John William Norris

John Norris was known as a child as John Williams. He was the illegitimate son of John Norris (I) and his housekeeper, Deborah Busby, and inherited the majority of his father's wealth and property.[2] John Norris (snr) baptised John and his brother, Charles as his own children. They were formally recognised in his will.

Parentage and inheritance

"I have also read John I's will, at Somerset House, where he sets down the facts of his children's birth. He left £ 200 a year to 'Deborah Busby, my housekeeper,' at Hughenden, and states that the annuity is to continue even if 'she should happen to marry'. John Norris stated plainly in this will that Deborah was the mother of his children; there were five of them, and three grew up Elizabeth, fifteen when her father died, married Richard Bevan, a barrister; John II, then aged twelve, who eventually inherited all the property; and Charles, who was about six.

John I had a cousin on his mother's side, Ellen, Countess Conyngham. She was widowed and childless, and was very kind to John's young children. So John I, in his will, left Hughenden Manor and all its contents for the use of Lady Conyngham for her life, in the care of trustees, and on her death in 1816, John II inherited everything, entailed on his heirs under his father's will. My father told me that Lady Conyngham brought the children up at Hughenden, and treated them as her own. John and Charles, and their sister Elizabeth, were at school in Islington when young, and from there the boys went on to Eton. John II at some period seems to have been at school at St. Omer, in France. John went to Christ Church, Oxford, and took a degree." ~ Ursula Norris (Mrs. Ashley Larmuth), (1966)

Marriage and family

John married Louisa Douglas(1781),18 December 1798, Saint Clement Danes, Westminster, London, Middlesex, England. They had nine daughters, no sons. Seven survived to adulthood.

Children of John Norris and Louisa Douglas

1. Ellen Dumbleton, (1799–1884) b. Hawley, Hampshire, England.
2. Louisa Catharine Norris (1801–1801) b. Hampshire, England • died in infancy.
3. Louisa Vincent, (1802 - 1841) b. Yateley, Hawley, Hampshire, England • married Sir Frederick Vincent, 11th Baronet, of Stoke D'Abernon (1798–1883). Died aged 38 years.
4. Juliet Norris, (1804 - 1804) b. Hawley, Hampshire, England • d.Hawley, Hampshire, England'
5. Barbarina Bonham. (1806–1882) b. Yateley, Hawley, Hampshire, England • d. Croydon, Surrey, England
6. Mary Frances Henry (1811 - 1897), b. Dawlish, Devon, England (?) • d. Wirral, Cheshire, England
7. Blanch Wroughton, (1813–1903) b. Yateley, Hampshire, England • d. Berkshire, England
8. Lady Caroline Young, (1813–1871), b. Yateley, Hampshire, England • d. Kensington, London, England
9. Agnes Gray, (1814 - 1862) b. Hawley, Hampshire, England • d. Brighton, Sussex, England

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This alternative list was copied from a Norwegian family tree - descendants of Ellen.

1. Ellen Norris , Resident of Longdown, Sandhurst, Berkshire / 1800-1884
2. Juliet Norris 1804 - 1804
3. Barbarina Norris , Resident of Hillside, South Norwood Hill, Croydon, Surrey 1806-1882
4. Louisa Norris / 1807-1841
5. Blanch Norris , Gemini 1813
6. Caroline Norris , Co-Sir 1813-1871
7. Mary Frences Norris 1813
8. Agnes Norris , Resident of 6 Belgrave Place, Brighton, Sussex / 1814

Visit

Hughenden Park

Hawley House, Hampshire

"It is well-known locally that Hawley House was one of the homes of the two John Norris. Father and son were successive owners of both Hughenden (before Benjamin Disraeli), and of Hawley House."

"The elder John Norris has been described as the "richest commoner in England" (along with at least a dozen other claimants to this title). He appears to have kept a different mistress in each house. Henrietta Mason was established at Hawley House and Deborah Busby at Hughenden. In his will Norris acknowledged that Deborah's eldest illegitimate son was his rightful heir. The latter had been known as John Williams, but as John Norris the younger he lived at Hawley House with his young wife Louisa."

