Devon heraldry

The standard sources for the heraldry of Devon are as follows:

• Heraldic visitations of Devon: Vivian, Lt.Col. J.L., (Ed.) The Visitation of the County of Devon: Comprising the Heralds' Visitations of 1531, 1564 & 1620, Exeter, 1895.
• Pole, Sir William (d.1635), Collections Towards a Description of the County of Devon, Sir John-William de la Pole (ed.), London, 1791, pp.444-467, "The Armes of such nobles and gentlemen which have anciently dwelled & had lands in Devonshire"; pp.467-510, "An alphabet of the armes of the gentlemen of Devonshire as well of those being as of those which have bine"
• The Notebook of Tristram Risdon (d.1640)
• Lysons, Magna Britannia, Volume 6: Devonshire, London, 1822
• Observation of surviving monuments in parish churches and mansion houses.

Frequently discrepancies between these sources exist. Painted monuments in parish churches often have been restored, in some cases several times over the centuries, and the arms depicted may not be as originally painted. Heraldry sculpted in relief on stone is liable to wear and crumbling, especially when placed in the favourite location, exposed to the elements for centuries, on the porch or gatehouse of the family mansion. Ancient monumental brasses do not show tinctures but otherwise provide lasting records of heraldry. Stained glass depictions are optimal sources as they include tinctures, but ancient survivals are rare. Mural monuments placed high up on walls generally survive vandalism of past ages whilst paintings of arms on escutcheons sculpted in stone on mediaeval chest tombs have rarely survived and often were "scraped" clean of all decoration in the 17th century. Heraldic monuments displaying a family's arms are generally found in the church of the parish in which is situated their seat, but the paternal arms may also be found in remoter parish churches where a daughter of the family has married into a family resident there. In such a case the arms are shown impaled by the arms of her husband. Clearly the greatest problems in tracing heraldry relate to long extinct families. A few ancient Devon families survive, such as the Fortescues, and a flag showing the Fortescue arms still flies above Castle Hill in 2013. There is no shortage of surviving examples of the arms of the Chichesters and Rolles, but surviving heraldry of the ancient Courtenay Earls of Devon seated at Tiverton Castle is rare, although frequently shown as quarterings in the arms of related families.

The following armorials are listed in the Heraldic Visitations of Devon:^[1]

This list is incomplete; you can help by expanding it.

