Heraldry in Leominster Contributed by Hugh Wood I’m grateful to MHS member Janet Mortimer for drawing my attention to the coats of arms on this building on the corner of South Street and Corn Street in Leominster, Herefordshire. Built in the 1700s, the curved corner and heraldry date only from the 1920s when W H Smith bought the property. All three of these coats of arms are of interest, so I’ll discuss them separately. The Diocese of Hereford The arms of the bishop of Hereford [...]

Mortimer Cadency Differences Contributed by Hugh Wood The coat of arms of a medieval family was a piece of property, owned by the male head of the household. On his death it passed to his eldest surviving son, if he had one. All other males in his family - brothers, uncles and sons – needed to difference the family coat of arms in some way for cadency. Until the 16th century there was no standardized system of differences in place, so it was a free-for-all. Later the eldest son added a [...]

A Mortimer Puzzle Contributed by Hugh Wood These dramatic Mortimer arms are to be found in an early 16th century manuscript in the College of Arms (L9), where they are attributed to a Henry Mortymer. The charge on the escutcheon is of a viper swallowing a person, and the explanation of this device is both interesting and enigmatic. Associated with the Visconti family in Italy, its origins are obscure but are said to go back to the time of the crusades. Here is one suggestion.... Our ancient citizens [...]

Dating a medieval carving at the Swan Inn in Clare This post is adapted from an article previously published in Mortimer Matters Brightening up the front of the Swan Inn in Clare in Suffolk is this colourful piece of carved wood. Its shape suggests that it was once the sill of an oriel window. The pub itself is thought to date from the 17th century, but the sign is much older, and much more interesting for us, as it came from nearby Clare castle. Looking closely you’ll see the royal [...]

Determining Gender in Hatchments There are a number of things that can help us decide whether a hatchment is of a man or a woman. These are frequently suggested as a series of “rules” and they usually work fine - but not always! What is the background of the hatchment? If one half of the background of the hatchment is black and the other isn’t, then one need to go no further. The position of the black part immediately indicates whether husband or wife has died. [...]

Differencing within Families and Localities Adapted from an article by Michael Ray In his fine book, The Knight in Medieval England 1000-1400 (Thrupp, 1996), Peter Coss explains, discusses and illustrates the differencing of heraldic arms within families, local loyalties and feudal relationships. I am grateful to Peter for permission to use some of his illustrations in this article. The Earls of Chester The image opposite shows the similarities between arms associated with Chester.  The arms of the earldom of Chester were azure, three garbs or - a [...]