Paskis Lanion married Thomas Shetford at St Just in Penwith in 1625. Who was Paskis Lanion? If only the answer was straight forward!

A quick trawl through the Cornwall Online Parish Clerks database revealed no baptisms for a Paskis/Paksis/Pascha/Pasca/Paska/Paskes/Paskas Lanion/Lanyon.

However the Heralds Visitation for Cornwall 1620 does have a suitable candidate:

Richard Lanyon Esq submitted his tree showing that his wife was Jane Mooring alias De La More from Devon and their eldest daughter was called Pasca but was she old enough to get married in 1625?

Their eldest son was John aged 10 in 1620 so therefore born in 1610. Could Pasca be older than John? When did Richard marry Jane? The Royal Institution of Cornwall has a marriage settlement between Richard Lanyon and Jane his wife dated 1608 so presumably they married about 1608. The letter from Mrs Rose Tolman confirms that Jane’s mother was called Pascha Risdon so eldest daughter was named after her grandmother.

If we list all Richard and Jane’s children we may see a gap where Pasca could fit.

• John baptised 13 Jul 1610 Madron
• Unbaptised child buried 12 Nov 1611 Madron
• Unbaptised child buried 12 Jun 1612 Madron
• Philippa 2nd daughter baptised 20 Apr 1613 Padstow
• Francis 2nd son – deposition taken 1635 when he is aged 16 so born in about 1619
• Elizabeth baptised 17 Nov 1622 St Merryn

The children with no baptisms recorded are:

• Pasca eldest daughter born before 1613 when Philippa is baptised
• Jane 3rd daughter born after 1613 and before 1622
• Richard not listed on Herald’s Visitation so presumably born after 1620
• Thomas not listed on Herald’s Visitation so presumably born after 1620
• Margerie – from Richard Lanyon Esq’s will it is implied that Elizabeth and Margerie are the youngest daughters

The latest Pasca could have been born was 1613 and with John born in 1610 and two unbaptised babies born in 1611 and 1612 it looks likely that Pasca was probably born about 1608/9 which would make her about 16 years of age at the time that the marriage to Thomas Shetford took place. So she is a possible candidate.

Richard Lanyon Esq’s will of 1636 left all his daughters £30 or £40 apart from Pasca who received 5 shillings which implies that in 1636 she was already married and had received her ‘portion’. Sadly the will does not mention her married name.

The only problem is that there is a second Paskas who is also a candidate.

Richard Lanyon Esq’s uncle William has a daughter also called Paskas.

William’s daughter’s baptism isn’t recorded but we know she existed from his will. Again we’ll have to list his other children and see where she could fit in:

• Elizabeth baptised 31 Oct 1593 Sancreed
• John baptised 8 Jun 1596 and buried 15 Sep 1601 at Sancreed
• John born after Sep 1601
• Jane baptised 24 Oct 1602 Sancreed
• William baptised Dec 1603 Sancreed
• Elyzabethe baptised 17 Jul 1607 Sancreed

Both daughters called Elizabeth survived and are mentioned in William’s will of 1624!

Abstract:-

WILLIAM LANYON of Sancreed written: 24 Dec 1624 proved: 8 Feb 1624/5

poor of Sancreed – 3 sh.
poor of St. Just – 5 sh.
poor of Gulval – 12 d.
poor of Maddern – 12 d.
poor of Antony – 12 d.
poor of Buryan – 12 d.
daughter: ELIZABETH – mare, 3 sheep, calf, mare colt
JOHN her son – calf & a sheep
WILLIAM her son – calf & a sheep
daughter: JANE – calf, 1 sheep, brazen crock
daughter JANE’s child – a ewe lamb
daughter: PASKAS – 4 kyne, mare, 10 sheep, 10 pounds
youngest daughter: ELIZABETH – 4 kyne, 10 sheep, 10 pounds
son: WILLIAM – all my part of tin and tin stuff, 13 pounds, 6 sh., 3 d.
son: JOHN – all the rest & executor

The will implies that Paskas is younger than Jane and older than Elizabeth his youngest daughter which suggests that she was born between 1602 and 1607. So aged about 18-23 in 1625 when the marriage to Thomas Shetford took place.

