Colonel Edward Matthews, who makes regular appearances in the diary of Thomas Bellingham, was frequently in Preston between May 1689 and the following May, at which time he was serving as a lieutenant-colonel in Levenson’s Dragoons. He left Preston for Ireland in May 1690 and in June 1690 he was appointed colonel of the Royal Regiment of Dragoons. Bellingham served with him in Ireland. In 1693, Matthews was back in Lancashire with his regiment and Lord Brandon considered him as a candidate in the Wigan by-election, but he did not contest the seat. Matthews died in 1697. [1]
