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United Kingdom

Every case set in what is now United Kingdom, best-known first. Cities, states and old kingdoms count under the country that holds them today.

EuropeEvery country

Cases in United Kingdom

Best-known first. Each card opens the full cited case.

Cases
211
Years
3700 BCE to 2025
Region
Europe
Main subjects
Literature and art, European families, Ghosts and legends, Music and sport
Families
House of Tudor, House of Romanov, House of Braganza, House of Plantagenet, Al Thani family, Rothschild family, Astor family, Getty family
Updated
30 October 2026
Freddie Mercury: Freddie Mercury performing in New Haven, CT, November 19771991 · Garden Lodge, Kensington, LondonFreddie Mercury left his house and half his fortune to his ex-girlfriend, who buried his ashes in a place only she knowsFreddie Mercury died of AIDS-related pneumonia at 45. His estate was valued at about £8 million. His will left Garden Lodge, its mews and 50 percent of his privately held shares to Mary Austin, his girlfriend in the 1970s.The Independent and 1 moreJudy Garland: Judy Garland publicity photo1969 · Cadogan Lane, Belgravia, LondonJudy Garland's fifth husband buried her in New York; 48 years later her children moved her to HollywoodJudy Garland died at 47 of an accidental barbiturate overdose, three months after marrying nightclub manager Mickey Deans.CBS News and 3 moreAmy Winehouse: Amy Winehouse f4962007 crop2011 · Camden, LondonAmy Winehouse's father sued her friends over $1.2 million from her dresses and lostAmy Winehouse died of alcohol poisoning at 27 without a will. Under English intestacy rules her parents inherited, and her father, Mitch Winehouse, became administrator of the estate.wtop.com and 2 moreJimmy Savile: Jimmy Savile 20062011 · Leeds, EnglandJimmy Savile left £4.3 million to friends and his charity; abuse claims froze the estate and the courts approved paying it to his victimsJimmy Savile presented Top of the Pops and Jim'll Fix It and raised money for hospitals. He died in October 2011 and left £4.3 million.BBC and 4 moreAgatha Christie: Agatha Christie in Nederland (detectiveschrijfster), bij aankomst op Schiphol me, Bestanddeelnr 916-8898 (cropped)1976 · Wallingford, EnglandAgatha Christie gave her grandson the rights to The Mousetrap as a child, and the company holding her estate was sold three timesAgatha Christie gave her grandson Mathew Prichard the rights to The Mousetrap as a birthday present when he was a child. Her estate's site says he was nine, in 1952; another source says seven.agathachristie.com and 3 moreJimi Hendrix: Jimi Hendrix (1967) (cropped)1970 · Samarkand Hotel, Notting Hill, LondonJimi Hendrix died with no will, and his father's will later cut his brother out of an $80 million estateJimi Hendrix died in London aged 27; the inquest returned an open verdict. He had no will. His father, Al Hendrix, was his sole heir. The estate was worth about $500,000 in 1970.The Seattle Times and 3 moreGeorge Orwell: George Orwell was the pen name of Eric Arthur Blair (1903 - 1950), an English writer born in British India. On of his first jobs was acting as imperial police office1950 · University College Hospital, LondonGeorge Orwell married Sonia Brownell in a hospital in October 1949 and died in January 1950; his estate's accountant ran his rights until she sued in 1979George Orwell, 46, married Sonia Brownell, a literary editor about 15 years younger, on 13 October 1949 at University College Hospital, where he was being treated for tuberculosis.washingtonmonthly.com and 3 moreC. S. Lewis: CS Lewis photo on dust jacket1963 · Oxford, EnglandA Lewis scholar says he saved C. S. Lewis's papers from a bonfire; a critic charged in 1988 that the story and an unfinished novel were a hoaxAfter C. S. Lewis died in 1963, his brother Warren Lewis held his papers.christianitytoday.com and 2 moreSylvia Plath1963 · LondonSylvia Plath died separated but not divorced, so Ted Hughes inherited her work and destroyed her last journalPlath and Hughes separated in October 1962. She died in London in February 1963, aged 30. The inquest found suicide by carbon monoxide poisoning.nybooks.com and 3 moreIan Fleming: Ian Fleming c. 1958 (cropped)1964 · Canterbury, EnglandIan Fleming had two heart attacks during the Thunderball trial, settled, and died nine months laterFleming worked with the producer Kevin McClory and the screenwriter Jack Whittingham on a Bond film script that was never made. Fleming then published the novel Thunderball in 1961.Wikipedia (English) and 2 moreCaroline Flack: Caroline Flack2020 · London, EnglandCaroline Flack died in February 2020 before an assault trial; the coroner found the prosecution was among the causes, and her family said police and prosecutors singled her outCaroline Flack was charged with assaulting her boyfriend, Lewis Burton, in December 2019. Burton said he did not want her prosecuted.lawgazette.co.uk and 3 morePeter Sellers: Peter Sellers at home in Belgravia, London, 19731980 · London, EnglandPeter Sellers signed a trust for his daughter the day he collapsed; his widow kept a £4 million estatePeter Sellers married actress Lynne Frederick in 1977. She was 22, almost 30 years younger than he was. She filed for divorce in 1979, and the couple then reunited.BBC and 1 moreMF Doom: MF Doom - Hultsfred 2011 (cropped)2020 · United KingdomMF DOOM's widow sued a former label manager for 31 notebooks of lyrics and got them back in 2025Daniel Dumile, known as MF DOOM, died at 49. His wife, Jasmine Dumile Thompson, announced it on his Instagram two months later.musictech.com and 3 moreRobin Gibb: Robin Gibb (Bee Gees) - TopPop 1973 1 (cropped)2012 · London, EnglandRobin Gibb left a £93 million fortune to his wife and three children; his daughter with the housekeeper got a closing line in the willRobin Gibb died at 62. His 15-page will was believed to have been drawn up in August 2011 and was witnessed by his chauffeur and personal assistant.hellomagazine.com and 4 moreBrian Epstein: Collectie / Archief : Fotocollectie Anefo Reportage / Serie : [ onbekend ] Beschrijving : Aankomst Brian Epstein (manager Beatles) op Schiphol (Grand Gala du Disque 1967 · London, EnglandBrian Epstein died at 32 owed 25 percent of the Beatles' royalties for nine years, and his mother sold that claim to a City investment trustBrian Epstein was found dead in his locked bedroom. The coroner ruled an accidental overdose of Carbrital with alcohol.the-paulmccartney-project.com and 3 moreT. S. Eliot: Thomas Stearns ('T.S.') Eliot with his sister and his cousin, by Lady Ottoline Morrell (died 1938). See source website for additional information.1965 · London, EnglandT. S. Eliot's 1,131 letters to Emily Hale stayed sealed at Princeton for 60 years, and Harvard released his own denial the same dayEmily Hale, Eliot's companion for decades, gave his letters to Princeton under an agreement that they stay closed for 50 years after the later death of either of them.pwb.princeton.edu and 3 moreGeorge Bernard Shaw: George Bernard Shaw1950 · Ayot St Lawrence, EnglandGeorge Bernard Shaw's will ordered a new 40-letter alphabet; the High Court found the trust not charitable in 1957, and the National Gallery of Ireland received a third of his royalties until 2020Shaw's will, dated June 1950, left the residue of an estate reported at about 300,000 pounds first to a trust run by the Public Trustee.oxbridgenotes.co.uk and 3 moreBenny Hill: Benny Hill. Waxwork of Benny Hill in character as Fred Scuttle on The Benny Hill Show.1992 · Teddington, LondonBenny Hill left an estate of 7,548,192 pounds to seven nieces and nephews, and his grave was broken into in 1992 over a rumour of buried goldBenny Hill died on 18 April 1992, aged 68, in an armchair in his Teddington flat. He was found two days later.probatesearch.service.gov.uk and 3 morePrincess Margaret: Portrait of Princess Margaret, circa 1950.2002 · King Edward VII's Hospital, LondonA Jersey accountant sued to open Princess Margaret's sealed will to prove he was her secret sonPrincess Margaret died in February 2002 and the Queen Mother in March 2002. Both wills were sealed. Robert Andrew Brown, an accountant living in Jersey, believed he was Margaret's illegitimate son, given up at birth.The National Archives, Find Case Law and 1 moreGeorge V: King George 1923label QS:Len,"King George 1923"1936 · Sandringham House, Norfolk, EnglandGeorge V's doctor injected him with morphine and cocaine so his death would make the morning papersKing George V was dying of heart and lung disease at Sandringham. On the night of 20 January 1936 his physician, Lord Dawson of Penn, injected him with three-quarters of a grain of morphine and one grain of cocaine.The New York Times and 1 moreAdnan Khashoggi: AdnanKhashoggi06 (cropped)2017 · Los Angeles and LondonArms dealer Adnan Khashoggi's ex-wife won a divorce payment reported near $874 million, then the largest on recordAdnan Khashoggi earned his fortune brokering arms deals between Western companies and Saudi Arabia. He married Sandra Daly, who took the name Soraya, in 1961, and they had five children. They divorced in 1974.findlaw.com and 2 moreLucian Freud: LucienFreud2011 · LondonLucian Freud left a 96 million pound estate to his solicitor and one daughter, and a High Court judge refused to open the will to a son who was one of at least 14 childrenLucian Freud signed his last will on 10 May 2006. It revoked a 2004 will that had set up a half-secret trust.The National Archives, Find Case Law and 3 moreArthur Conan Doyle: Arthur Conan Doyle by Walter Benington, 19141930 · Crowborough, EnglandArthur Conan Doyle's heirs charged licence fees for Sherlock Holmes until a court ruled the character was free to useConan Doyle Estate Ltd. is a company owned by some collateral descendants of Conan Doyle and others. It claims rights in his works and grants licences. Random House took a licence for the anthology A Study in Sherlock.law.justia.com and 2 moreBram Stoker: Bram Stoker 19061912 · LondonBram Stoker's widow sued over Nosferatu, and a German court ordered every copy of the film destroyedStoker died with modest means, and Dracula's royalties were his widow Florence's main income. In 1922 the German company Prana Film released Nosferatu, an unauthorised adaptation of Dracula. Florence sued.Encyclopaedia Britannica and 3 moreBeatrix Potter: Beatrix Potter by King cropped1943 · Near Sawrey, Lake District, EnglandBeatrix Potter left more than 4,000 acres and 14 or 15 farms to the National Trust, with a life interest for her husbandPotter put her royalties into Hill Top Farm in 1905 and bought Troutbeck Park Farm in 1923 to keep it from developers. She died on 22 December 1943; one source puts her estate at £211,636.beatrixpottersociety.org.uk and 3 moreAI illustration: A typed will with a forged signature on a doctor's desk in Hyde, 19981998 · Hyde, Greater ManchesterA forged will leaving £386,000 to Dr Harold Shipman exposed Britain's worst serial killerKathleen Grundy, 81, a former mayoress of Hyde, died at home. Her GP, Dr Harold Shipman, signed the death certificate and gave "old age" as the cause.crimeandinvestigation.co.uk and 3 moreThe Queen Mother: Portrait of Queen Elizabeth (1900–2002)2002 · Royal Lodge, Windsor, EnglandThe Queen Mother left her estate to her daughter free of inheritance tax under a 1993 deal between the palace and the TreasuryAfter the 1992 Windsor Castle fire, public anger over who would pay for repairs led the Queen to agree to pay income tax. The 1993 Memorandum of Understanding on Royal Taxation set the terms.GOV.UK and 2 moreGlenn Miller: Glenn Miller1944 · over the English ChannelGlenn Miller vanished over the English Channel; his widow licensed his name for $1, and his children lost it in