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The first bearer of the name Blenckeard most likely took on this name based on an early member of the family who was a person with a whitish, or white appearance having derived from the Old French word blanchart. Experts theorize that Blenckeard may have also been a nickname for someone with an exceptionally pure character, since white was the symbolic color of purity during the Middle Ages. Alternatively, the name could have been a nickname for a "white horse." 1
The surname Blenckeard was first found in Lancashire where they held a family seat from early times at Grimsbargh Hall. "Ponce Blanchard held twelve fees in Hants (Hampshire), granted by Richard I., and Gilbert and William Blanchard had estates in Lincolnshire." 2 Other very early references to the family include: Blanchard de Morba who was listed in the Pipe Rolls of Devon in 1180; Robertus blancard, Rotbertus quippe blancard, who was listed in the Inquisitio Inquests for Suffolk in 1086; and Richard Blanchard who was listed in Pipe Rolls of Lancashire in 1177. The author continues: "The 1086 example is, however, certainly a nickname, probably identical to Robertus Blancardus." 3
The Hundredorum Rolls of 1273 had the following early entries for the family: William Blaunchard in Wiltshire; Reginald Blanchard in Yorkshire; and Robert Blaunchard in Lincolnshire. A few years later the Subsidy Rolls of Lancashire listed Nicholas Blaunchard in Lancashire in 1332. The Yorkshire Poll Tax Rolls of 1379 include: Willelmus Blaunchard; and Elena Blaunchard. 1
"The name of Blanchard or Blanshard, which also occurs in the North and East Ridings of Yorkshire, has long been in the county of Lincoln. John Blauncherde of Lowthe gave £25 for the defence of his country at the time of the expected invasion of the Spanish Armada in 1588. Long before this, in the reign of Edward I., we find the name of Blaunchard in the county in the reign of Henry III. the name also occurred in Wiltshire, and, in fact, Blanchard or Blaunchard is also an old Wiltshire name, occurring in the hundred of Warminster in the 16th century." 4
This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Blenckeard research. Another 112 words (8 lines of text) covering the years 1587, 1651 and 1790 are included under the topic Early Blenckeard History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
There are many spelling variations of Breton surnames, because the Old and Middle English languages lacked definite spelling rules. The official court languages, which were Latin and French, were also influential on the spelling of a surname. Since the spelling of surnames was rarely consistent in medieval times, and scribes and church officials recorded names as they sounded rather than adhering to any specific spelling rules, it was common to find references to one individual with many different spellings of their surname in the ancient chronicles. Moreover, a large number of foreign names were brought into England, which accelerated and accentuated the alterations to the spelling of various surnames. The name has been spelled Blanchard, Blanchaud and others.
Notable of this family during the Middle Ages was William Isaac Blanchard (died 1790), an English stenographer. He was son of a French refugee, who became a...
Another 27 words (2 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Blenckeard Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
Records show the name Blenckeard in some of the earliest immigrant records of North America: Agnes Blanchard who settled in Massachusetts in 1639; Anthony Blanchard settled in Virginia in 1670; Thomas Blanchard settled in New England in 1652; Charles Blanchard settled in Louisiana in 1756..