The Curiosities of Heraldry Part 28

In like manner the family of Dering, though not so eminent, (yet as antient, and more numerous, for aught yet appears,) did, as the use and necessity of those former ages required, vary their arms upon several occasions, which need not here be repeated, being more visible in the descent,[320] it shall therefore be enough in this place to set down the several shields borne anciently and at present by this name and the several branches thereof, by seals, monuments, old rolls, windows, &c. The antient paternal coat of this family was (if tradition may persuade us) only the blue fesse in a white field, until, say they, one of our ancestors being slain in the king's wars, his shield was found to have three great b.l.o.o.d.y spots in place where now the roundels are. I cannot justify such far-fetcht storys; yet two things have a proportionate correspondence with this tradition.

First, it is certain that Norman Fitz-Dering was sheriff of Kent, as shall be evident in the part of the genealogical history which concerns him.

2dly. The Arms of William de Wrotham, Constable of Dover castle, and one of this family, were by old rolls the fesse without the roundells, which may confirm the report, because he was descended from G.o.dred, brother to Norman, who was slain as aforesaid, and not of the body of the said Norman.

The concurrence whereof has induced me to a.s.sign that coat unto all before the said Norman Fitz-Dering.

So then the several shields borne by the several persons of this family have been as follows, setting them down as they have first been in antiquity used, and so in order successively.

[Ill.u.s.tration: Sired Fitz-Dering, t. W. Conqr./De la h.e.l.l, T. R. Steph.

ao. 1./Deerman ao. 1, Hen. 2d./W. de Wrotham, 1 R. Johis./Hamo de Pirefeld, T. R. 1.]

[Ill.u.s.tration: Norman Fitz-Dering, 1 Hen. I and T. R. Steph.]

[Ill.u.s.tration: Arnaldus de Cuckeston, t, H. 2./Wm. de Cheriton, T. H. 3.]

[Ill.u.s.tration: Normannus de Ashde Fraxino--and de Fresne, Miles, T. R. 1 et H. 2.[321]]

[Ill.u.s.tration: Wm. de Perington Miles, T. Hen. 3.[322]]

[Ill.u.s.tration: Wimond Fitz-Wimond, T. Hen. 3./Hamo Wimond, filius ejus, T.

Ed. I.[323]]

[Ill.u.s.tration: Ricus Fitz-Dering, qui obiit II Ed. I.[324]]

[Ill.u.s.tration: Henry Dering, frater junior Ricardi.[325]]

[Ill.u.s.tration: John Dering, Dns. de Evering-acre in Pluckley, ao 1 Hen. 5 et Ricus filius ejus, occis apd. Bosworth.[326]]

[Ill.u.s.tration: Wm. Dering de Petworth in co. Suss.e.x, et de Lisse in co.

Hants, Arm. T Hen. 7.[327]]

To these ten may be added two very antient, whose order gave them a diversification, being Knights-Templers, and three other moderne, a.s.signed by Sir Wm. Segar, Garter.

[Ill.u.s.tration: Dns. Robtus. Dering, Miles ordinis militiae sci. Templi ad dissolut. ejus ap{d}. Ewell.[328]]

The three modern ones a.s.signed by Sir Wm. Segar are as follows:

[Ill.u.s.tration: Anthony Dering, of Charing, Esq.]

[Ill.u.s.tration: John Dering, of Egerton, Esq.]

[Ill.u.s.tration: Xtopher Dering, of Wickins.[329]]

[Sidenote: _So in old chartularies of abbeys I have often observed that one and the same man varied his own name of addition by the change of places where he made his abode._]

