John Charles Brooke FSA

Society of Antiquaries of London

The Society of Antiquaries of London is a learned society "charged by its Royal Charter of 1751 with 'the encouragement, advancement and furtherance of the study and knowledge of the antiquities and history of this and other countries'." It is based at Burlington House, Piccadilly, London , and is...

 (27 August 1748 – 3 February 1794) was an English antiquarian

Antiquarian

An antiquarian or antiquary is an aficionado or student of antiquities or things of the past. More specifically, the term is used for those who study history with particular attention to ancient objects of art or science, archaeological and historic sites, or historic archives and manuscripts...

 and Somerset Herald

Somerset Herald

Somerset Herald of Arms in Ordinary is an officer of arms at the College of Arms in London. In the year 1448 Somerset Herald is known to have served the Duke of Somerset, but by the time of the coronation of King Henry VII in 1485 his successor appears to have been raised to the rank of a royal...

 at the time of his premature death in 1794.

Early life

Brooke was born at Fieldhead in the parish of Silkstone

Silkstone

Silkstone is a village and civil parish in the Metropolitan Borough of Barnsley in South Yorkshire, England. It is situated in the foothills of the Pennines, between the towns of Barnsley and Penistone, and includes the village of Silkstone Common...

, Yorkshire

Yorkshire

Yorkshire is a historic county of northern England and the largest in the United Kingdom. Because of its great size in comparison to other English counties, functions have been increasingly undertaken over time by its subdivisions, which have also been subject to periodic reform...

 in August of 1748, son of Dr. William Brooke and Alice Mawhood. He was also a descendant of the Rev. John Brooke, rector of High Hoyland

High Hoyland

High Hoyland is a village and civil parish in the Metropolitan Borough of Barnsley in South Yorkshire, England, on the border with West Yorkshire. It lies to the west of Kexbrough, and is located at approximately , at an elevation of around 200 metres above sea level...

, who had himself - in the previous century - been an antiquarian interested in the history of Yorkshire

History of Yorkshire

Yorkshire is a historic county of England, centred on the county town of York. The region was first occupied after the retreat of the ice age around 8000 BC. During the first millennium AD it was occupied by Romans, Angles and Vikings. Many Yorkshire dialect words and aspects of pronunciation...

. John Charles Brooke would eventually come into possession of some of the historical material collected by Rev. Brooke, and thus his "taste for historical and genealogical research" was "perhaps inherited."

The second of his parents' children, Brooke was sent to London in order to be apprenticed to a chemist named James Kirkby in the Holborn

Holborn

Holborn is an area of Central London. Holborn is also the name of the area's principal east-west street, running as High Holborn from St Giles's High Street to Gray's Inn Road and then on to Holborn Viaduct...

 section of the city. However "after discovering a strong turn to heraldic pursuits" and attracting the attention of the Duke of Norfolk

Duke of Norfolk

The Duke of Norfolk is the premier duke in the peerage of England, and also, as Earl of Arundel, the premier earl. The Duke of Norfolk is, moreover, the Earl Marshal and hereditary Marshal of England. The seat of the Duke of Norfolk is Arundel Castle in Sussex, although the title refers to the...

 (Edward Howard

Edward Howard, 9th Duke of Norfolk

Edward Howard, 9th Duke of Norfolk, Earl Marshal was a British peer. The son of Lord Thomas Howard and Mary Elizabeth Savile, he succeeded as Duke of Norfolk in 1732, after the death of his brother, Thomas Howard, 8th Duke of Norfolk.He married Mary Blount , daughter of Edward Blount and Anne...

 at that time), Brooke was able to secure a placement in the College of Arms

College of Arms

The College of Arms, or Heralds’ College, is an office regulating heraldry and granting new armorial bearings for England, Wales and Northern Ireland...

.

Death

On 3 February 1794 he had attended the Haymarket Theatre

Haymarket Theatre

The Theatre Royal Haymarket is a West End theatre in the Haymarket in the City of Westminster which dates back to 1720, making it the third-oldest London playhouse still in use...

 in Pall Mall, London

Pall Mall, London

Pall Mall is a street in the City of Westminster, London, and parallel to The Mall, from St. James's Street across Waterloo Place to the Haymarket; while Pall Mall East continues into Trafalgar Square. The street is a major thoroughfare in the St James's area of London, and a section of the...

 with Benjamin Pingo, York Herald

York Herald

York Herald of Arms in Ordinary is an officer of arms at the College of Arms. The first York Herald is believed to have been an officer to Edmund of Langley, Duke of York around the year 1385, but the first completely reliable reference to such a herald is in February of 1484, when John Water...

. Both men were crushed to death in a crowd of well wishes eager to see the King, at the side door of the theatre. According to Walter Thornbury, "Mr Brooke had died standing, as he was found as if asleep, and with colour still in his cheeks."

King George III had attended the theatre that day and was only told of the deaths of both Officers of Arms after he had departed.

John Charles Brooke is buried in St Benet Paul's Wharf

St Benet Paul's Wharf

The Church of St Benet Paul's Wharf is the Welsh church of the City of London. Since 1555, it has also been the church of the College of Arms, and many officers of arms are buried there. The current church was designed by Sir Christopher Wren.-History:...

, London, a church closely associated with the College of Arms.