Letters Patent, Warrants, Etc.

Introduction

Every student of heraldry will, at some time or other, have come across the term "Letters Patent". This is an open letter (from the Latin patere = to open) addressed "To All and Singular to whom these Presents shall Come". Armorial bearings are granted by means of Letters Patent as are titles of nobility, offices held from the Crown, etc. The opposite of Letters Patent are Letters Close, which are of a personal nature and are closed with a seal.

The text of Letters Patent is generally executed in copper plate or foundation hand by a skilled calligrapher, with the initial letters "TO" being illuminated, ie drawn larger than the rest of the text and embellished with various ornaments. Patents of arms contain other elements, such as the arms of the Earl Marshal, the Sovereign and the College of Arms as well as a painting of the arms being granted.

Below is a selection of various Letters Patent, Warrants, etc. which hopefully will give a flavour of these interesting documents.

Letters Patent, being legal documentation, do not have punctuation or paragraphs.

• Letters Patent of Appointment of Hereditary Earl Marshal, 1672
• Declaration of the Authority of the Earl Marshal, 1673
• Letters Patent of Appointment of Provincial King of Arms, 1980
• Royal Warrant of Appointment of Herald Extraordinary, 1959
• English Patent of Arms to an Individual, 1576/7
• English Patent of Arms to an Individual, 1986
• Irish Patent of Arms to an Individual, 1986
• English Patent of Arms to a Corporate Body, 1992
• Scottish Extract of Matriculation for an Individual, 1991

Letters Patent of Appointment of Hereditary Earl Marshal, 1672

CHARLES the Second by the Grace of God King of England, Scotland, France, and Ireland, Defender of the Faith, and so forth To all Archbishops, Dukes, Marquesses, Earls, Viscounts, Bishops, Barons, Justices, Baronets, Knights, Esquires, Mayors, and free men, as all Our officers, servants, and subjects whomsoever to whom these presents shall come, Greeting.

Whereas Our well-beloved and trusty Henry, Lord Howard, Baron Howard of Castle Rising in our County of Norfolk springing from the illustrious line of the Howards and the blood of the Dukes of Norfolk has honoured Us with all the trust and obedience that he could and has long served Us and whom not only arms and ancient stock have enobled but in whom besides the renown of his family We find uprightness, steadfastness, diligence, and all other excellence by which strengthened and adorned it is fitting that he should be raised to higher honour and more illustrious titles of dignity.

Know therefore that We considering the premises of Our especial grace and certain knowledge and mere motion have promoted, preferred, created, and established the aforesaid Henry, Lord Howard, Baron Howard of Castle Rising to the higher state, rank, and style, dignity, title, and honour of Earl of Norwich and by the effect of these presents We promote, create, prefer and establish him the said Henry, Lord Howard Earl of Norwich and We have conferred, given, and bestowed and by these presents We do confer, grant, and bestow to him the said Henry, Lord Howard the name, state, rank, style, dignity, title, and honour of Earl of Norwich and We do really distinguish and create Henry, Lord Howard eith the title, honour, and dignity of Earl of Norwich to have and to hold such name, state, rank, and dignity, style, title, and honour of Earl of Norwich with all and singular the pre-eminences, privileges, precedencies, honours, and all other things belonging or appertaining to the state of Earl of Norwich unto the aforesaid Henry, Lord Howard and the heirs male of his body lawfully begotten and to be begotten willing and by these presents granting for Us, Our heirs and successors that the said Henry, Lord Howard and the heirs male of his body lawfully begotten and to be begotten may have, bear, hold, and enjoy and that each of them may have, bear, hold, and enjoy the said name, state, rank, dignity, style, title, and honour of Earl of Norwich and that the same Henry, Lord Howard and the heirs male of his body begotten and to be begotten as aforesaid successively Earl of Norwich may be held in all things and as Earls of Norwich may be treated and reputed in all things and each of them may be treated and reputed as Earl of Norwich and called and named and also numbered and each of them numbered among the earls and peers of this Our kingdom of England and may have, hold, and possess each of them successively may have, hold, and possess a seat, place, and voice in the parliaments and public assemblies and councils of Us, Our heirs and successors within Our kingdom of England among the other earls and peers of Our said kingdom and may also use and enjoy and each of them may occupy and enjoy all other privileges, precedences, pre-eminences, and immunities which the other earls of this kingdom occupy and enjoy or ought to occupy and enjoy.

