The ancestors of the Molyneaux family who arrived in
England around 1100 bore the name "de Molines". They came from
Moulins, France, in the region of
Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes. Other sources claim the family came from
Molineaux-sur-Seine, in
Normandy. There is a 'William de Moulins' from Falaise, in Normandy, as mentioned here: '
Fulbert of Falaise '. This William likely grew up alongside William the Conqueror as his cousin and friend, and may have been granted lands by the Conqueror. It is possible "Moulins" referred to a Guild (of millers) in France, rather than the place name . Wherever their origin, Robert de Moulins' son, William, settled in
Lancashire. They were granted lands in
Lancashire. They can be shown to have held a large moated manor and
St. Helen's Church at
Sefton without interruption from about 1100 to 1700 before they moved to
Croxteth Hall. Of the Molyneux family, Sir Richard (d.1290) and Sir William Molyneux (d.1320), knights of the Crusades, are entombed within the church, and are its oldest inhabitants. Their effigies now lie beneath an arch moulding set into the wall in the Molyneux chapel, which is outside of the 14th-century church walls. The family were hereditary constables of
Liverpool Castle. The senior branch of the family had been staunch Catholics and Royalists (notably in the 17th and 18th centuries) through the worst times until Charles Molyneux, 8th Viscount Molyneux, was rewarded for converting to the Protestant faith. The relatively youthful second and third Viscounts fought on the Royalist side both politically and militarily. Although Liverpool Castle had been partly dismantled in 1660-1678, Caryll Molyneux, the 3rd Viscount, had used it for storing arms. During the reign of King
James II, he was outlawed by Parliament for supporting the deposed king from 1688 to 1689. Control of the Castle finally passed out of Molyneux's hands after Caryll had again been suspected of participation in a
Jacobite plot. William, the 7th Viscount, was a Jesuit, and there were in his time not less than seven Molyneux in the
Society of Jesus. The loss of Liverpool Castle led to a protracted legal case over its ownership and ultimately its demolition. On 5 March 1704 the city's burgesses obtained a lease for the castle and its site from
The Crown for fifty years. But William Molyneux, 4th Viscount Molyneux, disputed this as he still claimed to be the castle's hereditary constables. This delayed the settlement of the lease until 1726, when the final ruins of the castle were demolished. Over the centuries, several deviations of the name Molyneaux have emerged. As the English language changed and incorporated elements of other European languages such as Norman French and Latin, even literate people regularly changed the spelling of their names. Scribes and monks in the Middle Ages spelt names as they sounded, so it is common to find several variations that refer to a single person. The variations of the name include Molyneaux, Molinex, Mullinix, Mullenneix, Mullineaux, Molinieux, Molinaux, Molineaux, Mollineaux, Molineux, and several others. Later, many variations were due to misspellings in
American or other country's immigration services. Although Anglo-Norman surnames like Molyneaux are characterized by many spelling variations, the form
Molyneux has prevailed with the modern trend towards standardisation. ==Molyneux baronets, of Sefton (1611)==