PLEASE HAVE PATIENCE. THIS IS A BIG PICTURE!
The version at top left is from "the Albro Scroll", copyright © 1999 The
Hall of Names, Inc. The one at top right came from Designs of Wonder,
© On-Line Publishing. The one at the bottom left is from Burke's General
Armoury, Vol.1, p.9, as cited in "The World Book of Albros", © 1991 by
Halbert's Family Heritage. The one at bottom right is also from Burke (loc.cit.)
What's this? How can a family have four coats of arms?!? Is one the right picture and the others wrong? Why are there odd spellings? What's going on?
First you have to avoid a common confusion - confusing "family" with "surname." The companies that want to sell you a coat of arms scroll, plaque, coffee mug or lunchbox would like for you to believe that any coat of arms originally born by someone with your surname is your family's coat of arms and something you can claim. Moreover, they will present that same coat of arms for any number of names that sound more or less alike, calling them "spelling variants." The surnames above are those cited in Burke's Armoury, but those designs have also been sold with the banners labeled "ALBRO." The reality is, the only historic coat of arms of any relevance to you is one that was born by one of your direct ancestors or, in Gaelic countries, a leader of your clan. Next reality check - what are the odds that someone you never heard of, from seven or eight centuries ago, whose surname resembles yours, was in fact one of your direct ancestors? The odds are too low to measure. Under those circumstances, if you can not trace yourself back to the original bearer of a given coat of arms, buying objects with that design is buying a decoration. If that's all you want, fine.
A Coat of Arms is very similar to a registered trademark for an individual (the "armiger."). It may have been awarded to a knight for valor on the battlefield, or simply designed by an individual and registered with an official Heraldry "agency" (or the medieval equivalent.) Thomas Woodcock and John Martin Robinson, The Oxford Guide to Heraldry, Oxford University Press, 1988, suggest that it was much more likely that the depiction of arms on a shield was a form of individual vanity rather than a practical military device. Further, they declare that "in the early days, most coats of arms were assumed by the bearers and not 'granted' by any authority."
This "trademark" may wind up being used as a sign on its owner's tavern for the benefit of its customers who can't read (practically everyone at the time coats of arms began), a decoration on the shield of a knight to identify him and terrify his enemies (if he has a big reputation), whatever. Many of the coats of arms around today were never authorized or registered until generations after they were first used, just as many people don't bother to officially register copyrights and company logos.
Whenever a new Knight appeared at a Tournament, the herald sounded the trumpet, and as the competitors attended with closed visors, it was his duty to explain the bearing of the shield or coat-armour belonging to each. This knowledge of the various devices and symbols was called Heraldry, and as the announcement was accompanied with the sound of a trumpet, it was termed “blazoning the arms.” (Burke, Bernard, The General Armory of England, Scotland, Ireland, and Wales, Heritage Books, Inc., 1996.)
The official, written description of the coat of arms is called the "blazon of arms." Much of the printed design for a given coat of arms is more the artist's preference or the style of a particular herald, and not a part of any particular blazon. The mantling and the banners for names and mottoes, for example, are not an official element of the blazon of arms. The helm, likewise, is not a part of the official blazon. Some historians attach a significance to the design of the helm or helmet as representative of a certain century or social status, but there are differences of opinion on this matter.
A registered coat of arms is a piece of property, to be inherited like a plot of land or a set of tableware. In general it would be passed on to the oldest son, and that would be the default if there was no will, but it could be left to a younger son or a daughter in a will. In the latter case it would be modified, usually by merging parts of it with parts of a husband's coat of arms if there was one. If not, the shield would be replaced by a lozenge and the helmet and crest would be omitted. In any case the design was supposed to be modified by each new owner. The ground rules differed for arms assigned to royalty, nobility, and gentlemen. Gaelic tradition allows family members to use the "crest" part of an entire coat of arms (that which appears above the shield) in a badge setting (a circular belt); thus all members of a given clan are entitled to use the clan badge. Indeed, the crest part of a coat of arms has been used on engravings, rings, bookplates, and other means of displaying one's heritage for many years. (Fairbairn's Book of Crests of the Families of Great Britain and Ireland, first published in 1859.) In England, the direct descendants of an armiger have a right to display those arms, but ownership is by an individual. Some countries tax the owner of a coat of arms for personal property.
Some countries, including the United States, do not have governmental regulation of the possession of arms. Some say our constitution precludes the government from awarding arms, since that is equated in people's minds with creating an "upper class." It has also been claimed that at the time of the Revolutionary War, Americans who had come originally from England but who fought against her were thereby traitors and forfeited the right to their English families' coats of arms. (“Where American Heraldry is Weak", The Armiger's, Vol. XXX, p.1 Winter 2008.) I know of no English or U.S. law to that effect.
To summarize, we do not know whether or not either of the coats of arms in the picture (or others in the Armouries) actually has an historical association with the American Albros, for the simple reason that we do not know the English ancestry of John Albro of Portsmouth. Until we do know, one opinion will do as well as another.
If you are wondering about the design (shield, crest, motto) that appears at the top of the index page for this web site, it is a registered coat of arms. It is also formally copyrighted as a piece of original art work © 2006, by Phil Albro. The rendition is by Reese Design Services, LLC. However, it is true that the design for the shield was inspired by the shield of the coat of arms assigned to the first Baron Aldeburgh in the 14th century, found in the great hall at Harewood Castle in Yorkshire. The fleur-de-lis (azure) found there is replaced here by a cross crosslet in honor of the symbols associated with the names Alborough and Albrough (see Burke's Armoury). A lion rampant appears also on the arms of Clan O'Dwyer of Ireland, to which I also belong (maternal side.) The crest represents a viking ship, which acknowledges the fact that my DNA analyses are consistent with a Norse Viking origin for the (unknown) Albro ancestors in England. The motto, which can be translated "Perseverance (or endurance, or fortitude) under Adversity (or misfortune)", comes from what I see when I look at the Albros I know. This coat of arms has been reviewed, accepted and registered by the American College of Heraldry as of September, 2008. To see pictures of the two Albro coats of arms thus far registered in the United States, click here.
For more details about coats of arms, heraldry in general, crests, shields, etc., you can go to: www.panix.com/~wlinden/heraldry.shtml as a good starting point.
Phil Albro, 9/16/2008.
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