Jane Ingleby of Ripley Castle (died 1651), also known as Trooper Jane, was an English

recusant Recusancy (from ) was the state of those who remained loyal to the Catholic Church and refused to attend Church of England services after the English Reformation. The 1558 Recusancy Acts passed in the reign of Elizabeth I, and temporarily repea ...

and, according to legend, a female soldier in the

Battle of Marston Moor The Battle of Marston Moor was fought on 2 July 1644, during the Wars of the Three Kingdoms of 1639–1653. The combined forces of the English Parliamentarians under Lord Fairfax and the Earl of Manchester and the Scottish Covenanters unde ...

. Ingleby reportedly fought in battle during the

English Civil War The English Civil War or Great Rebellion was a series of civil wars and political machinations between Cavaliers, Royalists and Roundhead, Parliamentarians in the Kingdom of England from 1642 to 1651. Part of the wider 1639 to 1653 Wars of th ...

, dressed as a man in a full suit of armor. After retreating to

Ripley Castle Ripley Castle is a Grade I listed 14th-century country house in Ripley, North Yorkshire, England, north of Harrogate. The house is built of coursed squared gritstone and ashlar with grey slate and stone slate roofs. A central two-storey block ...

following the

Royalists A royalist supports a particular monarch as head of state for a particular kingdom, or of a particular dynastic claim. In the abstract, this position is royalism. It is distinct from monarchism, which advocates a monarchical system of gover ...

' loss at Marston Moor, she held

Oliver Cromwell Oliver Cromwell (25 April 15993 September 1658) was an English statesman, politician and soldier, widely regarded as one of the most important figures in British history. He came to prominence during the Wars of the Three Kingdoms, initially ...

at gunpoint overnight in the castle library to prevent him from searching the house for her brother, Sir William Ingleby, 1st Baronet.

Early life and family

Ingelby was the daughter of Sampson Ingleby, a member of the

landed gentry The landed gentry, or the gentry (sometimes collectively known as the squirearchy), is a largely historical Irish and British social class of landowners who could live entirely from rental income, or at least had a country estate. It is t ...

and a steward for

Henry Percy, 9th Earl of Northumberland Henry Percy, 9th Earl of Northumberland, Order of the Garter, KG (27 April 1564 – 5 November 1632) was an English people, English nobleman. He was a grandee and one of the wealthiest peers of the court of Elizabeth I. Under James VI and I, Ja ...

, and Jane Lambert of Killinghall. She had four sisters and two brothers. The family lived at Spofforth Castle, where her father was employed. Their relatives were involved in the

Gunpowder plot The Gunpowder Plot of 1605, in earlier centuries often called the Gunpowder Treason Plot or the Jesuit Treason, was an unsuccessful attempted regicide against James VI and I, King James VI of Scotland and I of England by a group of English ...

in 1605. Ingleby was related to

Francis Ingleby Francis Ingleby (c. 1551 – 3 June 1586) was a Roman Catholic martyr executed in York, England during the reign of Elizabeth I. Born about 1551, he was the fourth son of Sir William Ingleby and Anne Malory of Ripley Castle, North Yorksh ...

, a Catholic priest and

martyr A martyr (, ''mártys'', 'witness' Word stem, stem , ''martyr-'') is someone who suffers persecution and death for advocating, renouncing, or refusing to renounce or advocate, a religious belief or other cause as demanded by an external party. In ...

. In January 1618, her brother William Ingleby, inherited

from their uncle, Sir William Ingleby. She moved to Ripley Castle with her brother. King

Charles I Charles I may refer to: Kings and emperors * Charlemagne (742–814), numbered Charles I in the lists of Holy Roman Emperors and French kings * Charles I of Anjou (1226–1285), also king of Albania, Jerusalem, Naples and Sicily * Charles I of ...

created her brother as Baronet Ingelby in 1642.

English Civil War

The Ingelby family were

Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

and staunch

royalists A royalist supports a particular monarch as head of state for a particular kingdom, or of a particular dynastic claim. In the abstract, this position is royalism. It is distinct from monarchism, which advocates a monarchical system of gover ...

who supported the

Stuart Stuart may refer to: People *Stuart (name), a given name and surname (and list of people with the name) * Clan Stuart of Bute, a Scottish clan *House of Stuart, a royal house of Scotland and England Places Australia Generally *Stuart Highway, ...

king Charles I. During the

, she reportedly fought alongside her brother, Sir William, in the

in 1644 while disguised as a man in a full suit of armour. They lost the battle to the

Roundhead Roundheads were the supporters of the Parliament of England during the English Civil War (1642–1651). Also known as Parliamentarians, they fought against King Charles I of England and his supporters, known as the Cavaliers or Royalists, who ...

and retreated to Ripley Castle. As

approached the estate, her brother hid in a secret

priest hole A priest hole is a hiding place for a priest built in England or Wales during the period when Catholics were persecuted by law. Following the accession of Queen Elizabeth I to the throne in 1558, there were several Catholic plots designed to remo ...

. When Cromwell arrived at the house, he was initially denied entry by Jane Ingleby, who claimed to fear for her honour and virtue. She convinced Cromwell to make his soldiers sleep outside of the castle and in the local church. Reluctantly, she eventually allowed Cromwell to enter the castle, but held him at gun point in the library for the entire night, preventing him from searching the house. Cromwell left the next morning without searching the castle. Afterward, Ingleby was referred to as "Trooper Jane". Ingelby lived her final years working on a nearby farm in

North Yorkshire North Yorkshire is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in Northern England.The Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority areas of City of York, York and North Yorkshire (district), North Yorkshire are in Yorkshire and t ...

to help pay off Parliament-imposed fines on her Royalist and

family. She died before the restoration of the English monarchy, and was buried at Ripley Castle on 20 December 1651.

Legacy

Crack Shot Ale, a beer produced by

Daleside Brewery Daleside Brewery is an independent brewery founded in 1988 by Bill Witty. Its headquarters are located in Harrogate, North Yorkshire, England. In March 2024, it was reported that the company had been acquired by Rooster's Brewery. History Th ...

Harrogate Harrogate ( ) is a spa town and civil parish in the North Yorkshire District, district and North Yorkshire, county of North Yorkshire, England. Historic counties of England, Historically in the West Riding of Yorkshire, the town is a tourist de ...

, is named in honor of Ingelby. Eleanor Jane Ingilby, daughter of

Sir Thomas Colvin William Ingilby, 6th Baronet Sir Thomas Colvin William Ingilby, 6th Baronet (born 17 July 1955) is a British aristocrat, one of the Ingilby baronets. He lives at Ripley Castle. The family opened the castle to the public in the late 1980s. Early life Ingilby was born on ...

, is named after Jane Ingleby.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ingilby, Jane 1651 deaths 17th-century English women 17th-century Roman Catholics English Civil War fiction Female wartime cross-dressers Fictional female soldiers Jane People from Spofforth, North Yorkshire Recusants Women soldiers Women in the English Civil War Date of birth missing Date of death missing Year of birth missing Oliver Cromwell