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THE GAYERS OF CORNWALL:
FRANCIS AND ROGER GAYER OF MINSTER
SONS AND GRANDCHILDREN OF ROGER GAYER:William Gayer of Okehampton, Devon
John Gayer, Week St. Mary;
Samuell Gayer of Stratton;
Benjamin Gayer of Stratton
NORTHERN IRELAND:
Rev John Gayer
Philip Gayer
Edward George Gayer
John Gayer of Dublin and children
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My great, great, great, grandmother Anna Frances Gayer married Arthur O’Brien Bernard, who was from Carlow, Co Carlow, Ireland in 1825. For four generations the Gayer family had lived in Northern Ireland from the time that Rev. John Gayer, son of Benjamin Gayer of Whitstone, left Cornwall to become the Curate at Derriaghy, Co Antrim circa 1698. I have been able to trace his ancestry back to the middle ages in Cornwall.
GAYERS of CORNWALL
Name origin:
Surnames were not in common use in England until the 1400s. A person would have been known by their given name followed by their place of residence or their occupation. The name Gayer has evolved over time from Gare and Gear. The earliest references to Gayers that I can find are from the 12th, 13th and 14th century. I searched on Gayer name variants including, Gayre, Gear, Gaer, Caer and Kaer.
The surname Gayer (originally Gear) derived from a geographic locality i.e. 'at the gare'.
Other sources suggest that Gear (and its variants) mean place of war "Caer, Kaer, Gaer as in Tregaer - place of war"; (11) Another suggestion, from the Parochial History of the County of Cornwall is that it means a fortified town. For example the town of Leskeard (Liskeard) could be derived from "Les, a court or a palace, and kaer a fortified town". (12)
Early mention of Gayers in Cornwall and Devon:
A.E Gayer in his book, “Memoirs of the Family of Gayer” found references (1) to Gayers in Devon:
- Ricardus Gayer in 1303,
- William and Richard Gayer in 1346
- Willhelmus Gayer in 1428
- Walter Gaer, witness to a deed 1396
- will of John de Gaire (in Latin) dated 1485.
- William Kaer 1284
- Alric de Caer, 1308
- Andrew de Kaer in 1331 and 1347
- Walter Gaer 1396 and 1399
- John Gayre,
1486
- John Gayer of Liskeard, gentleman, between 1480 and 1499, mostly as a witness to a deed.
- A John Gayer was Mayor of Liskeard in 1496.
- Richard Gayer in 1525 was a portreeve of Liskeard. According to a letter from Edward Arundell, he died in 1553.
- Between
1554 and 1558 a John Gayer was mayor of Liskeard
- Stephen Gayer - was the attorney for Sir John Arundell between 1535 and 1545.
- Richard
Gayer party to a bond in 1550 and 1551; witness to a lease in 1552
Burke's Peerage records: (2)
- William Kaer "was Gayre" lived at Gear (Tregear), Ladock, Cornwall in 1376
- Walter Gayre (son of William) living near Gear (Tregear), Ladock, Cornwall between 1381 and 1394. A Walter Gaer is mentioned in records from the national Archives and the Cornwall Records Office. His son
- Walter Gayre who married Emma. Lived at Gear, Ladock, Cornwall, between 1381 and 1394. He had sons:
- Walter Gayr and
Reinold [Reginald] Gayr,
living in 1439. Walter had a son:
- John Gayre, who married Elenora. They had three sons:
- John, Otys and Stephen. Stephen's son was
- Reinold [Reginald]Gayre who married Alice Courtenay, daughter of Edward Courtenay. Reginald died before 4 December 1519.
