The primary direct male line of De Hebden was coming to an end.

First let’s take a step back. Dolphin, who had held three manors at the time of the Domesday survey, was the ancestor of the de Hebdens as well as the Lascelles and Thoresby family. His contribution towards the Hebden history was his son Uctred de Hebden who had been born circa 1120 and it was he who was granted Hebden and became the first Lord of Hebden, Conistone and Burnsall.
Uctred de Hebden had provided about nine children in all. – Uctred, Ketel, Ealdred, Alice de Hebden, Henry de Threshfield, Igonilda, Harscoil & Walter of Ilton, as well Simon de Hebden. Alice de Hebden had married Elias de Riliston and had two children and Igonilda had married Sir Herbert de Arches.
You can normally judge how influential a family is by the marriages made for the children. Not much is known about those of the children of Uctred but Igonilda’s marriage is certainly interesting as the de Arches family were a northern based one of quite some influence at the time. It is more likely however that Herbert was a minor son.

Much of the information about the de Hebdens is gleaned from old records of Fountains Abbey and we know that Simon de Hebden and Conistone was still living in the year 1200. He had four, possibly five, sons – William, Elias, Adam & Simon. The fifth may have been a Walter de Hedon. Simon de Hebden had a daughter Maud de Hebden who married Alan de Walkingham but nothing more is known of other offspring or indeed, those of Elias and Adam. It is entirely possible that some of today’s Hebdens may be descended from these sons. William would appear to have been the eldest or, at least, the eldest surviving son, as it was to him the Lordship of Hebden passed.

William de Hebden had married Alice Aleman, the daughter of Sir John Aleman of Studeley and had produced only two female children, Ellena and Cassa.
Cassa died a virgin in the custody of the Abbot of Fountains whilst Ellena married first Sir Robert de Chamblayne and from this marriage there was no issue. She then went on to marry Sir Nicholas de Ebor, brother of the Bishop of Salisbury.
The documentation of Cassa’s death might indicate that William de Hebden died whilst his children were young. There was also some dispute documented between his widow and Fountains Abbey over custody of lands and children which adds weight to this assumption of an early death for William. What we do know is that this Lord of Hebden was buried at Fountains in 1228, a privilege granted to substantial benefactors of Fountains Abbey. I believe that his grave site can still be pinpointed today.

Ellena’s second marriage ensured the continuation of the Lordship of Hebden.
It was common in those days, where the eldest son of the eldest son only had girls and the line would effectively die out, that the husband would take on the titles and name of his wife. This is not to say that there weren’t plenty of de Hebdens around still. There were children of the second sons through the generations, but this was the direct male line through the first sons. Whether Nicholas took on the name of Hebden in any shape or form is not clear but it seems that his children were given the name De Hebden.

Nicholas De Ebor and Ellena De Hebden, had two children – William de Ebor and Hebden who was born around 1240 and Constance De Hebden who married Sir John Clapham of Beamsley.

William de Ebor & Hebden married an unknown lady called Cicely (Cecilia).and thus a line of William de Hebdens continued with the birth of their son Sir William de Hebden born around 1264 and Emma De Hebden. Note the subtle change in title from William to Sir Willliam. Sir Williams birth was the same year as the revolt against King Henry II by Simon de Montfort which was the seed of parliament. William senior would have died before 1294 as, in that year his widow remarried to an Amadus De Surdlyal.

Life for the other Hebdens that lived at that time would have been far less grand. This was the time of the peasant, villein and cottar who all worked for the Lord of the Manor, tilling their fields, handing over a proportion of their produce and paying to use the Lords mill.

Whilst nothing further is known about his sister Emma (no doubt she went on to make a fortuitous match), Sir William, Lord of Hebden and Conistone was brought up in the custody of the Abbot of Fountains. He went on to marry an Isabella de Yelland, the daughter and heiress of Sir Richard de Yelland.

It was at this stage, in 1316, that Arms were granted to the family – Ermine Five Fusils in Fess - The fusils being the diamond shapes and the fess being the way they are conjoined together.The ermine is the background. The coat of arms was passed down through descent in the Dymoke family and their crest is in six quarterings, one of which is the arms of Hebden.

Note:A coat of arms does not necessarily belong to a person just because some one of the same surname bore it. He must prove descent from the owner.

