Information about a 'Whitney' Coat of Arms....

[diana2646]

Hello, I am hoping someone can give me information on the attached Coat of Arms (If that's what it is).  Iam new to this and don't really know the significance of a Coat of Arms.  I only found it whilst doing my family history.

My family name is Whitney and I understand from information from the National Library of Wales that the Whitneys go back to the time of William the Conqueror.  William apparently installed someone called Turston de Flemming into Whitney on Wye Castle and then the descendants became know as Whitney or de Whiteney and variants thereof.  I know that there were a lot of 'Sirs' amongst them i.e. Sir Eustace Whitney and several Sir Robert Whitneys.

I have only been able to trace my Whitney family back to the late 1600's in Wales and then Parish Records and Bishops Transcripts run out.  Is it possible to go back further via this Coat of Arms?

There is quite a bit documented on the early Whitneys, although the name David is dominant in my family, I have not been able to make a connection with the early domumented Whitney families.  I know it is possible that my line of Whitneys could have come from an illegitimate Whitney birth, as I think that happened quite frequently.

Thanks for any help.

Diana

[KGarrad]

A coat-of-arms is awarded to an individual; a specific named person.
His family, and descendants, have the rights to use the coat-of-arms.

It does not belong to everyone with that surname!

So you have to trace back your family tree until you reach someone who bore arms.

I have no idea whether this website is accurate, but it may well be worth a look?
http://wiki.whitneygen.org/wrg/index.php/The_Heraldry_of_the_Whitney_Family

[diana2646]

Hi,

Thank you for your imput and also the website, which I found interesting.

I did not really think that the Whitney coat of arms would belong to everybody called Whitney, but I watched a programme, where a family line was traced through the Heraldry Office in London.  It did confirm, on reading the Heraldry of the Whitney family, that all names were taken, of the descendants of the person given the coat of arms, to ensure that only those entitled to use it did so.  It doesn't say how many generations were recorded in this way though. 

I noted that Sir Eustace Whitney was given a coat of arms in the 1200's, so would there be records of his descendants at the Heraldry Office, do you think?  And would those records be available to the public for research. 

I am very interested in the early Whitneys, as I understand that the name of Whitney didn't exist in Britain before the time of King William I, so very probably, all of us Whitneys are descended from this first family in Whitney on Wye, Herefordshire.

[stanmapstone]

See College of Arms http://www.college-of-arms.gov.uk/contact-us

Stan

[diana2646]

Thank you very much Stan.  I will read that with great interest.

Diana