title to a title without a head.

On this document, unsigned and undated, with nothing to indicate the place
of its origin, the Turold family based its claim of descent from the
baronial Turralds of Great Missenden. But the Turold history was a
chequered one. Their branch was nomadic, without territorial ties or
wealth, without continuance of chronology. They could not trace their own
genealogy back for two hundred years. There was a great gap of missing
generations which had never been filled in. It was not even known how the
document had come into their possession. Simon's two sons and their
descendants had vanished into unknown graves, leaving no trace. But the
family clung fast to their belief that they were the lineal descendants of
the Turralds of Buckinghamshire.

It had remained for Robert Turold to prove it. His father and grandfather
had bragged of it, had fabricated family trees over their cups, and glowed
with pride over their noble blood, but had let it go at that. Robert was a
man of different mould. In his hands, the slender supposition had been
turned into certainty. By immense labour and research he built a bridge
from the first Turold of whom any record existed, backwards across the
dark gap of the past. He traced the wanderings of his ancestors through
different generations and different counties to Robert Turold, who
established himself in Suffolk forty years after the last Lord Turrald was
laid to rest in his family vault in the village church of Great Missenden.

The construction of this portion of his family tree occupied Robert Turold
for ten years. There were scattered records to be collected, forgotten
wills to be sought in county offices, parochial registers to be searched
for births and deaths. A nomadic family has no traditions; Robert Turold
had to trace his back to the darkness of the Middle Ages. It was a notable