Trench History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England
Ireland

The first people to use the distinguished Trench family name were found in Northumberland, England, after arriving from La Tranche, a town in the province of Poitou, France. This family was a Huguenot family, and they came to England to escape religious persecution. Protestant England offered them a home which was more tolerant of religious differences.

"After the massacre of St. Bartholomew, Frederick de la Tranche, or Trenche, a Protestant nobleman, sought refuge from persecution on English ground, and settled in Northumberland in the year 1574. Thence his descendants passed over into Ireland, where they still flourish in the enjoyment of two peerages, the Earldom of Clancarty, and the Barony of Ashtown. " 1

Early Origins of the Trench family

The surname Trench was first found in Northumberland where they were granted lands. This family was originally from La Tranche, a town in Poitou, which was in possession of the family from very early times. 1 Frederick de la Tranche or Trenche sought refuge after the massacre of St. Bartholomew, and came to England in 1575.

Early History of the Trench family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Trench research. Another 98 words (7 lines of text) covering the years 1557, 1558, 1681, 1684, 1703, 1715, 1752 and 1803 are included under the topic Early Trench History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Trench Spelling Variations

Huguenot surnames were only slightly Anglicized, and they remain to this day a distinct group of surnames in England. Nevertheless, Huguenot surnames have been subject to numerous spelling alterations since the names emerged in France. French surnames have a variety of spelling variations because the French language has changed drastically over the centuries. French was developed from the vernacular Latin of the Roman Empire. It is divided into three historic and linguistic periods: Old French, which developed before the 14th century; Middle French, which was used between the 14th and 16th centuries; and Modern French, which was used after the 16th century and continues to be in use today. In all of these periods, the French language was heavily influenced by other languages. For example, Old French was infused with Germanic words and sounds when the barbarian tribes invaded and settled in France after the fall of the Roman Empire. Middle French also borrowed heaviliy from the Italian language during the Renaissance. Huguenot names have numerous variations. The name may be spelled Tranch, Tranche, Trench, Trenche and others.

Early Notables of the Trench family

Notable in the family at this time was

Trench of Northumberland

Migration of the Trench family to Ireland

Some of the Trench family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 125 words (9 lines of text) about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Trench migration to the United States +

Discovered in the immigration and passenger lists were a number of people bearing the name Trench:

Trench Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

Joseph Trench who arrived in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1819
Philip Trench, aged 27, who landed in New York, NY in 1840 2
H. M. Trench, aged 29, who arrived in America from Dublin, in 1894
Wm. Lee P. Trench, aged 28, who arrived in America, in 1894

Trench Settlers in United States in the 20th Century

Sydney Trench, aged 37, who arrived in America from London, England, in 1904
Jan A. Trench, aged 42, who arrived in America from Edinburgh, Scotland, in 1906
Charles Stewart Trench, aged 54, who arrived in America from London, England, in 1907
Alfred S. Trench, aged 21, who arrived in America from Camberley, England, in 1909
Yvonne Olga Trench, aged 22, who arrived in America from Paris, France, in 1909
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Contemporary Notables of the name Trench (post 1700) +

Joseph Trench (1815-1879), American architect, founder of Trench & Company, known for his designs of The Odd Fellows Hall in Manhattan and the A. T. Stewart Store
Francis Chenevix Trench (1805-1886), English divine and author, the eldest son of Richard Trench (1774–1860), barrister-at-law, by his wife Melesina Trench, older brother of Richard Chenevix Trench
William Steuart Trench (1808-1872), Irish land agent and author, born at Bellegrove, near Portarlington, fourth son of Thomas Trench, Dean of Kildare
Power le Poer Trench (1770-1839), Irish Archbishop of Tuam, second son of William Power Keating Trench, first Earl of Clancarty, and younger brother of Richard Le Poer Trench
Sir Frederick William Trench (1775-1859), Irish general, the only son of Frederick Trench of Heywood, Ballinakill, Queen's County
Melesina Trench (1768-1827), née Chenevix, Irish writer, poet and diarist whose works were published posthumously by her son Richard Chenevix Trench
Reverend Thomas Trench (b. 1761), Irish prelate, Dean of Kildare, father of Helena Lefroy (1820–1908) the Irish botanist
William Power Keating Trench (1741-1805), 1st Earl of Clancarty, an Irish aristocrat and politician
Richard Le Poer Trench GCB, GCH, PC (1767-1837), 2nd Earl of Clancarty, 1st Marquess of Heusden, an Irish peer, a nobleman in the Dutch nobility
Richard Trench (1710-1768), Irish politician and the ancestor of the Earls of Clancarty, Member of Parliament for Banagher (1735-1761) and for Galway County (1761-1768)
... (Another 3 notables are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Historic Events for the Trench family +

Halifax Explosion

Mr. Robert Trench, British stationed aboard the SS Calonne from who died in the Halifax Explosion (1917) 3

The Trench Motto +

The motto was originally a war cry or slogan. Mottoes first began to be shown with arms in the 14th and 15th centuries, but were not in general use until the 17th century. Thus the oldest coats of arms generally do not include a motto. Mottoes seldom form part of the grant of arms: Under most heraldic authorities, a motto is an optional component of the coat of arms, and can be added to or changed at will; many families have chosen not to display a motto.

Motto: Virtutis fortuna comes
Motto Translation: Fortune is the companion of valour.

Citations +

Lower, Mark Anthony, Patronymica Britannica, A Dictionary of Family Names of the United Kingdom. London: John Russel Smith, 1860. Print.
Filby, P. William, Meyer, Mary K., Passenger and immigration lists index : a guide to published arrival records of about 500,000 passengers who came to the United States and Canada in the seventeenth, eighteenth, and nineteenth centuries. 1982-1985 Cumulated Supplements in Four Volumes Detroit, Mich. : Gale Research Co., 1985, Print (ISBN 0-8103-1795-8)
Halifax Explosion Book of Remembrance | Maritime Museum of the Atlantic. (Retrieved 2014, June 23) . Retrieved from https://maritimemuseum.novascotia.ca/what-see-do/halifax-explosion/halifax-explosion-book-remembrance