Another new heraldry talk

I have just finished preparing another talk, this one will be presented to the Wrekin U3A next year (I'm well ahead of myself).

Shropshire’s Civic Heraldry

The origins and design rationale behind the coats of arms used by the Boroughs, Districts, Towns and Parishes of Shropshire.   

This one does pretty well what it says on the tin but in our explorations, there are some arms where I have provided a hitherto unexplained rationale and I have created new images for all of the relevant authorities.

Oakengates Urban District Council, Granted 15th September 1960. 

Obsolete 1974

Two new talks

 I now have two new talks all ready to go (well, one brand new one and one I presented to the Yorkshire Heraldry Society last year).

The first talk, the one presented to the Yorkshire Heraldry Society, is called A Miscellany of Mistakes .... or, the musings (and confessions) of a heraldry addict.  This talk is a meandering one, wandering through some of the things that I’ve seen or done, or simply had happen to me. I always enjoy my heraldic journeys, and I hope that in sharing some of them with you, you will too.

My second, recently prepared, talk is called "All is not as it seems!" It is a study of the mysterious case of the arms of a 19th century Staffordshire gentleman whose pedigree, commemorated in his arms of many quarters, speaks of a descent of great antiquity and nobility. It is an interesting example of someone who, though undoubtedly well respected in his own right, laid claims to a great and venerable bloodline to which he was not entitled.

I am available to present talks to groups and societies (within reasonable distance) and via webinar; do let me know if you would like to hear more. 

Remember Remember the 5th of November

 It's that time of year again. It's quite a long video but you can of course pause it at any time to make a cuppa.

3rd Annual Heraldry Ireland Lecture

 The 3^rd Annual Heraldry Ireland Lecture is to be held on Tuesday 13^th May 2025 at 20.00hrs (UTC+1).   

Do It Yourself Heraldry

A "Zoom" talk given to the Genealogical Society of Ireland on the 9th May 2023. Do It Yourself Heraldry, the design, assumption and registration of armorial bearings. Presented by Martin Goldstraw, Director of the Armorial Register Ltd, Publishers of The International Armorial Register.

Remember, Remember

 It's that time of year again so I make no apologies for reminding my reader that my talk featuring the armorial bearings of the Gunpowder Plotters is available for all to see. 

In this talk, we explore the heraldry, or coats of arms, used by the Gunpowder Plotters and link that heraldry to their lives and their part in the Plot. We explore their lives, their motives and their deaths. 

Squirrels and Chevrons

 Squirrels and Chevrons - a heraldry talk.

I originally gave this talk to the Oxford Heraldry Society during lockdown and it seemed to go down well so I've decided to make it publicly available for all to see. 

The original intention of this lecture was to have been a study of the arms used by the descendants of Lidulph de Twemlow illustrating their use of squirrels and chevrons. However, it soon became apparent that our journey could not ignore the wider descent of Lidulph’s own ancestors. Our study therefore is a meandering one and begins with Wulfric, Lord of Croxton and Lache.

Gunpowder Plotters - Gentlemen All

It's those Gunpowder Plotters again. I'm giving a Zoom talk on behalf of The Yorkshire Heraldry Society on Wednesday 19th May.

Tickets (free) to attend this virtual event (Zoom) can be obtained here. 

 

Squirrels & Chevrons; The Arms of the Descendants of Lidulph de Twemlow.

 I shall be presenting a Zoom talk on behalf of The Oxford University Heraldry Society on Thursday 3rd June titled: Squirrels & Chevrons; The Arms of the Descendants of Lidulph de Twemlow.

Seaton, in his book The Law and Practice of Heraldry in Scotland, in discussing origins of the assumption of surnames states that: "During the middle ages, it was a common practice for younger sons, instead of retaining their patronymic, to adopt the names of their estates or places of residence. thus, a member of the English family of Botteville, from whom the Marquis of Bath is descended, adopted the name of John of the Inne, or Thynne, from the circumstances of his having resided at one of the Inns of Court. Camden, in his Remaines, illustrates the extent of this custom by an instance of a Cheshire family, in which no fewer than nine changes of surname took place in only three generations of male descendants, soon after the Conquest." In my talk, I illustrate this example.

To register for this talk, you need to visit the Oxford University Heraldry website: 

http://www.oxford-heraldry.org.uk/programme.htm

The link will then be sent to you a few days before the event.

When I first put together the talk, I had not identified some of the quartered coats of Cliff, or Clive of Huxley but I have now done so. Rather than alter the presentation, I make note of the additions here.

Cliff or Clive of Huxley
Arms: Quarterly of six coats -
1 and 6 Argent on a fesse between three wolves' heads erased Sable as many mullets Or.
2. Ermine on a bend cotised Gules three crescents Or. [Huxley]
3. [Sable] three garbs [Or]. [Styche]
4. Gules, a lion rampant Or between three crosses formee fitchee Argent.
5. Quarterly Argent and Sable four cocks counterchanged. *

1. Crest:  On a mount Vert a griffin passant Argent, ducally gorged Gules.
2. Crest: A wolf's head erased quarterly per pale indented Argent and Sable.
 

* The 5th Quarter is mentioned in the pedigree of Stuche (Styche) in the Visitations of Shropshire 1569 to 1584; Alice daughter and heir of Eduind Broughton of Broughton. Arms: Quarterly Argent and Sable four cocks counterchanged. The arms of William Stuche (Styche) are recorded, in that entry as Sable, three garbs Or. The heading of the Stuche pedigree gives the arms of Will'us Wlonkeslow de Wlonkeslow (Longslow) in com. Salop. Arms : Gules, a lion rampant Or crowned Argent between three crosses formee fitchee of the last. It would appear therefore that quarters 3, 4 and 5 are all brought into the Cliff family by Styche.

 

“Noble titles granted by royal pretenders: genuine or false, legitimate or worthless vanities?”

I thought my reader might be interested in this short talk given by Guy Stair Sainty. “Noble titles granted by royal pretenders: genuine or false, legitimate or worthless vanities?”.

The talk was originally presented to the Real Asociación de Hidalgos de España and I was amused by Mr Sainty's introductory remarks that he is pleased to have been invited to speak on a controversial topic "I like to speak on controversial topics" ... So do I.

About 8.10 minutes into his talk, Mr. Sainty makes mention of the two titles of Count used by the so called Chief Herald of Malta.

It's not exactly heraldry but it is an allied topic.

The Gunpowder Plotters - Gentlemen All

I'm looking forward to November when, on the 8th, I shall be giving an illustrated talk, on the subject of The Gunpowder Plotters - Gentlemen All, to the Suffolk Heraldry Society. The talk will be held at The Quaker Meeting House, St.John's Street (access can also be had from St.Andrew's Street North), Bury St.Edmunds, IP33 1SJ and it will commence at 2:30 p.m.