Ralph William Lyonel Tollemache-Tollemache JP (19 October 1826 – 5 October 1895) was an English priest in the

Church of England The Church of England (C of E) is the State religion#State churches, established List of Christian denominations, Christian church in England and the Crown Dependencies. It is the mother church of the Anglicanism, Anglican Christian tradition, ...

. He is best known for the unusual and increasingly eccentric names that he chose for his numerous children.

Life and career

Born as Ralph William Lyonel Tollemache, he was the eldest son of

the Reverend The Reverend (abbreviated as The Revd, The Rev'd or The Rev) is an honorific style (form of address), style given to certain (primarily Western Christian, Western) Christian clergy and Christian minister, ministers. There are sometimes differen ...

and

the Honourable ''The Honourable'' (Commonwealth English) or ''The Honorable'' (American English; American and British English spelling differences#-our, -or, see spelling differences) (abbreviation: ''Hon.'', ''Hon'ble'', or variations) is an honorific Style ...

Hugh Francis Tollemache (1802–1890) and his wife, Matilda, the daughter of Joseph Hume. His father was the fourth son of William Tollemache, Lord Huntingtower, the eldest son and heir of John Manners and

Louisa Tollemache, 7th Countess of Dysart Louisa Manners Tollemache, 7th Countess of Dysart (2 July 1745 – 22 September 1840) was an English peeress. Her father held considerable estates in England largely due to the two marriages of Elizabeth Maitland, Duchess of Lauderdale, earlier ...

. He was rector of

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in Northamptonshire for 58 years. Tollemache was educated at

Uppingham School Uppingham School is a public school (English fee-charging boarding and day school for pupils 13–18) in Uppingham, Rutland, England, founded in 1584 by Robert Johnson, the Archdeacon of Leicester, who also established Oakham School. ...

and

Peterhouse, Cambridge Peterhouse is the oldest Colleges of the University of Cambridge, constituent college of the University of Cambridge in England, founded in 1284 by Hugh de Balsham, Bishop of Ely. Peterhouse has around 300 undergraduate and 175 graduate stud ...

, graduating with his BA in 1850. He followed his father's vocation and was

ordained Ordination is the process by which individuals are Consecration in Christianity, consecrated, that is, set apart and elevated from the laity class to the clergy, who are thus then authorized (usually by the religious denomination, denominationa ...

as a

deacon A deacon is a member of the diaconate, an office in Christian churches that is generally associated with service of some kind, but which varies among theological and denominational traditions. Major Christian denominations, such as the Cathol ...

in Manchester in 1849 and as a priest in

Lincoln Lincoln most commonly refers to: * Abraham Lincoln (1809–1865), the 16th president of the United States * Lincoln, England, cathedral city and county town of Lincolnshire, England * Lincoln, Nebraska, the capital of Nebraska, U.S. * Lincoln (na ...

in 1850. He became rector of South Wytham in Lincolnshire in 1850 and retained that living until his death. He was also a Justice of the Peace in Lincolnshire. He married his cousin, Caroline Tollemache (7 June 1828 – 6 June 1867), on 15 February 1853. She was the daughter of the Hon.

Felix Thomas Tollemache Felix Thomas Tollemache (16 Feb 1796 – 5 October 1843) was a British gentleman and Tory politician. He was the second son of William Tollemache, Lord Huntingtower and Catherine Gray. On 1 October 1825, he married Sarah Gray (1805-1831), by ...

, the second son of the same William Talmash named above and Catherine Gray. A dispute arose with his wife's trustees in 1859. He built up debts of approximately £4,000 (equivalent to approximately £622,250 in 2023 currency) and was declared bankrupt in 1863. He was discharged from the bankruptcy on 26 June 1868, the year after his wife died. He remarried on 22 February 1869, to Dora Cleopatra Maria Lorenza de Orellana, the daughter of Colonel Ignacio Antonio de Orellana y Revest, an officer in the Spanish army. He doubled his surname in 1876, becoming "Tollemache-Tollemache". He died in 1895, leaving an estate with a

probate In common law jurisdictions, probate is the judicial process whereby a will is "proved" in a court of law and accepted as a valid public document that is the true last testament of the deceased; or whereby, in the absence of a legal will, the e ...

value of £1,619 19s. 7d. He was survived by his second wife, who died on 8 August 1929.

