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Bernabo Visconti, Lord of Milan
February 27, 2014
— 4 Comments
Bernabo
My 18th great-grandfather probably poisoned his brother for territory. He was surely excommunicated, and was the object of the anger of the Holy Roman Emperor, Charles IV. This is exactly when my knowledge of Euro history is fuzzy. Venice was once a giant kingdom that included much of Austria….Bernabo was born in Milan. Holy Roman Empire, Batman, this is confusing!!!!!
Bernabo Lord Milan di Visconti (1319 – 1385)
is my 18th great grandfather
Veridis Duchess Austria Visconti (1352 – 1414)
daughter of Bernabo Lord Milan di Visconti
Ernst I “Ironside” Archduke of Austria Habsburg (1377 – 1424)
son of Veridis Duchess Austria Visconti
Katharina Archduchess Austria Von Habsburg (1420 – 1493)
daughter of Ernst I “Ironside” Archduke of Austria Habsburg
Christof I VanBaden (1453 – 1527)
son of Katharina Archduchess Austria Von Habsburg
Beatrix Zahringen (1492 – 1535)
daughter of Christof I VanBaden
Sabine Grafin VonSimmern (1528 – 1578)
daughter of Beatrix Zahringen
Marie L Egmond (1564 – 1584)
daughter of Sabine Grafin VonSimmern
Richard Sears (1590 – 1676)
son of Marie L Egmond
Silas Sears (1638 – 1697)
son of Richard Sears
Silas Sears (1661 – 1732)
son of Silas Sears
Sarah Sears (1697 – 1785)
daughter of Silas Sears
Sarah Hamblin (1721 – 1814)
daughter of Sarah Sears
Mercy Hazen (1747 – 1819)
daughter of Sarah Hamblin
Martha Mead (1784 – 1860)
daughter of Mercy Hazen
Abner Morse (1808 – 1838)
son of Martha Mead
Daniel Rowland Morse (1838 – 1910)
son of Abner Morse
Jason A Morse (1862 – 1932)
son of Daniel Rowland Morse
Ernest Abner Morse (1890 – 1965)
son of Jason A Morse
Richard Arden Morse (1920 – 2004)
son of Ernest Abner Morse
Pamela Morse
I am the daughter of Richard Arden Morse
Visconti castle
Bernabò Visconti (also called Barnabò) (1323 – 18 December 1385) was an Italian soldier and statesman, who was Lord of Milan.
Life
He was born in Milan, the son of Stefano Visconti and Valentina Doria. From 1346 to 1349 he lived in exile, until he was called back by his uncle Giovanni Visconti. On 27 September 1350 Bernabò married Beatrice Regina della Scala, daughter of Mastino II, Lord of Verona and Taddea da Carrara, and forged both a political and cultural alliance between the two cities. His intrigues and ambitions kept him at war almost continuously with Pope Urban V, the Florentines, Venice and Savoy. In 1354, at the death of Giovanni, he inherited the power of Milan, together with his brothers Matteo and Galeazzo. Bernabò received the eastern lands (Bergamo, Brescia, Cremona and Crema), that bordered the Veronese territories. Milan itself was to be ruled in turn by the three brothers. The vicious Matteo was murdered in 1355 at the order of his brothers, who divided his inheritance between them.
In 1356, after having offended the emperor, he pushed back a first attack upon Milan by the imperial vicar Markward von Raudeck, imprisoning him. In 1360 he was declared heretic by Innocent VI at Avignon and condemned by Emperor Charles IV. The ensuing conflict ended with a dismaying defeat at San Ruffillo against the imperial troops under Galeotto I Malatesta (29 July 1361). In 1362, after the death of his sister’s husband, Ugolino Gonzaga, caused him to attack also Mantua. Warring on several different fronts, in December of that year he sued for peace with the new pope, Urban V, through the mediation of King John II of France. However, having Barnabò neglected to return the papal city of Bologna and to present himself at Avignon, on 4 March 1363 he was excommunicated once more, together with his children, one of whom, Ambrogio, was captured by the Papal commander Gil de Albornoz. With the peace signed on 13 March 1364, Visconti left the occupied Papal lands, in exchange for the raising of the ban upon a payment of 500,000 florins.
