ROUTH

                   [Broderbund WFT Vol. 20, Ed. 1, Tree #2573, Date of Import: Mar 29, 1999]

                            OUR ENGLISH ANCESTORS
             FROM THE BOOK ROUTH`S BY BG ROSS ROUTH

     NOTE: The spelling of the name Routh to Ruth was caused mostly bytheir military records during the Civil War. And due to pensions fromthat War the name was accepted as Ruth. ie Jasper McDonald Ruth last sonof John Routh and brother to Louisa Jane Routh (wife of Samuel Downey)

   SUMMARY ;
    It was in the afternoon of 27 September of 1066 that the largestflotilla of ships ever assembled, up to that time, set sail from Normandyin northern France across the English Channel to the shores of England.Some historians say that there were 696 ships and many lesser sailingvessels in the flotilla. Others believe that the number of ships wouldrun into the thousands. These ships were carrying  25,000 to 60,000 men,a large number of horses and needed supplies and arms. For William, theDuke of Normandy, had spent months in enlisting  men, building ships,soliciting funds and making preparations to invade and to overcomeAnglo-Saxon King Harold II. William an expert strategist and anexperienced fighter. He had planned his conquest well. He landed atPervensey unopposed with his men and engaged King Harold in battle ashort distance inland. There, he fought the battle of Hastings in October1066 which is considered one of the fifteen decisive battles of theworld. In the battle, King Harold was killed and his army routed, thusending the reign of the Anglo- Saxon Kings in England. William continuedhis conquest of England as he overcame one pocket of resistance afteranother. His conquest of northern England through Yorkshire has beendescribed as ghastly. Everything in his path was destroyed as well thosewho resisted him.
     Among those who fought "bravely and wisely" was a young man, Richardde Surdeval, who was born about 1030 in the village of Surdeval in thatpart of Northern France known as Normandy. He was the son of Baron LeMonigne ( owner of the forest ). The area in which he was born waspeopled largely of Norseman and Anglo-Saxons.
     Richard was rewarded for his service in the conquest of England byreceiving  from William the conqueror a large grant of land in that areain Yorkshire that had been depopulated. In additional to the grant ofland, Richard and many others were knighted by William the Conqueror.Richard became known as Sir Richard de Surdeval and was given his ownCoat of Arms.
     Sir Richard de Suedeval, son of Sir Richard, accompanied William,Count of Morain, and Robert, Duke of Normandy, on the first of theCrusades to the Holy Land. He was with them at the surrender of Jerusalemin 1097. He returned to the Yorkshire home to take over the estate of hisfather in 1100. He was killed at the Battle Tinchebrai in September 1106while fighting with Robert, Duke of Normandy.
     There were several lines of descent from Richard de Surdeval, as hehad several children, however, there is one line in which we areprimarily interested and which we will include here. It is Sir Robert andhis descendants. There are several generations for which we have verylittle information.
     Sir William de Surdeval, son of Robert, died in 1156. His son, SirRobert de Surdeval II, married a daughter of Robert de Stuteville, Lordand senior Manor of Routh County, York. Sir Robert also acquired forhimself the junior Manor of Routh about 1153 and styled himself de Rue,or Druida or de Routh later the de was dropped, The name meant "land ofplenty".
     Sir Peter de Routh, born about 1300 was a son of William de Routh ofBainbridge in Wesleydale County, York.
     Thomas de Routh, born 1265 in old Manor House of Routh was in thebattle of Bannockburn in 1314.
     The Routh family has borne seven Coats of Arms. It was in the 14thcentury that Sir Peter Routh adopted the Coat of Arms which has beenaccepted as the Routh Coat of Arms from that time to the present. It isdescribed as "argent a chevron between three lions heads erased gules".The Crest is  "out of a mural coronet a Talbot`s head"  The motto is"Oncorrupta Fides". In other words, the Coat of Arms is on a white orsilver background, the heads of the lions are separated by a red chevronor an inverted stripe. The Crest is the head of a Talbot, an old Englishhunting dog, resting in a crown of gold, The Motto is "incorruptiblyfaithful".
     The village of Routh is located in North Yorkshire about 4-1/2 milesfrom the city of Beverly and less than 40 miles from the city of York.The Manor of Sir Robert which he acquired in 1153 is no longer inexistence.  However, the church is still in existence. It is well keptand services are still being held in the church. In the floor to theright of the alter are the brasses of Sir John Routh, a Knight who diedin 1413, and of his wife. To the left of the alter is the effigy of SirWiliam de Routh who fought in the Crusades with Richard the Lion Heartedand who is buried in the church. The village of Routh is a branch of theBeverly Post Office and nearby is a pottery which makes a very fine gradeof pottery and is shipped all over the world.
     The continuous line of descent from Sir Richard of Bainbridge will notbe attempted. Only a few will be mentioned. The great grandson of SirRichard was William of Hawes who married Agnes Metcalfe, of the house ofMetcalfe. Sir William was unpretentious and there was references that hetried to drop the "Sir" from his name,but the title was continued and waspassed to his son and to his grandson. In 1650, the great grandson of SirWilliam of Hawes wed into the Metcalfe family again. This was SirLawrence Routh whose mother and the mother of William Penn were sisters.Their mothers were the daughters of John and Marie Jasper of Ballycase,County Clare, Ireland. John Jasper has been described as a Dutchmerchant. Sir Lawrence and his young wife, Lady Anne Metcalfe and theirtwo children came to the new world as a part of the religious movementled by William Penn.