Problems with Fox-Davies' Blazons
There are four differences between Fox-Davies' blazons and the College's
exemplification:
- The exemplification of 26, Grandison, has a paly of argent and azure
but the blazon is argent and gules. The Dictionary of British Arms, Medieval
Ordinary, vol 2, p. 11 clearly shows argent and azure for several examples of
William de Grandison's arms.
- The exemplification of 30, Holland, has the lion guardant while the
blazon solely says rampant. The Dictionary of British Arms,
Medieval Ordinary, vol 1, p. 151 nowhere mentions any 'guardant' for any of
the many examples of Holland arms. But I have left these arms guardant, as
received.
- The exemplification of 34, Beaums, has the background pellets with
the tint Or, wheras Fox-Davies says it was Sable. The Dictionary of British
Arms, Medieval Ordinary, does not give the Beaums arms, not even under the
name found in CP of Belmeis. Purely as I prefer the appearance of Or, I have
used this in my illustration.
- The exemplification of 44, Plantagenet, does not agree with
Fox-Davies' blazon. Fox-Davies gave a blazon of a lion rampant yet the
drawing has three lions passant guardant. The Dictionary of British Arms,
Medieval Ordinary, vol 1, p. 306 definitely gives 3 lions in all examples of
Edmund of Woodstock's arms.
Then there are refinements to the College's exemplifications:
- For number 16, Plantagenet, in Fox-Davies' Complete Guide to
Heraldry he gives a blazon for George, Duke of Clarence, which has the
label as "a label of three points argent, each charged with a canton gules";
so I have modified the illustrations to include these cantons.
- The exemplification of 18, Neville, has the plain saltire argent
which was indeed the arms of the earlier Nevilles. But these arms are stated
to be those of Richard Neville, earl of Warwick (The Kingmaker) and he was
the heir of a cadet branch which mostly used a label gobony argent and azure
to distinguish their line from the senior line, who carried the Westmorland
earldom and bore only the plain saltire. I have left the Neville arms as
received as there is no doubt but that we do inherit this quarter but from
an earlier Neville generation.
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