The Finnish von Becker-family has deep and multiple genealogical links also to and in Great Britain. My grandfather symbolised a country gentleman, who reminded me of Britishness. Irony and discrete saying and writing should be in the most pulsating and throbbing vein of peoples self-consciousness. English ideals were shared in earnest earlier in the history of Finnish aristocracy, it has always been a venerating element. Temperance, moderation, reservedness and passion for carrying political responsibilities in the area were his most stunning elements.
British culture brings acute consciousness over history and cultural symbols and values. The length of British history is one of a kind, because most of the cultures of the same age would have been erased, hung, drawn and quartered. It has been said that the most knowable figure of Finnish aristocracy – Marshal Baron Mannerheim – was raised and nurtured in youth through ideals belonging to English children and youth schooling ideals. Stiff upper lip and restrictiveness in expressing emotions was so typical between noble people in Finland. The people who shriek their emotions in public cannot be counted as aristocrats. Also Mannerheim was that kind of figure and reserved noble man, who didn't smile freely in almost any situation, alas public situations.
Becker-family has family ties to nearly every culture in northern and central Europe. The most usual connections are the Swedish speaking minority in Finland and former Baltic-Germans. I have always felt that the connection to Germany is more important to family compared to Swedish speaking finns. People should encourage connections to Germany even in Britain, because Germany is the primus motor of European nations and cultures. It should be noted that there is an organization which has pronounced its mission to promote cultural exchange between Germany and Great Britain, and the name of the organization is British-German Association. I have started to make some moves in the Deutsch Baltische Gesellschaft also.
I have very strict and defined knowledge over my family's genealogical inheritance, and I feel that the aristocracy should always view its cosmopolitan attitude as a strength and not as a burden. When a person has genetic links to other cultures in Europe, so it can mean also cultural competence and fluency in different languages. I have felt myself as an anglophile from my early years in the comprehensive school. I reckon that there are lots of those kinds of cultural symbols and history which should be noticed. That is also one kind of difference compared, that the length of history is in a totally different case in Britain than Finland. I have always viewed the ideal of British Gentleman with deep reverence of which one should take an example.
My family has links to Scotland in particular, and there are many freedom fighters and inherited nobility in these family lines. One link connects our family to three families in Kinrosshire, where there are family names like Mercer, Balram, Belfrage and Murray, Douglas and Stewart. These have been viewed as members of landed gentry, even though Murray's have been promoted as Dukes of Atholl. These families are interwoven with Aldie Castle in Kinrosshire in particular. Nowadays Aldie has been lived by a doctor who has passed in recent times, and the castle is now in the possession of his ex-wife. The first known figure of Belfrage-family was The knight of Pennington and Tulliochie General-admiral Guilielm Belfrage who married Margaret Mercer and this marriage brought Aldie castle to Belfrage-family. Hans Belfrage was a member of the family who moved to Sweden.
Aldie Castle came to Mercer-family when a wealthy merchant called John Mercer got married with a member of Murray-family, which was earlier called de Moravia of Tullibardine. Murrays are Duke's of Atholl, and a junior title in the family is named after Tullibardine. The eldest son of Murray-family at Duke of Atholl is titled Marquess of Tullibardine.
Balgonie Castle is also a place where my British ancestors have been doing important chores. Balgonie is connected with the Leslie-family in special, and one ancestor of mine was Field Marshal Alexander Leslie. In this line there have also been inherited family titles called Earl of Leven. My family has also links to Earl's of Crawford, and I have a purpose to visit their family seat Balcarres in short time. I have been interested in learning about the bibliophile-Crawfords, and actually I have found books with Crawford-exlibris during my stays in Britain which I have of course purchased. It can be said although, that there has been nearly thirty Earls of Crawford, and I reckon, that even the carriers of title doesn't most probably cannot remember every Earl from hundreds of years before our time.
The family connection through Scottish Petres, who are ancestors of mine and prospered especially in Dumfries, to Baron Petre-family in England has been disputed, even though some people have said that the first names in Scottish family can be found and traced from the Baton Petre-family. The most knowable figure of Baron Petre-family has been the Home Secretary to Henry the VIII. I got ancestors through Pistolekors-family, which have been viewed as a branch of Scott of Craighall family which has prospered to a ducal rank as Duke of Bucchleuch. The first of Finnish Pistolekors was a scotsman who fought in the 30 years war, and it has been said that he saved the life of Swedish king Gustav II Adolf in the battle of Stühm. The name and shield of the family have been scrutinised because Göran Olofsson Scott-Pistolekors used a method in which he could fire with two separate hand guns in the opposite direction, so there was a cross (kors) in his way of using pistols.
Alexander Leslie's wife belonged to the Earl of Wemyss-family and was a noble countess. Many of Leslie-line's people lived in the area of Fife in Scotland. The men in the Leslie-line were mostly knights in the earlier centuries. If I would say something about the royal connections in our family lines, I would say that even William the Conqueror and Charles the Great are part of our family's inheritance. Also Plantagenets have been raised over podium, but that is a matter of interpretation. From the Belfrage line one can reach earlier Anglo-Saxon kings, Scottish (Alba) kings and even that kind of royalty, which has been canonised by Shakespeare in his plays. Malcolm II The destroyer who was the king between 1034-1040, has become a literal figure as Duncan in Shakespeares Macbeth.
The freedom fighters of Scotland are well represented in the von Becker-family tree. I have counted at least William Wallace - the "Braveheart" - and Robert the Bruce as ancestors.
Through Stewart-connection we are in genealogical connection with Winston Churchill because his grandmother was Stewart and from the same line as the ancestors of the von Becker-family.
Olli von Becker
Master of social sciences
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