Upon the helm, the imperial crown proper thereon a lion statant guardant Or langued Gules armed Argent, imperially crowned Proper; mantled Or doubled Ermine
(Scottish version)
Upon the Royal helm the crown of Scotland proper, thereon a lion sejant affronté Gules armed and langued Azure, imperially crowned proper holding in his dexter paw a sword and in his sinister a sceptre, both proper
Quarterly, I and IV Gules, three lions passant guardant in pale Or langued and armed Azure. II Or a lion rampant Gules armed and langued Azure within a double tressure flory-counter-flory Gules. III Azure a harp Or stringed Argent.
(Scottish version)
Quarterly, I and IV Or a lion rampant Gules armed and langued Azure within a double tressure flory-counter-flory Gules. II Gules, three lions passant guardant in pale Or langued and armed Azure. III Azure a harp Or stringed Argent.
On the dexter a lion rampant guardant Or langued and armed Gules, imperially crowned Proper. On the sinister a Unicorn rampant Argent armed crined and unguled Or, and gorged with a Coronet composed of crosses patee and fleurs-de-lis, a chain affixed thereto passing through the forelegs and reflexed over the back Or
(Scottish version)
Dexter a unicorn Argent imperially crowned proper, armed, crined and unguled Or, gorged with a coronet Or composed of crosses patée and fleurs de lis a chain affixed thereto passing between the forelegs and reflexed over the back also Or holding the standard of Saint Andrew, sinister a lion rampant gardant Or imperially crowned proper holding the standard of Saint George
At the centre of the arms is a quartered shield, depicting the three passant guardant lions of England in the first and fourth quarters, the rampant lion and double tressureflory-counterflory of Scotland in the second quarter, and aharp for Ireland in the third quarter.[4][1] Surrounding the shield is theOrder of the Garter, the United Kingdom's most senior order of knighthood.[1] The supporters are a crowned English lion on thedexter (heraldic right), and a chained Scottish unicorn on the sinister (heraldic left).[5] Above the shield is a goldhelmet, which hasmantling of gold and ermine attached to it. On top of this is thecrest, a crown with a crownedlion standing on it. Below the shield is a grassy mound, a type ofcompartment, on which arethistles,Tudor roses andshamrocks, representing Scotland, England and Ireland respectively.[1] In front of this is themottoDieu et mon droit, a French phrase meaning 'God and my right'.[1]
The royal arms in Scotland use the same basic elements, but with distinctive Scottish symbolism. In the shield the Scottish arms occupy the first and fourth quarters and the English arms the second, giving the former precedence.[1] The shield is surrounded by the collar and badge of theOrder of the Thistle. The crest is a crowned red lion holding a sword and sceptre (representing theHonours of Scotland), facing forward sitting on a crown. Above it is theScots motto 'In defens', a contraction of the phrase 'In my defens God me defend'. The supporters are a crowned and chained Scottish unicorn on the dexter, and a crowned English lion on the sinister. Between each supporter and the shield is a lance displaying the flag of their respective kingdom. The grassy mound beneath the shield contains only thistles; on it is a second motto, that of the Order of the Thistle:Nemo me impune lacessit (no one will attack me with impunity).[1] The crowns in the Scottish version of the arms are conventionally stylised to resemble thecrown of Scotland.
Upon the Royal helm the imperial crown proper, thereon a lion statant gardant or imperially crowned proper
Upon the Royal helm the crown of Scotland proper, thereon a lion sejant affronté gules armed and langued azure, imperially crowned proper holding in his dexter paw a sword and in his sinister a sceptre, both proper
Dexter a lion rampant gardant or imperially crowned proper, sinister a unicorn argent, armed, crined and unguled or, gorged with a coronet or composed of crosses patée and fleurs de lis a chain affixed thereto passing between the forelegs and reflexed over the back also or
Dexter a unicorn argent imperially crowned proper, armed, crined and unguled or, gorged with a coronet or composed of crosses patée and fleurs de lis a chain affixed thereto passing between the forelegs and reflexed over the back also or holding the standard of Saint Andrew, sinister a lion rampant gardant or imperially crowned proper holding the standard of Saint George
The present royal arms originated in the separate arms of the kingdoms of England, Scotland and Ireland; Wales had beenincorporated into the Kingdom of England in the 16th century.[a] In 1603,James VI of Scotland inherited the English and Irish thrones, and, to symbolise thisunion of the crowns, the arms of England (which at that time werequartered with those of France) and Ireland were quartered with those of Scotland.[8] Within Scotland, the Scottish arms were placed in the first and fourth quarters and those of England in the second, with the English arms taking precedence elsewhere.
