John Breton (1786 - 1832)

Born 25 Sep 1786 in Spitalfields, Middlesex, England

Ancestors

Husband of Mary (Ruddick) Breton — married 19 Dec 1813 in Clerkenwell, London, England, United Kingdom

Descendants

Died 1832 at about age 45 in St Dunstan, Stepney, Middlesex, England, United Kingdom

Problems/Questions Profile manager: Alison Breton [send private message]

Biography

John was born to Michel Breton and Elizabeth Frankis into a French community in the east end of London. His birth records are in French and the church is recorded as being French Protestant. He was one of the youngest of at least 9 children

On 19 Dec 1813 he married Mary Ruddick in a Church of England Church in Clerkenwell. A Catherine Ruddick was a witness.

John was a Baker (from son children's baptism records and John's will) and he was very successful, amassing properties in Commercial Road and in other areas around the East End.

He divided these properties between his surviving children when he passed away aged 46 in 1832. He was buried in May 1832 in Stepney.

His will transcript is attached

Huguenot and French London

Although a substantial French Protestant community existed in London from the sixteenth century, the suppression of Protestantism in France in the 1680's led to a mass migration of predominantly Calvinist refugees, many of whom settled in London. Divided between Spitalfields in the east and Soho in the west, the French Protestant community was one of the largest and most distinctive communities in the capital throughout the eighteenth century. The fortunes of this community waxed and waned with those of the silk industry and went into sharp decline in the early nineteenth century. </p>

Sources

• England & Wales, Non-Conformist and Non-Parochial Registers, 1567-1970 for Jean Le Breton, RG4: Registers of Births, Marriages and Deaths Foreign Churches French Protestant Piece 4580: Eglise de St Jean, St John Street, Spitalfields (French Protestant), 1783-1787
• Marriage: England, Pallot's Marriage Index, 1780-1837, Name John Breton, Spouse Mary Ruddock, Marriage Date 1813, Parish Clerkenwell.
• Marriage: London, England, Church of England Marriages and Banns, 1754-1932 for John Breton, Islington St James, Clerkenwell 1813-1825. London Metropolitan Archives; London, England; Reference Number: p76/js1/037
• Son Charles baptism: London, England, Church of England Births and Baptisms, 1813- Tower Hamlets Christ Church with St Mary and St Stephen, Spitalfields 1813-1819, London Metropolitan Archives; London, England; Reference Number: p93/ctc1/004
• Death: London, England, Church of England Deaths and Burials, 1813-2003, London Metropolitan Archives; London, England; Reference Number: p93/dun/145
• Death: in the England, Select Deaths and Burials, 1538-1991, Name: John Breton, Gender: Male, Age: 46, Birth Date: 1786, Burial Date: 27 May 1832, Burial Place: St. Dunstan, Stepney, Middlesex, England, FHL Film Number: 597598, Reference ID: p 106 no 846
• Will: England & Wales, Prerogative Court of Canterbury Wills, 1384-1858, The National Archives; Kew, England; Prerogative Court of Canterbury and Related Probate Jurisdictions: Will Registers; Class: PROB 11; Piece: 1802
• French community in London: https://www.oldbaileyonline.org/static/Huguenot.jsp
• Will transcript attached.