And whereas both expense and greater burdens increase with an increase in the consequential magnificence of rank, so therefore that Henry, Lord Howard and the heirs male of his body begotten and to be begotten as aforesaid may be able with greater honour to maintain, sustain, and support the burdens incumbent upon them in accordance with the dignity of the name of Earl of Norwich and that each of them may be able to maintain, sustain, and support the same We of Our further especial grace and certain knowledge and mere motion have given, granted, and by these presents for Us, Our heirs and succesors do give and grant to the said Henry, Lord Howard and the heirs male of his body in perpetuity an annual rent of twenty pounds of lawful money of England to be received at the receipt of the Exchequer of Us, Our heirs and successors by the hand of the Treasurer, the Commissioners of the Treasury, of the Chamberlain of Us, Our heirs or successors for the time being to be paid by equal instalments at the feasts of the Annunciation of the Blessed Virgin Mary and St Michael the Archangel in each year.

And We further and by these presents for Us, Our heirs and successors We of Our further special grace grant to the said Henry, Lord Howard that these Our letters patent or the enrolment thereof shall be sufficient and effectual in the law to distinguish, invest, and make truly noble the said Henry, Lord Howard and the heirs male of his body as aforesaid begotten and to be begotten and each of them withe the name, title, rank, dignity, style, and honour of Earl of Norwich aforesaid and that without any investiture, rites, ornaments, or ceremonies whatsoever in that behalf due and used, which for certain reasons best known to Us We could not perform and execute, any ordiannce, use, custom, rite, ceremony, prescription, or proviso in conferring the like honour due, used, had, made, or performed or any other thing in these presents to the contrary not withstanding.

And whereas also the ancient and great office of Marshal of England has been too long vacant, which illustrious place or office divers dukes of Norfolk have formerly enjoyed and many other ancestors of the said Henry, Lord Howard have also exercised.

And whereas Our very dear grandfather, James, late King of England, of blessed memory, by his letters patent bearing date the 29th day of August, in the nineteenth year of his reign [1621] had given and granted to Thomas, late Earl of Arundel, surrey, and Norfolk, grandfather of the said Henry, Lord Howard, the said office of Earl Marshal, with all and singular its appurtenances for the term of his life as by the said letters patent more at large appears: And afterwards Our said grandfather by other his letters patent, bearing date the first day of August in the twentieth year of his reign [1622] reciting that he had been informed that the same Earl of Arundel and Surrey, his Earl Marshal, postponed proceeding judicially in certain causes then pending before him in the Marshal's Court, by reason of certain doubts spread abroad that the Earl Marshal was only attendant upon the precepts and judgements of the Constable, although Our same grandfather never doubted not only the absolute power of Earl Marshal, when the office of Constable was vacant, but also that the said Earl Marshal, when the Constable was in office, was a judge together with the said Constable. Nevertheless, in a matter of such moment, he was unwilling to proceed without speical deliberation first had, and therefore, having received ample satisfaction for himself and his Privy Council by means of many and very clear proofs, that the said Constable and Earl Marshal are joint judges, acting together or seperately in the vacany of either of their offices, Our said grandfather by his letters patent, authorized, willed, and commanded the said Thomas, Earl Marshal, that thenceforward in all causes whatsoever, the cognisance whereof belongs to the court of the Constable and Marshal, he should proceed judicially and definitively in the same manner and degree as any Constables or Marshals of this Kingdom have proceeded either jointly or severally; and that the said Earl Marshal should endeavour to reconstruct and establish the honourable processes of the said Court, by all manner of means, together with all rights whotsoever thereunto belonging, with the assistance of records and ancient precedents, as among other things in the said letters patent more fully appears and is set forth. Which said letters patent last mentioned, and the declaration made therein, in so far as mention is made in the same letters patent of the absolute power of the said Earl Marshal while the office of Constable is vacant, or that the Constable and Earl Marshal are joint judges together or seperately, while the office of either of them should be vacant, are to be understood only in respect and relation to the Court of the Constable and Marshal, and in causes the cognisance whereof belongs to the Court aforesaid. And thus by these presents We declare and will it to be understood, and that they do not extend to, nor ought they to be interpreted of, any other authority whatsoever to the said office of Constable belonging.

