Essential People in Don's Family Tree

From the 18,400+ people that I’ve gathered up over the last 40+ years researching my tree, some very interesting people have appeared with many stories & events!
View my development of this page here & click on the many links below to view their details? Enjoy!!

#	Person’s Name & Information	Birth Year
1^st & 2^nd	To start this page, let me share my immediate family, beginning with me! [ Note: I do edit some of the auto-generated pages to improve them; view my original page ? ] I am ( as of this writing ) a gracefully-aging, cultured British chap of actual regal ancestry (!), living near Atlanta in the United States of America in my 70's and, as a 1^st-generation-immigrant, I sure do get to be a pretty happy old fellow!! Each of my tree pages have a Pedigree Chart link ( click it to view mine? ) that displays several generations; also, do use my family tree Help page for guidance? Born in a hospital to my British parents ( shared below ) in Boscombe, Bournemouth more than 70 years ago, my childhood years were spent in & around Redhill Park… View my eDiary pages for more history, as you please? - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Consider viewing some of my online pages before you chase through my tree? Each of these hold many, many embedded links… my Home Page, my Web-structure matrix, some of the many Global Places where I’ve worked or visited, or the history of the Creation of my family tree… Visit me on my Ancestry page ( which does require you to sign in ), view my DNA page, my Bio or my Profile. Also, visit my “Whom We Might Be" page? Finally, visit perhaps the most interesting person that I’ve found in my research! My 50^th Great Grandfather ( view an advisory? ) who is King Dag of Uppsala in Sweden, shown as the 1^st person in my Viking PDF report This is described in detail in his profile below… Enjoy! The next person I am sharing here is my wonderful wife, Sandy! We were very happily married in San Diego, California 30+ years ago… her profile snap ( above, taken ~2016 ) shows one of our 4 grandkids, Nora as a baby who is growing up today! The others are Max, Landon & Amelia Her 2 daughters are Kelly ( with her husband, Quentin ), the parents of Landon & Amelia and Kaci, the mother of Max & Nora My 2 sons are Stu ( and his wife, Jill ) & Alex, who sadly became R.I.P. in early 2002; their mother, who I think ( as of this writing ) is still living - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Stu tried to come to our joint 70^th Birthday Celebration up in Wisconsin in the summer of 2025, but was sadly held back by flight problems… Sandy’s Aunt Darlene, who was born April 7^th, 1931 in Spruce, Oconto County, Wisconsin married her 3^rd hubby, Rob in Spruce in January, 2000… she has outlived her 1^st two hubbies & continues to live happily as of this writing! Darlene came with Rob and many of Sandy’s family & their kids and dozens of our friends to enjoy our celebration—view the snaps!	We are from 1955 Children are not listed!
3^rd	Next are my parents, Lilian Evans, born Jan 1^st, 1931 in Neath, Wales, and John Shave, born Jan 23^rd, 1923 in his parents’ house in Weymouth, Dorset, England; each are R.I.P. with many stories—see their profile pages? - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - My grandparents are Donald Shave. known to me as GrandDad & my Gran Ellen Jolliffe… I knew them both very well in my childhood years… Most of their children are viewable at either page - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - My still-living Uncle Dave ( aged 89 as of this writing ) was born in July of 1937 in Medway, Kent & today is looking after his aging wife, Barb at their home in north London; he also took care of my Auntie Jean who had fallen in 2017 at her house in Pinner, becoming disabled until her death in July, 2020… Barb was born in Poland on June 8^th, 1934 & came to England after WWII. Living in London, she & 3 of her friends had originally wanted to go on to live in the US, but they were denied as the "Polish Quota" had already been filled. They met in the early 60’s & were married in March, 1965 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - My great-grandparents are my GrandDad’s parents, John Shave and Emily Holder & my Gran’s parents, Charlie Jolliffe and Mary Walbridge; details & stories are shared for each - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - My Mum & her brother, Uncle Joe ( who passed away in 2020, R.I.P. ) grew up with their paternal grandparents James Evans ( a son of my 2^nd GGM, Grace ) and Marguerite ( known as NanNan from Mum; stories abound—I recall meeting her when she visited our house, around 1960 ) after their Dad Ern Evans ( stories abound; he was actually named “James Earnest” from his father ) of my Mum & Joe had lost Maud Dodson his wife in 1933 with her birth of Joe—as both Ern & Maud died before I was born, I was never able to know them… Ern found & married Daisy Barclay later in that year; she soon found life "too difficult" for her to manage Ern’s kids, likely when she was carrying her 1^st daughter from Ern, Margaret Evans… Mum & Joe were sent away as very young children to grow up with their grandparents - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - The parents of my Mum’s Mum ( Maud ) are William Dodson, my GGF & my GGM, Sarah Roberts; details are shared for each, yet no stories I learned of Agnes Evens ( my GrandAunt ) via my cousin Caroline in 2005 who had shared that "Agnes still lives by herself in the same house in Wellingborough and loves to garden & do needlework. She told me recently that she was working on a tapestry footstool"	1931 / 1923 1901 / 1901 1937 1934 1924 1865-1866 1865-1873 1932 1874 / 1854 1875 1903 1902 1903 1933 1861 / 1863 1908 / 1965