Name	Escutcheon	Blazon	Seats
Acland		Chequy argent and sable, a fesse gules	Acland Barton, Landkey; Holnicote, Somerset; Killerton, Devon
Adams		Or, a lion rampant between six crosses crosslet within a bordure engrailed sable	Tunstall, Devon;Charlton Adam, Somerset
Amory		Barry nebulé of six argent and gules, over all a bend azure	Whitechapel, Bishops Nympton
Arscott		Per chevron azure and ermine in chief two buck's heads cabossed or	Arscott, Holsworthy;[2]Dunsland, Bradford; Tetcott; Annery, Monkleigh
Ayshford		Argent, between two chevrons sable three ashen keys vert	Ayshford, Burlescombe
Bampfield		Or, on a bend gules three mullets argent	Poltimore; North Molton
Barry		Barry of six argent and gules	Winscott, St Giles in the Wood
Basset		Barry wavy of six or and gules	Whitechapel, Bishops Nympton; Umberleigh; Heanton Punchardon; Watermouth Castle
Beaumont		Barry of six vair and gules	Youlston, Shirwell; Gittisham
Bellew		Sable fretty or	Stockleigh English; Ash, Braunton
Berry		Or, three bars gules	Berrynarbor
Blewett		Or, a chevron azure between three eagles displayed of the last	Holcombe Rogus
Bonville		Sable, six mullets argent pierced gules	Shute
Bourchier		Argent, a cross engrailed gules between four water bougets sable	Tawstock; Bampton
Burgoyne		Azure, a hound passant argent	South Tawton
Calmady		Azure, a chevron between three pears or	Calmady, Penfound, Poundstock, Cornwall;Langdon, Wembury; Stoke Climsland, Cornwall; Leawood, Bridestowe;
Carew		Or, three lions passant sable	Crowcombe; Antony, Cornwall; Tiverton Castle; Haccombe; Bickleigh Castle
Champernowne		Gules, a saltire vair between twelve billets or	Modbury; Bere Ferrers; Dartington; Ilfracombe
Chichester		Chequy or and gules, a chief vair	Raleigh; Eggesford; Hall; Arlington; Youlston
Clifford		Chequy or and azure a fess gules	Chudleigh
Coffin		Azure, three bezants between eight crosses crosslet or	Portledge, Alwington; Monkleigh; Inwardleigh
Courtenay		Or, three torteaux	Okehampton; Tiverton; Powderham; Molland; Colcombe Castle
Culme		Azure, a chevron ermine between 3 pelicans vulning their breasts or	Molland; Canonsleigh Abbey
Denys/Dennis		Ermine, three battle-axes gules	Holcombe Burnell; Bicton
Denys/Dennis		Azure, three Danish battle axes erect or	Orleigh
Drake		Argent, a wyvern gules	Ash, Musbbury
Duke		Per fesse argent and azure, three chaplets counterchanged	Otterton
Ford		Party per fesse or and sable, in chief a greyhound courant in base an owl within a bordure engrailed all counter-changed	Nutwell; Chagford; Ashburton; Bagtor, Ilsington
Fortescue		Azure, a bend engrailed argent cotised or	Wimpstone, Modbury; Castle Hill, Filleigh; Weare Giffard; Fallapit, East Allington; Buckland Filleigh; Preston, Devon;
Giffard		Sable, three fusils conjoined in fesse ermine	Brightley, Chittlehampton; Tiverton Castle; Halsbury, Parkham
Hancock		Gules, on a chief argent three cocks of the field	Combe Martin
Mallet		Azure, three escallops or[3]	Iddesleigh; Wooleigh, Beaford
Martyn		Argent, two bars gules[4]	Feudal barony of Barnstaple; Oxton, Kenton; Lindridge
Monk		Gules, a chevron between three lion's heads erased argent	Great Potheridge, Merton
Northcote		Argent, three crosses-crosslet in bend sable	Northcote, East Down; Newton St Cyres; Pynes, Upton Pyne
Parker		Sable, a stag's head cabossed between two flaunches argent	North Molton; Boringdon; Saltram; Whiteway, Chudleigh
Pole		Azure semé of fleurs de lis or, a lion rampant argent	Shute; Colcombe Castle
Pollard		Argent, a chevron sable between three escallops gules[5]	Way, St Giles in the Wood; Grilston, Bishop's Nympton; King's Nympton; Langley, Yarnscombe; Abbots Bickington
Popham		Argent, on a chief gules two stag's heads cabosed or	Lynton
Prideaux		Argent, a chevron sable in chief a label of three points gules	Prideaux, Cornwall; Adeston, Holbeton; Thuborough, Sutcombe; Solden, Holsworthy; Netherton, Farway; Ashburton; Nutwell, Woodbury
Prust		Gules, on a chief argent two estoiles sable	Thorry, Hartland; Gorven, Hartland; Annery, Monkleigh
Raleigh		Gules crusilly or, a bend vair or Gules, a bend vair between six crosses crosslet or	Raleigh, Pilton; Fardell, Cornwood
Reynell		Argent, masonry sable a chief indented of the second	Forde, Wolborough; East Ogwell
Risdon		Argent, three birdbolts sable	Winscott, St Giles in the Wood; Bableigh, Parkham
Rolle		Or, on a fesse dancette between three billets azure each charged with a lion rampant of the first three bezants	Stevenstone; Bicton; Hudscott, Chittlehampton; Beam, Great Torrington
Seymour		Gules, two wings conjoined in lure or	Berry Pomeroy
Shapcott		Sable, a chevron (or[6]) between three dovecotes argent	Shapcott, Knowstone
Stucley		Azure, three pears or	Affeton Castle; Hartland Abbey
Upton		Sable, a cross flory argent	Puslinch; Lupton
Walrond		Argent, three bull's heads cabossed sable armed or	Bradfield, Uffculme; Bovey House, Beer
Worth (Wrothe)		Argent, an eagle with two heads displayed sable beaked and legged gules	Worth, Washfield, near Tiverton

See also

• Cornish heraldry

Sources

• Vivian, Lt.Col. J.L., (Ed.) The Visitation of the County of Devon: Comprising the Heralds' Visitations of 1531, 1564 & 1620, Exeter, 1895.

References

1. ↑ Vivian, Lt.Col. J.L., (Ed.) The Visitation of the County of Devon: Comprising the Heralds' Visitations of 1531, 1564 & 1620, Exeter, 1895.
2. ↑ Hoskins, p.411
3. ↑ Vivian, p.545, Mallet of Idsleigh; as visible on monument to Sir Arthur Acland (d.1610) in Landkey Church
4. ↑ As generally blazoned; Vivian, p.552, Martyn of Oxton, gives three bars
5. ↑ Arms of Pollard of Horwood: A chevron between three mullets pierced (visible in Horwood Church)
6. ↑ As depicted in stained glass in east window of Shute Church, Devon, impaled by arms of Pole of Shute, representing the marriage of Sir Courtenay Pole, 2nd Baronet (1619-1695) and Urith Shapcott, daughter of Thomas Shapcott of Shapcott in the parish of Knowstone, Devon. Elsewhere the arms are shown with a chevron or (Barnstaple Church on Tucker monument), or without chevron (in Knowstone Church). (Vivian, Heraldic Visitations of Devon, 1895, pp.603, Pole & p. 677, Shapcott, blazoned with chevron or)