Background
William Goffe was the son of Stephen Goffe, rector of Stanmer in Sussex, and the brother of Stephen Goffe who became chaplain to Henrietta Maria.
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Memoranda Concerning Edward Whalley and William Goffe (Classic Reprint)
(Excerpt from Memoranda Concerning Edward Whalley and Will...)
Excerpt from Memoranda Concerning Edward Whalley and William Goffe ("Second Narrative of the late Parliament," 1658, in Harleian Miscellany, iii, 482. Cf. "Treason Discovered." 1660.) Sir Philip Warwick, in his Memoirs of the Reign of King Charles I (p. 307), more kindly describes his as "a ridiculous Phanatick, as well as a crack-brained fellow, though he was a Gentleman of a good family, of which sort of men they had very few among them." There is other testimony that he sided with Parliament from religious conviction, and in opposition to the sentiments of some of his nearest relatives. (See "Noble's Memoirs of the House of Cromwell.") In the midsummer of 1642, "Mr. Oliver Cromwell," a member of Parliament for the town of Cambridge, began to superintend the defence of Cambridgeshire against the insane movements of the king; in August he was Captain of a volunteer troop of horse, and by March, 1643, was Colonel. In the same August, his kinsman, Edward Whalley, was Cornet of the 60th regiment of horse (John Ftennes, Captain), and by March, 1643, was Captain. The next mention found of his name is the letters of Cromwell, reporting an indecisive action at Gainsborough, in Lincolnshire, July 28, 1643: "Major Whalley," he writes," did in this carry himself with all gallantry becoming a gentleman and a Christian" (Carllye's Cromwell, i, 159); and again, "The honor of this retreat, equal to any of late times, is due to Major Whalley and Captain Ayscough, next under God." By March, 1645, when the newly modeled army was organized, with Fairfax Commander-in-Chief, Whalley was prominent enough to be made Colonel of one of the eleven cavalry regiments, and as such helped notably to win the day at Naseby. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com
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William Goffe
Edit ProfileEducation
Goffe learned the trade of drysalter in London. On May 19, 1649, he was given an honorary M. A. by the Reformed University of Oxford.
Career
On the outbreak of the Civil War, Goffe entered the army and rose to the rank of colonel. He was a member of the High Court of justice appointed by Parliament to try Charles I and signed the death warrant of the King.
He fought in the battles of Dunbar and Worcester. In 1655, he was appointed major-general for Sussex, Hampshire, and Berkshire, and in 1656 was elected to Parliament from Hampshire. He was a strong supporter of the house of Cromwell.
He would have accepted Cromwell as King in 1657 and was made a member of Cromwell’s House of Lords. On the death of the lord protector, he transferred his allegiance to Richard Cromwell, who, in 1658, granted him lands in Ireland to the value of £500 per annum.
On April 16, 1660, the Council of State issued a warrant for the apprehension of Goffe, who, accompanied by his father-in-law, Edward Whalley, fled to New England.
From this time until the death of Whalley in 1674 or 1675, the careers of the two men are identical.
They were at Boston and its vicinity from July 27, 1660, to February 26, 1660/61; at New Haven and its vicinity from March 7, 1660/61, to August 19, 1661; and in Milford from August 19, 1661, to the fall of 1664.
On October 13, 1664, they left New Haven for Hadley, Massachusets, where they were received into the home of the Rev. John Russell. There Whalley died in 1674 or 1675.
Shortly after this, according to tradition, Goffe suddenly appeared to the inhabitants of Hadley and rallied them to the defense of their town from an attack of the Indians during King Philip’s War.
In 1676, he removed to Hartford, where he lived with either Capt. Thomas Bull or his son, Jonathan Bull, under the name of T. Duffell. His presence in Hartford was reported to Gov. Andros at New York, and in 1680 Andros complained to Gov. Leete of Connecticut.
On June 10, 1680, the latter ordered a search for Goffe to be made in Hartford and on the following day, the governor and assistants of Connecticut wrote Andros that he had not been found.
Goffe’s wife and children had remained in England, living with the wife of William Hooke, the sister of Whalley. Much of the knowledge of the careers of Whalley and Goffe in New England is derived from the correspondence of Goffe and his wife.
This correspondence ceased in 1679 and it seems probable that Goffe died in Hartford at about that time.
Achievements
Works
book
-
Memoranda Concerning Edward Whalley and William Goffe (Classic Reprint)
(Excerpt from Memoranda Concerning Edward Whalley and Will...)
-
Memoranda Concerning Edward Whalley and William Goffe (Classic Reprint)
Membership
Goffe was a member for Yarmouth of Cromwell’s Parliament of 1654.
Connections
Goffe was married to Frances, the daughter of Edward Whalley, with whom he was destined to be closely associated.
