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Eld was paymaster of Essex’s army during his brutal campaigns in Ireland. Essex had strong Staffordshire connections, being the 11th Baron Ferrers of Chartley and Lord Lieutenant of the county; this could be why Eld came into possession of Seighford – and is generally considered to be the original owner of the Hall. The Elds continue to hold the Seighford Estate to this day (the Hall and approx 17 acres was sold out of the Estate in 1963) and the Family Seat has now moved to the adjacent Cooksland Hall.
In 1666 Francis Elde, presumably then living at Seighford Hall, was assessed for six hearths in the Staffordshire Hearth Tax; this suggests a relatively large house – consistent with the surviving timber-framed section of the existing house – but not a very large one; it wasn’t even the biggest within the Seighford Constablewick – which belonged to Sir Thomas Whitgreauve, who was assessed for eight hearths