General Notes

The earliest records have of the family of Montgomery states its origins in the north of France in the 9th century. We can go back through an unbroken succession of ten centuries in length to the first known ofthe name Roger de Montgomery, who was Count of Montgomery before the coming of Rollo the Dane into Normandy in 912. A native of Neustria himself, his ancestors were probably for many generations back natives of that province, which, when conquered by the Northmen, was afterwards known as Normandy. The earlier generations of the Montgomeries took their surname from the early appanage of the family, the County of Montgomery.This custom was common with all families dating back to that era, family names with but few exceptions having a local derivation. The County of Montgomery in France is situated in the Pays d'Auge and consists of several baronies and about 150 fiefs and arriere fiefs, dependent on the bailiwicks of Argentan, Caen, Alencon and the Viscounty of Trau. The House of Montgomery was well known and its members took a leading part inthe affairs of France and Normandy, and also in England for severalcenturies before the Domesday Survey.