Children

Tollemache is best known for the unusual names that he gave to his many children. He had at least five children from his first marriage: # Sir Lyonel Felix Carteret Eugene Tollemache, 4th Baronet, of Hanley Hall (15 January 1854 – 4 March 1952), inherited the Tollemache baronetcy in 1935 #Florence Caroline Artemesia (19 February 1855 – 24 May 1935) #Evelyne Clementina Wentworth Cornelia Maude (7 June 1856 – 1919) #Granville Grey Marchmont Manners Plantagenet (8 June 1858 – 20 April 1891) #Marchmont Murray Reginald Grasett Stanhope Plantagenet (24 December 1860 – 10 April 1898) His imagination took flight when he named the many children from his second marriage: #Dora Viola Gertrude Irenez de Orellana Dysart Plantagenet (11 November 1869 – 4 July 1874) #Mabel Helmingham Ethel Huntingtower Beatrice Blazonberrie Evangeline Vise de Lou de Orellana Plantagenet Toedmag Saxon (11 March 1872 – 5 January 1955) #Lyonesse Matilda Dora Ida Agnes Ernestine Curson Paulet Wilbraham Joyce Eugénie Bentley Saxonia Dysart Plantagenet (9 November 1874 – 26 August 1944) #Lyulph Ydwallo Odin Nestor Egbert Lyonel (LYONEL) Toedmag Hugh Erchenwyne (THE) Saxon Esa Cromwell Orma Nevill Dysart (SECOND) Plantagenet (21 August 1876 – 1961) #Lyona Decima Veroica Esyth Undine Cyssa Hylda Rowena Adela Thyra Ursuala Ysabel Blanche Lelias Dysart Plantagenet (19 April 1878 – 17 November 1962) (Decima for being the 10th child) #Leo Quintus Tollemache-Tollemache de Orellana Plantagenet (19 November 1879 – 1 November 1914) (Quintus for being the 5th son) #Lyonella Fredegunda Cuthberga Ethelswytha Ideth Ysabel Grace Monica de Orellana Plantagenet (14 January 1882 – 3 October 1952) # Leone Sextus Denys Oswolf Fraudatifilius Tollemache-Tollemache de Orellana Plantagenet (10 June 1884 – 20 February 1917) (Sextus for being the 6th son) #Lyonetta Edith Regina Valentine Myra Polwarth Avelina Phillipa Violantha de Orellana Plantagenet (14 February 1887 – 7 January 1951) #Lyonulph Cospatrick Bruce Berkeley Jermyn Tullibardine Petersham de Orellana Dysart Plantagenet (11 January 1892 – 30 November 1966) *His eldest son,

Lyonel Lyonel is a given name. Notable people with the name include: *Lyonel Feininger Lyonel Charles Adrian Feininger (; July 17, 1871January 13, 1956) was a German-American painter, and a leading exponent of Expressionism. He also worked as a caricat ...

, inherited the

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baronetcy ( Tollemache baronetcy, of Hanley Hall; created in 1793) from his cousin

William John Manners Tollemache, 9th Earl of Dysart William John Manners Tollemache, 9th Earl of Dysart, DL (3 March 1859 – 22 November 1935) was an English peer and judicial officer. Early life and family William Tollemache was the eldest son of a controversial father, William Tollemache, ...

, on the latter's death in 1935. He also inherited

Ham House Ham House is a 17th-century house set in formal gardens on the bank of the River Thames in Ham, London, Ham, south of Richmond, London, Richmond in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames. The original house was completed in 1610 by Thomas ...

, which he gave to the

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in 1948. *Lyulph emigrated to New Zealand, where he had 17 children. *Leo Quintus Tollemache-Tollemache de Orellana Plantagenet Tollemache-Tollemache renamed himself by

deed poll A deed poll (plural: deeds poll) is a legal document binding on a single person or several persons acting jointly to express an intention or create an obligation. It is a deed, and not a contract, because it binds only one party. Etymology Th ...

in 1908, becoming Leo de Orellana Tollemache-Tollemache. *Leo and his brother Leone both died in the

First World War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

, the former in action in 1914 and the latter of

influenza Influenza, commonly known as the flu, is an infectious disease caused by influenza viruses. Symptoms range from mild to severe and often include fever, runny nose, sore throat, muscle pain, headache, coughing, and fatigue. These sympto ...

in 1917. It is often said that Leone holds the world record for the most multiple-barreled surname, with six, including one repeated four times (Tollemache-Tollemache-de Orellana-Plantagenet-Tollemache-Tollemache), but this overlooks his father's eccentric naming choices. Leone's last name was just Tollemache-Tollemache; all of his other names (including the first instance of "Tollemache-Tollemache" in his full name) were forenames. The Tollemache family's names are parodied in Book 1, Episode 4 of

James Joyce James Augustine Aloysius Joyce (born James Augusta Joyce; 2 February 1882 – 13 January 1941) was an Irish novelist, poet, and literary critic. He contributed to the modernist avant-garde movement and is regarded as one of the most influentia ...

's novel ''

Finnegans Wake ''Finnegans Wake'' is a novel by Irish literature, Irish writer James Joyce. It was published in instalments starting in 1924, under the title "fragments from ''Work in Progress''". The final title was only revealed when the book was publishe ...

'', as Helmingham Erchenwyne Rutter Egbert (HERE) Crumwall Odin Maximus Esme Saxon (COMES) Esa Vercingetorix Ethelwulf Rupprecht Ydwalla Bentley Osmund Dysart Yggdrasselmann (EVERYBODY).

References

*K. D. Reynolds, "Tollemache, Ralph William Lyonel Tollemache- (1826–1895)", Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press, 200
accessed 5 October 2007
*http://www.zip.com.au/~lnbdds/home/lyonelthesecond.htm *http://www.zip.com.au/~lnbdds/home/tollemachegrp.htm
''The Blood Royal of Britain: Tudor Roll. Being a Roll of the Living Descendants of Edward IV and Henry VII, Kings of England, and James III, King of Scotland''
The Marquis of Ruvigny and Raineval and Melville Henry Massue Ruvigny et Raineval,
''The New York Times''
9 May 1892, Page 2. {{DEFAULTSORT:Tollemache, Ralph 1826 births 1895 deaths 19th-century English Anglican priests People educated at Uppingham School Alumni of Peterhouse, Cambridge Clergy from Lincolnshire

Ralph William Lyonel Tollemache-Tollemache Ralph William Lyonel Tollemache-Tollemache JP (19 October 1826 – 5 October 1895) was an English priest in the Church of England. He is best known for the unusual and increasingly eccentric names that he chose for his numerous children. Life ...

Onomastics