Percy Family History

19 December 2007 Percy conspiracy concerns

 

 

Correspondence by fax

Sent: 19 December 2007

 

Garter Principal King of Arms
Mr Peter Gwynn-Jones
London College of Arms

Dear Mr Gwynn-Jones,

It is now four months since your last letter acknowledging receipt of our last payment and I am concerned that this delay, following the earlier one of four months and the 12 months taken so far to check our genealogists work without advancing or proving anything incorrect is setting a pattern. I accept that this may not be of your making but I would appreciate you conveying our frustration to your genealogist/s.

When I approached you to act for us (The New Zealand Percys who claim to be descended from the Gunpowder Plotters family line, the Cadet Percy Beverley line), it was with full knowledge of the past history between the College of Arms and the Gunpowder Plotter's two claiming descendants, James Percy of Dublin and our claimed ancestor Francis Percy of Cambridge (later Mayor), whose father Francis Snr. from our Taunton St. Mary Magdalene line had also claimed.

The past history included two consecutive Garter Principal Kings of Arms - Sir Edward Walker and Sir William Dugdale a practised genealogist, supplying the two consecutive claimants with two impossible misdirection's of descent, including Sir William Dugdale's descent chart for Francis Percy as being descended from Guiscard Percy in the main line who had died early aged seven years.

Both claims were also prejudiced by the College of Arm's records dealing with the Gunpowder Plotters descent being mutilated by Heralds. From Brenan's c. 1900 book, 'The House of Percy': "also that portion of genealogy sought (referring to the missing page) dealt with the descent of Thomas Percy of the Gunpowder Treason, the obliteration of whose name seemed a commendable  action to the ultra loyal Heralds of the Jacobean era."

It appears that there was a conspiracy to ensure that a descendant of the Gunpowder Plotter, even though he carried Charlemagne's 'extinct' Louvain-Percy male bloodline, would never be allowed to accede to the Earldom. Reinforcing this appearance is the list below of a few of the powerful vested interests that were dedicated to the obliteration of the Louvain-Percy male bloodline and therefore likely to have been complicit in the conspiracy.

A summary of the problems that the first claimant James Percy encountered, and which would also confront the second claimant 'our' Francis Percy of Cambridge, great grandson of Thomas Percy the Gunpowder Plotter.

Case of James Percy Claimant of Earldom of Northumberland

Although no evidence was brought forward by this man to verify any link to the parent line of Percy of Northumberland, there were 'hints' that those who wished to protect the interests of Lady Elizabeth Percy, only surviving child of Josceline Percy, 11th Earl of Northumberland, did so in the most nefarious manner. Included in these practices were:

  1. The repeated refusal by the Dowager Countess of Northumberland (Elizabeth's guardian) to allow access to the Percy family records held by her agents.  If they had shown that James could not have been the true Heir-male, why not allow his request? It is known that there were males in a cadet-line of Percy who were alive at the time of Josceline's death but they did not claim Earldom.
  2. The use of William Percy, an illegitimate half-brother of James, by the Dowager Countess' agents to cast doubt on James' legitimacy and to force him to into expensive litigation.
  3. The use of 'Peer's Privilege' b y agents of the Dowager Countess, as their defence when James Percy laid charges of libel and defamation against them in the court of Kings Bench. Percy's counsel then refused to plead his case for fear of prosecution for breach of privilege.
  4. The litigation against James Percy for breach of contract brought against him by the Duke of Monmouth who, had James' claim to the Earldom been successful, would have lost considerable income as the estates, that had reverted to the Crown after Josceline's death,and he had been granted by his father (Charles II), would have returned to James Percy. Others had vested interests in this area as well.
  5. A lack of interest in the case by Charles II when petitioned by James Percy in 1678 because a) 4 above, and b) the fact that the petition happened to coincide with an attempt by the King to gain Elizabeth Percy's hand in marriage for George Fitzroy, another of his natural sons, who had recently been created Earl of Northumberland.
  6. The 'missing' leaf from a book dealing with the Earls of Northumberland held at the Heralds' College ( in the time of Sir Eward Walker Garter King), which James claimed dealt with the cadet branches of the House of Percy.  This, if true, is especially interesting for it would have included the line of Percy started by Josceline, fourth son of Henry, 4th Earl of Northumberland, a line not affected in blood by the attainder of 1537.  The senior male of this line at the death of Josceline, 11th earl of Northumberland was Alan Percy of Beverley, said to have been de jure 12th earl of Northumberland, who died in 1688 s.p.

