Origin & Meaning of the Walpole/Walpool Surname

The Irish Walpole Coat of Arms

Recorded as Walpole, Waple, Wapple, Wapol, Waples, Wapples and possibly others, this is an English surname. It is locational from either of two places called Walpole in the East Anglian counties of Norfolk and Suffolk. The place in Suffolk was recorded as Walepola in the famous Domesday Book of 1086, whilst that in Norfolk was recorded as "Walepol" in the register of charters known as the Codex Diplomaticus aevi Saxonici in the year 1050. Walpole in Suffolk means the "pool of the Britons", whilst that in Norfolk probably means a pool surrounded by a wall. The surname first appears in records in the late 12th Century, and other early recordings include William Wagepole in the Curia Regis Rolls of Suffolk in 1206, and Thomas Waghepol in the Assize Court Rolls of the borough of Leicester in 1271. On June 27th 1557 Hillary Wapolle married Joane Garret at St. Peter, Cornhill, London, whilst Joanna Waple married Joannes Fletcher on June 4th 1592 at St. Martin-in-the-Fields, Westminster.

Sir Robert Walpole (1676 - 1745) was not only the first Earl of Oxford, but he was the first prime minster of Great Britain. The first recorded spelling of the family name is shown to be that of Everard Wagepole. This was dated 1169, in the Pipe Rolls of Wiltshire, during the reign of King Henry 11nd, known as "The Builder of Churches", 1154 - 1189.

The Walpole Name is linked again by my husband's great grandmother on his mother's side, Margaret Walpole/Walpool (name differs on different certificates).  It is alleged that Margaret was born in Falkirk, Stirlingshire, however it is alleged that her family came from Ireland.  She settled and married George Archibald, whose surname also appears in this blog and together they had 10 children.  They did settle for a period in England near Gateshead and it is likely that there is some family still settled in the area, however most of them returned to their roots in Scotland and in Hamilton.