An interesting part of the course was Heraldry:
Firstly an adapted extract from one of my assignments, then a bit about the various Colclough Coats of Arms, there will be more than one as we might see.
If you search for your surname in
any of the ubiquitous search engines abounding, invariably towards the top of
that search will appear offers to sell you a family ‘Coat of Arms’. It is my
contention that such a family coat of arms does not exist in England , Scotland
or Ireland, for legal reasons I will outline. The use or misuse of these
devices is governed in England by the Law of Arms[1],
and disputes settled in the Court of Chivalry[2]
a civil court whose only judge is the Earl Marshall (who if not a lawyer can
appoint one in his stead)[3].
In Scotland all matters dealing with granting of and use of arms is by The
Court of the Lord Lyon[4].
In Ireland it is the Office of the Chief Herald of Ireland (or the Norroy and
Ulster King of Arms in the six counties)[5].
Hence, from first principles there exists legal process in these countries
covering the use of coats of arms, which would indicate a regulated non-trivial
process. A point to note also, would be that it is not the depiction of the
coat of arms but it’s written description in prescribed manner or blazon, which
is important in having a standard for reproduction of the arms[6].
Thus, this should be regarded to be the legal entity rather than a picture,
drawing or sculpture.
Now consider, who is entitled to
use the coat of Arms? In England the College of Arms is quite clear, for
someone to have a right to a coat of arms it must have been granted to them or
they must prove descent in the legitimate male line from someone holding that
coat of arms in the past by grant or confirmation[7],
this is consistent with the Irish position[8]
. By this statement, it is clear that it is an individual who holds the coat of
arms by descent or grant. The College of Arms will also point out that many
people holding the same surname will be entitled to different coats of arms or
no arms at all. By this definition covered by a legal process there is no
entitlement to a coat of arms merely by possessing a certain surname or seeming
member of a family group[9].
In Scotland, as mentioned above The Court of the Lord Lyon has jurisdiction.
This also is quite prescriptive, with its legal basis, that the coat of arms of
a clan, or family, in Scotland is a misnomer, the coat of arms belongs to the
chief of the clan and is received by descent, eldest son to eldest son, so as
in England the coat of arms belongs to an individual not a group[10].
To sum up, the coat of arms in
England, Scotland and Ireland will belong to and individual and passed on as
inheritance as the blazon, covered by law in both England, Scotland and Ireland,
not belong to the whole family group even if they share the same surname.
So now for us…
I remember the inordinate pride
seeing a wooden plaque with the Colclough Arms, but now I know that was not mine.
It was broadly based on this:
Colclough (Bluerton, Staffordshire, Richard Colclough, Esq.
of Bluerton, was living 40 Edward III., 1367. Visit. Stafford, and Visit.
London). Blazon: Argent. five eaglets displayed in cross sable try this in the
free app, see below.
Then one below from Eddie Geoghegan, from a very interesting
site.
Now here’s what Sir Bernard Burke in his tome will give you
if you care to look. But to claim any of these arms you need to prove descent.
Good luck!
Colclough (Ingston, Yngton, or Erdington, and Bluerton,
Staffordshire. Visit. Stafford, 1583. Same Arms, quartering, ar. a fess between.
three martlets sable., for Lockwood. Crest — A demi eagle displ. sable. ducally
gorged or.
Colclough Ireland, Sir Anthony Colclough, Knt., of Bluerton
and Woolstanton, Staffordshire, settled in Ireland 34 Henry VIII., 1542, as
Captain of the Pensioners, got a grant of the house, abbey, and lands of the
dissolved monastery of Tintern, co. Wexford, 18 Queen Elizabeth, 1576, and was
ancestor of the Irish family of Colclough of Tintern Abbey and Duffry Hall, and
the branches formerly living in Carlow, Queen's County, etc. Sir Adam Colclough,
grandson of the grantee of 1576 was created a bart. of Ireland 1628, which
title became extinct on the death of his grandson. Sir Caesar Colclough, 3rd
bart., s. p. 16S7. Caesar Colclough, Esq., of Tintern Abbey, eighth in descent
from Sir Anthony, d.s.p. 1842, when the Abbey and estates devolved on his
cousin and heiress-at- law, Mrs. Rossborough-Colclough, now of Tintern Abbey.