"The Yateley Parish Registers record the baptisms of the younger John Norris' nine daughters between 1800 and 1813, and the burial of two of them. John Norris II would have been the owner in 1828 when the engraving of Hawley House was published in Ackermann’s Repository of Arts" (P. J. Tipton, 2014) [2]

Hawley House doesn't seem to exist any more: Hart District Council Conservation Area Appraisal

Hawley House in Tasmania, Australia, was built by Major Arthur Vincent Dumbleton, named after the house at Yateley. The house seems to have been abandoned at some stage. I think it would be a nice place to stay.

Ancestors

If you are a descendant of John, I have traced his ancestors back to Edward I "Longshanks", King of England, Edward II, king of England, Edward III, king of England, Louis IV, king of West Francia , William "the Conqueror", king of England and Gange-Hrólfr 'Rollo' of Normandy. This was done by careful checking of the lineage proposed by Ursule Norris, back to the Derehams and Audleys of Norfolk, Their family tree was recorded by the College of Arms, where Ele Guybon , daughter of Sir John Awdeley, Kt., of Swaffham Market married Thomas Dereham .

https://www.geni.com/people/Gange-Hrólfr-Rollo-of-Normandy/2915061

1. Alfred the Great, king of The Anglo-Saxons
2. Egbert, king of Wessex
3. Henry I, king of France
4. Henry II "Curtmantle", king of England - Henry Pantagenet
5. Roger Mortimer, 1st Earl of March
6. Harold Godwinsson, King of England
7. Harald III "Hard ruler", king of Norway (Uncle)
8. Philip III, "the Bold" king of France
9. Charlemagne

"Everyone of European ancestry is descended from Charlemagne" (2002), - the difficult task is to prove it.

Sources

1. Norris, Ursula (1966). "Charles Norris, Tenby Artist, and his Family". Cylchgrawn Llyfrgell Genedlaethol Cymru (The National Library of Wales Journal). 14 (4): 489–496. document - accessed 21 April 2018
2. Walter Rye, Historian of the Norfolk region. Walter researched the Norrises over many generations and his line to John Norris is the same as Ursula's. It's likely that her article draws on Walter's research, although she doesn't mention this.
3. P J Tipton - Yateley Local Historian, History of Hawley Park & Hawley House, Twitter:@yateley_history
4. 1798: "John Norris esq of Hawley House Hants to Miss Douglas second dau of The D esq late of Grantham co Linc " The Gentleman's Magazine, and Historical Chronicle, Volume 68, Part 2, Marriages of Remarkable Persons
5. Will of John Norris of Hitchenden House otherwise Hughenden House , Buckinghamshire (18 November 1845)
6. "England Births and Christenings, 1538-1975," database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:NPQQ-9N5 : 11 February 2018, John William Morris, 12 Jan 1774); citing SAINT MARY-ST MARYLEBONE ROAD,ST MARYLEBONE,LONDON,ENGLAND, index based upon data collected by the Genealogical Society of Utah, Salt Lake City; FHL microfilm 580,904, 580,905.

Additional information and links

Ursula Larmuth did extensive genealogy research into the Norris family, which has been published by the National Library of Wales. Unfortunately Ursula died not too many years later, so her writing is all that we have. Ursula was the granddaughter of John; grandson of Charles Norris, a renowned painter of Welsh Landscapes. Charles was John Norris's younger brother. Ursula writes that John Norris II also produced some artwork, which is held in the archives of National Library of Wales.

John, only having daughters, was the last male Norris of this line. That leaves brother Charles, the landscape painter, who had many children, to two wives. Most died as young people, ravished by disease. One son; Robert, died aged 34 years, had at least one son; John.

John, my grandfather, was a barrister on the Western Circuit, and later a High Court Judge in India. He was President of the Anti-Vivisection Society (up crops the family softness about animals). He married Anne Isabella, daughter of General Woodburn, of the Indian Army, and lived in Clifton. - Ursula (Norris) Larmuth (1966)

Ursula reports that Charles's second family died out.

I've done a thorough search to try to connect Charles Norris to Ursula, but I wasn't able to find any results. I did find records of her marriage, death and children's births. These descendants were named Larmuth. Please contact Jenna Gray if you can help. It would be lovely to have Ursula's record attached to this tree.

Capt. James Norris (1667 - 1718 of Norwich) was the brother of Robert Norris (son of Osbert). Osbert Norris (1638 -1698, Freeman of Norwich) had two sons, Robert and James. According to Ursula Norris, the last of James' male descendants was killed at Gallipoli.