Grendle History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England
Scotland

Grendle is an ancient Norman name that arrived in England after the Norman Conquest of 1066. The Grendle family lived in either Greendale, Devon or Grindale in the East Riding of Yorkshire. [1] Of the last entry, we do know that this parish dates back to the Domesday Book of 1086 when it was first listed as Grendele. [2] Literally the place name means "green valley," [3] or "residence in a green valley." [4]

"The village is neatly built; the township comprises 2268 acres, including 1047 common or waste land inclosed in 1843. " [5]

Turning the clock back a bit further, we found this interesting entry for the family and their origin: "Edmond Grindale, Archbishop of Canterbury, was son of William Grindale, who settled, on the dissolution of the Monasteries, near St. Bees. There were others of the name in London, Hunts, and especially in York, where Grindale or Grendale, afterwards Handale, was situated. This place belonged to a branch of the Percys. Richard de Percy was younger son of William I. de Percy, and brother of Alan de Percy. He obtained from his father Dunsley, Lofthouse (in which Grendale was situated) and other estates. he had, 1. Ralph de Grendale, 2. William de Percy, 3. Walter Fitz-Richard. The second gave lands at Dunsley to Whitby Abbey. Ralph de Grendal was father of Ralph, both living at the foundation of Bridlington Priory. Walter, their younger brother, succeeded, and, 1165, with his uncle William de Percy, held a knight’s fee from William, son of Alan de Percy [6]. From Walter de Grendale descended the Grindales of the North, of whom Walter de Grendale was returned in 1300 as possessing an estate above 40 l. per annum. in York, &c., and was summoned by writ for military service in Scotland, and in 1312 was summoned by writ to the Parliament of York as a Baron of the realm. " [7]

"Grindel and Grendel were Anglo-Saxon personal names [cp. Old English (poet.) grindel, a bar, bolt] Grendel was the name of the ogre killed by Beówulf: Wæs se grimma gæst The grim guest was Grendel háten." [8]

Early Origins of the Grendle family

The surname Grendle was first found in Worcestershire where Ædricus Grendel was listed in the Pipe Rolls of 1180. In Yorkshire, Robert de Grenedala was listed in the Pipe Rolls of 1166 and later, Walter de Grendale was found in the Feet of Fines for Lincolnshire in 1242. Stephen de Grindale was listed in the Assize Rolls for Yorkshire in 1297 and later, Benedict de Grindale was listed in the Subsidy Rolls for Cumbria in 1332. Richard de Grenehull was found in Shropshire (Salop) as recorded in the Assize Rolls for 1221. [4] [9]

The Hundredorum Rolls of 1273 had the following entries for the family: Roger de Grendale, Huntingdonshire; and Walter de Grendale, Yorkshire. [1]

Early History of the Grendle family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Grendle research. Another 113 words (8 lines of text) covering the years 1510, 1600, 1179, 1519, 1583, 1536, 1538, 1541, 1544, 1548, 1549, 1559 and 1548 are included under the topic Early Grendle History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Grendle Spelling Variations

Norman surnames are characterized by a multitude of spelling variations. The frequent changes in surnames are largely due to the fact that the Old and Middle English languages lacked definite spelling rules. The introduction of Norman French to England, as well as the official court languages of Latin and French, also had pronounced influences on the spelling of surnames. Since medieval scribes and church officials recorded names as they sounded, rather than adhering to any specific spelling rules, it was common to find the same individual referred to with different spellings. The name has been spelled Grendall, Grendale, Grendle and others.

Early Notables of the Grendle family (pre 1700)

Outstanding amongst the family at this time was Edmund Grindall (1519?-1583), Archbishop of Canterbury, "the son of William Grindal, a well-to-do farmer who lived at Hensingham, in the parish of St. Bees, Cumberland, a district which Grindal himself described as 'the ignorantest part in religion, and most oppressed of covetous landlords of anyone part of this realm'. He went at an early age to Cambridge, where he entered first at Magdalene College, and then removed to Christ's College where he was scholar in 1536-7, and afterwards to Pembroke Hall, where he took his B.A. degree in 1538, and in the same...
Another 181 words (13 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Grendle Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Grendle migration to the United States +

Many English families emigrated to North American colonies in order to escape the political chaos in Britain at this time. Unfortunately, many English families made the trip to the New World under extremely harsh conditions. Overcrowding on the ships caused the majority of the immigrants to arrive diseased, famished, and destitute from the long journey across the stormy Atlantic. Despite these hardships, many of the families prospered and went on to make invaluable contributions to the development of the cultures of the United States and Canada. Early North American immigration records have revealed a number of people bearing the name Grendle or a variant listed above:

Grendle Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

Robert Grendle, who arrived in New York, NY in 1811 [10]

Citations +

Bardsley, C.W, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames: With Special American Instances. Wiltshire: Heraldry Today, 1901. Print. (ISBN 0-900455-44-6)
Williams, Dr Ann. And G.H. Martin, Eds., Domesday Book A Complete Translation. London: Penguin, 1992. Print. (ISBN 0-141-00523-8)
Mills, A.D., Dictionary of English Place-Names. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-19-869156-4)
Reaney, P.H and R.M. Wilson, A Dictionary of English Surnames. London: Routledge, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-415-05737-X)
Lewis, Samuel, A Topographical Dictionary of England. Institute of Historical Research, 1848, Print.
Liber Niger Scutarii ("Black Book of the Exchequer"), containing reports by county on feudal holdings in England in 1166 (reign of Henry II)
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)
Harrison, Henry, Surnames of the United Kingdom: A Concise Etymological Dictionary Baltimore: Geneological Publishing Company, 2013. Print
Smith, Eldson Coles, New Dictionary of American Family Names New York: Harper & Row, 1956. 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)