APPENDIX II
TRACING PERSONAL ARMS IN VARIOUS COUNTRIES
This appendix complements chapter IV and closely relates to the works listed in the section “Researching ancestral arms” of the bibliography at the end this guide. All the web sites quoted here have been accessed on 24 September 2015.
England
As for any other country, the first step in a search for arms is to produce one’s genealogy. For some families, a genealogy has been published or put together by a more or less distant relative, and this should be a first thing to check. If there is a genealogical association or society in your area, province or territory, it would be useful to get in touch with them in order to benefit from the experience of those already labouring in the field. The object is to trace one’s ancestry as far back as one can go in England itself before searching for ancestral armorial bearings.
When the genealogy is sufficiently advanced, one should explore such works as Burke’s General Armory, Burke’s Landed Gentry (the 16th edition of which is devoted to American families of British origin), A.C. Fox-Davies’ Armorial Families, and for titled families, Burke’s Peerage and Debrett’s Peerage. With some luck, you may be able to tie your own lineage with one in these works. If not, you may decide that going further is not reasonable, or you may choose to approach the College of Arms with the documentation you have assembled.
For English families, the existence of ancestral arms eventually has to be confirmed by the College of Arms, which is a self-funding institution and, therefore, charges a fee for its research. This makes it all the more important to approach the College with as much and as well-documented genealogical information as you can find. If you have found anything pointing to the possibility of ancestral arms, this should be included as well. This information may come from various sources such as heraldic books, genealogies, bookplates, seals, rings, silverware, or letterheads. Should you be successful in having ancestral arms confirmed by the College of Arms, the Chief Herald of Canada would normally be able to register these arms or grant them with proper marks of difference.
Scotland
Though there are many works published on Scottish clans, the arms associated with a clan are usually those of the clan chief. The arms of other clan members usually have elements linking them to those of the chief, but with suitable differences to make them specific to one individual. Members of the clan are entitled to wear the clan badge. The arms that have been matriculated in Scotland are found in Sir James Balfour Paul, An Ordinary of Arms contained in the Public Register of all Arms and Bearings in Scotland, Edinburgh: William Green & Sons, 1893 (2nd ed. 1903), and David Reid of Robertland, and Vivien Wilson, An Ordinary of Arms contained in the Public Register of all Arms and Bearings in Scotland, 1902–1973, vol. 2, Edinburgh: Lyon Office, 1977. If your name does not appear in these volumes, there is almost no chance that you are entitled to ancestral Scottish arms, though there are cases where names have changed over the years. Any claim to arms would again be based on genealogy, but it is important to remember that arms have to be matriculated at every generation in Scotland. Unless you have the actual matriculation document in your name, a claim to Scottish ancestral arms would have to be confirmed by the Court of the Lord Lyon with suitable individual differences.
Ireland
In the Republic of Ireland, Dr. Edward MacLysaght, first Chief Herald of Ireland, accepted that arms could belong to a clan or sept. He further stated that it would be acceptable for a descendant of a clan to display the arms on a plaque to indicate lineage. But he also stressed that such arms are collective and should not to be used as a personal mark. A somewhat similar situation is found in Canada when arms are granted to family associations as corporate bodies. The association may allow members to display its arms, but they should never use these as personal or family arms, though inevitably some individuals will do just that.
Of course, as for other heraldic repositories, the Chief Herald of Ireland cannot search for ancestral arms without having in hand your genealogy going back to the place of origin in Ireland. Sir Bernard Burke's Genealogical and heraldic history of the landed gentry of Ireland (1958) is an important work for Ireland as it also contains considerable genealogical information. There are a number of other works available such as Edward MacLysaght’s Irish Families (4th ed. 1985) and More Irish Families (1982), and John Grenham, Clans and Families of Ireland (1993). The Norroy and Ulster King of Arms of the College of Arms in London has heraldic jurisdiction over Ulster since 1943.
