Fane family

Fane is an English surname of Welsh origins that belongs to a family who have produced a number of notable members.

The family originated with Ivon Vane, who was a Welsh landowner and mercenary captain in the service of the Black Prince.

The family married judiciously and inherited estates in Northamptonshire, Lincolnshire, Dorset, Somerset, Devon, Oxfordshire as well as retaining their original lands in Kent.

Sir Francis Fane of Fulbeck was one of the founding investors in the Virginia Company that settled the new world and the family were also large landowners in Canada, mainly on Prince Edward Island, and South Africa, as well as having extensive business interests in India.

Two Indian regiments were raised by family members, including Fane's Horse, as well as producing a Commander-in-Chief of all British forces in India and the West Indies.