PARRY Family History

Connected families or usurped arms? A puzzle to be solved.

The College of Arms states that Arms do not belong to surnames, they are granted to specific people and only certain descendants of those people are then entitled to use the Arms. However, other sources record that, over the years, some families did usurp arms, perhaps claiming them for their own use on the basis of a common surname1. Amongst the Parry families, there are several who used the Arms "a fess between three lozenges". Sometimes this appears in sable (black), sometimes in azure (blue). Occasionally the Arms also carry marks of cadency (marks to distinguish between sons/brothers), or includes a border.

However, most of the families were distributed around Britain and currently appear to have no connections to each other or to the family with the earliest record of the arms, in Herefordshire.

The question therefore is, were these other families all descendants of the Herefordshire family who had gained lands elsewhere, perhaps during the upheavals of the English Civil Wars in the 17th century, or even earlier, or who had moved for occupational reasons?

Or did they just claim the Arms as their own, perhaps during the 18th or very early 19th centuries, as their families rose in status, acquiring fortunes through trade, etc?

At the moment, I do not know the answers. It is also possible that the Herefordshire Parry family had either moved to that county from somewhere else, or gained their arms from a family with a different surname (particularly since there is a record of a family called Hastings, who appear in Sussex between the 12th to 14th centuries, whose arms were blazoned "Argent, a fess between three lozenges azure" 5 and, technically, the same arms were not to be used by two different families.)

So this page is the start of a collection of information relating to the issue which, I hope, may eventually be solved as further evidence is gathered. Here you will find the examples of the families' use of the Arms, along with a gradual build up of information relating to their possible points of contact. Separate pages will (eventually) be linked to, which will show the currently known state of each of their pedigrees.

On this page Heraldry Index page.
Parry Family History Home Page
Top

Banstead, Surrey

The Parry tomb at Banstead The existence of the tomb at Banstead is mentioned in the book The Parrys of the Golden Vale, by Anthony Boden, which is an account of the family of Sir Hubert Parry2, the composer. Although very detailed with regard to the family from the late 1700s, the earlier information, and the connection to the Herefordshire Parrys, is speculative, based largely on their use of the coat of arms.
The Coats of Arms from the Parry tomb at Banstead

The Parry coat of arms is impaled with the coat of the Oakes family, since the tomb is for Thomas Parry (1732-1816) and his wife, Mary Oakes (1748-1781). Mary was the youngest daughter of Matthew Oakes, who was Victualler to the Navy in Portsmouth (Boden). The Oakes arms are described as "azure, on a chevron argent, between three falcons belled or, as many leopards' faces (proper)". They do not appear to be in the Grantees of Arms books, but are in Armorial Families: A Directory of Coat-Armour by A C Fox-Davies (although the connection between Matthew Oakes and the two Oakes individuals in that book is unknown).

The cross hatching on the fess and three lozenges of the Parry arms indicates that they should be coloured sable (black). The plain background should be argent (silver)

Top

Gloucester (Highnam), Gloucestershire

memorial to Thomas Gambier Parry in Gloucester CathedralThis plaque is from Gloucester Cathedral and, as can be seen, is in memory of Thomas Gambier Parry (1816-1888). Thomas Gambier Parry was the grandson of the Thomas Parry and Mary Oakes from Banstead, and shows the continued use of the Arms by the family.
Top

Canterbury Cathedral, Kent

Whilst on a visit to Canterbury Cathedral, I happened to spot this tomb. The tomb of Edward Parry, in Canterbury Cathedral
The tomb of Edward Parry, in Canterbury Cathedral

Edward Parry was the son of Sir William Edward Parry, the arctic explorer, and grandson of Dr Caleb Hillier Parry. I already knew of the family connection to the entry which follows this, that of Elizabeth Eardley-Wilmot at Berkswell, so was initially surprised to spot this shield.

I have not yet identified these Arms - it is possible they relate to the Bishop's position at Dover. [If anyone can identify them, please contact me.]

Unidentified Arms from tomb of Edward Parry
The tomb of Edward Parry, in Canterbury CathedralHowever, at the far end of the tomb was another angel holding a shield and, this time, it is the fess with three lozenges.

As with the Banstead tomb, from the cross hatching, it appears that the family used the arms "Argent a fess between three lozenges sable".

But I am unaware of any relationship between these two families.