France
A person whose ancestor immigrated to New France has to discover precisely where the ancestor came from. This is important because it allows more focussed research. For families of French descent in Canada and the United States, the genealogical resources available are enormous and it is possible for almost everyone to find their municipality or parish of origin. This is often available on web sites such as: http://www.fichierorigine.com/ ― http://www.genealogysearch.org/canada/quebec.html ― http://www.marcel-fournier.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=161:top-10-sites-gratuits&catid=83:genealogie&Itemid=466 ― http://genealogiequebec.info/frames.html ― http://www.francogene.com/gfan/gfan/998/ and http://www.nosorigines.qc.ca/.
During the period of New France, names frequently changed in favour of nicknames that were added to the original names. Variances in these names are found in Dictionnaire des familles du Québec by René Jetté and Répertoire des noms de famille du Québec, des origines à 1825 by Micheline Lécuyer. Both works are listed on the site http://www.genealogycenter.org/pathfinders/guides/frenchcanadian.aspx along with other genealogical works.
It is also helpful to know whether the ancestor was a noble or a commoner because the chance of having arms is greater for nobles. An important publication to consult in this respect is Yves Drolet, Dictionnaire généalogique et héraldique de la noblesse canadienne française du XVIIe au XIXe siècle, 2010 http://www.shrt.qc.ca/PDF/DGHNCF-Juin%202010.pdf. His work is all the more important that it provides considerable genealogical information. Other online resources by the same author are: Genealogical Tables of the Quebec Noblesse from the 17th to the 19th Century http://www.shrt.qc.ca/PDF/20070317.pdf and Bibliographie de la noblesse canadienne, acadienne et louisianaise (XVIIe – XXe siècle) http://www.anciennesfamilles.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/01/Biblio-noblesse.pdf. The following site is also well worth consulting: http://habitant.org/tools/noblebib.htm. No arms are known for a number of New France settlers reputed to be nobles, and this seems to warrant further research. Only 181 families formed the basis of French Canadian nobility, which was always less than 4% of the total population (Lorraine Gadoury, La noblesse de la Nouvelle-France, pp. 155, 161-65).
One of the armorials often quoted for arms going back to New France is Édouard-Zotique Massicotte and Régis Roy, Armorial du Canada français. Both volumes can be consulted online at https://archive.org/details/armorialducanada00massuoft and https://archive.org/details/armorialducanada02massuoft. Unfortunately Massicotte and Roy’s work is not entirely reliable. Some of the corrections to previously accepted arms are found in the journal Heraldry in Canada / L’Héraldique au Canada for which an index from volumes 1 to 40 was published by Ian Campbell (1966-2006); see the bibliography.
Another thing to know is whether the ancestor arrived in New France prior or after the edict of 1696 which lasted until 1709 and made obligatory the registration of the arms of nobles as well bourgeois, even some of modest means. If the ancestor came here during or after those dates, chances are better that he registered arms in the Armorial général de France. Some 115,000 persons registered arms in comparison to a population of 21,000,000 which means that a little less than 5.5% of the French population registered their family emblem at that time. On the other hand, the arms were normally registered by a senior member of the family which meant that a great many other relatives could be entitled to the registered arms. Arms were not always differenced because the decision to impose distinctive marks depended on the head of the household (chef du nom et des armes) who was heir to the undifferenced arms.
The original volumes of the Armorial general, both the manuscript and coloured depictions, can be easily accessed on the site http://habitant.org/tools/agf.htm or https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Armorial_g%C3%A9n%C3%A9ral_de_France. To consult the correct volume, the place of origin of the ancestor must be known. Many of the names in the manuscript volumes are well identified, but others lack sufficient information for a positive identification. Sometimes the arms of both husband and wife are side by side, which makes identification easier. A number of entries are those of widows, and personal arms are sometimes intermingled with corporate ones of all sorts.
