{67} Ruvigny Addition: Essex Descent for Lord Byron (1788-1824)

Trevanion Coat of Arms
[Argent, on a fess Azure, between two
chevrons Gules, three escallops Or]

The renowned Romantic poet Lord Byron should have been included by Ruvigny in his 1908 Isabel of Essex volume. Byron descends from that lady through his ancestress Jane (neé Drummond), wife of Charles Trevanion of Caerhays Castle, Cornwall. She was the youngest of four daughters and co-heirs of Sir Maurice Drummond, a courtier high in the favour of the Stuart kings. He was a Gentleman Usher to Charles I, and before that had served in the household of Queen Henrietta Maria (who most likely stood as godmother to Drummond's eldest daughter, named for her). Jane was a mere toddler when her father Sir Maurice died in 1642, and it was her mother Dame Dorothy Drummond who was the parental figure in Jane’s life. Born Dorothy Lower into a Cornish gentry family which had purchased the manor of St Winnow in 1471, and made it their chief seat. Dorothy’s father Sir William Lower was a true Renaissance man who studied law, sat in Parliament, and became fascinated with astronomy. Part of the circle around the young Robert Devereux, 3rd Earl of Essex, he married that earl’s first cousin, Penelope Perrot, an heiress who brought him an estate of around 2,300 acres in Carmarthenshire, including the seat of Trefenty House (see the 1979 article 'Trefenty: Some Observations and Reflections' by Maj. Francis Jones, Wales Herald of Arms Extraordinary, in The Carmarthenshire Historian). Sir William loved Trefenty, adopted it as his home, and set up telescopes for astronomical observation. He died there, leaving an eight-year-old daughter Dorothy and a pregnant wife, who gave birth to Lower’s son seven months after his decease. Penelope (neé Perrot) Lower was a formidable woman: her mother had re-married when Penelope was four, to the earl of Northumberland, and she was raised alongside her Percy half-siblings. She also had the well-connected, politically active Lettice (née Knollys), dowager countess of Essex, as a doting grandmother - it was Knollys kinsmen who had overseen Penelope's marriage contract with Sir William Lower.  Taking full advantage of these powerful relatives and their court influence, young widowed Penelope Lower secured the administration of her husband’s estate and the wardship of her infant posthumous son Thomas Lower.

Two years before her own re-marriage to Sir Robert Naunton, Penelope Lower arranged the marriage of her ten-year-old daughter Dorothy to Maurice Drummond. When Thomas Lower died unmarried and childless at age 45 in February 1661, his widowed sister Dame Dorothy Drummond succeeded to Trefenty House (the other major estate, St Winnow in Cornwall, passed to a distant male cousin). Dorothy still had her two youngest daughters, Penelope and Jane, unmarried. Five months later in July 1661, Penelope Drummond was married to Edmund Plowden, heir to the Shropshire estate Plowden Hall. And within five years, Jane Drummond’s marriage was arranged to Charles Trevanion of Caerhays Castle. Dame Dorothy Drummond held firm to the Catholic faith throughout her life, and saw to it that her three eldest daughters married into families of that faith.

Trefenty Old House, Carmarthenshire [Image by Dyfed Archaeological Trust]

Charles Trevanion was cut from an altogether different religious cloth, and it’s interesting that his marriage to Jane Drummond occurred at all, for it was to prove very unhappy. He hated Popery, and was so upset that Jane was raising their three children in the Catholic faith that he disinherited his elder son and heir John in 1686. The younger son Charles became a Catholic priest, and was completely written off by his father. John Trevanion took a Catholic wife Anne Blake, but conformed before his father’s death so that he inherited Caerhays Castle and the rest of the family lands in 1703. This must’ve broken the heart of his mother Jane, who lived in London and had long been estranged from her late husband. When she made out her will (P.C.C. Smith, 132) in 1709, she did not wish to be buried at Caerhays next to her husband, but rather, "to be buried in the parish Church of St. Clement Dane in the County of Middlesex as near my dear mother the late Lady Drummond and my sister Plowden as conveniently I may." Jane's only daughter Mary Winifred Trevanion had died unmarried ten years previous, but Jane leaves nothing, nor makes any mention at all, of either of her two sons, both very much alive, though (at the time) childless. Her jewels, plate, goods and chattels, even the portrait of herself, she left to servants, and to the grandchildren of her late sister Penelope Plowden. The Plowdens in fact are the only relatives Jane names in her will - she makes her nephew William Plowden (1668-1741) one of her two executors (the other one was an attorney, Joseph Sherwood). Jane's younger son, the priest Charles Trevanion, used his mother's surname Drummond as part of his religious name, which doesn't suggest there was an estrangement between them, so his absence from her will may be due to his Catholic vocation. But to pass over as an executor, and indeed to completely overlook, her elder son John Trevanion, does hint at possible estrangement between mother and heir in her final years. The administration of the estate of Charles Trevanion had originally been granted to his widow Jane on 14 Dec. 1703, two weeks after his death, but a little over a year later, on 10 Feb. 1705, Jane renounced administration of the estate and it was granted to her son John. It's possible this had caused, or resulted from, a quarrel over the Trevanion estate.

Drummond Coat of Arms

JANE DRUMMOND, b. c.1640; d. by 4 July 1710 (when her will was proved), bur. St Clement Danes, London, yst dau. of Sir Maurice Drummond of Westminster (d. 1642) and Dorothy Lower (1607-1677, descended from Edward III - see Generation 13 below); m. by 1666, CHARLES TREVANION of Caerhays Castle, Cornwall, b. c.1631; d. 26 Nov. 1703, bur. St Michael Church, Caerhays, son of John Trevanion, Heir of Caerhays Castle (1613-1643, descended from Edward III) and Anne Arundell (c.1611-1701, descended from Edward III), and had issue, two sons and one daughter.

Issue of Charles and Jane (Drummond) Trevanion:

1) JOHN TREVANION of Caerhays Castle, b. 1667; d. 15 Aug. 1740 Caerhays Castle, bur. St Michael Church, Caerhays, M.P. Tregony 1705-08, Bodmin 1708-10, Cornwall 1710-22; m. 1st by 1699, ANNE BLAKE, b. c.1675; d.s.p. by 12 Nov. 1725 (when administration of estate was granted), dau. of Sir Francis Blake of Ford Castle, Northumberland (1638-1718, descended from Edward I) and Elizabeth Carr (1640-by 1713, descended from Edward III); m. 2nd 29 Mar. 1726, Hon. BARBARA BERKELEY, bap. 13 Nov. 1704 St Martin in the Fields, London; d. 16 Mar. 1772 Bath, Somersetshire, dau. of William, 4th Baron Berkeley of Stratton (c.1666-1741, descended from Edward I) and Frances Temple (d. 1707), and had issue, one son and two daughters.

Issue of John and Hon. Barbara (Berkeley) Trevanion:

1A) WILLIAM TREVANION of Caerhays Castle, b. 15 Mar. 1727; d.s.p. 24 Jan. 1767, bur. St Michael Church, Caerhays, M.P. Tregony 1747-1767; m. 19 May 1758 St George Hanover Square, London, as her 1st husband, ANNE BARLOW, bap. 7 Nov. 1737 St Mary Church, Haverfordwest, Pembrokeshire, d.s.p. by 1792, only dau. of George Barlow of Slebech Hall, Pembrokeshire, and Anne Blundell.

1B) FRANCES TREVANION, b. 1728; d. 25 Dec. 1762 The Hyde, East Hyde, Luton, Bedfordshire, bur. 1 Jan. 1763 St Mary Church, Luton; m. 25 Mar. 1753 St Mary Church, Reading, Berkshire, as his 1st wife, Dr. JOHN BETTESWORTH of East Hyde, bap. 30 Oct. 1720 St Margaret Church, Westminster; d. 22 Sept. 1779 The Hyde, bur. St Mary Church, Luton, son of Dr John Bettesworth of Northchurch, Hertfordshire, dean of the Arches (1677-1751) and Elizabeth Jones, and had issue, one son.

The Hyde, East Hyde, Luton, Bedfordshire, c.1967
[Image from 'Ames of Bristol', Landed Families of Britain and Ireland]

1C) SOPHIA TREVANION, b. 8 July 1730 Westminster, London, bap. 21 July 1730 St Margaret Church, Westminster; d. 6 Nov. 1790 Bath, Somersetshire, bur. 12 Nov. 1790 Bath Abbey; m. 8 Sept. 1748 Caerhays Castle, Cornwall, her first cousin, Hon. JOHN BYRON of Plymouth, Devon, b. 8 Nov. 1723; d. 5 Apr. 1786 London, bur. 10 Apr. 1786 St Mary Church, Twickenham, Governor of Newfoundland 1769-71, 2nd son of William, 4th Baron Byron of Rochdale (1670-1736, descended from Edward III) and his 3rd wife Hon. Frances Berkeley (c.1702-1757, descended from Edward I), and had issue, two sons and seven daughters.