courtMajor Glenn Miller's plane disappeared over the English Channel on 15 December 1944. No wreckage or body was found. He was pronounced dead a year later.cacd.uscourts.gov and 1 moreMohamed Al-Fayed2023 · London, UKAfter Mohamed Al Fayed died, more than 180 women came forward, and Harrods went to court over his estateMohamed Al Fayed owned Harrods from 1985 to 2010. He was never convicted of a sexual offence in his lifetime.leighday.co.uk and 3 moreIsabella Blow: 2005 Stuckist Turner demo (1) Ausschnitt Isabella Blow2007 · Gloucestershire, UKIsabella Blow's father left her £5,000, and after her death her estate put her McQueen wardrobe up for auctionIsabella Blow was born a Delves Broughton. Her grandfather, Sir Jock Delves Broughton, sold most of the family's estate, held for about 600 years, to pay gambling debts.timeout.com and 3 moreThomas Hardy: Thomas Hardy Restored Portrait 1910–1915 (3x4 cropped)1928 · Max Gate, Dorchester, EnglandThomas Hardy's heart was buried in his first wife's grave and his ashes in Westminster Abbey after his executor overruled his wish; a legend says a cat ate the heartThomas Hardy died at Max Gate just after 9 p.m. on 11 January 1928. He wanted burial at Stinsford, Dorset, in the grave of his first wife, Emma.archive.spectator.co.uk and 3 moreJ. Paul Getty: JP Getty 1944 (cropped) (2)1976 · Sutton Place, Surrey, EnglandJ. Paul Getty paid part of his kidnapped grandson's ransom and lent the rest to his son at 4% interestGetty ran Getty Oil from Sutton Place in Surrey. On 10 July 1973 his grandson John Paul Getty III, 16, was seized in Piazza Farnese, Rome, and held in Calabria. The kidnappers asked $17 million.Il Post and 7 moreAlexander McQueen: Alexander McQueen by FashionWirePress (cropped 2)2010 · Mayfair, London, UKAlexander McQueen died the day before his mother's funeral and left £50,000 to his dogs and most of £16 million to a charity for artistsLee Alexander McQueen's mother, Joyce, died about ten days before him. On Thursday 11 February 2010 his cleaner found him hanged in a wardrobe at his Mayfair home. He was 40. It was the day before his mother's funeral.thepinknews.com and 3 morePhilip Larkin: Ocean, Humphrey; Philip Larkin; National Portrait Gallery, London, copyright owned by Humphrey Ocean, permission given to publish on Wikipedia1985 · Hull, EnglandPhilip Larkin's secretary shredded his 30 volumes of diaries after he died, on an instruction his will did not spell outLarkin left the bulk of his estate to Monica Jones, his partner of decades. She became his literary executor. His will was ambiguous about his private papers. Jones relayed his instruction that the diaries be destroyed.prod.archiveshub.jisc.ac.uk and 3 moreJ. M. Barrie: James Matthew Barrie001937 · LondonJ.M. Barrie gave Peter Pan to a children's hospital, and Parliament made the hospital's royalty permanentIn 1929 Great Ormond Street Hospital in London asked Barrie to join a building committee. He declined, saying he hoped to find another way to help.legislation.gov.uk and 3 moreJane Austen: Portrait of Jane Austen in watercolor and pencil1817 · Winchester, EnglandKelly Clarkson bought Jane Austen's ring for 152,450 pounds in 2012, and Britain barred export until a museum raised the same sumJane Austen's gold and turquoise ring is one of only three known pieces of her jewellery. Papers show it passed to her sister Cassandra, then to Eleanor Austen, wife of Henry Thomas Austen, and stayed in the family.museumsassociation.org and 3 moreArthur Koestler: Arthur Koestler (1969)1983 · 8 Montpelier Square, LondonArthur Koestler and his wife Cynthia died together in 1983; his 1 million pound estate paid for a parapsychology chair after four universities declined itArthur Koestler, diagnosed with Parkinson's disease in 1976 and leukaemia in 1980, wrote a suicide note dated June 1982. On 1 March 1983 he and his wife Cynthia, 55 and believed healthy, died of Tuinal and alcohol.psi-encyclopedia.spr.ac.uk and 3 moreHenry Moore: Henry Moore in workshop Allan Warren (cropped)1986 · Perry Green, HertfordshireThieves stole Henry Moore's 2-ton Reclining Figure, valued at 3 million pounds, from his foundation in 2005 and police believe it was sold for scrap worth under 3,000 poundsHenry Moore's home at Perry Green is the base of the Henry Moore Foundation, which holds his sculpture. Reclining Figure 1969 to 70 is a bronze 3.6 metres long and 2.1 tons, one of six casts plus an artist's copy.tate.org.uk and 3 moreBlenheim Palace, where the story took place2014 · Woodstock, OxfordshireThe 11th Duke of Marlborough went to court in 1994 so his drug-addicted heir would never control Blenheim PalaceJohn Spencer-Churchill, 11th Duke of Marlborough, owned Blenheim Palace in Oxfordshire. His heir was his eldest surviving son, Jamie, Marquess of Blandford, born in 1955. Jamie's drug addiction was public.The Guardian and 7 moreSunjay Kapur2025 · England, UKSunjay Kapur died at a polo match, and his children say the will leaving his Rs 30,000 crore estate to his widow is forgedSunjay Kapur, chairman of auto-parts maker Sona Comstar, collapsed and died during a polo match in England on 12 June 2025. A will dated 21 March 2025 leaves almost his entire personal estate to his third wife, Priya Sachdev Kapur.wionews.com and 4 moreBryan Guinness, 2nd Baron Moyne: Bryan Guinness in Taormina, Italy, 19291966 · Redcliffe Gardens, South Kensington, London, EnglandGuinness heir Tara Browne died at 21 before his £1 million inheritance, and his mother won custody of his sonsTara Browne was the son of Oonagh Guinness and Dominick Browne, 4th Baron Oranmore and Browne. He was due to receive £1 million at 25 and in the meantime had an allowance of £720 a month.au.rollingstone.com and 2 moreAI illustration: Lower Belgrave Street, London, at night, November 19741974 · Last seen at Uckfield, East SussexLord Lucan vanished the night his children's nanny was killed in 1974, and the High Court declared him dead in 2016John Bingham, 7th Earl of Lucan, inherited a reputed £250,000 in 1964 and drew about £12,000 a year from family trusts. He lost an estimated £20,000 fighting his wife Veronica for custody of their children.legislation.gov.uk and 5 moreRough cullinan diamond: The rough Cullinan diamond.1953 · Cullinan, Gauteng, South Africa; London, EnglandThe Transvaal bought the largest diamond ever found as a birthday gift for Edward VII, the cutter kept the smaller stones as his fee, and South Africans petition for its returnOn 26 January 1905 the surface manager Frederick Wells found a diamond of 3,106 carats at the Premier No. 2 mine near Pretoria. It was named after the mine's owner, Thomas Cullinan.UK Parliament, Hansard and 3 moreLewis Carroll: LewisCarrollSelfPhoto1898 · Guildford, EnglandLewis Carroll's diaries lost four volumes and ten pages before reaching the British Library in 1969; his Alice manuscript sold at Sotheby's in 1928Charles Dodgson, who wrote as Lewis Carroll, died in 1898 and left diaries held by his family. By 1932 four volumes had disappeared. One account blames a move and another blames storage in a cellar.contrariwise.info and 3 moreAI illustration: Ashdown Forest, East Sussex, the wood behind the Winnie-the-Pooh stories2007 · Los Angeles; Hartfield, EnglandThe Winnie-the-Pooh rights holder sued Disney for 13 years, and lost because its investigator took Disney's trashMilne sold North American merchandising rights to Winnie-the-Pooh to the agent Stephen Slesinger in 1930.thedailyrecord.com and 3 moreAI illustration: Furniture and paintings laid out for auction inside Mentmore Towers, Buckinghamshire, 19771974 · Mentmore Towers, BuckinghamshireThe government refused Mentmore for £2 million, and Sotheby's sold its contents for more than £6 million in 1977Mentmore Towers was built in the 1850s for Baron Mayer de Rothschild and passed to the Earls of Rosebery by marriage. Harry Primrose, 6th Earl of Rosebery, bred the Derby winner Blue Peter at its stud.Internet Archive and 8 moreAI illustration: Ives Street in Chelsea, London, brick terraces on a summer afternoon, 19871987 · LondonPalestinian cartoonist Naji al-Ali was shot in London in 1987, Britain expelled Israeli officials after a Mossad double agent was jailed, and no one has been charged with the murderOn 22 July 1987 a gunman shot Naji al-Ali in the back of the neck as he walked from his car to the London office of the Kuwaiti newspaper Al-Qabas, Ives Street, Knightsbridge. He died in hospital on 29 August 1987, aged 51.Al Jazeera and 2 moreWalter Scott: Sir Walter Scott (1771-1832) title QS:P1476,en:"Sir Walter Scott (1771-1832) "label QS:Len,"Sir Walter Scott (1771-1832)1832 · Abbotsford, ScotlandWalter Scott owed £130,000 when his printer failed, refused bankruptcy, and wrote until he died to pay itScott was the only partner with money in the Ballantyne printing business. When the Panic of 1825 brought it down, he owed £130,000 and the ruin was public.Wikipedia (English)Benedict Arnold: General Benedict Arnoldlabel QS:Len,"General Benedict Arnold"1801 · LondonBenedict Arnold was paid £6,315 for changing sides and died in debt; his widow paid the debtsBenedict Arnold asked General Henry Clinton for £20,000 if his plot to hand West Point to the British succeeded and £10,000 if it failed. Clinton offered at most £6,000 for failure.American Heritage and 1 moreWestminster Abbey, where the story took place1904 · LondonStanley was refused burial beside Livingstone in Westminster Abbey, and his papers were sold to Belgium in four partsHenry Morton Stanley was baptised John Rowlands at Denbigh in 1841, the illegitimate son of Elizabeth Parry, then 18.africamuseum.be and 6 moreRoger Casement-Grave in Glasnevin: Roger Casement-Grave in Glasnevin1916 · Pentonville Prison, London; Glasnevin Cemetery, Dublin, IrelBritain hanged Roger Casement in 1916 and buried him in quicklime, returned him to Dublin in 1965 on condition he stay out of the North, and in October 2026 his supporters applied to move himRoger Casement was put ashore at Banna Strand, County Kerry, on 21 April 1916 and arrested with malaria at an old fort nearby. His trial for high treason opened on 26 June 1916 at the Royal Courts of Justice.irishnews.com and 2 moreRudolf Diesel: Rudolf Diesel21913 · aboard the steamer Dresden between Antwerp, Belgium, and HarRudolf Diesel vanished from a Channel steamer in 1913 and left his wife a bag of money with papers showing his debtsRudolf Diesel developed his engine at the Maschinenfabrik Augsburg with backing from Krupp. After its success around 1897 he became famous and rich.Smithsonian Magazine and 3 moreHawley Harvey Crippen: Dr crippen1910 · Hilldrop Crescent, London, UKDr Crippen was hanged for killing his wife, and the court refused to let his mistress take the wife's estate through his willCora Crippen was last seen at about 1 a.m. on 1 February 1910, after a dinner party at the house in Hilldrop Crescent, London, that she shared with her husband, Hawley Harvey Crippen.The National Archives, Find Case Law and 3 moreVladimir Potanin: 2021 Vladimir Potanin2014 · Moscow and LondonVladimir Potanin's ex-wife sought billions in Moscow, then moved to London to try again, and the UK Supreme Court stopped her 3 to 2Vladimir Potanin, controlling shareholder of Norilsk Nickel, married Natalia Potanina in 1983. A Russian court dissolved the marriage in 2014.The National Archives, Find Case Law and 1 moreAI illustration: Soldiers storm the Lubiri palace walls in Mengo, Kampala, 19661969 · London, EnglandThe Kabaka of Buganda climbed his palace wall to escape the army, and died in a London flat three years laterSir Edward Mutesa II, Kabaka (king) of Buganda, was also the first President of Uganda from 1963. In 1966 Prime Minister Milton Obote suspended the constitution.Wikipedia (English) and 1 