Edgcumbe History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England

Etymology of Edgcumbe

What does the name Edgcumbe mean?

The ancient history of the Edgcumbe name begins with the ancient Anglo-Saxon tribes of Britain. The name is derived from when the family resided at the edge of the valley. The surname Edgcumbe originally derived from the Old English word Eggcombe. The surname Edgcumbe is a topographic surname, which was given to a person who resided near a physical feature such as a hill, stream, church, or type of tree. Habitation names form the other broad category of surnames that were derived from place-names. They were derived from pre-existing names for towns, villages, parishes, or farmsteads. Other local names are derived from the names of houses, manors, estates, regions, and entire counties. As a general rule, the greater the distance between an individual and their homeland, the larger the territory they were named after. For example, a person who only moved to another parish would be known by the name of their original village, while people who migrated to a different country were often known by the name of a region or country from which they came.

Early Origins of the Edgcumbe family

The surname Edgcumbe was first found in Devon where the original ancestor Richard Edgcumbe was Lord of Edgecumbe in 1292. 1 "In the reign of Edward III, William Edgcumbe, second son of the house of Edgcumbe, having married the heiress of Cotehele, in the parish of Calstock, removed into Cornwall, and was the ancestor of the Edgcumbes of Cotehele and Mount Edgcumbe, Earls of Mount Edgcumbe (1789)" 1

"Milton Abbot contains the lovely Devonshire seat of the Dukes of Bedford Endsleigh. Edgcumbe, here, is the original home of the family of Edgcumbe, and has continued in the possession of the elder branch from the reign of Edward III. The younger branch is ennobled as Earls Mount Edgcumbe. " 2

"Mount-Edgcumbe House, [in Maker, south-east Cornwall] the noble seat of the Edgcumbe family, and from which its representative derives the title of Earl, was originally built in the reign of Mary, and, with the exception only of Salcombe, was the last garrison that held out for Charles I.; it occupies an elevated site, commanding an extensive prospect, and its domain presents a variety of beautiful scenery." 3 It was built by Sir Richard Edgcumbe between 1547 and 1553 and later destroyed during World War II but was restored in the late 1950s.

Calstock in Cornwall was another ancient home of the family. "This singular mansion is delightfully situated on the banks of the Tamar, which winds along the vale, the sides of which are covered with luxuriant fertility. This place gave name to a very ancient family, that became extinct in the male line so early as the reign of Edward III. The heiress of this family was afterwards married to "William de Eggecombe," who fixed his residence at Cotehele. The present house was built by Sir Richard Edgcumbe in the reign of Henry VII. ; and from its high state of preservation, it exhibits to the curious a fine specimen of a mansion house of that age." 4

Early History of the Edgcumbe family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Edgcumbe research. Another 264 words (19 lines of text) covering the years 1489, 1493, 1494, 1497, 1499, 1513, 1536, 1540, 1562, 1563, 1570, 1586, 1587, 1608, 1609, 1629, 1639, 1640, 1661, 1667, 1679, 1681, 1688 and 1696 are included under the topic Early Edgcumbe History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Edgcumbe Spelling Variations

Until quite recently, the English language has lacked a definite system of spelling rules. Consequently, Anglo-Saxon surnames are characterized by a multitude of spelling variations. Changes in Anglo-Saxon names were influenced by the evolution of the English language, as it incorporated elements of French, Latin, and other languages. Although Medieval scribes and church officials recorded names as they sounded, so it is common to find one person referred to by several different spellings of his surname, even the most literate people varied the spelling of their own names. Variations of the name Edgcumbe include Edgecombe, Edgecomb, Edgecumb, Edgecumbe and others.

Early Notables of the Edgcumbe family

Notables of this surname at this time include:

Sir Richard Edgcumbe (1499-1562), an English courtier and politician
Peter Edgcumbe or Edgcombe (1536-1608), an English politician
Sir Richard Edgcumbe (c 1570-1639), an English politician who sat in the House of Commons between 1586 and 1629
Sir Richard Edgcumbe (1640-1688), an English politician, Member of Parliament for Launceston (1661-1679) and Cornwall (1679-1681)

Migration of the Edgcumbe family

Searching for a better life, many English families migrated to British colonies. Unfortunately, the majority of them traveled 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 ocean. For those families that arrived safely, modest prosperity was attainable, and many went on to make invaluable contributions to the development of the cultures of the new colonies. Research into the origins of individual families in North America revealed records of the immigration of a number of people bearing the name Edgcumbe or a variant listed above: Miles Edgecombe who brought his wife and children to New England in 1676. During the next century the name was recorded in Boston and other eastern seaboard cities and the surname was brought to Canada during the 18th century, perhaps by a family of Empire Loyalists..

Contemporary Notables of the name Edgcumbe (post 1700) +

Robert Charles Edgcumbe (1939-2021), 8th Earl of Mount Edgcumbe, a New Zealand-British peer

Historic Events for the Edgcumbe family +

HMS Repulse

Mr. Thomas John Nicholas Edgcumbe, English Boy Seaman from Stonehouse, Plymouth, England, who sailed into battle on the HMS Repulse (1941) and survived the sinking 5

The Edgcumbe 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: Au playsir fort de dieu
Motto Translation: In high-pleasure of God

Citations +

Shirley, Evelyn Philip, The Noble and Gentle Men of England; The Arms and Descents. Westminster: John Bower Nichols and Sons, 1866, Print.
Worth, R.N., A History of Devonshire London: Elliot Stock, 62, Paternoster Row, E.G., 1895. Digital
Lewis, Samuel, A Topographical Dictionary of England. Institute of Historical Research, 1848, Print.
Hutchins, Fortescue, The History of Cornwall, from the Earliest Records and Traditions to the Present Time. London: William Penaluna, 1824. Print
HMS Repulse Crew members. (Retrieved 2014, April 9) . Retrieved from http://www.forcez-survivors.org.uk/biographies/listrepulsecrew.html