Except duringthe Commonwealth andthe Protectorate in the mid-seventeenth century, and the use byWilliam III of an inescutcheon ofNassau, the arms remained unchanged until the creation of the Kingdom of Great Britain in 1707.[8]
TheActs of Union 1707 united the two kingdoms of England and Scotland into oneKingdom of Great Britain. The arms of the new kingdom impaled England and Scotland in the first and fourth quarters, representing their union, with France in the second and Ireland in the third.[8] In 1714, theElector of Hanover,George I, became king, and the arms of Hanover were placed in the fourth quarter.[8]
In 1801, Great Britain and Ireland wereunited to form the United Kingdom; the monarch's claim to the French throne was at the same time dropped, and the French quarter removed from the coat of arms.[8] The remaining quarters were rearranged so that, outside Scotland, England occupied the first and fourth, Scotland the second, Ireland the third, and Hanover an inescutcheon topped by an electoral bonnet.[8] Within Scotland, the Scottish and English quarters were reversed. In 1816, the electorate of Hanover became a kingdom, and the bonnet was replaced with a crown.[8]
In 1837, Victoria became queen of the United Kingdom but not Hanover, as the latter followedSalic law which barred women from the succession.[8] The Hanoverian inescutcheon was therefore removed, and the royal arms reached the form they have retained to the present. The only changes since have been cosmetic, such as altering the depiction of the Irish harp so that it no longer includes a bare-breasted woman.
The accession ofQueen Victoria ended thepersonal union between the United Kingdom and Hanover, asSalic law prevented a woman from ascending the Hanoverian throne, and the inescutcheon of the arms of Hanover was removed.[4] The new arms were announced inThe London Gazette on 26 July 1837[9] and first used inThe Gazette on 8 August 1837.[10][11] This was the final change to the blazon of the royal arms and all later adaptions were purely stylistic.
On his succession in 1901,Edward VII had considered adding theArms of Saxony as an inescutcheon ashe had done when Prince of Wales, and also a representation for Wales, but he was dissuaded by officials.[12] There were also unsuccessful calls for some representation of the widerBritish Empire.[13][14] The Irish harp remained despite thePartition of Ireland in 1921.
Theblazon of the royal arms has been changed only three times since the creation of the United Kingdom: in 1801, 1816 and 1837. But how these blazons are depicted has been subject to artistic interpretation and the preferences of the monarch under the royal prerogative.[b][6]
Detail of a depiction of the royal arms from the reign ofGeorge IV (1820–1830)
Detail of a stained glass window depicting the royal arms during the reign ofEdward VII (1901–1910)
The blazons of the royal arms do not specify any particularheraldic crown to be depicted in theachievement, using only the term "imperial crown proper" to indicate acrown with arches and in itsnatural colours.[c] The first reference to the "imperial crown" of England was during the reign ofHenry VIII in theEcclesiastical Appeals Act 1532, which declared that "this realm of England is an empire... governed by one Supreme Head and King having the dignity and royal estate of the imperial Crown of the same".[16][d]
The actual form of the crown has varied over time. In England, the heraldic crown is ultimately based onSt Edward's Crown, which has fourcrosses pattée and fourfleurs-de-lis around the rim and two arches.[15][18][19] However, depictions have varied depending on the artist.[15]Queen Victoria, for example, favoured a crown with rounded arches of "the type of an earlier time" since at least the 1860s,[20][21][e] and in about 1880, after she was proclaimedEmpress of India, the heraldic crown was altered to give it a more imperial form by making the arches semi-circular.[19][25]
After the accession ofEdward VII, theWar Office raised the issue of a standardised design of the crown for use by theBritish Army, as several crowns of different patterns were in use.[12] In 1901, the king decided on a "Tudor" crown design based on thecrown of Henry VII, as "chosen and always used by Queen Victoria personally".[15][12] This style was used until after the accession ofElizabeth II in 1952, when the design reverted to a style with depressed arches used by Charles II.[26] The design was updated again after the accession ofCharles III, to a design similar to that adopted in 1901.[27][28][29]
A non-winged harp in a depiction of the royal arms from the reign of Queen Victoria (1837-1901) in theHouse of Lords chamber
A winged harp in a depiction of the royal arms from the reign of Edward VII (1901-1910) inKingston Museum
There have also been changes to the depiction of the Irish harp, with the frame variously depicted as a winged woman or as aCeltic harp. The latter became more common in twentieth century.[30]
The royal arms are thearms of dominion of the British monarch.[31][1] Unlike ordinary armorial bearings, they are not hereditary.[8] The right to bear them is vested in the reigning sovereign and, by extension, their government as aroyal prerogative.[6][32] Members of the royal family are granteddifferenced arms.[31]
