Background
Born around June 1729, John William Grey was the second child of the Duke and Duchess of Pardloe, Gerard and Benedicta Grey. The couple's first child is John's elder brother, Harold. In addition to Harold, John had two other siblings—half brothers from his mother's earlier marriage to Captain DeVane—Paul and Edgar DeVane. In Dragonfly in Amber, it seemed that his father was an Earl, but this seeming discrepancy was a central plot point in Lord John and the Brotherhood of the Blade.
John's godfather immediately enrolled John into the Beefsteak Club after his birth. John was taught the use of a blade starting from age three. When John was seven, his godfather began taking John to the Beefsteak Club every Wednesday for lunch.
On his 12th birthday, John was given a pocket watch by his father, who supposedly shot himself the day after to escape being charged as a Jacobite. Afterwards, John was sent to Aberdeen. Due to the scandal surrounding the death, John's older brother Harold had instead taken their father's second title, Earl of Melton. John, on the other hand, still preferred to be called Lord John Grey, as was befitting a duke's younger son.
Read more about this topic: Lord John Grey
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