In spring 1368 Visconti allied with Cansignorio della Scala of Verona, and attacked Mantua, still ruled by Ugolino Gonzaga. The situation was settled later in the year through an agreement between him and emperor. Two years later he besieged Reggio, which he managed to acquire from Gonzaga in 1371. The following war against the Este of Modena and Ferrara raised again Papal enmity against the Milanese, now on the part of Gregory XI. In 1370, he ordered the construction of the Trezzo Bridge, then the largest single-arch bridge in the world.
In 1373, the pope sent two papal delegates to serve Bernabò and Galeazzo their excommunication papers (consisting of a parchment bearing a leaden seal rolled in a silken cord). Bernabò, infuriated, placed the two papal delegates under arrest and refused their release until they had eaten the parchment, seal, and silken cord which they had served him. He managed to resist, despite also the outbreak of a plague in Milan, whose consequences he suppressed with frantic energy.[2] In 1378 he allied with the Republic of Venice in its War of Chioggia against Genoa. His troops were however defeated in September 1379 in the Val Bisagno.
Bernabò, whose despotism and taxes had enraged the Milanese — he is featured among the exempla of tyrants as victims of Fortune in Chaucer’s[3] Monk’s Tale as “god of delit and scourge of Lumbardye” — was deposed by his nephew Gian Galeazzo Visconti in 1385. Imprisoned in the castle of Trezzo, he was poisoned in December of that year.
The funerary monument of Bernabò Visconti, with an equestrian statue, together with that of his consort, had been made beforehand, in 1363. The sculptures by Bonino da Campione were intended for the church of San Giovanni in Conca. They now stand in the Castello Sforzesco in Milan.
Children
Bernabò was an ally of Stephen II, Duke of Bavaria: three of his daughters were married with Stephen’s descendants. His issue include:
Viridis (1352- 1414), married Leopold III, Duke of Inner Austria and were the parents of Ernest, Duke of Austria the father of Frederick III, Holy Roman Emperor.
Agnese (1362- executed 1391), married Francesco I Gonzaga
Taddea (1351-28 September 1381), married Stephen III, Duke of Bavaria. She was the mother of Louis VII of Bavaria and Isabeau of Bavaria.
Marco (November 1353- 1382), married Elisabeth of Bavaria.
Ludovico (1358- 7 March 1404), married Violante Visconti (1353- November 1386), daughter of Galeazzo II Visconti, and widow of Lionel of Antwerp.
Rodolfo (d.1388), Lord of Parma
Carlo (September 1359- August 1403), married Beatrice, daughter of John II of Armagnac and sister of John III of Armagnac.
Valentina (d.1393), married Peter II of Cyprus
Caterina (1361- poisoned 17 October 1404,[4]) married her cousin Gian Galeazzo Visconti as his second wife. She was the mother of Gian Maria Visconti and Filippo Maria Visconti, successive dukes of Milan. She acted as regent for her son Gian Maria during his minority.
Lucia Visconti (1372- 14 April 1424), betrothed 1. Louis II of Anjou and married 2. Edmund Holland, 4th Earl of Kent
Maddalena (1366- 17 July 1404), married Frederick, Duke of Bavaria and was mother of Henry XVI of Bavaria.
Mastino (d.1404), married Antonia della Scala (d. 1400), daughter of Cangrande II della Scala.
Anglesia (d.12 October 1439), married Janus of Cyprus
Giammastino (1370- 19 June 1405), married Cleofa (d.1403) daughter of Cangrande II della Scala.
Elisabetta (1374- 2 February 1432), married Ernest, Duke of Bavaria and was the mother of Albert III, Duke of Bavaria.
Antonia (1360-26 March 1405), married Eberhard III, Count of Württemberg
His illegitimate offspring by Donnina del Porri, legitimated in a ceremony after the death of his wife in 1384,[5] were as follows:
Palamede (d. 1402).
Lancelloto.
Sovrana, married Giovanni da Prato.
Ginevra, married Leonardo Malaspina (d. 1441).
Enrica, married Franchino Rusca.
In addition, Bernabò had other illegitimate offspring by other mistresses:[6]
—With Beltramola Grassi:
Ambrogio (1343 – killed in battle Caprino Bergamasco, 17 August 1373), condottiero and Governor of Pavia.
Isotta (d. 1388), married in 1378 to Count Lutz von Landau, condottiero under the name of Lucio Land (d. 1398).
Ettore (d. 1413), who briefly took the Lordship of Milan (16 May – 12 June 1412), married Margherita Infrascati.
Riccarda, married Bernard, Seigneur de La Salle (d. 1391).
