Sir John Talbot was the second son of Colonel Sharington Talbot. His elder brother Sharington died in infancy so from a young age he was the heir to the estates owned by his father.

Sir John was knighted in 1660 by Charles II as he was the first person to greet the King when he landed in England at his Restoration. He was a royalist and a prominent public figure, being Justice of the Peace for Worcestershire, Wiltshire, Middlesex and Westminster between 1660 and 1689. He was also an MP for Chippenham for a short time in 1679 and was also a member for Devizes and Ludgershall at different times.

There are four people with this name associated with Lacock Abbey and village, although only one actually owned the property.

The first, Sharington Talbot, sometimes known as “the elder”, was born in 1577 the son of John Talbot and Olive Sharington. Unfortunately he died in 1642 and pre-deceased his mother who owned Lacock.

His son Sharington, “the younger”, born in 1599, inherited the estate from his grandmother. He died in 1677.

His first-born son, also Sharington, died in infancy so it was the second son John who inherited.

In accordance with tradition, John named his first son Sharington but sadly he too died before his father.

The following pages provide details of the lives of the three who grew to adulthood.