Genealogy is a major trend right now. More people than ever are engaged in researching their family trees. Libraries are offering classes and professional assistance. Ancestry.com, among other genealogy websites, is one of the fastest growing databases online. TV shows are based on genealogy of celebrities and regular folks. It would be interesting to determine the cause of this social phenomenon.
I don't miss an episode of any of these shows! It is fascinating to me to follow the research trail of expert genealogists as they uncover the family histories of people of all races and nationalities. The emotional reactions of these subjects as they learn the personal and sometimes tragic stories of their ancestors are completely understandable to me. I've experienced some of the most emotional moments of my life during my own family tree explorations.
Popular TV shows include:
Finding Your Roots (TLC)
Who Do You Think You Are (TLC)
Genealogy Roadshow (PBS)
Long Lost Family (TLC)
This morning I am catching up on the latest episode of Who Do You Think You Are. This episode features the ancestry of actress Courteney Cox. As the genealogist quickly traces Courteney's line back to England, some familiar names begin to pop up...Thomas Berkeley...Edward II...and I realize that they are also my own ancestors! The stories in this episode are shocking and terrible.
Here is the lineage back in time (forgive the lengthy list - just want to establish the connection):
Me
my father
my paternal grandfather, Ernest Earl Zaun, 1909-1959
my great grandmother, Georgia Powell, 1885-1973
her mother, Marie Louis Judd, 1859-1925
3X gg Orrin Bishop Judd, 1816-1892
4X gg Jotham Chester Judd, 1773-1850
5X gg Elnathan Judd, 1738-1808
6X gg Joseph Judd, Jr., 1707-1757
7X gg Joseph Judd, Sr., 1672-1757
8X gg John Judd, Deacon, 1640-1714
9X gg Thomas Judd, Deacon, 1608-1688 (the 1st ancestor to come to America)
10X gg Katherine Elizabeth Norwood, 1575-1632
11X gg Lady Catherine Throckmorton, 1532-1581
12X gg Sir Robert Throckmorton, High Sheriff of Warwick, 1510-1581 (married Muriel Berkeley, daughter of Lord Thomas Berkeley V)
13X gg Anna Catherine Vaux, 1488-1571
14X gg Lady Elizabeth Fitzhugh of Ravensworth, 1465-1513
15X gg Alice De Neville, Lady Fitzhugh, 1436-1503
16X gg Richard Neville, Earl of Salisbury, 1400-1460 (beheaded)
17X gg Joan De Beaufort, 1379-1440
18X gg John Plantagenet, Duke of Lancaster, 1340-1399 (also called John of Gaunt, or Ghent)
19X gg King Edward III, 1312-1377
20X gg King Edward II, 1284-1327 and Isabella, 1295-1358 (daughter of Phillip IV of France)
According to the expert genealogist on the show, this line can be traced all the way back to William the Conqueror. Queen Isabella was the granddaughter of Queen Isabelle of Aragon. I wish I had paid more attention in history class!
There are all kinds of sordid affairs, gruesome executions, and murderous plots among the various members of this tree. The Courteney Cox episode of the TV show focused on the plot to overthrow King Edward II (he was apparently a terrible king). His wife Isabella conspired with her lover Roger Mortimer to seize the throne for her son. King Edward II (thereafter referred to as "the king's father") was imprisoned for months and later murdered in his chamber at Berkeley Castle (which you can visit today).
The Berkeleys - pronounced "bark-lee"- were an important family, second only to royalty in England. My ancestor Thomas Berkeley I was tried and found not guilty of the murder of King Edward II. To add to the family history drama, King Edward II's chamberlain Hugh DeSpenser was publicly executed - we are also directly descended from him through his daughter Elizabeth who married Maurice de Berkeley, son of Thomas. Side note: we are connected to the famous Berkeleys of Virginia, but not directly.