moreHenry VIII: Portrait of Henry VIII1547 · Palace of Whitehall, LondonHenry VIII's will was signed with a stamp, not his hand, and its validity was disputed for 20 yearsParliament's Third Succession Act of 1544 let Henry VIII settle the crown by will, but only by a will signed with his own hand.discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk and 3 moreWindow in the Roper Chapel of St. Dunstan's Church, Canterbury - geograph.org.uk - 3072341: Window in the Roper Chapel of St. Dunstan's Church, Canterbury1535 · Tower Hill, London; St Dunstan's Church, Canterbury, EnHenry VIII beheaded Thomas More and took the family's property, and his daughter bribed a man for his head, which a Canterbury parish voted in 2025 to dig upThomas More, Henry VIII's former Lord Chancellor, refused the oaths required by the Acts of Succession and Supremacy of 1534. He was convicted of treason and beheaded on 6 July 1535.canterbury-archaeology.org.uk and 4 moreWoburn Abbey, where the story took place1953 · Endsleigh estate, DevonThe 12th Duke of Bedford was found shot in 1953, and the son he had cut off opened Woburn Abbey to paying visitors to meet a £4.5 million tax debtHerbrand Russell, 11th Duke of Bedford, did not speak to his son Hastings for 20 years. The two still worked on plans to shield the Bedford fortune from British tax.bedsarchives.bedford.gov.uk and 7 moreBarry Munitz1976 · Sutton Place, Surrey, EnglandGetty Trust chief Barry Munitz resigned in 2006 and paid back $250,000 after reports on his spendingJ. Paul Getty left most of his fortune to the museum trust that became the J. Paul Getty Trust. It became the world's richest art institution, with a $4.2 billion endowment in 2009.Los Angeles Times and 2 moreAI illustration: A painting crated and sealed in a New York museum storeroom, 19981969 · LondonA Schiele portrait lent to MoMA was seized in New York as Nazi loot, and the Vienna museum paid the owner's heirs $19 million to keep itEgon Schiele painted Portrait of Wally in 1912. Lea Bondi Jaray, a Jewish art dealer in Vienna, owned it.The New York Times and 3 moreBrocket Hall, where the story took place2025 · Brocket Hall, HertfordshireLord Brocket was jailed for five years for insurance fraud in 1996, and his trustees leased out Brocket HallCharles Nall-Cain became 3rd Baron Brocket in 1967, at 15, while at Eton, and inherited Brocket Hall in Hertfordshire from his grandfather.brocket-hall.co.uk and 5 moreAI illustration: Compton Place, Eastbourne, the house where the 10th Duke of Devonshire died in 19501950 · Compton Place, Eastbourne, SussexThe 10th Duke of Devonshire died in 1950 before his tax plan matured, and his heirs took 17 years to pay 80 percent death dutyEdward Cavendish, 10th Duke of Devonshire, owned Chatsworth, Hardwick Hall, Bolton Abbey, Lismore Castle in Ireland and about 83,000 acres in Derbyshire alone.chatsworth.org and 5 moreOzzy Osbourne: Ozzy Osbourne, Prince of Darkness, at the I Am Ozzy book signing at Changing Hands, Tempe Arizona, Feb 20th, 20102025 · EnglandA year after Ozzy Osbourne died, Sharon Osbourne asked the High Court to remove his accountant of more than 40 years as executorOzzy Osbourne died in July 2025 at 76. Estimates of his estate range from about $100 million to $220 million.accountingtoday.com and 3 moreGeorge Michael: George Michael performing on The Summit stage in Houston (Texas, USA) during the Faith World Tour in 19882016 · Goring-on-Thames, Oxfordshire, EnglandGeorge Michael left his £97 million estate to his sisters and nothing to his partner, who would not leave the Regent's Park houseGeorge Michael died at 53. In March 2017 the coroner ruled he died of natural causes. He was buried on 29 March 2017 at Highgate Cemetery in north London, three months after his death.smoothradio.com and 4 moreRoald Dahl: Uitreiking Gouden Griffel en Penseel in Utrecht. Roald Dahl (l) en Nannie Kuiper 13 oktober 19821990 · Great Missenden, EnglandNetflix bought the Roald Dahl Story Company in September 2021 for a reported 500 million pounds, about $686 millionRoald Dahl died in 1990 aged 74. His family kept control of his catalogue through the Roald Dahl Story Company, run by his grandson Luke Kelly as managing director.finance.yahoo.com and 3 moreJ. R. R. Tolkien: J. R. R. Tolkien, ca. 19251973 · Bournemouth, EnglandThe Tolkien estate sued New Line for $150 million, saying it had received nothing from three films that earned billionsTolkien sold film rights to The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit in 1969, under an agreement with United Artists. That deal gave the Tolkien Trust 7.5 per cent of gross profits.awn.com and 3 moreJoseph Merrick: Joseph Merrick carte de visite photo, c. 18891890 · Whitechapel, London, England, UKJoseph Merrick's manager stole his savings, the London Hospital took him in, and after his death it kept his skeleton while his flesh went to an unmarked graveJoseph Merrick was born in Leicester on 5 August 1862. Growths on his body worsened over time. His family left him in the Leicester Union Workhouse in 1879.londonmuseum.org.uk and 2 moreAI illustration: A bedsit room in Pimlico, London, 19761976 · London (Pimlico)The 7th Duke of Leinster sold his future inheritance to a moneylender and died in a London bedsitLord Edward FitzGerald was the third son of the 5th Duke of Leinster, Ireland's senior peer. He was not expected to inherit.Internet Archive and 5 moreAI illustration: The rotunda of Ickworth House, Suffolk1999 · Little Horringer Hall, Ickworth estate, SuffolkThe 7th Marquess of Bristol spent a fortune of up to £35 million on drugs and died at 44 after selling the Ickworth leaseJohn Hervey was born at Ickworth House in Suffolk in 1954, the only child of the 6th Marquess of Bristol.nationaltrust.org.uk and 5 morePortrait of Isaac Newton (1642-1727)label QS:Lde,"Porträt des Isaac Newton (1642-1727)"label QS:Len,"Portrait of Isaac N: Portrait of Isaac Newton (1642-1727)label QS:Lde,"Porträt 1727 · London, EnglandIsaac Newton died without a will, and his heirs held his alchemy and theology papers for 209 years before selling them for £9,000Isaac Newton died on 31 March 1727, aged 84. He left no will and no instructions for his manuscripts, though he burned some papers in his last weeks. His estate was worth about £30,000, mostly stock and annuities.newtonproject.ox.ac.uk and 2 moreHenry Wellcome: Henry Wellcome 19301936 · LondonHenry Wellcome left his drug company to trustees in 1936, and in 1995 they sold it to its rival GlaxoWellcome, born in a log cabin in Wisconsin, founded Burroughs Wellcome & Company in London in 1880 with Silas Burroughs. Burroughs died in 1895 and Wellcome took sole control.Wikipedia (English) and 2 moreChristabel Russell: Christabel and Geoffrey Russell, 19241973 · England; buried at Chenies, BuckinghamshireChristabel Russell said she was a virgin when her son was conceived, and the House of Lords made him heir to the Ampthill baronyJohn Russell, heir to the 2nd Baron Ampthill, married Christabel Hart on 18 October 1918. The marriage was not fully consummated. In 1921 Christabel found she was about five months pregnant.UK Parliament, Hansard and 3 moreChristopher Marlowe: Unknown 21-year old man, supposed to be Christopher Marlowe title QS:P1476,en:"Unknown 21-year old man, supposed to be C1593 · Deptford, EnglandChristopher Marlowe was stabbed to death in a Deptford house on 30 May 1593 by a man later pardoned in 28 days, and the inquest record was found in 1925Christopher Marlowe, 29, died on 30 May 1593 in a room hired at the house of Dame Eleanor Bull in Deptford. With him were Ingram Frizer, Nicholas Skeres and Robert Poley, all tied to the secret service or to Thomas Walsingham.archive.spectator.co.uk and 3 moreRobert Burns: Robert Burns, 1759 - 1796. Poet title QS:P1476,en:"Robert Burns, 1759 - 1796. Poet "label QS:Len,"Robert Burns, 1759 - 11796 · Dumfries, ScotlandRobert Burns's widow died in 1834, and local men opened his tomb at night to cast his skull for a phrenologistBurns was buried in St. Michael's Churchyard, Dumfries, in 1796. In 1815 his body was moved to a mausoleum in the same churchyard.Project Gutenberg and 3 moreAI illustration: Tyntesfield, the Gothic Revival house near Bristol2001 · Tyntesfield, Wraxall, North Somerset, EnglandLord Wraxall's will gave Tyntesfield to 19 relatives and ordered a fast sale, and the public raised millions to buy itWilliam Gibbs bought Tyntes Place near Bristol in 1843 and renamed it Tyntesfield. His family firm, Antony Gibbs & Sons, held an effective monopoly on importing Peruvian guano into Europe and North America from 1847.BBC News and 4 moreAI illustration: A white stucco townhouse on Cadogan Place, Belgravia, London, 20122012 · Cadogan Place, Belgravia, LondonA Tetra Pak heir kept his wife's body in their London house for two monthsRuben Rausing founded Tetra Pak in Sweden. His sons Gad and Hans ran it together. Hans moved to Britain in 1982 to avoid Swedish tax. In 1995 Hans sold his half to Gad for an estimated $7 billion. Gad died on 28 January 2000.Forbes and 7 moreJeremy Bentham: Jeremy Bentham title QS:P1476,en:"Jeremy Bentham "label QS:Len,"Jeremy Bentham "label QS:Lbn,"জেরেমি বেন্থাম"1832 · Queen's Square Place, Westminster; University College LJeremy Bentham willed his body to be dissected and displayed, and students stole his head in 1975Jeremy Bentham signed his will at Queen's Square Place, Westminster, on 30 May 1832. It gave his body to his friend Dr Southwood Smith.ucl.ac.uk and 3 moreIsaac Singer: Isaac Merrit Singertitle QS:P1476,en:"Isaac Merrit Singer"label QS:Len,"Isaac Merrit Singer"1875 · Oldway, Paignton, Devon, EnglandIsaac Singer left a sewing-machine fortune to children by five women, and a former partner claimed to be his widowIsaac Merritt Singer made his fortune improving the sewing machine and selling it on instalments. He had children by at least five women. He had two with his wife, Catharine Haley, whom he divorced in 1860.torbay.gov.uk and 3 moreVon Dervis Mansion Exhibition 1902 - Third Imperial Egg magnified: The Third Imperial Fabergé Easter Egg displayed among Marie Feodorovna's Fabergé treasures in the Von Dervis Mans1917 · Moscow, Russia; New York, USA; London, UKThe Bolsheviks sold the tsars' Fabergé eggs abroad, and one sold in New York in 1964 as a gold watch turned up with a man who had bought it for scrapAt Easter 1887 Alexander III gave his wife, Maria Feodorovna, a gold egg made in Fabergé's workshop by August Holmström. Inside was a lady's watch by Vacheron Constantin. In the revolution the Bolsheviks confiscated it.vam.ac.uk and 3 moreWilliam Waldorf Astor: William Waldorf Astor1890 · Fifth Avenue, New York City, USA, and Cliveden, EnglandWilliam Waldorf Astor built a hotel beside his aunt's house over who was "Mrs. Astor", and her son built a taller one on hersAfter Charlotte Astor died in 1877, Caroline Astor, wife of William B. Astor Jr., insisted on being called simply "Mrs. Astor".mentalfloss.com and 3 moreHarpur-Crewe baronets: Calke Abbey house1981 · Calke Abbey, Ticknall, Derbyshire, EnglandCharles Harpur-Crewe died in 1981, an £8 million tax bill fell on Calke Abbey, and the house went to the nation with everything in itThe Harpur family held Calke in Derbyshire from the 17th century. Their baronetcy ended with Sir Vauncey Harpur Crewe in 1924. The last generations were reclusive and kept nearly everything they bought.UK Parliament, Hansard and 5 moreVita Sackville-West: Vita as a married woman1908 · Knole, Sevenoaks, KentLord Sackville's son by a married Spanish dancer sued for Knole and the peerage, and the court ruled all her children illegitimateLionel Sackville-West met the Spanish dancer Pepita, born Josefa Durán, in Paris in 1852. She had married Juan Antonio de la Oliva in Madrid in January 