Maurice Thompson 1676

In the Name of God Amen I Maurice Thomson of Haversham in the County of Bucks Esquire being of good health of Body and of sound and perfect Memory blessed be God for the same doe make and ordaine this my last Will and Testament in manner and forme following That is to say First I give and bequeath my Soule into the hands of Almighty God that gave it mee stedfastly beleeving by Faith the free pardon and remission of all my sinnes in and through the most pretious blond of my deare and blessed Saviour the Lord Jesus Christ By whose Meritts alone through the free Grace I hope for lyfe and salvation forever and ever Amen My Body I Comitt to the Earth to be buryed if it may be in Haversham Chancell by my deare wife And as touching the disposition of my worldly Estate which the Lord hath been pleased to blesse mee with I give devise bequeath and dispose thereof as followeth First I give and bequeath to one hundred poore Silenced Ministers Twenty shullings a peece To be paid them within One Moneth next after my decease Item I give and bequeath unto Arthur Thomson Helena Thomson and Elizabeth Thomson the tree children of my deare sonn John Thomson Baronett One Hundred Pownds a peece when they shall be the age of One and Twenty yeares And if any one of them shall happen to depart this life before that age Then I give the One Hundred Pownds of him or her so dying to the survivor equally to be devided betweene them And if Two of them shall happen to dye before the said age of One and Twenty yeares Then I gyve the whole Three Hundred Pownds to the survivor of them And I give and bequeath to my Grandchildren by my  eldest daughter the Lady Katherin Witwrong late wife of Sir John Witrong [Wittewrong] Knight and Baronett as followeth vizt. To Mistress Katherin Witwrong the eldest daughter the summe of Fower Hundred Pownds of lawfull money of England To Anne Witwrong the second daughter the summe of Two Hundred Pownds And to Helena Witwrong the Third daughter Two Hundred Pownds To be paid at theire respective ages of One and Twenty yeares or dayes of Marriage which shall first happen And if any one of them shall happen to dye before the age of One and Twenty yeares or day of Marriage Then I give the share of her so dying to the survivors equally to be devided between them And if Two of the shall happen to dye before the age of One and Twenty yeares or dayes of Marriage Then I give theire whole shares or Legacyes to the survivor of them Item I give and bequeath unto my Two hopefull Grandchildren William and Samuell Oldfeild One Hundred Pownds a peece at theire respective ages of One and Twenty yeares Item I give and confirme to my deare brothers George Sir William and Robert Thomson Trustees for my daughter Martha Corsellis during her natural Life the yearely summe of One Hundred Pownds vizt. Fyve and Twenty Pownds To be paid them Three brothers or one of them or the executors or administrators of the survivor of them every Quarter according to a Deed of settlement in that behalf by mee made to be disposed of as shee shall from time to time direct and appoint by Writing under her hand And I also give and bequeath to her the said Martha Corsellis the summe of One Hundred Pownds To be paid within One yeare next after my decease And I give to Nicholas Corsellis her sonne the summe of One Hundred Pownds when he shall attaine the age of Six and Twenty yeares Item I give and bequeath unto my Fowerth daughter Elizabeth Alston wife of Joseph Alston Esquire The summe of One Hundred Pownds To be paid within One yeare next after my decease And I give to her Three hopefull sonnes Joseph Alston Edward Alston and Maurice Alston The summe of One Hundred Pownds a peece To be paid at theire respective ages of One and Twenty yeares Item I give beqeath and devise unto my said dearly beloved sonn Sir John Thomson Baronett All my Freehold Mannors Lands Tenements and hereditaments in England Ireland Barbadoes Antego St Christophers Viribia the Carebee Islands and elsewhere not herein afterwards by mee otherwise disposed of for and during his naturall life without impeachment of Wast And imediatley from and after his decease I give devise and bequeath All and singular my said Freehold Mannors Lands Tenements and Hereditaments in England Ireland Virginia the Carebee Islands Barbadoes St Christophers and elsewhere unto my deare Grandson Arthur Thomson Esquire eldest sonn of the said Sir John Thomson for and during the terme of his naturall life without impeachment or Wast And after his decease I give the same to the eldest sonn of the said Arthur Thomson lawfully to be begotten and the heires male of his body lawfully issuing And for want of such issue I give and devise the same To all and every other sonne and sonnes of the said Arthur Thomson and the heires male of the body of all and every such sonnes issuing severally and successively The elder of such sonnes and the heires male of his body being to be preferred and taken allwayes before all the younger of such sonnes and the heires male of his and theire bodyes issuing And for default of such issue To the use and behoofe of the second Third Fowerth Fyth Sixth Seaventh Eighth Nynth and Tenth son and sonnes and all and every other sonn and sonnes of the body of the said Sir John Thomson and the heires male of theire bodyes issuing severally and successively as such sonnes shall be in seniority The eldest of such sonnes and the heires male of his body being allwayes preferred and to take before all the younger and the heires male of his and theire bodyes And for default of such issue I give and Devise the same Mannors Lands Tenements and Hereditament to my owne right heires forver Item I give to my said sonn Sir John Thomson his executors and administrators All my Leases for yeares Merchandized and Adventures and my East India Adventure and the profitts thereof and all Bills Bonds ready money plate household stuff and other personal Estate of what nature or kind soever which I shall have or be intitled unto at the time of my death (My Debts funerall Charges and also the Legacyes herein by mee particularly devised being thereout first deducted and paid) upon Trust and Confidence that he shall only have the use of such part thereof as is fit to remaine in spe.ie and yearely interest and at other profitt and proceed of the other part thereof and whereof any yearely interest and other proceed shall may be made for and during the terme of his naturall life And upon further Trust that he shall either in his life time by deed or by his last Will in Writing devide the principall among all the Children of him the said Sir John Thomson in such parts and proportions as to him the said Sir John Thomspn shall seeme meete And for defalt of such appointment upon Trust and confidence that he the said Sir John Thomson shall permitt the same to come to and be enioyed intirely by the said Arthur Thomson his executors and administrators forever yet nevertheles if my said sonn Sir John Thomson shall be putt to any expence or Charges in or about my said personall Estate as will fully answeare and satisfy such charges and expences And my Mind is that my said sonn Sir John Thomson his executors or aadminstrators shall not be charged or chargeable with any more of the said principall of my personall Estate then shall come to his or theire hands nor with any losse of any part or parts thereof happening without his or theire wilfull defalt And my further Will is and I doe by the these presence give devise and bequeath unto the said Sir John Thomson for his life And after his decease To the second sonn of the said Sir John Thomson lawfully begotten and the heires of the body of auch second sonn And for defalt of such issue Th the Third sonn of the said Sir John Thomson and the heires of his Body And for defalt of such issue To the said Arthur Thomson and his heires All my household Lands and Gardens with the appurtenances without Bishopsgate London And I also give and devise to the said Sir John Thomson for his life And after his decease To the Third sonn of the said Sir John Thomson and the heires of his body And for want of such issue To the second sonn of the said Sir John Thomson and the heires of his body And for defalt of such issue To the said Arthur Thomson and his heires All those my houses with the appurtenances I  White Chappell George yard and Vineger yard Provyded nevertheles and my Will is That if the Lady Frances Thomson wife of my said sonn Sir John Thomson shall happen to dye before him the said Sir John Thomson Then I doe give the said Sir John Thomson full power and authority to settle or Jointure not exceeding Seaven Hundred Pounds a yeare out of any part of my Estate upon any woman he shall marry during her lyfe only And I doe hereby nominate and appoint my said deare sonn Sir John Thomson to be full and whole Executor of this my last Will and Testament And my said Three brothers George Sir William and Robert Thomson to be Overseers of this my last Will And in Case my said sonn Sir John Thomson shall dye before the said Arthur Thomson shall attaine to the age of One and Twenty yeares Then I appoint my said brother Robert Thomson to be Executor of this my Will And desire him to see to the breeding of my deare Grandson Arthur Thomson in the feare of God and to see to the performance of my Will and distributing of my whole Estate according to the intent of this illeg Will and the breeding of all the said Sir John Thomsons Children vertuously and handsomely and to help to preferr them in Marriage according to my full Trust and Confidence in him And I doe hereby null and make void all former will and Testaments by mee made willing this to stand irrevocable In Witnes whereof I the said Maurice Thomson to this my last Will and Testament conteyning Six sheets of Paper have sett my hand and seale to each sheete thereof and afterwards published the same as my last Will and Testament this Three and Twentyth day of March In the Seaven and Twentyth yeare of the Raignes of our soveraigne Lord Charles the second by the grace of God King of England Scotland France and Ireland Defender of the Faith etc. Annoq Domini 1674 Maurice Thomson Signed sealed published and delyvered after the interlyning  of the word (Legacyes) in the Fowerth sheete in the presence of J: Buchanan Hen: Antrobus