—With Montanina de Lazzari:
Sagramoro (d. 1385), Lord of Brignano, married Achiletta Marliani.
Donnina (1360 – 1406), married in 1377 to Sir John Hawkwood.
—With Giovanolla Montebretto:
Bernarda (d. 1376), married Giovanni Suardi.
Valentia, married Antonio Gentile Visconti, Lord of Belgioioso.
Bibliography
Pizzagalli, Daniela (1994). Bernabò Visconti. Milan: Rusconi.
Footnotes
^ Girolamo Porro, engraved title page in Scipion Barbuo, Sommario delle vite de’ duchi di Milano, cosi Visconti, come Sforzeschi (Venice: Girolamo Porro, 1574)
^ For his plague regulations for Milan, see Rosemary Horrox, The Black Death(1994) III.65, p 203.
^ Chaucer had been sent to Lombardy in 1378 on behalf of the young King Richard II to seek the support of Bernabò and Sir John Hawkwood on behalf of the English war effort against France. His epistola metrica III.29 was tacitly addressed to Bernabò (Ernest H. Wilkings, The ‘Epistolae Metricae’ of Petrarch, (Edizioni di Storia e Letteratura), p. 11.
^ Charles Cawley, Medieval Lands, Lords of Milan
^ ” Bernabò Visconti seems to have gone through some sort of marriage ceremony to legitimate his children by Donnina del Porri” (H.S. Ettlinger, “Visibilis et Invisibilis: The Mistress in Italian Renaissance Court Society”, Renaissance Quarterly, 1994.
^ Complete Genealogy of the House of Visconti
Persondata Name Bernabò Visconti Alternative names Short description Lord of Milan Date of birth 1323 Place of birth Date of death Place of death 1385 Preceded by
Cardinal Giovanni Visconti, Archbishop of Milan Lord of Milan
1349–1385 Succeeded by
Gian Galeazzo Viscont
Leopold III, Duke of Austria, Habsburg
February 26, 2014
— 5 Comments
Leopold III
I was trained by Austrian Tourism as an expert in Austria. The training included classroom study for two full days and extensive travel around the country. In the classroom we learned about the Habsburgs who married all the most eligible monarchs in Europe to expand their holdings. I did not suspect at the time that these were my people. However, I specifically noticed that Austrian over-the-top castles and music halls thrilled me, whereas French over-the-top design always made me think of them as wasteful. I did have a certain strong feeling for the architecture, especially in Vienna and Salzburg.
Monarchs of the House of Habsburg
A word about the coats of arms: the Habsburg Empire was never composed of a single unified and unitary state as Bourbon France, Hohenzollern Germany, or Great Britain was. It was made up of an accretion of territories that owed their historic loyalty to the head of the house of Habsburg as hereditary lord. The Habsburgs had mostly married the heiresses of these territories, most famously of Spain and the Netherlands. They used their arms then as a statement of their right to rule all these territories. As there were many territories, so their arms were complex and reflected the waxing and waning position of the Habsburgs within European power politics. It was not until the 19th century (see below Arms of Dominion of the Austro-Hungarian Empire) that the arms began to take on their own life as symbols of a state which may have an existence outside of the Habsburg dynasty.
Leo
Leopold III “Duke of Austria” Habsburg (1351 – 1386)
is my 17th great grandfather
Ernst I “Ironside” Archduke of Austria Habsburg (1377 – 1424)
son of Leopold III “Duke of Austria” Habsburg
Katharina Archduchess Austria Von Habsburg (1420 – 1493)
daughter of Ernst I “Ironside” Archduke of Austria Habsburg
Christof I VanBaden (1453 – 1527)
son of Katharina Archduchess Austria Von Habsburg
Beatrix Zahringen (1492 – 1535)
daughter of Christof I VanBaden
Sabine Grafin VonSimmern (1528 – 1578)
daughter of Beatrix Zahringen
Marie L Egmond (1564 – 1584)
daughter of Sabine Grafin VonSimmern
Richard Sears (1590 – 1676)
son of Marie L Egmond
Silas Sears (1638 – 1697)
son of Richard Sears
Silas Sears (1661 – 1732)
son of Silas Sears
Sarah Sears (1697 – 1785)
daughter of Silas Sears
Sarah Hamblin (1721 – 1814)
daughter of Sarah Sears
Mercy Hazen (1747 – 1819)
daughter of Sarah Hamblin
Martha Mead (1784 – 1860)
daughter of Mercy Hazen
Abner Morse (1808 – 1838)
son of Martha Mead
Daniel Rowland Morse (1838 – 1910)
son of Abner Morse
Jason A Morse (1862 – 1932)
son of Daniel Rowland Morse
Ernest Abner Morse (1890 – 1965)
son of Jason A Morse
Richard Arden Morse (1920 – 2004)
son of Ernest Abner Morse
Pamela Morse
I am the daughter of Richard Arden Morse
Leopold III
Duke Leopold III of Austria (November 1, 1351 – July 9, 1386) from the Habsburg family, was Duke of Austria from 1365 to 1379, and Duke of Styria and Carinthia (Inner Austria) in 1365–1386.