1851 and never divorced him. Oliva lived until 1888.Internet Archive and 4 moreThomas Lawrence: Self-portrait of Sir Thomas Lawrence P.R.A. title QS:P1476,en:"Self-portrait of Sir Thomas Lawrence P.R.A. "label QS:Len1830 · LondonThomas Lawrence died in debt in 1830 and the nation refused his Old Master drawings for £18,000, so a dealer who was his main creditor took themThomas Lawrence died suddenly on 7 January 1830, aged 60, and was buried in St Paul's on 21 January. He was insolvent.archive.spectator.co.uk and 3 moreMap of United Kingdom, marked on the globe1942 · Burma (Myanmar), and London, UKBritain blew up Burmah Oil's installations in 1942, the House of Lords ruled the Crown must pay, and Parliament passed a law backdated to cancel the debtIn 1942, during the Japanese invasion of Burma, British forces destroyed the Burmah Oil Company's oil installations in Burma so that the advancing Japanese army could not use them.legislation.gov.uk and 2 moreAI illustration: The harbour of Monaco at dusk, late 1970s1979 · The London Clinic, LondonCharles Clore moved to Monaco to avoid tax, and the Revenue proved after his death that he was still EnglishSir Charles Clore built Sears and the British Shoe Corporation and was worth almost £100 million. In 1976 he retired and moved to Monaco.uniset.ca and 5 moreMutiny on the Bounty: The Mutineers turning Lt Bligh and part of the Officers and Crew adrift from His Majesty's Ship the Bounty, 28 April 1781817 · Bond Street, LondonBounty mutineers' descendants argued in 2004 that burning the ship in 1790 put Pitcairn outside British law, and the Privy Council rejected it in 2006On 28 April 1789 Fletcher Christian took HMAV Bounty and set William Bligh adrift in the ship's launch with 18 loyalists. Bligh sailed 3,618 nautical miles to Timor. The mutineers settled on Pitcairn and burned the ship in 1790.search.sl.nsw.gov.au and 4 morePg 108 - Kidd at Gardiner's Island: Kidd at Gardiner's Island: illustration of pirate captain William Kidd's supervision of the burial of his treasure at Gardiner's Island1701 · Gardiners Island, New York, USA; Wapping, London, EnglandCaptain Kidd buried treasure on Gardiners Island to bargain for a pardon, and the governor who had backed his voyage dug it upWilliam Kidd was a New York sea captain and shipowner.Encyclopaedia Britannica and 2 moreJacques Goudstikker: Jacques Goudstikker (1938)1940 · aboard the SS Bodegraven, English ChannelJacques Goudstikker died fleeing the Nazis, Göring took his paintings, and the Netherlands returned 202 of them in 2006Jacques Goudstikker was a Jewish art dealer in Amsterdam whose firm held more than 1,200 works. On 14 May 1940, as Germany invaded, he fled with his wife Dési and their son on the SS Bodegraven.cdn.ca9.uscourts.gov and 2 moreAI illustration: Carlton House Terrace, London2023 · LondonA 2014 letter said the four Hinduja brothers owned everything jointly, and the eldest brother's daughters fought it through his dementia and deathSrichand Hinduja was the eldest of four brothers leading the Hinduja Group. On 2 July 2014 he and his brothers Gopichand, Prakash and Ashok signed a letter stating that assets held in any one brother's name belonged to all four.The National Archives, Find Case Law and 3 moreDuchy of Lancaster offices 2020: The Duchy of Lancaster offices, at 1 Lancaster Place, Strand, London WC2, viewed from the Victoria Embankment. It flies the Duchy flag. The taller 2023 · County Palatine of Lancaster, EnglandPeople in the old county of Lancashire who die with no will and no kin leave their estates to the King, and the Guardian found the money refurbishing his rental propertyIn England and Wales the estate of someone who dies with no valid will and no heir under the intestacy rules goes to the Crown, usually through the Treasury Solicitor.theconversation.com and 2 moreAI illustration: The conservatory of a London hotel, a recorder hidden in a plant pot2021 · LondonThe Barclay twins' nephews bugged the Ritz conservatory and recorded their uncle's business talksIdentical twins David and Frederick Barclay built a fortune held through family trusts that owned the Ritz Hotel, the Telegraph newspapers and the Very Group.thecaterer.com and 3 moreAI illustration: Longleat House, Wiltshire2020 · Longleat, Wiltshire; Bristol Business and Property CourtsThe Marquess of Bath's trustees asked the High Court in 2026 to let his surrogate-born son into the Longleat trustsHenry Thynne, 6th Marquess of Bath, inherited Longleat in 1946 with about £700,000 in death duties. In 1949 he opened it as the first stately home in Britain run as a commercial attraction.The National Archives, Find Case Law and 3 moreBank of England Building, London, UK - Diliff: The Bank of England building viewed Lombard Street.2020 · Caracas, Venezuela; London, EnglandVenezuela's 31 tonnes of gold have sat in the Bank of England through two rival governments, a captured president and an earthquakeThe Central Bank of Venezuela holds about 31 tonnes of gold in the Bank of England's vaults.supremecourt.uk and 4 moreAI illustration: The Royal Courts of Justice on the Strand, London2019 · High Court, Family Division, LondonA London judge ordered Dubai's ruler to provide £554 million to the ex-wife whose phone he had hackedPrincess Haya bint al-Hussein, half-sister of King Abdullah II of Jordan, married Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, ruler of Dubai, in 2004. In April 2019 she fled to London with their two children.Al Jazeera and 1 moreGerald Grosvenor: The 6th Duke of Westminster2016 · Royal Preston Hospital, LancashireThe 6th Duke of Westminster's £9 billion estate passed in trust to his 25-year-old son over three daughtersThe Grosvenors got their London land when Sir Thomas Grosvenor married Mary Davies, a scrivener's daughter, in 1677. It became Mayfair and Belgravia.The Guardian and 7 moreAI illustration: A Mayfair office building at night, London, 20142014 · LondonHedge fund manager Chris Hohn was ordered to pay his ex-wife about $530 million, and the judge called him a financial geniusChris Hohn founded The Children's Investment Fund and, with his wife Jamie Cooper, the Children's Investment Fund Foundation, one of Britain's largest charities.Courts and Tribunals Judiciary and 2 moreMap of United Kingdom, marked on the globe2014 · London, EnglandA Qatari collector died in 2014 owing auction houses millions; his heirs split over his blue diamond, and a cousin's company sued to buy itSheikh Saud bin Mohammed Ali Al-Thani was Qatar's culture minister from 1997 to 2005 and a major collector. In 2012 the auctioneers Baldwin's sued him in London over unpaid coins, and their barrister called him a serial defaulter.The National Archives, Find Case Law and 2 moreAI illustration: A row of London townhouses held by companies, 20132013 · LondonAn oil trader hid London houses inside his companies, and the UK Supreme Court ordered them handed to his ex-wifeMichael Prest owned and controlled the Petrodel Group of companies. Two of the companies held legal title to seven residential properties in the UK, including the family home.The National Archives, Find Case Law and 2 moreAI illustration: A baronet's family tree and a DNA test kit on a library table, 20132013 · United KingdomA DNA test showed a baronet's grandfather was not his father's son, and the Privy Council gave the title to a cousinSir Norman Hamilton Pringle was born on 13 May 1903, seven months after his parents married on 16 October 1902.bailii.org and 3 moreMap of United Kingdom, marked on the globe2013 · Ascot, Berkshire, UKBoris Berezovsky lost his case against Abramovich, died seven months later, and a judge called his estate hopelessly insolventBoris Berezovsky lived in exile in Britain from 2000. He sued Roman Abramovich for more than $5 billion over Sibneft and Rusal shares.The National Archives, Find Case Law and 6 moreMap of United Kingdom, marked on the globe2011 · London, England, UKA dying woman told her mother "I want you to carry my babies," and the Court of Appeal overruled the regulator that refused to release her frozen eggsA young woman, called A in the judgment, was diagnosed with cancer at 21. In 2008, during a remission, she had eggs removed and frozen.The National Archives, Find Case Law and 2 moreAI illustration: A signed prenuptial agreement on a table in the UK Supreme Court, 20102010 · LondonA German paper heiress's prenup held in London, and her French ex-husband's £5.85 million award was cut to £1 millionKatrin Radmacher, heir to a German paper-industry fortune reported at about £100 million, married Nicolas Granatino, a French banker, in London in 1998.lawgazette.co.uk and 2 moreCrosby Garrett Helmet (BM): Crosby Garrett Helmet on display in the British Museum2010 · Crosby Garrett, Cumbria, EnglandA metal detectorist found a Roman cavalry helmet in a Cumbrian field, a private buyer paid £2.3 million after the local museum dropped out at £1.7 million, and Parliament changed the lawIn May 2010 a metal detectorist in his twenties found a Roman cavalry parade helmet with a face mask near Crosby Garrett, Cumbria. It was in about 67 fragments. The British Museum called it an outstandingly important find.assets.publishing.service.gov.uk and 3 moreChain (Staffordshire Hoard): A chain from the Staffordshire Hoard.2009 · near Brownhills, Staffordshire, EnglandThe Staffordshire Hoard paid a jobless detectorist and a farmer £3.285 million between them, and the farmer banned him from his landIn 2009 Terry Herbert, an unemployed metal detectorist, searched farmer Fred Johnson's field near Brownhills, Staffordshire, with an 18-year-old detector. He filled 244 bags, including more than 11 pounds of gold objects.historynewsnetwork.org and 2 moreDrumlanrig Castle, where the story took place2007 · Drumlanrig Castle, Dumfriesshire, ScotlandTwo men took a Leonardo off the wall at Drumlanrig Castle, and the lawyers who arranged its return were tried for extortionThe Dukes of Buccleuch own Drumlanrig Castle in Dumfriesshire, one of their family seats, and the Madonna of the Yarnwinder, attributed to Leonardo da Vinci.The Art Newspaper and 8 moreSt Nicholas' church, Great Munden - geograph.org.uk - 3771574: St Nicholas' church, Great Munden2004 · Great Munden, Hertfordshire, England, UK (the daughter'Melita Jackson left £486,000 to animal charities and nothing to the daughter who left home at 17, and the courts argued over the daughter's share for ten yearsIn 1978, aged 17, Heather Jackson left home without her mother's knowledge to live with her boyfriend, Nicholas Ilott, whom she later married.supremecourt.uk and 3 moreAI illustration: Yellow backhoe loaders lined up outside a Staffordshire factory2001 · LondonThe JCB founder's sons litigated in three countries over the company, then a cousin's £30 million fee claim failedJoseph Cyril Bamford founded JCB in 1945 and made his son Anthony chairman in 1975. He died on 1 March 2001. A dispute over his will followed and was settled in 2004; the court record does not name the parties.The National Archives, Find Case Law and 3 moreAI illustration: Alnwick Castle above the River Aln, Northumberland1995 · London; Alnwick Castle, NorthumberlandThe Duke of Northumberland agreed to sell a Raphael to the Getty for £35 million, and the government blocked itHenry Percy, 11th Duke of Northumberland, died in London on 31 October 1995, aged 42 and unmarried, of heart failure after an amphetamine overdose.Internet Archive and 5 moreAI illustration: A blank official certificate form with ruled boxes, one box left empty, on a registry office counter, England, 1990s, all lines blank with no writing1995 · Nottinghamshire, EnglandA British widow had her dead husband's sons abroad, then fought until Parliament let his name go on their birth