TWINNING MEMORIES
The Twinning Ceremony at Orbec 1979
Kingsteignton’s population has grown considerably since it twinned with Orbec back in 1979. Ceremonies to celebrate the union were held in both towns.
Of course the twinning link with Normandy goes back much further; all the way back to 1066 when the wooing of England was done in a more robust way by nos voisins d’outre Manche. As well as bagging Kingsteignton for himself King William’s generosity saw him to give the manors of Gappah and Whiteway to some of his buddies.
Today many place names have an appendage to indicate
that at some time in the past they were acquired by people of Norman descent e.g. Berry Pomeroy and Bovey Tracey. Many surnames which we think of as English after a bit of research transpire to be Norman. William Malet, Sire de Graville, was one of a few Norman Barons who can be proven to have fought in the Battle of Hastings. For his service he was granted extensive lands in East Anglia. As time passed the surname changed to Mallet. In later centuries a family of the name Mallet acquired lands in Somerset and added their name to the town of Shepton. Today the surname is found across the West Country.