Life
Born in Vienna, Leopold was a younger son of Duke Albert the Wise, and younger brother of the Dukes Rudolf the Founder and Albert the Pigtail. His mother, Joanna of Pfirt, was 51 when she gave birth to him and died shortly after. He was firstly the administrator of Tyrol, and was jointly charged with the rule of the Habsburg lands with Albert after Rudolf’s death. However, by the Treaty of Neuberg of September 9, 1379, he became the exclusive ruler of Styria (including Wiener Neustadt), Carinthia, Carniola, the Windic March, Gorizia, the Habsburgs’ possessions in Friuli, Tyrol and Further Austria. In 1368 he acquired Freiburg im Breisgau, in 1375 Feldkirch and in 1382 Trieste.
However, his attempts to expand his position in Switzerland and Swabia failed, when he died in the Battle of Sempach in 1386.
Family and children
He was married, on 23 February 1365, to Viridis Visconti (1352–1414), second daughter of Barnabò Visconti, Lord of Milan, and Beatrice Regina della Scala, and had the following children:
William the Courteous
Leopold the Fat
Ernest the Iron
Frederick of the Empty Pockets
Elisabeth (1378–1392)
Catherine (1385–?), Abbess of St. Klara in Vienna
He was succeeded by his eldest son William. Other sons included Leopold, future Duke of Further Austria, Ernest the Iron, future Duke of Inner Austria, and Frederick, future Duke of Further Austria.
Jakob I von Baden
February 25, 2014
— 2 Comments
Jakob I
My 16th great-grandfather was from Baden-Baden, Germany. I have been to Baden by Vienna and Baden by Zurich, both fabulous historical hot springs. I have not visited the fancy German double Baden, but have always wanted to go. Now I have all the more reason:
Jacob I of Baden (15 March 1407, Hachberg–13 October 1453, Mühlburg), was Margrave of Baden-Baden from 1431 to 1453.
He was the elder son of Bernard I, Margrave of Baden-Baden and Anna von Oettingen. Jacob I was a man of deep religious beliefs, well-known as a founder of churches. He founded the monastery at Fremersberg and was a major benefactor of the Stiftskirche at Baden-Baden.
According his father’s precepts, only two of his sons were to be considered heirs of the margravate. Therefore only Karl and Bernhard received a secular education; the other children had a strict religious upbringing. Georg, after making a religious profession in his youth, returned briefly to the world, but in 1454 reverted to holy orders and later became Bishop of Metz.
Jacob I was the opposite of his father; Enea Silvio de Piccolomini (Pope Pius II) characterized him as famous among the Germans for his justice and intelligence.
In his early years he was ruler of the family possessions in Hohenberg, until at the age of 24 he succeeded to the government of Baden. He was described as a pugnacious knight and a frugal father of the state and was popular among the princes as a mediator. Both Emperor Sigismund and Emperor Frederick III, under whom he served, thought highly of him.
When as the result of a miscarriage his sister Agnes fled in the middle of a conflict about inheritance, the Margrave lost his claim to the Duchy of Schleswig. He was so angry that he confined Agnes for the rest of her life in the castle of Alt-Eberstein. (The incident is remembered as the “Double Disaster of Gottorf”).
When in 1427 the Treaty of Sponheim came into force, he gained possessions on the Moselle. In 1442 he bought for 30,000 guilders from the descendants of Walter von Geroldseck half the lordship of Lahr and Mahlberg.
Family and children
He married 25 July 1422 Catherine of Lorraine, daughter of Charles II, Duke of Lorraine and Margaret of the Palatinate. They had the following children:
Charles I, Margrave of Baden-Baden (d. 24 February 1475, Pforzheim).
