Explore Landscapes #65

A juxtaposition of images taken during my recent stay with my Dad in the UK, and some 'insight' into my family genealogy.

I wrote this while traveling back to London St. Pancras on the train - after having been in the UK for 10 days with my Dad. When you spend 'quality time' (not just a quick day visit) with your immediate family, you end up talking about all manner of things, from the mundane to the significant.

After my Mum passed away in February, I spent 3 weeks with Dad, and during that time, we got onto the subject of our family tree. This visit, we discussed it again, only in more detail.

My paternal great-grandfather died in Flanders in 1918 during WWI. From 1914 to 1918, Flanders Fields was a major battle theatre on the Western Front. A million soldiers from more than 50 different countries were wounded, missing, or killed in action here.

Flanders Fields was the common English name for the World War I battlefields in an area straddling the Belgian provinces of West Flanders and East Flanders and the French department of Nord, part of which makes up the area known as French Flanders.

My grandfather was born in 1916, and he never knew his father, as he was drafted to fight before his birth. During the whole of the war, conscription raised some 2.5 million men. These men were drafted (at very short notice) to fight in France, with a good chance of never returning. Many children were ‘inevitably’ conceived before the conscripts departed from the UK. Throughout the war, 880,000 British forces died (6% of the adult male population and 12.5% of those serving).

Here comes the ‘twist’ in the story. My great-grandfather's name was (most likely) George Champagne. My grandfather's assumed name was Norris, as his mother married Harry Norris shortly after the end of the war, who 'took on' the responsibility for my grandfather.

Dad told me this subject was never discussed after he was born in 1941 (during World War II). However, Dad said that my grandfather once mentioned that he remembered his grandfather being referred to as Champagne by some family members, but it wasn't clear if that was a nickname or his actual name.

My aunt (Dad's sister) has spent much time researching our family genealogy and is reasonably sure that George Champagne is her grandfather (my great-grandfather).

The Champagnes were Huguenots, French Protestants of the 16th and 17th centuries. Largely Calvinist, the Huguenots suffered severe persecution at the hands of the Catholic majority, and many thousands emigrated from France to the UK.

I’m so intrigued by this ‘revelation’ that I want to continue researching our genealogy to find out what else I can learn and to see how far back I can trace our lineage.

So, what's in a name? Strictly speaking, I'm not a Norris; I'm a Champagne. How does that make me feel? I'm not sure, and I am still thinking through it.

By all accounts, Harry Norris was a good man. He took in my grandfather as a toddler when he married my great-grandmother, and they had two more children together.

I've decided that the Norris name, from my adoptive great-grandfather, represents a strong set of beliefs and morals, as ably demonstrated by my father and grandfather, so I am proud to be known as 'Norris.’

“Blood is thicker than water, but family isn't just about blood. Family is about faith, loyalty, and who you love. If you don't have those things, I don't care what the blood says. You're not family.” - Mira Grant.

It just goes to show that you never know what you may uncover if you look into your family history and genealogy.