Crown copyright appliesin perpetuity to depictions of the royal arms and any of its constituent parts under the royal prerogative, andThe National Archives restricts rights to reproduce them.[33][34] Although Crown copyright usually expires 50 years after publication, Section 171(b) of theCopyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 made an exception for 'any right or privilege of the Crown' not written in an act of parliament, thus preserving the rights of the Crown under the unwritten royal prerogative.[35]
The royal arms may be displayed by holders of aroyal warrant but may not be used as a trade mark and should only be displayed for the duration of the grant of a royal warrant. It is an offence under Section 12 of theTrade Descriptions Act 1968 to give a false indication that any goods or services are supplied to the monarch or any member of the royal family.[39][38]
TheUK Government generally uses a simplified, or "lesser", form of the arms that omits the helm and mantling, reduces the crest to the crown alone, and has no compartment.[29] Use of the royal arms by government departments and agencies is governed by theCabinet Office.[2]
The royal arms appear in courtrooms in England and Wales, typically behind the judge's bench, and symbolise that justice comes from the monarch.[41] One exception is themagistrates' court in theCity of London,[41] where both the royal arms andarms of the City of London Corporation appear behind the bench. Courtrooms in Scotland, in the same way, usually display the Scottish version of the royal arms.[42] TheJustice (Northern Ireland) Act 2002 prohibited the display of the royal arms in courtrooms or on court building exteriors in Northern Ireland, with some exceptions.[f][43]
The arms are not displayed in theMiddlesex Guildhall, which houses theSupreme Court of the United Kingdom and theJudicial Committee of the Privy Council. This is because the remit of the former includes the four nations of the UK, and the latter is the final court of appeal for three independentrepublics and the independent sultanate ofBrunei, which do not recognise the judicial authority of the British monarch as their head of state, as well as for various British territories and sovereign bases, the Crown dependencies, and other independent Commonwealth realms where the king is the head of state but separated from the judicial authority.[44]
A banner of the royal arms, known as the royal standard, is flown from buildings in which the monarch is resident or present. ThePalace of Westminster, for example, usually flies theUnion Flag, but flies the royal standard when the monarch is present for theState Opening of Parliament. When the monarch is not in residence at a palace in Scotland theroyal banner of Scotland is flown; palaces in the rest of the UK fly the Union Flag.
The royal arms regularly feature onBritish coinage, and are used as a logo by theRoyal Mint. In 2008 a new series of designs for all seven coins of £1 and below was unveiled by the Royal Mint, every one of which is drawn from the royal arms. The full royal arms appear on the one pound coin, and sections appear on each of the other six, which combine to form a complete depiction.[46]
The royal arms may be displayed by select businesses which supply the royal household with goods or services and have been granted aroyal warrant. But the arms may not be used as a trade mark and should only be displayed for the duration of the grant of a royal warrant. It is an offence under Section 12 of theTrade Descriptions Act 1968 to give a false indication that any goods or services are supplied to the monarch or any member of the royal family.[39][38]
Historically, when theIrish Free State establishedits own diplomatic seals in the 1930s, the royal arms were depicted on the throne behindGeorge V in a unique form by having the Irish harp in two quarters and the English arms in one.[70][71]
Members of theBritish royal family are granted their own personal arms. In the past, the monarch's younger sons used various differences; and married daughters of the monarch impaled the plain royal arms with their husbands' arms. But for many centuries now, all members of the royal family have had differenced versions of the royal arms settled on them byroyal warrant.[72] Only children and grandchildren in the male line of the monarch are entitled to arms in this fashion: the arms of children of the monarch are differenced with a three-pointlabel; while grandchildren of the monarch are differenced with a five-point label. An exception is made for the eldest son of the Prince of Wales, who also bears a three-point label. The labels are always white (argent) and each prince or princess has individual marks to form his or her particular difference, except the Prince of Wales, who uses a plain white three-pointed label.[72] Since 1911, the arms of the Prince of Wales also displays aninescutcheon of the ancientarms of the Principality of Wales.[72]