2) CHARLES TREVANION aka DRUMMOND, Catholic priest, b. c.1669 Caerhays Castle, Cornwall; d. unm. 16 Mar. 1737 Richmond, Surrey.

3) MARY WINIFRED TREVANION, b. c.1670; d. unm. Jan. 1699 London, will dated 7 Jan. 1699, proved 26 Jan. 1699.

Ruvigny traces the descendants of Dorothy (née Devereux), countess of Northumberland (see Generation 12 below) in Table VI (p. 7) of the Isabel of Essex volume. He has her first husband Sir Thomas Perrot, but omits their daughter Penelope, and only gives Dorothy's issue from her second husband Henry, 9th Earl of Northumberland. So the following descent from Edward III to Lord Byron is an addition to Ruvigny.

Edward III had a second surviving son,

Isabel (née Plantagenet), Countess of Essex
- see Generation 5

1) Lionel of Antwerp, 1st Duke of Clarence (1338-1368) m. 1) Lady Elizabeth de Burgh (1332-1363, descended from Edward I), and had
2) Lady Philippa Plantagenet of Clarence (1355-1377) m. Edmund Mortimer, 3rd Earl of March (1352-1381), and had
3) Roger Mortimer, 4th Earl of March (1374-1398) m. Lady Alianore Holland (1370-1405, descended from Edward I), and had
4) Lady Anne Mortimer (1388-1411) m. Richard of York, 3rd Earl of Cambridge (1385-1415, descended from Edward III), and had
5) Lady Isabel Plantagenet (1409-1484) m. 2) Henry Bourchier, 1st Earl of Essex (1404-1483, descended from Edward III), and had
6) William, Lord Bourchier (c.1428-1477) m. 2) Lady Anne Woodville (c.1448-1489), and had
7) Cecily Bourchier (c.1473-1493) m. John Devereux, 2nd Lord Ferrers of Chartley (1464-1501, descended from Edward I), and had
8) Walter Devereux, 1st Viscount Hereford (c.1491-1558) m. 1) Lady Mary Grey (c.1492-1538, descended from Edward III), and had
9) Sir Richard Devereux of Lamphey (by 1513-1547) m. Lady Dorothy Hastings (c.1520-1566, descended from Edward III), and had
10) Walter Devereux, 1st Earl of Essex (1539-1576) m. Lettice Knollys (1543-1634, descended from Edward III)[*1], and had

Dorothy (née Devereux),
Countess of Northumberland
- see Generation 11

11) Lady DOROTHY DEVEREUX, b. c.1564 Chartley Hall, Staffordshire; d. 3 Aug. 1619; m. 1st July 1583 St Augustine Church, Broxbourne, Hertfordshire, Sir THOMAS PERROT of Haroldston, Pembrokeshire, M.P. Cardiganshire 1586, Pembrokeshire 1593, b. Sept. 1553; d. by 15 Feb. 1594 (when his will was proved), est son of Sir John Perrot of Haroldston (1528-1592, descended from Edward I) and his 1st wife Anne Cheney (c.1528-1553), and had
12) PENELOPE PERROT, b. c.1590; d. by 23 Mar. 1655 (when administration of estate was granted); m. 1st (settlement 13 Aug.) 1605, Sir WILLIAM LOWER of St Winnow, Cornwall, M.P. Bodmin 1601, Lostwithiel 1604, b. c.1570; d. 12 Apr. 1615 Trefenty House, Carmarthenshire, Wales, est son of Thomas Lower of St Winnow (d. 1610) and Jane Reskymer (1552-1615, descended from Edward I), and had[*2]
13) DOROTHY LOWER, b. 1607; d. by 16 Dec. 1679 (when her will was proved), bur. St Clement Danes, London; married by 1617, Sir MAURICE DRUMMOND of Westminster, d. by 13 May 1642 (when his will was proved), son of David Drummond and Margaret Graham, and had[*3]
14) JANE DRUMMOND (c.1640-1710) m. Charles Trevanion of Caerhays Castle (c.1631-1703) - see details above, and had
15) JOHN TREVANION of Caerhays Castle (1667-1740) m. 2) Hon. Barbara Berkeley (1704-1772) - see details above, and had
16) SOPHIA TREVANION (1730-1790) m. Hon. John Byron of Plymouth (1723-1786) - see details above, and had

Lord (6th Baron) Byron -
see Generation 18

17) Capt. JOHN BYRON of Marylebone, London, b. 7 Feb. 1757 Plymouth, Devon, bap. 17 Mar. 1757 St Andrew Church, Plymouth, d. 2 Aug. 1791 Valenciennes, France; m. 2nd 12 May 1785 St Michael Church, Bath, KATHARINE GORDON, bap. 22 Apr. 1764 Banff Parish Church, Banffshire, Scotland; d. 1 Aug. 1811 Newstead Abbey, bur. 9 Aug. 1811 St Mary Magdalene Church, Hucknall Torkard, est dau. of George Gordon, 12th Laird of Gight Castle, Aberdeenshire, Scotland (1740-1779, descended from Edward III) and Katherine Innes (c.1742-1782, descended from James IV), and had
18) GEORGE GORDON, 6th Baron Byron of Rochdale, famous poet 'Lord Byron', b. 22 Jan. 1788 Marylebone, London, bap. 1 Mar. 1788 St Marylebone Parish Church; d. 19 Apr. 1824 Missolonghi, Greece, bur. 16 July 1824 St Mary Magdalene Church, Hucknall Torkard.

[*1] Lettice Knollys was the daughter of Katherine (née Carey) Knollys, who was in turn the daughter of 'the Other Boleyn Girl' Mary Carey, sister of Queen Anne Boleyn. This makes Jane (née Drummond) Trevanion a mtDNA (unbroken female line) descendant of Lady Mary (née Boleyn) Carey. As Jane Trevanion's only daughter predeceased her, childless, Jane's mtDNA line from Mary Boleyn went extinct on her own death.

Sir Robert Naunton (1563-1635)

[*2] Penelope (Perrot) Lower by her first husband, had an only surviving son, Thomas Lower of Trefenty House, M.P. East Looe 1640, b. 8 Dec. 1615; d. unm. 5 Feb. 1661, bur. 21 Mar. 1651 St Clement Danes, London. Penelope m. 2nd 1618, Sir Robert Naunton of Letheringham Hall (1563-1635), and had further issue, an only child, Penelope Naunton (1620-1647), who m. 1st Paul, 2nd Viscount Bayning, and m. 2nd, Philip Herbert, later 5th Earl of Pembroke & Montgomery, and had issue by both husbands.

[*3] The other three daughters of Dorothy (Lower) Drummond were: 1) Henrietta Maria Drummond, b. c.1630; bur. 14 Apr. 1694 St Giles in the Fields, London, m. 1st Robert Middlemore of Edgbaston Hall (c.1624-1652), and had issue, m. 2nd William Roper of Brentford (1623-1685, descended from Edward III) and had further issue; 2) Margaret Drummond, b. c.1635; d.s.p. 1656, m. (settlement 2 Sept.) 1652, as his 1st wife, John, 1st Baron Caryll of Durford (1626-1711, descended from Edward III); and 3) Penelope Drummond, b. c.1639; d. 28 Apr. 1699, bur. St Clement Danes, London, m. July 1661, Edmund Plowden of Plowden Hall (1640-1677, descended from Edward I), and had issue.

The next blogpost will explore Lord Byron's descents from James IV of Scotland, through his mother Catherine (Gordon) Byron.

Cheers,                           ------Brad

{66} Edward III Descents for Sophia (née Trevanion) (1730-1790), Grandmother of Lord Byron

Sophia (née Trevanion) Byron (1730-1790)
Pastel by William Hoare of Bath.
[Image from Pastels & pastellists by Neil Jeffares]

Continuing with the Edward III descents for the Romantic poet Lord Byron, are those he has through his paternal grandmother, Sophia Trevanion.

The Trevanion family took its name from a property on the south coast of Cornwall, in the parish of St. Michael Caerhays, which they owned from at least the fourteenth century. Richard Trevanion (d. 1426/7), a Cornish knight of the shire in 1407, established the manor of Caerhays Castle as his principal seat. His descendant Sir William Trevanion of Caerhays Castle (d. 1518) was the first to marry into the Edward I bloodline when he took to wife Anne, a daughter of the acclaimed Cornish knight Sir Richard Edgcumbe of Cotehele (c.1443-1489). Their descendants, through loyal service to the Tudors and astute support for the Reformation, emerged by the late sixteenth century as one of the county’s leading families.

Sophia Trevanion, amiable, educated, and a celebrated beauty, was the younger daughter of John Trevanion, who represented Cornish boroughs in Parliament for seventeen years. Trevanion’s grandfather and great-grandfather, who had both taken up arms for the King during the Civil Wars, also had represented Cornish boroughs in the Commons, and Trevanion’s father had done likewise after the Restoration. John's first marriage, to Anne, one of the daughters and co-heirs of Sir Francis Blake of Ford Castle, had lasted more than twenty-five years, but was barren. With his younger brother a Catholic priest, it was up to John to provide an heir, so he re-married, four months after his first wife's death, to Hon. Barbara Berkeley, a lady 37 years his junior, a younger daughter of William, 4th Baron Berkeley of Stratton. Three children rapidly followed, all under age when John Trevanion died in 1740, leaving an inheritance worth £4,000 a year.

