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British soldier, merchant, and mariner
- William 'Spread Eagle' Grinly (also Grinley,Grindley or Grindlay) [a] (1748 – 1827) was a British soldier, merchant, and mariner during the 18th and 19th centuries, known for his often distinctive dress and flamboyant character. [ 1 ][ 2 ][ 3 ][ 4 ][ 5 ]
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William 'Spread Eagle' Grinly (also Grinley, Grindley or Grindlay) (1748 – 1827) was a British soldier, merchant, and mariner during the 18th and 19th centuries, known for his often distinctive dress and flamboyant character.
- Life and Family
- Soubriquet
- Notable Anecdotes
- See Also
- Footnotes
Early years
Grinly was born in Borrowstounness, near Edinburgh in 1748, to a prominent seafaring family. His father and all three of his brothers were shipowners and shipmasters, and as a young man he travelled extensively as part of the family merchant shipping business, including going supercargo to Holland, France, Spain, Russia, and America. During his early travels Grinly was shipwrecked multiple times and twice captured by privateers. In the late 18th century, he was aboard the Isabella when it was...
Shipping, soldiering and philanthropy
Grinly also pursued various independent business ventures and was active in supporting the interests of local people. He established Anderson & Grinly, a mercantile firm initially based in Bo'ness and Leith, but operations expanded across southern Scotland to include areas of the southwest coast. In 1773, he was presented with the Freedom of the Burgh of Kirkcudbright, for his philanthropy and expedient business dealings in support of the area. However, when his operations in Bo'ness ultimate...
Marriage and later life
Grinly married twice, firstly to Isabel, daughter of John Ritchie Esq. of Middle Thorn, with whom he had ten children, four sons and six daughters, and secondly to Susan, daughter of John Scott, 3rd Laird of Malleny of Malleny House.In the last years of his life he went entirely blind and had to be escorted at all times when outside. He died in 1827 aged 80, survived by his second wife, and his remains were interred in the family burial ground at South Leith Church.
The soubriquet of the 'Spread Eagle' was given to him by a Mr McLean, a merchant of Leith, due to his stature and distinctive manner of walking.[b] He was known to regularly travel to Edinburgh dressed in the uniform of the Royal Leith Volunteers, and "show off among the merchants and country people" near the Mercat Cross opposite the Royal Exchang...
Several notable quotations and anecdotes were attributed to Grinly throughout his life, some of which were captured by John Kay in his A Series of Original Portraits and Caricature Etchings. Many of those recorded took place in the law courts and auction houses of Leith and Edinburgh. "If I thought there was a better made man in Leith...", said Gri...
Grindlay (Grindley (disambiguation))Grindlay familyaThe family surname was spelt a number of different ways, often even within the same document, with instances of Grinly, Grindly, Grinley, Grindley and Grindlay all used interchangeably for William, his father and brothers, and the wider family. bThe same merchant who gave Grinly the nickname the 'Spread Eagle' had similar appellations for a great ...
Grinling Gibbons (4 April 1648 – 3 August 1721) was an Anglo-Dutch sculptor and wood carver known for his work in England, including Windsor Castle, the Royal Hospital Chelsea and Hampton Court Palace, St Paul's Cathedral and other London churches, Petworth House and other country houses, Trinity College, Oxford and Trinity College, Cambridge.
There was a threat that 100 Radicals armed with guns were to attack and fire the house of William Grinley, the man responsible for notifying the troops of the Radicals' whereabouts on Bonnymuir the previous day.
The first recorded spelling of the family name is shown to be that of William Grindley, which was dated February 13th 1742, who married at Churton Heath, Cheshire, England, during the reign of King George 11, known as the last soldier king, 1727 - 1760.
In the margin of p.80 of his copy of 'A Short History of the 19th (Western) Division, 1914-1918' my father Clifford Brayne (of C Coy, 2nd Wilts), opposite reference to the enemy delivering strong attacks throughout 30th May 1918, has written 'Lt Grinley (sic) killed'.
Aug 11, 2021 · Home. Gibbons, Grinling (1648-1721) Rotterdam then London; carver (b.1648–d.1721) Arguably the most celebrated woodcarver in history, and sometimes described as ‘the Michelangelo of wood’, Gibbons is credited with introducing realistic carving in limewood to England.
