Heraldry of Great Britain and the Commonwealth 3 Quiz

Answer: Scotland

The Lord Lyon King of Arms, as the chief herald of Scotland, is responsible for all heraldic matters within Scotland. The English equivalent, the College of Arms, has no jurisdiction whatsoever. The Lord Lyon also has authority over all matters that relate to the Scottish clan system. Groups of associated families with a chieftain can only count themselves as a clan after they have been recognised as such by the Lord Lyon King of Arms.

Answer: Tremain

This is an example of arms that have an obvious reference to the name of the family that bear them. They are known in heraldry as allusive or canted arms, but you may also see them referred to as 'armes parlantes'. Arms of this kind were very common in early heraldry but over time many original allusions have become difficult to trace.

The reasons for this vary, some because the devices that appear in the blazon have disappeared, others because words themselves have disappeared from language or perhaps the family itself may have become extinct.

Answer: Under no circumstances

As the number of men using armorial insignia increased it was inevitable that there would be a degree of duplication. It is for this reason that armorial bearings are 'differenced'. Differencing are the measures used that secure distinctiveness between the arms used by those persons who were feudally connected and by those who had no association but who, by chance, used a similar combination of form and tincture (colouration).
There was controversy between Sir Richard Le Scrope and Sir Robert Grosvenor in the Court of Chivalry which began on the 17th of August 1385 in the suit between the two knights as to who should have the right to bear the arms 'Azure, a bend or'. On the 15th of May, 1389 the court assigned 'Azure, a bend or' to Scrope and the arms 'Azure, a bend or within a plain bordure argent' to Grosvenor. An appeal was made to the sovereign at the time, Richard II, who determined that a plain bordure was acceptable as a mark of cadency between related persons but was not sufficient a difference between two unrelated persons in one kingdom. On the 27th of May 1390, King Richard II then cancelled and annulled the judgement of the Court of Chivalry and the Grosvenor family adopted the arms 'Azure, a garb or', a garb being the heraldic name given to a sheaf of corn.
By this act, the sovereign had given a clear definition of the distinctions that he expected to be observed between cadency and the differencing of arms.

Answer: Add a mark, or label, for cadency

You would add a mark of cadency called a label. The label takes the form of a riband in the chief of the shield with either three or five smaller ribands pendant from it. There is no significance in the number of pendants on a label but they are most commonly seen in threes. The label is always placed barwise and in the upper half of the shield.

Answer: It would not. This label is not a permanent addition to his arms

On the death of the duke, his eldest son will become the head of the family, the label will be removed from his arms and he will adopt the original arms of his father. Any younger, legitimate brothers will have been granted their own individual marks of cadency but, unlike the eldest son, these marks never change and are always displayed on their arms.

Answer: Centrally, overlapping each quarter

The mark of cadency on a quartered shield must be centrally positioned in order that it overlaps each quarter of the arms. There are two exceptions to this. The first occurs when the mark of cadency is applicable to, and has been bought into the arms by one of the quartered coats of arms; the other applies to the heraldry of the royal family where any marks of cadency are marked exclusively by a label.
Marks of cadency in other arms are always placed in the chief of the shield. During the early sixteenth century, marks of cadency were standardised and the following marks were assigned to each legitimate son, a practice that still continues in use today:
Eldest son (during the lifetime of his father) a label
The second son, a crescent
The third son, a molet (a spur rowle)
The fourth son, a martlet (an heraldic bird)
The fifth son, an annulet (a ring)
The sixth son, a fleur-de-lis
The seventh son, a rose
The eighth son, a cross Moline (a cross with splayed ends)
The ninth son, a double quatrefoil or octofoil (an eight petalled floral form)

Answer: A baton sinister

Over time, the baton sinister, came to be used to denote illegitimacy or 'bastardy' only on the arms of the royal family. In England and Ireland the more customary mark of illegitimacy is the bordure wavy, this often accompanied by a wavy ordinary within the crest, and in Scotland a bordure compony. We do need to be very careful here though.

In Scotland the bordure wavy is used as a legitimate mark of cadency whilst the bordure compony, when used in England does not always imply illegitimacy. It is, therefore, important and inadvisable to make assumptions when noting these bordures within arms! It should also be added here that a person of illegitimate birth may not, at will, assume the arms of his father with a differencing mark.

They must be able to prove their paternity and then petition for a grant of arms. If they cannot prove their paternity or do not wish to draw attention to their illegitimacy on their arms, they are permitted to petition for a completely new coat of arms. Illegitimacy was never considered dishonourable and there is no such thing as a mark of dishonour within heraldry.

Answer: Augmentations

An augmentation to arms granted by grace should be considered a gift from the sovereign and was frequently granted for no other reason than the sovereign wishing it so. One very early example of an augmentation granted 'of mere grace' was by King Richard II to Robert de Vere, Earl of Oxford, Marquess of Dublin, Duke of Ireland who was granted the arms 'Azure, three crowns or within a bordure argent'.

These arms were, at this time, regarded as the arms of Ireland and were to be borne quarterly with de Vere's own arms. Other augmentations that were granted through merit are always far more interesting and can give us an insight into historic events. King Henry VIII granted to Thomas Howard, Earl of Surrey an augmentation following his victory over the Scots at Flodden in 1513.

