Richard Branson Goes Back to His Roots and Discovers He's of Indian Descent

Richard Branson Goes Back to His Roots and Discovers He's of Indian Descent

LONDON, February 3, 2016 /PRNewswire/ --



~Virgin Group Founder reveals pride in unearthing family history~



Writing in his blog [http://virg.in/fmr ] today, Richard Branson traces his family
history and reveals his pride in discovering he is of Indian descent:



"I know just about everything there is to know about my living relatives - we're a
tightknit bunch, who loves to share and celebrate our achievements together. Up until
recently, however, I couldn't say the same about those who came before my
great-grandparents.



That was until I sat down with historian and journalist, Henry Louis Gates Jr to trace
my roots. Let me tell you, it was a journey of wonderful discovery, in which I found out
that I inherited several of my most defining character traits - namely my love of
adventure, discovery and entrepreneurship - from my ancestors.



My father's family left a paper trail that traced back to Madras, India in the 1700s.
In 1793, my third great-grandfather, John Edward Branson set sail from Britain to India.
After a gruelling six-month journey, in which his boat circled the Cape of Good Hope and
crossed the Indian Ocean, he reached South East India - a trading hub of the fast-growing
British Empire. He was eventually joined by his father, my fourth great-grandfather, Harry
Wilkins Branson; and by 1808 three generations of my ancestors were living in Madras (or
Chennai, as the city is known today).



When I heard this, I hoped that they had made the move for the love of adventure and
in the spirit of entrepreneurship; and it turns out I was right. The paper trail showed
that they moved in search of fortune, and within 10 years became successful businessmen -
my great-great-great-grandfather, John, a shopkeeper and my
great-great-great-great-grandfather, Harry, an auctioneer. I was terribly excited to
discover that the entrepreneur gene runs deep in the Branson blood line.



What's more exciting is that the Madras archives combined with analysis of my DNA
uncovered a very surprising family secret. The baptismal record of my second
great-grandmother Eliza Reddy strangely didn't list her mother. Analysis of my DNA
revealed that the reason for this was because my third great-grandmother was Indian. Yes,
it turns out I'm part Indian. I couldn't wipe the smile off my face when I found this out.
I'm honoured. I wish that my father had got to see these records; he would have been
fascinated too.



Like my paternal ancestors, it appears that my maternal side also embraced the spirit
of adventure. While probing into my mother's family lineage something odd happened: my
mother's great-grandparents, Henry and Fanny Flindt, disappeared from English census
records. They appeared to completely vanish after 1861, but luckily showed up in
Australia!



Baptismal records from Prahran, Melbourne show that some time after 1861, Henry and
Fanny moved their entire family to Australia. Again, I had no idea about this part of my
family's history. No wonder I have always loved Australia - it's in the blood!



However, while the Australian economy was booming, my family was anything but
prosperous. Soon after arriving they were forced to file for bankruptcy. And in 1867 both
Henry and Fanny died from dysentery, leaving their four children - including my great
grandfather, Sydney Flindt - orphaned.  Fortunately, my third great-grandfather, Julius
Emanuel Flindt brought the children back to England, and made them his heirs.



The story of my great-great-great grandfather's altruism has affected me deeply.
Thanks to the generosity and kindness of one man, my ancestors managed to get back on
their feet, and find success and happiness. I hope that when my family look at our family
tree, they look at my name and think: great-grandfather Richard Branson really made a
difference. I hope that they will be proud of me.



Perhaps the most surprising piece of information discovered on my mother's side was
the fact that I'm related to Charlemagne, King of the Franks. It turns out that he is my
fortieth great-grandfather! But that's a story for another time.



Richard revealed his family history as part of Finding Your Roots which is broadcast
on PBS. [http://www.pbs.org/weta/finding-your-roots/visionaries-sir-richard-branson/14934 ]
Find out more by visiting virgin.com/richardbranson
[https://www.virgin.com/richard-branson ].




Virgin Management

CONTACT: For more information contact the Virgin Management press office on +44(0)207-229-4738 or email press@virgin.com


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