Hi there,

The arms that you mention in your post are referred to as 'quartered' arms which usually stem from a marriage combination of arms belonging to two armigerous families. The arms in the top left and bottom right (referred to as 1st and 4th quarters) are definitely those of a Bateman whilst those of his wife, which appear in the 2nd and 3rd quarters, are from another family I will have to search for. I'll get back to you on that one later.

I have a record of 24 entries in the name of Bateman in the British General Armory. The first entry is for Viscount Bateman and Baron Culmore - created 1725 and became extinct in 1802. The arms given are Or on a Fess Sable between three Muscovy Ducks proper a Rose of the field. When translated into English it means - on a Yellow shield there is a horizontal band of Black which is positioned in the centre of the shield and above this band are two Muscovy Ducks and below it is one Muscovy Duck all coloured Proper (natural plumage) and on the Black band is a Yellow Rose. I would imagine that the Muscovy Ducks mentioned are actually Muscovy Drakes with a beautiful plumage, whereas the Muscovy Duck, in comparison, is somewhat drab in appearance and difficult to discern from other ducks.

The earliest mentioned 'Bateman' with recorded arms in Britain is a William Bateman of South Win(g)field in the English county of Derbyshire in 1298. His arms are recorded as Or three Crescents each surmounted by an Estoile Gules - which translates into layman's terms as a Yellow shield bearing three Red Crescents, each surmounted by a wavy six pointed star, also Red.

I would suggest that you have a look at the article to be found at << http://www.sog.org.uk/leaflets/arms.html >> and show it to your husband as well. It is not generally appreciated by the general public, but all the arms registered in a person's name in Britain are personal arms and not family arms. To be able to claim the arms for one's own use, there must be a fully documented paternal pedigree firmly linking to the original person who was granted those arms. So, unless you can get a fully documented paternal proof of ancestry from your husband back to the original armiger (person with those arms), you cannot even think, let alone assume, that your husband has 'ancestral arms' that he can use and call his own.

The items placed on a shield of arms have no specific meanings. They are in the eye and mind of the original armiger and the herald who designed his shield.

Regards,