Clifton family

Over the centuries, the Clifton family has played a full part in local and national affairs. They took their name from the township of Clifton with Salwick between Lytham and Preston, Lancashire. From earliest times, Cliftons were Knights of the Shire (MPs) and in more recent centuries the family has possessed two baronetcies, both of which died out. Being staunch Catholics in the turbulent post-reformation years led to both triumph and tragedy, including sequestration and subsequent restoration of the estates. Below are short biographies of three prominent Cliftons.

Sir Cuthbert Clifton (1581-1634)
Sir Cuthbert Clifton of Westby was the son of Thomas Clifton, a registered recusant. His mother was a Southworth of Samlesbury, another leading Catholic family. He negotiated the purchase of the great estate at Lytham from his Molyneux relatives involving a transfer of Clifton lands south of the Ribble. He got a good deal: 5,500 acres including a magnificent park and a fine manor house (which he rebuilt). He can be regarded as the founding father of the Cliftons of Lytham.

John Talbot Clifton (1868-1928)
He was the second John Talbot, following his grandfather, Colonel John Talbot. The name Talbot seems to have come into the family with the marriage into the Shrewsbury family of the daughter of Thomas, the builder of the present Lytham Hall. John Talbot was something of a rake during his youth, and his restlessness found an outlet in travel and exploration. He made his first visit to America when he was 22 and during this time he had a lengthy affair with Lillie Langtry, which came to light only in 1978. He spent much time living rough in the Far North, extending his travels to Russia, Africa, India and the Far East. At the age of 39 he married Violet Mary Beaclerk, whom he had met in Peru, and settled down to become Squire of Lytham. He was a great benefactor of both Lytham and St. Annes, having laid the foundation stone for the latter when aged seven years old. For some years they lived more or less permanently at Lytham, entertaining lavishly. He eventually bought Kildalton Castle on Islay in 1922 and used that as his main residence. He died in Dakar while on another expedition and is buried on Islay.

Henry Talbot de Vere Clifton (1907-1979)
The last Squire had Stuart blood in him, his mother being descended from the liaison between Charles II and Nell Gwyn. He endured an unhappy childhood and ended up hating his father. He was educated at Downside, Bonn, Grenoble and Oxford and had pretensions to be a poet and scholar. He knew the painter Augustus John and the novelist Evelyn Waugh, possibly after meeting the latter at Oxford, and is thought to be the model for the Brideshead Revisited character, Sebastian Flyte. He inherited before his majority and was able to break the entail on the Estate, gaining access to the capital. He kept permanent suites at the best hotels and became ever more eccentric. He was really a madman, who plundered the Clifton estates to finance his wild schemes and extravagant lifestyle. His mother, Violet, was the last person to live at the Hall and when Henry died he was living in Brighton, virtually penniless.

Main Menu

See Also

Main Menu