Besides the variations of arms, here is much change of sirname to be observed, which among antiquaries is nothing new. Here are Dering, Wimond, Dereman, De la h.e.l.l, Wrotham, Cuckeston, Pevington, Pirefield, Cheriton, Ash, and de Fraxino, whereof the first three are a.s.sumed from forenames or Xtian names, as have done the families of Herding, Herbert, Aucher, Bagot, Bardolph, Hasting, Durand, Hubert, Oughtred, Leonard, and very many more; all the others here were a.s.sumed by reason of lands possessed of that name. Norman Fitz-Dering being Lord of Ash was called Norman de Fraxino, de Fresne, and de Ash. Arnold, a son of another Norman Fitz-Dering, being Lord of Cuckeston, was called Arnold de Cuckeston, whose grandchildren were Wm. de Pevington and Wm. de Cheriton, and so the rest had their surnames appropriated from their habitation and possession. In the family of Cobham you have Toneford and Hever of the same blood. Mortimer and Warren were brothers, and the sons of Walter de St. Martin. De Frydon, de Pantley, and de Albdy, were three brothers, the sons of Hugh de Saddington. Wm. Belward, lord of the moiety of Malpas, in Chester, had issue David and Richard; from David came three sons, Wm. de Malpas, Philip Gogh, David Golborne; and from them Egerton and Goodman--Richard, son of Wm. Belward, had issue Thomas de Cotgreve, Wm. de Weston, and Richard Little, father of N. Keneclerk and of John Richardson, (who would conceive without good proof that Malpas, Gough, Golborne, Egerton, Goodman, Cotgrave, Weston, Little, Kenclerk, and Richardson were all in short time the issue of Wm. Belward.) Nay, to make the instance of better impression, the antient earls of Norfolk having also Suffolk within their earldom did write themselves of Norfolk, of Suffolk, and sometimes of Norwich, indifferently, according to the place where they signed or subscribed, or were in any instrument named. The like did the old earls of Dorset and Somerset, using either t.i.tle indifferently. Four earls of Chester had several sirnames successively one after another--Randolph Meschines had issue Randolph Gemers, father of Hugh Kivilicke, whose son was Randolph Blundeville. If yet you wish a more full president, you have it in Lucas de Hardres, who....

[N. B. The rest is wanting, or rather seems never to have been attempted by the author.]

The distinctions of arms to be borne by the several branches of the family of Dering, according to Sir Edward Dering, knight and baronet. The younger sons of the eldest house to give these differences instead of the crescent, mullet, martlet, etc.:

The 2d son a bordure sable.

The 3d son a bordure gules.

The 4th son a bordure purflewe, argent and azure.

The 5th son a bordure azure.

Likewise the collar of the buck, their crest, was of the same colour as their bordure.

Younger houses:

The 2d house a chief sable.

The 3d house a chief gules.

The 4th house....

The 5th house a chief azure.

Likewise the collar of the buck's head, the crest, the same colour as the chief.

Younger sons of younger houses give the minute difference in the crest besides the great one in the arms: as Nichs. Dering, of Charing, gives a mullet on the buck's neck.

_Note._ Nich{s}. Dering quarters both Lambert's arms and Home's, tho'

descended but from one of them; whereas Finch Dering and his son, Brent Dering, leave out the Home's.

Anthony Dering, son of Anthony by a second venter,[330] gives the fleur de liz upon the buck's neck. The wreath on which the crest stands is in all houses Or and sable....

[Ill.u.s.tration]

Appendix B.

A very curious ill.u.s.tration of some antient heraldric usages is furnished by an examination of the armorial bearings of families connected with the county of Cornwall.

1. The arms of the county of Cornwall are SABLE, FIFTEEN BEZANTS--5. 4. 3.

2 AND 1., with two lions as supporters, and the motto 'One and all.'[331]

This coat is pretended to be derived from Cadoc, or Cradock, earl or duke of Cornwall in the fifth century.

2. The families of Moreton and De Dunstanville, successively earls of Cornwall after the Norman Conquest, bore personal arms totally different from these; yet on the marriage of Roger Valetorte with Joan, daughter of Reginald de Dunstanville, he surrounded his paternal arms (argent, three bendlets gules,) with a =bordure sable bezantee=.

3. Whalesborough of Cornwall, temp. Henry III, bore the same arms, with the =bordure sable bezantee=, whence he is presumed to have been a cadet of Valetorte.

4. Henry II took the earldom into his own hands, and gave it to his youngest son John, and John, on coming to the throne, gave it to his second son, Richard, afterwards king of the Romans and earl of Poictou.

"Richard, 2nd son of king John, in the 9th year of king Henry III, his brother, being crowned king of the Romans, writ himself _Semper Augustus_, and had his arms carved on the breast of the Roman =eagle=. He bare =argent, a lyon rampant gules=, crowned or, within a =bordure sable bezantee=."[332] "He had," says Nisbet, "nothing of his father's royal ensigns [his arms being] composed of his two n.o.ble Feus, viz. Argent, a lion rampant gules, crowned or (the arms of Poictiers), surrounded with a border sable bezantee, or, (the arms of Cornwall,) and which were on his seal of arms appended to instruments, anno 1226."[333]

5. Edmund, his son and successor, bore the same arms, only omitting the imperial supporter.