Spencer family
There are, of course, many Spencer families, comprising all individuals with the surname Spencer. However, this article will discuss the Spencer family descended in the male line from a certain Henry Spencer (died c. 1478), male-line ancestor of the Dukes of Marlborough, Earls of Sunderland, and Earls Spencer.
Members of the family
Non-Spencer descendants of the family
The following individuals are not Spencers, but are also descended from the same Henry Spencer via one or more lines of descent. Note that Winston Churchill is a special case, as he was a male-line descendant of Henry Spencer but is not counted as a member of the same family because his ancestors had changed their surname several generations earlier.
It has been claimed that several well known authors such as Jane Austen and George Orwell are descendants of the same family, but evidence for this is limited.