Caerhays Castle, Cornwall

Sophia, the youngest child, was only age 10 at her father's death. She was the first of the siblings to marry, having fallen in love with her dashing first cousin (their mothers were sisters), the naval officer Hon. John Byron. Both of their fathers dead, their mothers allowed the young cousins to wed in a private chapel in Caerhays Castle in 1748, with Sophia age 18 and Byron age 25.

Hon. John Byron (1723-1786)

SOPHIA TREVANION, b. 8 July 1730 Westminster, London, bap. 21 July 1730 St Margaret Church, Westminster; d. 6 Nov. 1790 Bath, Somersetshire, bur. 12 Nov. 1790 Bath Abbey, yr dau. of John Trevanion of Caerhays Castle (1667-1740, descended from Edward III - see Generation A13 below) and his 2nd wife Hon. Barbara Berkeley (1704-1776, descended from Edward I); m. 8 Sept. 1748 Caerhays Castle, Cornwall, Hon. JOHN BYRON of Plymouth, Devon, b. 8 Nov. 1723; d. 5 Apr. 1786 London, bur. 10 Apr. 1786 St Mary Church, Twickenham, Governor of Newfoundland 1769-71, 2nd son of William, 4th Baron Byron of Rochdale (1670-1736, descended from Edward III) and his 3rd wife Hon. Frances Berkeley (c.1702-1757, descended from Edward I), and had issue, two sons and seven daughters.

Issue of Hon. John and Sophia (Trevanion) Byron:

Frances (née Byron) Leigh
(1749-1823)

1) FRANCES BYRON, b. May 1749 Plympton, Devon, bap. 4 June 1749 St Mary Church, Plympton; d. 19 Oct. 1823 Sandgate, Kent, bur. 26 Oct. 1823 St Martin Church, Cheriton, Kent; m. 11 July 1770 St Marylebone Parish Church, London, Gen. CHARLES LEIGH, b. 1748; d. 7 Aug. 1815, bur. 18 Aug. 1815 St Peter Church, Spixworth, Norfolk, yr son of Thomas Leigh of Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire (1720-1780) and Mary Capper (1715-1771), and had issue, three sons.

2) SOPHIA BYRON, bap. 2 July 1750 St Mary Church, Plympton; d. in infancy, bur. 14 Apr. 1751 St Andrew Church, Plymouth, Devon.

3) ISABELLA BYRON, b. 5 Sept. 1751 Plympton, bap. 4 Oct. 1751 St Mary Church, Plympton; d. in infancy 15 Jan. 1752 Caerhays Castle, bur. St Michael Church, Caerhays.

4) JULIANA ELIZABETH BYRON, b. Feb. 1754 Plymouth, bap. 7 Mar. 1754 St Andrew Church, Plymouth; d. 15 Mar. 1788 Osmaston Hall, Derbyshire, bur. 22 Mar. 1788 St James Church, Osmaston; m. 1st 1771 Gretna Green, Scotland, her 1st cousin, Hon. WILLIAM BYRON of Twickenham, b. 27 Oct. 1749 Albemarle Street, London, bap. 31 Oct. 1749 St James Church, Westminster; d. 22 June 1776, bur. 26 June 1776 St Mary Church, Twickenham, son and heir of William, 5th Baron Byron of Rochdale (1722-1798, descended from Edward III) and Elizabeth Shaw (1729-1788), and had issue, one son (William John Byron, b. 6 May 1772 Westminster, London, bap. 30 May 1772 St George Hanover Square; d. unmarried 31 July 1794 Calvi, Corsica); m. 2nd 24 Sept. 1783 St Michael & All Angels Church, Pirbright, Surrey, Sir ROBERT WILMOT, 2nd Baronet of Osmaston, b. c.1752; d. 23 July 1834 Great Malvern, Worcestershire, est illegit. (born before parents' marriage) son of Sir Robert Wilmot, 1st Baronet of Osmaston (1708-1772, descended from Edward III) and his 2nd wife Elizabeth Foote (d. 1811), and had further issue, one son.

5) SOPHIA MARIA BYRON, bap. 27 Nov. 1755 St Andrew Church, Plymouth, d. unm., bur. 18 Sept. 1779 St Mary Church, Twickenham.

Capt. John Byron (1757-1791)

6) Capt. JOHN BYRON of Marylebone, b. 7 Feb. 1757 Plymouth, bap. 17 Mar. 1757 St Andrew Church, Plymouth; d. 2 Aug. 1791 Valenciennes, France; m. 1st 9 June 1779 St George Hanover Square, London, AMELIA (DARCY) OSBORNE, Marchioness of Carmarthen, b. 12 Oct. 1754; d. 27 Jan. 1784, formerly wife of Francis Osborne, Marquess of Carmarthen (later 5th Duke of Leeds), and only dau. of Robert Darcy, 4th Earl of Holderness (1718-1778, descended from Edward III) and Mary Doublet, and had issue, one daughter; m. 2nd 12 May 1785 St Michael Church, Bath, CATHERINE GORDON, b. 1765; d. 1 Aug. 1811 Newstead Abbey, Nottinghamshire, bur. 9 Aug. 1811 St Mary Magdalene Church, Hucknall Torkard, Nottinghamshire, er dau. of George Gordon, 12th Laird of Gight Castle, Aberdeenshire, Scotland (1740-1779, descended from Edward III) and Catherine Innes (b. 1743, descended from James IV), and had further issue, one son (George Gordon, Lord Byron).

St Andrew Church, Plymouth, Devon

7) Capt. GEORGE ANSON BYRON of Bath, b. 30 Nov. 1758 Plymouth, bap. 23 Jan. 1759 St Andrew Church, Plymouth; d. 11 June 1793 Dawlish, Devon, bur. 17 June 1793 St Gregory Church, Dawlish; m. 1780 Jamaica, HENRIETTA CHARLOTTE DALLAS, bap. 16 Dec. 1762 Kingston, Jamaica; d. 26 Feb. 1793 Bath, Somersetshire, bur. 1 Mar. 1793 Bath Abbey, dau. of Robert Dallas of Dallas Castle, Jamaica (1710-1769) and Sarah Elizabeth Cormack, and had issue, one son (George Anson, 7th Baron Byron) and two daughters (Isabella Sophia Georgiana Byron, b. 9 Feb. 1781, d. unm. 2 June 1800; Julia Maria Charlotte Byron, b. 26 May 1782, d. 16 Sept. 1858, wife of Rev. Robert Heath).

8) CHARLOTTE BYRON, b. Dec. 1760 Plymouth, bap. 3 Jan. 1761 St Andrew Church, Plymouth; d. in infancy, bur. there 17 Apr. 1761.

9) AUGUSTA BARBARA CHARLOTTE BYRON, bap. 28 Nov. 1762 St Andrew Church, Plymouth; d. 10 Mar. 1824; m. 29 Sept. 1785 Holy Trinity Church, Takeley, Essex, CHRISTOPHER PARKER, Heir of Bassingbourne Hall, Takeley, bap. 27 Oct. 1761 St Margaret Church, Westminster; d. 26 May 1804, est son of Sir Peter Parker, 1st Baronet of Bassingbourne (1721-1811) and Margaret Nugent (c.1742-1803), and had issue, three sons and three daughters.

Following are two lines of descent from Edward III that Sophia (née Trevanion) Byron has through her father.

Edward III had a 3rd surviving son:

Cardinal Henry Beaufort -
see Generation A2

A1) John of Gaunt, 1st Duke of Lancaster (1340-1399) m. 3) Katherine Roet (c.1350-1403), and had a son A2 and a dau B2 (see below)
A2) Henry Beaufort, Cardinal Bishop of Winchester (1375-1447) = unknown mistress, and had
A3) Jane Beaufort, illegit. (c.1402-1479) m. Sir Edward Stradling of St Donats Castle (c.1389-1453), and had
A4) Sir Henry Stradling of St Donats Castle (c.1423-1476) m. Elizabeth ap Thomas, and had
A5) Thomas Stradling of St Donats Castle (c.1454-1480) m. Jennet Matthew (d. 1485), and had
A6) Sir Edward Stradling of St Donats (c.1472-1535) m. Elizabeth Arundell (d. 1513), and had
A7) Joan Stradling m. 2) Alexander Popham of Huntworth (by 1504-1556), and had
A8) Sir John Popham of Wellington (c.1531-1607) m. Amy Adams (d. 1612), and had
A9) Mary Popham m. Sir John Malet of Enmore Hall (c.1573-1616, descended from Edward I), and had
A10) Amy Malet m. Charles Trevanion of Caerhays Castle (c.1594-1657, descended from Edward I), and had