Bernard II, Margrave of Baden-Baden (later beatified) (1428–12 July 1458, Moncalieri).
Johann (1430–9 February 1503, Ehrenbreitstein), Archbishop of Trier.
George (1433–11 February 1484, Moyen), Bishop of Metz.
Markus (1434–1 September 1478), abbot in Liège.
Margarete (1431–24 October 1457, Ansbach), married 1446 to Albert III, Margrave of Brandenburg.
Matilde (d. 1485), Abbess of Trier.
He also had an illegitimate son, Rudolf of Baden.
castle of birth
Jakob I Von Baden (1407 – 1453)
is my 16th great grandfather
Karl I Von Baden (1424 – 1475)
son of Jakob I Von Baden
Christof I VanBaden (1453 – 1527)
son of Karl I Von Baden
Beatrix Zahringen (1492 – 1535)
daughter of Christof I VanBaden
Sabine Grafin VonSimmern (1528 – 1578)
daughter of Beatrix Zahringen
Marie L Egmond (1564 – 1584)
daughter of Sabine Grafin VonSimmern
Richard Sears (1590 – 1676)
son of Marie L Egmond
Silas Sears (1638 – 1697)
son of Richard Sears
Silas Sears (1661 – 1732)
son of Silas Sears
Sarah Sears (1697 – 1785)
daughter of Silas Sears
Sarah Hamblin (1721 – 1814)
daughter of Sarah Sears
Mercy Hazen (1747 – 1819)
daughter of Sarah Hamblin
Martha Mead (1784 – 1860)
daughter of Mercy Hazen
Abner Morse (1808 – 1838)
son of Martha Mead
Daniel Rowland Morse (1838 – 1910)
son of Abner Morse
Jason A Morse (1862 – 1932)
son of Daniel Rowland Morse
Ernest Abner Morse (1890 – 1965)
son of Jason A Morse
Richard Arden Morse (1920 – 2004)
son of Ernest Abner Morse
Pamela Morse
I am the daughter of Richard Arden Morse
seal of Jakob I
Sabine VonSimmern
February 24, 2014
— 1 Comment
Sabine VonSimmern
My 12th great-grandmother was born in Germany and died in Belgium. She had a very long royal name: Sabine von Pfalz-Simmern (Wittelsbach, Pfalz-Simmern) (Sabine von Pfalz-Simmern) durch Heirat Gräfin von Egmond und Fürstin von Gavere. This did not help her when she begged to spare her knight husband’s life. Such was the fickle finger of royal fate in those days.
Sabine was the daughter of the Count Palatine and Duke John II of simmern (1492-1557) from his marriage to Beatrix (1492-1535), daughter of Margrave Christoph I of Baden. She was a sister of the Elector Friedrich III of the Palatinate.
On April 8, 1544, she married Egmond Lamoral, Prince of Gavre (1522-1568). The wedding was in the Diet of Speyer in the presence of Emperor Charles V and numerous other German imperial princes. The marriage was of great political importance but was described as extremely happy. Due to his link with the German Empire princess (Sabine was called “Bavaria” in the Netherlands), Egmond ranked among the Knights of the Golden Fleece, in 1546.
Sabine begged on her knees to the Duke of Alba to spare the life of her husband but he was beheaded in 1568 in Brussels. After Egmond’s death, Sabine and her children lived in poverty. She was buried beside her husband in Sottegem. The place Oud-Beijerland in the Netherlands is named after Sabine.
Sabine Grafin VonSimmern (1528 – 1578)
is my 12th great grandmother
daughter of Sabine Grafin VonSimmern
son of Marie L Egmond
son of Richard Sears
son of Silas Sears
daughter of Silas Sears
daughter of Sarah Sears
daughter of Sarah Hamblin
daughter of Mercy Hazen
son of Martha Mead
son of Abner Morse
son of Daniel Rowland Morse
son of Jason A Morse
son of Ernest Abner Morse
I am the daughter of Richard Arden Morse
Craft Brew in Tucson
February 24, 2014
— 1 Comment
We attended the Southern Arizona Craft Brew Festival yesterday at Maker House. We received tickets and glasses at the door to taste the many offerings at the brewers’ booths. The music was excellent, the weather perfect for February, and the crowd very cheery. That is the thing about beer and its’ fans….they tend to be jolly and care free. Members of our group all enjoy dark beer so we gravitated to stouts and darker brews. One of my faves was the salted caramel stout. After about 3 hours of beer tasting we all had tickets left when we were ready to leave. We had sampled so many robust and complex flavors that we were both full and sated. I enjoyed a plate of Yakisoba from the Bam Bam food truck to go with my brews. A good time was had by all, and the beer scene is growing with gusto.
