Levett is a surname of Anglo-Norman origin, deriving from [de] Livet, which is held particularly by families and individuals resident in England and British Commonwealth territories.
30-645: This surname comes from the village of Livet-en-Ouche, now Jonquerets-de-Livet , in Eure , Normandy . Here the de Livets were undertenants of the de Ferrers family, among the most powerful of William the Conqueror's Norman lords. The name Livet (first recorded as Lived in the 11th century), of Gaulish etymology, may mean a "place where yew-trees grow". The first de Livet in England, Roger, appears in Domesday as
60-721: A branch of the de Livet family followed the de Ferrers (later the Earls of Derby ) to England, along with the Curzons ( Notre-Dame-de-Courson ) and the Baskervilles ( Basqueville , now Bacqueville-en-Caux ), who were also under-tenants of the old Ferrieres fiefdom in Normandy. The name of this branch of the de Livet family was anglicized into the name Levett , Levet, Lyvet, Livett, Leavett and its variants. Samuel Johnson Birthplace Museum Samuel Johnson Birthplace Museum
90-652: A daughter of the Milford Hall family) retains the ruin of Sibton Abbey , which they have made available to historical societies and researchers; the Levett-Prinseps (a branch of the Wychnor Park family) were unable to maintain Croxall Hall ; it was sold in 1920 and the estate was broken up. By 1871, although family tradition of a common ancestor of the Milford Hall and Wychnor Park Levett families
120-412: A planter; his son Francis Jr. returned to America, where he became the first to grow Sea Island cotton. A notable individual of the name was the unschooled Yorkshireman who, having worked as a Parisian waiter, then trained as an apothecary. Robert Levet returned to England, where he treated denizens of London's seedier neighbourhoods. Having married an apparent grifter and prostitute, Levet was taken in by
150-686: A scant four miles from Jonquerets-de-Livet), originated in Livet-en-Ouche. Descendants of one branch of this family became the Marquises of Barville in France (de Livet de Barville). The Norman French branch of the de Livet family counts among its members early knights ( chevaliers ), church officials (including Guillaume de Livet, a judge at the trial of Joan of Arc ), Canon of Rouen Robert de Livet (who excommunicated King Henry V of England during his siege of Rouen, after which de Livet
180-754: A tenant of the Norman magnate Henry de Ferrers . de Livet held land in Leicestershire, and was, along with Ferrers, a benefactor of Tutbury Priory . By about 1270, when the Dering Roll was crafted to display the coats of arms of 324 of England's most powerful lords, the coat of arms of Robert Livet, Knight, was among them. Some Levetts were early knights and Crusaders; many members of both English and French families were Knights Hospitallers, and served as courtiers. A Levett family settled in Derbyshire
210-420: Is a biographical museum and bookshop located in the centre of the city of Lichfield , Staffordshire , in England. The building is a Grade I listed building situated at the corner of Market Street and Breadmarket Street opposite the market square. The museum opened in 1901 and is dedicated to the life and works of the author and lexicographer Samuel Johnson who wrote the first authoritative Dictionary of
240-589: Is a former commune in the Eure department in Normandy , France . On 1 January 2016, it was merged into the new commune of Mesnil-en-Ouche . It incorporates the village of Livet-en-Ouche , once known simply as Livet . Mentioned as Lived in the 11th century. For "L'ivet" with article agglutination . (Northern) French if ( Yew-tree ) and suffixe -etu(m) > -ey / -oy /-ay > -aie , used to mean "collection of trees", so that Livet means "yew grove" ( l'ivaie in modern French). The qualificative of
270-437: The 18th century two central pillars were added and one was removed in the late 19th century. In the 19th century the pilasters were removed and the outside was stuccoed . The house was built in 1707 by Michael Johnson and served him as a bookshop and residence. On 18 September 1709 Samuel Johnson was born at the house and spent much of his early life in the house before leaving for London with David Garrick on 2 March 1737 at
300-515: The 1970s. The front of the house faces onto the Market Square and on this side the upper storeys are jettied outwards over the ground floor. As built this projecting front was supported at each end by a plain pillar, these continued upwards on the corners of the upper storeys by pilasters of the Ionic order. The facing of the house was red brown brick and the roof tiles were blue black. In
