Fleetwoit History, Family Crest & Coats of ArmsFleetwoit is a name of ancient Anglo-Saxon origin and comes from the family once having lived in the county of Lancashire, where they held a family seat at Hesketh and at Little Plumpton with vast territories in that county. The place-name is derived from the Old English words fleot, which means stream and wudu which means wood. 1 In this case the original bearers of the surname lived in the area that was by a stream and near wood - perhaps a woodlot or forest. Early Origins of the Fleetwoit familyThe surname Fleetwoit was first found in Lancashire at Fleetwood, a town within the Wyre district which has a rather recent history in comparison to many of the villages that date back to the Domesday Book. However, Roman ruins in the area suggest that the location may well have been an ancient sea port. The manor house was held by the Allen family for centuries but was ultimately sold to Thomas Fleetwood, comptroller of the Royal Mint whose son, Edmund expanded the house into Rossall Hall and these lands have remained in the Fleetwood family for 300 years since that time. Some of the family were also found at Bispham, again in Lancashire. "This place, which is of great antiquity, is styled in Domesday Survey Biscopham. It was early a possession of the Boteler family; and in the 13th of Elizabeth, the manors of "Litle and Grete" Bispham were held by the Fleetwoods." 2 Sir Peter Hesketh-Fleetwood, 1st Baronet, (1801-1866), born Peter Hesketh, an English landowner, developer and Member of Parliament, founded the town of Fleetwood-on-Wrye "on which the town is built have been for some centuries the property of [his] ancestors." 2 "Irmingland Hall [in Irmingland, Norfolk] formerly belonged to the Fleetwood family, one of whom, General Fleetwood, married the daughter of Oliver Cromwell, who frequently visited this place, and issued many of his ordinances hence; one wing only remains, which is now a farmhouse." 2 The legendary British musician Mick Fleetwood was born in Redruth, Cornwall and is presumed to be from a different branch of the family. Early History of the Fleetwoit familyThis web page shows only a small excerpt of our Fleetwoit research. Another 90 words (6 lines of text) covering the years 1250, 1603, 1610, 1618, 1623, 1641, 1652, 1655, 1656, 1672, 1683, 1692 and 1723 are included under the topic Early Fleetwoit History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible. Fleetwoit Spelling VariationsSound was what guided spelling in the essentially pre-literate Middle Ages, so one person's name was often recorded under several variations during a single lifetime. Also, before the advent of the printing press and the first dictionaries, the English language was not standardized. Therefore, spelling variations were common, even among the names of the most literate people. Known variations of the Fleetwoit family name include Fleetwoode, Fleetwood and others. Early Notables of the Fleetwoit familyDistinguished members of the family include Sir William Fleetwood (died after 1610), of Ealing and Cranford, Middlesex; and his son, Sir Miles Fleetwood of Aldwinkle, Northamptonshire (died 1641), an English office-holder and politician; Charles Fleetwood (1618-1692), English Parliamentary General and Lord Deputy of Ireland from 1652 to 1655; Sir George Fleetwood of Chalfont St Giles... Migration of the Fleetwoit family to IrelandSome of the Fleetwoit family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt. Migration of the Fleetwoit familyFor political, religious, and economic reasons, thousands of English families boarded ships for Ireland, Canada, the America colonies, and many of smaller tropical colonies in the hope of finding better lives abroad. Although the passage on the cramped, dank ships caused many to arrive in the New World diseased and starving, those families that survived the trip often went on to make valuable contributions to those new societies to which they arrived. Early immigrants bearing the Fleetwoit surname or a spelling variation of the name include: Alexander Fleetwood who settled in St. Christopher in 1635; David Fleetwood settled in Virginia in 1650; Baron Gustave Fleetwood settled in New York in 1845.
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: Quod tibi, hoc alteri Motto Translation: That is for thee, not the other.
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