66

It is evident that all notion of family consequence takes its origin from the fact of some one person having been, at some time more or less remote as may be, distinguished in some way, from whom persons derive their notion of family consequence together with their birth. And in saying distinguished," we mean to exclude the notion of persons being necessarily virtuous or successful, distinguished well; for in course of time, descendants may obtain a notion of family consequence from the circumstance of springing from an ancestor who was vicious or unsuccessful, only because he was known notus, nobilis, or distinguished from other persons. And so too we hold it no proof against the truth of our position, that there are families like that of the yeoman in the New Forest whose ancestor was there when King Rufus was killedwho have nothing to show but long existence, without a rise, in a humble condition of life; because the fact that the existence of their ancestor, at such and such a remote period, if well ascertained is of itself a distinction of him and them.

In the Greek and Roman story we find all associations looking this way. The Greek for example teeming with patronymical designations, all telling the tale of some ancient hero and his glories-the Danaido, Heraclidæ, Erectheida-with that heightening of poetical effect the readers and lovers of the Attic Tragedy well know. The chorus at line 820 of the Medea, opens

with

Ερεχθείδαι τὸ παλαιὸν ὄλβιοι

Και θεῶν παιδεσ μακάρων-a beautiful apostrophe to the Athenians, in which we see at once the principle which has been stated, and also who those were who made up

their system of Polytheism; who in fact their coi were-namely, their heroes whom length of time and dimness of tradition at last invested with the honour of divinity, removing all the palpable evidence of their humanity, and leaving to an admiring posterity only the shadowy record of their services, their virtues, and their valour. The modern genealogist finds the roots of an ancient tree finally elude his grasp in some crag-built tower over-hanging the Rhine, and is content to say that the "early history of the house loses itself in the midst of antiquity;" the Athenian looking up the long ancestral line, and seeing an end without any reason satisfactory to his pride, links it on to Olympus, and bursts out with "ev raides pakápur." And in like manner the Romans in their national name "Quirites," and in their Gentilitial names as the Gens Horatia, Julia, Sempronia, brought out the unvarying principle of the human mind; differing in its developments, only as far as language and manners make all developements of the same process of the mind in several nations to differ from each other.

Holy Scripture, with reverence be it said, shows us how the feeling exhibited itself in the original people of GOD. The, are specifically called "the children of Israel," or "Israelites," in memory as it were of the ditsinguishing epoch and person from which and whose day they began to be the great nation, "like the sand on the sea-shore in multitude," to whom the great promise of the future blessedness of all nations was made.

And thus much of primeval antiquity. The object of the present paper is chiefly to draw some attention to the subject of British Family Antiquity. If we had any copy of the roll of Battle Abbey on which reliance could be placed, or could satisfactorily reconcile the several copies given in print, we should be much nearer than we can now ever be towards understanding the real state of William Duke of Normandy's attendants upon his perilous venture for the English crown. But if the good monks of the Abbey of "Batayle" so called it will be remembered as related by Dugdale, because founded for the health, omnium animarum quoe in prelio reci derant, of all the souls which had fallen in the "batayle," falsified the re

1654. We quote the following passage of the conclusion of the treaties of "coot armoris," as a sufficient specimen of the meaning of the Princess in the work she had undertaken.

"Now certainly of all the signys the wich are founde in armys, as of flouris, leafs, and other maruellys tokeneys, 1 cannot declare here; ther be so mony. But ye shall knaw generally that for all harmys the wich lyghtly any man has seen in his days ye have rules sufficient, as I believe, to dyscerne and blese any of theym; and it be so that ye be not in youre mynde to hesty or to swyfte in the dyscerning. Nor ye may not overryn swiftly the foresayd rules, bot diligently have them in youre mynde, and be not too full of consaitis. For he that will hunt ij haris, i von owre; or von while von, an other while an other, lightly belongs both. Therefore take heede to the rules. If so be that they be not a generall doctrine; yet shall thai profute for this sciens gretly." Here, then, was a full disclosure of all the "mysteries of the gentle craft," of "coat armuris," but made, it must be observed, by a lady of high temporal rank, of the noble blood of the Barons Berners and of high spiritual rank as Prioress so that we may be sure nothing was intended by the disclosure to injure the existing estimation of

rank.

