After the exciting link to the Koefoed (Kofford) coat of arms, I continued to look into my other ancestral lines to see if I could find more. Familysearch.org suggests that I am related to William Kirkby (1635-1697), but for full disclosure, this is not clearly documented through reliable sources. I can trace my family line with high confidence up to Hugh Kirby (1655-1695), but whether his father was, in fact, William Kirkby is not clear.
Kirkby Ancestral Line
My maternal grandmother is a Kirby. The Kirby name may be a variant of the very old “Kirkby” surname that originated from the town of the same name in Lancashire, England.
Familysearch suggests that I am a direct descendant of Roger Kirkby (1530-1618). If true, he would be my 13th-Great Grandfather. His grandson, Roger Kirkby (1600-1643) served in the House of Commons and was later a Member of Parliament.
We know with a certainty that these Kirkbys had a coat of arms associated with their family, as it is clearly documented in the 12th Visitation of Lancashire in 1613 (see the included image). A “visitation” in this sense is an official heraldic audit – heraldry was carefully regulated in England by this time. This is, therefore, an exceptionally strong source of documentation linking the Kirkby family to the arms (but providing no information about the link between Hugh and William).
Roger’s name appears in the bottom left corner and also shows that he is married to Jane Rigby.
To read the document, The top line shows the three direct descendants from Sir Richard Kirkby. Their descendants, if applicable, are on lower lines. When it states “without issue,” that indicates that the individual has no direct descendants.
Variants
Interestingly, there are some notable variations reported in Burke’s Peerage, specifically regarding the cross. It is described therein as a “cross patonce,” for the Kirkbys of Lancastire, and a “cross flory” for the Kirkbys of Durham. These crosses are very similar to the cross moline.
The Kirkby Coat of Arms Blazon
As is clearly noted at the top of the page of the 12th Visitation, the Kirkby are officially blazoned.
The shield is “argent,” or silver. When painted, silver metal is depicted as white.
The main design of the shield is two horizontal bars, “gules” or red.
A canton is typically a square that is placed in the upper left (or “dexter”) corner of the shield. The canton is the same color as the bars.
Within the canton is a gold (“or”) cross moline. “Moline” is a specific style of cross with equal lengths of all arms and flared ends.
The Appearance of the Kirkby Coat of Arms
The image is a rendering of the Kirkby coat of arms. It includes the traditional helmet and mantling, as well as a torse on top of the helmet. The torse is usually used to fill the gap between the helmet and the crest (that would go on top of the helmet), but there is nothing unusual about having a torse with no crest.
No motto is noted in the 12th visitation or in Burke’s Peerage. That is not unusual, as the bearer was typically permitted to add or change the motto at will.
The Remaining Mystery
This find was very interesting for me, but it is very disheartening to find that there is no clear documentation about whether William and Hugh were indeed father and son. I am excited to continue learning more, and I hope that perhaps genetic connections or other documentary evidence will help to clarify whether there is a relation.