The representative and heir male of the family was Lieut. - Col. Beauchamp Henry
Dudley Colclough, Wexford Militia; Visit. Stafford 1583; Visit. Wexford 1618;
Fun. Ent. Ulster's Office. Ar. five eaglets in cross sa. Crest — A demi eagle
displ. sa., ducally gorged or. Motto— "His calcabo gentes”.
Colclough. Rossborough-Colclough, Tintern Abbey, co.
Wexford, exemplified to John Thomas Rossborough, Esq., of Tintern Abbey, co.
Wexford; and Mary Grey Wentworth, his wife, only daughter of Caesar Colclough,
Esq., of Duffrey Hall, in same co., Chief Justice of Prince Edward's Island, and sole heiress of her kinsman, Caesar
Colclough, Esq., of Tintern Abbey aforesaid, on their assuming, by royal
licence, 1853, the additional surname and arms of Colclough). Quarterly, Ist
and 4th, ar. five eaglets displ. in cross sa., for Colclough; 2nd and 3rd, az.
on a chev. or, three roses gu. seeded or, barbed vert, for Rossborough. Crests
— 1st: A demi eagle displ. sa. gorged with a ducal coronet, or, for Colclough ;
2nd : On a dexter hand in fess a dove close with a branch of olive in his beak
all ppr., for Rossborough. Mottos (over the second crest) — God is my shield;
(under the arms) — His calcabo gentes.
Colclough (London, founded by Mathew Colclough, second son
of Bichard Colclough, Esq., of Bluerton, and brother of Sir Anthony Colclough,
Knt., of Tintern. Visit. London, 1568). Arms, Crett, and Motto — Same as Sir Anthony
Colclough, with a crescent for diff. Colclough (Delph House and Cheadle, co.
Stafford, descended from Thomas Colclough, second son of John Colclough, Esq.,
of Bluerton, and uncle of Sir Anthony Colclough, Knt., of Tintern Abbey, which
Thomas had Delph House by gift from his father, 1522; Visit. Stafford and Derby
1662-4). Same Arms as Sir Anthony Colclough, with the proper mark of cadency.
Colclough (Burslem, descended from a younger brother of Sir
Anthony Colclough, Knt., of Tintern Abbey. Dugdale's Visit., 1664). Same Arms
as Sir Anthony Colclough, with a canton gu. for diff.[11]
I'm working on being able to find a graphic design app which would let me draw from some of the blazons any recommendations welcome.
Now here's a link to a small venture I'm attempting:
Thanks.
I'm going to use my new found knowledge to post links and information for the Colclough family, one soon will be mentions of Caesar Colclough in the Stewart Papers, he even had his own 'spy name' in correspondence from France.
[1] College of Arms. The Law of Arms. https://www.college-of-arms.gov.uk/resources/the-law-of-arms : accessed 24
May 2019.
[2] College of Arms. Court
of Chivalry. https://www.college-of-arms.gov.uk/resources/court-of-chivalry : accessed 24 May 2019.
[3] College of Arms. The
Law of Arms. https://www.college-of-arms.gov.uk/resources/the-law-of-arms : accessed 24 May 2019.
[4] Court of the Lord Lyon. The Court of the Lord Lyon. https://courtofthelordlyon.scot/ : accessed 24 May 2019.
[5] Slater,
Stephen. (2017) The complete book of
heraldry. pp. 194-5. London: Baker & Taylor.
[6] Heraldry Society. The
Emergence of the Heraldic Phrase in the Thirteenth Century. https://www.theheraldrysociety.com/articles/the-emergence-of-the-heraldic-phrase-in-the-thirteenth-century/ : accessed 24 May 2019.
[7] College of Arms. FAQs: heraldry. https://www.college-of-arms.gov.uk/resources/faqs : accessed 26
May 2019.
[8] National
Library of Ireland. Applying for a Grant
of Arms. https://www.nli.ie/en/applying-for-a-grant-of-arms.aspx
: accessed 06 August 2019.
[9] College of Arms. FAQs:
heraldry. https://www.college-of-arms.gov.uk/resources/faqs : accessed 26 May 2019.
[10] Court of the Lord Lyon. Frequently asked Questions. https://courtofthelordlyon.scot/faqs.htm : accessed 26 May 2019.
[11] Burke,
John Bernard. (1884) The general armory
of England, Scotland, Ireland and Wales; comprising a registry of armorial
bearings from the earliest to the present time. London: Burke’s Peerage.
[reprinted London: Harrison, 2005]. P 212. http://archive.org/details/generalarmoryofe00burk
: accessed 06 August 2019.