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- Red Ale
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- snap
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- audience
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- beer booths
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- Easter Seals
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- Barrio
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- Crystal
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- Diego
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- Crystal and Diego
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- beer fans
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- Maker House patio
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- Mexican Korean
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- food truck
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- Latin food
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- hop cowboy shirt
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- hop cuffs
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- hop shirt
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- Crystal
Beer Week, Baby
February 22, 2014
— 2 Comments
Tucson has rapidly developed a bevy of micro breweries and beer emporiums. Downtown is awash in beer, and this week is Arizona Beer Week. I am less of a beer fan these days, but I like to support local businesses and taste new flavors. Sentinel Peak Brewery was holding a launch party yesterday for two new beers. I have been wanting to visit this new nano (teenier than micro) gastro brew pub close to my home. In a shopping center in the middle of town, between Petsmart and Trader Joe’s, these smart entrepreneurial firefighters have opened a bar for fans of high quality, hand crafted beer. They hit the mark so well that the very first problem they had after opening was running out of beer much faster than they had anticipated. They are trending…and they still have jobs as firefighters, so they are in the process of dealing with their sudden popularity.
They maintain a very friendly atmosphere and welcoming service. Sara was serving me from behind the bar with enthusiasm and lots of knowledge. I learned that she sings sometimes with her guitar to entertain the guests. The lady sitting next to me at the bar was a friendly beer lover who had also come for the party. She had much more experience than I in beer world/Tucson, so I learned a lot from her as we enjoyed our beers. She let me know about a Sunday brunch wrapping up the festivities this week, hosted by a group known as Girls’ Pints Out. Just a few years ago I attended beer festival in Tucson that consisted of spending a few hours inside the baseball stadium with a few beer vendors and a small cup. Now we are not exactly Denver, but we are well on our way to serving the needs of the most discriminating local craft beer lovers. Life is good.
They are open now on weekends, and next week plan to expand to Thursday, and lunch. We must be patient while they brew enough beer to meet the demand. I bought a growler of the Dunkle Monsoon to bring beer week home to my partner Bob, who is a giant beer fan. We both enjoyed the growler with some rich oyster mushroom chowder I had made before I went out afternoon beer drinking. The creamy soup went well with the dark complex brew, and now we have an empty growler!!! To stay current with hours and new beers on tap like them on Facebook.
Flight of Firefighter Craft Beer
Donde Vas, Venezuela?
February 21, 2014
— 4 Comments
I lived in Venezuela in the early 1960s. My father was manager of operations for Mene Grande Oil Company, aka Gulf Oil. I lived in San Tomé in a remote petroleum camp in the llanos. I lived as a petroleum princess and listened to Radio Havana because it was the only station that came in clearly. We lived an opulent life surrounded by fences and guards. Trinidadians usually worked as servants in our homes because they were bilingual. We had one very high lifestyle in every respect.
John Kennedy was shot before I moved to South America, which was unsettling. Race riots were taking place in the states, but we were isolated from that reality hanging out at our private social club in the tropics. We lived in extreme segregation, but thought nothing of it. The seeds of revolution are planted many years before they mature. The wealth discrepancy in South America was shocking, but since it was all to our advantage we were told it was inevitable. These experiences all became part of my knowledge of the world and later part of my politics. I distrust all imperialists and their motives.
With a simplistic agenda to end unbearable insecurity the students began to march last week in all the cities in Venezuela. The outcome of this battle will be significant and was long in the making.
MGO employee handbook
His Holiness on Instagram
February 20, 2014
— 3 Comments
The coolest monk on earth has opened an instagram account. His Holiness the Dalai Lama of Tibet is now updating his travels with photos. This is so much more exciting that Pope Francis’ twitter streams, although I do applaud @Pontifex for multi-lingual tweeting to anyone who wants to stay in touch with him. If you have been in the presence of His Holiness (I have had the very good fortune of doing so in 3 different teachings) you never forget the way he laughs and smiles. He is infectious and inspires this adoration instantly by giggling. I have seen him teach in Tibetan, and even in the middle of serious rituals he jokes and giggles with his students. By the time we had our translations in our earbuds the Tibetans were laughing at his jokes. He connects on all levels with all people. Those who understand and practice the fine points of Buddhism learn deeply and some probably glimpse enlightenment in his presence. Those of us who come in relative ignorance to his teachings may come away with less refined ideas, but we are also subject to instant enlightenment in his presence. The ancient texts he uses for study require lifetimes of study and meditation to do them justice. When he flashes a smile from that cute baby monk face he touches everyone in exactly the same way. Now we can all follow his smile around the world as he keeps us updated.
