Graham Jaunay's Family History Website

Jaunay Family History

Sifting out the facts on François Marie Jaunay
In 1993 I received a brief statement about my ancestors in a mailing from a research centre in the UK. I was quite surprised that they had such information, but was even more concerned about the inaccuracies contained within the document. Unfortunately when such material is circulated by institutions it often takes on a respectability and is not questioned. The article in question gave brief biographical details of my great grandfather, his father and grandfather. This article is only concerned with the latter. Let's examine that part of the document on François:
François Marie Jaunay, captain Swiss Guards, Court of Louis XVI. In 1793, during the French Revolution, escaped to England and opened a hotel for aristocratic refugees from France. Was later killed in a duel.
Basic information and clues to other sources of primary information can be gleaned from BDM certificates. French certificates in particular are a very generous source of material. They are located in the Departemental Archives [a departement is roughly equivalent to an English county] and at the local townhall. While they are free, three IRCs should be enclosed to cover costs of photocopying and postage. Often you will get them back! François Marie Jaunay was born on 10 September 1776 at Chantilly in France and baptised by the hospital chaplain the next day. His father, Jean Baptiste Jaunay, was an officer in the retinue of the Prince of Condé [Louis Joseph de Bourbon] and his mother was .Marie Louise née Viard formerly Brunet. [Birth certificate of François Marie Jaunay obtained from the Archive of French Departement of Oise, the district in which Chantilly is located - see text at end of article]
The Jaunay family had been associated for a long time with the Princes of Condé, for whom they had provided several stewards. It is thought that François emigrated to London at the time of the French Revolution. Despite his youth, he may have been associated with the army established by the Prince de Condé in his attempts to restore the French monarchy for it is recorded that the Prince put considerable pressure on his household staff and their families to offer their services to his army. [Musée Condé Institut de France, Chantilly holds correspondence written to the Princes de Condé]
François Marie Jaunay married Ann, the daughter of John and Ann Howell [née Tuniclift] in St Georges Church, Hanover Square, London on February 12th, 1809. [St Georges Church is located in Great George Street and the parish was carved from St Martin in the Fields, the church being built in 1724 - transcription at end of text]
Records of leasing and mortgaging of property can provide much information. The Middlesex Deeds Registers are located in the Greater London Record Office. A 1708 Act of Parliament required a registry to be established for all deeds, conveyances, wills and encumbrances which affected freehold and long term leased land in the County of Middlesex. Likewise recognisances in which hoteliers have to undertake to abide by the various liquor laws are useful sources if your ancestor is associated with the hotel trade. These loose paper forms wrapped in annual bundles by parish are located in the Westminster Library on Buckingham Palace Road, London. They are indexed by initial letter of surname, parish by parish in a register established by an Act of Parliament in 1753. A search of these records reveals that the predecessor of Jaunay's Hotel, Brunet's Hotel was established on Lady Day [March 25], 1800 at No 25 Leicester Square, London by Jean Louis Philogene Brunet who leased the property from Charles Augustus Tulk. It was previously occupied by James Maitland, the eighth Earl of Lauderdale. In 1806, the adjacent property at No 24 formerly occupied by George Brookes was incorporated into the hotel. The property leased by Christopher Emmott on the other boundary at No 26 was added to the complex by 1808. [An examination of the poor rate books F 614, F616, F626, F628, F630, F632, F644, F646, F664 and F666 - all ff. G1-G2 for New Street Ward indicate that Brunet occupied the property on Lady Day, 25 March, 1800 and confirm the previous ownership and subsequent Jaunay lease. Also Middlesex Deeds Register; Book 3 nos. 420 & 421, 1818 indexed under Tulk & Brunet, Book 6 nos. 389, 390, 391 & 392, 1820 indexed under Brunet & Jaunay, Middlesex Deeds Register; X8/19, 1825-27 indexed under Jennings, Chas & Jaundry, Francois Mary.]
In the days before photography reasonably accurate descriptions of many London buildings can be determined by reference to the Survey of London series of books. Volume 34 gives detailed descriptions and the history of Leicester Square properties. [Survey of London. The Parish of St Anne Soho, University of London Press, London 1966 Vol 34 Chpt 19 pp 491-92.]
Like the Jaunays, the Brunets also had a history of service to the Princes of Condé. It is thought that Louis Brunet, as Jean Louis Philogene Brunet was known, accompanied the Condé family to London when they fled the French Revolution. Records place the Brunets and Jaunays in Chantilly in the early part of 1791 at the time of the death of a Brunet son, Brunet, Louis Henry, at the age of twenty-two months. [French Death Certificate obtained from the Archive of French Département of Oise.] During his time with the Condé family Louis must have accumulated sufficient resources and a reputation which enabled him to fund the purchase of the lease on a property on Leicester Square in 1800. The hotel prospered quickly and became the meeting place of the French émigré nobility where Louis had a wide reputation for his French cooking. No doubt his popularity was enhanced by his ability and willingness to financially assist his noble clients when the need arose!
François Marie Jaunay took over the property in 1815 and it was renamed Jaunay's Hotel. Louis Brunet returned to France to live in retirement at Chantilly. The Jaunays and Brunets were in fact related through their mother, Marie Viard, Jean Louis Philogene Brunet was her son by her first husband, Louis Brunet, while François Marie Jaunay was her son by her second marriage.
It was no accident that the Brunets and the Jaunays established themselves in the Soho part of London. It was a very French area indeed with three main immigration surges from France. The Huguenots religious refugees were the first to establish themselves in the area. Subsequently they were supplemented by those escaping the tyranny of the French Revolution. Following Waterloo, the number of French settling in London also showed a significant increase.