According to the book Parry of the Arctic, the life story of Admiral Sir Edward Parry3 1790-1855, by Ann Parry, his great, great grandaughter, this family descended from a Richard Parry, of the parish of Llanfallteg, near the Carmarthenshire/Pembrokeshire border.

The tomb of Edward Parry, in Canterbury Cathedral
Top

Berkswell, Warwickshire

hatchment at BerkswellThe hatchment for Elizabeth Emma, daughter of Dr Caleb Hillier Parry, and therefore aunt to Bishop Edward Parry, whose tomb is in Canterbury. She married Sir John Eardley Eardley-Wilmot and died in 1818. Since the hatchment would have been produced for her funeral, this indicates that the family was using the coat of arms at that time.
Top

Aston Somerville, Gloucestershire

Between 1660 - 1714, the rector of Aston Somerville was the Reverend John Parry. John was married to Rebeccah Fullwood and both they, and several of their children, are buried in the church. There is also a memorial to John and Rebeccah on the wall of the church, at the top of which are their coats of arms. Unfortunately, there is no indication of the colours for the Parry arms.

There is currently no known link between the Reverend John Parry and any of the other Parry families mentioned on this page.

Arms from the memorial at Aston Somerville
Top

Llanbedrog, Caernarvonshire

The memorial to Love Parry, who died in 1707.

I have some concerns that the portion of the plaque with the coat of arms on looks as if it could be a later addition and therefore not truly representative of the original arms used by the family. See the page relating to the memorial inscriptions, hatchments, and stained glass windows, of the Parry and Jones-Parry families at Llanbedrog here, from which it is clear that, apart from this plaque, the Parry arms do not appear on the memorials until 1835, on the hatchment for Thomas Parry Jones-Parry. The memorial to Anne Parry, who died in 1730 and who was the grandaughter of this Love Parry, only shows the Arms of the Hughes family, which had descended to Love Parry through his mother.

Link to the Parry and Jones-Parry pedigree (Use the "Back" button to return here)

memorial at Llanbedrog
Top

Worcester Cathedral, Worcestershire

memorial to Henry Parry

The plaque to mark the original site of the tomb of Henry Parry, Bishop of Worcester.

Although Henry died in 1616, this memorial was erected at some time after 1872. It must therefore be viewed with some caution as to its accuracy. The earlier coat of arms, as quoted by H. Sydney Grazebrook in his book The Heraldry of Worcestershire (1873) were "Argent, on a fesse between three lozenges azure, an annulet or for difference". Based on the rules of cadency, the annulet possibly indicated that Henry was the fifth son of his parents.

There are several differences between the arms shown here and those originals - there is now a border, the fess is coloured red, and there is no annulet. Although there does appear to be a cross on the fess, its position might indicate that it is not intended to be a mark of cadency, since these were usually placed at the top of the shield. It is not clear, from the photograph, what type of cross it is but, if it is a cross moline and it was intended as a cadency mark, then the implication would be that Henry was the eighth son of his parents.

According to Robinson's Mansions and Manors of Herefordshire, Henry Parry, Bishop of Worcester, was born in Wiltshire in 1561. However, since he was also referred to as the grandson of William Parry of Wormbridge, in Herefordshire, the origin for the family has been plotted as Wormbridge.

But clearly further research is needed to establish what the original arms looked like, as well as why the current tablet differs from them, before any conclusions can be drawn as to Henry's actual connection to the Parry family of Herefordshire.

Top

Church Knowle, Dorset

[It is impossible to obtain a photograph of the following entry, since the memorial was removed when the church was renovated.]

On the north wall of the chancel there was a small tablet to Leonard Parry, who was rector of Church Knowle from 1613 until he died in 1623. At the top of the tablet was a coat of arms, described as "Or, a fess sa. charged with a crescent of the first, between three lozenges sa" 4

This Leonard was the son of another Leonard Parry, the rector of Ower Moigne, who is likely to have been the second son of Stephen Parry, of Morehampton, in the parish of Abbey Dore, Herefordshire. Stephen, who died in 1555, and his son Leonard, both appear in the pedigree for the Parrys of the Golden Valley.

Thus this Leonard does link back to the Herefordshire family. The crescent on the arms confirms his status as descended from a second son. However, the description of the field as "or" (gold) rather than "argent" (silver) requires further investigation.

Link to the pedigree of the Parrys from the Golden Valley (Use the "Back" button to return here)

Top

Atcham, Shropshire, and Bacton, Herefordshire

These two places are linked together because the following images, from the parish church at Atcham, show portions from two windows which were originally at Bacton.