Charles Trevanion -
see Generation A10

A11) JOHN TREVANION, Heir of Caerhays Castle, b. 1613; d. July 1643 Bristol, Gloucestershire; married ANNE ARUNDELL (see B10 below), and had
A12) CHARLES TREVANION of Caerhays Castle, b. c.1631; d. 26 Nov. 1703, bur. 2 Dec. 1703 St Michael Church, Caerhays, Cornwall; married JANE DRUMMOND, b. c.1640; d. by 15 June 1710 (when her will was proved), dau. of Sir Maurice Drummond of Westminster (d. 1642) and Dorothy Lower (1608-1677, descended from Edward III), and had
A13) JOHN TREVANION of Caerhays Castle, b. 1667; d. 15 Aug. 1740, bur. St Michael Church, Caerhays; m. 2nd 29 Mar. 1726, Hon. BARBARA BERKELEY, bap. 13 Nov. 1704 St Martin in the Fields, London; d. 16 Mar. 1772 Bath, Somersetshire, dau. of William, 4th Baron Berkeley of Stratton (c.1666-1741, descended from Edward I)[*1] and Frances Temple (d. 1707), and had
A14) SOPHIA TREVANION (1730-1790), paternal grandmother of Lord Byron - see details above

Trevanion of Caerhays Coat of Arms

[*1] I'm one of those who feel there is not enough evidence to support Joan Stradling, the 1st wife of Maurice Dennys of Siston, being a daughter of Jane Beaufort (see Generation A3 above), daughter of Cardinal Henry Beaufort. But for those who feel that connection is valid, then William, 4th Baron Berkeley of Stratton, would also be a descendant of Edward III thru Cardinal Beaufort.

B2) Lady Joan Beaufort (c.1377-1440) m. 2) Ralph Neville, 1st Earl of Westmorland (1364-1425), and had
B3) Richard Neville, 1st Earl of Salisbury (c.1398-1460) m. Alice Montagu 
(1406-1462, descended from Edward I), and had
B4) Lady Katherine Neville (c.1442-1504) m. 1) William Bonville, 6th Lord Harington (1442-1460, descended from Edward I), and had
B5) Cecily Bonville (1460-1529) m. 1) Thomas Grey, 1st Marquess of Dorset (c.1456-1501, descended from Edward I), and had

Cecily (née Bonville),
Marchioness of Dorset -
see Generation B5

B6) Lady Dorothy Grey (c.1485-1553) m. 2) William Blount, 4th Lord Mountjoy (c.1478-1534), and had

B7) Mary Blount (c.1527-by1555) m. Sir Robert Denys of Holcombe Burnell (by 1530-1592), and had
B8) Gertrude Denys (c.1553-1631) m. 1) John Arundell of Trerice House (by 1534-1580), and had
B9) Sir JOHN ARUNDELL of Trerice House, Newlyn, Cornwall, b. 22 Nov. 1576; d. 5 Dec. 1654; m. MARY CARY, b. c.1590; d. bef. 1654, dau. of George Cary of Clovelly (1545-1601, descended from Edward I) and his 3rd wife Katherine Russell (d. 1632), and had
B10) ANNE ARUNDELL, b. c.1611; bur. 8 Nov. 1701 St Columba Church, St Columb Major, Cornwall; m. 1st 8 Nov. 1630 St Newlyn Church, Newlyn East, Cornwall, JOHN TREVANION, Heir of Caerhays Castle (see A11 above)

The next post will look at the mtDNA descent of Jane (née Drummond) Trevanion (see Generation A12 above) from Mary 'the Other Boleyn Girl' Carey, sister of Queen Anne Boleyn.

Cheers,                             ------Brad

{65} Edward III Descent for Lord Byron (1788-1824)

George Gordon, Lord Byron (1788-1824)

By the 19th-century, the family of the Barons Byron of Rochdale had earned a reputation for eccentricity and madness, both of which were readily evident in the family's most famous member George Gordon, 6th Baron Byron - the Romantic poet Lord Byron. At the age of ten, he inherited from his great-uncle the family title and its chief seat, Newstead Abbey, a former Augustinian monastery which lies in Nottinghamshire in the heart of Sherwood Forest and was thought to have been the home of the medieval Friar Tuck of Robin Hood lore. The previous (5th) Baron Byron was fully insane, and, hating his own family, did his best to leave Newstead Abbey as ruinous as possible. What had once been an elegant home on a landscaped estate was left to the young Lord Byron a decaying Gothic ruin, which made him love it all the more. "Through thy battlements, Newstead, the hollow winds whistle," he wrote. "Thou, the hall of my fathers, art gone to decay; In thy once smiling garden, the hemlock and thistle Have choked up the rose which once bloomed in the way." Lord Byron kept a stocked wine cellar, maintained an excellent library, and Newstead Abbey would become the scene of much revelry and many an outrageous affair. Blessed with otherworldly good looks, Byron, in spite of a weird walk due to being born with a club foot, was immensely attractive and sensual, and his affairs, with both sexes (he was a Romantic poet, after all), became the stuff of scandal and legend. While a student at Trinity College Cambridge, "he kept two mistresses, was known for his nightly romps with prostitutes and was said to have fallen in love with a choirboy named John Edleston" ['Lord Byron and Newstead Abbey', Wikipedia].

Newstead Abbey, Nottinghamshire

Lord Byron had a fascination with human skulls. He drank from a goblet made from a skull that had been dug up at Newstead, polished, with a gold rim, mounted on a silver stem. "Lord Byron took a notion that there was a deal of money buried about the Abbey by the monks in old times, and nothing would serve him but he must have the flagging taken up in the cloisters; and they digged and digged, but found nothing but stone coffins full of bones. Then he must needs have one of the coffins put in one end of the great hall, so that the servants were afraid to go there of nights. Several of the skulls were cleaned and put in frames in his room. I used to have to go into the room at night to shut the windows, and if I glanced an eye at them, they all seemed to grin; which I believe skulls always do. I can't say but I was glad to get out of the room" [Nanny Smith, Byron's housekeeper at Newstead].

Loving Newstead so much, Byron wrote, "Come what may, Newstead and I stand or fall together. I have now lived on the spot. I have fixed my heart upon it, and no pressure, present or future, shall induce me to barter the last vestige of our inheritance." Unfortunately his financial difficulties grew so great that he eventually was forced to sell his beloved family seat, in 1818. This dismayed Lord Byron's male heir, his first cousin the naval officer Captain George Anson Byron (1789-1868), who had spent much time with his cousin at Newstead. They had fallen out two years previous, when Captain Byron took the side of Lord Byron's wife in the breakup of his marriage which resulted in a legal separation, and Lord Byron exiling himself to the continent for the remainder of his life. "The newspapers had reported that...Captain George Anson Byron, the new (seventh) Baron, was ill at Bath when the poet's coffin was lowered into the vault at Hucknall Torkard. Ostensibly he was too ill to attend the funeral. Actually he was sulking and bitterly hurt because he had just discovered that he had inherited the family title with neither lands nor money to maintain it" [Violet W. Walker, The House of Byron: A History of the Family from the Norman Conquest, 1066-1988, Quiller Press, 1988, p. 219].

Byron Coat of Arms -
full heraldic achievement

The Byron family claimed to have arrived in England with the Conqueror. By the end of the 12th century, they had acquired the Lancashire property Clayton Hall near Manchester, which they lived in for more than 400 years until they sold it for £4,700 in 1620 to the merchant brothers George and Humphrey Chetham, from Manchester. The family had long ago, at the end of the 13th-century, acquired the Nottinghamshire estate of Colwick Hall through marriage to an heiress, and made it their chief seat. In 1540, Henry VIII granted the dissolved monastery of Newstead Abbey to Sir John Byron (1488-1567), in reward for his service as a knight of the body, for his loyalty to the king through the marriage to Anne Boleyn, and for his help in putting down the Pilgrimage of Grace in 1536. In 1543, Sir John was made steward of the royal manor of Rochdale in the duchy of Lancaster, an office which eventually became hereditary, beginning the Byrons' association with that town, which culminated in the manor's purchase in 1638 by then family head Sir John Byron (1599-1652). When he was elevated to the peerage as a Baron five years later, it was Rochdale that was used as the territory designation, and continues as part of the family's title to the present day, though Rochdale manor was never the family's chief seat, and was ultimately sold by the continuously financially-strapped Lord Byron in 1823, a year before his death.