This augmentation, which was to be borne in posterity, consists of the Royal Shield of Scotland bearing a demi-lion only, pierced through the mouth with an arrow. This was to be charged on the bend in the Howard arms.

Answer: Marshalling

As a result of the practice of marshalling, we see many very elaborate and highly decorative examples of arms. Many of these complicated, but highly decorative arms have come into existence and have evolved over many centuries through marriage between families that both have the right to armorial bearings.

Answer: No

They would use a device known as the household badge. In the same way that arms and crests are heraldic insignia, badges are distinctive of a family or an individual. However, badges are not to be associated with the shield or the helm but they can be looked upon as independent devices that may be used alone or with a motto.

These badges are frequently seen used as the family seal that would be attached to all important documents and correspondence as well as being flown on pennons.

Answer: No

Like their brothers, unmarried daughters bear the arms of their father. This includes any quartering or marks of cadency that their father also possesses on his arms. However, unlike male offspring, females do not add any marks of cadency. These arms are also displayed on a lozenge (an heraldic diamond shaped figure) and without any crests or other accessories.

It is a permitted variation that a woman may display her arms on a roundel or an oval field and, on occasion, the lozenge of an unmarried woman may carry a knot of ribbon at the top which has no significance bar that of decoration.

Answer: Dimidiation

It is quite clear that, on marriage, a husband and wife would wish to display both of their arms together on one shield. The simplest way of doing this, where only two coats were concerned, was by impalement. Impalement is the name given to the practice of simply dividing the shield through the centre, from chief to base(palewise), with one coat being placed in each half of the shield. Dimidiation was the name given to the most primitive method of doing this whereby the shields of both husband and wife were each cut in half vertically with the dexter half of the husband's shield then joined to the sinister half of his wife's shield. The practice of dimidiation was introduced into heraldry during the reign of King Edward I, but was abandoned when it was discovered that it was destroying the distinctiveness and character of arms to which it was being applied.

After dimidiation had been rejected, heralds began to replace it with a simple impalement, placing the two coats on the appropriate half of the shield in their entirety. An example of a dimidiated coat still in use and occurring in civic heraldry is that of the Cinque Ports with England dimidiating, Azure, three ships' hulls fesswise in pale argent.

The result of this looks very strange as it appears that the front half of each lion is joined to the stern of a ship. Looking at these arms, it becomes clear why this practice was abandoned.

Answer: King Henry III

During the Norman period, it was frequently the case that knighthood was conferred by the King, his representative, those of baronial rank and prelates. As well as priviliges and dignity, knightly rank also carried duties. All knights were required to render military service and to partake in all manner of chivalrous exercise. Those men that were qualified as knights by feudal tenure but were unable or unwilling to meet their military obligations to the king, were required to pay a fine as an alternative. There were two classes of knight as a general rule.

There were those who had only been admitted to what was known as the general degree of knighthood and those others that were also members of a fraternity, companionship or order of chivalry, the two most obvious, both of which who wore distinctive insignia, being the Knights of St John of Jerusalem - The Hospitallers - and the Knights of the Temple, or Templars.

Answer: Mr Michael Middleton, father of Miss Catherine Middleton

Just over a week before the wedding of Miss Catherine (Kate) Middleton to HRH Prince William of Wales, it was announced that this blazon was to be granted to Mr Michael Middleton as the head of the Middleton family. As an unmarried woman at that time, Miss Middletons arms would be displayed on a lozenge suspended from a ribbon.

The three acorns displayed on the arms represent Mr and Mrs Middleton's three children - Catherine, Pippa and James - and symbolise the area in the county of West Berkshire where these children were raised.

They are also present as established symbols of both England and strength. The golden chevron displayed on the arms is a reference to Mrs Middleton whose maiden name was Goldsmith. The two narrower 'cotised' chevrons that encompass the larger are representative of the hills, mountains and outdoor pursuits that the family are said to enjoy. Mr Middleton's son, James, will also pass the right to bear these arms to any children that he may have in the future.

Answer: The Most Noble Order of the Garter

Of these four Orders of Chivalry, three are known as 'current' and one is 'dormant'.
The most senior of the three current orders, The Most Noble Order of the Garter, was founded by King Edward III of England on the 23rd April 1348 and its membership is limited to The Sovereign, The Prince of Wales and no more than 24 members who are known as Companions of the Order. This award is only presented to those of English or Welsh descent. The equivalent, but less senior and younger Order pertaining to Scotland is The Most Ancient and Most Noble Order of the Thistle which was founded in 1687 by King James II of England (King James VII of Scotland).
The Most Honourable Order of the Bath has both a Military and a Civil Division. It was founded by King George I on the 18th of May 1725 and takes its name from the medieval act of cleansing a knight before the knighting ceremony.
The Royal Victorian Order was instigated on the 21st of April 1896 and is presented for services to the Crown. There is no limit to the number of inductees and this honour should be, and is, regarded as a personal gift from The Sovereign.
The Royal Guelphic Order is a dormant order and is no longer presented by the British Sovereign. It is still conferred by The Royal House of Hanover and its current head, or Chancellor, is Ernst August, Prince of Hanover.