Know, morever, that We, closely considering the fidelity, good service, and deserts of the said Henry, Lord Howard, of our further especial grace , and of Our certain knowledge and mere motion, have given and granted, and by these presents, for Us, Our heirs and successors, do give and grant to the said Henry, Lord Howard, the office of Marshal of England, together with the name and honour of Earl Marshal of England, and by these presents We create, ordain, and constitute him, the said Henry, Lord Howard, Earl Marshal of England, and have given, bestowed, and conferred, and by these presents do give, bestow, and confer to and upon him the Name, Style, Title, Rank, Authority, Jurisdiction, Dignity, and Honour of Earl Marshal of England, together with all and singular the dignities, precedencies, pre-eminences, jurisdictions, profits, commodities, emoluments, advantages, offices, and nominations of officers, and all other privileges, rights, powers, authorities, and all other things whatsoever thereunto appertaining, both in Our courts and elsewhere, to the said office of Earl Marshal of England, in any manner or wise belonging of or right appertaining. And further, by these presents We invest, establish, and confirm him, the said Henry, Lord Howard, in the said office of Earl Marshal of England, and the other things aforesaid to the same office as aforesaid appertaining, in the same ample manner and form as Henry, Lord Maltravers, late Earl of Arundel, Surrey, and Norfolk, father of the said Henry, Lord Howard, or Thomas, Earl of Arundel, Surrey, and Norfolk, grandfather of the said Henry, Lord Howard, or Thomas, late Duke of Norfolk, grandfather of the said Thomas, Earl of Arundel, Surrey, and Norfolk, or Thomas, sometime Duke of Norfolk, grandfather of the said Thomas, Duke of Norfolk, or John Mowbray, sometime Duke of Norfolk, or any other Earl Marshal of England, having or exercising the office before this time, has had or exercised or of right could have had or exercised the same, to have, hold, exercise, and occupy the office aforesaid, and all and singular the authorities, jurisdictions, powers, commodities, profits and other things aforesaid whatsoever to the said office in any way belonging or of right appertaining to him, the said Henry, Lord Howard, and the heirs male of his body lawfully begotten and to be begotten, by himself or by his sufficient deputy or deputies.

And, morever, We of Our especial grace, have given and granted, and by these presents for Us, Our heirs and successors, do give and grant to the aforesaid Henry, Lord Howard, and the heirs male of his body issuing as aforesaid, that they and their deputies by reason of the said office, shall have, bear, and carry, both in the presence of Us, Our heirs abd successors, and elsewhere, a golden rod, ringed with black at either end, bearing at the upper end the arms of Us, Our heirs and successors, and at the lower end the arms of the Earl Marshal of England, for the time being, carved and adorned, lawfully, with impunity, and without hindrance from Us, Our heirs and successors, or the justices, or other servants whomsoever of Us, Our heirs and successors.

