Jean Lempriere's main claim to fame today is that he is the only member of his family to become Bailiff whose life is not well documented. He may have been the son of Drouet Lempriere, the son of Raoul Lempriere, who was Bailiff 60 years earlier, but that is only speculation. It is certainly the view of the Rev J A Messervy, who makes the connection in his history of the Lemprieres of Diélament, published in the 42nd Annual Bulletin of La Société Jersiaise.
Strangely he makes no mention of this in his earlier articles on Jersey's Bailiffs. In the first he gives Lempriere's dates as 1435-36, but this is expanded to 1434-38 in the 36th bulletin, which also shows that Pierre Morin was his Lieut-Bailiff from 1434.
Jean Lempriere was born in St Helier about 1390 and married Jeannette Le Lorreur, possibly daughter of Guillaume. They had five sons, Raoulin, Renaud, Jean, George, another Raoulin and a daughter Guillemine
Family tree
