Amondevill History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England

Amondevill is an ancient Norman name that arrived in England after the Norman Conquest of 1066. The Amondevill family lived in Amondeville, near Caen. 1

Early Origins of the Amondevill family

The surname Amondevill was first found in Lincolnshire where conjecturally, the surname is descended from the tenant of the lands of Kingerby, Auresby, Ellesham, and Croxton held by Roger de Amondeville from Caen in Normandy. 2

"In Lincolnshire, for some unaccountable reason, the head of the family always bore the mysterious alias of Humfines. The first who came to England, Roger de Amondeville, "called also Humfines," was Seneschal to Remigius, Bishop of Lincoln (one of the compilers of Domesday), and by him endowed with four Lincolnshire manors, Kingerby, the principal seat of his successors, Auresby, Ellesham, and Croxton. He married a daughter of Sir Gerard Salvin, of Thorpe-Salvin in Yorkshire, and left, besides Jolland, his heir, John, and Robert. " 1

Later some of the family branched to "the Yorkshire manor of Carlton. The Amondevilles had already an estate in that county; for Whitaker tells us that they were probably the first grantees of Preston-in-Craven under Robert de Poitou." 1

"The name had not died out, either in Yorkshire or Lincolnshire; though the objectionable form of Humfines occurs no more; for Walter de Amundeville was for seven years Viscount of Lincoln in the early part of Henry III.'s reign; and Whitaker speaks of a Nigel de Amundeville who succeeded Elias in Craven, and was most likely his younger son. Ralph de Amundeville, before 1340, was one of the principal benefactors of Swine Priory, on condition the convent would receive his daughter as a nun." (Clevalend1)

Another branch existed in Warwickshire and Northamptonshire. Henry de Newburgh, the first Norman Earl of Warwick, enfeoffed Ralph de Amundeville at Lighthorne and Berkeswell, where he was seated in the time of Henry I. In 1122 he witnessed his suzerain's foundation charter of the collegiate church of Warwick.

Early History of the Amondevill family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Amondevill research. Another 115 words (8 lines of text) covering the years 1179, 1256, 1262, 1510 and 1600 are included under the topic Early Amondevill History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Amondevill Spelling Variations

Anglo-Norman names tend to be marked by an enormous number of spelling variations. This is largely due to the fact that Old and Middle English lacked any spelling rules when Norman French was introduced in the 11th century. The languages of the English courts at that time were French and Latin. These various languages mixed quite freely in the evolving social milieu. The final element of this mix is that medieval scribes spelled words according to their sounds rather than any definite rules, so a name was often spelled in as many different ways as the number of documents it appeared in. The name was spelled Amondville, Amondvile, Amundvile, Amundville and others.

Early Notables of the Amondevill family

Outstanding amongst the family at this time was Richard Amundeville who in 1256 attended the Earl of Cornwall to Germany; and in 1262, was in the Welsh expedition under Prince Edward. In "Whether he did cordially adhere to the rebellious Barons shortly after, I will not take upon me to say; though plain it is that he was in Kenilworth Castle when the Royal army besieged it, and being reputed one of the Baron's partie, had safe conduct with Henry de Hastings and others, to march out upon the render thereof: yet so far...
Another 94 words (7 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Amondevill Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the Amondevill family

Because of the political and religious discontent in England, families began to migrate abroad in enormous numbers. Faced with persecution and starvation at home, the open frontiers and generally less oppressive social environment of the New World seemed tantalizing indeed to many English people. The trip was difficult, and not all made it unscathed, but many of those who did get to Canada and the United States made important contributions to the young nations in which they settled. Some of the first North American settlers with Amondevill name or one of its variants: George Ammond, who was naturalized in Pennsylvania in 1744.

Citations +

Cleveland, Dutchess of The Battle Abbey Roll with some Account of the Norman Lineages. London: John Murray, Abermarle Street, 1889. Print. Volume 1 of 3
Williams, Dr Ann. And G.H. Martin, Eds., Domesday Book A Complete Translation. London: Penguin, 1992. Print. (ISBN 0-141-00523-8)