General Notes

The following is from the "Ansley Family Home Page" The site is run by
Bill Ansley and has a great deal of information on the Annesley , Ainsley
, Ainslie, Aynsley, Anslee, Angley, Angsley, Anglesey, Anesly, Anesley,
Antley, Ensley , Endsley, etc. families.
http://webpages.charter.net/bansley/
BEGINNINGS: The ANNESLEY (original spelling) surname began in a small
village 10 miles NW of the city of Nottingham in the English county of
Nottingham. The village ANNESLEY was named for a Celtic chieftan named
"Anna" who owned a meadow ("lea" in old English); thus, "Anna's- lea".
Levinot was the last SAXON Lord to hold Annesley. As a reward for their
part in the Battle of Hastings in 1066, one Norman family, Ralph
Fitz-Hubert was given the village and surrounding lands. Indeed, he
acquired several villages/lands in NOTTS. Ralpe Brito de Annesley managed
the property at ANNESLEY for Ralph Fitz-Hubert. It has been reported that
Ralpe Brito de Annesley had traveled to England with Fitz-Hubert, who had
accompanied William, the Conqueror, in the Battle of Hastings.
Eventually, this family took up the name de ANNESLEY, which was further
anglicized to ANNESLEY. Over time, a fine English manor house was
built..called ANNESLEY HALL. This property served as the seat of the
Annesley family from about 1068 until about 1442 when Alice de Annesley
married Sir George Chaworth (from another old Norman family). Thus, the
Chaworths occupied the property until about 1805 when Mary Ann Chaworth
married John "Jack" Musters and the family took on the name
Chaworth-Musters (Mary Ann brought considerable wealth into the
marriage). Descendants of this family occupied the Hall until 1974 when
Major Robert P. Chaworth-Musters moved 1 mile west to Felley Priory
(built by Ralpe Brito de Annesley in 1156). Annesley Hall & the
surrounding acreage have been sold several times without any significant
change in the use of the property (attended only by a caretaker). More
recently, a pending sale would renew the manor house & stables and build
a resort hotel and championship golf course. This outcome remains in
doubt. Indeed, in September 1997, a portion of the house BURNED. I'm told
that the present owner replaced the slate roof with a composition one,
NOT in keeping with the remainder of the roofline.
Immediately adjacent to the manor house is Old Annesley Church with
graveyard. It is owned and protected by a local historical society. NEW
Annesley (all-saints) Church lies about a mile NE and was built in 1874.
Many artifacts from the old church are now displayed in "new" Annesley
church, including an 11th century Norman font. No Annesley family members
are known to reside in this area today. When the female heir married the
Chaworth, male descendants moved to other parts of England. Eventually,
Francis Annesley moved to County Armagh in Northern Ireland and gained
considerable prestige and wealth. He became Sir Francis Annesley. This
family gained several peerages including Earl of Annesley and Earl of
Anglesey. The former is an Irish peerage (lowest rank in the system with
England first, Scotland second, Ireland third). Castlewellen, in County
Down, was built by a descendant of Sir Francis, above. Descendants
maintain a significant presence in County Cork (and other parts of
Ireland and Northern Ireland) in the present day. Another village named
ANSLEY lies in Warwickshire, being named for Princess Ann ("Ann's Lea").
No Ansley families live in this area today, if ever they did. Ainslie
Castle can be found in Scotland but any connection to the above family is
unproven.
Entries: 30705    Updated: Sun Jul 21 14:01:23 2002    Contact: Virginia
Schluetz
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This file is a loving work in progress. While I strive for accuracy,
errors are bound to be made. Please verify all data independent