The Tiarks family of Chislehurst

Henry Frederic Tiarks was the fourth son of Dr Johann Gerhard Tiarks, who was born in 1794, and was himself a descendent from Remmer Theodorici of Seediek, a steward and chancellor to Frau Maria von Jever. Information on the lines can be found on the website or in a privately published genealogy of the Tiarks family, but this is not up to date.

Henry was born in 1832 in Whitechapel London. He was a partner in J Henry Schroder and a Governor of the Royal Exchange. In addition to his City appointments, he was a Parish Councillor in Chislehurst and a Justice of the Peace. He married Agnes Morris on 11 September 1862. She was the fourth daughter of James Taylor Morris and Sarah St Agnes (Skanes), born on 23 June 1840. Her sister, Susanna, six years her elder, married Charles Phipps Tiarks, Henry’s brother, in August 1866. Henry Tiarks had three surviving brothers and two sisters. One brother, John, Rector of Loxton, Somerset, was great-grandfather to Captain Mark Phillips, who married Princess Anne.

Harry TiarksHenry died in 1911, (click here for his obituary) and Agnes in 1923 (click here for hers). They are buried together in St Nicholas churchyard (click here to see a photograph of the recently renovated tomb). They had eleven children. They and their brief histories are recorded below:

1. Henry Frederic, 1870-1893. He was educated at Marlborough, and joined the 5th Dragoon Guards. He died in Meerut in India, and is buried in the family tomb at St Nicholas Church. (pictured right c1890)

2. Frank Cyril, 1874-1952. Educated aboard HMS Britannia. He became a partner in his father’s business, and held a number of positions, including Civil High Commissioner of the Rhineland, Director of the Bank of England, Director of the Anglo-Iranian Oil Co, Lieutenant for the City of London, and High Sheriff of Kent. He retired to Loxton in 1937, and is buried at the churchyard there. He married Emmy Maria Franziska of Hamburg in 1899, and they had five children:

2a. Henry Frederic, 1900-1995. Educated at Eton. He also became a partner in J Henry Schroder, and later a director of Schroders Ltd. He also held a number of banking directorships, and was a Trustee of the World Wildlife Fund. He founded Securicor, and was a Director of Joseph Lucas, the Bank of London and South America, and a member of the Dollar Export Council. He was a Wing-Commander in the RAF during the 1939-45 war, in charge of flying barrage balloons. He was a keen polo player and amateur astronomer. He married twice, first in 1930 to Lady Millicent Olivia Mary Taylour, only daughter of the 4th Marquess of Headfort. Their only child was Christopher Henry Frederic, 1931-1932, who is buried in St Mary's churchyard.

Frank with his granddaughter HenriettaHis second marriage was in 1936 to Ina Florence Marshman Bell, an actress better known as Joan Barry. They had two children: Edward Henry, 1943-1943, who is buried in St Mary's churchyard, and Henrietta Joan, b.1940. She married the Marquess of Tavistock. When he inherited the title of Duke of Bedford, Henrietta became the Duchess. She has written an account of her life to 1991 in "A Chance to Live". She had three children: Andrew, 1962, and now Duke of Bedford, Robbie, 1963, and Jamie, 1975.

2b.Ramona Maria Clara, 1902-1985. She married when she was 54. She had no children.

2c. Edward Mathias, 1904-1929. Educated at Eton and Christ Church Oxford. He died in a plane crash without marrying. He is buried in St Mary's churchyard. More...

2d. Peter Frank,1910-1975 (twin to Myra). Educated at Eton and Balliol College Oxford. He married twice. First to Pamela Silvertop. They had one daughter, Gabriel Pamela, b 1935, who married and had three sons.

Secondly he married Lady Diana Juanita Finch-Hatton, and had three children:, Caspar Peter Frank b.1948, Tania Henrietta, b.1939, who had two sons and one daughter, Anita Daphne, b.1941, who had one son and one daughter

2e. Myra Emmy, b.1910. She married Richard Mallock and they had one son and one daughter and two grandsons, Charles Edward Julian, b.1937, who had two sons, and Naomi Myra, b.1939.