The Armorial général has been published in several editions which provide clear heraldic descriptions. To discover where the arms are found in the published format, a two volume index (indicateur) can be consulted at http://gallica.bnf.fr/ark:/12148/bpt6k940076 and http://gallica.bnf.fr/ark:/12148/bpt6k6138505j. The actual armorial is also found on Gallica in four volumes that can be accessed by region on the site https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Armorial_g%C3%A9n%C3%A9ral_de_France. In spite of the existence of an index, finding the actual entry in the armorial can still be complicated. Also it is preferable to consult later editions because they contain both blazons and substantial genealogical information. Many are now available on Google Books https://books.google.ca/books/about/Armorial_general.html?id=724-AQAAIAAJ&redir_esc=y. There exists a more recent publication, Louis Pierre d' Hozier, Antoine Marie d' Hozier de Sérigny, Gerald de Eynde, Armorial général ou Registres de la noblesse de France (Paris : Éditions du Palais Royal, 1970) published in 8 volumes. It is a facsimile of the edition of Firmin Didot frères, 1865-1908. Vol. 8 by G. de Eynde, titled Nouvelle table générale, is a new comprehensive index.
Other important general armorials are J. B. Rietstap’s Armorial général, which is online on several sites, for instance http://www.coats-of-arms-heraldry.com/armoriaux/rietstap.html or Henri Jougla de Morenas, Grand armorial de France in seven volumes available on this site http://palisep.fr/bibliotheque/index.php?livre=jougla.
More specialized sources for ancestral French arms are the regional armorials that have been drawn up for the provinces of France. Napoleon converted the old provinces into departments, but an armorial relating to a department, or several departments, will contain arms going prior to the Napoleonic era. There are also armorials for larger cities, some institutions and families. The easiest way to find regional armorials for France is to consult Michel Popoff, Bibliographie héraldique internationale (http://sfhs.free.fr/documents/biblio_internationale.pdf), pp. 167-86 for regions, pp. 144-86 for the whole country. Another important regional bibliography is found in de Boos, Chatenet and Davy, Les armoiries: lecture et identification, pp. 87-95. Regional armorials are also listed in Gaston Saffroy, Bibliographie généalogique et héraldique, vol. 2 and 5. When doing research in these sources, it should be kept in mind that some works relate to the arms municipalities or regions, not to those of persons.
Getting your hands on these specialized woks is not necessarily easy, though a number of them are being reprinted and some are available for purchase or can be found in libraries. A source of digitalized armorials for France is http://gallica.bnf.fr. Others are now available on CD-ROM. One can also search AMICUS, a free national catalogue listing the holdings held at Library and Archives Canada as well as those located in over 1300 libraries across Canada: http://www.bac-lac.gc.ca/eng/services/amicus/Pages/about-amicus.aspx. Some of these works are available by interlibrary loan. It is also possible to get in touch with heraldic circles, clubs or associations on the internet by typing one of the following words société, association, cercle, club, followed by héraldique and the name of the province, department or city of origin in France.
Proving one’s right to ancestral arms is another matter. Although France has allowed arms to be adopted freely, the majority of armigerous immigrants from France to America belonged to the nobility, as we have mentioned. A few families have claimed bourgeois arms, and further research should in time bring more of these to light. As stated in chapter 4: “A sound attitude is to get involved for genealogical reasons, and hope that the research will lead to the discovery of arms that one can claim.”
Other countries
Heraldic systems in Europe vary from one country to another. If you know the language of the country of origin of your ancestor, you will be able to find works in that language and to contact experts, associations, libraries and archives in the ancestral homeland. For those working in English only, it might be helpful to read L.G. Pine’s International Heraldry, although the work is becoming outdated. A Canadian author is Hans D. Birk, whose publication, Birk’s Armorial Heritage in Canada, reflects an effort to document the armorial bearings of many families of European origin (other than France and the United Kingdom) now living in Canada.
Many resources are now available on the internet where international bibliographies are becoming increasingly numerous, for instance, on this site http://www.heraldica.org/biblio/annotate.htm. Michel Popoff`s international bibliography is in French but is not difficult to consult as it is arranged by countries and is online: Bibliographie héraldique internationale (http://sfhs.free.fr/documents/biblio_internationale.pdf). As mentioned earlier, many armorials are now available on CD-ROM, while others can be located on the AMICUS site http://www.bac-lac.gc.ca/eng/services/amicus/Pages/about-amicus.aspx and may be available through interlibrary loan.
Most countries with a heraldry tradition have heraldry societies. For instance, when I combined heraldry society with Ukraine, I found the site of the Ukrainian Heraldry Society http://uht.org.ua/en/ where I came upon both an email and postal address. In doing this type of research, it is helpful to combine the words heraldry with genealogy. Using both words, I encountered the site of the Toronto Ukrainian Genealogy Group, which has an interest in heraldry http://www.torugg.org/. Ukrainian heraldry has a very complex history (http://heraldry.com.ua/index.php3?lang=E&context=info&id=1346), which exemplifies the need to get in touch with specialists in the field.
In countries like Poland and Hungary, most arms belong to family groups, and families of different names can bear the same arms. But situations can be even more complex. Some of the names are derived from the estates or domains owned by members of a particular clan. For this reason and other historical factors, families belonging to different clans can have the same name and bear different arms. Polish heraldry does not view arms as belonging to families or clans, but families or clans as belonging to a coat of arms. Again it is important to seek advice and guidance of experts who have an in depth knowledge of the heraldry of a specific ethnicity.
Canada
The situation in Canada is described in chapter IV of this guide. Canadian reference works are listed in the bibliography at the end of the guide.
The United States
The United States never possessed a government service to officially grant arms. Personal arms came from Europe or were assumed or created by individuals or various bodies acting on their own. Given these circumstances, the work of such organizations as the American College of Heraldry (http://www.americancollegeofheraldry.org/ ) is noteworthy, both for the preservation of historical heraldry and for introducing more discipline into newly created emblems. There are a number of works relating specifically to American arms. These are listed in the bibliography on the site of the American Heraldry Society http://www.americanheraldry.org/pages/index.php?n=Books.Bibliography and in the bibliography at the end to this guide.
England
As for any other country, the first step in a search for arms is to produce one’s genealogy. For some families, a genealogy has been published or put together by a more or less distant relative, and this should be a first thing to check. If there is a genealogical association or society in your area, province or territory, it would be useful to get in touch with them in order to benefit from the experience of those already labouring in the field. The object is to trace one’s ancestry as far back as one can go in England itself before searching for ancestral armorial bearings.
When the genealogy is sufficiently advanced, one should explore such works as Burke’s General Armory, Burke’s Landed Gentry (the 16th edition of which is devoted to American families of British origin), A.C. Fox-Davies’ Armorial Families, and for titled families, Burke’s Peerage and Debrett’s Peerage. With some luck, you may be able to tie your own lineage with one in these works. If not, you may decide that going further is not reasonable, or you may choose to approach the College of Arms with the documentation you have assembled.
For English families, the existence of ancestral arms eventually has to be confirmed by the College of Arms, which is a self-funding institution and, therefore, charges a fee for its research. This makes it all the more important to approach the College with as much and as well-documented genealogical information as you can find. If you have found anything pointing to the possibility of ancestral arms, this should be included as well. This information may come from various sources such as heraldic books, genealogies, bookplates, seals, rings, silverware, or letterheads. Should you be successful in having ancestral arms confirmed by the College of Arms, the Chief Herald of Canada would normally be able to register these arms or grant them with proper marks of difference.
Scotland
Though there are many works published on Scottish clans, the arms associated with a clan are usually those of the clan chief. The arms of other clan members usually have elements linking them to those of the chief, but with suitable differences to make them specific to one individual. Members of the clan are entitled to wear the clan badge. The arms that have been matriculated in Scotland are found in Sir James Balfour Paul, An Ordinary of Arms contained in the Public Register of all Arms and Bearings in Scotland, Edinburgh: William Green & Sons, 1893 (2nd ed. 1903), and David Reid of Robertland, and Vivien Wilson, An Ordinary of Arms contained in the Public Register of all Arms and Bearings in Scotland, 1902–1973, vol. 2, Edinburgh: Lyon Office, 1977. If your name does not appear in these volumes, there is almost no chance that you are entitled to ancestral Scottish arms, though there are cases where names have changed over the years. Any claim to arms would again be based on genealogy, but it is important to remember that arms have to be matriculated at every generation in Scotland. Unless you have the actual matriculation document in your name, a claim to Scottish ancestral arms would have to be confirmed by the Court of the Lord Lyon with suitable individual differences.
Ireland
In the Republic of Ireland, Dr. Edward MacLysaght, first Chief Herald of Ireland, accepted that arms could belong to a clan or sept. He further stated that it would be acceptable for a descendant of a clan to display the arms on a plaque to indicate lineage. But he also stressed that such arms are collective and should not to be used as a personal mark. A somewhat similar situation is found in Canada when arms are granted to family associations as corporate bodies. The association may allow members to display its arms, but they should never use these as personal or family arms, though inevitably some individuals will do just that.
Of course, as for other heraldic repositories, the Chief Herald of Ireland cannot search for ancestral arms without having in hand your genealogy going back to the place of origin in Ireland. Sir Bernard Burke's Genealogical and heraldic history of the landed gentry of Ireland (1958) is an important work for Ireland as it also contains considerable genealogical information. There are a number of other works available such as Edward MacLysaght’s Irish Families (4th ed. 1985) and More Irish Families (1982), and John Grenham, Clans and Families of Ireland (1993). The Norroy and Ulster King of Arms of the College of Arms in London has heraldic jurisdiction over Ulster since 1943.
France
A person whose ancestor immigrated to New France has to discover precisely where the ancestor came from. This is important because it allows more focussed research. For families of French descent in Canada and the United States, the genealogical resources available are enormous and it is possible for almost everyone to find their municipality or parish of origin. This is often available on web sites such as: http://www.fichierorigine.com/ ― http://www.genealogysearch.org/canada/quebec.html ― http://www.marcel-fournier.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=161:top-10-sites-gratuits&catid=83:genealogie&Itemid=466 ― http://genealogiequebec.info/frames.html ― http://www.francogene.com/gfan/gfan/998/ and http://www.nosorigines.qc.ca/.
During the period of New France, names frequently changed in favour of nicknames that were added to the original names. Variances in these names are found in Dictionnaire des familles du Québec by René Jetté and Répertoire des noms de famille du Québec, des origines à 1825 by Micheline Lécuyer. Both works are listed on the site http://www.genealogycenter.org/pathfinders/guides/frenchcanadian.aspx along with other genealogical works.
It is also helpful to know whether the ancestor was a noble or a commoner because the chance of having arms is greater for nobles. An important publication to consult in this respect is Yves Drolet, Dictionnaire généalogique et héraldique de la noblesse canadienne française du XVIIe au XIXe siècle, 2010 http://www.shrt.qc.ca/PDF/DGHNCF-Juin%202010.pdf. His work is all the more important that it provides considerable genealogical information. Other online resources by the same author are: Genealogical Tables of the Quebec Noblesse from the 17th to the 19th Century http://www.shrt.qc.ca/PDF/20070317.pdf and Bibliographie de la noblesse canadienne, acadienne et louisianaise (XVIIe – XXe siècle) http://www.anciennesfamilles.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/01/Biblio-noblesse.pdf. The following site is also well worth consulting: http://habitant.org/tools/noblebib.htm. No arms are known for a number of New France settlers reputed to be nobles, and this seems to warrant further research. Only 181 families formed the basis of French Canadian nobility, which was always less than 4% of the total population (Lorraine Gadoury, La noblesse de la Nouvelle-France, pp. 155, 161-65).
One of the armorials often quoted for arms going back to New France is Édouard-Zotique Massicotte and Régis Roy, Armorial du Canada français. Both volumes can be consulted online at https://archive.org/details/armorialducanada00massuoft and https://archive.org/details/armorialducanada02massuoft. Unfortunately Massicotte and Roy’s work is not entirely reliable. Some of the corrections to previously accepted arms are found in the journal Heraldry in Canada / L’Héraldique au Canada for which an index from volumes 1 to 40 was published by Ian Campbell (1966-2006); see the bibliography.
Another thing to know is whether the ancestor arrived in New France prior or after the edict of 1696 which lasted until 1709 and made obligatory the registration of the arms of nobles as well bourgeois, even some of modest means. If the ancestor came here during or after those dates, chances are better that he registered arms in the Armorial général de France. Some 115,000 persons registered arms in comparison to a population of 21,000,000 which means that a little less than 5.5% of the French population registered their family emblem at that time. On the other hand, the arms were normally registered by a senior member of the family which meant that a great many other relatives could be entitled to the registered arms. Arms were not always differenced because the decision to impose distinctive marks depended on the head of the household (chef du nom et des armes) who was heir to the undifferenced arms.
The original volumes of the Armorial general, both the manuscript and coloured depictions, can be easily accessed on the site http://habitant.org/tools/agf.htm or https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Armorial_g%C3%A9n%C3%A9ral_de_France. To consult the correct volume, the place of origin of the ancestor must be known. Many of the names in the manuscript volumes are well identified, but others lack sufficient information for a positive identification. Sometimes the arms of both husband and wife are side by side, which makes identification easier. A number of entries are those of widows, and personal arms are sometimes intermingled with corporate ones of all sorts.
The Armorial général has been published in several editions which provide clear heraldic descriptions. To discover where the arms are found in the published format, a two volume index (indicateur) can be consulted at http://gallica.bnf.fr/ark:/12148/bpt6k940076 and http://gallica.bnf.fr/ark:/12148/bpt6k6138505j. The actual armorial is also found on Gallica in four volumes that can be accessed by region on the site https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Armorial_g%C3%A9n%C3%A9ral_de_France. In spite of the existence of an index, finding the actual entry in the armorial can still be complicated. Also it is preferable to consult later editions because they contain both blazons and substantial genealogical information. Many are now available on Google Books https://books.google.ca/books/about/Armorial_general.html?id=724-AQAAIAAJ&redir_esc=y. There exists a more recent publication, Louis Pierre d' Hozier, Antoine Marie d' Hozier de Sérigny, Gerald de Eynde, Armorial général ou Registres de la noblesse de France (Paris : Éditions du Palais Royal, 1970) published in 8 volumes. It is a facsimile of the edition of Firmin Didot frères, 1865-1908. Vol. 8 by G. de Eynde, titled Nouvelle table générale, is a new comprehensive index.
Other important general armorials are J. B. Rietstap’s Armorial général, which is online on several sites, for instance http://www.coats-of-arms-heraldry.com/armoriaux/rietstap.html or Henri Jougla de Morenas, Grand armorial de France in seven volumes available on this site http://palisep.fr/bibliotheque/index.php?livre=jougla.
More specialized sources for ancestral French arms are the regional armorials that have been drawn up for the provinces of France. Napoleon converted the old provinces into departments, but an armorial relating to a department, or several departments, will contain arms going prior to the Napoleonic era. There are also armorials for larger cities, some institutions and families. The easiest way to find regional armorials for France is to consult Michel Popoff, Bibliographie héraldique internationale (http://sfhs.free.fr/documents/biblio_internationale.pdf), pp. 167-86 for regions, pp. 144-86 for the whole country. Another important regional bibliography is found in de Boos, Chatenet and Davy, Les armoiries: lecture et identification, pp. 87-95. Regional armorials are also listed in Gaston Saffroy, Bibliographie généalogique et héraldique, vol. 2 and 5. When doing research in these sources, it should be kept in mind that some works relate to the arms municipalities or regions, not to those of persons.
Getting your hands on these specialized woks is not necessarily easy, though a number of them are being reprinted and some are available for purchase or can be found in libraries. A source of digitalized armorials for France is http://gallica.bnf.fr. Others are now available on CD-ROM. One can also search AMICUS, a free national catalogue listing the holdings held at Library and Archives Canada as well as those located in over 1300 libraries across Canada: http://www.bac-lac.gc.ca/eng/services/amicus/Pages/about-amicus.aspx. Some of these works are available by interlibrary loan. It is also possible to get in touch with heraldic circles, clubs or associations on the internet by typing one of the following words société, association, cercle, club, followed by héraldique and the name of the province, department or city of origin in France.
Proving one’s right to ancestral arms is another matter. Although France has allowed arms to be adopted freely, the majority of armigerous immigrants from France to America belonged to the nobility, as we have mentioned. A few families have claimed bourgeois arms, and further research should in time bring more of these to light. As stated in chapter 4: “A sound attitude is to get involved for genealogical reasons, and hope that the research will lead to the discovery of arms that one can claim.”
Other countries
Heraldic systems in Europe vary from one country to another. If you know the language of the country of origin of your ancestor, you will be able to find works in that language and to contact experts, associations, libraries and archives in the ancestral homeland. For those working in English only, it might be helpful to read L.G. Pine’s International Heraldry, although the work is becoming outdated. A Canadian author is Hans D. Birk, whose publication, Birk’s Armorial Heritage in Canada, reflects an effort to document the armorial bearings of many families of European origin (other than France and the United Kingdom) now living in Canada.
Many resources are now available on the internet where international bibliographies are becoming increasingly numerous, for instance, on this site http://www.heraldica.org/biblio/annotate.htm. Michel Popoff`s international bibliography is in French but is not difficult to consult as it is arranged by countries and is online: Bibliographie héraldique internationale (http://sfhs.free.fr/documents/biblio_internationale.pdf). As mentioned earlier, many armorials are now available on CD-ROM, while others can be located on the AMICUS site http://www.bac-lac.gc.ca/eng/services/amicus/Pages/about-amicus.aspx and may be available through interlibrary loan.
Most countries with a heraldry tradition have heraldry societies. For instance, when I combined heraldry society with Ukraine, I found the site of the Ukrainian Heraldry Society http://uht.org.ua/en/ where I came upon both an email and postal address. In doing this type of research, it is helpful to combine the words heraldry with genealogy. Using both words, I encountered the site of the Toronto Ukrainian Genealogy Group, which has an interest in heraldry http://www.torugg.org/. Ukrainian heraldry has a very complex history (http://heraldry.com.ua/index.php3?lang=E&context=info&id=1346), which exemplifies the need to get in touch with specialists in the field.
In countries like Poland and Hungary, most arms belong to family groups, and families of different names can bear the same arms. But situations can be even more complex. Some of the names are derived from the estates or domains owned by members of a particular clan. For this reason and other historical factors, families belonging to different clans can have the same name and bear different arms. Polish heraldry does not view arms as belonging to families or clans, but families or clans as belonging to a coat of arms. Again it is important to seek advice and guidance of experts who have an in depth knowledge of the heraldry of a specific ethnicity.
Canada
The situation in Canada is described in chapter IV of this guide. Canadian reference works are listed in the bibliography at the end of the guide.
The United States
The United States never possessed a government service to officially grant arms. Personal arms came from Europe or were assumed or created by individuals or various bodies acting on their own. Given these circumstances, the work of such organizations as the American College of Heraldry (http://www.americancollegeofheraldry.org/ ) is noteworthy, both for the preservation of historical heraldry and for introducing more discipline into newly created emblems. There are a number of works relating specifically to American arms. These are listed in the bibliography on the site of the American Heraldry Society http://www.americanheraldry.org/pages/index.php?n=Books.Bibliography and in the bibliography at the end to this guide.
****
Although the web can provide a great deal of sound information, it also contains many advertisements with misleading notions. This has been dealt with in chapter II under the section “The World of Bogus Heraldry.” Specialized and reputable sites can be recognized as one gains experience in the field. In countries that do not have an official body to regulate arms, as is the case in the United States, it is often heraldry societies or similar organizations that take on the task of preserving heraldic heritage and making sure that new arms being created are recorded and comply with heraldic rules. In the absence of a state institution, their work is of paramount importance.
Tracing ancestral arms may prove fairly easy in some cases, but usually will require a great deal of research. One should approach this exercise as a challenge, keeping in mind that rather few families have ancestral arms. Research will no doubt uncover interesting information, but not necessarily arms that can be claimed. Some of the statements in this appendix may remain valid for many years, but others will age quickly as more and more information becomes available through modern means of communication.
Tracing ancestral arms may prove fairly easy in some cases, but usually will require a great deal of research. One should approach this exercise as a challenge, keeping in mind that rather few families have ancestral arms. Research will no doubt uncover interesting information, but not necessarily arms that can be claimed. Some of the statements in this appendix may remain valid for many years, but others will age quickly as more and more information becomes available through modern means of communication.