Walton and Weybridge
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 Civic heraldry of the United Kingdom |
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WALTON AND WEYBRIDGE
Incorporated into : 1974 Elmbridge
Official blazon
Arms : Or on a Fesse wavy Azure between two Tudor Roses barbed and seeded proper and in base an Eagle displayed Gules two Barrulets wavy Argent surmonted by as many Palets of the field.
Crest : On a Wreath of the Colours a Swan's Head erased proper gorged with a Saxon Crown Or and holding in the beak a Sprig of Oak leaved and fructed also proper.
Motto : 'DUM DEFLUANT AMNIS' - Till the river ceases to flow.
Origin/meaning
The arms were officially granted on March 29, 1946.
The basic colours of gold and blue are from the arms of the County Council, which in turn derive from the gold and blue chequers of the Warrenne family, Earls of Surrey. They were also the colours of the Mortimer family, who inherited the manor of Walton Leigh, and from whom descended Edward IV, to whom in turn the manor devolved. The blue and white wave represents the River Thames. The two Tudor roses, refer to the two notable Tudor buildings in the district - Oatlands Palace, a residence of Henry VIII, and Ashley Park, built by Wolsey.
They also indicate the joining of the manors of Walton, Walton Leigh and Ebso, or Apps Court, at the time of the union of the Houses of Lancaster and York under Henry VII.
The eagle refers to the Roman associations of the district, notably the story of the attempted crossing of the river at Cowey Stakes, and the place on St. George's Hill, known as Caesar's Camp. It may also be taken to refer to the aeronautical reseach carried on at Brooklands, Weybridge. Across the wave are two "pallets" representing two ancient bridges - that over the Mole, formerly the meeting place of the Hundred Moot of Elmbridge, and that over the Wey carrying the road from London to Chertsey Abbey. In later times there have also been two Walton Bridges - the wooden one built about 1750, and the brick and stone one which replaced it.
The swan's neck alludes to the River Thames, the swan was also a well-known badge of the de Bohun family, who held the manor of Walton until 1373. The Saxon crown and sprig of oak both appear in the arms of Surrey, and record the situation of the Urban District in that county. The sprig of oak is also an emblem of the Howard family, who became Earls of Surrey in 1483. The presence of the sprig of oak in the arms may also be taken to refer to three specific members of the Howard family - Lord Howard of Effingham, Chief Ranger of the Forest in Queen Elizabeth's time; Catherin Howard, who married Henry VIII at Oatlands Palace, and the Duke of Norfolk who lived in a house at the confluence of the Wey and Thames in the time of Charles II.
The motto is from Horace (Epistulae, 1, 2, 32) and apart from its reference to the town's riverside situation, it is also an expression of its determination to progress in the future.
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