certificatesStephen Blood fell into a coma with bacterial meningitis in early 1995. At his wife Diane's request, doctors took sperm from him before he died. The couple had been trying for a child.legislation.gov.uk and 3 moreCawdor Castle, where the story took place1993 · LondonThe 6th Earl Cawdor left Cawdor Castle to his second wife, and a court put his son's children out of itHugh Campbell, 6th Earl Cawdor and 24th Thane of Cawdor, died in London on 20 June 1993, aged 60. In 1979 he had divorced his first wife, Cathryn, after 22 years and married Countess Angelika Lazansky von Bukowa, born in Bohemia.The Independent and 5 moreAI illustration: The fort palace of Mahmudabad, Uttar Pradesh, 1970s1973 · LondonIndia's 2005 Supreme Court ruling gave the Raja of Mahmudabad's son back his palaces, and Parliament rewrote the law to take them againThe Raja of Mahmudabad held one of the largest estates in Oudh, with the Qila at Mahmudabad, Butler Palace in Lucknow and the Metropole Hotel in Nainital.LiveLaw and 5 moreSaid bin Taimur in the United Kingdom - 1939: A picture of the 13th Sultan of Muscat and Oman, and the poet Hilal bin Badr (right) and Abd al-Mun'im al-Zawawi (left) before him1972 · Salalah, Oman; London, EnglandOman's sultan was counting his money when his son demanded his abdication in 1970; he fired a pistol, signed, and flew to London that nightSaid bin Taimur ruled Oman from 1932. He kept the country poor under an austerity programme and barred emigrants from coming home.meforum.org and 3 moreUsman Ali Khan: His Exalted Highness, the Nizam of Hyderabad, Osman Ali Khan, is pictured in an official photo wearing his coronation robes.1967 · Hyderabad, India; NatWest (formerly Westminster Bank), LondoThree days after Hyderabad surrendered in 1948, its minister moved £1 million to Pakistan's envoy; a London court gave it back to the Nizam's heirs 71 years laterIndian troops entered Hyderabad on 13 September 1948. Its forces surrendered on 17 September.The National Archives, Find Case Law and 5 moreWilliam Vestey, 1st Baron Vestey: Baron Vestey LCCN20147182891940 · Gerrards Cross, BuckinghamshireThe Vestey meat brothers left Britain over income tax, set up a Paris trust and bought a peerageWilliam and Edmund Vestey of Liverpool built a chain from Argentine ranches through Blue Star refrigerated ships to 2,365 British butcher shops. Wartime income tax rose, and Lloyd George refused them an exemption.The Gazette and 7 moreGlamis Castle 01: Glamis Castle in Scotland, as seen from Angles Park.1821 · Glamis Castle, Angus, ScotlandThe peerage records Lord Glamis's first son as born and dead on 21 October 1821; a legend says he lived, hidden in the castle, and each heir was told the secretThe Monster of Glamis is a legend.mikedashhistory.com and 2 moreMildenhall Great Dish, Late Roman period, silver - British Museum - DSC01383: Mildenhall Great Dish, Late Roman period, silver - British Museum - DSC01383.1942 · West Row, near Mildenhall, Suffolk, EnglandA ploughman and his employer kept the Mildenhall Treasure at home for four years, used the dishes, and got a reduced rewardIn January 1942, during the war, the ploughman Gordon Butcher turned up a metal dish at West Row near Mildenhall.mildenhallmuseum.co.uk and 2 moreWalter Raleigh: Walter Ralegh title QS:P1476,en:"Walter Ralegh "label QS:Len,"Walter Ralegh "1618 · Old Palace Yard, WestminsterJames I gave Walter Raleigh's Sherborne estate to his favourite over a missing phrase in a trust deed, and Raleigh's widow kept his embalmed head for 29 yearsElizabeth I gave Walter Raleigh the lease of Sherborne in Dorset in 1592 and the freehold in 1599. Raleigh put the estate in trust so it would pass to his eldest son, Wat.Smithsonian Magazine and 5 moreHorace Walpole: Portrait of Horace Walpole (1717-1797)1797 · London, EnglandHorace Walpole's Strawberry Hill collection was sold off over 24 days in 1842 after heirs spent the family fortuneWalpole died in 1797 and Strawberry Hill passed first to his cousin Anne Seymour Damer, then to John Waldegrave, a grandson of Maria Walpole.The Guardian and 1 moreMap of United Kingdom, marked on the globe1947 · Brighton, England, UK (the solicitor's practice)A colonel took the trousers off the solicitor who wrote himself into a client's will, went to prison, then beat him in the House of Lords without a lawyerKitty Wells died in 1947 with an estate of £115,000. Her will was drawn up by her solicitor, Frederick Nye, of Brighton, and named Nye as residuary beneficiary. The residue came to £44,000.alrc.gov.au and 2 moreMap of United Kingdom, marked on the globe1941 · Bangkok, Thailand; Compton House, Wentworth, Surrey, EnglandThailand's finance ministry sued its abdicated king for 6.27 million baht in 1939 and won an order freezing everything he ownedPrajadhipok abdicated in England on 2 March 1935. On 17 July 1939 the Ministry of Finance sued him and Queen Rambai Barni in the Civil Court in Bangkok.th.wikisource.org and 4 moreAntónio de Oliveira Salazar: António de Oliveira Salazar portrait (by Manuel Alves San Payo) – Lisboa1932 · Fulwell Park, Twickenham, EnglandPortugal's last king left his collections to the nation, and Salazar's government put the whole Bragança estate into a state foundation over the claimant's protestManuel II became King of Portugal at 18, after his father and elder brother were shot in Lisbon on 1 February 1908. The republic deposed him in 1910, and he lived in exile at Fulwell Park in Twickenham.files.diariodarepublica.pt and 4 moreDouglas Haig, 1st Earl Haig: Sir Douglas Haig1928 · LondonEarl Haig was given £100,000 by Parliament and an estate by public subscription, and his earldom has no heir in 2026Field Marshal Douglas Haig commanded the British armies in France from 1915 to 1918. He turned down a viscountcy in November 1918, partly to press for state aid to demobilised soldiers. He was created Earl Haig on 18 October 1919.The Gazette and 3 moreDame Fanny Lucy Houston (née Radmall) when Lady Byron: Dame Fanny Lucy Houston (née Radmall) photogravure, published 19091926 · aboard the yacht Liberty, off JerseyA shipowner's widow reportedly tore up a will leaving her £1 million, inherited about £5.5 million, and died without a will of her ownFanny Lucy Radmall married Sir Robert Houston, a director of the Houston shipping lines, on 12 December 1924. Wikipedia reports that when he showed her his will, she tore it up, saying £1 million was not enough.Time and 2 moreMaria Pavlovna of Russia in tiara: Maria Pavlovna of Russia1920 · Petrograd (Saint Petersburg), Russia; Moscow, Russia; LondonThe Soviet state sold the Romanov jewels by the kilogram in 1926, while a British antiquarian helped a grand duchess get her jewels out and her daughter sold the tiara to Queen MaryIn 1874 Grand Duke Vladimir Alexandrovich, brother of the future Alexander III, gave his bride a tiara made by the court jeweller Carl Edvard Bolin. It became known as the Vladimir Tiara.Internet Archive and 2 morePrince Francis of Teck: Francis of Teck1910 · London and Windsor, EnglandA prince left the family emeralds to his mistress in 1910, and every senior British royal will has been sealed sincePrince Francis of Teck, brother of Queen Mary, died in 1910. His will named his mistress, the Countess of Kilmorey, as sole heir and left her the Cambridge emeralds, family jewels.Courts and Tribunals Judiciary and 4 moreSamuel Liddell MacGregor Mathers in Egyptian getup: Samuel Liddell MacGregor Mathers, in Egyptian getup, performs a ritual in the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn. Picture from be1900 · 36 Blythe Road, Hammersmith, London, EnglandThe Golden Dawn expelled its founder in 1900, his envoy Aleister Crowley tried to seize the London vault in a mask, and Yeats and the landlord threw him outWilliam Westcott, William Woodman and Samuel MacGregor Mathers founded the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn in 1888. Mathers wrote the rituals of its inner order and became its chief. He lived in Paris.holythornpress.com and 2 moreBorley Rectory after the fire: Borley Rectory1892 · Borley, Essex, EnglandBorley Rectory passed from father to son for 64 years, drew ghost hunters for a decade, and burned in 1939 with the insurers suspecting arsonKind 1 and kind 2. Rev. Henry Dawson Ellis Bull built Borley Rectory in 1863, a 23-room house on nearly four acres. His four daughters said they saw a nun in daylight on 28 July 1900.psi-encyclopedia.spr.ac.uk and 2 moreRobert Hooke: Portrait of a Mathematician 1680c1703 · London, EnglandRobert Hooke said he would endow the Royal Society, died without a will, and cousins he barely knew took the moneyRobert Hooke was curator of experiments at the Royal Society and a professor at Gresham College. After the Great Fire of 1666 he became one of three official surveyors for rebuilding London, the best-paid work of his life.mathshistory.st-andrews.ac.uk and 2 moreFrederick Berkeley, 5th Earl of Berkeley: A-noble-commander-from-South-Gloucester-taken-on-the-Steyne-at-Brighton1810 · EnglandThe Earl of Berkeley's eldest son was ruled illegitimate in 1811 after the church register entry for a secret 1785 marriage proved forgedFrederick Augustus, 5th Earl of Berkeley, lived with Mary Cole, daughter of a publican and butcher. They had seven sons and five daughters.Internet Archive and 3 moreWilliam Penn1718 · Ruscombe, BerkshireWilliam Penn went to debtors' prison while he owned Pennsylvania, and his heirs later traded 24 million acres for £130,000 and a £4,000 British annuityWilliam Penn received Pennsylvania from Charles II in 1681. His London steward, Philip Ford, claimed Penn owed him £10,000. Ford died in 1702. On 31 October 1705 his widow Bridget and his heirs sued Penn in Chancery.bedsarchivescat.bedford.gov.uk and 11 moreTichborne case: TichborneTryptich1898 · LondonA Wapping butcher's son claimed the Tichborne baronetcy, and a 188-day perjury trial sent him to prison for 14 yearsRoger Tichborne, born in Paris on 5 January 1829, was heir to a Hampshire baronetcy whose estates, including the 2,290-acre Tichborne Park, paid over £20,000 a year.UK Parliament, Hansard and 4 moreEdward IV: Edward IV Plantagenet1483 · Tower of London, EnglandParliament declared Edward IV's sons illegitimate, they vanished in the Tower, and two child skeletons found in 1674 have never been DNA-testedEdward IV died on 9 April 1483. His son Edward V was 12 and his younger son Richard, duke of York, was 9. Their uncle Richard, duke of Gloucester, lodged them in the Tower ahead of the coronation. The coronation was postponed.westminster-abbey.org and 3 moreWuthering: Title page of original edition of Wuthering Heights (1847)Fiction · 1847 · West Yorkshire moors, England (setting)In Wuthering Heights, Heathcliff takes both families' estates through a mortgage, a marriage and a dying boy's will, and a lawyer showed in 1926 the law holds upWuthering Heights is a novel by Emily Brontë, published on 24 November 1847 under the name Ellis Bell. In 1926 the barrister C. P. Sanger worked out its legal plot.legislation.gov.uk and 3 moreAI illustration: Alton Towers, Staffordshire, in the 1850s1856 · Alton Towers, StaffordshireThe 17th Earl of Shrewsbury left his estates to the Duke of Norfolk's baby son; a distant cousin won the earldom and Alton TowersBertram Talbot, 17th Earl of Shrewsbury, was a Catholic. He died unmarried on 10 August 1856, aged 23. He believed the earldom died with him.UK Parliament, Hansard and 6 moreCharles Dickens: Dickens Gurney head1870 · Gad's Hill Place, KentDickens left £1,000 to the actress he hid for 12 years, and burned 20 years of letters in his gardenCharles and Catherine Dickens separated in May 1858 after 22 years of marriage. A story of the time says Catherine opened a jeweller's packet holding a gold