4^th	Next is Sandy’s family… her Mom, Jeanette Smith ( who’s profile does share Sandy’s immediate family & has several snaps ) was born in Suring, Oconto County, Wisconsin on Thursday, May 19^th, 1932, passing away from cancer at age 92 in 2025, and her Dad, Les Pagel ( with several snaps ), born in Two Rivers, Manitowoc County, Wisconsin on Wednesday, February 13^th, 1929 & passed away from a stroke at age 60 in St. Vincent's Hospital, Green Bay in 1989 They married in Suring, Wisconsin on May 3^rd, 1952 & had 7 children who helped with the daily farm work of milking cows, shoveling cow poop, etc… Jeannette married Bobby Arndt in June of 1993, a few years after Les died - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Sandy’s parents are both descendants of European immigrants… the people shared in this group are Sandy’s 2^nd-generation grandparents Her Dad’s parental branch is from Germany, Martin Pagel, born October 21^st, 1817 in Kummerow (near Malchin), Germany and his wife, Charlotte Kröning, born August 28 ^th, 1828 in Cochem-Zell (Rhineland), Germany… They left with their 10 children ( & another that Charlotte was carrying ) from the Port of Bremerhaven, Germany on the “SS Carl” to immigrate at the Port of New York on Monday, May 11^th 1868; Martin’s page shares more details Sandy’s Dad had a Swiss maternal branch, Charles Emanuel Destival, born October 6^th, 1833 in Switzerland, arriving in 1847 at the Port of New York; his wife, Lucia Elizabeth Eldredge, was born June 12^th, 1846 in Pitcher, New York - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Sandy’s Mom has a paternal branch who are German ( like her Dad ), Jacob Martin Schmitt, born May 3^rd, 1834 in the Bavarian Rhenish Plaltinate, Germany and his wife, Anna Marie Stoeber, born June 3^rd, 1837 in Hötzelsroda of Sachsen Weimar, Eisenach, Germany… They arrived in 1852 at the Port of New York Her Mom also has a Danish maternal branch, Hans Peder SørenSen, born March 4^th, 1880 in Gierslev (or in Holbæk), Knudstrup, Vestsjælland, Denmark and his wife, Christina Elizabeth SørensDóttir, born August 25^th, 1882 in Denmark… They arrived in 1882 at the Port of New York	dates are shared
5^th	Our ascending family profiles ( shared above ) are each presented in a Pedigree Chart for me ( sharing my colorization scheme ) and in a matrix for Sandy; every person shown on these 2 index pages is clickable to see more details… My family is also shown in a more extensive display ( also clickable ) of my tree, built as a part of my older tree
6^th	My 2 brothers are Mick ( shown with our cousin, Rob Voice ) and his wife, Lyn; his R.I.P. Mum is Eileen Nicholls, who married my Dad in 1942 and my younger brother, Alan & his wife, Ae-Kyung My sister, Dawn sadly died in childbirth in June of 1963 when I was 8… My Mum visited our doctor the day before, who corrected her breach birth by rotating the child, accidentally strangling her with the umbilical cord She became heavily depressed after her daughter’s death, & about 4 months later, my Uncle Peter took her away from our home to a place in Manchester, bringing her back after a week…	1941-1948-1948 1919 1968-1972 1963 1931
7^th	Sandy and I have many, many nephews, nieces & cousins: one of my brother Mick’s 4 children is Linda ( my niece, born in Australia ), and my brother Alan’s 2 kids were each born near London, England are Hannah ( my niece ) & Danny ( my nephew—same snap! ) Andrew is one of my 6 cousins through my Dad's family. He was born in Bournemouth, England as a son of my Uncle Doug ( Dad’s brother ) & his wife, my Aunt Daphne, both of whom are R.I.P. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Sandy’s 14 nephews & nieces ( with their 10 spouses ) brought 26 grandnephews & grandnieces to us… see many of them at our joint 70^th birthday? One of her nephews, Chad, sadly died in 2007 at the age of 16… he had been hospitalized ~2 weeks after his June 23^rd, 1991 birth in Green Bay with a virus assault on his system; that went to his heart & eventually killed him Another nephew of Sandy is Paul Pagel, who married Elizabeth Cooke Gilliam in April, 2015; they have 2 kids. Her maternal GGF was Joseph Young ( known by his middle name, Cassin ) who had joined the Navy as an officer before 1920; see the many event images & his life in his profile? When we were hit by Japanese bombers in Honolulu on December 7^th, 1941 Captain Cassin saved his ship Vestal that was moored alongside the battleship Arizona at Ford Island; he went to the bridge of the ship & took charge of a 3-inch anti-aircraft gun & started firing at the bombers. When the USS Arizona was blown up, he was blown overboard from his own ship. Although dazed by the shock, he swam back, climbed on board, got his ship underway, & ran her aground where she could be salvaged; for this feat he was awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor He then took the role of leading the battleship USS San Francisco in 1942, & died on November 13^th, 1942 when his ship was destroyed in the naval battle of Guadalcanal - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - My tree research after my Mum’s 2010 death brought to light the fact that I actually had many maternal cousins, each of whom had descended from her Mum, Maud; several of them have helped me to expand my Mum’s branch… 1 ^st is Geoff Beck who had contacted me with an eMail on May 29^th, 2003: "Hi... as I was checking through your family history on Ancestry, I noticed your mother was born in Treharris, which is where I was born, where my parents live, & is just across the valley from Pentwyn, where Lilian (Nan-Nan) lived. So for I now think we are cousins for sure!" We then traded data for a while; he told me in July 10^th, 2003 that his Mum ( Violet Tegwyn Jones ) had shared "I've been chatting to my mother & she remembers your mother quite well, as during the summers my mother & her sisters used to travel down to Southampton to visit Aunty Lil & family, and was quite chuffed to have a photo of your mother, as was my Aunty Betty.” Geoff also remembers that “when your Mum’s parents took over the 2 Old Cottages place, the shed at the bottom of the garden was full of baking equipment which belonged to Jim. I don't know if you knew that Jim was a baker & was also a seaman; my mother also remembers that he used to stock up the cottage with tea-chests full of food before going away to sea so that the family was well fed when he was away.” The many images of Geoff & his family that he sent to me have somehow sadly vanished—I do recall viewing them… - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 2^nd is a more distant cousin of mine, Jacki, Jaqueyln Sebley Dennis ( who descends from my 5^th GGF, William Shave ); she had contacted me in early 2016 to share that we were connected via her “Samuel’s Quest” book, released in 2007; this event is viewable in her profile She was born on February 3^rd, 1944 in the Sibley Hospital at the City of Washington in the District of Columbia, marrying her hubby, James Keck on August 27^th, 1977 Iowa City. Jacki died March 5^th, 2019 at the age 75 in Williston, North Dakota & is buried there Jacki