Detail of wall monument to Sir John and Margaret (Fitzwilliam)
Byron, now in Newstead Abbey

It was another Sir John Byron (c.1560-1623), the grandson of the grantee of Newstead Abbey, who first married into the Edward I bloodline, when in 1580, his father arranged a marriage for him with Margaret, the youngest daughter of Sir William Fitzwilliam of Milton Hall in Northamptonshire. Sir William had recently finished a term as Lord Deputy of Ireland, where he crusaded against the corruption of the previous Irish administration and had accrued massive financial debts in his fifteen-plus years of loyal service to the crown. In March 1575, Sir William, seriously ill, pleaded for Elizabeth I to recall him back to England, claiming that his wife had had to sell stock at Milton to pay his expenses and that his unmarried daughters were losing their chance of finding suitable husbands. His request was granted in September, and the Fitzwilliams re-settled themselves at Milton Hall and set about finding husbands for their daughters. The Byrons were a family only prominent locally in Nottinghamshire and Lancashire, but they had an estate that comprised, in Nottinghamshire, the manors of Newstead, Papplewick, Colwick Bucknall and Snenton, together with several thousand acres of land, and land in twenty-four Lancashire parishes, including the manors of Clayton, Gorton, Blackley, Droylsden and Failsworth. Though young John Byron was not quite the equal of Margaret Fitzwilliam, whose maternal uncles included Thomas Radcliffe, 3rd Earl of Sussex and the renowned poet Sir Henry Sidney of Penshurst Place in Kent, on the social scale, the Byron family was in a better place financially than the heavily indebted Fitzwilliams, and Margaret would be well provided for.

In addition to introducing the royal blood of Edward III to the Byrons, Margaret Fitzwilliam is also, unfortunately, the first recorded instance of madness within the family. "In the late seventeenth century, Margaret Fitzwilliam, wife of Sir John Byron and mother of the first and second Lords Byron, 'went out of her mind and never recovered her reason.' Lady Margaret was described as a woman of 'rare talent and beauty, skilled in the composition of music and poetry,' and it was said that 'her ravings were more delightful then [sic] other women's most rationall conversations'" [Kay Redfield Jamison, Touched With Fire, Simon and Schuster, 1996, p. 156]. Despite this, Sir John Byron's love for his wife never faltered, and they both died on the same day within hours of each other.

The descent from Edward III, thru Margaret Fitzwilliam, down to the first cousins Lord (6th Baron) Byron and George Anson, 7th Baron Byron (father of Hon. & Rev. Augustus Byron), is as follows.

Edward III had a 3rd surviving son:

John of Gaunt, 1st Duke of Lancaster
- see Generation A1

A1) John of Gaunt, 1st Duke of Lancaster (1340-1399) m. 3) Katherine Roet (c.1350-1403), and had
A2) Lady Joan Beaufort (c.1377-1440) m. 2) Ralph Neville, 1st Earl of Westmorland (1364-1425), and had
A3) Richard Neville, 1st Earl of Salisbury (c.1398-1460) m. Lady Alice Montagu 
(1406-1462, descended from Edward I), and had
A4) Lady Alice Neville (c.1434-aft.1503) m. Henry, 6th Lord Fitzhugh (1429-1472), and had
A5) Elizabeth Fitzhugh (1462-bef.1507) m. 2) Nicholas, 1st Baron Vaux of Harrowden (c.1460-1523, descended from Edward I), and had
A6) Alice Vaux (c.1487-bef.1525) m. Sir Richard Sapcote of Elton Hall (1483-1543), and had
A7) Anne Sapcote (c.1508-1569) m. Sir William Fitzwilliam of Milton Hall (1503-1576), and had
A8) Sir WILLIAM FITZWILLIAM of Milton Hall, Northamptonshire, b. 1526 Milton Hall; d. there 22 June 1599, bur. St Mary Church, Marholm, Northamptonshire; Lord Deputy of Ireland 1571-75 and 1588-94; m. (settlement 4 Jan.) 1543, ANNE SIDNEY, b. c.1525; d. 11 June 1602, bur. All Saints Church, Theydon Garnon, Essex, 3rd dau. of Sir William Sidney of Penshurst Place, Kent (c.1482-1554, descended from Edward I) and Anne Pagenham (d. 1543), and had

Fitzwilliam of Milton Coat of Arms

A9) MARGARET FITZWILLIAM, b. London, bap. 3 Mar. 1559 St Benet Fink, London; d. 6 Mar. 1623, bur. St John the Baptist Church, Colwick, Nottinghamshire; m. (settlement 12 Aug.) 1580,  Sir JOHN BYRON of Newstead Abbey, Nottinghamshire, b. c.1560; d. 6 Mar. 1623, bur. St John the Baptist Church, Colwick, son of Sir John Byron of Newstead Abbey (d. 1604) and Alice Strelley (d. 1598), and had
A10) Sir JOHN BYRON of Newstead Abbey, b. Colwick Hall, bap. 22 Nov. 1583 St John the Baptist Church, Colwick; d. 8 Sept. 1625, bur. there 27 Sept. 1625; m. (settlement 2 Mar.) 1599, ANNE MOLYNEUX, b. c.1580, d. aft. 1653, est dau. of Sir Richard Molyneux, 1st Baronet of Sefton (c.1559-1623, descended from Edward I) and Frances Gerard (c.1561-1621, descended from Edward I), and had

Sir John Byron - see
Generation A10

A11) RICHARD, 2nd Baron Byron of Rochdale, b. 1606; d. 4 Oct. 1679 Newstead Abbey, bur. 6 Oct. 1679 St Mary Magdalene Church, Hucknall Torkard, Nottinghamshire; m. 1st by 1633, ELIZABETH (ROSSELL) STRELLEY, d. 22 Mar. 1657, bur. St Mary Magdalene Church, Hucknall Torkard, widow of Nicholas Strelley of Strelley Hall (d. 1632) and dau. of George Rossell of Radcliffe-on-Trent and Margaret Whalley (d. 1634), and had
A12) WILLIAM, 3rd Baron Byron of Rochdale, b. Strelley Hall, Nottinghamshire, bap. 5 July 1635 All Saints Church, Strelley; d. 13 Nov. 1695 Newstead Abbey, bur. 16 Nov. 1695 St Mary Magdalene Church, Hucknall Torkard; m. 1st (lic. 5 Oct.) 1660, ELIZABETH CHAWORTH, b. c.1637; bur. 12 Dec. 1683 St Mary Magdalene Church, Hucknall Torkard, dau. of John, 2nd Viscount Chaworth of Armagh (1605-1644) and his 1st wife Hon. Elizabeth Noel (c.1615-by 1643, descended from Edward I), and had
A13) WILLIAM, 4th Baron Byron of Rochdale, b. 4 Jan. 1670; d. 8 Aug. 1736 Newstead Abbey, bur. St Mary Magdalene Church, Hucknall Torkard; m. 3rd 3 Dec. 1720 St Mary Church, Kensington, London, Hon. FRANCES BERKELEY, b. c.1702; bur. 21 Sept. 1757 St Mary Church, Twickenham, Middlesex, dau. of William, 4th Baron Berkeley of Stratton (c.1666-1741, descended from Edward I) and Frances Temple (d. 1707), and had
A14) Hon. JOHN BYRON of Plymouth, Devon, b. 8 Nov. 1723; d. 5 Apr. 1786 London, bur. 10 Apr. 1786 St Mary Church, Twickenham; Governor of Newfoundland 1769-71; m. Aug. 1748 Caerhayes Castle Chapel, Cornwall, his first cousin, SOPHIA TREVANION, b. 8 July 1730 Westminster, London, bap. 21 July 1730 St Margaret Church, Westminster; d. 6 Nov. 1790 Bath, Somersetshire, bur. 12 Nov. 1790 Bath Abbey, dau. of John Trevanion of Caerhayes (1667-1740, descended from Edward III) and his 2nd wife Hon. Barbara Berkeley (1704-1776, descended from Edward I), and had 2 sons A15 and B15 (see below)
A15) Capt. JOHN BYRON of Marylebone, London, b. 7 Feb. 1757 Plymouth, Devon, bap. 17 Mar. 1757 St Andrew Church, Plymouth, d. 2 Aug. 1791 Valenciennes, France; married 2nd 12 May 1785 St Michael Church, Bath, KATHARINE GORDON, bap. 22 Apr. 1764 Banff Parish Church, Banffshire, Scotland; d. 1 Aug. 1811 Newstead Abbey, bur. 9 Aug. 1811 St Mary Magdalene Church, Hucknall Torkard, est dau. of George Gordon, 12th Laird of Gight Castle, Aberdeenshire, Scotland (1740-1779, descended from Edward III) and Katherine Innes (c.1742-1782, descended from James IV), and had
A16) GEORGE GORDON, 6th Baron Byron of Rochdale, famous poet 'Lord Byron', b. 22 Jan. 1788 Marylebone, London, bap. 1 Mar. 1788 St Marylebone Parish Church; d. 19 Apr. 1824 Missolonghi, Greece, bur. 16 July 1824 St Mary Magdalene Church, Hucknall Torkard.

