St Ange

Recorded as St Ange and St Angel, this is a French Huguenot surname introduced into the British Isles in the early 18th century. At that time an estimated fifty thousand refugees, many amongst the most skilled as well as senior figures in the army, left France to avoid religious persecution by King Louis X1Vth (1643 - 1715) nand his successors. King Louis suffered severely from bad teeth, and the constant pain aggravated by the dentists of the time, is believed to have deranged him. This was not helped by Cardinals of the church, who were his advisors. Having little to do as clerics, they became politicians in a way that threatened the foundation of the state. This was to lead to the famous Revolution of 1789, and for a time, the total banning of the church in any form. St Ange(l) is a locational name from a place or places so called in France. It is first recorded in England in 1713 when Pierre St Ange was a christening witness to his daughter Marguerite at the French Huguenot church known as St Jean Spitalfields, in the city of London, on February 8th of that year. Four other christenings are recorded over the next five years being Josue in 1715, Pierre in 1716, Francois in 1718 and Jacques in 1719.