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The Common Room / The Plymouth Brethren
« on: Monday 05 June 23 22:20 BST (UK) »
Hello all.
A new rumour has suddenly started in my family and none of us have heard of it before. Unfortunately my mother told everyone I could solve it!
An extended relative has alleged that my grandfather and his brothers were "brought up by the Plymouth Brethren". This isn't something I've heard of before and my grandfather's youngest brother has made some statements about family members for historical purposes that haven't mentioned it either.
My great grandfather and his wife married in 1917 in Plymouth, in a Wesleyan Methodist church. His own christening (and that of his siblings) took place in an Anglican church. His parents also married in a Methodist church (of unspecified subset).
I haven't found any christenings for their children, but it may fall under "too recent". They were almost certainly christened in some capacity. The family remained in the Plymouth area until somewhere between 1923 and 1928, when they moved to London. Both parents were alive and present throughout the childhoods of their sons.
My grandfather's army records from 1933 claim him as Church of England (although they also got details like his eye colour wrong so some army details can be taken with a pinch of salt).
With the first child being born in 1919 and the family moving within ten years, if they were brought up by the Brethren they perhaps weren't brought up very far! Unless there was a branch in London instead. From what I've read of their reputation, at least in modern times, they sound like a difficult religious sect to extract oneself from once involved.
I'm not sure what I can do in this case other than to try to prove they stayed consistently Methodist, although I think my grandfather did end up in a C of E church? He died before I was born so I'm fairly clueless there. His brothers also signed up for duty but I don't have their records (too recent again, I had to get my aunt to authorise me obtaining my grandfather's).
Anyone got any thoughts?
Regards
Ayashi
A new rumour has suddenly started in my family and none of us have heard of it before. Unfortunately my mother told everyone I could solve it!
An extended relative has alleged that my grandfather and his brothers were "brought up by the Plymouth Brethren". This isn't something I've heard of before and my grandfather's youngest brother has made some statements about family members for historical purposes that haven't mentioned it either.
My great grandfather and his wife married in 1917 in Plymouth, in a Wesleyan Methodist church. His own christening (and that of his siblings) took place in an Anglican church. His parents also married in a Methodist church (of unspecified subset).
I haven't found any christenings for their children, but it may fall under "too recent". They were almost certainly christened in some capacity. The family remained in the Plymouth area until somewhere between 1923 and 1928, when they moved to London. Both parents were alive and present throughout the childhoods of their sons.
My grandfather's army records from 1933 claim him as Church of England (although they also got details like his eye colour wrong so some army details can be taken with a pinch of salt).
With the first child being born in 1919 and the family moving within ten years, if they were brought up by the Brethren they perhaps weren't brought up very far! Unless there was a branch in London instead. From what I've read of their reputation, at least in modern times, they sound like a difficult religious sect to extract oneself from once involved.
I'm not sure what I can do in this case other than to try to prove they stayed consistently Methodist, although I think my grandfather did end up in a C of E church? He died before I was born so I'm fairly clueless there. His brothers also signed up for duty but I don't have their records (too recent again, I had to get my aunt to authorise me obtaining my grandfather's).
Anyone got any thoughts?
Regards
Ayashi