wrote a preface that shares the following… Oral history within families can create romantic notions as to the “who’s, where’s and why’s” of the people in our past As a young girl I recall hearing the “family legend” of how my great-great-grandfather Samuel Shave (an itinerate tailor) fell in love with a daughter of the squire for whom he was doing sewing. He and Elizabeth Sebley eloped to London to marry We also heard of a little village, erroneously thought to be called ‘Toe-puddle’ in Dorset, England and references to the six men who became ‘martyrs’ in 1834 when they banded together to protest below-subsistence wages for agricultural laborers. Such tales were entwined with whispers of involvement in the early Methodist Movement One of Samuel’s sons, Walter, is the first to come to America in 1871 with a group from Yeovil, England, taking advantage of land offered in northwestern Minnesota along the railroad right-of-way. He becomes a railroad land-agent in Hawley, Minnesota, and builds a general store Back in England, Samuel’s only daughter, Rhoda, marries Hiram Way (a brick-mason) and in 1883, Samuel (along with a number of his family members) come to join Walter in America. Samuel brings his violin and sewing machine. There is a beautiful Christening robe that was made by his daughter, Rhoda, on the sewing machine Samuel brought to America. This heirloom has survived over 105 years and has been worn by more than 35 newcomers to the Ash/Way families. There are also two small, ’spiritual’ diaries that Samuel kept near the end of his life, and a journal in which his daughter, Rhoda, documented her trip back to England to visit in 1923 All of these artifacts and snippets of stories have been embellished through this re-telling. The real facts usually belie many of the scenarios that were imagined by myself in my youth and inevitably create more questions than answers Much can happen between each of the 10-year censuses, and I keep finding material which retroactively alters my assessment of what went on. The majority of the history of the common man is silent because they just didn’t do anything note-worthy enough to record!! But the data that does exist, permeated with a sense of strength and faith speaks to a modern-day wish for connectedness to our past. Just as family faith stories help shape our attitude today, so they did for Samuel and members of his family Rhoda’s granddaughter, Rachel Sebley (Ash) Dennis, my mother, was 90 years of age in 2005 and we’ve gone to England together in our hearts and minds through the discovery and sharing of research, and correspondence with newly-found family members It is my hope that this writing will provide a stepping stone for a trip she and I can take to Dorset to retrace the path set out in Rhoda’s 1923 journal [ end of her preface page ] - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - My 3^rd cousin is Ray, a son of my Uncle Joe ( above ) who was born in North Baddesley, Hampshire, England & his wife, my Aunt June stay in touch - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - As part of my ongoing research, I had contacted two of my British cousins ( in the Jolliffe branch of my tree ) in the early 2000’s… My 1^st visit with them was with my 4^th cousin, Georgina ( born in 1944 ) at her home near Weymouth in the summer of 2003, where we chatted about her & her family for an hour or two; more snaps are viewable at her Ancestry page My 2^nd research visit was with my 5^th cousin, Joyce ( born in 1937 ) on Thursday afternoon, September 23^rd, 2004. We met in her flat at 883A Finchley Rd in Golder's Green, London & talked for a couple hours with tea… Joyce described herself to me as a "Retired archetypical spinster daughter," and that she was caring full-time for her aging mother. She had spent many years with the Oxford University Press as a Copyright Manager for Hymns, and shared that she was presently a choir singer in the London area	dates vary
8^th	Next, as I want to share some information about my Aunt Edie, I am using 2 of my maternal GreatUncles: Stanley Grenville Evans ( Aunt Edie’s husband, whom I do not recall meeting in person ) & his brother, Ivor Henry Evans The 1950’s picture in Stan’s profile page has him on the left with Ivor, who is also shown as in Egypt in his profile Stan ( “Taffy” Evans ) was born on Jan 29^th, 1910 at 71 Albert Town in Haverford West, a part of Furzy Park & Portfield in Pembrokeshire, Wales—Ivor was born at the same place on March 11^th 2 years later - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Stan served with the British Army from 1932 to 1938 in Hong Kong, China, meeting & dating Aunt Edie when he returned; he was recalled to active service in 1939 for WWII He was discharged on June 3^rd after being treated for the terrible wound he received when fighting in the 1940 Battle of Dunkirk, which ran from the 26^th of May to the 4^th of June Over 338,000 Allied soldiers ( British, French, & Belgian ) were evacuated when the forces had been encircled by German forces during the battle with a makeshift fleet of naval & civilian boats brought them back to Britain, known as the "Miracle of Dunkirk…" This massive rescue, codenamed “Operation Dynamo” boosted British morale & saved crucial manpower, preventing a total collapse of the Western Front, though it marked a significant early defeat for the Allies - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - A few weeks after his discharge Stan married Aunt Edie on Saturday, August 24^th, 1940 in Eastleigh, Hampshire. Aunt Edie shared with me during my research that "Stan could never do anything but window cleaning after that terrible wound, with a chip I could not dislodge from his shoulder & he had no sense of humour…" Stan and Aunt Edie found & adopted Faith in 1943 ( with very little information ) & they then had 2 sons and a daughter. Ivor married Ivy Maud Acourt on Christmas Eve in 1938 in Winchester, Hampshire—they divorced in 1939; Ivor then married Jessie Doy around 1940, no details are available Stan died at the age of 69 from a brain tumor on Wednesday, March 21^st, 1979 at the Winchester Hospital in Hampshire, England & was later cremated in Eastleigh, Hampshire… Ivor died of unknown causes in May of 1993 at the age of 81 in Southampton, Hampshire - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - My Aunt Edie ( Edith Lilian Barclay ) was born on March 18^th, 1910 in West Ham, London, dying of old-age ( at 91 ) on Tuesday, July 17^th, 2001 in Portsmouth, Hampshire. She provided me with many, many pages of her family data for my tree research with letters & by sharing a copy of her book, "Rough Diamonds," published in 1994 ( no longer available )… Her husband, Stan appears in chapter 42 of her book where Aunt Edie was meeting with my Mum & Uncle Joe around 1938	dates are shared