François Marie Jaunay remains an elusive person. Nothing is known about him from the time of his birth until 1806 saw him as a partner in a Leicester Square hotel. Some twenty years of research has uncovered the sparse information in this narrative. However, I am fairly certain that he was never a member of the King's Swiss Guard [Gardes Suisses] many of whom were slaughtered by the Paris mobs in 1792. For one thing, he survived this massacre and for another he would have been 16 years old at the time - hardly old enough to be a member of this elite bodyguard to the King of France! Furthermore, the members of François' family remain beyond the reach of the researcher. The origin of his parents has not been determined although the relationship with the Condés may be an avenue of further research.
An examination of the various Poor Rate Books available at the Westminster Library provides further details of the various places of residence of the family. Poor rates were a local tax on householders collected by the Overseers of the Poor, usually the church wardens, in each parish from 1601 to 1834. At the time of his marriage and for the birth of his daughters, François and his family lived in 33 Conduit Street [Rate Books for Conduit Street Ward Westminster C409 to C416 1809-1816. A process of elimination reveals the street number as 33.] just around the corner from the church of that parish, St Georges Hanover Square. His profession is described as a cook. Prior to his marriage, he was a co-proprietor at the well known Sablonière Hôtel at Nos 30-31 Leicester Square. This establishment was described as...
a French house where a table d'hôte affords the lovers of French cookery and French conversation an opportunity for gratification at a comparatively moderate charge.
This is the earliest record of François located with the exception of his baptismal certificate. [André Louis Simon, History of the Champagne Trade in London, Wyman & Sons Ltd, London, 1905 pp 92-3.]
It is recorded that François took up the customs and appearance of a real Englishman. While he spoke French fluently, he wrote it very incorrectly, which indicates that he may have received little education in France despite his father's station. Regardless of this,
he maintained a strong affection for his country of origin and especially the House of Orléans and hence used the names of Louis and Louisa for his younger children. [M. Schlumberger, Souvenirs sur la famille Jacquesson, Paris, 1933]
François was an overly friendly man who was willing to help anyone who sought his aid. Unfortunately this trait did not suit the type of business he inherited from Louis Brunet. [J Arlott, Krug, House of Champagne, Davis-Poynter Ltd, London, 1976 p 63]
Jaunay's was considered the most elegant hostelry in London, and it played host to the aristocracy, tourists, and, above all, the French community.[William M Thackery, The History of Pendennis, Penguin, London 1972 Chapter XXX p 334: They [the King and Queen of France] went away from Paris last Tuesday night, and are living at this present moment in Jaunay's hotel.] François Marie remained there until his death when his wife, Ann, went to France to live with her younger daughter, Mme Jacquesson at Châlons-sur-Marne. It is claimed that gradually the hotel declined and that on François' death, his wife was forced to sell up to cover the debts. Jaunay's was not alone, for the period, 1820 to 1850 was noted for the rapid decline in hotels in London. Their fall from favour parallelling the growth in popularity of the new phenomena of the London club.
In withdrawing from the public dining-room precisely the class of customers who were best able to stimulate and reward the ingenuity of cooks, the new clubs were disastrous to the London restaurants. The French hotels north of Oxford Street, died out one after another. Gloom and wretchedness settled on the hotels of Leicester Square and the Mayfair restaurateurs put up the shutters. [Survey of London. The Parish of St Anne Soho, op. cit.]
François was too trusting of his fellow man and he readily gave to those who did not merit his support and was easily duped. These failings often saw him in financial trouble. On at least one occasion he was financially rescued by his son-in-law, Adolphe Jacquesson. [Souvenirs sur la famille Jacquesson, op. cit.]
The fate of François remained a mystery for many years. Some members of the family believe that the business fell on hard times and François Marie migrated to Australia. One more glamorous account claims he died as the result of a duel. The reality is much more mundane. François died at his hotel, 25 Leicester Square on January 15th, 1838 from an abscess on the bladder. He was buried at Kensal Green Cemetery after a service at St Martins in the Fields. The fact that François' fate remained elusive for so long was partly the result of the afore-mentioned fanciful theories and that the registration of death names him as Francis Jannay. Whether this was the result of the incorrect spelling given by the informant, nurse Eliza Welsh or that the handwriting of the Deputy Registrar caused a confusion between 'u' and 'n' causing the name to be mis-transcribed into the copy sent at the end of the quarter to the Registrar General is not known, however, all other details, address and age confirm that the entry is that of our François. In fact the fanciful spellings of Jaunay which range from Jaundry through to January in the various English records often proved the greatest barrier to research!
Researchers should never overlook the opportunity to seek out a will or a grant of Administration and these are located at the Public Record Office in London. François did not leave a will but there was a grant of Administration issued by the Prerogative Court of Canterbury which records he left an estate of �3,000.[Prerogative Court of Canterbury Administration Act Book PROB6/214 f. 217b - see text at end of article] So maybe the hotel was sold to address a cash flow problem because François died a wealthy man!
So it would seem that after removing the sensationalism of duels and an association with royalty from the original statement from the UK a more accurate short biography would read:
François Marie Jaunay, born on 10 Sep 1776 Chantilly France; son of Jean Baptiste Jaunay member of the household of Louis Joseph de Bourbon, Prince de Condé operated Jaunay's Hotel Leicester Square London 1815 to 1839. Died in London 15 Jan 1839.
© 1993 Graham Jaunay

