We know a fair bit about this branch of the tree but we don’t know how it connects to the main Lanyon tree and it must somehow!
Penwinnick (Penwennack) Estate was near St Agnes in Cornwall.
In 1573 John Lanion was elected Warden of St Ives. (Source – A History of the Parishes of St Ives, Lelant, Towednack and Zennor by John Hobson Matthews P 146 and P 147). He was also listed in 1575 “Payd to Mr Laynyane for iiij trees”.
Around 1596 John Lanion gent bought the Penwinnick Estate in St Agnes (later sold to Edward Noy, cousin, in 1622). So who is this John Lanion?
On the 1569 Muster Roll for St Agnes there is a John Lanyne listed. He is the only John Lanyon (all name variants checked) listed on any muster roll at this time. Which begs the question ‘where is John Lanyon (esq) listed?’ Both Johns are probably of a similar age so why is only one listed on the muster roll? Could the John Lanion gent who was elected Warden of St Ives and the John Lanion gent who bought the Penwinnick Estate actually be John Lanyon Esq or his younger brother who was also called John?
I think it more likely that the John Lanyon of Penwinnick Estate was the second son of Richard Lanyon esq and the younger brother of John Lanyon esq.
There are few surviving records from this time. One of the earliest entries at St Agnes is the marriage of John, son of John Lanyon gent who married Tamsin Tapprell on 22nd Jun 1596.
John Lanyon & Tamsin Tapprell
John and Tamsin married at St Agnes but soon went to Breage where most of their children were born.
We know very little about John and Tamsin. John’s last child was baptised in 1620 but it’s not clear if Tamsin was the mother to all of them. John was buried in London at St Andrew, Holborn on 1st Jun 1640. He’s listed in the burial register as ‘an ancient gent’. He was living at Grey’s Inn Lane with his eldest son.
John had nine children, we don’t know if Tamsin was mother to all of them:
- John aft. 1596-1661 married Anne Goldsmith
- William 1600-1643 married Susannah Burdon
- Margareta 1605-1682 married Thomas Glynn, gent and Mayor of Helston, Oct 1635. Seven children. John Lanyon of Plymouth’s will of 1674 states ‘…to every grandchild of Aunt Glynn and my cousin Thomas Glynn and his wife £10 for a ring…’ Margareta was buried at Gwinear on 9th Dec 1682 ‘wife of Thomas, gent’.
- Jana 1607-1608 died in infancy
- Franciss 1609- no further trace
- Thomas 1613- married Anne/Amy Tarrant 1639 London. Thomas is aged 28 therefore born about 1611.
- Philip 1615-1688 married Agnes Gubbs
- Nicholas 1618-1674 married Dorothea Wilmot Waringe, the illegitimate child of Lord Charles, Viscount Wilmot in 1647 at Saint Bartholomew The Less in London. He had properties in Essex and Nottinghamshire. They had no children although she had four children from her first marriage to a man called Waringe/Warren. In his will of 1674 he left ‘all to wife Dorothea Warren’
- Jana 1620-1698 she is described in the parish register as daughter of Johis and Janae, could her father have had a second wife after Tamsin? She married Thomas Trewoola, gent of Towednack in 1647 at Helston. No children traced. Her cousin John Lanyon of Plymouth mentions her in his will of 1674 ‘…to cousin Jane Trewollah £50 more in consideration and satisfaction of the £5 I received from Uncle Glynn to improve her advantage.’ There is a burial of a Joan Trewhela widow at Towednack in 1698, possibly her.
Did John of Penwinnick remarry?
There is a document at Kresen Kernow dated 16th May 1623 – St Agnes – Penwennick – John Lanyon the elder gentleman and wife Jane and their sons John and Edward assign lease to Edward Noye. (Source GP/17). There is another document dated 30th Dec 1608 – St Agnes. John Lanyon of St Agnes, gent and Edward Lanyon (John Lanyon’s second son) 1 quarter of Penwennacke. The first document seems to confirm that John of Penwinnick did indeed have a wife named Jane and he also had a second son called Edward who was not found in the baptism register but must have been born before William who was baptised in Aug 1600. There is no record of Tamsin Tapprell being buried or of a marriage to Jane. Thomas Tonkin suggests that she is Jane the daughter of William Whitta, the previous owner of Penwennick Castle.
We’ll follow John, William and Philip Lanyon’s interesting lives in the post ‘Chief Engineer to Charles I’.
The Lanyons 