The surname of BEDFORD was a locational name 'of Bedford' in the county of that name. Local names usually denoted where a man held his land, and indicated where he actually lived. The name was derived from the Old English word BEDANFORD, and literally meant the dweller beside the ford, from residence nearby. During the Middle Ages, when people were unable to read or write signs were needed for all visual identification. For several centuries city streets in Britain were filled with signs of all kinds, public houses, tradesmen and even private householders found them necessary. This was an age when there were no numbered houses, and an address was a descriptive phrase that made use of a convenient landmark. At this time, coat of arms came into being, for the practical reason that men went into battle heavily armed and were difficult to recognise. It became the custom for them to adorn their helmets with distinctive crests, and to paint their shields with animals and the like. Coats of arms accompanied the development of surnames, becoming hereditary in the same way. Early records mention Johanna de BEDEFORD, listed as a tenant in the Domesday Book of 1086. The name was documented as BEDEFUNTE (without surname) in the year 1188. Richard Bedeford of Yorkshire, was recorded in the Yorkshire Poll Tax of 1379. Anthony Bedford registered at Oxford University in the year of 1578. John Robynson and Anne Bedford were married in London in the year 1589. Baptised. Elizabeth Bedford, St. James's, Clerkenwell, London in 1707. At first the coat of arms was a practical matter which served a function on the battlefield and in tournaments. With his helmet covering his face, and armour encasing the knight from head to foot, the only means of identification for his followers, was the insignia painted on his shield and embroidered on his surcoat, the flowing and draped garment worn over the armour. The associated arms are recorded in Sir Bernard Burkes General Armory. Ulster King of Arms in 1884. |
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