And that the said Henry, Lord Howard, and the heirs male from his body issuing as Earls Marshal of England may be able with greater honour to maintain, sustain, and support the burdens imcumbent upon them in accordance with the dignity of their name, and that each of them may be able to maintain, sustain, and support the same, We of Our further especial grace, certain knowledge and mere motion have given and granted, and by these presents for Us, Our heirs and successors, do give and grant to the aforesaid Henry, Lord Howard, and the heirs male of his body, one other annual rent of twenty pounds of lawful money of England from the issues and revenues of the hanaper of Our Chancery, and the Chancery of Our heirs and successors issuing and arising, by the hands of the keeper or clerk of the said hanaper, or other the hodlers or receivers of the profits and issues of the said hanaper for the time being, to be paid annually at the feasts of the Annunciation of the Blessed Virgin Mary and Saint Michael the Archangel in equal portions. And if the aforesaid Henry, Lord Howard happen to die without an heir male of his body lawfully begotten, then We will, and by these presents for Us, Our heirs and successors, We have granted, decreed, and ordained that the office aforesaid shall remain to the heirs male of the body of Thomas, late Earl of Arundel, Surrey, and Norfolk, grandfather of the said Henry, Lord Howard, lawfully begotten, and that the heirs male of the body of the said Thomas successively shall have and hold the office of Earl Marshal of England with all its appurtenances, and shall be called and known as Earls Marshal of England, and shall carry the golden rod thus ringed with black as aforesaid, both in the prescence of Us, Our heirs and successors, and elsewhere, and shall exercise the same office themselves or by their sufficient deputy or deputies, and shall have a like annual rent of twenty pounds from the revenues of the said hanaper of Us, Our heirs and successors, to be paid in the same manner and form and at like terms of the year, and the same privileges, pre-eminences and other things aforesaid whatsoever to the said office belonging or annexed, in such ample manner and form as the aforesaid Henry, Lord Howard, and his heirs male aforesaid, by virtue of these letters patent, occupy and enjoy, or ought to occupy and enjoy the same; and if it happen that there shall be no heir male lawfully begotten of the body of the said Thomas, Earl of Arundel, Surrey, and Norfolk, grandfather of the said Lord Henry Howard, then and in default of such issue, We will and grant, and by these presents for Us, Our heirs and successors, decree and ordain, that the office aforesaid shall remain to the heirs male of the body of Thomas, late Earl of Suffolk; and that the heirs male of the body of the said Thomas, late Earl of Suffolk, successively shall have and hold the said office of Earl Marshal of England with all its appurtenances, and shall be called Earls Marshal of England, and shall carry the golden rod ringed with black as aforesaid, both in the presence of Us, Our heirs and successors, and elsewhere, and shall exercise the same office themselves or by their sufficient deputy or deputies, and shall have a like annual rent of twenty pounds out of the revenues of the said hanaper of Us, Our heirs and successors, to be paid in the same manner as is aforesaid and at like terms of the year, and the same privileges, pre-eminences, and other things aforesaid to the said office belonging or annexed, in such ample manner and form as the said Henry, Lord Howard, and his heirs male aforesaid by virtue of these letters patent occupy and enjoy, or ought to occupy and enjoy the same. And if it happen that there shall be no heir male of the body of the said Thomas, late Earl of Suffolk, lawfully begotten, then and in default of such issue, We will and grant, and by these presents for Us, Our heirs and successors, decree and ordain, that the office aforesaid shall remain to the heirs male of the body of Lord William Howard, late of Naworth, in the county of Cumberland, lawfully begotten, which said Lord William Howard, was youngest son of the said Thomas, late Duke of Norfolk, and that the heirs male of the body of the said William successively shall have and hold the said office of Earl Marshal of England with all its appurtenances, and shall be called and known as Earls Marshal of England, and shall carry the golden rod ringed with black as aforesaid, both in the presence of Us, Our heirs and successors, and elsewhere, and shall exercise the same office themselves or by their sufficient deputy or deputies, and shall have a like annual rent of twenty pounds out of the revenues of the said hanaper of Us, Our heirs and successors, to be paid in the same manner as is aforesaid and at like terms of the year, and the same privileges, pre-eminences, and other things whatsoever above said to the said office belonging or annexed, in such ample manner and form as the said Henry, Lord Howard, and his heirs male aforesaid by virtue of these letters patent occupy and enjoy, or ought to occupy and enjoy the same. And if it happen that there shall be no heir male of the body of the said William lawfully begotten, then and in default of such issue, We will and grant, and by these presents for Us, Our heirs and successors, decree and ordain, that the office aforesaid shall remain to Our well-beloved and faithfull cousin Charles, Earl of Nottingham, and the heirs male of his body lawfully begotten and to be begotten,and that the heirs male of his body shall have and hold the said office of Earl Marshal of England with all its appurtenances, and shall be called and known as Earls Marshal of England, and shall carry the golden rod ringed with black as aforesaid, both in the presence of Us, Our heirs and successors, and elsewhere, and shall exercise the same office themselves or by their sufficient deputy or deputies, and shall have a like annual rent of twenty pounds out of the revenues of the said hanaper of Us, Our heirs and successors, to be paid in the same manner as is aforesaid and at like terms of the year, and the same privileges, pre-eminences, and other things aforesaid whatsoever to the said office belonging or annexed, in such ample manner and form as the said Henry, Lord Howard, and his heirs male aforesaid by virtue of these letters patent occupy and enjoy, or ought to occupy and enjoy the same.