9^th	Edward Henry Dodson, a son of my maternal GrandUncle, Henry ( below ) was born on February 8^th, 1918 in the Borough of Southwark, London I learned during my research that Edward had fought in WWII as a Sergeant in the Queens Own Royal Regiment & was captured, becoming a POW in 1943 at Camp Stalag XVII-B in Krems-Gneixendorf, East of Germany in Austria. His younger sister Dorothy sent her photo to him in the POW camp After the war, he worked as a London Police & Security Officer at Saint James's Palace in the City of Westminster, London & in the 1970’s became a Coach painter & upholsterer Edward died of heart failure at the age of 58 on Sunday, March 14^th, 1976 in Crawley, Sussex; this disease also affected his brothers & sisters	1918
10^th	My maternal GrandUncle is Henry Collis Dodson who had many children with his wife, Eva Mossman; they were married in the Borough of Southwark, London in July of 1914	1889 / 1891
11^th	Here is my 2^nd maternal GGM, Agnes Nicol & her husband George Ruddlesdin ( my 2^nd maternal GGF ), each with great snaps in their profiles! Another maternal GGF ( in another branch of my tree! ) is George Roberts, the father of my GGM, Sarah Amelia Roberts, shared above. George was born April 7^th, 1841 at the Church of Saint George in the East on 14 Cannon Saint Road in the Parish of Stepney, London; he died of unknown causes in Christchurch, Borough of Southwark, London on Monday, May 11^th, 1891 at the age of 50	1851-1850 1841
12^th	My 3^rd maternal GGF, Joseph Ball was born on September 6^th, 1807 in Longbridge Deverill, Wiltshire which is about an hour north of my home town, Bournemouth ( above ) & his wife Sarah Payne ( my 3^rd maternal GGM ) who was born on September 14^th, 1815 in Cambridge, Cambridgeshire They were married in Longbridge Deverill, Wiltshire on July 6^th, 1834 & are the parents of my 2^nd GGM, Mary Jane Ball Joseph died of unknown causes at the age of 67 in April, 1875 in Warminster & Sarah ( same cause ) died at the age of 79 in January, 1894	1807-1815 1841
13^th	I have hundreds of “Royal People” in & around my tree: Kings & Queens with their children, each as Princes & Princesses, their relatives, the Dukes & the Duchesses, the Lords & the Ladies, & even the Sir’s & the Saints… These people go waaaay back: my 84^th GGF is Memnón of Troy, who ruled as a Warrior in the Ancient City of Troy ( also spelled as “Troia” ) of Turkey and Greece in Çanakkale, and as an Ethiopian King; he was born there in 1,300 BCE. His GGF was Deimachas, the furthest person back in my tree - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - The 1^st actual ( vs. imagined! ) person here of the 5 Royal People that I am sharing is my 17^th cousin, once removed, Queen Elizabeth II ( a Windsor ), who was born in London on the 21^st of April in 1926. She was married to Prince Philip of Greece and Denmark in 1947 & they had 4 children, Prince Charles “Charlie,” Anne, Andrew & Edward. She was crowned as the Queen of the UK and 15 Commonwealth realms in February of 1952 when her father died Her many historic visits & meetings as a Queen included a state visit to the Republic of Ireland and visits to ( or from ) five popes. Significant events were her June, 1952 coronation as Queen and the celebrations of her Silver, Golden, & Diamond Jubilees in 1977, 2002, & 2012; in 2017, she became the first British monarch to reach a Sapphire Jubilee She passed away peacefully as the longest-lived & longest-reigning British monarch at the age of 96 while residing in her favourite place, Balmoral Castle in Aberdeenshire, Scotland on the afternoon of Thursday, 8^th September, 2022 Her son Charlie was next-in-line from his mother, becoming the King of England in May of 2023. He married Diana in 1981 & they had 2 children, William ( the future King of England ) and Henry. Charlie had been subtly madly in love with Camillia before the marriage to Diana, whom the Queen disowned with their 1996 divorce… He then married Camillia in 2005 Diana died in a 1997 car crash in Paris, where rumours continue to abound that she was killed by the British Royalty, who detested her for what she was… - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - The 2^nd person ( of 5 ) of Royalty here was Queen Mary, born in Scotland on December 8^th, 1542 becoming the Queen of Scotland when she was just 6 days old after the death of her father King James… She grew up in France whilst Scotland was ruled by regents, & on April 24^th, 1558 she was married ( age 15 ) to the Dauphin of France, Francis ( age 14 ) in the Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris to solidify the Auld Alliance between Scotland & France, making Mary the Queen of both Scotland & France when Francis became king in 1559 Their marriage lasted just over two years, ending with Francis's death on December 15^th, 1560. Widowed, Mary returned to Scotland & married her 1^st cousin, Lord Darnley, Henry Stuart, in 1565. In February 1567, Henry’s residence was destroyed by an explosion & he was found murdered in the garden… She was then married to James Hepburn, the 4^th Earl of Bothwell in Scotland ( who was generally believed to have orchestrated Darnley's death, but was acquitted of the charge in April 1567 ) in the following month. Mary became imprisoned following an uprising against the couple in the Loch Leven Castle in Scotland & on July 24^th, 1567, she was forced to abdicate her title in favour of James, her one-year-old son by Darnley After an unsuccessful attempt to regain the throne, Mary fled southwards seeking the protection of her first cousin, once removed, Queen Elizabeth I of England. She had previously claimed Elizabeth's throne as her own & was considered the legitimate sovereign of England by many English Catholics, including participants in a rebellion known as the Rising of the North Perceiving Mary as a threat, Elizabeth had her confined in a number of castles & manor houses in the interior of England; after 18-½ years in custody, Mary was found guilty of plotting to assassinate Elizabeth and was subsequently executed - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - The 