Bowsie History
Bowsie History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms
Bowsie is one of the many names that the Normans brought with them when they conquered England in 1066. The Bowsie family lived at the parish of Bussey in Hereford. [1] The name, however, is a reference to the family's former place of residence, Bouce, in Orne, Normandy. [2]
Another source disagrees. The Duchess of Cleveland in her work "The Battle Abbey Roll," notes the family likely came from "Buci, in Normandy. Robert de Buci held a great barony in Northamptonshire and Leicestershire in 1086 [3]: but left no heir save a daughter, married to Ralph Basset, Justiciary of England under Henry I. " [4]
Early Origins of the Bowsie family
The surname Bowsie was first found in Leicestershire at Wyfordby, a parish, in the union of Melton-Mowbray, hundred of Framland. "This place, at the Conquest, was granted to Roger de Bussy, Baron of Tickhill, in the county of York." [5]
"Jordan de Bussi, is mentioned in the time of Stephen, when he held his uncle Walter Espec's castle of Werke, 'and gallantly repulsed the attack of William Fitz Duncan, King of Scots.' Of his descendants I am unable to find any account, except that they held of Mowbray in the thirteenth century." [2]
"The first Jordan de Bussy, called, in the pedigree, the son of Lambert, founded a great Lincolnshire house, that lasted till the end of Queen Elizabeth's reign. There exists no county history to blazon their deeds of arms or count up their forfeitures: we are not informed on which side they fought during the Barons' War, or whether they wore the colours of York or Lancaster. " [4]
"Dom. Hugh de Buscy" occurs in the Hundredorum Rolls of 1272 as a landowner in Northumberland, Norfolk, Lincoln, Suffolk and Sussex; and may have been the father of Hugh de Bowcy, Sheriff of Surrey and Sussex in 1340. " [4]
Early History of the Bowsie family
This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Bowsie research. Another 60 words (4 lines of text) covering the years 1399, 1379, 1381, 1391, 1388, 1393, 1394, 1397 and 1397 are included under the topic Early Bowsie History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
Bowsie Spelling Variations
Anglo-Norman names tend to be marked by an enormous number of spelling variations. This is largely due to the fact that Old and Middle English lacked any spelling rules when Norman French was introduced in the 11th century. The languages of the English courts at that time were French and Latin. These various languages mixed quite freely in the evolving social milieu. The final element of this mix is that medieval scribes spelled words according to their sounds rather than any definite rules, so a name was often spelled in as many different ways as the number of documents it appeared in. The name was spelled Bussey, Busse, Bushe, Boosie, Boosey, Bowsey, Busey and many more.
Early Notables of the Bowsie family (pre 1700)
Outstanding amongst the family at this time was Sir John Bussy (d. 1399), Speaker of the House of Commons and Sheriff of Lincoln in 1379, 1381, and 1391. "He was first chosen a knight of the shire for Lincoln in 1388, and continued to sit for that county during the remaining parliaments of Richard II's reign. He was three times elected speaker, first by the parliament of 1393-1394, and afterwards by...
Another 70 words (5 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Bowsie Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
Migration of the Bowsie family
Because of the political and religious discontent in England, families began to migrate abroad in enormous numbers. Faced with persecution and starvation at home, the open frontiers and generally less oppressive social environment of the New World seemed tantalizing indeed to many English people. The trip was difficult, and not all made it unscathed, but many of those who did get to Canada and the United States made important contributions to the young nations in which they settled. Some of the first North American settlers with Bowsie name or one of its variants: George Bussey who settled in Virginia in 1637; Thomas Bussey settled in Philadelphia in 1774; Roger Bushe settled in Virginia in 1654; Elizabeth Bussie settled in Virginia in 1649.
Hundredorum Rolls
^ Mills, A.D., Dictionary of English Place-Names. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-19-869156-4)
^ The Norman People and Their Existing Descendants in the British Dominions and the United States Of America. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing, 1975. Print. (ISBN 0-8063-0636-X)
^ Cleveland, Dutchess of The Battle Abbey Roll with some Account of the Norman Lineages. London: John Murray, Abermarle Street, 1889. Print. Volume 1 of 3
^ Lewis, Samuel, A Topographical Dictionary of England. Institute of Historical Research, 1848, Print.
Bowsie (England)