Sykes family of Sledmere
Encyclopedia
The Sykes family of Sledmere own Sledmere House
in Yorkshire
, England.
during the Middle Ages. The earliest correspondence in the Sykes archives relates to Richard Sykes (1678-1726), from his factors in Danzig and local gentry. William Sykes (1500-1577), migrated to the West Riding of Yorkshire, settling near Leeds, and he and his son became wealthy cloth traders.
Daniel Sykes (b.1632), was the first member of the family to begin trading in Hull and amassed a fortune from shipping and finance. Richard Sykes (1678-1726) diversified further, concentrating on the flourishing Baltic trade in bar iron
and the wealth of the family was built on this in the first half of the eighteenth century. He married Mary Kirkby, co-heiress to the Sledmere estates of Mark Kirkby, and, secondly, Martha Donkin. Two of his sons, Joseph Sykes (1723-1805) and Richard Sykes (1706-1761), managed the family business jointly. They were leading participants in the cartel in oregrounds iron
, the raw material for blister steel. After Richard's death, Joseph continued this business alone, and members of the family continued it after his death until the 1850s. Joseph had bought estates around West Ella
and Kirk Ella
.
Mark Sykes (1711-1783), was rector of Roos
, and 1st baronet. His correspondence includes letters from the London merchant Henry de Ponthieu about the French in Canada 1761-3 and circa 100 letters from his London banker, Joseph Denison. He was succeeded at Sledmere by his one surviving child, Christopher Sykes (1749-1801), who was MP for Beverley 1784-90. In 1770 he made a fortuitous marriage with Elizabeth Egerton of Tatton whose inheritance of £17,000 from her father was hugely augmented by her inheriting her brother's Cheshire estates and another £60,000 from her aunt in 1780. Christopher Sykes sold off shipping interests and government stock and he and his wife expanded the Sledmere estate. They bought and enclosed huge areas of land for cultivation and built two new wings to the house. The grounds were landscaped and 1000 acres (4 km²) of trees planted. The entire village of Sledmere was relocated. His correspondence includes two letters from the archbishop of York and about 270 letters from a wide range of people including William Carr of York and Henry Maister of Hull. Christopher Sykes's son, Mark Masterman Sykes (1771-1823), was a knowledgeable collector of books and fine arts, but these were sold when he died childless. He was succeeded by his younger brother, Tatton Sykes (1772-1863) 4th baronet, who had an interest in agricultural techniques and horse racing.
His only son, Sir Tatton Sykes (1826-1913), developed into a rather withdrawn man who sold his father's stud for £30,000 and restored seventeen churches. He married Jessica Cavendish-Bentinck (d. 1912). Their one son, Mark Sykes (1879-1919) travelled in the Middle East and wrote Through five Turkish provinces and The Caliph's last heritage. He married Edith Gorst, and their honeymoon took them to Paris, Rome, Constantinople and Jerusalem. They had six children. Mark Sykes was elected MP for Central Hull in 1911 and occupied himself for the early part of World War I establishing the Waggoner's Special Reserve. From May 1915 he was called to the War Office by Lord Kitchener and is largely remembered for the part he played in forging the Inter-Allied agreement about the Middle East in 1916, the Sykes-Picot Agreement
. While in Paris during the peace conference Mark Sykes contracted influenza and died at the age of only 39. He was a key figure in Middle East policy decision-making and his papers are a source of material on policy. Mark Sykes was succeeded in the title and Sledmere estates by Richard Sykes (1905-1978) and then Tatton Sykes.
Sledmere House
Sledmere House is a Grade I listed Georgian country house, containing Chippendale, Sheraton and French furnishings and many fine pictures, set within a park designed by Capability Brown. It is located in the village of Sledmere, between Driffield and Malton, in the East Riding of Yorkshire, England...
in 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...
, England.
Family history
The Sykes family settled in Sykes Dyke near Carlisle in CumberlandCumberland
Cumberland is a historic county of North West England, on the border with Scotland, from the 12th century until 1974. It formed an administrative county from 1889 to 1974 and now forms part of Cumbria....
during the Middle Ages. The earliest correspondence in the Sykes archives relates to Richard Sykes (1678-1726), from his factors in Danzig and local gentry. William Sykes (1500-1577), migrated to the West Riding of Yorkshire, settling near Leeds, and he and his son became wealthy cloth traders.