The windows are in memory of Miles ap Harry, who died in 1488, and his granddaughter, Blanch Parry, who was lady in waiting to Queen Elizabeth I and who died in 1589/90. Both Miles and Blanch appear in the pedigree of Parrys from the "Golden Valley", in Herefordshire, under what is generally termed the "Newcourt" branch.

The arms of Miles and his wife, Jane StradlingThe arms of Miles and his wife, Jane Stradling
arms from the window to BlanchCoats of arms from the window relating to Blanch. From their unbroken condition, it is perhaps possible that these parts of the window were created after the move to Atcham.
arms from the window to Blanch Coats of arms from the window relating to Blanch

More information concerning the connections of the Parry family to the other families indicated by the arms will be included on this site at some time in the future, under the discussion of the Golden Valley pedigree. But the examples here demonstrate the use of the coat of arms by this branch of the Parry family prior to the 1600s. It is possible that the window to Miles is the earliest incidence of the Arms, since it is described as late medieval in the Atcham church booklet.

Link to the pedigree of the Parrys from the Golden Valley (Use the "Back" button to return here)

Top

Turnastone, Herefordshire

The incidence of the arms which predates the other entries here (except possibly the window to Miles) - an inscribed stone in Turnastone church, to Thomas Ap Harry, erected by his wife Agnes, at some time after he'd died in 1522. Thomas and Agnes also appear in the Golden Valley pedigree, within the branch which is often referred to as the "Parrys of Poston".
The memorial at Turnastone

Enlarged portion of the coat of arms relating to Thomas.

arms from the memorial at Turnastone

Further information about these arms can be found on the Heraldry pages here.

Link to the pedigree of the Parrys from the Golden Valley (Use the "Back" button to return here)

Top

Where are they? - a map to show the places relevant to the Parrys on this page

map showing places concerning Parrys with the fess and three lozenge coat of armsPoints of origin identified by initials:
A - Abbey Dore (Morehampton)
B - Bacton
L - Llanfallteg
W - Wormbridge
Top

Summary and Discussion

In summary, the examples here show at least five, possibly six, apparently unconnected, Parry families who all made use of the coat of arms emblazoned "a fess between three lozenges":
1. Those of Banstead, Surrey, who later moved to Highnam, in Gloucestershire. Earliest known Parry ancestor - Thomas Parry (1732-1816)
2. The descendants of Caleb Hillier Parry. Earliest known Parry ancestor - Richard Parry of Penderry (dates currently unknown but, according to Ann Parry, Richard's grandson, Joshua Parry, the father of Caleb Hillier Parry, was born in 1719. Joshua's father, a Thomas Parry, was described as the youngest of Richard's twenty one children. There is an abstract in the Parry Wills book, for a Richard Parry of St Giles-without-Cripplegate, who has lands in "Penderry and Penybont". However, this Richard died in 1641, and the abstract only mentions his son Thomas, a daughter, Anne, and a supposed daughter Anne. It seems unlikely that this would be the relevant Richard, but he could be an earlier generation, unknown to Ann.)(If this is the Richard Parry of Penderry, what happened to the other children? And how old was Thomas when he had Joshua?)
3. The descendants of John Parry from Aston Somerville, Gloucestershire (1639-1714)
4. The Parry and Jones-Parry families from Llanbedrog. Earliest known Parry ancestor - Geoffrey Parry of Rhydolion ( -1658), although there is no evidence for his own use of the coat of arms.
5. Henry Parry, Bishop of Worcester. Descended from William Parry of Wormbridge, Herefordshire, with possible connection to the Golden Valley family.
6. The Parrys from the Golden Valley in Herefordshire - at least two main branches, but common ancestry currently derived from later pedigrees rather than contemporary records.

Possible links between the families:

Top

Notes and References

1. References to Arms being usurped
Francis Jones, The Development of Welsh Heraldry
2. Sir Hubert Parry's full name was Charles Hubert Hastings Parry
3. According to Ann Parry, although his full name was William Edward Parry, he was always known by his second name.
4. John Hutchins The History and Antiquities of the County of Dorset
5. The Hastings Arms appear in the Camden Roll (as shown on a web site) as well as in the book Arms of Sussex Families, by J F Huxford.
Top
Heraldry Index page
Parry Family History Home Page
Copyright © Barbara Griffiths 2002-2005
Last amended: 14 November 2006