Sir John MacLean, in The Parochial and Family History of the Parishes of Forrabury and Minster claims that
“Reginald
Gayer left issue John Gayer his eldest son, who was
Burgess in
Parliament for Launceston, 1553; for Liskeard, 1557; and for Helston,
1571. His daughter Johanna married Gilbert Flamank of
Boscarne on
29th October, 1553. Reginald Gayer is believed also to
have been the father of Robert
Gayer, who was burgess in Parliament for Trevena 1553, and
was probably the father of
Francis Gayer,
who was instituted to the Rectory of Minster in 1572” .
Trevena today is more commonly known as Tintagel and is located less than 5 miles from Minster.
There are two errors in MacLean's book (7) Firstly, John the eldest son of Reginald was not the Member of Parliament. His grandson John (son of Stephen) was the MP. Secondly the Robert Gayer he mentions was not the M.P. for Trevana. Robert Gayer was a descendant of Reginald's grandson Otys Gayer.
Reginald (or Reinold) GAYER is my earliest ancestor that I can verify:
Little
is
known about Reginald Gayer and his antecedents. In an extract from Sir
J
Maclean's Trigg Minor, i, 667-9 MacLean states
“The
family of Gayer is of great antiquity in the West England. We find
Richard Gayer
mentioned in the Hundred rolls of the co. Devon as early as the
reign of Henry III (1216-1272) or
Edward I (1272-1307), but the
earliest person of the name in Cornwall of whom we have any knowledge
is
Elionora Gayer,
widow, who, being seized of forty messuages in Liskeard and
other places, by her charter dated 12 Aug. 5th Henry VIII (1573)
granted the
same to Richard Reyne, William Carnsuyowe, Stephen Gayer and
others, to hold to
such uses as might be specified in the last will of the said Elionora.
This
lady was probably the mother of Reginald
Gayer of Liskeard, who on 4 Feb. I508
was appointed Clerk of the Peace and Clerk of the Crown for Cornwall”.
I
believe
that MacLean was mistaken about Elionora Gayer being Reginald’s mother
as Reginald
died in 1519 and Stephen Gayer was the grandson of Reginald and Alice
(Courtenay) Gayer. It is more likely that Elionora Gayer was Stephen’s
mother,
widow of Reginald’s eldest son, John Gayer. In Burke's
Peerage (2) Elenora (?) is identified as John Gayer's wife.
Reginald Gayer's birth year is unknown (he was appointed as a guardian in 1507 and a clerk of the crown in 1508 he was likely at least 30 years old or more at that time, which means he would have been born before 1477). He married Alice Courtenay daughter of Edward Courtenay (5), probably before 1515 (based on the fact that she had three children with Reginald before he died in 1519).
Most references to Alice Courtenay give her birth year as 1499 which, if correct, means she probably married at the age of 14 or 15. She was the daughter of Edward Courtenay who was the 2nd son of Sir William Courtenay (d. 1485). Edward Courtenay married Alice Wotton. He was the younger brother of Sir William Courtenay who was born in 1451. Edward was born about 1453 and died in 1509.
Reginald Gayer and Alice Courtenay had a son John who was the M.P. for Launceston in 1553, for Liskeard in 1557 and for Helston in 1571. He is described in Bibliotheca Cornubiensis (3) as “the eldest son of Reginald Gayer of Liskeard” thereby assuring me that there was a younger son.
- He was appointed guardian for William Harris in 1507
- In
1508 Reginald Gayer was granted
the offices of clerk of the peace and clerk
of the crown in Cornwall for life by Henry IIV.
- He died 1519
Heraldic Visitations were tours of inspection undertaken (by the Crown) to regulate and register the coats of arms of nobility and gentry and boroughs, and to record pedigrees. The records have been described as an upper class census (Ref: Wikipedia). Inclusion implied that the family had some class status and was eligible to use a coat of arms (Gayer Coat of Arms - A fleur de Lis and a Lion Rampant bearing a spear).
The Gayer family tree, in Vivian's "The Visitations of Cornwall, 1530, 1537 and 1620" publication was supplemented by A.E Gayer in 1870 and some of those additions have been found to be inaccurate. Those Gayers documented by the Visitation are shown in italics (below), all other names were submitted by A.E. Gayer.