Showing posts with label Berkeley. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Berkeley. Show all posts
Wednesday, March 8, 2017
Sunday, March 2, 2014
We will never be Royals
... but we were so close! the English are so much better at documenting their lineages. Once I am able to connect our family tree to someone in England, the research is a piece of cake. There are Knights, Lords and Ladies, Crusaders, Consorts, Castles, and a direct (albeit illegitimate) link to Royalty in our ancestry. There was even a beheading!
Elizabeth Fitzhugh Vaux, Lady of Ravensworth, my 14th great grandmother on my paternal side, was the grandmother of Catherine Parr, the sixth wife of Henry VIII. The Vaux family were created barons by Henry VIII in 1523.
Her husband Nicholas, my paternal 14th great grandfather, was the Baron of Harrowden; his grandfather was a Knight.
Sir George Throckmorton, my paternal 13th great grandfather, was the Lord and Knight of Coughton.
His son, Sir Robert, was the High Sheriff of Warwick.
My paternal 12th great grandmother was Muriel Berkeley of Berkeley Castle.
Audrey Barlow, my paternal 9th great grandmother, was a descendent of Henry II of England by his mistress Ida De Tony.
Elizabeth Fitzhugh Vaux, Lady of Ravensworth, my 14th great grandmother on my paternal side, was the grandmother of Catherine Parr, the sixth wife of Henry VIII. The Vaux family were created barons by Henry VIII in 1523.
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| Ruins of Ravensworth Castle |
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| Harrowden Hall, now the Wellingborough Golf Club |
Sir George Throckmorton, my paternal 13th great grandfather, was the Lord and Knight of Coughton.
His son, Sir Robert, was the High Sheriff of Warwick.
My paternal 12th great grandmother was Muriel Berkeley of Berkeley Castle.
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| Berkeley Castle |
Audrey Barlow, my paternal 9th great grandmother, was a descendent of Henry II of England by his mistress Ida De Tony.
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| Audrey Barlow, also the ancestor of Sarah Palin, Richard Nixon, and Jimmy Carter. |
My maternal 14th great grandfather, Sir Ieuan "Evan" Bushe, was descended from Welsh royalty and was in a long line of Knights and Ladies, and his issue married into families of Lords and Ladies such as Fernfould and L'Strange. According to Wikipedia, he was a renowned poet.
Sir William Carter of Hertfordshire, my maternal 13th great grandfather, married Lady Alice Croxton of Watford; his parents were the Lord and Lady of Cusworth.
Lord William Ravenscroft of Croxton (maternal 14th great grandfather), father of Lady Alice.
My maternal 16th great grandfather, Richard Neville, Earl of Salisbury, was beheaded in 1460 after the Battle of Wakefield.
Others direct ancestors include:
Sir John Anstell (maternal 13th great grandfather) of Cornwall
Sir John Wright, maternal 15th great grandfather, Lord Kelvedon
Perhaps, most famously of all, John Plantagenet, 1st Duke of Lancaster, maternal 18th great grandfather
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| Ieuan wrote about 50 poems. His love poems are considered to be his best work. |
Sir William Carter of Hertfordshire, my maternal 13th great grandfather, married Lady Alice Croxton of Watford; his parents were the Lord and Lady of Cusworth.
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| Cusworth Hall, now a country house museum |
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| Croxton Abbey |
My maternal 16th great grandfather, Richard Neville, Earl of Salisbury, was beheaded in 1460 after the Battle of Wakefield.
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| Richard Neville effigy |
Others direct ancestors include:
Sir John Anstell (maternal 13th great grandfather) of Cornwall
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| Cornwall |
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| St. Mary the Virgin Church, Kelvedon, Essex |
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| John of "Gaunt" (born in Ghent), 1st Duke of Lancaster |
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| Kenilworth Castle, modernized by John of Gaunt after 1350. So, that is the extent of my knowledge of our English bloodlines to date. I remember learning about some of these people in my history and English Literature classes. |
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