbey to Sir John Byron. His son was made a Baron, entitled to be called 'Lord' and sit in the Upper House of Parliament, for supporting Charles I in the Civil War. George Gordon Byron inherited the baronetcy, house and lands when he was still at his primary school in Scotland. He noticed that the headmaster suddenly became quite polite and generous, giving him a slice of cake and a glass of wine...

Now click on Rags to Riches? (in the More About... box to the right) to find out what happened next.