Forefathers - Chapter 2
Welcome to Chapter Two of Forefathers, a mini-series which follows the lives of the Le Grande family from late medieval times to the present day. At the end of Chapter One the ancestral home, Normandy Manor, was in the hands of Henry Le Grande. Both his grandfather and father had died due to taking part in two of the battles of the Wars of the Roses - the Battle of Wakefield (1460) and the Battle of Bosworth Field (1485) respectively.
This chapter (which is shorter than Chapter One) begins in the year 1600 with Thomas Le Grande, a descendant of Henry, as the current owner of the Manor.
The cover is "The White Devil" by the Hon. John Collier (www.artmagick.com)
In the years since Henry Le Grande had inherited Normandy Manor and subsequently passed it to his descendants, there had been many changes to both the house and to England. The Tudors remained as the reigning dynasty, and in addition to new styles of architecture, dress and other ways of living, there had also been a considerable amount of spiritual upheaval.
In an attempt to keep up with the current trends, the Le Grande family had rebuilt their home in the latest style, and adopted the beliefs and ideals of the monarch who was reigning at any particular moment. Many of their wealthy neighbours, and indeed nobles elsewhere, had not had the foresight to follow suit, and a great number were persecuted for opposing the religious reforms of Henry VIII and later his daughter, Mary.
In the year 1600 Thomas Le Grande, the great great grandson of Henry Le Grande, had just taken over as Lord of the Manor. Thomas had studied Law and was a well respected Justice of the Peace. In his youth he had travelled the Continent, and spent some time in Italy where he became an accomplished artist. In his spare time he found that painting was the most satisfying way to relax, and his portraits of his wife and children decorated the walls of the Manor for many years.
For his wife Thomas chose Carlotta Velasquez, the daughter of a wealthy Spanish businessman. In spite of the country’s many problems with Spain during the reign of Elizabeth I, Carlotta was easily accepted by English society and was well known for her generous donations to local causes.
Thomas and Carlotta had three children, the eldest being a daughter named Isabella after Carlotta’s mother. Like many girls of her status, Isabella had wanted to marry a prince in her youth, but as she got older she decided that as long as her husband was wealthy and could keep her in the manner to which she was accustomed, that would suffice. Needless to say her wish was granted, for she married a very wealthy Irish landowner - who was later knighted - and moved to Dublin.
Thomas and Carlotta’s middle child was another daughter, named Maria. She was a very serious and studious child, who liked nothing better than losing herself in one of the many books in the family’s collection. Like her ancestress Mary Westenholme, Maria became a nun and entered St. Mary’s Convent in her late teens.
The couple’s youngest child was a son named Charles, whose descendants enjoyed a more carefree life at the Manor than their medieval counterparts could ever have dreamed of. In fact the family enjoyed more prosperity during the reign of the new Stuart dynasty than they had at any other period in their history, including the long reign of the now extinct Tudors.
Like his father Charles had a very strong artistic streak, and would while away the hours writing songs and poetry. However he took his role as custodian of Normandy Manor very seriously, particularly after his father suffered a massive stroke which left him bedridden for the rest of his life. Except for a very brief spell in the Royalist army during the Battle of Naseby in 1645 - the battle in which King Charles I’s forces were destroyed by Cromwell’s New Model Army, thus bringing an end to the English Civil War which had been raging since 1642 - Charles spent all of his time at the Manor.
