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Show ContentsCranwel History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms
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Family Crest Download (JPG) Heritage Series - 600 DPI

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The history of the Cranwel family name begins after the Norman Conquest of 1066. They lived in Lincolnshire. The line descends from a family who held a feif at Cramanvile, Normandy.

Early Origins of the Cranwel family

The surname Cranwel was first found in Essex where the family claim descent from Crenawell, (Cramanville) and were listed in the Battle Abbey Roll. 1 The family held a family seat in Essex from the time of the Conquest and in Kent where they held its lands by three knight's service. In 1189, Ralph de Cramaville paid a fine for his estates in Northumberland. 2 However, most of the record were found in Lincolnshire at Cranwell, a parish four miles from Sleaford. The Hundredorum Rolls of 1273 list: Adam de Cranewell and Robert de Cranewell in Lincolnshire; and Richard de Cranewell in Kent. 3

Early History of the Cranwel family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Cranwel research. Another 82 words (6 lines of text) covering the years 1600 and 1658 are included under the topic Early Cranwel History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Cranwel Spelling Variations

Anglo-Norman names are characterized by a multitude of spelling variations. When the Normans became the ruling people of England in the 11th century, they introduced a new language into a society where the main languages of Old and later Middle English had no definite spelling rules. These languages were more often spoken than written, so they blended freely with one another. Contributing to this mixing of tongues was the fact that medieval scribes spelled words according to sound, ensuring that a person's name would appear differently in nearly every document in which it was recorded. The name has been spelled Cranwell, Cranwel and others.

Early Notables of the Cranwel family

Outstanding amongst the family at this time was

  • Richard Cranwell

Ireland Migration of the Cranwel family to Ireland

Some of the Cranwel family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt. More information about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the Cranwel family

For many English families, the political and religious disarray that plagued their homeland made the frontiers of the New World an attractive prospect. Thousands migrated, aboard cramped disease-ridden ships. They arrived sick, poor, and hungry, but were welcomed in many cases with far greater opportunity than at home in England. Many of these hardy settlers went on to make important contributions to the emerging nations in which they landed. Among early immigrants bearing the name Cranwel or a variant listed above were: George Cranwell who settled in Virginia in 1635; John Cranwell settled in Salem Mass in 1630.
  1. Burke, John Bernard, The Roll of Battle Abbey. London: Edward Churton, 26, Holles Street, 1848, Print.
  2. The Norman People and Their Existing Descendants in the British Dominions and the United States Of America. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing, 1975. Print. (ISBN 0-8063-0636-X)
  3. Bardsley, C.W, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames: With Special American Instances. Wiltshire: Heraldry Today, 1901. Print. (ISBN 0-900455-44-6)
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