We will also and by these presents grant to the aforesaid Henry, Lord Howard, that he may and shall have these Our letters patent under Our Great Seal of England made and sealed, without fine or fee, great or small, to be paid or made on that account to Us into Our hanaper or elsewhere to Our use. That express mention be not made in these presents of the true annual value or of the certainty of the premises pr of any of them or of other gifts or grants made heretofore by Us or by any of Our progenitors or predecessors to the aforesaid Henry, Lord Howard, or by any statute, act, ordinance, provision, proclamations, or restriction to the contrary heretofore used, made, uttered, ordained, or provided or any other thing, cause, or matter notwithstanding.

In witness whereof We have caused these Our letters to be made patent Witness myself at Westminster, the nineteenth day of October, in the twenty fourth year of Our reign [1672].

By writ of Privy Seal

BARKER

Commentary

Although the office of Earl Marshal was frequently held by Dukes of Norfolk, this was not invariably the case, and during considerable periods in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries the office was in commission. It did not become hereditary within the Howard family until the issuing of the above letters patent, when it was granted, with the earldom of Norwich, to Henry, Lord Howard of Castle Rising. The grant was made to Henry because his elder brother, Thomas, 5th Duke of Norfolk, had been of unsound mind since 1645, when he had an attack of brain fever.

The functions of the new Earl Marshal are defined in the letters patent by no more than a string of general words referring to previous holders of the office. The next year the King formally declared the authority of the Earl Marshal [see below].

Henry succeeded his elder brother as 6th Duke of Norfolk in 1677. The new earldom of Norwich was shortlived. It became extinct in 1777 with the death without male heirs of Edward, 9th Duke of Norfolk, when the dukedom of Norfolk and the office of Earl Marshal of England passed to his cousin Charles Howard, a grandson of Hon Charles Howard, a younger brother of Henry, Lord Howard, later 6th Duke of Norfolk.