Daniel Sykes (b.1632), was the first member of the family to begin trading in Hull and amassed a fortune from shipping and finance. Richard Sykes (1678-1726) diversified further, concentrating on the flourishing Baltic trade in bar iron
Wrought iron
thumb|The [[Eiffel tower]] is constructed from [[puddle iron]], a form of wrought ironWrought iron is an iron alloy with a very low carbon...
and the wealth of the family was built on this in the first half of the eighteenth century. He married Mary Kirkby, co-heiress to the Sledmere estates of Mark Kirkby, and, secondly, Martha Donkin. Two of his sons, Joseph Sykes (1723-1805) and Richard Sykes (1706-1761), managed the family business jointly. They were leading participants in the cartel in oregrounds iron
Oregrounds iron
Oregrounds iron was a grade of iron that was regarded as the best grade available in 18th century England. The term was derived from the small Swedish city of Öregrund. The process to create it is known as the Walloon method....
, the raw material for blister steel. After Richard's death, Joseph continued this business alone, and members of the family continued it after his death until the 1850s. Joseph had bought estates around West Ella
West Ella
West Ella is a village in the East Riding of Yorkshire, England and is located approximately west of the city of Kingston upon Hull. It is situated on the east side of the A164 road. On the other side of the A164 road is Swanland...
and Kirk Ella
Kirk Ella
Kirk Ella is a village in the East Riding of Yorkshire, England and is located around west of the city of Kingston upon Hull. Together with West Ella it forms the civil parish of Kirk Ella and West Ella....
.
Mark Sykes (1711-1783), was rector of Roos
Roos
Roos is a village and civil parish in the East Riding of Yorkshire, England. It is situated east of Kingston upon Hull city centre and north west of Withernsea on the B1242 road.The Prime Meridian crosses the coast to the east of Roos....
, and 1st baronet. His correspondence includes letters from the London merchant Henry de Ponthieu about the French in Canada 1761-3 and circa 100 letters from his London banker, Joseph Denison. He was succeeded at Sledmere by his one surviving child, Christopher Sykes (1749-1801), who was MP for Beverley 1784-90. In 1770 he made a fortuitous marriage with Elizabeth Egerton of Tatton whose inheritance of £17,000 from her father was hugely augmented by her inheriting her brother's Cheshire estates and another £60,000 from her aunt in 1780. Christopher Sykes sold off shipping interests and government stock and he and his wife expanded the Sledmere estate. They bought and enclosed huge areas of land for cultivation and built two new wings to the house. The grounds were landscaped and 1000 acres (4 km²) of trees planted. The entire village of Sledmere was relocated. His correspondence includes two letters from the archbishop of York and about 270 letters from a wide range of people including William Carr of York and Henry Maister of Hull. Christopher Sykes's son, Mark Masterman Sykes (1771-1823), was a knowledgeable collector of books and fine arts, but these were sold when he died childless. He was succeeded by his younger brother, Tatton Sykes (1772-1863) 4th baronet, who had an interest in agricultural techniques and horse racing.
His only son, Sir Tatton Sykes (1826-1913), developed into a rather withdrawn man who sold his father's stud for £30,000 and restored seventeen churches. He married Jessica Cavendish-Bentinck (d. 1912). Their one son, Mark Sykes (1879-1919) travelled in the Middle East and wrote Through five Turkish provinces and The Caliph's last heritage. He married Edith Gorst, and their honeymoon took them to Paris, Rome, Constantinople and Jerusalem. They had six children. Mark Sykes was elected MP for Central Hull in 1911 and occupied himself for the early part of World War I establishing the Waggoner's Special Reserve. From May 1915 he was called to the War Office by Lord Kitchener and is largely remembered for the part he played in forging the Inter-Allied agreement about the Middle East in 1916, the Sykes-Picot Agreement
Sykes-Picot Agreement
The Sykes–Picot Agreement of 1916 was a secret agreement between the governments of the United Kingdom and France, with the assent of Imperial Russia, defining their respective spheres of influence and control in Western Asia after the expected downfall of the Ottoman Empire during World War I...
. While in Paris during the peace conference Mark Sykes contracted influenza and died at the age of only 39. He was a key figure in Middle East policy decision-making and his papers are a source of material on policy. Mark Sykes was succeeded in the title and Sledmere estates by Richard Sykes (1905-1978) and then Tatton Sykes.
Archives
The family archives include correspondence with Winston Churchill, Austin Chamberlain, Chaim Weizmann, Arthur Balfour, F G Picot, Nahum Sokolow, C P Scott, W Ormesby-Gore, Sir Ronald Storrs, Alfred Dowling, E G Browne, Francis Maunsell, Grant Dalton and Oswald Fitzgerald.External links
- http://www.hull.ac.uk/arc/collection/landedfamilyandestatepapers/sykes.html Sledmore estate papers - University of HullUniversity of HullThe University of Hull, known informally as Hull University, is an English university, founded in 1927, located in Hull, a city in the East Riding of Yorkshire...