Robert Nixon was a legendary prophet of Cheshire

Cheshire

Cheshire is a ceremonial county in North West England. Cheshire's county town is the city of Chester, although its largest town is Warrington. Other major towns include Widnes, Congleton, Crewe, Ellesmere Port, Runcorn, Macclesfield, Winsford, Northwich, and Wilmslow...

. Many accounts about him appear to be in conflict with each other.

At least one account has Robert Nixon being born in c. 1467. In this account, he is the son of John Nixon during the time of Edward IV, who leased a farm in the parish of Over

Over, Cheshire

Over is a former borough and market town that forms the western part of the town of Winsford in the English county of Cheshire. Wharton forms the eastern part, the boundary being the River Weaver.-Ancient Origins:...

 from Vale Royal Abbey

Vale Royal Abbey

Vale Royal Abbey is a medieval abbey, and later country house, located in Whitegate, between Northwich and Winsford in Cheshire, England.The abbey was founded in 1270 by Edward I for monks of the austere Cistercian order...

. Another account of Nixon states that he was born during the reign of James I

James I of England

James VI and I was King of Scots as James VI from 24 July 1567 and King of England and Ireland as James I from the union of the English and Scottish crowns on 24 March 1603...

 (1603-25) and that he was for some time in the service of Thomas Cholmondeley, master of Vale Royal after 1625.

There are also two claimed homes for Robert Nixon: one says he was an illiterate boy who was born in Bark House on a hill between Over

Over, Cheshire

Over is a former borough and market town that forms the western part of the town of Winsford in the English county of Cheshire. Wharton forms the eastern part, the boundary being the River Weaver.-Ancient Origins:...

 and Whitegate. Alternatively, another source claims Robert Nixon lived at Bridge House near the Forest of Delamere

Delamere Forest

Delamere Forest or Delamere Forest Park is a wood in the Cheshire West and Chester area of Cheshire, England, near the town of Frodsham. It includes of mixed deciduous and evergreen woodland, centred at around , making it the largest area of woodland in Cheshire...

.

He is the claimed source of various prophecies circulating in the early 18th Century and published in leaflet form.

Some of his prophecies relate to Vale Royal Abbey

Vale Royal Abbey

Vale Royal Abbey is a medieval abbey, and later country house, located in Whitegate, between Northwich and Winsford in Cheshire, England.The abbey was founded in 1270 by Edward I for monks of the austere Cistercian order...

.

Prophecies

• to an abbot of Vale Royal Abbey
  Vale Royal Abbey
  Vale Royal Abbey is a medieval abbey, and later country house, located in Whitegate, between Northwich and Winsford in Cheshire, England.The abbey was founded in 1270 by Edward I for monks of the austere Cistercian order...
  
   "When you the harrow come on high, Soon a raven’s nest will be"
• The last Abbot was named John Hareware
• Sir Thomas Holcroft acquired the buildings of Vale Royal Abbey and some of the estates
• The crest of Sir Thomas was a raven

• "Between a rick and two trees, a famous battle shall be"
• Tbe Battle of St Albans
  Second Battle of St Albans
  The Second Battle of St Albans was a battle of the English Wars of the Roses fought on 17 February, 1461, at St Albans. The army of the Yorkist faction under the Earl of Warwick attempted to bar the road to London north of the town. The rival Lancastrian army used a wide outflanking manoeuvre to...
  
  , 1461 took place between Elstree, Edwinstree and Rickmansworth. However, please note this was likely before Robert Nixon was born and so, therefore, could hardly be a prophecy.

• "The weary eagle shall to an island in the sun retire, where leaves and herbs grow fresh and green. There shall he meet a lady fair"
• Napoleon was sent to St. Helena in 1815
• The island has plentiful rare flora
• Helen of Troy was indeed a "lady fair"

• "All sorts will have chimneys in their mouths"
• Cigarettes

• foretold the result of the Battle of Bosworth Field
  Battle of Bosworth Field
  The Battle of Bosworth Field was the penultimate battle of the Wars of the Roses, the civil war between the House of Lancaster and the House of York that raged across England in the latter half of the 15th century. Fought on 22 August 1485, the battle was won by the Lancastrians...
  
  .

• "When an eagle shall sit on top of the house, then an heir shall be born to the Cholmondeley family"

• "When a raven shall build in a stone lion's mouth, On a church top beside the grey forest: Then shall a King of England be drove from his crown".

Summoned to the court of King Richard III

Richard III of England

Richard III was King of England for two years, from 1483 until his death in 1485 during the Battle of Bosworth Field. He was the last king of the House of York and the last of the Plantagenet dynasty...

, he refused saying he would be "clemmed death", that is, starved to death. The King ordered him to be kept in the kitchen but, because he was always picking at food he was locked in the cupboard. The cook was called away and he starved to death.

A man for all seasons?

Many of the prophecies relate to the family living at Vale Royal Abbey mansion at the time of the 1714 and 1745 Jacobite

Jacobite rising

The Jacobite Risings were a series of uprisings, rebellions, and wars in Great Britain and Ireland occurring between 1688 and 1746. The uprisings were aimed at returning James VII of Scotland and II of England, and later his descendants of the House of Stuart, to the throne after he was deposed by...

rebellions. It seems the prophecies of Robert Nixon were invented or modified to suit the political situation at the time.

Sources

• It's All Over by Brian Curzon, 2006.
• Nixon the Cheshire Prophet by HC Harper, Torsdag Publications, 1978. ISBN 0-906266-02-5: Contains the complete prophecies.
• Nixon's Prophecies in their historical setting by Jacqueline Simpson in Folklore, 1974, p.201-207
• Religion and the Death of Magic by Keith Thomas, Weidenfeld and Nicolson, 1971
• The original predictions oe [sic] Robert Nixon, commonly called the Cheshire prophet; in doggrel verse: published from an authentic manuscript, ... Together with Nixon's Cheshire prophecy at large; ... with historical and political remarks; ... Also, some particulars of his life; by John Oldmixon, Esq. and others. CW Leadbetter in Chester, 1798?