The de Boteville/Botevyle/Thynne etc. family

The de Boteville family was a minor noble family from Shropshire. While only one line bears titles today, the de Botevilles produced several notable figures and have left a mark in Shropshire history.

The patriarch of this family was Geoffrey de Boteville, who was born and rose to prominence in the western French town of Bouteville, then in the Poitou district. Geoffrey came from a family of royal lineage- he was a descendant of Charles Martel through his grandson St. William of Gellone, who was also reputed to be a descendant of King David. Coming over to England on the instruction of King John, Geoffrey became guardian of Belvoir Castle in Lincolnshire and a landowner in Shropshire, where his son Sir William was born. To this day, the land Geoffrey owned bears the name Botevyle*.

Coat of arms of the town of Bouteville

One of the most famous descendants of Geoffrey de Boteville was William Thynne, Geoffrey Chaucer's editor. William's nephew Sir John was Member of Parliament for Marlborough (1545) and Sailsbury (1547). Their surname, Thynne, came from William's grandfather John (my 16th great-grandfather), who was known as "John of the Inne" due to his mansion in Church Stretton. Some of Sir John Thynne's descendants were enobled in the 18th century as the Marquesses of Bath, a line that exists to this day. Of the House of Bath, Lord Henry Thynne was Treasurer of the Household under Disraeli (1875-1880).

I am a 23rd degree descendant of Geoffrey de Boteville through my paternal grandfather:

  • Geoffrey de Boteville (1185-1217), father of
  • Sir William de Boteville (1217-1256), father of
  • Sir John Botevyle (1250-1309), father of
  • Thomas de Botevyle (1282-1357), father of
  • Richard de Botevyle (1326-1416), father of
  • John Botevyle (1383-1439), father of
  • William Botevyle (1440-1508), father of
  • Thomas Botevyle (1492-1565), father of
  • Thomas Botevyle (1530-1623), father of
  • Martha Bottfield (c. 1576-?), mother of
  • Peter Sankey (1624-?), father of
  • Jeremiah Sankey (c. 1655-?), father of
  • Richard Sankey (c. 1689-?), father of
  • Elizabeth Sankey (1721-1785), mother of
  • Joseph Waring (1761-1833), father of
  • Joshua Waring (1791-1848), father of
  • John Waring (1811-1876), father of
  • Catherine Waring (1835-1915), mother of
  • Annie Maria Westby (1868-?), mother of
  • Arthur Fletcher (?), father of
  • Arthur Fletcher (1923-1995), father of
  • Roy Fletcher (1943-), father of
  • Nicholas Fletcher (1966-) father of
  • Szin!

    • *As spelling conventions were weak in pre-modern England, the family name has been recorded as de Boteville, de Botevile, de Bouteville, Botevyle, Bottfield and Butterfield.