Children of Reginald and Alice Gayer:
- John (estimated birth
year 1515/1516). Married
[unknown, possibly Elionora?] about 1535.
- Reginald – son William (lived in Plymouth, Devon)
- Stephen – married Jane, daughter of William Trenbrace (lived in Cornwall)
- Son – John (married Sybil Trefry) and was the great grandfather of the Gayers of Devon (Robert, Humphrey, Hugh, Richard and John)
- Henry [no further
info]
- Otys – married [unknown]. Lived in Foxley, Berkshire. (See Visitation of Berkshire. 1566)
- John (of Knaresborough, Yorkshire)
- Robert, Thomas and John
- Robert (a priest) and William (who married 1st - Agnes Derelove + 2nd wife [unknown])
- Robert (later MP for Trevana) and John (by Agnes) and
Thomas, John (2) and Henry (by 2nd wife)
- Son – Francis of Minster
- Son - Roger of Whitstone
- Son - William
If Reginald’s son Robert was born about 1516 then he would most likely have married when he was older than 20 and younger than 30, approximately in 1540. I have estimated that Francis Gayer, Rector of Minster was born about 1550 so it is feasible to assume that Francis was the son of Robert Gayer and grandson of Reginald and Alice Gayer. Indeed MacLean suggested that Robert Gayer had a son called Francis.
"Reginald Gayer is believed also to have been the father of Robert Gayer, who was burgess in Parliament for Trevena 1553, and was probably the father of Francis Gayer, who was instituted to the Rectory of Minster in 1572” (7) .
It is possible that
Robert Gayer also had others sons besides Francis as there are three
Gayers listed in the Muster Roll of 1569 in the same area of Cornwall
as Minster where Francis Gayer became the Rector in 1572 (3)
:
- Degory Gayre Whitstone
- Marten Gayre Laneste or Laneast (Between Launceston and Lanteglos by Camelford)
- William Geayre Whitstone
In trying to learn more about Reginald Gayer I found an interesting reference to him becoming the guardian of William Harris, eldest son of Francis Harris
Definition:
Feoffe: (in feudal law) a person to whom a grant of
freehold property is made.
Who were
Philip Harris and Sir
John Arundell?
I
cannot
find any reference to Philip Harris in the medieval period (other than
the
quote above). He was probably related to Francis Harris (son,
brother,
cousin?).
Francis Harris was related (by marriage) to the Arundells.
The Harris
family had many branches settled in both Devon and Cornwall, one branch
of the family lived in Liskeard, Cornwall which is where the
Gayers were from.
Francis Harris (1475–1509) of Radford (Plymstock, Devon), was the son of John Harris (4th) of Radford who died in 1485 when his son Francis was only 10 year’s old. Francis married (before 1504) to Phillipa Grenville (1489-1524). When Francis Harris died, his widow Phillipa, married Humphry Arundell of Lanherne, younger brother of Sir John Arundell (1474–1545) who was Phillipa's brother-in-law. Sir John Arundell was married to Katherine Grenville (sister of Phillipa).
- John Harreys (Harris) 1st of Radford and Alice le Abbe (or Abbetot).
- John Harris 2nd
- Sir John 3rd of Radford (died in 1430) and Katherine Hansford (1430-1489, daughter of William Hansford).
- John
Harris 4th of Radford (~1450-1485)
- Francis Harris (1475–1509)
- William Harris born 1504
By
the 1500s there were
several Gayer families
who established themselves in Cornwall and Devon in S.W. England. All these Gayers came from eithernear Liskeard or Truro
in
Cornwall or from Plympton in Devon (Plympton is about 6 miles east of Plymouth). Liskeard and Plympton being about
25 miles apart. Liskeard (in Cornish - Liskerrys) was originally a
stannary
(tin mine) and market town, a market charter being granted in
1240.