bracelet meant for Ellen Ternan, an actress then 18.gresham.ac.uk and 3 moreAgatha Christie: Agatha Christie in Nederland (detectiveschrijfster), bij aankomst op Schiphol me, Bestanddeelnr 916-8898 (cropped)1861 · Great Western Hotel, Paddington, LondonThe 2nd Duke of Buckingham owed £1.46 million, fled his creditors, and Christie's sold the contents of Stowe in 1848Richard Temple-Nugent-Brydges-Chandos-Grenville, 2nd Duke of Buckingham and Chandos, inherited Stowe in Buckinghamshire with debts already on it. By 1845 he owed £1,464,959.Google Books and 5 moreRosetta Stone, British Museum: Rosetta Stone, British Museum204 BCE · Rashid (Rosetta), Egypt, and London, EnglandFrench soldiers found the Rosetta Stone in 1799, General Menou claimed it as his own, and Britain took it under the 1801 surrenderThe stone carries a decree issued at Memphis on 27 March 196 BC by priests honouring the boy king Ptolemy V, written in hieroglyphs, Demotic and Greek.Project Gutenberg and 3 moreCaroline Norton: Caroline Norton (1808-77) society beauty and author by GH, Chatsworth Coll.1877 · London, England, UKCaroline Norton's husband claimed her book earnings and her inheritance from her mother, and her campaign changed English property lawCaroline Sheridan married George Norton, a barrister and MP, in 1827. She earned more from writing in a month than he earned at the bar in a year. In 1836 she left him.thegenealogist.com and 2 moreApsley House, where the story took place1852 · Walmer Castle, KentParliament bought Wellington an estate, and the 7th Duke gave Apsley House to the nation in 1947 while keeping a family flatOn 23 June 1815, five days after Waterloo, the Commons agreed without dissent to a further grant of up to £200,000 for the Duke of Wellington's house, on top of sums already voted.The Gazette and 5 moreEdward Gibbon: Edward Gibbon title QS:P1476,en:"Edward Gibbon "label QS:Len,"Edward Gibbon "label QS:Lbn,"এডওয়ার্ড গিবন"1736 · Putney, London, EnglandParliament confiscated South Sea director Edward Gibbon's £106,543 in 1721 and left him £10,000; he rebuilt the fortune and willed it past his sonEdward Gibbon had a fortune of £60,000 when he became a director of the South Sea Company. In early August 1720 the company's stock reached about 1,000 percent of par. It fell to 700 by 2 September and later to 135.Project Gutenberg and 3 moreOliver Cromwell's head, late 1700s: A sepia drawing of the head of Oliver Cromwell, from a copy of Pennant's London1658 · Westminster Hall, London, England; Sidney Sussex College, CaEngland dug up Oliver Cromwell, hanged his corpse and put his head on a pole, and collectors sold the head for 300 years until a college buried it in secret in 1960Oliver Cromwell died on 3 September 1658 and was buried in Westminster Abbey. Charles II returned in 1660.olivercromwell.org and 2 moreBegum Samru: Begum Sambre (vers 1750 - 1836), souveraine de la principauté indienne de Sardhana1851 · Sardhana, Uttar Pradesh, India; LondonBegum Samru's heir was declared insane on his wife's petition, and after his death she contested his will leaving £200,000 to an Indian collegeDavid Ochterlony Dyce Sombre was born in Sardhana in 1808. Begum Samru, ruler of Sardhana, raised him and declared him her heir. When she died in 1836, the East India Company took Sardhana, but he kept her large personal fortune.UK Parliament, Hansard and 3 moreHarrison H4 chronometer: Harrison's chronometer on display at National Maritime Museum in Greenwich1776 · Red Lion Square, London, EnglandJohn Harrison solved longitude at sea, the Board of Longitude withheld the £20,000 prize, and his son took the case to the kingIn 1714 Britain offered £20,000 for a way to find longitude at sea within 30 nautical miles. John Harrison, a self-taught clockmaker, built four timekeepers.Royal Museums Greenwich and 2 moreGeorge Hudson: George Hudson (4)1827 · York, EnglandGeorge Hudson inherited £30,000 from a great-uncle in "suspicious circumstances," became the Railway King, and died with less than £200George Hudson, a farmer's fifth son from Howsham, was a draper in York. In 1827 he received £30,000 from his great-uncle Matthew Bottrill.british-history.ac.uk and 2 moreGlamis Castle - geograph.org.uk - 637303: Glamis Castle1537 · Castle Hill, Edinburgh; Glamis Castle, Angus, ScotlandJames V burned Lady Glamis in 1537, took Glamis Castle and its silver, and the legend says she still kneels in the chapelKind 1 and kind 2. Janet Douglas was the widow of John Lyon, 6th Lord Glamis, who died in 1528, and the sister of the Earl of Angus, whom James V had driven out of Scotland. In 1532 she was indicted for poisoning her late husband.Internet Archive and 4 moreWilliam Beckford: William Beckford1770 · Fonthill, Wiltshire, EnglandWilliam Beckford inherited a Jamaican sugar fortune at 10, built Fonthill Abbey, and sold it before its tower fellWilliam Thomas Beckford's family fortune came from three generations of sugar planters in Jamaica. His father, William Beckford, bought Fonthill in Wiltshire in 1744 or 1745 for £32,000.lbs.ucl.ac.uk and 3 moreThe Throne of Kandyan Kings: The Throne of Kandyan Era Sri Lankan Kings.1832 · Kandy, Sri Lanka; Vellore Fort, Tamil Nadu, India; Windsor CThe British deposed the last king of Kandy, barred his family from the throne forever, and kept his throne at Windsor until 1934Kannasamy, a prince of the Nayak line, was crowned king of Kandy in 1798 as Sri Vikrama Rajasinha. The chief minister Pilimatalawe chose him over the rival claimant Muthuswamy.sundaytimes.lk and 4 moreJohn Bentinck, 5th Duke of Portland: 5th Duke of Portland bust1879 · LondonA widow said the Duke of Portland had faked his own death as a London shopkeeper, and the coffin was opened to settle itWilliam John Cavendish-Bentinck-Scott, 5th Duke of Portland, never married. He built tunnels and underground rooms beneath Welbeck Abbey and was succeeded by a cousin as 6th Duke.University of Nottingham and 2 moreMessiah Stradivarius ashmolean: Photo of the Messiah - Salabue Stradivarius violin1854 · Cremona, Italy; Fontaneto, Piedmont, Italy; Paris, France; OA violin dealer was found dead on a farm with 144 Italian instruments, and his heirs sold the unplayed "Messiah" StradivariAntonio Stradivari made a violin in Cremona in 1716 and kept it in his workshop until he died in 1737. Count Cozio di Salabue bought it, probably from one of his sons.ashmolean.org and 2 moreRahere's Tomb - Walks in London, Augustus Hare, 1878: Illustration from Walks in London, Augustus Hare, 1878.1143 · West Smithfield, London, England, UKRahere founded St Bartholomew's Hospital after a vow in Rome, Henry VIII seized its income in 1539, and the City of London saved it weeks before the king diedRahere was a courtier of Henry I. On a pilgrimage to Rome he fell ill, probably with malaria, and vowed that if he lived he would build a hospital for the poor.nationalarchives.gov.uk and 2 moreJohn Byng: Portrait of Admiral John Byng (1704-1757)1757 · HMS Monarch, SolentAdmiral John Byng was shot under the Articles of War, his family kept his estate, and no pardon has been grantedAfter Minorca was lost in 1756, Admiral John Byng was court-martialed aboard HMS St George at Portsmouth from 28 December 1756. On 27 January 1757 the court acquitted him of cowardice.Royal Museums Greenwich and 3 moreArthur Wellesley: The Duke of Wellington is standing at half-length, wearing Field Marshal’s uniform, with the Garter star and sash, the badge of the Golden Fleece, and a special b1852 · Walmer Castle, KentBelgium bought out the Duke of Wellington's "perpetual" Waterloo rent in 1988 and kept a right to take back the landWilliam I of the Netherlands made Arthur Wellesley, Duke of Wellington, Prince of Waterloo by royal decree of 8 July 1815.Boletín Oficial del Estado and 3 moreWilliam Shakespeare: Portrait of William Shakespeare (1564-1646) title QS:P1476,en:"Portrait of William Shakespeare (1564-1646) "label QS:Len1616 · Stratford-upon-AvonShakespeare left his wife his "second best bed" and struck his new son-in-law out of the willIn January 1616 William Shakespeare called the lawyer Francis Collins and had a draft will made. He did not sign it. In February his younger daughter Judith married Thomas Quiney.nationalarchives.gov.uk and 3 moreProbably Dorothy, Viscountess Townshend title QS:P1476,en:"Probably Dorothy, Viscountess Townshend "label QS:Len,"Probab: Probably Dorothy, Viscountess Townshend title QS:P1476,en:1726 · Raynham Hall, Norfolk, EnglandDorothy Walpole married the man her father forbade, died of smallpox at Raynham in 1726, and became the Brown Lady photographed on its stairs in 1936Kind 2, with the record. Dorothy Walpole, sister of Robert Walpole, Britain's first prime minister, grew up at Mannington and Wolterton near Aylsham.derehamtimes.co.uk and 2 moreRecueil."Noblesse oblige" film de Robert Hamer: Sujet : Kind hearts and coronets (film) Contient : coupures de presse Langue : françaisFiction · 1949 · Chalfont, England (fictional dukedom)In Kind Hearts and Coronets, a disowned daughter's son sets out to kill the eight relatives ahead of him in line and becomes a dukeKind Hearts and Coronets is a 1949 British film from Ealing Studios, directed by Robert Hamer and loosely based on Roy Horniman's 1907 novel Israel Rank.Project Gutenberg and 2 moreAI illustration: Hinton House, the Poulett seat at Hinton St George, Somerset, 1890s1899 · Hinton St George, Somerset (family seat)The House of Lords gave the Poulett earldom to the 6th Earl's 15-year-old son over the elder son the Earl disownedWilliam Henry Poulett, 6th Earl Poulett, inherited Hinton House and about 11,000 acres in Somerset in 1864. In 1849 he married Elizabeth Lavinia Newman, who was already pregnant, and left her that August.UK Parliament, Hansard and 6 moreDunrobin Castle, where the story took place1892 · Dunrobin Castle, SutherlandThe 3rd Duke of Sutherland left his fortune to his second wife, and she went to Holloway prison for contemptGeorge Sutherland-Leveson-Gower, 3rd Duke of Sutherland, owned Dunrobin, Trentham and Stafford House. His first wife Anne died on 25 November 1888.UK Parliament, Hansard and 4 moreJuan Manuel de Rosas: Juan Manuel de Rosas by Norris1877 · Southampton, EnglandArgentina confiscated Rosas's property and sentenced him to death; he died a tenant farmer in England and was reburied in 1989Juan Manuel de Rosas governed Buenos Aires and led the Argentine Confederation until Justo José de Urquiza defeated him at Caseros on 3 February 1852. He sheltered in the British legation and sailed to England.infobae.com and 3 moreCity of Glasgow Bank cheque1877: A cleared cheque from 1877, the year before the collapse of the City of Glasgow Bank1873 · Glasgow and Edinburgh, ScotlandTrustees holding a dead man's bank shares for his daughters were made personally liable when the City of Glasgow Bank failedJohn Murdoch died in 1873 holding £6,000 of City of Glasgow Bank stock.vlex.co.uk and 4 moreMoot Hall, Keswick - geograph.org.uk - 609044: Moot Hall, Keswick1865 · Keswick, Cumberland (Cumbria), England, UKJohn Banks believed devils and a dead man were pursuing him, left his cottages to his niece, and the court upheld the willJohn Banks was confined in a county lunatic asylum in 1841. After his discharge he kept fixed delusions.The Gazette and 2 moreMap of United Kingdom, marked on the globe1853 · off Beachy Head, East Sussex, EnglandOne wave took a Manchester family off the wreck of the Dalhousie, and their estates went to strangers because no one could say who died firstJohn Underwood, 45, had worked for years for Brittle and Co. of Wood Street, Manchester. He planned to set up a business in Sydney.The National Archives, Find Case Law and 2 moreOlivia Serres: Engraving of Olivia Serres1834 · LondonA house painter's daughter