Protestant Exiles from France/Book First - Chapter 9 - Section X
X. De Lillers.
“The family of De Lillers,” says Sir Edmund Du Cane, “traced descent from Raoul de Lillers, who lived in 1348. In Heralds’ College is the pedigree down to 1663, extracted by M. Le Blon, Pursuivant of Arms at Valenciennes, and attested before the officers of the Court of Haynault and Mons. It mentions Jean de Lillers, natif de Basse Flandre, 1430, his son, Jean de Lillers, native of Lille, whose epitaph is in the church of St. Stephen’s, Valenciennes; also, about 1500, Francois de Lillers, who married Jenne Le Maire.”
The family first appears among refugees in Canterbury in the government return of 1621. The names are Jean de Lillers l’aisné, Jean de Lillers le jeune, and Arnold de Lillers. The first two refugees, father and son, appear in the Visitation of London in the year 1664. The father is styled Jean de Lillers of Canterbury, County Kent, in which city he probably spent his refugee life and died; his wife’s maiden name was Marie de Sauchuns, of Cambray, in Flanders. The son becomes John de Lillers, of London, merchant. He had a brother of the same occupation, Isaac de Lillers, who married Jeanne Du Ouesne, of Valentia [Valenciennes], and had two sons, Isaac and Jacob, and a daughter, Mary, wife of Nathaniel Denew [De Neu]. Arnold de Lillers (named in the Canterbury list of 1621) was probably another brother. He married Marie le More, in the city of London French Church, in the year 1669.
Returning to Jean de Lillers le jeune (Mr. John De Lillers), I note that he was twice married, and had a daughter by each wife. By his first wife, Marie, daughter of Jean Lespin, he had a daughter, Marie, wife of Jaques De Neu, and mother of a numerous family. The second wife of John de Lillers, Anne, daughter of Elie Maurois, of Canterbury, had a daughter, Elizabeth, wife of Guillaume Carbonnel.
Mrs. Carbonnel (as I shall have another opportunity to relate) had a numerous family; one of her sons was named De Lillers, and was intended probably to keep the ancient surname in remembrance. Through the mistakes of reporters and printers this memento of the old De Lillers family became scarcely recognizable. The Historical Register called him in 1722, Mr. Delliers Carbonel, and in 1723 Mr. Delithir Carbonnel; in 1724 and 1728, however, he is correctly entered as Mr. Delillers Carbonnel.