Joseph Gabriel de Beausire (July 12, 1771 - 1845 age 74 in Metz)
l recently got in touch with a distant cousin through the internet and have been able to learn quite a bit about this great3 grandfather, whose name was Joseph Gabriel de Beausire. He was born on July 12, 1771 in Metz, in Northeast France, near the borders of Germany, Belgium and Luxembourg in the area known as Alsace Lorraine, where they spoke Alsation, a German dialect. I also have the family tree dating back to 1440. The family was well to do and raised thoroughbred horses. Joseph Gabriel's father, Marie-Claude Sebastien de Beausire (1750-1832 age 82 in Metz) was a Lt. Colonel in the Surville Regiment and later a Councillor in the Parliament of Metz and a Chevalier of St. Louis. He married Anne Antoinette de Goussaud. They were royalists .
The French Revolution began in 1788 when Joseph Gabriel was 17, and continued until 1799. 17,000 people were executed, and 10,000 died in jail. Marie-Claude and Anne remained in France but their children left the country during the turbulence of that period. Marie-Claude was arrested and sent to prison. He was sentenced to death with his execution scheduled for the 29th of July 1794 but Robspierre, one of the leaders of the Revolution, was arrested the day before, and Marie Claude was reprieved. I would love to know the details of that traumatic experience ! The most interesting thing I learned is that Joseph Gabriel's mother, Anne, was a direct descendant of Pierre d'Arc, brother of Jeanne D'Arc (Joan of Arc). There is a book showing their family tree, although some family members are not listed. The book is entitled Extracts La Familia de Jeanne d'Arc written by E Debroueilles. Pierre D'Arc was also a Chevalier du Lys. I found this exciting as several people in our family claim to be psychic.
After leaving France, probably deported by the Revolutionaries, Joseph Gabriel enlisted in the Lowenstein Chausseurs, one of several British regiments raised by foreign nobles to fight the army of Revolutionary France. He became a lieutenant, later a Captain and finally a Major. He was wounded in St. Lucia in 1796. His regiment was incorporated into the 5th Battalion in 1797 together with Hoppesch's Mounted Riflemen, another specialised emigre unit, both using the Baker Rifle. After the Revolution came the Napoleonic Wars which lasted from 1804 to 1810.
Later as part of his army duties, he became a harbormaster on the island of St. Lucia, where the British Navy ships were refueled with coal. I have a couple of photos of him, in his army uniform, one of which is of a locket owned by a cousin. I also have a photo of his grandson, Joseph Beausire, This is of a portrait which used to hang in the Royal Insurance Company building where he worked in Liverpool. He was a Director of the company where his uncle, Robert, was an accountant. The company, which was very successful, (now renamed Royal Insurance Plc) is still in existence.
The building occupied by the company in those days is on the historic list. It was an award winning design from a competition, with 5 stories, built in 1896 and has now been restored and turned into a hotel. That was not the first building used by the company. The previous one, built in 1837, is also on the historic list. One of the employees tracked down the present day Joseph Beausire, Robert's great grandson, and gave him the portrait. There are no photos of Catherine Ann Beausire, so it's interesting to see her nephew and ponder whether they looked alike !
Joseph Gabriel had 3 children with Polly Kitty. Very little is known of Polly. It is likely that Kitty is not her surname but a middle name. It was found in the baptismal records of the first two sons, Robert (born 1804) and Henry (born 1813), when they were baptized in St. Vincent Cathedral on April 14, 1813. From DNA tests of her descendants it appears that she was Caucasian and also had some African blood with Nigeria or the neighboring countries of Togo and Benin showing up. Information found online shows that she was a landowner with slaves. She was reputed to be very beautiful. Robert was described in a report about his gift of some exquisite reredos to a church in England as an octoroon, which if accurate means he would have been one eighth African. Another son, Joseph was born about 1814.
Prior to Catherine Ann's birth Joseph Gabriel and his family moved from St. Lucia to England where their daughter, Catherine Ann Beausire, was born in Liverpool about 1815. She was my great great grandmother on my mother's side of the family. In 1807 Joseph Gabriel was a member of the masonic lodge in Carenage (now known as Castries), St. Lucia. Joseph Gabriel then returned to Metz alone, and on the 9th of February, 1817 made a claim for return of half the wealth taken from the family during the Revolution, which was allowed by the government. He either never married Polly Kitty or she had died, but in 1818 he married Anne Louise Phillipine Besser. They also had four children together. In 1821 he was promoted to Major and given half pay for his retirement by the British Army. He was a Marichel de Camp d'artillerie, and a Chevalier de St. Louis. He died in Metz in 1845 at the age of 74.
Catherine Ann went to live in St. Lucia at some point, either with her mother or perhaps later with her husband, Thomas Collingwood Parker, who was the government auditor there and quite wealthy. It's likely that Thomas was a friend of Robert Beausire in St. Lucia since they were the same age and of similar racial heritage, and he may have visited Robert in England if he took his accountancy training there. They were both in the accounting business. Thomas was born some time after late 1803 and baptized on the 6th of February, 1806. He and Catherine Ann lived and raised their 4 daughters, including my great grandmother, Isabella Parker, in a large house called "Retreat" situated on Morne Fortune, a hill with wonderful views of Castries harbor. The house burned down but was rebuilt much later by Isabella and her husband, after their marriage.
Notes - first son) Robert Beausire 1804-1854 m. 1) Franceys and 2) Janet Pollock. Cashier, Royal Insurance Co. Liverpool. (second son) Henry Beausire 1813 - 1876 m. Amy Tyrer. Secretary, Midland & Grand Western Railway, Dublin