Probate: 09 May 1676

Maurice Thomson (1601/04–1676), of St Andrew's parish, Eastcheap, City of London and of Haversham in Buckinghamshire, was an English merchant, slave trader and Puritan, said to be "England's greatest colonial merchant of his day". He obtained a monopoly of the Virginia tobacco trade.

He was the eldest son and heir of Robert Thomson of Watton-at-Stone, Hertfordshire, by his wife Elizabeth Harsflet, daughter of John Harsflet (alias Halfehead, Harsnett) of Watton-at-Stone.^[1] His sister Mary Thomson married William Tucker, a merchant and one of the first plantation owners in Virginia. His younger brothers included Col. George Thomson (c. 1607 – 1691), a merchant, Parliamentarian soldier and MP for Southwark; Robert Thomson, youngest brother, who was also a merchant; Paul Thomson and Sir William Thomson.

In the early 1650s, Thomson and business associate Rowland Wilson had engaged James Pope to act as agent on their ship Friendship, for a number of slaving voyages to Gambia. Dresser quotes them as instructing Pope to, along with loading the ship with African slaves for Barbados, "find 15 or 20 many lusty young Negers and bring them home with you for London".^[2]

Thomson married Dorothy Vaux, daughter of John Vaux, of Pembrokeshire, by whom he had children including John Thompson, 1st Baron Haversham (c. 1648 – 1710), eldest son and heir; and Mary Thomson, who became the wife of William Owfield (1623–1664), MP.

He owned estates and property including Elsham, Lincolnshire, which manor he purchased in 1655, and Worcester House, Mile End Green, which he sold in 1675 to the Church. He died in 1676 and was buried in the chancel of Haversham Church.

Katherine Wittewrong born 1620
Married 4 July 1650