The Ancestry of Lloyd Alexander

May next year will mark a decade since the passing of Lloyd Chudley Alexander, the celebrated author of the Chronicles of Prydain - a wonderful fantasy series which I read as a teenager.

Author Lloyd Chudley Alexander

Lloyd Chudley Alexander was born in Philadelphia on January 30, 1924 to stockbroker Alan Audley Alexander and Edna née Chudley. His parents were married in 1916. Alexander and his older sister Florence Elise [15.08.1918-20.01.1988] grew up in the western suburbs of Drexel Hill. The family was greatly affected by the depression. Alexander joined the U.S. army at the start of WWII. He trained and served as a military intelligence officer in Wales, where he later drew much inspiration for his famous book series. He met his wife Janine Marie née Denni [16.09.1920-02.05.2007] while attending the Sourbonne after the war. They were married in Paris on January 8, 1946 and Alexander formally adopted Denni's daughter Madeleine "Mado" Marie [08.11.1934-15.07.1990]. Returning to his native Philadelphia, Alexander started writing while working day jobs. His first books were rejected. It wasn't before 1955 that one of his works was published. "I wrote for adults for ten years. But for some reason, in the realm of fantasy for children, I was able to take up deeper Questions. To me it is liberating." In 1963 Alexander wrote "Time Cat" - his first fantasy for children and first major success. The story was inspired by Alexander's pet cat Solomon. The five books in the Chronicles of Prydain were published between 1964 and 1968, earning Alexander the Newbery honor and medal. The first two installments in the series were adapted into an animated Disney feature in 1985. Alexander recieved the Pennbook Lifetime Achievement Award, Parent's Choice Foundation Lifetime Achievement Award and  World Fantasy Award for Life Achievement. By the time of his death he had written some forty books, and had won the National Book Award twice. He passed away two weeks after his wife.

Alexander's maternal grandparents were tailor Harry Elwood Chudley and Mary Elizabeth née Gray. They were second generation immigrants, English and Irish respectfully, and were married at the Church of the Beloved Disciple in Philadelphia.

Alexander was brought up a Christian. He and his wife were members of the Holy Comforter Church in Drexel Hill, but his father was raised in a Jewish household. Born in Kingston, Jamaica, Alan Audley Alexander was registered with the Amalgamated Jewish Congregation in the city. He settled in the US in 1905 and was naturalized in Pennsylvania in 1922. 
Lloyd Alexander's paternal grandfather, Solomon Elkin Alexander, was of mixed Ashkenazi and Sephardi Jewish ancestry. He was a merchant and a member of freemasonry in Jamaica. Alexander's grandmother, Frances "Fanny" Eliza Née DeSouza, was fully Sephardi Jewish.

1.Lloyd Chudley Alexander, 30/01/1924 - 17/05/2007

   2.1 Alan Audley Alexander, 05/04/1887 - 20/12/1958, married 1916

      3.1 Solomon Elkin Alexander, 30/07/1854 - , married 30/06/1873

        4.1 Thaddeus Alexander, 26/12/1831 - 08/01/1892, married 20/04/1853

          5.1 Joseph Alexander, married 03/10/1814

            6.1 Reuben Alexander 1759 - 20/03/1818

          5.2 Kate Elkin

            6.3 Solomon Elkin

        4.2 Sarah DaCosta, 11/11/1831 - 

          5.3 Moses DaCosta

      3.2 Frances Eliza DeSouza, 31/08/1853 - 15/05/1919

        4.3 Abraham DeSouza

        4.4 Louisa

   2.2 Edna Chudley, 22/12/1898 - 25/03/1963

      3.3 Harry Elwood Chudley, 07/08/1858 - 10/03/1924, married 07/08/1883

      3.4 Mary Elisabeth Gray, 30/06/1865 - 20/05/1939

        4.7 John Gray

        4.8 Elisabeth McCallum