He enjoys a hobby in horology, and since his youth has taken watches apart to rebuild them. I believe he is a geeky monk who appreciates technology and wants to understand and use it to the max. What ever his reason may be, I am following him, and suggest that the gentle readers might want to check out his account. He is changing the world with his smile.
Why Study Ancestry?
February 19, 2014
— 4 Comments
I did not start studying genealogy with the expectation of spending years involved with my family tree. I did not expect to find much data, and thought I would be finished in a couple of weeks. In my sixth year of tracing my family back in time I could not imagine life without this research. I have now relearned history by tracing my own DNA through it. Believe me it becomes more interesting when you picture your own ancestors in events. The timeline is an important tool in life to assess progress and enlightenment. The same can be said of a much longer timeline, such as human history. I am starting to understand the mass migrations caused by religions that have shaped the political world. My people were motivated to take great risks and leave their known environments to follow religious convictions. They crossed the Atlantic in rickety boats with nothing but beer to drink. They froze and starved in the early American colonies. They adventured way out west to Ohio and beyond after the Revolutionary War. They fought on both sides of every British and American war, which is most revealing.
Ancestry.com is run by humans and therefore human error is part of it. The site has gathered and continues to gather public records to share as well as trees published by members who make them public. Often an unsubstantiated piece of data will be shared and repeated in the public tree arena. Fortunately there are also wizards who find some errors, and advise the owners of bogus trees to double check the data. I have twice needed to erase several generations of mistaken identity when I was given more information by a fellow family member. Bittersweet, erasing..I had become fond of the ancestors who were not really my own. It was a horrible blow to be wrong about them, but this study is about verification and facts, not just being up in your tree.
I have been asked which are my favorite ancestors, to which I generally reply I like them all for surviving so I could be here now. There are a few that I might love more than the others:
They are either well known or unknown, but all important to me and my existence. If you take the two week trial I bet you will find something remarkable in your own family history.
George Washington and I
February 18, 2014
— 8 Comments
Sulgrave Manor
Sulgrave Manor
George Washington and I share some common ancestors. Robert Washington was the 4th great-grandfather of George Washington, first President of the United States. He sounds like a heavy duty brute, having torn down his local village and church for pasture land. They were friends with Henry VIII, who was quite the brute himself. I notice that Elizabeth Washington, my ancestor, marries into the Lanier family, a family of musicians from Henry’s court. I wonder if they had any knowledge of each other’s ancestors back in England. Since that was very important for status, my guess is that they did.
ROBERT WASHINGTON (1544 – 1623)
is my 12th great grandfather
son of ROBERT WASHINGTON
son of Lawrence Washington
son of Richard Washington
son of John Washington
daughter of Richard Washington
daughter of Elizabeth Washington
daughter of Elizabeth Lanier
son of Martha Burch
daughter of David Darden
daughter of Minerva Truly Darden
daughter of Sarah E Hughes
son of Lucinda Jane Armer
daughter of George Harvey Taylor
I am the daughter of Ruby Lee Taylor
ROBERT WASHINGTON, the eldest son of Lawrence the builder and Amy nee Pargiter, born in 1544, died 1620 aged 76. Inherited Sulgrave Manor when his father died in 1584 with about 1250 acres at Sulgrave, Stuchbury, Woodford, Cotton, Hardingstone, Blakesley, Patishall, Ascote, Eastcote, Lower Boddington, Radway, Horley and Hornton in Oxon.
Married twice, firstly, in 1565 to Elizabeth, daughter and heiress of Walter Light (Lyte) of Radway Grange, Warwickshire, and a descendant of the Villiers family. The marriage is recorded in the original glass panel dating from about 1580 in the Great Chamber window where the W arms are impaled with the Lyte arms:As part of the marriage settlement Lawrence created an estate from two messuages (holdings) in Pattishill for his own, (L’s) use while Robert lived and after his death for the use of Elizabeth for life as her jointure. Use in this context usually means taking the revenue from rather than living in.