330-479: The English Language . Johnson's father built the house in 1707 and Samuel was born in the house on 18 September 1709 and spent the majority of his first 27 years in the house before leaving for London in 1737. The house was used as a commercial property for various trades between the time of Johnson's death in 1784 until the house was bought for the city by John Gilbert in 1900 for the purpose of retaining
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#1732775877455360-399: The age of 27. The house continued to be occupied by Johnson's mother Sarah after his departure. On 31 January 1739, Johnson and his mother mortgaged the family home to Lichfield town clerk Theophilus Levett , a longtime friend of the family, for £80. The debt was the subject of correspondence between Johnson and Levett, as well as Levett's son John, for some years. Ultimately, Johnson paid off
390-422: The building as a museum to Johnson. The house remains in active use as a museum. The house was built on the corner of Breadmarket Street and Market Street in 1707 by Johnson's father, Michael. The house is built of timber frame and brick infill, now covered in stucco. It is in a Palladian style with four storeys, the top storey being lit with dormer windows which were removed in the 18th century and restored in
420-592: The colonies. Among these were tailor John Leavitt and farmer Thomas Leavitt, early English Puritan immigrants to Massachusetts and New Hampshire, respectively, whose names first appear in seventeenth-century New England records as Levet or Levett. Individuals bearing the surname of Levett include: These places are or were associated with Levett families or individuals: Printed sources Google Books Jonquerets-de-Livet Jonquerets-de-Livet ( French pronunciation: [ʒɔ̃kʁɛ də livɛ] ), also Les Jonquerets-de-Livet ( [le ʒɔ̃kʁɛ də livɛ] ),
450-470: The colourful life and major achievements of Lichfield's most famous son, from troubled childhood, through literary obscurity and financial poverty, to world renown and success. The collection includes prints, paintings, sculpture - including a carved figure of Johnson by Denis Parsons , furniture, manuscripts and books: including many early and rare editions of Johnson's work. The book collection has largely been obtained through two major donations, now housed in
480-492: The earliest records of Normandy. One branch of the family later became the Marquis de Livet de Barville. Another branch was named the hereditary controllers of the rivers and waterways of Normandy in the 13th century, reflected in the use of an anchor on that branch of the family's French coat of arms . The family traditionally bore as their coat of arms three molettes d'or (gold) on a blue (azure) background. Another branch of
510-595: The family settled at Arentot in Ourville (now Arantot, hamlet at Ourville-en-Caux ). Georges de Livet, a member of this branch of the de Livet family, was killed at the battle of Agincourt in 1415. The last member of this branch of the family, who died without descendants, was comte Constantin Augustin Robert de Lyvet, mayor of Ourville, who died in 1924. During the Norman Conquest of England,
540-530: The former name -en-Ouche , means "in the Pays d'Ouche ", a traditional region of Normandy, to make the difference with other Livets, like Livet-sur-Authou . In 1845, the commune was incorporated in a new one, together with Les Jonquerets ( Les Junchereiz 1209 "The brooms place"), called Les Jonquerets de Livet . The de Livet family, feudal under-tenants of the barony of the de Ferrières family (centered on that family's seat at Ferrières-Saint-Hilaire , located
570-502: The house in which Dr Johnson was born. Under James Johnson's will the house was sold to the city in 1900, the money being given by John Gilbert, and on 27 May 1901 a museum devoted to the life and works of Samuel Johnson was opened. The museum was opened in 1901 and contains an extensive library of manuscripts and books, including over 1,000 books collected by the Rev.d Dr Peter Hay Hunter of Edinburgh and given by his widow in 1911. The museum
600-590: The libraries named after their donors: the Hay Hunter and Blum Libraries, and the Wood library contains a further 2,000 volumes. Personal items include Johnson's armchair, tea set, breakfast table and portable writing desk, David Garrick 's walking stick and a bookcase belonging to James Boswell . The museum was featured in the fifth episode of the BBC documentary Seven Ages of Britain , where David Dimbleby visited