claimed to be a royal princess, and a jury ruled her proofs forged in 1866 without hearing the Crown's full replyOlivia Wilmot was born in Warwick on 3 April 1772, the daughter of a house painter. She married the marine painter John Thomas Serres in 1791 and separated from him in 1804.Wikisource (primary text) and 2 moreLady Jane Douglas: Crop of Portrait-Of-Lady-Jane-Douglas,-Full-Length,-As-A-Shepherdess-Seated-In-A-Landscape1827 · ScotlandLady Jane Douglas said she gave birth to twins in Paris at 50, and the Duke of Hamilton sued to prove her son was a stolen childArchibald, 1st Duke of Douglas, had no children. His sister Lady Jane Douglas, born in March 1698, married Colonel John Stewart in secret on 4 August 1746.Wikisource (primary text) and 3 moreStatue of the Duke of Sutherland, Ben Braggie, Golspie (2994889656): Statue of the Duke of Sutherland, Ben Braggie, Golspie1814 · Strathnaver, Sutherland, ScotlandPatrick Sellar burned houses in Strathnaver for the Sutherland estate, a jury acquitted him of culpable homicide in 1816, and the duke's statue still stands over GolspieIn 1766 the 18th Earl of Sutherland died leaving only an infant daughter, Elizabeth. Two other claimants challenged her, and the House of Lords found for the baby.her.highland.gov.uk and 4 moreJohn Knill: John Knill1811 · Gray's Inn, London; St Ives, Cornwall, EnglandJohn Knill's will pays ten girls to dance round his empty tomb in St Ives every five years, and they danced again in July 2026John Knill was Collector of Customs at St Ives from 1762 to 1782 and mayor in 1767. Wikipedia records that he searched near the Lizard for the pirate Henry Avery's treasure from 1779 to 1782.stivestowncouncil-cornwall.gov.uk and 2 moreCoronation Chair and Stone of Scone: The Stone of Scone in the Coronation Chair at Westminster Abbey. No attribution was published in the source or any other book known to contain 1296 · Scone, Perthshire, Scotland; Westminster Abbey, London, EnglEdward I took Scotland's coronation stone in 1296; four students took it back on Christmas Day 1950 and broke it in twoScottish kings were inaugurated on the Stone of Destiny at Scone. In 1296 Edward I of England invaded Scotland and took the stone to Westminster Abbey as spoils of war.perthmuseum.co.uk and 4 moreEdith Pretty: Edith Pretty624 · Sutton Hoo, Suffolk, EnglandA 1939 inquest ruled the Sutton Hoo ship burial was Edith Pretty's property, and she gave it to the nationAbout 625, someone was buried in a ship under a mound at Sutton Hoo with weapons, gold and silver. A purse in the grave held 37 gold coins dated to about 625.nationaltrust.org.uk and 3 moreEdward Colston: Portrait of Edward Colston (1636-1721)label QS:Len,"Portrait of Edward Colston (1636-1721)"1721 · Mortlake, Surrey; Bristol, EnglandEdward Colston's charities carried his name for 300 years, until protesters threw his statue in Bristol harbourEdward Colston (1636-1721) was a Bristol merchant and Tory MP. He was a member of the Royal African Company from 1680 to 1692 and its deputy governor in 1689 and 1690.Courts and Tribunals Judiciary and 3 moreRichard III of England: Richard III portrait1485 · Bosworth Field, Leicestershire, EnglandRichard III's bones were found under a car park, and his distant relatives sued the government over where to bury himRichard III was killed at Bosworth in 1485, the last English king to die in battle, and buried in the Greyfriars church in Leicester. The church was demolished after the Reformation.le.ac.uk and 1 moreRemains of Wigmore Abbey - geograph.org.uk - 700446: Remains of Wigmore Abbey1330 · Tyburn, London; Wigmore, Herefordshire, EnglandEdward III hanged Roger Mortimer without a trial and took his lands, and Mortimer's grandson won them back in 1354Roger Mortimer and Queen Isabella removed Edward II and ruled for the boy king Edward III. In October 1330 Edward's men seized Mortimer at Nottingham Castle.Wikisource (primary text) and 2 moreCock Lane ghost: Cock Lane as seen in MEMOIRS OF EXTRAORDINARY POPULAR DELUSIONS AND THE Madness of Crowds, 18521760 · Cock Lane, Smithfield, London, EnglandKent inherited his dead lover's money, and her "ghost" accused him of poisoning her; a London jury convicted the ghost's handlers in 1762Kind 1. William Kent, a Norfolk innkeeper and moneylender, married Elizabeth Lynes, who died in childbirth. Canon law barred him from marrying her sister Fanny because Elizabeth had borne him a living child.Project Gutenberg and 2 moreHavishamFraser: Miss Havisham and Pip, in an illustration for the Household Edition of Dickens's Great Expectations.Fiction · 1860 · Kent and London, England (setting)In Great Expectations, Pip's secret fortune comes from a transported convict, and the Crown takes it when the convict is condemnedGreat Expectations is a novel by Charles Dickens, serialised in All the Year Round from December 1860 to August 1861. Two inheritances drive it.legislation.gov.uk and 2 moreThomas Gresham: Anthonis Mor 004 (cropped)1579 · Bishopsgate, City of London, EnglandThomas Gresham left London a free college, and Parliament sold the building for a tax office in 1768Sir Thomas Gresham built the Royal Exchange in London at his own cost; it opened in 1567. His only legitimate son, Richard, died in 1564, and his natural daughter Anne also died before him.gresham.ac.uk and 2 moreBoudica statue, Westminster (8433726848): Boudica statue, Westminster60 · Territory of the Iceni (Norfolk), EnglandKing Prasutagus left half his kingdom to Nero to protect his daughters, and Tacitus says Roman officers flogged his widow Boudica and raped his daughtersPrasutagus, king of the Iceni in eastern Britain, ruled as an ally of Rome. Tacitus says he named the emperor Nero co-heir with his two daughters, expecting that this would keep his kingdom and household safe.Wikisource (primary text) and 2 moreAI illustration: An unsigned will found in William Jennens's coat pocket at Acton Place, Suffolk, 17981798 · Acton Place, SuffolkWilliam Jennens died with an unsigned will in his pocket, and claimants fought over his fortune until 1915William Jennens lived alone in the basement of Acton Place near Long Melford. The Bury and Norwich Post called him "the richest commoner in England" and said his property exceeded £2 million. Historians put it nearer £1.1 million.Journal article (DOI) and 5 moreAI illustration: Counsel argue the Thellusson will before the Court of Chancery in Lincoln's Inn Hall, 17991797 · Plaistow Lodge, Bromley, KentPeter Thellusson locked his fortune away for three generations, and Parliament changed the law to stop anyone copying himPeter Thellusson came from a Genevan banking family, settled in London in 1761 and became a merchant and banker.lbs.ucl.ac.uk and 3 moreCharles Byrne (giant): Charles Byrne; James Burnett, Lord Monboddo; William Richardson; John Bell; Baillie Kyd by John Kay1783 · London, England, UKCharles Byrne arranged to be buried at sea to escape the anatomists, and John Hunter got his body and displayed his skeleton for 200 yearsCharles Byrne was born in 1761 at Littlebridge, County Derry. A pituitary tumour kept him growing, to about 7 feet 7 inches. He showed himself for money in Edinburgh and London as "the Irish Giant".The Irish Times and 2 moreJames Annesley: James Annesley, (1715-1760), Claimant to the Annesley Peerage1760 · Lee, near LondonAn uncle shipped his 12-year-old nephew to America as a servant to take the Anglesey titles, and a Dublin jury found for the nephew in 1743Arthur Annesley, 4th Baron Altham, died in 1727. His son James, born in County Wexford in 1715, was heir to the Altham title and, through it, to the earldom of Anglesey and its Irish estates.Internet Archive and 2 moreThomas Guy: Thomas Guy (1644–1724) title QS:P1476,en:"Thomas Guy (1644–1724) "label QS:Len,"Thomas Guy (1644–1724) "1724 · Southwark, London, England, UKThomas Guy sold his South Sea stock at the top of the 1720 bubble and left the profit to found Guy's HospitalThomas Guy opened a bookshop in Lombard Street in 1668. From 1679 he printed Bibles under licence from Oxford University. He sat as MP for Tamworth and became a governor of St Thomas' Hospital in 1704.kingspast.kcl.ac.uk and 2 moreJohn Churchill, 1st Duke of Marlborough: John Churchill (1650–1722), 1st Duke of Marlborough, Captain-General of the English Forces and Master-General of the Ord1722 · Windsor LodgeMarlborough's £5,000 Post Office pension was paid to his heirs for 178 years, and Blenheim's builders went unpaid in 1712After Blenheim, Queen Anne gave John Churchill, 1st Duke of Marlborough, £5,000 a year from the Post Office for her own life. The Commons refused to make it permanent.UK Parliament, Hansard and 3 moreDilston Castle: Dilston Castle (grid reference NY97566328) is a ruined 15th century towerhouse situated at Dilston, near Corbridge, Northumberland.1716 · Tower Hill, London; Dilston, Northumberland, EnglandThe Earl of Derwentwater was beheaded in 1716, Parliament gave his estates to Greenwich Hospital, and in 1868 a woman calling herself his heir moved into the ruined castleJames Radclyffe, 3rd Earl of Derwentwater, grew up at the exiled Stuart court at Saint-Germain. He joined the 1715 Jacobite rising, was defeated at Preston and pleaded guilty.northumberlandarchives.com and 4 morePeter Chamberlen the third: Peter Chamberlen. Line engraving by T. Trotter, 1794, after1683 · Woodham Mortimer, Essex, England, UKThe Chamberlen family kept the obstetric forceps secret for over a century, and their instruments were found hidden in the family house two centuries laterThe Chamberlens were Protestants who fled France in 1569 for Southampton. Peter Chamberlen the Elder, a barber-surgeon and male midwife, probably invented the obstetric forceps about 1600.daily.jstor.org and 3 morePortrait of Henry Frederick Howard, 22th Earl of Arundel (1608-1652) title QS:P1476,en:"Portrait of Henry Frederick Howa: Portrait of Henry Frederick Howard, 22th Earl of Arundel (1677 · Padua, Italy; estates in England, UKThe Earl of Arundel's heir went insane in Padua, his younger brothers fought over the family settlement, and the case created the rule against perpetuitiesHenry Frederick Howard, Earl of Arundel (1608 to 1652), had the lawyer Sir Orlando Bridgeman draft a settlement to keep the family land in the family.legislation.gov.uk and 4 moreAI illustration: The House of Lords chamber at Westminster hears a peerage claim, 17th century1632 · LondonThe House of Lords ruled the Earl of Banbury's sons were not his, and the Knollys family lost the earldom after 152 years of claimsWilliam Knollys, later 1st Earl of Banbury, married Elizabeth Howard, daughter of the Earl of Suffolk, on 23 December 1605. He was about 58 and she was 19. Their son Edward was born on 10 April 1627, when the Earl was about 80.Internet Archive and 2 moreBurton Agnes Hall 01: Burton Agnes Hall, Burton Agnes, East Riding of Yorkshire, England.1620 · Burton Agnes Hall, East Riding of Yorkshire, EnglandBurton Agnes Hall has passed by inheritance since 1610, and its builder's daughter is said to be bricked into a wallKind 2, with the house's ownership record. Sir Henry Griffith built Burton Agnes Hall from 1601 to 1610 to designs attributed to Robert Smythson.burtonagnes.com and 2 moreThomas Sutton's Monument, The Charterhouse Chapel, Farringdon: Charterhouse, Farringdon1611 · Hackney and the Charterhouse, London, EnglandEngland's richest commoner left his fortune to a hospital, and his nephew and Francis Bacon tried to break the willThomas Sutton made his money in coal and moneylending. A 19th-century biography says he died with about £5,000 a year in land and over £60,000 in money.thecharterhouse.org and 3 moreShane O'Neill meets Elizabeth: Shane O'Neill of Tyrone meets Queen Elizabeth of England1558 · Dungannon, County