An Open and Shut Case?

Axiom: As classically conceived, an axiom is a premise so evident as to be accepted as true without controversy. As used in modern logic, an axiom is simply a premise or starting point for reasoning. source

 Proving connections between medieval people is quite difficult. Often the records no longer exist and even the best genealogists must be content with an educated guess. Luckily, there are techniques one can use to make these guesses more certain.

In 2011, I began research, now on the Sinclair DNA website, into possible name connections. The page is called A Confluence of Surnames. The approach was to look for consistencies in families who gifted land to abbeys and priories.

In late January, I found a blog posting on a Yahoo group, called Crispin Cousins, which validated this approach. They had written several research axioms. Two are listed here:

1. Benefactors to ecclesiastical institutions are kin of the founder 
2. Primary witnesses (ie, not including those witnessing on behalf of the of institution) of ecclesiastical charters are invariably kin of the primary benefactor; by extension, of course, also kin of the founder source

There have been strong reasons to believe in connections between the Vaux family of Scotland and the Vere family of England. But the Vaux / Vance family DNA project administrators are careful to make no claims without documented facts.

If one starts with the above axioms, then researches Monasticon Anglicanum and Keats-Rohan, it's easy to claim that Aubrey de Vere, who founded Colne Priory c. 1100, is directly related to Herueus de Vallibus (Vaux) who gave land of Belcamp, Essex to Colne Priory.(Keats, p.756)

Aubrey de Vere founded Colne Priory.
Herueus de Vaux, a tenant of Bigod in Essex, gave lands to Colne Priory.
Open and shut case, right?

Furthermore, starting with those axioms, it's easy to claim other names are directly related by blood to Aubrey de Vere:
Hugh de Munchensi
Richard de Beauchamp
Roger Bigot (of whom the Vaux held much land)
William de Mandeville earl of Essex
Adeliza de Vere
Peter de Burgate

It's certainly very interesting. But I don't think we can prove it as a fact unless we have more data; such as DNA data.


Further Reading:
Apparently, nothing much remains of Colne Priory. There's a great article on it at this link.

Sources -
Keats-Rohan, K.S.B. Domesday Descendants: A Prosopography of Persons Occurring in English Documents 1066-1166 II: Pipe Rolls to `Cartae Baronum' (Vol 2) (Hardcover), Boydell Press (April 15, 2002) ISBN-10: 0851158633, ISBN-13: 978-0851158631

Monasticon Anglicanum: A History of the Abbies and Other Monasteries ... By John Caley, Bulkeley Bandinel, Sir Henry Ellis, Longman, 1823 via Google Books

Sinclair DNA Follows the Money

The latest video outlines a way to track down ancient family connections. It seems our St. Clair ancestors in England were attempting to buy their way into heaven. Hopefully our Sinclair DNA study will be able to prove or disprove a historic connection between these surnames.

Farewell to the Laird of Islay

For our Sinclair DNA friends who hail from Islay - Bagpipes "Farewell to the Laird of Islay" played by Andrew Carlisle

St Clair Sinclair DNA L193

The L193 marker has led to a great deal of understanding for one lineage of our family, the descendants of Alexander Sinkler. Alexander came over in 1698. He was born in Glasgow about 1666. This video and recent discoveries make it clear that Alexander's family likely never spent time in the highlands. Instead, we were likely in the border regions and then, further back, in England.


Click here if you can't see the video above.

Sinclair DNA Video

A quick overview of ancient DNA discoveries in the last few years.


If you have trouble seeing the above video, click here.

Recent discoveries in the field are adding new understanding to our Sinclair DNA study and, of course, many others around the world.

Sinclair DNA Exposing Some Myths

This slide show hosted on Slide Share helps to explain some of the myths of the Sinclair family. Our Sinclair DNA study is adding a bright light to many of these myths.

 

Sinclair Dna from Steve Clair

If you can't see the one above, click here.

For instance:

• There weren't Templars at Bannockburn. 
• The stone in Rosslyn Chapel which refers to William de St. Clair as a Knight Templar was put there in the 20th Century.
• The Westford Knight is difficult to see, but the sword there is very convincing.
• The Newport Tower is very convincing, but there's no evidence it was built by Sinclairs.
• The carving of "two knights on a horse" in Rosslyn is one man on a horse and one behind. I've seen it in person.
• Some Sinclairs testified against the Templars in Scotland, but some testified on their behalf.
• Our Sinclair DNA study is beginning to prove the real facts of our family.

In Praise of FTDNA

What Family Tree DNA has made available has been incredible for the St. Clair Family:

1. We've found a path towards the true history of our family. We don't all descend, as the dusty old books say, from Rollo or William the Conqueror. We have 12 distinct lineages, and a much more complex history. 
2. FTDNA's Family Finder test has helped 3 of our family members solve, or start to solve, their questions about adoption. 
3. With continued SNP testing, we're getting much closer to "connecting the branches to the leaves" as Bennet Greenspan said. In two cases, we feel there's a chance we may solve the entire history of family lines back to the very early medieval period. None of this would have been possible without the ongoing advancements of FTDNA.

That list could go on an on. When I think back to the time 10 years ago, before Stan St. Clair and I took the first tests in the family, genealogy was so inexact. People argued over competing documents and made wild claims. And no one had any certainty before the 1600s.

Now, using FTDNA and SNP research, many of us have a direction of where to look and when we might connect to much older records.

By making the complicated science of DNA easy for the masses, Family Tree DNA has truly helped genealogists overcome brick walls in their families.