Declaration of the Authority of the Earl Marshal, 1673

Charles R

WHEREAS by Our Letters Patent under Our Great Seal of England bearing date the 19th day of October last past, We have Given and Granted unto Our Right Trusty and Right Welbeloved Cousin Henry Earl of Norwich the Office, Name, Style, State, Authority, Jurisdiction, Dignity and Honour of Earl Marshal of England, together with all Precedencies, Preeminencies, Jurisdictions, Offices and Nomination of Officers, and all other Privileges, Rights, Powers and Authorities whatsoever belonging to the said Office of Earl Marshal TO HAVE, hold, Exercise and enjoy the same to our said Cousin, and the Heirs Male of his body by him and them, or his and their sufficient Deputy or Deputies, i nas full and ample manner, as any former Earl Marshal of England had and exercised the same AND WHEREAS Sir Edward Walker, Knt. alias Garter Principal King of Arms, claiming to himself as belonging to his said Office of Garter, Power and Authority to Grant Armes and other Ensigns of Nobility without being subject therein to the Authority and Jurisdiction of the Earl Marshal, We were graciously pleased upon the desire of Our Said Earl Marshal and Petition of the said Garter to refer the Hearing and Examination of the matters controverted between them, into Our Right Trusty and Right Welbeloved Cousin and Councellor Arthur Earl of Anglesey, Keeper of the Privy Seal, and he to make his report therein to Us, together with his Opinion; Who having so done, and We thereupon taken the same into our Royal Consideration, and the Pretences of Garter appearing to us to be groundless and unreasonable: WE, to the Intent all occasion for the like Pretences and Disputes may for the future be removed and prevented, and the Authority of Our Earl Marshal over the Kings nd other Our Officers of Armes asserted and vindicated, Our said Earl Marshal being the next and immediate Officer under Us for Determining and Ordering all matters touching Armes, Ensigns for Nobility, Honour and Chivalry, and from whom We doe and shall expect a due account thereof and of the Deportment and Actions of Our said Officers of Arms therein, who are Ministers Subordinate to Our said Earl Marshal, and the Rule, Government and Ordering of them in all things belonging to their Faculty and Employment, being an Indubiate Right belonging to and naturally consistent with the Office of Earl Marshals: HAVE thought fit to declare, and do hereby declare, THAT it doth appertain to the Office of Earl Marshal of England to Order, Judge and Determine all Matters Touching Armes, Ensigns of Nobility, Honour and Chivalry, according to the Law of Armes, and to make and prescribe from time to time Rules, Ordinances and Decrees for the due Regulation and Settlement thereof, to revive and put in execution the laws and Ordinances heretofore made by any Constable or former Earl Marshals touching the same. Also to make and prescribe from time to time Laws, Ordinances, and Statutes for the good government of the Kings, Heralds and Pursuivants of Armes in all things touching their Faculty and Imployment, and more especially for limiting the Authorities of the Kings of Armes in their Granting of Armes and all other Ensigns of Nobility, and for Directing and Ordering them from time to time therein: and for making their Visitations and for the Deportment and Demeanour of them and the rest of Our Officers of Armes in their severall places and Emploiments. It appertains also to the Earl Marshal to have the Nomination of Officers for supplying from time to time the Vacant places happening in the College of Arms, and to punish and correct from time to time all such of Our Officers of Armes as shall not conform themselves to the Orders made by the Earle Marshal, or misbehave themselves in the Execution of their Places and Imployment: And We further declare, and it is Our Royal Will and Pleasure, that no Patents of Arms or any Ensigns of Nobility whatsoever be Granted, or any Augmentation, Alteration or Addition to any Armes be made or Granted by any King of Armes without the Consent, Warrant, Direction or Order of the Earl Marshal or his Deputy for the time being: and We do hereby straitly charge and command the said Garter King of Armes, and all other the Kings, Heralds and Pursuivants of Armes now and for the time being That they and every of them do and shall from time to time in all things conform themselves to this Our Declaration: And that they nd every of them do observe and obey from time to time all such Rules and Orders as are and shall be prescribed and appointed by Our Earl Marshal or his Deputy for the time being touching the premisses, and for their Orderly doing, performing and deporting themselves in their severall offices, places and Emploiments, as they will answer at their perills. And We do hereby Will and Require Our Earl Marshal of England his Deputie and Deputies now and for the time being, That they and every of them do from time to time Execute, Perform and Exercise all and every the Authorities aforesaid as occasion may require. And to the end that due Notice may be had of this Our Declaration by all Our said Officers of Armes; Our Will and Pleasure is that the same be Registered in the College of Arms, and that Our Earl Marshal does Issue out his Orders for the doing thereof. GIVEN at Our Court at Whitehall under Our Privy Signet and Sign Manual the 16th day of June 1673, in the 25th Year of Our Reigne.

By His Majesty's Command,

ARLINGTON

Commentary:

As is mentioned above in the commentary on the 1672 Letters Patent of Appointment of the Hereditary Earl Marshal, the functions of the new Earl Marshal were defined by no more than a string of general words referring to previous holders of the office, but in 1673 the King formally declared the authority of the Earl Marshal, and in 1674 the King's declaration was confirmed by an Order in Council.

This document is probably the most important document for determining the scope and extent of the Earl Marshal's authority over heraldic matters in England. It has been claimed that the Law of Arms can only be altered by decisions in the Court of Chivalry. However this declaration quite clearly gives the Earl Marshal the fullest exercise of the Royal Prerogative in matters armorial and the absolute authority to amend the Law of Arms, which is part of the corpus of English Law, by "Rules, Ordinances and Decrees". Indeed this authority is still exercised today whenever the Earl Marshal issues a Warrant for changing or amending the Law of Arms, or whenever the Kings of Arms, acting as subordinate ministers to the Earl Marshal, make a Ruling on a particular aspect of heraldic practice. This is probably the only occasion in English legal history when a subject is given full authority to amend the law of the land without the intervention of Parliament.