It’s interesting that William leaves 5 shillings to the poor of St Just as that’s the town that Thomas Shetford comes from.

Who was Thomas Shetford?

The Shetford/Shutford (and occasionally Shitford!) family originally came from Somerset. They were cheated out of a half share in six manors in Cornwall by Sir Thomas Bodulgate during the Wars of the Roses.

We know very little about Thomas, the parish registers for St Just in Penwith start quite late but with the little we know we can create a tree that might be correct.

• We know that Paskis Lanion married Thomas Shetford at St Just in Penwith in 1625 so he was probably born about 1600
• There is a baptism for a Margarett Shetfod (Sic) daughter of Thomas on 14 Nov 1630 at St Just listed in the Exeter Bishop’s Transcripts
• 16 Oct 1647 marriage at St Just between Elizabeth Shetford (daughter of Thomas) and John Rawlyn (Source – OPC)
• Baptism of Alse Shutford, daughter of Thomas 20 Dec 1633 St Just (Source- FHL film number 0226217, 0226218, 962681)
• Burial of Paskes Shetford, widow 19 Dec 1681/2 St Just in Penwith (Source – OPC)
• The will of Joan Lanyon (Shutford) 1655 (Source – NA PROB 11/257/72) Joan was the wife of David Lanyon of Madron and her will mentions her Shutford relatives

There is also a record at Kresen Kernow (The Cornish Record Office) which mentions Thomas and William Shilford.

Lease, tenement, Treloweth Wartha, Illogan

Parties: 

1) Right Honourable John Lord Robartes, Baron of Truro.

2) William Lanyon, Yeoman, of St Just, Cornwall.

Property: Tenement, Treloweth Wartha, Illogan, Cornwall.

Consideration: £130.

Term: 99 years, or the natural lives of [?] Lanyon, John Lanyon his brother and William Shilford, son of Thomas Shilford.

Annual rent: 46 shillings 8 pence, one capon or 12 pence, a harvest day or 6 pence.

Heriot: Best beast or £3.

Reference number	CL/1/124
Date	3 Oct 1635

I think it should be William and Thomas Shitford/Shetford rather than Shilford. Could Thomas have a son called William and could these Lanyons be Paskas’ brothers?

The Paskas born in Sancreed had brothers called John and William. ‘William Lanyon Yeoman of St Just’ listed in the lease is definitely not the St Merryn family of Lanyons.

There is a marriage of a William Shetford and Mary Edward at St Just on 26 Nov 1653, they had two daughters: Rebecea (sic) bapt. 1655 and Ellizabeth (sic) bapt. 1657.

There is a legal dispute between John Lanyon and William Shutford in 1659, the year Thomas Shutford died. Source – NA C 10/48/84

Lanyon v Shutford. 

Plaintiffs: John Lanyon. Defendants: William Shutford, James Pratt and Robert Baynard. Subject: property in Sancreed, Cornwall.

This is the hypothetical tree I’ve created from all those snippets of information.

We still haven’t conclusively answered the question which Paskis Lanion married Thomas Shutford in 1625 but I think the Paskas born to William Lanyon of Sancreed is the more likely candidate.

William Lanyon died in 1624 (his wife had died in 1619) and left Paskas £10 and some cattle. The following year she married Thomas from the neighbouring parish of St Just in Penwith.

Ultimately geography may be the best clue, the distance between St Just and Sancreed (near Penzance) is a lot smaller than the distance between St Just and St Merryn (near Padstow).

With thanks to Louise Quigley who first posed this question in 2014 and the Penwith Genealogy Group who produced some great answers and evidence.