My wife's ancestors - Fitzwilliam - Contents

Viscount Fitzwilliam arms
The stone at Merrion
Earl Fitzwilliam arms
Fitzwilliam College arms
Mount Merrion church arms

The Fitzwilliam arms

Viscount Fitzwilliam arms

Viscount Fitzwilliam arms as given in [The present peerages, Joseph Edmondson, 1785].

Viscount Fitzwilliam arms as given in [Lodge's Peerage of Ireland, 1789].

The Viscount Fitzwilliam arms given above do not look like the stone arms at Merrion.
They do look similar to the Earl Fitzwilliam arms.
However [Wilkinson, 1925] says the Viscount Fitzwilliam arms should be quite different to the Earl Fitzwilliam arms.
[Ball, vol.2, 1903] says that Fitzwilliam of Merrion (cr Viscounts in 1629) ceased to use their own arms in the 17th century and adopted the arms of the other Fitzwilliam family (cr Barons in 1620, cr Earls in 1716) since they considered them to be related.
This suggests that the stone arms at Merrion could be the old Fitzwilliam of Merrion arms.

The stone at Merrion

A medieval stone plaque, bearing the Fitzwilliam coat of arms, survives at the site of Merrion Castle.
A medieval stone head also survives.
Mount Merrion 300 says this is a "Stone carving of Lord Fitzwilliam".
Both are believed to come from Merrion Castle.
These are mounted on the wall of one of the new buildings at the site.

The building at St.Mary's, Merrion in whose S wall (visible) the stone plaque and stone head are mounted.
This building is near the road, on the NE side of the St.Mary's "campus".
Photo 2000.
See street view.

The head and plaque.
Photo 2012. See full size and other shot.
See 2000 photo.

The plaque.
Photo 2000.
See 2012 photo.

The plaque at an angle.
Photo 2012. See full size and other angle.

The head and plaque.
From Mount Merrion 300. Used with permission.

Earl Fitzwilliam arms

Arms of the Earls Fitzwilliam.

Arms of the Earls Fitzwilliam.
From here.

Fitzwilliam College arms

Arms of Fitzwilliam College, Cambridge.
From here.
The college's coat of arms first came into use in the 1880s. The Fitzwilliam Viscounty was extinct by this time, so they asked the Earl Fitzwilliam for permission to use his arms, even though the Fitzwilliam Museum and nearby Fitzwilliam St are not linked to his family. (To be fair, even the link of the college to the Viscounts would be tenuous.)

Mount Merrion church arms

The arms of St.Therese's RC parish at Mount Merrion are based on the Fitzwilliam arms.
The flowers reference St Therese.

The church arms on the floor at the entrance to the church.
Photo from far side, rotated.
Photo 2012. See larger and original.
See wider shot.

Photo from front.
Photo 2012. See full size.
See also 2012 photo of the arms on St.Therese's school (and wider shot).