We have both been staying with our grandson in his lovely new home in an area very familiar to me - it was once my childhood home. He and his girlfriend both work in London but their spare time is spent climbing, riding their bikes through the dales, and what looks alarming to me, rock bouldering. When he purchased the property he hadn't realised that he was buying in an area so familiar to both of us.
They are both continuing with their London careers, but remotely, all of which appears to work well.
Our grandson has been looking into all of our family trees, and has discovered some interesting data about my side of the family.
Many families have unsubstantiated stories or generational tales regarding their ancestry with elements of truth, but often no firm foundations.
My maternal grandmother's maiden surname was Jacques, and the story told is that her father could have been descended from Huguenot immigrants. The Huguenots were Protestants who fled France and Wallonia (southern Belgium) from the 16th C to the 18th C due to religious persecution during the European Wars of Religion. After the English Reformation, England was seen as a safe place for refugees. Importantly, however, they also brought their skills and expertise as silk-weavers, silversmiths, merchants, vine-growers, wig makers, and hat-makers which helped the country to expand its global horizons.
The ancient market town where our grandson has bought his home is 30 miles away from where I lived, but it was a very important town re: silk weaving. There are still several Heritage silk mills and many terraces of silk weavers cottages, all of which brought wealth to the town. This knowledge re: the silk weaving helps to bring more relevance to the Jacques family story. My grandson has discovered that a young women born in his town, married a man called John Jacques and that they were the parents of my maternal grandmother. They are my great grandparents, and my grandson's great great great grandparents.
Importantly he has also traced our Jacques family name back to three more generations, and is very hopeful that he will find more information by subscribing to the Ancestry website.
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