Smalbroke family
The Smalbroke family, also spelled Smallbrook, was an influential English landed family associated with Birmingham from the fifteenth century until the early nineteenth century.
Last updated November 4, 2026
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Overview
The Smalbroke family, also recorded as Smallbrook, was a Birmingham-associated family whose social position developed over several centuries from local yeoman origins into landed gentry status. The family is first documented in the Birmingham area in 1425, when William Smalbroke acted as a trustee of charitable property at Yardley. A later record describes John Smalbroke as a yeoman in 1440, suggesting that the family’s early position was rooted in farming and local propertyholding rather than aristocratic lineage. By the sixteenth century, members of the family had become important participants in Birmingham’s civic and commercial life. Richard Smalbroke occupied property in Park Street during the 1553 survey of Birmingham and served several terms as a bailiff. He was also involved in the foundation of King Edward’s School in New Street. His commercial interests included a High Street shop dealing in ironware, spices, and textiles. These activities illustrate the family’s combination of landholding, civic office, and trade during Birmingham’s transition into a more commercially active town. Richard Smalbroke, the younger member of the next generation, consolidated the family’s local identity by building Blakesley Hall at Yardley in 1590. The house stood on family farmland and became the principal symbol of the family’s landed position. Surviving family account books documented agricultural income, property transactions, tithe payments, and the gradual expansion of the estate. These records show that the Smalbrokes acquired property incrementally rather than through a single major inheritance. During the seventeenth century, the family’s holdings grew substantially. Thomas Smalbroke’s surviving accounts indicate an increase from six fields in 1608 to twenty properties by 1646. His son Richard continued to enlarge the estate through the political and economic disruptions of the English Civil War and Commonwealth. Marriage alliances were also significant. Connections with the Colmore, Rotton, and Knight families linked the Smalbrokes to other prosperous Birmingham and Warwickshire families. Samuel Smalbroke’s marriage to Elizabeth Knight, followed by his acquisition of the Rowington estate, marked the family’s transition from urban burgesses and substantial townspeople to country gentlemen. The most prominent member of the family was Richard Smalbroke, born in Birmingham in 1672. Educated at Magdalen College, Oxford, he entered the Church of England and held a succession of ecclesiastical offices. He became chaplain to Archbishop Thomas Tenison, treasurer of Llandaff, prebendary of Hereford, Bishop of St Davids in 1723, and Bishop of Lichfield and Coventry in 1730. He published sermons, charges, and controversial theological writings, and donated £100 to Magdalen College for new buildings. His ecclesiastical career gave the family a national profile beyond its Birmingham landholdings. Bishop Richard Smalbroke settled portions of the family estate on his sons Richard, William, and Samuel before his death in 1749. The family’s later history was increasingly shaped by inheritance through the female line. Samuel died in 1803, and Richard, the last surviving son of the bishop, died in 1805. The property then passed to the descendants of the bishop’s daughter Catherine, who had married the Reverend William Vyse. Through General Richard Vyse and his successors, the holdings became associated with the Howard-Vyse family of Stoke Park, Stoke Poges. The Smalbroke surname consequently disappeared from the principal line, although the estate continued to generate income and remained connected with Birmingham. The family’s principal material legacy survives in the name Smallbrook Queensway in Birmingham, formerly Smallbrook Street, and in documentary and commemorative records. The street name reflects land near plots associated with Bishop Richard Smalbroke, including property leased in 1707 to gunsmith Samuel Vaughton. A memorial tablet in Lichfield Cathedral commemorates the bishop. Estate records and calendars are held in Birmingham archival collections and in the Centre for Buckinghamshire Studies. The Smalbroke family is therefore best understood not as a commercial brand but as a historical landed family whose influence can be traced through property, civic activity, ecclesiastical office, marriage alliances, and urban memory.
