Windwork History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England
Ireland

The name Windwork belongs to the early history of Britain, it's origins lie with the Anglo-Saxons. It is a product of their having lived in either of the places called Wentworth in Cambridgeshire or the West Riding of Yorkshire. The surname Windwork belongs to the large category of Anglo-Saxon habitation names, which are derived from pre-existing names for towns, villages, parishes, or farmsteads.

Early Origins of the Windwork family

The surname Windwork was first found in Yorkshire in the Saxon Wappentake of Strafford, held by Ulsi, a Saxon Thane. Another reference claims the that Wentworth was a chapelry in the parish of Wath-upon-Dearne in the West Riding of Yorkshire. It is here at Wentworth that the Old Trinity Church still stands today.

"The estate is said to have been in the possession of the family before the Norman Conquest. The name is written in [the] Domesday [Book, as] Winterwade and in the XIII century it was changed to Wyntword. The male line continued at Wentworth until the extinction of the earldom of Strafford in the XVIII centruy; and the existing Wentworth, of Wentworth Castle, is descended from the family on the female side." 1

"Thomas Wentworth of 1587 lies in rich armour on his tomb, with his wife in a Paris hat and dainty ruff, both a little battered. Sir William has a canopied wall monument with a family group kneeling at prayer" 2

"The most remarkable member of this family was Sir Thomas Wentworth, the second Baronet, celebrated in history as the Earl of Strafford, after whose attainder and execution in 1641, his estates and titles were restored to his son William, who dying without issue in 1695, left his estates to the Hon. Thomas Watson, third son of his eldest sister Anne, who had married Edward Watson, Lord Rockingham. Mr. Watson, on succeeding to his uncle's property, assumed the name of Wentworth in addition to his own.

The mansion of the Wentworth family, originally called Wentworth-Woodehouse, was rebuilt by the first Marquess of Rockingham, who gave it its modern appellation of Wentworth House." 3

Early History of the Windwork family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Windwork research. Another 399 words (28 lines of text) covering the years 1424, 1448, 1462, 1464, 1478, 1499, 1501, 1525, 1550, 1551, 1558, 1584, 1591, 1593, 1599, 1626, 1632, 1639, 1640, 1641, 1642, 1660, 1667, 1686, 1695, 1700, 1730, 1744, 1791 and 1799 are included under the topic Early Windwork History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Windwork Spelling Variations

Until the dictionary, an invention of only the last few hundred years, the English language lacked any comprehensive system of spelling rules. Consequently, spelling variations in names are frequently found in early Anglo-Saxon and later Anglo-Norman documents. One person's name was often spelled several different ways over a lifetime. The recorded variations of Windwork include Wentworth, Winterwade, Wintworth and others.

Early Notables of the Windwork family

Notables of this surname at this time include: Roger Wentworth (died 1462), esquire, of North Elmsall, Yorkshire; and his son, Sir Philip Wentworth, Knight, of Nettlestead, Suffolk (c. 1424-1464), an English knight and courtier; Sir Henry Wentworth of Nettlestead, Suffolk, KB (c. 1448-c. 1499), de jure 4th Baron Despenser, grandfather of Henry VIII's third wife, Jane Seymour, and the great-grandfather of Jane's son, Edward VI; Margaret Wentworth (c. 1478-c.1550), wife of Sir John Seymour and the mother of Queen Jane Seymour, the third wife of Henry VIII of England, grandmother of King Edward VI of England; Thomas Wentworth, 1st Baron Wentworth...
Another 105 words (8 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Windwork Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the Windwork family to Ireland

Some of the Windwork family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 109 words (8 lines of text) about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the Windwork family

Thousands of English families boarded ships sailing to the New World in the hope of escaping the unrest found in England at this time. Although the search for opportunity and freedom from persecution abroad took the lives of many because of the cramped conditions and unsanitary nature of the vessels, the opportunity perceived in the growing colonies of North America beckoned. Many of the settlers who survived the journey went on to make important contributions to the transplanted cultures of their adopted countries. The Windwork were among these contributors, for they have been located in early North American records: William Wentworth, born in Lincolnshire, England, who came to Massachusetts in 1636; Hugh Wentworth, who settled in Bermuda in 1635; Ken Wentworth settled in Virginia in 1652.

The Windwork Motto +

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: En Dieu est tout
Motto Translation: In God is everything.

Citations +

Lower, Mark Anthony, Patronymica Britannica, A Dictionary of Family Names of the United Kingdom. London: John Russel Smith, 1860. Print.
Mee, Arthur (ed), The King's England Yorkshire West Riding. London: Hodder and Stoughton, 1950. Print
Lewis, Samuel, A Topographical Dictionary of England. Institute of Historical Research, 1848, Print.