3^rd ( of 5, a very extensive section, sharing each of his 6 wives ) was my 2^nd cousin, 16x removed, the famous King Henry VIII ( see a WiKi view? )… He was born on June 28^th, 1491 at the Palace of Placentia in Greenwich, Kent, constructed by his father Henry VII in 1486; it was later rebuilt around 1660 by Oliver Cromwell who converted the entire building into a biscuit factory & then briefly to a prisoner of war camp during the English Civil War Henry was the third child & second son of his mother, Elizabeth of York and was married to 6 women… His 1^st wife ( of 6 ) was Katherine of Aragón ( see a WiKi view? ) who was born on December 15^th, 1485 at the Archiepiscopal Palace of Alcalá de Henares in Castile, Spain They were married when Henry was just 17 ( she was 23 ) on June 11^th, 1509 at the Franciscan Church near Newgate in London. At that time it was named as the “Greyfriars Friary” ( named after referencing the “grey habits” of the Franciscans ), and was later dissolved by Henry as part of the Dissolution of the Monasteries in 1538, with it later becoming the Christ Church, Greyfriars. Its grand medieval structure was largely ruined by the Great Fire in 1666, rebuilt by Christopher Wren and again on December 29^th, 1940 in WWII, leaving only the tower & outer walls as a public garden today Henry & Katherine were coronated as King & Queen a few days later on June 24^th, 1509 in the Westminster Abbey, London by the Archbishop of Canterbury, William Warham. Henry was the first English sovereign to be styled 'majesty' Their marriage was then annulled by Henry on May 23^rd, 1533 and Katherine lived at the Kimbolton Castle in Cambridgeshire, England until her death by cancer on Jan 7^th, 1536 Katherine had previously been married—betrothed by their parents ( meant to solidify the alliance of the ruling families of Spain & England ) at her age of 3 in 1488 to Arthur Tudor ( see a WiKi view? ), then aged 11; he was the Prince of Wales, heir apparent to the English throne & an older brother of Henry They were married on November 14^th, 1501 at the Old Saint Paul's Cathedral in London. Arthur was ill at their marriage, growing weaker as they moved from London to the Ludlow Castle, where he died of the Black Death ( most likely ) on April 2^nd, 1502, just 5 months later. Katherine was also affected but survived; she held the title of Dowager Princess of Wales until she married Henry ( see above ) - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Henry’s 2^nd wife ( of 6 ) was Anne Boleyn ( see an extended WiKi view? ) They were married on Jan 25^th, 1533 at the Palace of Whitehall in the City of Westminster, London She was executed at the age of 32 with an axe at The Tower of London on Tuesday, May 19^th, 1536; this was due to a need for King Henry to be rid of his wife after her false conviction of incest with her brother, George—her WiKi page shares many details of her life - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Next is Henry's best-loved wife, his 3^rd spouse ( of 6 ), Jane Seymour ( see a WiKi view? ) He was betrothed to Jane on May 20^th, 1536, the day after Anne Boleyn's execution ( above ) and they were married ( scroll down for details? ) just 10 days later in the heavily decorated Queen's Closet of the Palace of Whitehall in the City of Westminster, London by Bishop Stephen Gardiner. As a wedding gift, Henry granted her 104 manors in four counties, as well as in a number of forests & hunting chases for her jointure, the income to support her during their marriage Jane’s well-publicized sympathy for the late Queen Katherine ( Henry’s 1^st wife, above ) and her daughter, Mary, showed her to be compassionate and made her a popular figure with the common people & most of the courtiers. She was publicly proclaimed as Queen on June 4^th, 1536 yet was never crowned because of the plague in London, where the coronation was to take place; Henry may have been reluctant to have her crowned before she had fulfilled her duty as a queen consort by bearing him a male heir which she did… Jane died at the age of 29 on Sunday, October 24^th, 1537, just a few days after the birth of her son Edward in the Hampton Court Palace in Richmond, London. Her labor had been very difficult, lasting for 2 days & 3 nights, probably because her baby was not well positioned… her death may have been due to an infection from a retained placenta or from a bacterial infection contracted during the birth Jane was buried on November 12^th, 1537 in the St. George's Chapel at Windsor Castle; she was the only one of Henry's wives to receive a Queen's funeral. After her death, Henry wore black for the next three months; he also gained weight during his widowerhood, becoming obese and swollen, developing diabetes & gout When Henry died in 1547, he was buried beside Jane on his request, in the grave that he had made for her - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Henry's 4^th wife ( of 6 ) was Anne of Cleves ( see a WiKi view? ) She was born in 1515, on either June 28^th or on September 22^th in Düsseldorf, part of the Duchy of Berg in Germany as the second daughter of John III of the House of La Marck & his wife Maria, Duchess of Jülich-Berg Henry’s intended marriage negotiations were tentatively begun soon after Jane's death ( above ) as Henry believed that he needed to form a political alliance with her brother, William, Duke of Jülich-Cleves-Berg, a leader of the Protestants of Western Germany, to strengthen his position against potential attacks from Catholic France & from the Holy Roman Empire Anne arrived in England on December 6^th, 1539 & they married a week later at the Royal Palace of Placentia in Greenwich, Kent, by Archbishop Thomas Cranmer Anne was commanded to leave the Court after just 6 months on June 24^th, and on July 6^th she was informed of her husband's decision to reconsider the marriage. Witness statements were taken from a number of courtiers & two physicians which register the King's disappointment at her appearance Henry had also commented to Thomas Heneage & Anthony Denny that he could not believe she was a virgin. Shortly afterwards, Anne was asked for her consent to an annulment, to which she agreed. Cromwell, the moving force behind the marriage, was attainted for treason The marriage was annulled on July 12^th, 1540, on the grounds of non-consummation & her pre-contract to Francis of Lorraine. Henry's physician stated that, after the wedding night, Henry