Coat of Arms & Family Crests Store
 Worsfold Coat of Arms / Worsfold Family CrestThe first known bearer of the name WORSFOLD was a certain Robert Wersfelde (died 1522) of Abynworth in the parish of Abinger, County Surrey. The name is still mainly confined to Surrey and Kent. The name is of uncertain origin, probably a habitation name from an unidentified place. Habitation names are derived from names denoting towns, villages, farmsteads or other named places, which include rivers, houses with signs on them, regions, or whole counties. The original bearer of the name who stayed in his area might be known by the name of his farm, or the locality in the parish; someone who moved to another town might be known by the name of his village; while someone who moved to another county could acquire the name of that county or the region from which he originated. 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, coats 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.The arms depicted are of Sir Thomas Cato Worsfold, (Knight) of The Hall Place, Mitcham, Surrey, M.A. LL.D. (T.C.D.) F.R.Hist.S. F.R.S.L. J.P. and D.L. County Surrey, 1st M.P. Mitcham Division 1918-23; married 25th July 1900, Louise, daughter of the late John Jeffree, F.R.C.S. of Howard Lodge, Clapham Park. The arms were registered on the 23th February in the year nineteen hundred and twenty four. |