The Court of Chivalry, also called the Earl Marshal's Court, is plainly subordinate to the authority of the Earl Marshal. As will be seen elsewhere, the main function of the Court of Chivalry is to enforce the observation of the Law of Arms as determined by the Earl Marshal. The only appeal from a decision in the Earl Marshal's Court is to the Crown itself through the Privy Council.

Letters Patent of Appointment of Provincial King of Arms, 1980

ELIZABETH the Second by the Grace of God of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and of Our other Realms and Territories Queen Head of the Commonwealth Defender of the Faith To all to whom these Presents shall come Greeting Whereas it hath been of ancient times accustomed that amongst other Officers and Ministers whom it is meet should be attendant upon the Person of Princes suitable to their high dignity and glory there should be more especially proper Officers to whom the care and office of Arms both in times of war and peace may be committed And Whereas the Office of Norroy and Ulster King of Arms and Principal Herald of the North Part of England and of Northern Ireland is become vacant by the retirement of Our trusty and well beloved Walter John George Verco Esquire Commander of Our Royal Victorian Order lately Norroy and Ulster King of Arms Know Ye therefore that We of Our especial Grace certain knowledge and mere motion and for divers other good causes and considerations Us hereunto especially moving by these Presents for Us Our heirs and successors Do advance make ordain constitute and create Out trusty and well beloved John Philip Brooke Brooke-Little Esquire Member of Our Royal Victorian Order Richmond Herald a King of Arms and a Principal Herald of the North Part of England and of Northern Ireland And We by these Presents Do give unto him the name Norroy and Ulster which We do give and grant unto the said John Philip Brooke Brooke-Little with the style title liberties pre-eminences and commodities suitable agreeable and belonging and anciently accustomed to the said Office And him We have really crowned and invested and by these Presents Do crown and invest therwith To have enjoy occupy and exercise the said Office and the name style title pre-eminences and commodities aforesaid unto him the said John Philip Brooke Brooke-Little during his good behaviour in the said Office with all rights profits commodities and emoluments whatsoever to the same Office in anywise belonging and appertaining giving moreover and granting unto the said John Philip Brooke Brooke-Little all and singular other things which are incumbent upon the said Office of Norroy and Ulster King of Arms or are known to be appertaining or right or by custom or in times past to be done transacted and executed except such ancient and customary fees as are due to the said Office on the creation of dignities and further of Our more abundant grace We do give and by virtue of these Presents grant into the said John Philip Brooke Brooke-Little Authority Power and Licence with the consent of the Earl Marshal of England or his Deputy for the time being in writing under their hands and seals from time to time first given or signified of granting and appointing to eminent men Letters Patent of Arms and Crests jointly and together with Garter and Clarenceux King of Arms or one of them or by himself alone without them at the will and pleasure of the Earl Marshal or his Deputy for the time being according to their Ordinances or Statutes from time to time issued or to be issued respectively in that behalf and not otherwise nor in other manner so that if the said John Philip Brooke Brooke-Little shall act in any of the premises to the contrary this Our present Grant and all things herein contained shall cease and be utterly and altogether void and of none effect or force whatsoever Moreover We have given and granted and by these Presents for Us Our heirs and successors Do give and grant unto the said John Philip Brooke Brooke-Little advanced by Us a King of Arms and Principal Herald of the North Part of England and of Northern Ireland as aforesaid Twenty pounds and twenty-five pence by the year by reason and in consideration of the same Office and for the exercise thereof To have and receive the same unto him the said John Philip Brooke Brooke-Little yearly and every year during his good behaviour in the same Office at the office of the Chamberlain of Our Household for the time being the same to commence from the thirtieth day of June last being the day of retirement of the said Walter John George Verco and be computed and paid by the date after the rate of Twenty pounds and twenty-five pence by the year unto and for the Feast of St Michael and All Angels now next ensuing and the subsequent payments quaterly at the four most usual days of payment in the year by even and equal portions Together with such liveries and clothing as and in the same manner and form as any other Person being a King of Arms or Herald of Arms in England or Northern Ireland aforesaid had and received in the time of Edward the Third Our Progenitor heretofore King of England or afterwards to have and receive such liveries and clothing unto him the said John Philip Brooke Brooke-Little yearly during his good behaviour in the said Office at the Great Wardrobe of Us Our heirs and successors by the hands of the Keeper of the same Wardrobe of Us Our heirs and successors for the time being In Witness whereof We have caused these Our Letters to be made Patent Witness Ourself at Westminster the seventh day of July in the twenty-ninth year of Our Reign

