Notices of the Ellises of England, Scotland, and Ireland, from the conquest to the present time

12 MANOR OF HURST-PIERPOINT.
Bishop might, indeed, have been of that family, for the
Warrens had property at St. Martin ; but no known coat of
St. Martin resembles the presumed ancient coat of De Warren,
viz., a bend, for such a charge was combined with the early
blazonry of the Vermandois coat, and would indicate a reluc-
tance, as was often shown, altogether to abandon the paternal
arms. 1 The question then arises, when and by whom was
the chief chequy of the Pierpoints adopted ? This at present
cannot be ascertained; but there can be little doubt that
some alliance with a descendant of the house of Warren was
the origin of the assumption of this coat of arms. 2 The
armorial bearings, however, borne by the Pierrepoints of
Holme-Pierrepoint, from Robert de Pierrepoint, who married
Annora Manvers (as appears by a seal on a deed of Robert de
Rasen and the said Annora his wife, to Robert, son of Henry
Pierpoint, whereon is the figure of a woman habited in a
coat of the arms of Manvers, viz., six annulets, holding in her
right hand a shield containing the arms of Pierpoint, viz.,
a lion rampant semee of cinquefoils, and in the left the
shield of Rasen ; 3 and also by two deeds of Sir Robert de
Pierpoint, dated 11 Edward II. and 2 Edward III., to which
are affixed seals with the lion and cinquefoils), down to the
present day, Argent semee of cinquefoils gules, a lion rampant
sable; and also it will appear by the later Pierpoints of Hurst,
as evidenced by the altar tomb in the church, and the shields
on the carved oak ceiling, were not adopted till long after the
chequy chief had been in use, probably by the father of Sir
Robert, who married Annora Manvers, and who may have
married a Clifton, a Nottinghamshire family, 4 whose arms
resemble these in all but tinctures.
1 In a window of the chancel of Dews- recorded as owner of Wappingthorn, in
bury Church, Yorkshire, the manor of Steyning. This family and the Bonwickes
which belonged to the Warrens, is the bore chequy or and gules, a chief azure,
usual coat of chequy or and azure, and and the same with variations. This was
also argent a bend gules and a bordure probably adopted on marriage with a
gobone or and azure. Also in the win- Pierpoint. The name of Bennet would
dows of Kirk-Burton Church were for- seem to have become the modern spelling
merly these shields : — 1. Chequy or and of this family, of whom many particulars
azure. 2. The same with a bordure may be found in Cartwright's Rape of
argent. 3. Argent a bendlet gules and bor- Br amber.
dure compony or and azure. — Watson's 3 Visitation of Notts, 1596-1614, Harl .
Earls of Warren, i. 10. MSS., 1555, p. 43.
2 In the Testa de Nevill, Sir Robert 4 Gervase de Clifton, who lived 30
Bonet, Knight, who is a witness to the Edw. III., married, first, Margaret Pier-
deed quoted, conveying "Randells," is point {Baronetage).