Aldeburgh & District Local History Society with The Aldeburgh Society present: The True Story of Jarndyce and Jarndyce

In 1797, the last will of Peter Thellusson, a wealthy Huguenot banker, changed English Trust law forever. Instead of leaving his fortune to his family, he hid it away in a trust to accumulate for his great grandsons. Peter by-passed the living for the unborn. Georgian society was appalled, and Parliament introduced the Thellusson Act in 1800 so no one could do the same again. The family, based in Rendlesham, fought the trust for 60 years and their legal battle was so notorious some say Dickens used them as a source for the Jarndyce and Jarndyce in ‘Bleak House’ and Tellson’s bank in ‘A Tale of Two Cities’.

James Thellusson is a descendant of Peter Thellusson. His talk reflects new research into the will and its link to Dickens. After an international career in public relations with WPP, James is now a freelance writer for magazines such as the Oldie and the Idler. In 2022, he wrote a history of the school report called ‘School’s Out, truants, troublemakers and teachers’ pets’ which is available on Amazon.

This lecture is presented by Aldeburgh & District Local History Society with The Aldeburgh Society.