said he was not impotent because he experienced "duas pollutiones nocturnas in somno" ( two nocturnal pollutions while in sleep ) Following the annulment, Henry gave her a generous settlement & Anne was thereafter known as the King's Beloved Sister - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Henry's 5^th wife ( of 6 ) was Kathyrn Howard ( see a WiKi view? ) Her mother was Jocasta ( Joyce ) Culpeper, who had already birthed five children from her first husband, Ralph Leigh ( who had died ) when she married Lord Edmund Howard, & they had another six together, she being about her mother's tenth child in 1524 in the Borough of Lambeth, Region of Greater London, England Henry married Kathyrn on July 28^th, 1540 at Saint Margaret's Church in Westminster Abbey in the City of Westminster, London. After their marriage, it was alleged that early in 1541, Kathyrn had embarked upon a 3^rd romance with Henry's favorite male courtier, Thomas Culpeper, a young man who, according to Dereham's testimony "had succeeded [him] in the Queen's affections," and whom she had considered marrying during her time as a maid-of-honour to Anne of Cleves She was charged & beheaded for treason after her adultery in The Tower of London at 7:00 a.m. on Monday, February 13^th, 1542 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - The final wife of Henry ( his 6^th wife ) was Katherine Parr, see her WiKi view also? She was the 3^rd of the 6 wives of Henry named “Katherine” and was born in 1503 on the Blackfriars Road in Southwark, London to Sir Thomas Parr & Maud Greene ( or “Matilda” ) who was a lady-in-waiting to Queen Katherine of Aragón ( the 1^st wife of Henry, who is shared above ) and named her child as Katherine She apparently had several husbands, yet with very few records of marriages, etc: John Neville, William Herbert ( with whom she has a recorded marriage in 1528 ), Henry ( married in 1543 ), Edward Burgh in 1547 ( which is after Henry died in January of that year) and Thomas Seymour ( with whom she had a child ) Her 1^st spouse was John Neville with no marriage record. He died of unknown causes on Tuesday, March 2^nd, 1543 at the age of 49 as the 3^rd Lord of Danby & the 3^rd Baron of Latimer (Lattimer), as a Member of Parliament, as a Knight of the Shire and as a Sir Katherine then married William Herbert on July 12^th, 1528 at the Hampton Court Palace, London who had several wives; they had no children. She was then married to Henry on July 12^th, 1543 in the heavily decorated Queen's Closet of the Palace of Whitehall in the City of Westminster, London; he died 3½ years later on Jan 28^th, 1547 Less than 2 months after Henry’s death, Katherine was married to Edward Burgh in the Hampton Court Palace, London as Queen Consort on March 3^rd, 1547 for reasons not known Katherine then had a relationship with Thomas Seymour ( they were not married ) but on March 3^rd, 1547 at The Tower of London they were connected & she became pregnant In June of 1548, Katherine, accompanied by Lady Jane Grey ( who was barely nine years old at that time ) moved to Sudeley Castle in Gloucestershire, where she had promised to provide education for Jane She spent the last few months of her pregnancy there, giving birth to her only child, Mary Katherine Seymour ( a WiKi view ), named “Mary” after Katherine's stepdaughter, on August 30 ^th, 1548; she died at the age of 10 Katherine died there just a few days after her birth on Sunday, September 5^th, 1548 at the age of 45; the cause is thought to have been from "childbed fever," quite common at that time due to the lack of hygiene around childbirth. Her funeral was then held on Tuesday, September 7^th, the first Protestant funeral held in English—her chief mourner was Lady Jane Grey—and was then buried in the St. Mary's Chapel on the grounds of Sudeley Castle, Gloucestershire, England - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - The 4^th Royal Person ( of 5 ) that I am sharing here is Eleanor of Castilla-León who was born in 1241 in Spain, became the Queen consort with her 1254 marriage in France at age 13 to King Edward Plantagenêt, the 5^th of the 14 Plantagenêt dynasty Kings ( shared below )… Arranged Royal marriages in the Middle Ages were not always happy, but available evidence indicates that Eleanor & Edward were devoted to each other; he is among the very few medieval English kings not known to have conducted extramarital affairs, or fathered children out of wedlock The couple were rarely apart—she had accompanied him on one of his many military campaigns in north-western Wales, famously giving birth to their son Edward on April 25^th, 1284 at the Caernarfon Castle ( which I had visited with my family on our trip in 1985 ), either in a temporary dwelling erected for her amid the construction works, or in the partially constructed Eagle Tower. Her many other children ( 17 are listed ) continue to be the subject of much scholarly confusion, both in number & in birth order… best guesses are shown in the Word document, viewable at her page The cause of her death in the village of Harby, Nottinghamshire at the age of 49 on Wednesday, November 29^th, 1290 was from malaria. Beginning in 1287, Eleanor started to become ill that left her weak & open to illnesses; in the summer of 1290 she had toured her properties, her final stop being at Harby. The journey was then abandoned, & the queen was lodged in the house of Richard de Weston where she died; the foundations of which can still be seen near Harby's parish church - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - As the final Royal Person that I am sharing here ( of the dozens that are in my tree! ), King Æthelred II ( meaning noble-counsel ), who was known as “Æthelred the Unready,” a mistranslation of Old English “unræd” ( meaning bad-counsel )—a twist on his name… a better translation is “Redeless,“ without counsel ( Rede ) He was my 30^th paternal GGF, born in the Wessex kingdom of England on March 19^th, 968 becoming the King of England at age 9 upon his father’s death Æthelred was also under suspicion of causing the murder of his half-brother at the age of 16, King Edward the Martyr by those who did not believe in his right to be King; strong evidence does point to his step-mother ( Queen consort, Ælfthryth Elfthryth Elfrida of Devonshire ) but this remains NFIA	dates are shared
