Cameron Daddo uncovered the story of the resistance his ancestor Philippe de Carteret led against the corrupt Governor of Jersey in 1470.
On series 11 of the Australian edition of the show, Mr Daddo traced his family tree back through 34 generations to the Channel Islands.
Mr Daddo describes his past as ‘two beautiful love stories’ and added that he feels ‘incredibly grateful that I have that to look back on. I come from love stories that bring up such deep emotion’.
During the episode Mr Daddo tracks down the de Carteret family to St Ouen’s Manor, where he meets his distant cousin, who shares the story of his ancestor Philippe de Carteret, who fought against the corrupt Governor of Jersey.
In 1470, Phillipe was accused of treason and shackled in a dungeon. Philippe’s wife, Margaret, days after giving birth, travelled to England to petition the King and at the eleventh hour he was released and the Governor sacked.
Mr Daddo also discovered strong links to Guernsey, where he found his third cousins.
Aside from his Channel Island heritage, Mr Daddo’s fourth great-grandfather, Robert Jillett, was a convict who narrowly avoided the death sentence in England in 1797. He was transported to Sydney, meeting his love, Elizabeth Bradshaw, on the ship. Despite having a fortune, Elizabeth chose a convict rather than someone of her own status. The two were soon living together and had their first child.
Robert was evacuated to Tasmania and Elizabeth followed, and they added substantially to their wealth wherever they went. After Robert’s death Elizabeth did not remarry, the story reinforcing the theme of long-lasting relationships which is featured throughout the episode and Mr Daddo’s heritage.
Linda Romeril, head of archives and collections at Jersey Heritage, who met Mr Daddo at Mort Orgueil Castle to discuss his family history, said: ‘Jersey Heritage was delighted to be able to help Cameron find out more about his Jersey connections and facilitate filming at Mont Orgueil Castle, where his ancestor Philippe de Carteret was imprisoned in 1470.
‘There are significant connections between the Channel Islands and Australia, with thousands of individuals leaving the Islands in the 19th century for new lives and opportunities on the other side of the world. Many Australians with Jersey connections are following Cameron’s journey to trace their roots – in the first five months of 2020, over 3,000 individual sessions on the Jersey Heritage online catalogue originated in Australia.’
