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Archiver > ESSEX-UK > 2002-11 > 1036391305


From: De Francesco Wolfango <>
Subject: FITCH reply
Date: Mon, 04 Nov 2002 07:28:25 +0100
In-Reply-To: <200211040100.gA410KYu026956@lists5.rootsweb.com>


dear evelyn,
i don't have specific info on your fitch family , but general info about the
name. the fitch name in some cases, not all , mind you, derives from my
ancestors the gernons, of 1066 fame. the gernons were cousins of william the
conqueror, of the ducal family , based in monfichet , normandy, south of
bayeux. they contributed to the 1066 invasion and baron robert de guernon
was very heavily rewarded by william , becoming one of the 15 largest
landowners of england under the conquest. five years after the conquest,
robert de guernon's children and grandchildren started calling themselves
de monfichet, or , anglicized to mountfitchet, after the name of their huge
norman castle. there were important members of the family that signed the
magna charta and were very well known in their time, their castle near
blackfriar's bridge, monfichet castle and tower was one of three main
medieval norman buildings under the conquest, built at the same time as
london tower and baynard's castle, but was destroyed around 1215 by king
john , along with their main castle at stansted mountfitchet, of which they
were lords,among many other places(they held around 100 manors,in 10 shires,
mainly in essex) for rebellion. (they also built many churches, castles and
monasteries in normandy, england and ireland....)with time , later on, part
of the family called montfichet or mountfitchet began calling themselves
fitch. some members of this branch held (possibly built) fitch castle in the
north.the gernons were a potent norman family intertwined with most major
norman families of the time, a branch went on the norman invasion of ireland
and married immediately both into the connaught royal house and the de
burgo family(descended from plantagenets) that founded the burke family,
from which diana descends through her mother. the family was very
influential in the pale for many centuries, until around 1700, when my
branch specialized as a medical family(we're at 8th generation of doctors
now). the gernon surname died out in england in this manner, through name
change, while the mountfitchet name slowly was superceded by fitch. already
a very wealthy grandson of baron robert de guernon changed his name to
cavendish , founding that great family of nobles found for example in
charles, diana's and camilla's bloodlines and that of many english
aristocrats.....the gernons didn't die out, they merely changed names. the
only gernons i have found in england today are people that derive from the
irish branch and have returned to england. while i am not saying for sure
that your family is the same fitch family and there are other origins of the
fitch name, this is one origin i know well. i am a gernon family historian
and have a website at: http://utenti.lycos.it/mary1943/index.htm
where you can read more if you wish. i am presently trying to submit little
known gernon information and pedigrees to different sources that publish
royal pedigrees as the gernon -cavendish, gernon-royal connaught house, and
gernon- de burgo bloodlines have been sadly overlooked, though they are well
documented, i am trying to revive the memory of this important but mostly
forgotten norman family. any contributions are welcome from the list as i am
collecting more information for a revision of the paper on the website. good
luck on finding your fitch ancestors and i hope i could be of help with the
ancient information...best regards, mary

> Da:
> Risposta:
> Data: Sun, 3 Nov 2002 18:00:20 -0700
> A:
> Oggetto: ESSEX-UK-D Digest V02 #485
>
>
> Da: "Keith Milne" <>
> Data: Sun, 3 Nov 2002 08:21:56 -0700
> A:
> Oggetto: FITCH of Writtle, Essex
>
> Hello:
>
> Anyone researching the FITCH family of Writtle, Essex who may be connected to
> my SUCKLING ancestors from Springfield (Boreham), Essex.
>
> Evelyn
> Alberta, Canada

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