This couple went on to have four gorgeously named children Sir Richard, born 1324 was the eldest and then followed Elyceot (or Elizet), Aueray and Duket. Sir William died in 1321, passing the titles, land and arms on to his eldest son. Sir Richard held Knight Service to Fountains

Sir Richard married a lady called Petronilla, no doubt of good birth and breeding and they had a son Sir Richard who would probably have been born around 1350. His date of death is known to be 1373 so, he would have died young but not before he had married and produced children.

The name of this next Sir Richard’s wife is unknown but she was the daughter of a Geoffrey Lutterel. By now, Sir Richards title seems to have become just Lord of Hebden and the Conistone appears to have gone. Perhaps Elyceot, Aueray or Duket received that lordship ? I don’t have much information on who Geoffrey Lutterel was but it is interesting to note that, during King John’s reign, when the Magna Carta was forced upon the king, amongst the list of barons who were against King John was a Sir Geoffrey de Lutterel. In addition to this snippet, one of the great treasures of the British Library is the Luttrell Psalter. This was created in the early 14th century for the Lincolnshire landowner, Sir Geoffrey de Luttrell, perhaps the father or grandfather of Sir Richard’s wife. Sir Richard held lands in Howell, Claypole & Gosberton, and it is Gosberton in Lincolnshire where his children were born.

Sir Richard de Hebden, Lord of Hebden had three children – Sir Richard, Sir Nicholas and Elizabeth , all born between 1350 and 1373 in Gosberton in Linconshire.

Sir Richard’s younger brother, Sir Nicholas de Hebden was born around 1359 in Gosberton Lincolnshire. He married a lady called Katherine de Wyhom who was the heiress of Rye & Whyam and the Marmions. Before Nicholas died in 1417, they had three children, William de Hebden who died young, Elizabeth de Hebden ( b circa 1380 in Howell, Lincoln) and Grace de Hebden. Although they were born in Lincolnshire, links were clearly kept with the north as Grace married Sir Piers Tempest who was the son of Sir Richard Tempest of Bracewell in Craven. The Tempests at some stage gained Conistone.
Elizabeth married Sir Thomas Dymoke, who one of the Dymokes of Scrivelsby, Lincoln, the Kings champions. Thus the primary line of Hebden died out though both Grace and Ellizabeth had children. One in particular achieved some level of historical notoriety. Elizabeth had two sons, Sir Philip, who married Joan Conyers and Sir Thomas who married Margaret de Welles. It was this Sir Thomas who joined a Lancastrian rising in 1469 and the penalty of his treason to the then King Edward IV was execution. The family were not unduly penalized though as his son Sir Robert had the estates restored to him and the descendants were Kings champions at he coronations of Richard III, Henry VII and Henry VIII and even George IV. The Dymoke in question on that occasion was Henry who was accompanied by the Duke of Wellington. The eldest child, Sir Richard had been born around 1355 and he married a widow, Joan Chammond. daughter of Richard Wateby, Mayor of York in 1365 and she had a daughter Johanna from her first marriage. Johanna was married to a gentleman called Ffitlyng. Richard and Joan probably married around 1380 and as Sir Richard was buried at Ousebridge in 1385, so it was not long before Joan found herself a widow again.

Joan and Richard’s children were
Thomas who died about 1435 and would seem to have entered the church and become Dean of Aukland in 1431. Some documentation shows his kin to have been Elizabeth Bekwyth, Roger Plumpton, John & Margaret Burton though heaven only knows where they fit in. Anastasia de Hebden was also referred to in the will of Thomas, as a sister.
There was also a John, who was the last Lord of Hebden 1460.

At this time there was also a Sir John Hebden of Coldstonefold (Hebden), Parish of Ripon and the Hebden family of Ripon, Wakemen to Ripon City from 1400 onwards, during the time of the Hebden domicile at Hebden in Craven. The Ripon Hebdens occupied much of Fountains Abbey lands. What is not clear is where this Sir John fits in to the Hebden line. Could he have been a descendant of Auray or Duket ? Who knows. This was the time of the Wars of the Roses and many records were destroyed leaving missing links between various lines of the Hebden family.

What is certain is where the Hebden name comes from and its long history within the north of England. Near the village of Hebden lies Burnsall church you will see the Hebden coat of arms displayed and you will see a list of rectors of Burnsall on the walls. Hebdens appear regularly in those lists. Down the road in Linton Church the links with the Hebden family are shown on their list of rectors as is the name Aleman. All around the surrounding area you will find records of Hebdens living there around the 1400s. Gradually they spread out further and further across the country and then the globe, until few Hebdens actually remain in the area though.evidence of their presence remains.