14^th	My 11^th GGF is Thomas Rogers with his wife Grace Makin, who is a common ancestor of both Sandy & me… He was born on July 11^th 1586 in Alloa, Ayrshire, Medieval Scotland and she was born in 1585 in Fingringhoe in Colchester, Essex They traveled by boat before 1638 from Scotland to the Colony of Plymouth, West of the Cape Cod Bay in the British Colonial America and were married in November, 1638 in Watertown, the Colony of Massachusetts Bay	1586-1585
15^th	A very well-known ancestor in my tree is Count Geoffroy d’Anjou the 5^th; view his descriptive page here? Geoffroy was born August 24^th, 1113 in Maine-et-Loire of Pays de la Loire in Medieval France, holding the titles of the 10^th Count of Anjou and the Count of Touraine & Maine from age 16 in 1129 ( by inheritance ) and then the title of Duke of Normandy ( by conquest ) from age 31 in 1144 until his death His surname of "Plantagenêt" was derived from his use of “sprigs of the yellow-broom blossom” that he wore in his hat at age 17; his name was from the French name for "planta genista," the broom shrub. He was also called "the Handsome" or "the Fair", each of which would have been "Geoffroy le Bel" ( in French ) - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - As my 25^th GGF, Geoffroy created the House of Plantagenêt in England, through his red-haired son Henry ( view a page on his life? )… that dynasty reigned for 331 years, from 1154 to 1485 with 14 Kings Henry was a child of Empress Matilda ( a daughter & the heiress of King Henry of France, the youngest son of William the Conqueror, shared below ) and Geoffroy, born there on March 5^th, 1133. He became one of the strongest kings ever to rule England, whose territories & titles gave him authority over a great part of North-Western Europe… He became the 11th Count of Anjou in Maine, Medieval France after the death of his father in 1151, acquiring the additional titles of Duke of Normandy ( by right of his mother ) and of Duke of Aquitaine by the right of his wife, Eleanor of Aquitaine, the divorced wife of King Louis VII of France They were married at Le Mans, Pays de la Loire in Medieval France on May 22^nd, 1127 and had several children Henry became King of England in 1154 at the age of 21 upon the death of the English King, Stephen in accordance with the terms of the Treaty of Wallingford. He landed in England on December 8^th 1154 & took oaths of loyalty from the barons after which he was crowned at Westminster Abbey alongside his wife Eleanor on December 19^th, 1154. Henry was also the Lord of Ireland, and he controlled Wales, Scotland & Brittany at various times; view the Plantagenêt history at Henry’s 19^th September 1154 Historical Fact, and here as well as here Henry’s oldest brother, Robert, named from his grandfather, Robert & known as “Curt-Hose,” was born in 1047 at Normandy, succeeding as the Duke of Normandy upon his father’s death in 1087, reigning until 1106 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Geoffroy died at the age of 38 when, according to John of Marmoutier ( a 12^th-century French Benedictine monk and a chronicler at Marmoutier Abbey ) he was returning home from a Royal Council in Medieval France and on September 7^th, 1151 he was stricken with a fever at Château-du-Loir, whereupon he collapsed on a couch and died… He was buried in Le Mans, Pays de la Loire in Medieval France after his death Several research pages are a WiKi page, a definition of the name, a BBC report on him, and the history page	1113
16^th	Next is my 27^th paternal GGF, William the Conqueror, William Beauclerc, born October 14^th, 1024 at Calvados in Falaise, Basse-Normandy, Medieval France. View another tree page here and his WiKi page? Normandy came into existence around 918 from William’s 5^th GGF, Rollo Hrólfr RögnvaldsSon ( my 32^nd GGF, born in Scandinavia on October 14^th, 846 ) after the besieging of Paris in 885–886. With the Siege of Chartres in 911 under the King of West Francia in Medieval France, Charles the Simple, Rollo agreed to the Treaty of Saint-Clair-sur-Epte, which granted him the lands between the river Epte & the sea in exchange for an agreement to end his brigandage, swearing allegiance to Charles, converting to Christianity, & pledging to defend the Seine estuary from other Viking raiders William became the Duke of Normandy at the age of 8 when his father Robert died in 1035. On October 14^th, 1066 at the age of 44, he attacked England with several thousand troops and battle horses, defeating & killing the King of England, Harold Godwinson at the Battle of Hastings—this event created Medieval England, moving England away from the Middle-ages, a part of Anglo-Saxon Britain for many centuries. See a video that shares the battle; rewind as needed to view his life? His 1^st attendant & a key part of his war circle in the battle was Adam de Aldithley, coincidentally the 30^th GGF of Sandy! William was crowned as King on Christmas Day of that year in London by the Archbishop of York, Aldred ( or Ealdred ), becoming the 1^st Norman King of England William new role as King was repeatedly attacked by various warriors from the north; in 1069 he sent his troops north for the total destruction of the people of Yorkshire, Durham & Lancashire, finding & slaying all men and boys & salting the earth there to prevent their return… He performed many tasks throughout his life, building hundreds of castles in his 1^st few years there as part of his defense, and presiding over a gradual redistribution of land in England, aided by the establishment of feudalism under which his followers were granted land in return for pledges of service & loyalty. He was also noted for his efficient if harsh rule—his administration relied upon Norman & other foreign personnel, especially Lanfranc, the Archbishop of Canterbury - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - William created a key document with his agents in 1086, the Domesday Book, a manuscript record of the Great Survey of much of England & parts of Wales; it was originally known by the Latin name “Liber de Wintonia,” meaning the "Book of Winchester," kept in the Royal Treasury. The Anglo-Saxon Chronicles state that in 1085 “the King sent his agents to survey every Shire in England, to list his holdings & dues owed to him” A 2^nd key English document was signed into use 129 years later, the Magna Carta… it sought to prevent a king from exploiting his power, placing limits of royal authority by establishing law as a power in itself The document became law when approved by King John, the 3^rd of the 14 Plantagenêt dynasty