Evidence

It is recommended that you first read the Introduction and Lancashire Origins pages before proceeding any further.

Studying Roger son of Warin is not unlike an astronomer trying to prove the existence of a black hole: as there is so little to see, it is the evidence of everything surrounding it that proves its existence.

Of course, the key factor is that the lands in Stansfield which were granted to Roger and Amabella by her father, John son of Essolf, were held of Jordan de Thornhill and his descendants, who also held lands in Lancashire in the same locality as Roger's forebears.

There is no record of Roger son of Warin in Lancashire after his marriage and presumed move to Calderdale to take up the land granted by his father in law. Apart from Dodsworth's notes in the Bodleian Library detailing that grant, West Yorkshire Archives have a record of a quitclaim witnessed by Elias son of Roger de Stansfeld dated as 'early 13th century' (West Yorkshire Archive Service, Calderdale SU/B:11). There is also a precisely dated record of John son of Elias de Stanesfeld witnessing a lease in 1238, which fits the time frame for Roger son of Warin, his son Elias, and his grandson John (Yorks Deeds Vol 2 p157).

In the context of the wider family, there is sufficient evidence to show that the brother of John son of Essolf, Helias son of Essolf (whose son Reginald founded the Sothill family) held lands in Stansfield of his brother Jordan son of Essolf (whose son Richard founded the Thornhill family). Later documents show that the Stansfeld family lands in Stansfield were held of the Sothills, who held them of the Thornhills.