Sheffield Cathedral and the Talbots

​The Talbot's became one of England's most influential families under the reign of Tudors. George Talbot, 4th Earl of Shrewsbury, was a wealthy man owning much of the City of Sheffield he and his large family, he had eleven children, were living there by 1520. Before his death in 1538 Talbot had built a special chapel to house the bodies of his descendants, but five hundred years later, nearly all of them have gone missing.

George Talbot, 4th Earl of Shrewsbury, with his two wives at Sheffield Cathedral.

When workmen were digging up the floor of this chapel at the beginning of a renovation project they came across the entrance to the Shrewsbury tomb. Following this find, archaeologists opened up the sealed crypt and found fewer bodies than they had expected, only two of the seventeen remains that were supposed to be there were in place. The crypt was last opened in 1809 and it was recorded then that these bodies were missing. The remains found were that of the seventh Earl, Gilbert Talbot who died in 1616 and one noble who has been identified as a Henry Howard who lived during the eighteenth century. Archaeologists are considering three different reasons to account for the missing bodies. Firstly, body snatching, the lead that the remains would have been interred in has also vanished. Secondly, that the remains may at some point in time removed from the chapel and taken to different locations. Lastly, and more interestingly is the possibility that there is a secret wall concealing the true location of the bodies.

Cathedral officials have been collaborating with historians from the University of Sheffield in an effort to hunt for the missing bodies. The Dean of Sheffield, Peter Bradley has said:

'We will be working closely with our partners at Sheffield University to solve this mystery, as one of the missing bodies belongs to one of the most important men in Elizabethan England - George Talbot, the sixth Earl of Shrewsbury.'

Two of the three images above show the wonderfully elaborate memorial to the 6th Earl who is lying on a mat wearing elaborate armour, his feet resting on his trusty hound. Also picture is the tomb of George Talbot the 4th Earl, alongside his two wives Anne Hastings and Elizabeth Walden.  

​The hunt is now on to find out what happened to these people that whose remains are missing:

George Talbot, fourth Earl of Shrewsbury (d. 1538)
Mary, Lady Talbot - wife of the fifth Earl (d. 1538)
William Talbot, Marshal of Ireland - son of the fourth Earl 
Francis Talbot, fifth Earl of Shrewsbury (d. 1560)
Thomas Talbot - infant son of the sixth Earl (d. 1565)
Gertrude, Countess of Shrewsbury (d. 1566)
Mary, Countess of Northumberland (d. 1572)
George Pierrepoint (d. 1573)
George Talbot - infant son of the seventh Earl (d. 1577)
Elizabeth, Countess of Lenox (d. 1581)
Francis, Lord Talbot (d. 1582)
George, sixth Earl of Shrewsbury (d. 1590)
Charles Cavendish (d. 1594)
Henry Talbot - brother of the seventh Earl (d. 1595)
Mary, Countess of Shrewsbury (d. 1632)