The saltire and chief format for coats of arms in Scotland is an ancient design associated with the Danes and Normans who settled in Northumbria and Scotland after 1066 AD. Thought by many to be a style originating with the de Brus family, now known as Bruce, it appears to have been originated by the Annan/d family who held Annandale before the de Brus family came onto the scene. Using heraldic descendancy, it would appear that the Annan/d knight died young leaving a widow to inherit his coat of arms and Annandale. Robert de Brus. living in York then married the widow Annan before 1124 AD, acquiring her land in the process and adopting her arms which he later personalized by changing the tincture (color) of the field from silver to gold.