Knowing that my direct ancestors came from Cornwall I reviewed all the births, marriages and deaths from the Cornwall OPC (13) to try to determine their links with the Gayers of the Liskeard or Truro area.
The records showed that there were several distinct settlements of Gayers: The North Coast group; the Land's End Group; and the St Keverne's group (which includes the Liskeard Gayer ancestors) and the East Coast Group.
MY CORNISH GAYER ANCESTORS FROM NORTH CORNWALL
In 1870 Arthur Edward Gayer, a descendant of Rev. John Gayer, published a book, “Memoirs of the Family of Gayer”. It is amazing how much detail he was able to glean about the family. One can only imagine the places he had to visit to find this information, there were no databases or the internet in the 1800s so he must have gone to libraries in England and Ireland to find the details. I feel very privileged to have been given permission to publish two pages of original notes in A.E Gayer's handwriting by another Gayer descendant.
Unfortunately,
some
of the information A.E Gayer included about the Gayers of Cornwall has
proven
to be
incorrect, Viz.
“I
come now to these
three sons of Hugh Gayer. The eldest,
John, appears to have-resided at
Whitstone, where
his
family remained for several generations, and from the parish registry of which, and the adjoining
parishes of St.
Mary's Wick (or Week) and St. Genny's
(which three
parishes constitute the union of Stratton),
I have
ascertained nearly all the dates specified in the annexed pedigree”.
A.E. Gayer believed that John Gayer of Whitstone descended from Hugh Gayer of Devon. I obtained the will of Hugh Gayer from the National Archives in England and confirmed that he did not have three sons: John, Robert and Benjamin as claimed by A.E. Gayer. According to his will Hugh had only two sons: John and Robert. Other references indicate that these two sons both died at the age of 14.
Although some parish registers were kept from 1583 on it was not until 1598 that Queen Elizabeth I stipulated that records of births, marriages and deaths must be recorded. It is therefore difficult to identify a family’s ancestry and determine accurate dates before this time. The dates below are estimates based on known documentation and historical relationships. In estimating births and marriages in this era historians suggest that the average age of a woman at marriage was 18 and for a man, 8 to 10 years older. The age of consent for a woman was 12 and for a man, 14.
Although I cannot
prove it with birth or marriage records I have made
an assumption that Robert Gayer (son of Reginald and Alice) and a
daughter of
Francis
Harris [name unknown] were married.
If my
assumption is correct about Robert Gayer’s wife being a Harris and,
also
assuming that Francis Gayer of Minster was the son of this marriage,
the name
Francis could have come from the Harris family. This is only a theory
and as
yet I have only clues, no proof of this assumption. It is, of course,
possible
that the Gayers and the Harris family were united in marriage in an
earlier
generation.
References:
(1) These references came from "Inquisitions and Assessments relating to Feudal Aids; with other analogous documents" 1284-1431.
(2) Burke's Peerage. http://www.thepeerage.com/p41930.htm
(3) G.C. Boase:Bibliotheca Cornubiensis – A catalogue of the writings both manuscript and printed of Cornishmen and of works relating to the County of Cornwall
(4) Calendar of State Papers: Foreign and Domestic, of the Reign of Henry VIII
(5) For the history of the Courtenay family see http://www.tudorplace.com.ar/courtenay2.htm
(6) History of Parliament Online,
(7) The Parochial and Family History of the Parishes of Forrabury and Minster. By Sir John MacLean
(8) rhttp://www.historyofparliamentonline.org/volume/1509-1558/member/harris-william-i-1504ecorder of Launceston
(9) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trethurffe,_Ladock
(10) Patronymica Cornu-Britannica (1870) by Richard Stephen Charnock
(11) Journal of the Royal Institute of Cornwall, Vol 10,
(12) A complete Parochial History of the County of Cornwall (vol 3),Joseph Polsue
(13) http://www.cornwall-opc.org/