Frank and children Foxbury c1925
Edward, Myra, Ramona, Henry and an unidentified girl with Frank at Foxbury c1925

3. Herman Alexander, 1875-1955. He was educated at Marlborough and Christ Church Oxford. He moved to Webbington, near Loxton, in 1900, where he was able to indulge his passion for hunting. He was Master of the Mendip Hunt, and wrote Hunting Reminiscences. He married Jessie Follett in 1901. She died of tuberculosis in 1923 without children. Herman and Jesse are buried in the churchyard of St James the Great, Winscombe, Somerset. Margaret in 1890

4. Margaret Agnes, 1866-1959. She married Hugh Lubbock in 1890, 2nd son of Sir Nevile Lubbock of Bromley Common, and lived at Beaverwood for many years. They had four children, Ralph, 1891, Agnes, 1893, Mark, 1898 and Mary,1903. They divorced in 1934. Hugh died in 1938. (A photograph of Margaret, from 1890, is on the right here)

5. Alice Ellen, 1868-1944. She married Arthur Lubbock in 1895, 3rd son of Sir Nevile Lubbock. They had two children, Jill, 1906 and Ivo, 1908. Arthur died 1939.

6. Edith (Edie) Mary, 1873-1962. She married Lieut.-Col George Booker in 1892. They had two children, Henry, 1894, and Rachael, 1898. George died 1938.

7. Ellen (Nellie) Emily, 1877-1960. She married the Rev Athole Murray in 1917. They had one daughter, Anne, born in 1920. Athole died in 1962. They are both buried in the family tomb at St Nicholas, Chislehurst.

8. Agnes Henrietta, 1878-1980, having lived unmarried in Camden Close. She is buried in the family tomb at St Nicholas, Chislehurst. (Henrietta, her great niece, recalls visiting her at Camden Close: “Agnes could tell the time from the church clock that she could see from her house without glasses when she was 100”)

9. Sophie Louise, 1880-1960. She never married. She is buried in the family tomb at St Nicholas, Chislehurst. Sophie was very active locally. She ran a boy’s club here, and financed the building of the Village Hall Annexe. There is an indistinct photograph of her launching the boy scout’s punt at Pickend Pond in Battle’s book.

10. Matilda (Mattie) Gertrude, b.1881. Married Percy (Puck) Hare in 1903. They had five children, Joan, 1904, Hugh, 1906, Sybil, 1907, Victoria, 1914, and Lilah, 1915. He died in 1937.

11. Frederica (Rika) Octavia, 1883-1966. She married Admiral Sir Michael Hodges in 1903. They had five children, Michael, 1904, Betty, 1907, John, 1910, David, 1915, and Richard, 1917. Sir Michael died in 1951, after which Rika moved to live near her sisters in Chislehurst.

A question of religion

Emmy's tomb next to her son'sHenry Tiarks attended church at St Nicholas during his life, and he and his wife are buried in the churchyard there. One presumes that Frank was also baptized into the Anglican Church. His German-born wife, Emmy, was brought up as a Roman Catholic, and as was common in those days, permission would have been needed for her to marry a non-catholic. As part of the conditions required in obtaining permission, she and Frank would have undertaken to bring their children up as Roman Catholics. Emmy was a regular church-goer, and she endowed the organ gallery at St Mary’s Catholic Church in Crown Lane. Her son Edward was buried there after his death in 1929, and her first grandson, Christopher, who died in infancy, is also buried there. When Emmy died in 1942, her will stipulated that she be buried at St Mary’s, and she is buried alongside her son and grandson at the front of the church. Frank is buried in the churchyard at Loxton.

The Loxton murder

In 1954 members of the Tiarks' family had to give evidence in a murder trial. More...

 

The photo of Margaret Tiarks is reproduced with kind permission of the Lubbock Archives.

The photo of Frank and Henrietta is reproduced with kind permission of Henrietta, Duchess of Bedford.