NAME: Nickname: "Skinny"
******ORIGIN AND ANTIQUITY OF THE NAME MONTAGUE******
The name Montague is one of the oldest surnames in existance. It came to France with the Northmen from Scandinavia and thence to England with Drogo in 1066 from Normandy, and originated in the Latin de monte acuto, meaning "of or from a sharp or pointed mountain" [a mountain peak]. It has been written in various forms as de Monte Acuto, Monteacuto, Montacute, Montagute, Montaigut, Montaigu, Montagu, Mountagu, Mountague, Montague. There is a mountain in the Pyrenees of considerable height called Montacuto. In the department of Aisne, in France, may be seen the ruins of an old feudal Castle, named Montaigu, situated in a town of the same name. This castle was an important fortress in the tenth century. It was besieged and taken by Louis d'Outre-mer in 948, was twice captured by the English, once in 1375 and again in 1424, and was finally taken by Charles VI in 1444. There was also a strong fortress of the name of Montaigu, in Vendee, that was twice besieged in the uprising of 1793. There are several other places in France bearing the name of Montaigu; but that from which the English family sprang was Montagu-les-Bois, in the district of Coutances, in Normandy. Of this place one writer says, "Its ancient Lords were famous in the middle ages." In France there were Lords of Montagu, Counts of Chalon, and Eudes; there was Pierre Guerin de Montaigu, Grand Master of the Knights of St. John of Jerusalem in 1208; there was Gilles Aycelin de Montaigut Archbishop of Rouen, and the founder of the college of Montagu at Paris, which existed from 1314 till about 1850. Two brothers of the family of this Archbishop attained the dignity of Cardinals. The name Montagu is a word of three syllables, pronounced Mont-a-gue, and has no connection with the name of two syllables Mon-Tague, which is a corruption of the Irish name Mac Teague, meaning the son of Teague. Montague a thousand years ago in Normandy was spelled Montagu. In the Doomsday book of William the Conquorer (1066) it is spelled Montagud, the "d" silent. The early generations in England spelled the name in Latin, Montacute. This was caused Camden says, on account of continuous wars with France, there was a hatred of anything that was French. In English records of the 14th, 15th, and 16th centuries, the name is often printed Mountague. In early records in America and upon tombstones it is spelled Mountague. Co. records of Spotts and Orange Va., have the name Mountague and Montecue. The name of Peter Montague on the Va. Muster roll of 1624 is spelled Petter Montecue. [Montecue and Montigue are simply a mis-spell.] The old Peerages in England have the name variously Mountague, Montague and Montagu. The titled families however have invaribly spelled the name Montagu. This includes the Viscounts Montagu, the Dukes of Montagu, the Earls of Halifax and Sandwich and the Dukes of Manchester, and they undoubtedly have the most ancient way of spelling it. The final "e" as the name is commonly spelled, adds nothing to it, though from long usage one may be as correct as the other.