Devonshire, England (Clovelly)
According to the plaque outside the churchyard, the Cary’s were lords of the manor at Clovelly at an early date. There are many memorials to them inside the church. This video shows some of them. There are others scattered around the church walls and floors. Some of these are of a period after our Cary’s had moved on to Somerset and Bristol. Of particular interest is the Cary coat of arms which is clearly shown on the memorials. The dove which is shown on the crest is the original Cary symbol. The three roses were added later. They were taken from a knight from Aragon who had come to England and challenged the English knights to a duel. One of the Cary’s took up the challenge. The fight lasted for days and was very brutal. People begged them to stop. Finally the Cary knight won and, as was the custom in those days, was allowed to take the defeated knight’s arms, the three roses. The roses have been a part of the Cary coat of arms ever since.
The following video, beginning with the countryside from Samford Peverel, England, to Barnstaple, is of the churchyard surrounding the church at Clovelly. It shows some of the monuments bearing the names of some other of our family lines Riley, Stevens, and Elliott. The Cary/Carey memorials are on the inside and are shown in the previous video.