109 Bapt. de François Marie Jaunay
L'an milseptcent soixante et seize le onzième jour e Septembre à été Baptisé Par moi Chapelin de l'hospital de Chantilly soussigné François Marie né d'hier du legitime Mariage de Jean Baptiste Jaunay officier de S A S Mgr Le Prince de Condé et de Marie Louise Viard ses père et Mère: Le parain à été François Leconte maitre menuisier et marraine Marie Marguerite Elizabeth Perier qui out signér
109 Baptism of François Marie Jaunay
One thousand sevenhundred seventy six the eleventh day of September has been christened by me Chaplin of the hospital of Chantilly undersigned François Marie born yesterday of lawful marriage of Jean Baptiste Jaunay officer of His Serene Highness Monseigneur The Prince of Condé and of Marie Louise Viard his father and mother: The godfather has been François Leconte master joiner and godmother Marie Marguerite Elizabeth Perier who have signed
St George Hanover Square: Vol 22 p184 No 111. Marriage
Francis Jaunay and Ann Howell both of this Parish were married in this Church by Banns this Twelfth day of February 1809, by me, J. Greville, A.M., curate. Signed: Francois Jaunay, Ann Howell. In the presence of: D Gerrard, L. Jaquier
On the First day [of March 1838] Admon. of the Goods Chattels and Credits of François Marie Jaunay late of Leicester Square in the Parish of Saint Martin in the Fields in the County of Middlesex Hotel Keeper deceased was granted to Ann Jaunay Widow the Relict of the said deceased having been first sworn duly to administer. Under �3,000.

This article was published: The South Australian Genealogist Vol 20 No 4 Oct 1993

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