Coat of Arms.

[Beckey]

Can anyone help please with a translation of this Coat of Arms.

Gules,a cross engrailed argent, over all on an escutcheon of pretence sable, semee d'estoiles argent, a dexter arm in armour, the hand grasping a pennon of the last. A crescent in chief. Crest, argent out of a ducal coronet or, a ram's head argent, attire ar, holding in its mouth a branch, leaves vert.

Motto En Dieu est mon Foy ( In God is my faith)
This on a tomb in Lewisham for a Edward Legh Esquire, possibly connected with the Legh's of Cheshire.

Have tried looking at Heladry but had no success

[behindthefrogs]

A red shield with a silver cross which has a bumpy outline.  In the centre of the shield is a smaller shield from the wifes family which is black with stars (more like six pointed star fish with wavey arms) scattered on the shield.  A left arm armoured holding a silvered pennant.  At the top middle of this shield is a crescent.  I am slightly confused but I think these last two items refer to the wife's shield.

The crest on top of the red shield is a duke's coronet on top of which is a silver rams head holding a branch in its mouth whiich has green leaves.

The presence of the coronet indicate that this is the coat of arms of a duke not a gentleman.  The crescent probably indicates that those arms originally belonged to someone who went on the crusades.

[Beckey]

Hi behindthefrogs,

Thank you for that translation, it looks more like part of the Cheshire Leghs, though his wife is a puzzle she was a Catherine Owen from Wales.

[behindthefrogs]

I find the presence of this coat of arms on that particular tombstone rather strange.  As I said previously the presence of the coronet is inconsistent with him being an esquire.

However in addition the escutcheon of pretence indicates that the wife's father has died and there are no males to inherit his coat of arms.  It further indicates that she is still alive as once she dies the escutcheon would be removed and after his death the male inheriting the arms would have the two shields quartered.  The use of an escutcheon usually signifies that the wife's family is fairly important but is also regarded as temporary.

The crest was definitely used by a branch of the Cheshire Legh family.

The motto "En Dieu est ma Foy" "On god is my reliance" is usually associated with the Staunton family.

David

[Beckey]

Hi David,

Thanks for that info., it is getting more interesting, she was born about 1800 and died 1844, he was born 1797 Macclesfield and died 1876 Lewisham, parents a Thomas Legh & Mary Anne Mills.
Everything has him down as a Gentleman landowner in Lewisham.

My wife is very distantly related by a ancestors marriage, but I just wanted to follow through, maybe a Cheshire family may recognise the Arms, have put it on the Cheshire site.

Barry

[davidbappleton]

The crest on top of the red shield is a duke's coronet on top of which is a silver rams head holding a branch in its mouth whiich has green leaves.

The presence of the coronet indicate that this is the coat of arms of a duke not a gentleman.  The crescent probably indicates that those arms originally belonged to someone who went on the crusades.

If the crest is issuing from the coronet (which is what it sounds like to me), then it is not the coronet of a duke, but simply a "crest coronet" which has no relation to an armiger's rank at all.  A crest coronet is simply a fancy replacement for the torse or wreath.

And the use of a crescent, without any other documentary support, hardly ever indicates that the arms belonged to someone who went on the Crusades.  There are many potential meanings for a crescent besides a crusade against the Moslems in the Holy Land.

David

David B. Appleton

[behindthefrogs]

While I am inclined to accept your view on the coronet I am less sure about the crescent.  The fact that it is at the honour point makes it much more likely that it was placed there to reflect the fact that someone went to the crusades.  This may of course have been an earlier bearer of these arms or ones from which they were derived.  The alternative of course is that it was a cadency brisure for a second son which has been passed on.

[Beckey]

Thank you all, it is all over my head though.

Hi behindthe frogs,

Have just got a response re Owen, she was the daughter Edward Pugh Owen Rector of Llanisetyn Botwnnog CAE & Mary Ellis of Llandrillo yn Rhos DEN.
Family of Owen of Caer Berlian, Llanfihangel y pennant, Merionith to which Edward Pugh Owen belonged.  Male line "Azure, a chevron inter 3 cocks argent, crested and wattled or"

Wish I hadn't started this now, getting too involved.

Barry

[Beckey]

Hi behindthefrogs,

As Edward was an esquire,all I can find, and his father Thomas Legh was also down as an esquire, what differnce does it make in regards to the coronet/torse or wreath.

The Legh family seem to go back to the 11th century, but which one Thomas belonged too I don't know.