From Elizabeth acquired Radway Grange and title to the manors of Horley and Hornton Oxon.
Six sons and three daughters by Elizabeth. Eldest son Lawrence II born in 1565. Daughter Amye married Alban Wakelyn of Eydon, N’hants. 3rd son Walter granted Radway Grange by deed Nov 30th 1592 for peppercorn rent for 40 years after the death of Walter Light ; his marriage to Alice daughter of John Murden of Ratley is arranged in the following year and secondly, sometime before 1599, to Anne Fisher of Hanslope Bucks Clifford Smith says 3 more sons and 3 more daughters by her.
Together with Sir John Spencer was appointed a royal commissioner in Northants in 1598. Robert is usually called “esquire” in contemporary documents, a higher rank that that accorded to his father (gentleman).
In 1600, Robert bought the manor of Nether Boddington from his son-in-law, Albert Wakelyn. There was no house on the Nether Boddington manor.
Stuchbury was exploited for sheep – Robert apparently pulled down the parish church, parsonage along with “all or the most part of the said town and parish houses” before 1606.
In 1606 Robert Washington figured in an interesting exchequer case1. Robert Washington, -the patron of the rectory of Stuchbury, together with his two cousins, Robert Pargiter and George Mole (who also had an interest in the advowson), had instituted no clergyman to the living “by the space of three score years or thereabouts.” On the contrary, – they had pulled down “not only the parsonage house . . . and all or the most part of the said town and parish houses of Stuttesbury aforesaid, but also the parish church itself,” and had used the lands “for pasture for kine and sheep, to the great depopulation of the commonwealth and country thereabout.”2
Although he continued to live at Sulgrave, he made a settlement upon his eldest son Lawrence in May 1601, possibly as a result of his second marriage – to protect the interests of his first family – of the entailed portion of the estate i.e. manor of Sulgrave and manor and rectory of Stuchbury. Lawrence sold the Sulgrave manor demesne lands to Thomas Atkins, of Over Winchcombe, Buckinghamshire, on 20 August, 1605, retaining only the house and seven acres of land. With the consent of his father. Lawrence sold the reversion of the remainder on 1 March, 1610 to his cousin Lawrence Makepeace, son of Robert’s sister Mary and Abel Makepeace. Robert (and his heirs) retained the manor and rectory of Stuchbury until 1646, Nether Boddington to 1636 and Radway to 1654.
Robert died in 1619 and his will requests burial in Sulgrave Church. His second wife, Anne Fisher, continued to live at Sulgrave Manor house until 1625. She was buried at East Haddon, Northamptonshire, on 16 March. 1652. Robert was succeeded by his grandson, John, his son Lawrence having predeceased him in 1616.
Lawrence, Robert’s brother, born probably 1546, (possibly 56), became Registrar of the Court of Chancery and married firstly, in 1593 Mary Argall (nee Scott), widow of Richard Argall, who had died in 1588, leaving five sons and six daughters living. One of the sons was Sir Samuel Argall, who emigrated and was Deputy-Governor of Virginia in 1617-19. On Mary’s death in 1605, Lawrence married Martha Nuse. He died in 1619 aged either 63 or 73 (Ixxiii on his memorial) and is buried at Maidstone. Their son, another Lawrence, was knighted and, like his father, became Registrar of the Court of Chancery. He was the owner of Stonehenge. died in 1643 aged 64, and is buried at Garsdon. Wiltshire. Their daughter Mary married William Horspoole, a cousin of Sir Thomas Smythe, Treasurer Virginia Company (VMHB 90, 1982, Samuel Argall’s family, James D Alsop) and is buried at Maldon, near Cliveden.
Elizabeth
Anne married Edmond Foster of Hanslop co Bucks
Frances married John Tompson of Sulgrave
Magdalyn
BarbaraMary married Abel Makepeace of Chipping Wardon N’hants, parents of Lawrence Makepeace who purchased rights to Sulgrave from his uncle Lawrence II in 1610
Margaret married to Gerrard Hawtayne Esq second son of Edward Hawtayne of co Oxon
1.
Abstract printed by Mr. Ernest G. Atkinson in The Times 22 September, 1894,
2.
William Barcocke, clerk, versus Robert Washington and two others: Bills and Answers, Northants., Easter, 4 James I.
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