Sanders Family History

This book provides original research on a person called Leonard de Sanderstead, who is recognized as the first person in England to bear the surname Sanders, at least in a variant form. It tries to bring to life a notable figure from the 1100s using the fragmentary evidence from ancient times. It identifies Leonard's origin in Scotland and the Breton roots of earlier generations of his family. Leonard married into a member of England's royal family and in time produced his coat-of-arms, one of the earliest in England. The full meaning of his coat-of-arms symbols are deciphered, and this meaning carries forward to the present time. This book amends and extends earlier published research on this subject. An Addendum provides a preliminary review of Sanders family deep origins based on DNA evidence.