7th Baron Byron -
see Generation B16

B15) Capt. GEORGE ANSON BYRON of Bath, b. 30 Nov. 1758 Plymouth, bap. 23 Jan. 1759 St Andrew Church, Plymouth; d. 11 June 1793 Dawlish, Devon, bur. 17 June 1793 St Gregory Church, Dawlish; m. 1780 Jamaica, HENRIETTA CHARLOTTE DALLAS, bap. 16 Dec. 1762 Kingston, Jamaica; d. 26 Feb. 1793 Bath, Somersetshire, bur. 1 Mar. 1793 Bath Abbey, dau. of Robert Dallas of Dallas Castle, Jamaica (1710-1769) and Sarah Elizabeth Cormack, and had
B16) GEORGE ANSON, 7th Baron Byron of Rochdale, b. 8 Mar. 1789 Bath; d. 2 Mar. 1868 Brighton, Sussex, bur. All Saints Church, Kirkby Mallory, Leicestershire; m. 18 Mar. 1816 St George Hanover Square, London, ELIZABETH MARY CHANDOS-POLE, b. Radbourne Hall, Derbyshire, bap. 1 Dec. 1793 St Andrew Church, Radbourne; d. 20 Aug. 1873 The Rectory, Kirkby Mallory, bur. All Saints Church, Kirkby Mallory, dau. of Sacheverell Chandos-Pole of Radbourne Hall (1769-1813, descended from James IV) and Mary Ware (1774-1848, descended from Edward III).

The next post will explore the Edward III descents for Sophia Trevanion, wife of Hon. John Byron (see generation A14 above).

Cheers,                                ------Brad

{64} Descendants of Hon. and Rev. Augustus Byron (1828-1907)

Hon. & Rev. Augustus Byron
(1828-1907)

As the younger son of a landless British baron in the early 19th-century, Augustus Byron needed to pursue a profession. He and his siblings grew up in the shadow of the family's most famous member, the Romantic poet Lord Byron (the 6th Baron), whose constant financial difficulties forced him to sell the family's seat, Newstead Abbey, Nottinghamshire, in 1818 while in exile in Italy. When Lord Byron died six years later, the title passed to his first cousin, Augustus's father George Anson Byron, a naval officer with no landed estate. Augustus attended Merton College at Oxford, where he studied law and medicine before eventually choosing to enter the Church. He obtained the rectory of Corton Denham, Somersetshire in 1852, then in 1861 transferred to the rectory of Kirkby Mallory in Leicestershire. The creativity that was the marked characteristic of Lord Byron also could be seen in Rev. Augustus. "Kirkby Mallory has lost probably the most remarkable rector it will ever have," his obituary begins. "His preaching was as interesting as his table-talk, and he found time both to work his parish, to be a good shot, a good rider, a first-rate fisherman, a cricketer, a yachtsman, a doctor, a farmer, an authority on flower-growing, a painter, a musician, and a poet" [Wells Journal, Thursday, August 1, 1907]. His grandson Aubrey Moore recalled in his 1982 autobiography A Son of the Rectory, "My maternal grandfather was a wonderful man...He was a splendid horseman and I was told it was a great sight to see him swing a team of four through Kirkby rectory gate."

Augustus William Byron, the only surviving son of Rev. Byron, was an equally colourful character. An officer in the Leicestershire Imperial Yeomanry, he fought in the Second Boer War 1899-1900, receiving a Queen's medal. He also received a hero's welcome on his return home to Edwinstowe House:

Lt. Augustus William Byron of the Leicestershire Imperial Yeomanry
[Image Anglo-Boer War website]

"In the morning it was made known that Mr. Byron and his servant, Geo. Graham, who has attended him under military conditions as soldier and servant throughout the South African War were to arrive by the 6-55 train. The result of this information was the assembly of a very large number of the residents of the village. A portion of the Boys' Brigade was formed in line in front of the stopping place of the welcome arrivals. After affectionate salutations of near friends, and appropriate bugle calls had been sounded, a move was made outside the station, where a carriage was in waiting. 'The bells from the old Parish Church rang out a merry peal, Mr. Blackborough's band playing "Soldiers of the Queen." On being seated in the carriage, the vicar (the Rev. H.T. Hayman) welcomed the two arrivals in a most appropriate and touching speech, in the course of which he specially referred to the self-sacrifice made by those to whom the reception was accorded. At the conclusion, the Allerton choir from Bradford, who had been enjoying a day in the Dukeries, sang the Doxology, which was most appropriate and was heartily joined in by the crowd, as was also the National Anthem, which followed. - Mr. Byron, who seemed deeply touched at the splendid reception accorded him then responded, and said it was more than a reward for any sacrifice he might have made on behalf of his country, and spoke of the endeavours as nothing more than a man's duty. He then spoke of the devotedness of his attendant, and said that had it not been for his good servant, George Graham, he should not have been there that night, as he had a most severe attack of enteric fever, from the after results of which he was suffering. The carriage which contained Mr. and Mrs. Byron and family, and servant, was then drawn by a body of delighted and willing people to Edwinstone House, where the servants gave their Master a most hearty welcome. Three ringing cheers were given as the family entered their home. Mr. Byron is a captain in the Leicestershire Yeomanry, and has been serving with the Imperial Yeomanry in South Africa" [Worksop Guardian, Friday, August 3, 1900].

Byron Coat of Arms
[Argent, three bendlets enhanced gules]

His non-military career was less distinguished. He found himself in London Bankruptcy Court in July 1912, owing over ‎£62,000 with no assets. "The debtor said that from 1880 to 1897 he was a land agent at Chesterfield. He then acquired a weedless steel tube patent, and sold it to a company...The debtor attributed his failure to the losses, estimated at ‎£20,000, made over the steel tube companies" [Derby Daily Telegraph, Thursday, July 4, 1912]. Augustus William Byron also tried twice, in 1895 and in 1900, to unseat the Liberal Member of Parliament for Chesterfield. He and his wife removed to France in their final years.

The Byron line of Rev. Augustus went extinct in 1969, at the death of his granddaughter Nora Byron. "A niece of mother’s, Nora Byron, was a great character," Aubrey Moore recalled. "She never married, had various jobs, many abroad. She was a great talker and linguist being fluent in German, French and Italian with a smattering of others. She became a Dame at Eton, an office she held for thirty-five years and became a rabid Etonian. I always said her conversation was seventy-five percent Eton, twenty-five percent Byron and five percent casual. Being a Dame at Eton she had the entrée into houses all over the world and she spent every school holiday visiting somewhere, having a port of call at all the places she stopped and being entertained royally" [A Son of the Rectory, 1982].

First Edition of Nora Byron's book

Nora Byron wrote an autobiographical account of her years as a House Dame at Eton - Eton: A Dame's Chronicle, published in 1965. The biographer of Liberal Party Leader Jeremy Thorpe (1929-2014), who was one of Nora Byron's Eton boys, describes her: "The true centre of power...however, resided in the House Dame, Nora Byron, a legendary figure 'of gigantic girth, stupendous energy, and boundless kindness'. She was a keen musician, who pressed all her boys to learn an instrument and organized them into a house orchestra, often an unusual combination for which she would arrange the music herself" [Michael Bloch, Jeremy Thorpe, Little Brown, 2014]. Six of the nine grandchildren of Rev. Augustus Byron who lived to adulthood never married, including Nora. Today, his only living descendants are those of his eldest daughter Mabel Moore.

Hon. and Rev. AUGUSTUS BYRON, Rector of Kirkby Mallory, Leicestershire 1861-1907, b. 8 June 1828 Epsom, Surrey, bap. 11 July 1828 Chapel Royal, Brighton, Sussex; d. 17 July 1907 The Rectory, Kirkby Mallory, bur. 20 July 1907 All Saints Church, Kirkby Mallory, 4th son of George Anson, 7th Baron Byron of Rochdale (1789-1868, descended from Edward III) and Elizabeth Mary Chandos-Pole (1793-1873, descended from Edward III); m. 8 July 1852 St Mary Bryanston Square, London, FREDERICA MCMAHON, b. North End, Fulham, Middlesex, bap. 18 July 1829 All Saints Church, Fulham; d. 29 Mar. 1903 The Rectory, Kirkby Mallory, bur. 1 Apr. 1903 All Saints Church, Kirkby Mallory, yst dau. of Sir Thomas McMahon, 2nd Baronet of Ashley Manor (1779-1860) and Emily Anne Westropp (1787-1866, descended from Edward III), and had issue, three sons and four daughters.

Issue of Hon. & Rev. Augustus and Frederica (McMahon) Byron:

Mabel (née Byron) Moore

1) MABEL CHARLOTTE BYRON, b. 20 Apr. 1853 Bryanston Square, London, bap. 16 May 1853  St Paul Knightsbridge, London; d. 19 Dec. 1926 Lavender Cottage, Appleby Magna, Leicestershire, bur. St Michael & All Angels Church, Appleby Magna; m. 7 Jan. 1880 All Saints Church, Kirkby Mallory, Rev. CHARLES THOMAS MOORE, Rector of Appleby, b. 3 Feb. 1847 Appleby Hall, bap. 15 Apr. 1847 St Michael & All Angels Church, Appleby Magna; d. 21 July 1924 Hill House, Ashby de la Zouch, Leicestershire, bur. St Michael & All Angels Church, Appleby Magna, yr son of George Moore of Appleby Hall (1811-1871, descended from Henry VII) and his 2nd wife Isabel Clara Holden (1810-1867, descended from Henry IV), and had issue, four sons and two daughters.

