Tuesday 24 February 2015

St George Quartered Arms at Athlone, Carrick-on-Shannon and Freshford

The quartered coat of Arms of St George is an interesting example that contains quarters representing families that go back several hundred years in the ancestry.

The monument in the Church of Ireland at Athlone is to Captain Richard St George (1590-1606) and to his wife Ann Pennock (1606-43) and the monument was erected in 1686 by their sons Arthur and Henry. Richard was Governor of Athlone and was third son of Sir Richard St George Clarenceux King of Arms, brother to Sir Henry St George Garter Principal King of Arms and St George St George of Carrick Drumroosk, Co Leitrim.

The monument carries six quarters: St George, Banister, Argentine, Avenel, Engaigne and De la Hay.


                                                            Arms of St George at Athlone

Sir Bernard Burke in Saint James's Magazine and Heraldic and Historical Register (Vol 1) describes the 'usual' twelve quarters associated with St George as they as depicted on the stained-glass window at St Lachtin's Church of Ireland at Freshford, Co Kilkenny. The window is to the memory of Arthur St George of Kilrush House. The twelve quarters are: St George, Banister, Argentine, Fitz Tek, Bereford, D'arcy, Bertram, Avenel, Engaigne, De la Hay, Shepreth and Coggleshall.


                                                    The St George arms at Freshford

At Carrick-on-Shannon, eleven of the twelves quarters are shown on a colour depiction and on the monument to Charles Manners St George who died in 1864 aged 76.

The eleven quarters are: St George, Banister, Argentine, Bereford, Fitz Tek, D'arcy, Bertram, Engaigne, De la Hay, Shepreth and Avenel,



   Arms as shown in Carrick-on-Shannon
   As the monument was white in colour and the detail is difficult to decipher, the negative image is shown here.

The detail in Sir Bernard Burke follows:


The Pedigree of St George that shows the relationships between these families follows: