William Montague, I

William Montague was born in 1485 in Buckingham, Berkshire, England and died on 21 Mar 1555 in Boveney, Buckinghamshire, England.

Parents: Robert, Yeoman de Montague. He was born about 1455 in Boveney Parish, Berkshire, England and died in 1520. The name of his wife is not known.

n.b. some sources say Elizabeth de Bohun but the dates don't match correctly.

Married:

1. in 1513 to Joan (Jone) Grow, b: 1489 in Wardville, Berkshire, England. Her parents are not known.

Children of William Montague and Joan Grow:

1. Alice Montague born 1517 in Boveney Parish, Berkshire, England and died 1607 in England.
2. Katherine Montague was born 1519 in Boveney Parish, Berkshire, England
3. William Mountague, of Bray, was born before 1527 in in Boveney Parish, Berkshire, England. He was the father of William Montague of Waldeston (Waddeston).
4. Robert Montague, of Boveny, was born 1528 in Boveney Parish, Burnham, Buckingham, England. He died on 16 Jan 1576 in Boveney, Berkshire, England. He married Margaret Cotton and they had six children: William Montague of Boveney, Catherine, a daughter, Agnes, Joan and Lawrence.

Will

• from: House of Montague - History of Peter Montague
  

Here, reprinted with permission from The New England Historical and Genealogical Register, Vol. 142, p. 152, of Ms. Hydes' article are the contents of that will:

"A photocopy of the original has been procured (Buckingham Record Office, Archdeaconry of Buckinghamshire Wills, March 1550/1).

Dated 16 March 1550/1 and probated 21 March 1550/1, it calls him "Will'm Mountaguewe the Elder of Boveney in the p'r'she of Burnh'm, Fyssherman." "Will'm Mountaguewe of Bray my eldyst sonne" was to receive the messuage at Bray where he was living, over the river northwestward in Berkshire. "Jone my wyffe duringe her lyffe" was to have the family dwelling in Boveney with ten acres and another lease of land. "Robt'e Mountagewe my yongist Sonne" was eventually to have Jone's legacy and also a messuage called "Durdants w't syxtene akers of arable lande medowe & pasture" that William had purchased. William additionally named daughters Alice and Katherine. Executors were to be his wife Jone and "Robt' Mountague my youngiste sonne, Robt'e noneage [a minor]."

Overseers were to be Thomas Grow and "Robt'e Mountagewe of Bovney." As William's son Robert was a minor in 1551, he cannot be the Robert born about 1505. Probably the overseer Robert Montague of Boveney was the Robert born about 1505. Possibly he was William's brother."

Caution

• from: http://genforum.genealogy.com/montague/messages/862.html
  

If you are descended from the Peter Montague of Virginia, or Richard Montague of Hadley Mass. then the coat of arms for this line is The Montague of Boveney & Dorney, Buckinghamshire, England.

A descent back to Drogo de Montacuto for the Skiles Fielding Montague Branch, this line of descent has finally been officially disproved. The earliest ancestor that the American line of Montague's can claim is Robert Montague born 1528, married to Margaret Cotton. The Montagu Earls of Salisbury line is extinct in the male line, and any possible female descent to any present day American Montague became extinct with the death of the de la Pole family in the mid 16th century.

Notes

William Montague was the ancestor of the American family. The parish of Burnham, Buckinghamshire was a hamlet on the Thames, just above Eton College and twenty-three miles from London. Burnham Parish "was divided into five districts called 'liberties,' namely Brightwell, Cippenham, Boveney, Wood and East Burnham. After the dissolution of Monasteries by Henry VIII., Boveney was united to the Paules of Braywick. It appears to have been well wooded with trees as it is recorded that much of the timber for building Eton College mostly Elm was obtained there, and at a later date, Lipscombe says 'The woods of Boveney were sufficient for 60 hogs, there was land for one team which was kept there, with one Villein (farmer) and a caracate of pasture which was estimated always at 10 shillings.'"

"From the year 1500 to the year 1550, two brothers lived in the County of Buckingham and Parish of Burnham, England. Their names were William Montague and John Montague. William was the elder brother."

"His will was proved March 21, 1550."

His children were:

1. William Montague (of Bray), whose son was William Montague of Waldeston, Bucks;
2. Robert;
3. Alice; 4. Katherine.

[HISTORY AND GENEALOGY OF THE MONTAGUE FAMILY OF AMERICA compiled by George L. Montague, 1886: Amherst, MA, Press of J.E. Williams, p. 27-8]

aka: William B. Montague [Bill Crawford - crawfolk@comcastnet - who gives one source as: GENEALOGICAL AND PERSONAL MEMOIRS OF WORCHESTER COUNTY by Ellery Bicknell Crane, The Lewis Publishing Co., 1907, Vol. 1, p. 490]

"The Boveney family bear the Arms of Sir Simon Montague of A.D. 1300, which Arms were also borne by his son, Lord William Montacute, and by his grandson the first Earl of Salisbury. Heraldry, or more properly Armory, is the short hand of History, its purpose was to identify persons and property and to record descent and alliance; only the members of a particular family can lawfully bear certain armorial ensigns, and the various branches of even that family have their separate differences to distinguish one from the other.

"The Boveney family bear the same name as the descendants of Drogo."

"While that portion of the Pedigree from Drogo down to the first Earl of Salisbury was obtained through the researches of the writer, the other portion from William Montague, whose will was proved A.D. 1550, down to Richard and Peter who went to America, was obtained by Mr. Wm. H. Montague of Boston--one of the founders, and for many years Secretary of the New England Historical and Genealogical Society, to whose early labors, in behalf of this work, which date back as far as 1847, the American family must ever be indebted. For he employed at considerable expense H.G. Somerby, Esq., an eminent genealogist, and an American resident in London, who made verbatim copy of the Pedigree of this family from 1550 from the Records in the Herald's College, London, and also went to Boveney, Buckinghamshire, and compared and copied the Parish Records, thus bringing the pedigree down to the year 1634."

[HISTORY AND GENEALOGY OF THE MONTAGUE FAMILY OF AMERICA compiled by George L. Montague, 1886: Amherst, MA, Press of J.E. Williams, pp. 30-1]

The above information is all gathered from Rootsweb.com.

This is from the Wikipedia article on the Montacute family, which ended with Thomas Montacute (1388-1428):

"He (Thomas) married twice, first to Eleanor Holland, and second to Alice Chaucer, daughter of Thomas Chaucer and granddaughter of Geoffrey Chaucer. His only legitimate child was a daughter from the first marriage, Alice, who married Richard Neville. Neville succeeded his father-in-law as earl." The succeeding generations were called Neville.

The problem encountered is what happens between Sir Thomas Montacute in 1428 and William Montague in 1485. As mentioned above, the family in this tree goes here to William and they apparently bear some relation to the Earls of Salisbury, or at least to their ancestors, but at this time the link is not found.

Coat of Arms

• from: http://wc.rootsweb.ancestry.com/cgi-bin/igm.cgi?op=GET&db=rootseeke...
  

It will be noticed that the arms of the Boveney family are the same as the arms of Sir Simon Montacute who signed the Baron's letter (compare plates of both arms), except that to the former there have been added three ogresses.

The ogresses may have been added for difference in family, or they may (as it has been expressed by a gentleman in London who bears the name) have been added to mark some deed done at some time, such as a large donation of land to the church, as the church at Boveney bears such a record.

Perhaps they may have been added as a part of the maternal arms of William Montague, son of Robert, for his mother was Margaret, dau. of Roger Cotton. And the Arms of one family of Cotton were, "Argent a bend Sable between three ogresses."

Whatever may have been the origin of these pellets, the fact still remains, that the Boveney family bear the Arms of Sir Simon Montague of A. D. 1300, which Arms were also borne by his son lord William Montacute and by his grandson the first Earl of Salisbury.

Heraldry, or more properly Armory, is the short hand of History, its purpose was to identify persons and property and to record descent and alliance. Hundreds of persons may be entitled to the same initials, may possess precisely the same names; but only the members of a particular family can lawfully bear certain armorial ensigns, and the various branches of even that family have their separate differences to distinguish one from the other.

The Boveney family bear the same name as the descendants of Drogo.
They were residing in A. D. 1500 in the same locality and county of England where the descendants of Drogo had held possession and manors in A. D. 1400 and for centuries before.

They bear the same Arms which alone would seem to silently but surely denote that they are a branch of the same family. Where and when the separation took place is not known, but it would seem probable that the Boveney branch left the main stem, after the year 1300 and before the year 1400, or between those dates, for their Coat of Arms was not in existence until adopted by Sir Simon Montacute A. D. 1300, and had they separated previous to that date, their Arms should have been "Azure a griffin segreant, Or." Again the Arms of the Montagues, after A. D. 1400, who were descended from the 3d Earl of Salisbury, have been quartered with those of the Monthermers, which were "an eagle displayed, vert," while the Boveney branch retains the ancient shield of Sir Simon Montacute (1301).

There are several places where such separation seerns possible:
At Simon (9th generation from Drogo), who married Hawise de St. Amand and had a son William Montague. Again at the third and youngest son of the first Earl of Salisbury, namely Robert Montague, of whose history nothing has been found.

The pedigree is clear and perfect from the American branch (1634) back to A. D. 1500 and lacks (from there) two generations, possibly three, to make a perfect record back to the conquest of England, A. D. 1066.