Gerard Leigh, who followed the Prioress at an interval of nearly a century, with his "Accedence of Armorie," retains the same high tone which she employed in speaking of the birth and the bearers of arms. As the work is very scarce, a quotation may not be unacceptable; it is from his Preface, addressed "to the honourable assemblie of gentlemen in the Innes of Court and Chancerie." He says to them, "most humblie I beseech your honors to daine to be patrons of this my worke, against the middle finger pointings of the ungentiles, dissevered into three unequal parts. The first whereof are gentle ungentile. Such be they as will rather shewe armes then beare armes. of negligence stop mustard-pots with their father's pedegrees, or otherwise abuse them. The second sort are ungentle gentlemen, who being enhaunced to honour by their fathers, on whom though it were to their owne

Who

worship yet can they not keepe so much money from the dice, as to make worshipfull obsequies for their said fathers with any point of armory: but despised the same, because say they those his armes were purchased for slips. Most of these desire the title of worship, but none do work the deed that appertaineth thereunto. And of these that runne so far as will not turne, old women will say, such youth will have their swing, and it be but in a halter. The third sort and worst of all are neither gentle, ungentle, or ungentle gentle, but very stubble curs, and be neither doers, sufferers, or well speekers of honors tokens. As of late, one of them that was called to worship* in a citie within the province of Middlesex; unto whom the Herehaught came, and him saluted with joy of his new office, requesting of him to see his cote: who called unto him his maid, commanding her to fetch his cote. So, quoth the man to the Herehaught, here it is; if ye will buy it, ye shall have time of payment, as first to pay halfe in hande, and the rest by and by. The Herehaught being somewhat moved, said, I neither asked you for this cote, sheep-cote or hogscote, but my meaning was to have seene your cote of armes. Armes, quoth he, I would have good legs, for my armes are indifferent," &c. But the popular familarity with the subjects of heraldry and genealogy, had begun to have, as we see by this very preface of Gerard Leigh, its effect in diminishing the esteem in which ancestral distinctions were held. The next important work on heraldry which we will mention, shows an essential transition in popular feeling. Guillim's "Display of Heraldry"— composed,__as__ Anthony-a-Wood serts, by Dr. Berkham, Dean of Boching-we find that the class of persons who in Gerard Leigh's time made light of bearing "cotes," and were, in his opinion, "very stubble curs," had become admirers of coat armour, and obtained grants from the College of Heralds. Gerard Leigh's first edition was in 1462, Guillim's in 1610; and in this interval which we may call the Elizabethan era, we would place the change from the ancient to the modern sentiment of aristocracy. That new order of things then began which has since raised the

In

as

VOL. XLIV.

35

national prosperity to so high a pitch, in opening to aspiring adventurers of parts and spirit the avenues which lead on to fame and fortune. But with this change did undoubtedly fall to pieces the system which the Prioress, and Gerard Leigh, and Sir John Ferne and Bossewell wished to support, in giving to the world their heraldic and genealogical lore. Their books were read to the full as much as they desired; but their readers were not content to sit down with the knowledge that this "Worshipful Dame," or that Ryght Nobull Prince, bore such and suchcote-armoris," and came of such and such gentle houses. The sight and the history of the fesses, crosses, bends, and tressures, the lions rampant, couchant, and saliant, the fleursde-lys, the roses, the cinquefoils of ancient houses, made the blood glow in many a plebeian cheek, and many a plebeian heart resolved to win and wear them. From this time forward, as the succeeding editions of Guillim, up to the last and best in 1724 show, heraldic bearings became multiplied, and lost in their multiplication that chaste simplicity which the earlier coats possoss. If the subject were sufficiently popular, we could easily prove by quotation how radical the alteration was; but we fear the language of the gentle crafts is too unintelligible to most readers to make a blazon of coats an acceptable topic to them.

But although the alteration of the development of this sentiment is undoubtedly mortifying to genuine antiquaries, yet we cannot help thinking that as it exists at present it is of very high utility to society. The bearing of arms now is one of those rewards open to honest industry, which honest industry covets and values. And it values it, because the noble houses of England have lost, and can lose none of their attachment to their own heraldic ensigns; which no multiplication of modern bearings, no intrusion upon the privileges of arms, can blemish or render less valuable; and therefore continue to use and to display them, with as much satisfaction, and as profusely as formerly, though at other times and on other trappings. The wealthy commoner who has risen from the mass of the people knows, that with his rise, he will be enabled to use an hereditary distinction, of the same kind with that used by a Peer,