Not withstanding this past 'history', and some of our own New Zealand Percys doubts about the will of the College of Arms to commit themselves to our search to prove our 200+ year old provenance's to carry the old 'extinct' Louvain-Percy male bloodline and descent through the Gunpowder Plotters line (the Cadet Percy Beverley line), I remain convinced that coming to The College of Arms was a step in the interest of transparency and historical integrity that we were bound to take.  I think that it is in the interests of and may be incumbent upon the College of Arms to take the lead (to ascertain the existence or not of the old male line) with Cambridge City and University where two essential (plus a living New Zealand eldest Percy son) participants, are buried.
The proving (or not) that Charlemagne's direct line which culminated into the revered Louvain-Percy yDNA in 1150 lives on today is historically important to all historians and Percys in U.K., U.S.A., Australia and New Zealand.

In conclusion there are two important considerations that need resolving:

1). I know I have brought this up at least twice before without you responding but do you not think it prudent to look at the possibility that our John Purse/y may be John Percy, the younger brother of Alan Percy of Beverley de jure 12th earl of Northumberland who died without issue? It is possible that this could solve our family conundrum.

  • The dates fit.
  • He is much closer to the line than the brothers Francis Snr, Thomas and James of our St. Mary Magdalene line descending as he does from Alan Percy (1560-1632) M.P. for Beverley, and the Plotters older brother.
  • John Percy is recorded in the Beverley line chart III with the caption "whose eventual fate is unknown". It is logical that when he moved that it could be North to be near his cousins and their father (the Plotters son Robert) who were in our Taunton Parish of St. Mary of Magdalene at the time.
  • Our proven John Purse/y (as a man of substance) signed the Protestation returns just as John Percy would have had to do so if he was our ancestor. Are they the same person?
  • 12.12.07 We have just found this out. If John Percy of Beverley and our John Purse/y of Taunton are the same person, then his family tree would show a succession of the 'Edwards' both sides of him which would be genealogically important.

     

# Great grandfather (grandson of 4th Earl of Northumberland EDWARD of Beverley b. 1524)

# Possible Great Uncle (one of the 4 Percies from the North) EDWARD? of Beverley c.1550

# An uncle EDWARD of Beverley b. 1594

# One and the same person? JOHN of Beverley and Taunton b.c.1640

# An eldest son and only? Grandson (base born and claimed by , and given his fathers name at birth) EDWARD of Taunton

# A great grandson THOMAS ( the Plotter's name)  b. 1725, and brothers EDWARD and JOHN.

2) As soon as your next report arrives and if there is no progress then a web-site will be set up to make our claims and all our research public. we will educate, target and offer an incentive large enough to guarantee wide interest from the following: Press Association and all forms of media including TV channels ( specialising in history and education), genealogists, geneticists, historians, county record offices, Universities (U.K., U.S.A., Australia and New Zealand), Mormon and Catholic Church records, historical groups, and a plethora of investigative agencies.

We want no false provenance's and after we have gauged the extent of interest our web site engenders, then that will decide how and with whom we proceed to hopefully ultimate proof.

I am sorry for the length and detail of this letter but it is important that the College of Arms consider this from both their and our perspectives and while all we have written has been published before, we stand prepared to be corrected by them if anything we have written is incorrect.  It is important also because two books (one almost completed 1,500 page worldwide history of the Percys) will also be covering the problem area in some detail next year.

I look forward to you next communication and wish you and yours all the best for the festive season.

Yours sincerely

 

Shirley Kevin Percy (Kevin)

 

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