Heilmann Coat of Arms History
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The name Heilmann is of Anglo-Saxon origin and came from family lived in the county of Staffordshire where
they were known as the dwellers at the hall. This surname was originally derived from the Old English word
halemann, which literally means someone who lived by a large house. Throughout the Dark Ages as Rome slowly
faded, the written word was preserved by men of the Church. Documents such as the Anglo-Saxon Chronicles were
preserved within the sturdy walls of the monasteries. These records have survived to this day in order that we
may study the history of this Anglo-Saxon surname, Heilmann.
Professional historians have surveyed these records and found the first record of the Heilmann surname in Staffordshire where they were seated from very ancient times, some say well before the Norman Conquest and the arrival of Duke William at Hastings in 1066 A.D. From time to time your surname appeared in the records as Hallman, Halman, and these variations would occur between father and son, and even in references to the same person. In the 16th century the playwright William Shakespeare signed his own name with different spellings and legal Documents added further to the possible variations. "Shapespeare'' "Shakespere," "Shakespear'' "Shakspere" and "Shaxpere" were all used in reference to this famous individual. In order to explain this phenomenon we must look back to some of the earliest documents written in English. In the 14th century Geoffrey Chaucer, author of Canterbury tales, would spell ''told'' as "ytold" and "tolde" because at this time selling rules did not truly exist. The history of the Anglo-Saxons provides an important backdrop to the history of the Heilmann family. The Saxons were a Teutonic tribe of people originally from what is now the Schleswig-Holstein region of Germany. They began to settle in southeastern England in about the year 400 A.D. Over the next four hundred years they forced the ancient Britons to the edges of the islands into Wales, Conwall, Cumbria and Southern Scotland. The Angles, a nother Teutonic tribe, occupied the east coast, north of the Saxons. The Angle and Saxon cultures blended together as they come to dominate the country. At the end of the 10th century the Danes invaded England and the Anglo-Saxon rulers never truly recovered their lost power. In 1066 Duke William of Normandy disputed the royal succession in England and brought an army to enforce his claim. The success of the Normans at the Battle of Hastings brought the final end to Anglo-Saxon rule. However, despite this change of leadership, the culture of the common man in England was an Anglo-Saxon culture. During their early development, the Heilmann family was found in Staffordshire where they were recorded as a family of great antiquity seated with manor and estates in that shire, where Eluric Heillman was Lord of the manor and held large estates in the year 1095. They continued to flourished in the midlands of England and acquired estates in Nottingham, and in southern Yorkshire, where they became landed gentry. Distinguished members of the family include Eluric Heilman of Staffordshire. Throughout the Middle Ages domestic trouble was common in England however, conflicts tended to be localized. Disputes over royal succession baronial revolts, fear of foreign invasion and wars with neighbours in Scotland and Wales, all created periods of strife. During much of the 13th century however, there was a great migration to the upper regions of the Rhine. Later, the succession of the Stuarts witnessed the beginning of political problems which effected almost everyone. Conflicts between the king and parliament and between the Catholics and the Protestants, along with plague and the great fire in London made the 17th century a turbulent time. In Ireland Oliver Cromwell's soldiers and Protestant settlers were granted lands belonging to Irish Catholic owners. While some of the confiscate lands were returned during the reign of King Charles II most remained in the hands of newcomers. English families also came to Ireland in search of work created by industries there. For these reasons English surnames appear in Ireland up to the present time. The name Heilmann may well have arrived in Ireland with the ''Cromwellian Aventurers for Land." in the 17th century. At that time, 1,000 acres of land was available to settlers in Ulster for 200 pounds, in Connaught for 300 pounds and in Leinster for 600 pounds. Turmoil at home led many families to risk the hazardous journey across the oceans to the newly discovered lands in North America. Yet the New World was no paradise for the earliest English settlers. Early attempts to establish a colony at Roanoke Island, North Carolina met with disaster. In 1591 supply ships found the colony deserted with the fate of the settlers remaining forever a mystery. Migrants bearing the Heilmann surname, or a variant spelling of this name, include Anthony Hialman settled in Philadelphia in 1734; John Heillman settled in Philadelphia in 1786; Catherine Hallman and Margaret Hallman settled in New York in 1849. Many of the earliest settlers went to Austria. Throughout the 19th century, North America was the primary destination for migrants from Europe. Many also came to Australian as they were offered incentives and financial assistance. Some of the immigrants made their way to Canada. Yet, it was not until the American War of Independence that a large number of English speaking settlers made their way to this new frontier. Known as United Empire Loyalists, these migrants from the south numbered approximately 50,000. Settlement in Canada was mainly concentrated in the Maritime, St Lawrence and Great Lakes regions until after Confederation, when people began to move west in search of unsettled territory. Soon Manitoba and British Columbia achieved provincial status. The building of this nation continued with the help of families such as this to become the great country it is today. Contemporary notables of the surname Heilmann, or a variable selling of this name, include distinguished contributors such as and the family name continued to make an important contribution to the political and cultural life of the societies on both sides of the Atlantic. |