Set in medieval, Tudor and Stuart England, we discover how the family became involved with the secretive Knights Templar and then spread around the country. There were great landowners associated with Kings and Queens. Some were persecuted, arrested, imprisoned, tortured and suffered horrific executions. One followed the Mayflower to New England only to fall victim to native Indians. We find wonderful cases of jury fixing, insurrection, Lollardry, murder and false imprisonment. There were clandestine meetings, hidden treasures, forfeiture of lands, and piracy against the Spanish. There was a murderous monk who became personal servant to the King; a Lady-in-Waiting to the Queen, who was also the King's mistress; a designer of Warships and co-founder of the Royal Society. We have Lords of the Manor, Elizabethan Actors who knew Shakespeare and even a martyred Saint. These extraordinary tales of our ancestors' lives make this book compelling reading.

Set in medieval, Tudor and Stuart England, we discover how the family became involved with the secretive Knights Templar and then spread around the country. There were great landowners associated with Kings and Queens. Some were persecuted, arrested, imprisoned, tortured and suffered horrific executions. One followed the Mayflower to New England only to fall victim to native Indians. We find wonderful cases of jury fixing, insurrection, Lollardry, murder and false imprisonment. There were clandestine meetings, hidden treasures, forfeiture of lands, and piracy against the Spanish. There was a murderous monk who became personal servant to the King; a Lady-in-Waiting to the Queen, who was also the King's mistress; a designer of Warships and co-founder of the Royal Society. We have Lords of the Manor, Elizabethan Actors who knew Shakespeare and even a martyred Saint. These extraordinary tales of our ancestors' lives make this book compelling reading.

Thomas Welles (1598-1660) immigrated from Essex County, England to Hartford, Connecticut in 1636, and served as secretary of state, deputy governor, and governor of the colony. Descendants and rela- tives lived in New England, New York, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Tennessee, Iowa and elsewhere. Includes ancestry to about 794 A.D. in England and France.

Facsimile reproduction by the Higginson Book Company.