The Saga of the Venable Families

We are in the 11th century. The creation of the fief of Venables dates back to the year 1018, when certain personal properties that Roger, Bishop of Beauvais (1002-1022), owned on the pagus Madriacensis, the current Madrie plateau, were ceded to the Bishopric of Beauvais.

Around 1055, Gilbert received the fief of Venables. He and his neighbors, Hugh and Guillaume de la Mare, as well as Raoul II de Tosny, joined the Norman army in 1066 and set out to conquer England alongside Guillaume de Normandie. As a reward for their good and loyal service, and in accordance with the promises of Duke Guillaume the Conqueror, they received lands in the county of Cheshire, then held by Hugues d’Avranches. The term “Venator” is attributed to Gilbert de Venables in the Domesday Book.

Guillaume de la Mare died at the Battle of Senlac; his brother Hugues received the title of Earl Hugues of Delamere. Raoul de Tosny received lands near Flamstead. As for Gilbert, he established his line on an estate near Middlewich. His grandson became the first Baron of Kinderton.

Dorothy Mary Faith Venables was the first known member of the Venables family to visit the village, in 1901. She corresponded with the Lambert family, who had settled there. The Venables Cultural Center (CCGVenables) now holds two of her letters and a photograph from her trip.

In 1972, a distant descendant of Gilbert, Robert Venables, visiting from England, also stopped in the village. There he met the mayor at the time, Léon Drouet, who put him in touch with Bernard Oger. In 1975, an American, Steve Venables, from California, also discovered the village.

These successive visits sparked Bernard Oger’s curiosity. Passionate about local history, he gradually discovered, through his research, the existence of numerous families bearing the village’s name. A name that has been passed down through the centuries, reaching the four corners of the world.

In 1986, Bernard Oger decided to create the first Venables Families Convention. Since then, this event has been held every five years, bringing together Venables families scattered across five continents for a few days in Venables.

These conventions are eagerly anticipated: participants return to the land of their ancestors, proud to be Venables or Venable (without s). There, they find evidence of their origins, sometimes long sought after. Since 1986, bonds of friendship and exchange have been forged between the Venables families and the inhabitants of Venables, culminating in 2011 with the signing of a cultural charter with the town of Middlewich. The creation of a welcoming committee to receive Venables families visiting their ancestor’s land.