630-515: The mid twentieth century, only two prominent Levett families remained; that of Milford Hall , Staffordshire and that formerly of Wychnor Hall , Staffordshire (and Packington Hall ). Milford Hall passed in the female line to the Haszard family, and Wychnor Park was sold by the Levetts to Lt-Col W. E. Harrison in 1913, this later becoming a country club. The Levett-Scrivener family (descending from
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#1732775877455660-638: The name of Levett (and its variants) appear in all social strata: John Levett, a guard on the London to Brighton coach, was convicted of petty theft and transported to Australia in the nineteenth century; English records reveal Levetts embroiled in bastardy cases or relegated to poorhouses. A Francis Levett was a factor living in Livorno, Italy, travelling back and forth to Constantinople for the Levant Company. He subsequently failed at British East Florida as
690-511: The outstanding mortgage in full. After the death of Johnson's mother in 1759, Johnson asked his stepdaughter Lucy Porter and his parents' servant Catherine Chambers to keep the house and continue running the business. It is not known when the Johnsons gave up ownership of the house, it may have remained in Johnson's ownership until his death in 1784. As a year after his death in 1785 the house
720-559: The poet Samuel Johnson. While Samuel Johnson adopted one Levet as boarder, he was apologizing to another better-placed Levett who held the mortgage on Johnson's mother's home in Lichfield . Today there are many Levetts (the spelling of the name varies) living outside England, including in South Africa, Australia, Singapore, New Zealand, Canada, and Ireland. In a few cases Levetts were forced by religious belief to flee England for
750-528: Was extinct by the early sixteenth century. A family of the name resident in Sussex at Warbleton and Salehurst also held the manor of Firle until it passed from family control in 1440 due to the debts of Thomas Levett, whose bankruptcy also necessitated the loss of Catsfield, East Sussex. Sussex deeds indicate instances of 'Levetts' attached to place names, indicating possession by individuals and families of that name. In 1620, John Levett, of Sedlescombe, Sussex,
780-718: Was forced by financial hardship to sell his half-interest in Bodiam Castle, inherited family land and property across Sussex and Kent, including at Ewhurst, Salehurst, Battle, Sussex and Hawkhurst, Kent, to Sir Thomas Dyke, for £1000; this represented the end of these Levetts as prominent landowners. Families of the name Levett (also Levet, Lyvet, Levytt, Livett, Delivett, Levete, Leavett, Leavitt, Lovett and others) would subsequently settle in Gloucestershire , Yorkshire , Worcestershire , Suffolk , Warwickshire , Wiltshire , Kent , Bedfordshire and Staffordshire . By
810-633: Was imprisoned for five years in England ) chevalier banneret Jean de Livet (standard bearer to King Philip II of France in 1215) and early Crusaders . Many de Livet family members were associated with the Knights Hospitallers , a medieval chivalric order founded to protect pilgrims to the Holy Land . The de Livets were among the ancient noble families (noblesse ancienne, or Noblesse d'épée ) of France. The family's name appears in
840-509: Was mentioned in the latter pedigree, the earliest listed ancestors of each family were, respectively, William Levett of Savernake, Wiltshire, page to King Charles I at the time of his death in 1649, and Theophilus Levett, who died 1746. Even the 1847 edition, produced at a time when Burke's publications were inclusive of vague, unproven 'family traditions' (a practice subsequently widely criticised), makes no mention of any earlier ancestors or Norman origin in either family's pedigree. Individuals of
870-633: Was run by the city council until 1974, when its management was transferred to the Dr Johnson Birthplace Trust. The restored city council have been the trustee since 1982. The museum also serves as a postal address for the Johnson Society, founded in 1910. The entrance to the bookshop part of the museum that faces onto Market Street was restored in 1990. The museum currently contains a varied mix of displays, reconstructed rooms and audio-visual media. Visitors are taken through
900-554: Was sold for £235 at an auction in the Swan Inn. The buyer was bookseller Major Morgan who continued the use of the building as a bookshop. From 1817 to 1835 the house was the newspaper office of the Lichfield Mercury . It is thought it then lay empty for a number of years occasionally being used as a grocer, dentists and ironmongers before the premises were bought in 1887 by James Johnson of Stockport in order to preserve
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