Kings with 25 guarantors ( one of whom was my 22^nd GGF, William de Mowbray ) on June 15^th, 1215 in Runnymede at Surrey, England, an otherwise obscure grassy field next to the Thames in Berkshire between Windsor & Staines John’s son, Henry, born October 1^st, 1207 became the King of England ( a child-king ) as the 4^th of the Plantagenêt dynasty at the age of 9 after his father’s death on October 28^th, 1216. Henry reigned for 56 years until his death on 1216, the 1^st of the 5 monarchs to reign for 50 years; see his profile? - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - William died from battle wounds at age 62 in Rouen, Seine-Inférieure, Normandy of Medieval France on September 9^th, 1087 & was interred the next day at the Abbey of St. Stephen in Caen, Falaise, Basse-Normandy, Medieval France. Unfortunately, William's original tombstone of black marble, the same kind as Matilda's in the Abbaye aux Dames, was destroyed by the Calvinist iconoclasts in the 16^th century & his bones were then scattered	born a thousand+ years ago, 1024
17^th	My 31^st GGF ( Sandy’s 34^th ) was Count Boson of Avignon and of Provence & Arles; he was born in 935 at Autun in Saône-et-Loire, Medieval France, passing away in Avignon at the age of 33 on September 13^th, 968 He was the founder of the comital dynasty of Provence, which ruled France until its disappearance in the 12th century	935
18^th	My 16^th paternal Great-GrandUncle was Edward Plantagenêt who was declared to be the King of Medieval England by the Earl of Warwick on June 28^th, 1461 after winning the Battle of Towton on May 29^th in the West Riding of Yorkshire; he was the 1^st king from the House of York He was born on April 28^th, 1442 in Rouen. Medieval France and married Elizabeth Woodville on May 1^st, 1464 when the Earl of Warwick had pressed Edward to marry Anne of France ( of King Louis XI ) as a marital alliance with a major European power, but was alienated by the his secret marriage to Elizabeth, the widow of a Lancastrian sympathizer Edward died of unknown causes at the age of 40 on April 9^th, 1483 at the Palace of Westminster in London and was buried a few days later near Windsor, Medieval England	1442
19^th	In late 2024, I had an idea: create a descending view of one of the many tree branches of my ancestors to share details of an area of my tree data! From the Roots Magic tree management tool on my PC, I used the built-in Narrative Report feature ( in the NGSQ report form ) to build a PDF-based Viking report, with 583 pages of detailed data ( & the indices after that ), tweaking several areas & adding a cover page to upload it… As the starting point for this, I selected my 50^th paternal GGF, Dag DagsSon ( view a GENI link? ) who was born about 429 in Sweden, Europe Dag became King after winning a battle in 444 against the Finnish chief, Frosti Ynglingesoga, becoming known as “Dag the Powerful" & "Dag the Brave," also as Agni or Agne & as DyggvasSon. He had forced a marriage after the battle with Frosti’s daughter, Skjalf FrostisDóttir, who was a Finnish princess Skjalf killed Dag in the year of 459 in Sweden 15 years later at his age of 30… this is reported to have been that he was hanged by his revengeful wife while in a drunken stupor	~429 AD
20^th	I have many, many ancestors who are before the time of Dag, listed above… One of these is the famous Roman Caesar, Emperor Constantine ( Flavius Valarius Constantine ) who led the Holy Roman Empire between 306 & 337 in Rome I connected him ( and 82 other Romans ) to my tree, disconnecting them when the one link to them was found to have been wrong; I did keep all of them… Born on February 27^th, 271 in the Province of Moesia Superior, Yugoslavia, he married Eusebia Maxima in 300 at Bouche du Rhône, Rhône-Alpes, Roman France, gaining his title a few years later He died of unknown causes at the age of 66 on May 22^nd, 337 in Naissus, Turkey - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - The possibly final imaginary person that I am sharing in my tree was Arthur Pendragon of Roman Britain, who in 485 became King of Camelot ( another view ) and then the High King of Britain, ruling from the Tintagel Castle in Cornwall & from his palace in Winchester with the Round Table He was born about 450 in Monmouthshire, Wales, & ruled until his death at age 87 on May 21^st, 537	dates shown
21^st	After the many actual ancestors in my tree, I am sharing an imagined Biblical person, a religious entity known as God… He is also known as “Yahweh,” and is shown in my tree as the father of Adam & Eve, each linked-in on his page Around 2,000 years ago, the concept of Yahweh was created by a Christian religion, imagined as the father of Jesus Christ ( who isn’t real, IMHO & is not a part my family tree )—I marked Yahweh as my 71^st GGF	99,999 BC
22^nd	As the final entry ( for now! ) in my collection of key people, I created an imagined entity as a son of the "Most Ancient of the Actual Ancient People," Enos ben Seth ( my 68^th GGF, born in 3,769 BC ) to share some of the key details of a) Londinium in Roman England, b) Our 6 Global Continents, and c) Many of the date-based European places that exist in my tree	born about 1 AD

My development of this structure began with an idea: Publish the key aspects of certain people in my family tree, some immediate family ( with generations of grandparents ), some Royalty & a couple of others

I created this page as a tabulated list with index numbers, the person & their key information, and their birth year and then selected & added several key people; each has a paragraph or 2 about their life & eLinks to them in the existing online copy of my family tree & to others as needed. As my friends aren’t family, they’re not included…

Their birth years generally order the entries—the most recent dates are 1^st

Feel free to share your thoughts, comments or criticisms etc via eMail? Cheers!

Some relevant advisories:
    (1) My Family Tree data is All Rights Reserved © April/1988 – date Don Shave
    (2) My Copyrighted (©) web pages do not hold any Fake data, nor are they using any AI enhancements
    (3) As legal issues can surround such things as my published advice & opinions,
          my Privacy Policy & Disclaimers page is a mandatory addition… please review?

Created with RootsMagic Genealogy Software in January, 2026 & last updated in January, 2026
This website operates best under the Chrome browser; other browsers & devices fail to display correctly