2) LEILA FREDERICA DORA BYRON, b. 13 Sept. 1854 The Rectory, Corton Denham, Somersetshire, bap. 8 Oct. 1854 St Andrew Church, Corton Denham; d. unm. 5 Feb. 1875 The Rectory, Kirkby Mallory, bur. 8 Feb. 1875 All Saints Church, Kirkby Mallory.

3) Capt. AUGUSTUS WILLIAM BYRON of Edwinstowe House, Nottinghamshire, Leicestershire Yeomanry Cavalry, b. 23 Feb. 1856 The Rectory, Corton Denham, bap. 23 Mar. 1856 St Andrew Church, Corton Denham; d. 27 July 1939 Hyères, Var, France; m. 5 Aug. 1885 St Paul Knightsbridge, London, CONSTANCE CAROLINE CLOUGH-TAYLOR, b. 11 Jan. 1855 Kirkham Abbey, Yorkshire, d. 13 Aug. 1941 Grasse, Alpes-Maritimes, France, dau. of Edward Clough-Taylor of Kirkham Abbey (1822-1892, descended from Edward III) and Sophia Mary Harrison (1825-1902, descended from Edward III), and had issue, two daughters.

Augustus William Byron (1856-1939)

Issue of Capt. Augustus William and Constance Caroline (Clough-Taylor) Byron:

3A) NORA HERMIONE WENTWORTH BYRON, b. 11 Oct. 1886 Duckmanton Lodge, Derbyshire, bap. 11 Nov. 1886 St Mary Church, Sutton-cum-Duckmanton, Derbyshire; d. unmarried 20 Oct. 1969 Maidenhead, Berkshire; House Dame at Eton College 1928-1963, author of Eton: A Dame's Chronicle (1965).

3B) ADA CONSTANCE FREDERICA BYRON, b. 23 Feb. 1891 Duckmanton Lodge, bap. 30 Mar. 1891 St Peter Church, Calow, Derbyshire; d. unm. 22 Dec. 1950 Kensington, London.

4) ETHEL MAUD EMILY BYRON, b. 10 Jan. 1858 Eaton Place, London, bap. 15 Feb. 1858 St Peter Eaton Square, London; d.s.p. 2 June 1940 Farnham, Surrey; m. 9 Jan. 1889 All Saints Church, Kirkby Mallory, HORACE GEORGE CLOUGH-TAYLOR of Leicester, b. 12 Oct. 1856 Kirkham Abbey, Yorkshire; d.s.p. 14 Feb. 1916 Leicester, yr son of Edward Clough-Taylor of Kirkham Abbey (1822-1892, descended from Edward III) and Sophia Mary Harrison (1825-1902, descended from Edward III).

5) MARY BEATRICE BYRON, b. 30 July 1859 The Rectory, Corton Denham, bap. 4 Sept. 1859 St Andrew Church, Corton Denham; d. 16 Feb. 1911 Brighton, Sussex; m. 18 Aug. 1886 All Saints Church, Kirkby Mallory, as his 1st wife, FRANCIS CURZON NEWTON [later changed to CURZON] of Lockington Hall, Leicestershire, b. 27 Apr. 1861 Mickleover Manor House, Derbyshire, bap. 18 July 1861 All Saints Church, Mickleover; d. 3 Mar. 1918 Lockington Hall, yr son of Charles Edmund Newton of Mickleover Manor House (1831-1908, descended from Edward I) and his 1st wife Anne Rosamond Curzon (1832-1864, descended from Henry IV), and had issue, three daughters. "One of mother’s sisters, Aunt Minnie, a very tall stately woman, married Frank Newton of the Curzon family and lived at Bearwardcote, outside Derby, pronounced 'Baracote'. They had a family of three daughters, all rather undistinguished, to put it mildly. Their mother could never see it and paraded them about and even had one of them presented at Court – a frightful blunder. Something happened at the act of presentation that was hushed up. She fell over on rising or curtseying, and uncontrolled nature took over. Needless to say the other two were not presented" [Aubrey Moore in 1982, A Son of the Rectory].

Issue of Francis Curzon and Mary Beatrice (Byron) Newton:

5A) ROSAMOND FREDERICA NEWTON, b. 14 July 1887 The Rectory, Kirkby Mallory; d. unm. 7 Feb. 1973 The Briary Nursing Home, Fleet, Hampshire. "The eldest daughter was in love with, or had a crush on the local curate. He eventually went on to a living and the girl was very upset. To pacify her he promised to send her his parish magazine every month, which he did. Some time after, at one of the many dinners at Bearwardcote, she was sitting next to the new curate, and appeared very glum. He said to her ‘Miss Newton, you look very sad, is anything the matter?’ She answered ‘Yes, there is something that should come every month and it hasn’t – I’m worried’. The curate was somewhat taken aback. It was only the magazine which had not come" [Aubrey Moore in 1982, A Son of the Rectory].

All Saints Church, Kirkby Mallory, Leicestershire

5B) VIOLET MARY CURZON NEWTON, b. 31 Mar. 1890 Bearwardcote Hall, Etwall, Derbyshire; d. unm. 28 Dec. 1979 Otara Nursing Home, Kingsley Green, Fernhurst, Sussex.

5C) MARJORIE FRANCES NEWTON, b. 1894 Bearwardcote Hall; d. unm. 28 Jan. 1954 Farnham, Surrey.

6) CLAUD GORDON AUGUSTUS BYRON, b. 10 Jan. 1861 The Rectory, Corton Denham; d. 4 Dec. 1863 The Rectory, Kirkby Mallory, bur. 8 Dec. 1863 All Saints Church, Kirkby Mallory.

7) CECIL GEORGE GORDON BYRON, b. 17 Dec. 1867 Brighton, Sussex; d. there 26 Dec. 1867, bur. St Andrew Church, Hove, Sussex.

As the Byron family cannot be explored without a glance at the famous Lord Byron, my next post will look at his descents from Edward III.


Cheers,                                           -------Brad

{63} Ruvigny Continuation: Descendants of Rev. Charles Thomas Moore (1847-1924)

Rev. Charles Thomas Moore
(1847-1924)

Returning to the descendants of George Moore of Appleby Hall (1811-1871), we have his younger son, the clergyman Charles Thomas Moore. Known to the community of Appleby Magna, Leicestershire, as Rector Moore -- his older brother the squire of Appleby Hall appointed him to the rectory in 1877 -- Charles cut the figure of a squire far more than that of a parson. "With his fondness for hunting and the country life he was the veritable squarson," is the apt description from historian Richard Dunmore in his online article 'The Moores of Appleby Parva', using a word 'squarson' that I'm filing away for further use. Rev. Moore "was a strong, colourful and, at times, controversial character who played a leading role in the village during his 45 years as rector...Apart from the church, he was very active as a trustee and governor in supporting the struggling school."

Old Rectory House, Appleby Magna, Leicestershire

In his 1982 autobiography A Son of the Rectory, Rev. Moore's youngest son Aubrey describes his father: "He was ordained in Worcester Cathedral and went as Curate to Elmbridge, a village in the same county. Following that, he was Vicar of Breedon-on-the-Hill. He lived at the [Appleby] Hall, there being no vicarage, with one or two of his sisters. He was very friendly with the rector of Lockington, Nathanial Storey. Both enjoyed their hunting together and a bit of cock fighting too...Like his father he was a first class shot, in fact he liked all forms of sport...He never let sport, on which he was so keen, interfere with his duties. A funeral, wedding or other Church function was not popular if fixed for the day of the Grand National, Ascot week, the Varsity or Eton and Harrow cricket matches. He was a staunch Conservative and showed his dislike for the Liberals by not reading the prayer for Parliament when that party was in office. In his early days as rector he had a good old row with the then bishop of Peterborough, Appleby being in the Peterborough diocese at this time, who told him among other things he should not ride in point to point races. From then on he had a marked dislike for bishops."

Rev. Charles and Mabel (Byron) Moore with their two eldest children in 1885

In 1880, two years after taking over the rectory of Appleby Magna, Rev. Moore married Mabel Byron, the 26-year-old eldest daughter of a neighbouring clergyman, Rev. Augustus Byron, rector at Kirkby Mallory only 14 miles away. Mabel quickly became a strong presence in the village. As her son later described, "Father was no doubt a good rector. He ran the church efficiently but left no doubt as to who was boss. Mother was a tower of strength. She did a large amount of the parish work, chose the hymns etc., and conferred with the organist William Riley, the headmaster of the boys’ school and a churchwarden, as to the Church music in general, as father was not musical."

Rev. Moore continued as rector at Appleby until his nephew sold Appleby Hall. Aubrey recounts, "The patronage of the living of Appleby was sold with the Appleby estate by my cousin Charlie after the death of Uncle George. Father was getting a bit tired by then and things would not be the same so he retired in 1922 and went to live at Hill House in Ashby." He died there two years later. His widow Mabel returned to Appleby Magna, where she died two years after her husband, both buried in the church to which they devoted more than forty years of their lives.

