Early Life Lawrence Jones was the eldest son of Sir John Thomas Jones, K.C.B., 1st Baronet of Cranmer Hall, Norfolk, and Catherine Maria Lawrence, daughter of Effingham Lawrence of Bayside, Long Island, who had returned to England.

Career and Travels Educated in England, Sir Lawrence inherited the baronetcy on his father’s death in 1843. He traveled extensively through Europe and the Levant.

Death and Newspaper Account He was murdered by brigands near Dalaman, in southwestern Turkey, on 7 November 1845. The following report appeared in The Observer on 12 January 1846:

“A correspondent of the morning papers, writing from Constantinople, says:—‘I send you the following deposition of Captain Twopenny relative to the attack made upon him and Sir Lawrence Jones, and the assassination of Sir Lawrence, by the Zeybecks, who are mountaineers, constantly on the watch to plunder travelers, near Macri........It is as follows:—On the 7th November, towards noon, we were near Dallamany, at about eight leagues distant from Macri; we were crossing a little valley, planted with a low shrubbery, from whence the sea might be seen. Our little caravan consisted of Sir L. Jones and myself, a dragoman [guide and interpreter], a sulyee (a groom), an imaum of Zanthus, and two Greeks of Macri.

Suddenly the imaum stopped, loaded his carbine, and it seemed that he had perceived two Zeybecks, who were hiding in the bushes. We continued to move on with caution, till we had arrived at a fountain, shaded by some oak trees. Sir Lawrence then said, “I think it is better to halt and breakfast. If these fellows intend to attack us, we can't escape them, and it is better to fight with a full stomach than with an empty one.” I made no objection.

Our breakfast occupied us at least for half an hour, after which we continued our journey; but ten minutes had not elapsed when muskets were fired from behind a rock at four or five paces from us. On the very moment that the discharge was heard, Sir Lawrence Jones and the dragoman fell heavily from their horses, without uttering a single word, at the same time I felt myself severely wounded by several shots. My horse took fright, the horse of Sir Lawrence was at full gallop; but I succeeded in seizing his rein, and got the pistols from the holster.

At this moment I saw behind the rock the heads of five or six men, and five or six muskets pointed at me. I saw at once that resistance would be madness. I threw my pistols on the ground, and being enfeebled by the loss of blood, I fell myself. All this passed in a few seconds. The Zeybecks immediately sprung towards me, picking eagerly up my pistols, and crying out paras, paras! (money, money). I gave them my watch, and the little money I had on me; but they cried out still, paras, paras! I pointed to our baggage, on which they flung themselves, forcing the imaum to assist them in their ransackings.

Their rummage lasted an hour, after which they sent the imaum to the top of a hill, to see, I suppose, if the coast was clear. They then filed out in military order, followed by a fine, stately statured man, who seemed to me to be the captain of the band. As he passed by me, the captain cried out, paras, paras. I pointed again to our baggage, when one of the band pointed his gun at me. I thought my last moment had come, but the captain shoved away the gun-barrel from before me just as it was discharged, and we continued our route.

I then passed by poor Jones, who had ceased to exist. At the same time, the imaum and two Greeks were collecting the fragments of our baggage, and putting it on their horses. I made them signs to place on one of the horses the body of the deceased, but they refused, and made me understand, by their gestures, that it would be dangerous to insist on my demand. I took then a ring from the hand of the deceased, and cut off a lock of his hair, to take to his relations. In his watch pocket I found a few pieces of gold, which had escaped the robbers. The imaum then set me on a horse, requiring me to keep an exact silence, and we directed our course towards Macri, where we arrived about midnight, after eight hours on horseback, and suffering severely from my wounds. At Macri I was received by Mr. C. Belville, of Rhodes, with all the affectionate kindness of a relative, and Mr. Franl dressed my wounds, which then ceased bleeding. By the obliging care of Mr. Belville, a boat was immediately sent to transport the bodies to Macri, where they have been interred with all the decency that is possible within the precincts of a Greek church.’”

His remains were later returned to England for reburial.

Aftermath The murderers were apprehended and brought to trial, attended by members of Sir Lawrence’s family. Some of his personal effects were recovered and identified by witnesses. Although the accused confessed to the crime, they later retracted their confessions and pleaded not guilty. They were acquitted on the legal ground that, as explained by Ottoman officials, “no Mussulman can be found guilty of a capital offence but on the evidence of two of his co-religionists, and in this case the only witnesses against the accused were Christians.”