There is a small group of Lanyons in the parish of Sancreed who don’t fit on the Lanyon tree. We know almost nothing about them but they are worth mentioning as they demonstrate that there were other cadet branches of the tree in the 16th century. They must all be related but it isn’t possible to prove that.
George Lanyon
George was living in the parish in the 1560s and was probably born in the 1530-1540s. There is no record of a marriage for him but a daughter Jane was baptised on 22 Sep 1566. Then on the 2 Oct 1566 George also baptised an illegitimate daughter called Alsen! His first daughter must have died as he baptised another daughter called Jane on 22 Feb 1568 and his final child was Elyzabeth baptised on 25 Apr 1575. (The children’s names were all spelt Lanyne.) With two daughters called Jane perhaps that was his wife’s name?
It’s challenging to see if the name is Lanyne or Lamyne. In fact it’s challenging to read anything in these early registers! Just to make things even more complicated there is a family called Lanner living in the parish at the same time.
The only other record we have for George is his burial on 16 Nov 1592.
His daughter Jane Lanyne may be the Jeane who married George Bossens/Bossence in Sancreed in 1601 and they had seven sons: Thomas, Benatt, William, Richard, John, Sampson and George. All good Lanyon names!
Sampson Bosence was baptised 25 Apr 1612, married Earth Richards at Madron on 23 Apr 1637.
There is no trace of what happened to Alsen or Elyzabeth.
Jane Veale Mitchell (early 20th century researcher) states that George is a son of William ‘Generosi’ Lanyon of Breage. It is possible and she would have seen William’s will, which has now been lost, which may have confirmed the relationship.
Digory Lanyne
Digory married Jane on 4 Feb 1564 making him a contemporary of George. A brother perhaps? There are no children of this marriage baptised and no record of a burial for Digory. It’s also the only instance of the name Digory in the Lanyon family.
There is a Jane Lamyne buried at Sancreed 13 May 1583, another Jane Lamyne buried 22 Jun 1592 and a Jane Lanyne widdowe buried on 16 Nov 1607. Any one of them could be Digory’s wife or possibly even George’s wife.
Fraunces Lanyne
We know where Fraunces (Francis) fits on the tree; he was the eldest son of John Lanyon Esq. He married Ales Trewren at Sancreed in 1584. The Trewrens were a Sancreed family and Francis and Ales’ children were baptised in the parish.
- Richard 8 Sep 1585, he became the heir to John Lanyon Esq when his father Francis died in 1593
- Elizabeth 11 Nov 1587 (she was an illegitimate child)
- John 10 Dec 1587
William Lanyne
Francis’ brother William also settled in Sancreed and baptised his children there. We can also place him on the tree. He also had other children whose baptisms weren’t recorded or have been lost from the register.
William married Jane on 19 Nov 1592. She was buried 21 Sep 1619 and William himself died in 1624, his surname in the burial register is recorded as Lanion. His will is signed by Benat Lanion. Both his daughters called Elizabeth survived to adulthood!
- Elizabeth 31 Oct 1593
- John 8 Jun 1596 buried 15 Sep 1601
- Jane 24 Oct 1602
- William Dec 1603
- Elyzabethe 17 Jul 1607
Thomas Lanyne
Thomas baptised a son called John on 16 Mar 1585. It was the only child Thomas baptised at Sancreed.
Could Thomas be an unrecorded brother of Francis and William?
Rou Lanyne
Rou should probably be Row, a popular first name and surname at the time. He baptised a daughter called Mary on the 28 Jun 1592. There is no further trace of either Row or Mary.
Benat Lanyne
Benat had four children baptised. He was married to Jane on 20 Nov 1593. her burial is recorded on 13 Jun 1621 and Benat’s on 4 Apr 1629. By the time of his death his surname has become Lanion.
- Watter (sic) 22 Sep 1594 buried 4 Oct 1594 (surname spelt Layne) – probably should be Walter
- Thomas 8 Feb 1595
- Mary 24 Feb 1596 buried 7 Jun 1597 (surname spelt Laynne)
- Jane 6 Jul 1599
It seems likely that Benat Lanyne was a son of Walter Lanyon and Elizabeth Nanspyan but there is no proof.
Cyprian Lanyne
On 13 Nov 1585 a John Lanyne baptised Cyprian Lanyne at Sancreed. Where does this John Lanyne fit on the tree? (A John Lanyne married Mary at Sancreed in 1584, presumably this is the same John.) A Cyprian Lamin signed the 1641/2 Protestation Return for Gulval. This is such an unusual name that I think it likely that it is the same person but is the surname Lamin or Lanyne and is he from this family or unrelated?
There is no record of a marriage or burial for Cyprian.
Raphe Lanyne
Raphe Lanine married one of his wives at Sancreed, further cementing the families ties with the parish. Raphe married Jennett on 26 Sep 1591 and she was buried there 14 Oct 1601 (Raphe’s name becomes Raffe!). Raphe’s will was proved 13 Jan 1604/5 so we know what year he died. His will mentions his wife, Ann, but there is no record of their marriage. Just to confuse things further the Sancreed parish register lists a marriage for a Raphe Lamin to an Ann on 10 May 1606 and a burial of a Raphe Lanine on 29 Apr 1614. Could he be an undocumented son of Raphe?
If only we had a few more records, wills (with signatures to compare) and property transactions which might just clarify things! If only the record keepers had neat writing and the pages weren’t lost or damaged….. if only they could spell!
The Lanyons 