Queens consort and the wives of sons of the monarch also have their own personal coat of arms. Typically this will be the arms of their husband impaled with their own personal arms or those of their father, if armigerous. However, the consorts of a queen regnant are not entitled to use the royal arms. ThusPrince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh was granted his own personal arms. A notable exception to this rule wasPrince Albert, who used the royal arms (differenced by a special label) quartered with his own Saxon royal arms.[72]
Currently the following members of the royal family have their own arms based on the royal arms:
Children and grandchildren of the monarch in the male line
Three-point label with three red escallops in each point, alluding to the patrilineal arms of his mother, Diana, Princess of Wales. The label changed from five to three points, with each point bearing an escallop, upon his father'saccession to the throne in 2022, as previously stated by theCollege of Arms.[74][75][76]
Five-point label, the first and fifth points bearing a red heart, the second and fourth points bearing a blue anchor, and the third bearing a red cross.[4]
The arms of the Duke of Edinburgh impaled with those granted in 1999 to Sophie's father, Christopher Rhys-Jones, with remainder to his elder brother Theo. The new grant was based on an unregistered 200-year-old design. The lion alludes to one of the Duchess's ancestors, the Welsh knightElystan Glodrydd, prince of Ferrig.[81]
^AWelsh dragon was used as a supporter by theTudor monarchs, who were of Welsh descent, but this was replaced with the current Scottish unicorn when the Stuart dynasty inherited the throne. In the 20th century, thearms of the principality of Wales were added as an inescutcheon to thecoat of arms of the Prince of Wales, and a banner of those arms with a green inescutcheon bearing the prince's crown is flown as his personal standard in Wales. There is also aRoyal Badge of Wales, which include the arms of the principality and which is used, among other things, on the cover of Acts of the Welsh Parliament.[7]
^In heraldry, any artistic interpretation is considered to be correct provided it adheres to the written description given in the blazon.
^Although the cap of the heraldic crown is always represented as crimson even though the cap of the real crown is of purple velvet.[15]
^InWilliam Blackstone's 1765Commentaries on the Laws of England, he explained that 'The meaning therefore of the legislature, when it uses these terms ofempire andimperial, and applies them to the realm and crown of England, is only to assert that our king is equally sovereign and independent within these his dominions, as any emperor is in his empire; and owes no kind of subjection to any other potentate on earth.'[17]
^Victoria had featured inWilliam Wyon's gothic crown coin in 1847,[22] and thePalace of Westminster, rebuilt from 1840–1876, makes extensive use of a gothic style crown. The British had assumeddirect rule over India in 1858 and theOrder of the Star of India, created in 1861, depicted a Tudor Crown from its inception.[23] Victoria had anew crown made in 1870 which resembled the Tudor Crown,[24] declining to wear the Imperial State Crown which she found heavy and uncomfortable.[15]
^TheRoyal Courts of Justice in Belfast, the courts in Armagh, Banbridge, Downpatrick, Magherafelt, Omagh, and the exterior of court buildings that had them in place prior to the enactment of the Act.
^Boutell, Charles (1864).Heraldry, historical and popular. London: Richard Bentley. pp. 320, 332.TheHeraldic Crown which enjoys the Royal favour, differs from both No. 562, and the State Crown, No. 624, and inclines to the type of an earlier time ; this Heraldic Crown of our Most Gracious Sovereign is represented in No. 334, page 332, ensigning the Royal Shield of Arms.
^Boutell (1983,p. 95): "The decorative treatment of the frame is a matter of taste. The Irish harp has commonly been shown in the Royal Arms with the frame in the form of a winged woman, but the modern practice is to adopt a Celtic form associated with Brian Boru."
^abBoutell (1983,p. 222): "Royal Arms, or Arms of Dominion, are inseparable from the rank and office of royalty, and cannot be bourne undifferenced by any person except the Sovereign."
^Cox, Noel (July 2000)."Authority for the use of the Royal Arms in Churches".Ecclesiastical Law Journal.5 (27): 414.doi:10.1017/S0956618X00004002. Retrieved4 August 2024....armorial bearings are the exclusive property of their bearer...Indeed, it can also be argued that the arms borne by the Sovereign, both the full royal arms, and parts thereof, are distinct from ordinary armorial bearings. They are borne as an attribute of the royal prerogative, and the consent of the Sovereign for their use is doubly necessary.
^"Frequently asked questions".The National Archives. Retrieved3 August 2024.The Royal Arms and its constituent parts are protected by perpetual Crown copyright, and may only be re-used by His Majesty the King, members of the Royal Family, government departments and official holders of the Royal Warrant.
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