Tyrone, Northern Ireland, UKEngland made Conn O'Neill's son by a blacksmith's wife his heir, and Conn's son Shane had the heir killedGaelic Irish lordships passed by tanistry: the successor was chosen from male kin descended from a common great-grandfather, the eldest and most worthy, not the eldest son.libraryireland.com and 4 moreRobert Aske: Aske affixing his proclamation on the door of York Cathedral1537 · York, England, UKRobert Aske's rebels demanded the repeal of the law that stopped landowners leaving land by will; Aske was hanged in chains, and Henry VIII gave way in 1540English landowners used "uses": others held legal title to land for their benefit. Uses let them avoid the feudal dues owed to the Crown when land passed to an heir, and let them direct who would have the land after death.familyrecords.awh.durham.ac.uk and 5 moreRichard Whittington: RichardWhittington 19thCEngraving After ReginaldElstrack 15901423 · City of London, EnglandRichard Whittington left no children and his fortune to London; his executors rebuilt Newgate prison and founded almshouses that still operateRichard Whittington, born about 1356, became a London mercer and was Lord Mayor in 1397 to 1398, 1406 to 1407 and 1419 to 1420. He lent money to Richard II, Henry IV and Henry V nearly 60 times.the-orb.arlima.net and 2 moreCharles Dickens: Dickens Gurney headFiction · 1852 · London, England (Court of Chancery)In Dickens's Bleak House, the Jarndyce will case runs for generations until the legal costs have swallowed the estateBleak House is a novel by Charles Dickens, published in twenty monthly parts from March 1852 to September 1853. Its centre is Jarndyce and Jarndyce, a Chancery suit over a fortune left under conflicting wills.Project Gutenberg and 3 moreSarcophagus of Seti I 2023-02-17d: London, United Kingdom: Sir John Soane's Museum, sarcophagus of Pharao Seti I., showing the Book of Gates1279 BCE · Valley of the Kings, Egypt, and London, EnglandSeti I's empty sarcophagus was sold to the architect John Soane in 1824, and Soane obtained an Act of Parliament so his son could not inherit itSeti I, father of Ramesses II, was buried in tomb KV17 in a sarcophagus carved from one block of calcite. Robbers smashed its lid in antiquity, and priests later moved his body; it was found in the royal cache in 1881.UK Parliament, Hansard and 5 moreMap of United Kingdom, marked on the globe3700 BCE · Hazleton North long cairn, Hazleton, Gloucestershire, EnglanAncient DNA from a Cotswold tomb shows five generations of one man's family, buried by father's line, with his sons by four women in separate halvesHazleton North is a stone-built long cairn on the Cotswold Hills, excavated in 1979 to 1982 by a team led by Alan Saville; the finds went to the Corinium Museum in Cirencester.ebi.ac.uk and 1 moreCaister Castle - the tower - geograph.org.uk - 808701: Caister Castle - the tower. Caister Castle > 808658 consisted of two rectangular courtyards which were surrounded by a moa1459 · Caister, Norfolk, EnglandJohn Paston claimed Sir John Fastolf's lands under a deathbed spoken will, and the Duke of Norfolk besieged Caister Castle to take themSir John Fastolf made a fortune in the Hundred Years' War and built Caister Castle between 1432 and 1446. He died there in November 1459 with no children.thisispaston.co.uk and 4 moreNapoleon: The Emperor Napoleon in His Study at the Tuileries label QS:Len,"The Emperor Napoleon in His Study at the Tuileries"labe1821 · Longwood, Saint HelenaNapoleon's will left 10,000 francs to the man who tried to shoot the Duke of WellingtonNapoleon died a British prisoner at Longwood on Saint Helena.napoleon.org and 3 moreHospital of St Cross, Winchester: Hospital of St Cross .mw-parser-output .messagebox{margin:4px 0;width:auto;border-collapse:collapse;border:2px solid var(--border-color-progressiv1136 · St Cross, Winchester, Hampshire, EnglandA bishop's son ran England's oldest almshouse for decades on an income Trollope turned into The WardenHenry de Blois, Bishop of Winchester, founded the Hospital of St Cross about 1136.british-history.ac.uk and 6 moreJew's House: Jew's House, Lincoln (Grimm)1186 · Lincoln, EnglandWhen Aaron of Lincoln died in 1186, Henry II took his whole estate and set up a separate exchequer to collect his debtsAaron of Lincoln was born about 1125. The pipe roll of 1166 shows Henry II owing him £616 12s. 8d. in nine counties.Journal article (DOI) and 4 moreAI illustration: The White Tower of the Tower of London, 12441244 · Oxford; Tower of London; WinchesterHenry III took a third of David of Oxford's estate in 1244 and held his widow Licoricia in the Tower until it was settledLicoricia of Winchester was a Jewish moneylender. Her first husband, Abraham of Kent, died in 1234. In 1242 David of Oxford, one of the richest Jews in England, divorced his first wife, Muriel, to marry her. David died in 1244.majw.uvic.ca and 5 moreHenry I of England: Worcester chronicle - Henry I in a hulk1135 · London, EnglandHenry I's barons swore to make his daughter queen, and his nephew Stephen took the crown within weeks of his deathIn 1120 the White Ship sank and drowned William Adelin, Henry I's only legitimate son. Henry named his daughter Matilda, the widowed empress of Germany, as heir.avalon.law.yale.edu and 4 moreVernet Edith discovering King Harold's corpse on the battle field of Hastings: Edith Swanneck discovering King Harold's corpse on the battle field of Hastings1066 · Wilton Abbey, Wiltshire, and Cambridgeshire, EnglandDomesday shows Count Alan holding 33 of the 40 estates of Edith the Fair, and in 1094 Archbishop Anselm wrote to her daughter, King Harold's daughter, who had left Wilton Abbey with AlanDomesday Book lists "Eadgifu the fair" as the holder in 1066 of 40 estates: 25 in Cambridgeshire, 6 in Essex, 5 in Hertfordshire, 3 in Suffolk and 1 in Buckinghamshire. By 1086 Count Alan of Brittany held 33 of them.pase.ac.uk and 4 moreAlfred the Great: Alfred the Great, silver penny; struck 875–880 (obverse)899 · Winchester, England, UKAlfred the Great's will answered his nephews' claim to their father's land, and one nephew rose against Alfred's sonKing Æthelred I of Wessex died in 871 fighting the Vikings, leaving two infant sons, Æthelhelm and Æthelwold. His younger brother Alfred became king.bl.uk and 3 moreMap of United Kingdom, marked on the globe879 · Eye, near Leominster, Herefordshire, EnglandTwo detectorists sold a Viking-age hoard with coins showing Alfred the Great beside Ceolwulf II of Mercia, and about 270 coins are still missingIn the late 9th century someone buried about 300 silver coins, a gold ring, a gold bracelet, a rock-crystal pendant and silver ingots near Leominster.thehistoryblog.com and 2 moreSaqqara, Sarcophagus of Nectanebo II (never used), British Museum: Saqqara, Sarcophagus of Nectanebo II (never used since he left it when he fled south), British Museum343 BCE · Alexandria, Egypt, and London, EnglandThe last native pharaoh fled the Persians and never used his sarcophagus, and the British took it from Alexandria in 1801 as the tomb of AlexanderNectanebo II was the last native Egyptian king. In 343 BC the Persian king Artaxerxes III restored Persian rule. Nectanebo fled south and never regained power.Internet Archive and 2 moreAmesbury Archer - Salisbury and South Wiltshire Museum: The Amesbury Archer. An early Bronze Age man whose grave was discovered during excavations at the site of a new housing deve2300 BCE · Amesbury, Wiltshire, EnglandA man from the Alps was buried near Stonehenge with Britain's oldest gold; the younger man beside him shared a rare foot bone, but DNA rules out father and sonIn May 2002 Wessex Archaeology excavated a grave at Amesbury, about three miles from Stonehenge, ahead of a housing development.wessexarch.co.uk and 2 moreImperial State Crown of Queen Victoria (2): Imperial State Crown of Queen Victoria, the state crown used by British monarchs from 1838 to 1937Legend · 1362 · Tablada, near Seville, Spain; London, EnglandTradition says Pedro the Cruel took the "Black Prince's Ruby" from a Granadan sultan he killed with his own lance; it is a spinel in the front of Britain's crownThe stone called the Black Prince's Ruby is a red spinel of about 170 carats, not a ruby. Muhammad VI of Granada, known to the Castilians as Abu Said, fled to Seville in April 1362 with most of Granada's royal treasury.gia.edu and 4 moreFrancis Humberston Mackenzie: Francis Mackenzie, 1st Baron Seaforth FRS (9 June 1754 – 11 January 1815), Chief of the Highland Clan Mackenzie who raised the 78th (Highlanders) RegiLegend · 1815 · Ross-shire and the Isle of Lewis, ScotlandA Highland prophecy says the last Seaforth chief would be deaf and outlive his sons, Lord Seaforth's death in 1815 matched it, and historians say the seer may never have existedThe Brahan Seer is a figure of Highland folklore. Tradition says that while the third Earl of Seaforth was in Paris, his countess asked the seer Coinneach Odhar where he was. The seer said the earl was with a fair lady.Internet Archive and 2 moreCowdray ruins 20: Ruins of Cowdray House, Midhurst, West Sussex, England.Legend · 1793 · Cowdray, Midhurst, West Sussex, EnglandLegend says a monk cursed the family given Battle Abbey's lands to end by fire and water; in 1793 Cowdray burned and its young owner drowned in the Rhine within weeksThe curse of Cowdray is a legend. In 1538 Anthony Browne received Battle Abbey after the Dissolution of the Monasteries.cowdray.co.uk and 3 moreHere begynneth a gest of Robyn Hode: Beginn der Gest of Robyn HodeLegend · 1450 · St Mary's Abbey, York, and the greenwood, EnglandThe Gest of Robyn Hode says a knight pledged his lands to an abbot for £400 and Robin paid the debt; a 1598 play made Robin an earl robbed by his uncleRobin Hood is a legend, and the Gest is the longest early ballad about him. It was printed by Wynkyn de Worde and in Antwerp around 1500 and was probably compiled between 1450 and 1475.boldoutlaw.com and 4 moreBiddendenMaids(1808): BiddendenMaids(1808)Legend · 1134 · Biddenden, Kent, EnglandTradition says conjoined twins left Biddenden 20 acres for bread and cheese, and the rector sued to take the landTradition says Mary and Eliza Chulkhurst were born joined at the shoulder and hip in Biddenden in 1100. When Mary died, Eliza refused to be separated and died about six hours later.england.prm.ox.ac.uk and 2 moreMap of United Kingdom, marked on the globeLegend · 1485 · London, England (the churchyard of "the greatest churchMalory says Uther's heir was raised in secret, the lords refused the boy who pulled the sword, and the common people made him kingThe sword in the stone is legend. Specialists hold Arthur to be a mythological or folkloric figure. The sword story does not appear in Geoffrey of Monmouth's account of about 1137; it was introduced around 1200 by Robert de Boron.Project Gutenberg and 3 moreTichborne dole: The Tichborne DoleLegend · 1150 · Tichborne, near Alresford, Hampshire, EnglandTradition says a dying Lady Tichborne crawled round 23 acres for a bread dole and cursed the family if it ever stoppedTradition says that Lady Mabella Tichborne, dying and lame, asked her husband, Sir Roger, to give food to the poor each year. He agreed to give the produce of as much land as she could crawl around while a torch burned.historic-uk.com and 4 moreGeoffrey Leicester Gray: Geoffrey Leicester Gray, British colonial administrator and his wife in 1953Legend · 750 BCE · Leicester, EnglandGeoffrey of Monmouth says King Leir split Britain between two flattering daughters, who took all of it and cut his household from 60 knights to oneGeoffrey of Monmouth's History of the Kings of Britain, written about 1136, is the first known telling of the story of Leir. Scholars treat Leir as a legendary king.yorku.ca and 4 more