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Robert Farndale
FAR00169
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Dates
are in red.
Hyperlinks
to other pages are in dark
blue.
Headlines
of Robert’s life are in brown.
References
and citations are in turquoise.
Context
and local history are in purple.
1752
Robert Farndale was born on 17 November 1752, son of John Farndale (FAR00136), sailor. He was
baptised at Whitby on 6 July 1755 at St Mary
the Virgin, Whitby.
1780
Robert was a Master Mariner. See his gravestone.
A master mariner is a licensed mariner who holds the highest grade of seafarer
qualification. He is thus given an unlimited master's license, with no limits
on the tonnage, power, or geographic location of the vessel that the holder of
the license is allowed to serve upon. A master mariner would therefore be
allowed to serve as the master of
a merchant ship of
any size, of any type, operating anywhere in the world, and it reflected
the highest level of professional qualification amongst mariners and deck
officers.
The term master
mariner has been in use at least since the thirteenth century, reflecting
the fact that in guild or livery company terms, such a person was a master craftsman in this specific profession, such as were also a
master carpenter, master blacksmith etc.
In the British Merchant Navy a
master mariner who had sailed in command of an ocean going merchant ship was
titled “Captain”, although a
professional seafarer who held a restricted or limited master's certificate who
had sailed in command of a ship could also be titled captain.
Where the movements of
ships were recorded in the shipping news and other media, the name of the ship
was followed by the name of the Captain.
1790s?
Robert married Hannah Farndale (see gravestone).
Robert and
Hannah Farndale may have been the parents of:
·
Ann
Farndale, born 15 April 1800 (FAR00241).
·
John
Christopher Farndale, born 3 January 1802, who became a Master Mariner himself
(FAR00244).
·
Hannah
Farndale, born 29 February 1804 (FAR00247).
·
Jane
Farndale, born 9 December 1806 (FAR00251).
·
Dinah
Farndale, born 19 March 1814 (FAR00256).
·
Mary
Ann Farndale, born 6 October 1817 (FAR00261).
·
Elizabeth
Farndale, born 6 November 1825 (FAR00290).
But
it also possible the above (or some of them) were the children of John and
Dinah Farndale (FAR00198).
1827
Robert Farndale, of Whitby died on 2 June 1827, aged 74 and was buried 7 June 1827 at St Mary the Virgin Churchyard, Whitby (Whitby PR).
Sacred
to the memory of
ROBERT FARNDALE
Master mariner who died June
2nd 1827 aged 74 years.
And of HANNAH his wife
who died March 28th 1845
aged 89 years.
Bram Stoker used St Mary's
Church graveyard as the setting for a scene in his novel, Dracula:
For a moment or two I
could see nothing, as the shadow of a cloud obscured St. Mary's Church. Then as
the cloud passed I could see the ruins of the Abbey coming into view; and as
the edge of a narrow band of light as sharp as a sword-cut moved along, the
church and churchyard became gradually visible... It seemed to me as though
something dark stood behind the seat where the white figure shone, and bent
over it. What it was, whether man or beast, I could not tell.
The graveyard is famous
for its association with Dracula. There is a gravestone with a skull and
crossbones, which it is sometimes claimed is the fictional Draculas
grave, but in reality was probably the mark of a stonemason. And there is the
tale of a suicide’s grave, where vampires supposedly have to reside:
“He pointed to a stone
at our feet which had been laid down as a slab, on which the seat was rested,
close to the edge of the cliff. “Read the lies on that thruff-stone,”
he said. The letters were upside down to me from where I sat, but Lucy was more
opposite to them, so she leant over and read, “Sacred to the memory of George
Canon, who died, in the hope of a glorious resurrection, on July 29, 1873,
falling from the rocks at Kettleness. This tomb was
erected by his sorrowing mother to her dearly beloved son. `He was the only son
of his mother, and she was a widow.’ Really, Mr. Swales, I don’t see anything
very funny in that!” She spoke her comment very gravely and somewhat severely.
“Ye
don’t see aught funny! Ha-ha! But that’s because ye don’t gawm
the sorrowin’ mother was a hell-cat that hated him
because he was acrewk’d, a regular lamiter he was, an’ he hated her so that he committed
suicide in order that she mightn’t get an insurance she put on his life.”….I
did not know what to say, but Lucy turned the conversation as she said, rising
up, “Oh, why did you tell us of this? It is my favourite seat, and I cannot
leave it, and now I find I must go on sitting over the grave of a suicide.”
August 1827 - Probate from the
Prerogative and Exchequer Courts of York Probate - Robert Farndale of Whitby -
£100 (Borthwick Institute Index reference vol.176,
f.124, 1827011830100100.tif/16, Prerogative & Exchequer Courts Of York
Probate Index, 1688-1858):
August 1827. 124. Farndale, Robert of
Whitby. L 100. His
Executrix was Hannah Farndale.
1841
In the 1841 Census, Hannah Farndale (Robert’s wife) is
shown living at Tate Hill, Whitby, independently, aged 83, with Ann Harland,
14, a female servant. This was after Robert had died.