Rev. Charles Moore & Children in Ruvigny's 1903 Tudor volume pp. 485-86

Ruvigny lists Rev. Charles Moore and his four surviving children on pp. 485-486 in his 1903 Tudor volume. The account below is an elaboration and continuation of Ruvigny's entries. It is through Rev. Moore that the male line of the Moores of Appleby Hall continues to the present, with four great-grandsons of the reverend, one living in Europe, one in Australia, and the other two in Britain.

Moore of Appleby coat of arms

Rev. CHARLES THOMAS MOORE, Rector of Appleby 1877-1922, b. 3 Feb. 1847 Appleby Hall, bap. 15 Apr. 1847 St Michael & All Angels Church, Appleby Magna; d. 21 July 1924 Hill House, Ashby de la Zouch, Leicestershire, bur. St Michael & All Angels Church, Appleby Magna; m. 7 Jan. 1880 All Saints Church, Kirkby Mallory, Leicestershire, MABEL CHARLOTTE BYRON, b. 20 Apr. 1853 Bryanston Square, London, bap. 16 May 1853 St Paul Knightsbridge, London; d. 19 Dec. 1926 Lavender Cottage, Appleby Magna, bur. St Michael & All Angels Church, Appleby Magna, dau of Hon. and Rev. Augustus Byron of Kirkby Mallory (1828-1907, descended from Edward III) and Frederica McMahon (1829-1903, descended from Edward III), and had issue, four sons and two daughters.

Issue of Rev. Charles and Mabel (Byron) Moore:

Col. Wilfrid Byron (1871-1936)

1) SYLVIA MARY MOORE, b. 18 Oct. 1880 The Rectory, Appleby Magna, bap. 19 Dec. 1880 St Michael & All Angels Church, Appleby Magna; d. 27 Dec. 1952 Hampshire; m. 25 Sept. 1901 St Michael & All Angels Church, Appleby Magna, her first cousin, Col. WILFRID BYRON of South Perth, Western Australia, b. 31 Jan. 1871 Stoke Talmage, Oxfordshire; d. 7 Nov. 1936 South Perth, bur. 9 Nov. 1936 Karrakatta Cemetery, Perth, son of Hon. & Rev. William Byron of Stowlangtoft (1831-1907, descended from Edward III) and his 1st wife Mary Elizabeth Kindersley (1834-1877, descended from Edward III), and had issue, two sons and one daughter.

2) CHARLES FREDERICK KIRKSTEAD 'Tim' MOORE of St Leonards-on-Sea, Sussex, b. 22 Nov. 1883 The Rectory, Appleby Magna, bap. 3 Feb. 1884 St Michael & All Angels Church, Appleby Magna; d. 28 Sept. 1938 St Leonards-on-Sea; m. 11 Oct. 1922 St Winifreds Catholic Church, Lewisham, London, BELLE ALICE WILSON, b. 28 Dec. 1897 London; d. 20 Dec. 1971 Hastings, Sussex, dau. of Charles Wilson of Islington, mechanical engineer (c.1846-1915) and Elfreda McKilliam (1857-1939), and had issue, one son and one daughter. "My eldest brother, Charles, always known as Tim, also wanted to be in the South African War and joined the Cape Mounted Police. On returning from South Africa he went rubber planting with the Bertam Rubber Company. He died at the comparatively early age of fifty-one" [Aubrey Moore in 1982, A Son of the Rectory].

Issue of Charles Frederick Kirkstead and Belle Alice (Wilson) Moore:

2A) (CHARLES) NOEL KIRKSTEAD MOORE of Matosinhos, Porto, Portugal, b. 28 Sept. 1923 Shropshire; d. 18 Oct. 2014 Matosinhos. Had issue, at least one son. "My Uncle Tim had a son, Noel, and a daughter, Marion. Noel lives in Germany and Portugal and Marion lives in Cyprus. Noel has a son and I have 3 sons but, otherwise, as a family, the Appleby Moores have practically died out in England" [Peter Moore in 2003, 'End of An Era', A Son of the Rectory, 2nd Edition].

2B) MARION ELIZABETH MOORE of Cyprus, b. 1926 Hampshire; m. 25 Nov. 1950 St Mary of the Angels Catholic Church, Paddington, London, SAMUEL PETER MCCORMACK, electrical contractor, b. 3 Oct. 1919; d. 1999 - further history not known.

Three generations of Moores in 1924 [from l. to r., Charles Frederick 'Tim' Moore
holding his son Noel, Rev. Charles T. Moore, Aubrey Moore holding his son Peter]

3) GEORGE AUGUSTUS WILLIAM MOORE, b. 20 Sept. 1889 The Rectory, Appleby Magna, bap. 27 Oct 1889 St Michael & All Angels Church, Appleby Magna; d. unm. 20 Sept. 1911. "My other brother, George, after leaving Cranleigh, had ideas about going into the Church, which would have pleased father but he suddenly changed his mind and went to Moira Colliery, indentured to John Turner, a leading Leicestershire coalowner. Through neglected flu and general awkwardness about eating he developed T.B. and died in 1911 on his twenty-second birthday" [Aubrey Moore in 1982, A Son of the Rectory].

4) VERA IRENE MOORE, b. 26 Nov. The Rectory, Appleby Magna, bap. there 27 Nov. 1890; d. there 28 Nov. 1890, bur. same day St Michael & All Angels Church, Appleby Magna.

5) ESMÉ JOHN MOORE, b. 6 May 1892 The Rectory, Appleby Magna; d. there 7 May 1892, bur. 9 May 1892 St Michael & All Angels Church, Appleby Magna.

Capt. Aubrey Moore
(1893-1992)

6) Capt. AUBREY GORDON de APPLEBY MOORE of Bloxham, Oxfordshire, b. 30 Aug. 1893 The Rectory, Appleby Magna, bap. 15 Oct 1893 St Michael & All Angels Church, Appleby Magna; d. 9 Apr. 1992 Bloxham, served with the Leicestershire Regiment during the First World War and was awarded a Military Cross, author of A Son of the Rectory (1982), an autobiographical account of village life in Appleby Magna in the early 20th-century; m. 1 Sept. 1917 All Saints Church, Isley Walton, Derbyshire, LOUISE MAY SHIELDS, b. 29 May 1892 Manor House, Isley Walton; d. Feb. 1992 Bloxham, dau. of John Gillies Shields of Donington Park (1857-1943) and Ellen Craig Alexander (1858-1939), and had issue, one son and one daughter.

Issue of Aubrey Gordon de Appleby and Louise May (Shields) Moore:

6A) ROSAMUND HELEN de APPLEBY MOORE, b. 24 Feb. 1920 Grammar School House, Appleby Magna "Rosamond was also the last Moore to be born in Appleby" [Aubrey Moore in 1982, A Son of the Rectory]; d. 1999 Oxfordshire; m. Mar. 1941 St Helen Church, Ashby de la Zouch, Leicestershire (divorce), as his 1st wife, Col. JOHN GEORGE ERNEST SCOTT, O.B.E., of Ashby de la Zouch, owned a successful textile company and served on the board of Courtaulds, b. 20 June 1911 Walker, Newcastle-on-Tyne, Northumberland; d. 1999 Leicestershire, son of George Johnson Scott of Walker (b. 1885) and Annie Jane Adams (b. 1888), and had issue, two sons (John C.R. Scott, b. 1942 and Rupert Peter James Scott, b. 28 June 1949, d. Dec. 2012) and one daughter.

Peter John de Appleby Moore
(1921-2013)

6B) PETER JOHN de APPLEBY MOORE of Snelston, Leicestershire, b. 16 Dec. 1921 Bullring House, Much Wenlock, Shropshire; d. 23 July 2013 Rose Cottage, Snelston, served in World War II with 25th Battalion Leicestershire Regiment, awarded a Military Cross, "After the war he went up to Magdalene College, Cambridge, to read Agricultural Science, and won a blue for Rugby. He became a dairy farmer on what is now the Donington Park race circuit until 1968, when an injury to his back forced him to give up...chairman of the trustees of the Grade One-listed Sir John Moore School at Appleby Magna...He held the post for 50 years, continuing an unbroken line of family trustees since the school was founded, guiding what he fondly described as the grandest village school in the country from semi-dereliction to thorough refurbishment. He was also for many years a Tax Commissioner and regional representative for the National Trust" [Obituary in The Telegraph]; m. 1957, CYNTHIA MARY MASON, b. 1933 Birmingham, and had issue, three sons:

Issue of Peter John de Appleby and Cynthia Mary (Mason) Moore:

6B1) (CHARLES) TOBY de APPLEBY MOORE, b. 1959

6B2) (RICHARD) BROUGH de APPLEBY MOORE, b. 1961 Derbyshire

6B3) (PETER) RUFUS de APPLEBY MOORE, b. 1966 Derbyshire

The next few blogposts will explore the ancestry of Rev. Charles Moore's wife, Mabel Byron.

Cheers,                            ----Brad