History
The Smalbroke family was a landed family whose history was closely connected with Yardley and Birmingham. The earliest cited record dates from 1425, when William Smalbroke was a trustee of charitable property at Yardley. John Smalbroke was described as a yeoman in 1440, and the family appears to have remained engaged in agriculture during the fifteenth century. In the sixteenth century, the family moved into a more prominent civic and commercial position. Richard Smalbroke occupied a tenement and croft in Park Street at the time of Birmingham’s 1553 survey. He served as a bailiff and participated in the foundation of King Edward’s School in New Street. His High Street shop traded in ironware, spices, and textiles. His family maintained detailed records that provide evidence of property ownership, commercial activity, marriages, and inheritance. A younger Richard Smalbroke built Blakesley Hall at Yardley in 1590. The house was constructed on family farmland and became the clearest architectural expression of the family’s growing status. Its associated agricultural property and outbuildings formed part of an estate that expanded during the following century. Thomas Smalbroke’s accounts record six fields in 1608 and twenty properties by 1646, demonstrating the family’s gradual accumulation of land. The seventeenth century brought further social advancement. Richard Smalbroke enlarged the estate during the Civil War and Commonwealth period, while marriages connected the family with the Colmores, Rottons, and Knights. Samuel Smalbroke’s marriage to Elizabeth Knight and his acquisition of land at Rowington helped complete the family’s transition from prosperous Birmingham burgesses to country gentlemen. Blakesley Hall itself passed through the family and related households before being sold in 1685 to the rector of Solihull for £1,261 and 10 shillings. The family’s most prominent ecclesiastical figure was Richard Smalbroke, born in Birmingham in 1672. After studying at Magdalen College, Oxford, he became a fellow, chaplain to Archbishop Thomas Tenison, treasurer of Llandaff, and prebendary of Hereford. He was consecrated Bishop of St Davids in 1723 and transferred to the bishopric of Lichfield and Coventry in 1730. He wrote sermons, ecclesiastical charges, and controversial works, and supported building work at Magdalen College with a donation. His career connected the Birmingham family to national religious and educational institutions. Bishop Richard Smalbroke and Catherine Brooks had nine children. Before his death in 1749, he settled the family estate on three sons: Richard, William, and Samuel. Several family members held ecclesiastical positions, while others died unmarried. Samuel died in 1803, and Richard, the last surviving son of the bishop, died in 1805. The estate passed through the descendants of Catherine Smalbroke and the Reverend William Vyse, eventually becoming associated with the Howard-Vyse family of Stoke Park. By the nineteenth century, the Smalbroke surname had disappeared from the principal ownership line, although the estate remained economically significant. Estate rentals indicate annual income of approximately £1,000 by the 1820s, but this figure is historical context rather than a current financial measure. The family’s legacy remains visible in Birmingham’s Smallbrook Queensway, formerly Smallbrook Street, and in archives, estate records, and a memorial tablet to Bishop Richard Smalbroke in Lichfield Cathedral.
- 1820
Estate income recorded in later administration
[1]Estate rentals indicate annual income of about £1,000 by the 1820s under the successor family’s administration.
- 1805
Death of the last surviving son of the bishop
[1]Richard Smalbroke died, after which the principal property passed to descendants of his sister Catherine.
- 1749
Death of Bishop Richard Smalbroke
[1]The bishop died after settling the family estate on three of his sons.
- 1730
Richard Smalbroke transferred to Lichfield and Coventry
[1]He became Bishop of Lichfield and Coventry and made a donation to Magdalen College for new buildings.
- 1723
Richard Smalbroke became Bishop of St Davids
[1]Richard Smalbroke was consecrated Bishop of St Davids after an ecclesiastical career in England and Wales.
- 1685
Blakesley Hall sold
[1]Robert Smalbroke sold Blakesley Hall to the rector of Solihull for £1,261 and 10 shillings.
- 1682
Transition to country-gentleman status
[1]Samuel Smalbroke styled himself a gentleman of Rowington after acquiring the Rowington estate.
- 1665
Marriage alliance with the Knight family
[1]Samuel Smalbroke married Elizabeth Knight, strengthening the family’s links with another substantial landed family.
- 1657
Land transaction at Bordesley
[1]Richard Smalbroke sold land at Bordesley to William Hawkes while continuing to develop the family estate.
- 1590
Blakesley Hall built
[1]Richard Smalbroke built Blakesley Hall on family farmland at Yardley.
Products and positioning
Historical landed family associated with Birmingham, local civic affairs, estate ownership, and Church of England office.
Historic residence · 1590
Blakesley Hall
Blakesley Hall was a timber-framed residence built by Richard Smalbroke at Yardley in 1590 on family farmland. It served as the family’s principal architectural landmark and represented the transition from local landholding to established gentry status. The property later passed through related families and was sold in 1685, so it was not retained by the Smalbrokes into the modern period.
Agricultural and urban property holdings
Smalbroke family estates
The family’s holdings included farmland, houses, shops, and other properties in and around Birmingham, as well as land in Warwickshire, Staffordshire, and Buckinghamshire. Account books and estate rentals document the gradual expansion of these assets and their later administration by successor families.
Brand decisions
1805
Transfer of the principal estate to the Vyse successionOtherBackground
Richard Smalbroke, the last surviving son of Bishop Richard Smalbroke, died without leaving the principal property in a continuing male Smalbroke line.
Action taken
The estate passed to the surviving children of Catherine Smalbroke and the Reverend William Vyse, ultimately becoming associated with the Howard-Vyse family.
Aftermath
The Smalbroke surname disappeared from the principal ownership line, although the estate continued to be administered as a Birmingham-connected property holding.
1685
Sale of Blakesley HallOtherBackground
Robert Smalbroke inherited Blakesley Hall but did not wish to assume responsibility for the Yardley property because he lived in Ireland and pursued a military career.
Action taken
He sold Blakesley Hall to the rector of Solihull for £1,261 and 10 shillings.
Aftermath
The hall left direct Smalbroke ownership, while the wider family estate continued through other branches and later inheritance.
Sale price. £1,261 and 10 shillings (1685)
Sources1 sources
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