or even the Sovereign; and it seems almost demonstrable, that a priori such a circumstance would give honest industry an additional impulse, just as it is certainly proved by experience that in fact it does so. It seems indeed very happily ordered, that such a source of honour should exist, attainable without injury to any one, without even diminishing in any way the value of the honour to former and ancient possessors, yet nevertheless serving very sufficiently to ascertam and mark a degree of social rank. Genuine antiquaries too among whom we consider ourselves are apt to be mortified at the change of the character of coats as now granted, as we hinted above. But when we can get rid of this most natural feeling, and bring our sympathies down to reason, we shall find plenty of ground on which to build many pleasant thoughts of even this slipshod heraldry. The complaint against the modern grants of arms made by the kings of arms, may be summed up in a few words they lack simplicity and unity. person who has been engaged in a particular business, chooses to have some ensigns to his occupation preserved in the shield which he is going to obtain from Mr. Garter or Mr. Clarencieux or Mr. Norroy, to be transmitted to his heirs, Garter bows and devises the insertion of a butt or an Angola goat :-then his lady wife likes blue, and the College receive an intimation that Sir John wishes azure to be the field:-the knight's son who is martially inclined desires that a cavalry sword and a pair of holsters may be introduced; and the daughter will have some favourite flower perpetuated. So if we may venture upon a single blazon, there offers a full Patent of Arms, granting and exemplifying to Sir John and all his issue, azure, three Angola goats, browzing on as many mounts, semes of flowers proper, between as many falchions erect, pommelled and hilted or; and on a chief of the third two holster-pistols encountering each other, flammant and fumant of the second.

A

How a Howard, a Seymour, or a Talbot may smile at such a coat; but the same feeling which clothed their illustrious ancestors with the bend and cross-crosslets, the wings in lure, and the rampant lion, clothes Sir John with his quaintly imagined coat. The old barons fought for their country,

for they loved it; the new knight was honest, patient, industrious, for he loved his country too; and both own the common principle of our nature in seeking and claiming a reward, the same in kind.

And further, beyond the stimulus which the desire of heraldic distinction gives to those who are rising in the world, there is a benefit arising from it of very high consequence; namely, the tendency which it has to unite and hold together the mass of those who have a stake in the country, for their mutual preservation. No sooner do men distinctly perceive themselves to belong to a certain class -say that of the armigeri of the three kingdoms than they feel a common interest with all their class in all that they think belongs to its safety and respectability. No matter how wide the chasms between the grades of armigeri-and we know they are very wide-yet as such they all are concerned to keep up the hereditary tenure of respectability, and of the property which maintains it.

haps it may be said that many of those -members of the Legislature, for example-who are unscrupulously engaged in the demolition of our most venerable institutions, are armigeri, and men of ancestry. True; but while they are thus employed in public, let us inquire what is their conduct at home, and what are their sentiments with regard to their own family and personal consequence; whether their own private arrangements are democratical-and whether the levelling system is carried on in the regime of their domestic establishments. We shall find most likely, that they too are bound up by the strong common tie of standing in society, one of the marks of which as we see is the bearing of arms; and that with every wish to see their superiors brought down to them, they have no sympathies with their no less consistent fellow-democrats, who bear no arms, and think the whole theory of gentility useless aud burdensome. We cannot but protest, without any qualification, against those who assume arms without either hereditary right or grant from the College. There is a regular and simple way in all the three kingdoms by which any person who thinks himself competent to bear arms, and is able to meet the expenses of a patent, may obtain them; and those

this short notice on a topic which sel dom comes in our way, because we think the times in which we live give a value to all which is connected with the preservation of hereditary rights. Time was, when heraldic and genealogical pursuits ranked higher than now; when Peachum did not think his " Compleat Gentleman" to be "fashioned absolute," without a chapter on heraldy, when blazoning must have been a staple of courtly talk. And further back still, when belted earls went into the battle-field with their arms embroidered on their surcoats, and their ladies welcomed them home to their halls in kirtles adorned in like manner-it seems hard to understand into what situations in life the ideas of heraldy must not have entered unbidden. These days are gone

the Earls lie on their altar-tombs in their surcoats, with their kirtled Ladies beside them-the stately ruffled and trunk-hosed gentleman of King James I.'s court kneels on his monument with his sons, and his lady with their daughters, in gradually diminishing lines behind them-and their memories only find a resting-place in the collection of the curious and somewhat despised antiquary. But if we are as wise here as they were, we shall take what we have, and use it as we best may.