By Warrant under The Queen's Sign Manual

BOURNE

Commentary:

Although at first difficult to read because if the lack of punctuation and paragraphs, this Letters Patent does fall into several fairly recognisable sections. The first part is the appointment of the King of Arms (note the references to crowning him - at one time the Kings of Arms were actually crowned by the Sovereign with their crowns of oak leaves), the second part is the specific conferment of the right to grant arms, the third part is the granting of a salary, and the final part is authorising the provision of robes and insignia of office.

Royal Warrant of Appointment of Herald Extraordinary, 1959

ELIZABETH R.

Elizabeth the Second by the Grace of God of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and of Our other Realms and Territories Queen Head of the Commonwealth, Defender of the Faith, To Our Right Trusty and Right Entirely Beloved Cousin and Counsellor, Bernard Marmaduke, Duke of Norfolk, Knight of Our Most Noble Order of the Garter, Knight Grand Cross of Our Royal Victorian Order, Earl Marshal and Hereditary Marshal of England Greeting!

WHEREAS it appears by an instrument under your hand and seal bearing date the First day of April instant that being well satisfied with the abilities of George Drewery Squibb, Esquire, One of Our Counsel learned in the Law, Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries, and with his desire to improve his skill and knowledge in the art and science of Heraldry you for his encouragement therein had nominated and appointed him a Herald of Arms Extraordinary to the end that he may obtain Our Warrant to be fully invested with all the rights privileges pre-eminences and advantages of such Herald Extraordinary: We approving the character you have given of him are graciously pleased to condescend thereto: And it is Our Will and Pleasure and We do hereby authorise and require you in Our name to create him the said George Drewery Squibb Herald of Arms Extraordinary by the name of Norfolk Herald to the end that he may be thereby qualified to have exercise and enjoy all rights privileges pre-eminences and advantages whatsoever belonging to such Herald of Arms Extraordinary in as ample and beneficial manner as any other hath heretofore held exercised and enjoyed or of right ought to have held exercised and enjoyed the same

And for so doing this shall be your Warrant

Given at Our Court at Saint James's the twenty-fourth day of April 1959; in the Eighth year of Our Reign

By Her Majesty's Command

R A BUTLER

Commentary:

The heralds and pursuivants extraordinary are honorary officers of arms, correctly termed offisers of arms extraordinary. In England these officers of arms extraordinary are not members of the corporation of the College of Arms, and their duties are entirely ceremonial, as are those of their Scottish counterparts. Appointment as an officer of arms extraordinary is no longer dependent on the occurence of a major ceremony of state, such as a Coronation, and appointments are generally made honoris causa. Because they are appointed by him, it is traditional for the English officers of arms extraordinary to take their names from titles connected with the Earl Marshal or from his armorial attributes (eg Surrey, Arundel, Fitzalan, Blanc Lyon, etc.).

English Patent of Arms to an Individual, 1576/7

TO ALL AND SINGULAR as well Nobles and Gentills as others to whome these presents shall come Robert Cooke Esquire alias Clarencieulx principall herehault and kinge of armes of the South East and West parte of the Realme of England from the River of Trent southwards sendeth greeting in our Lord God everlasting WHEREAS aunciently from the beginning the valiant and vertuous acts of worthie persons have ben comendid to the world with sondry monuments and remembrances of there good deserts Amongst the which the chiefest and most usuall hath ben the bearing of signes in shildes called Armes which are curdent demonstracons of prowes and valoir, which order as it was most prudently devised in the beginning to showe and finde in the heartes of men to the imitacon of vertue and noblenes Even so hath the same ben and yet is continually observed to the end that such as have don comendable service to their Prince or Contry either in warre or peace may both receive due honor in their lives and derive the same successively unto there posteritie for ever AND BEING REQUIRED of Henry Stanley of Sutton Bonnington in the countie of Nottingham gentleman, and of Anne his wife daughter of Richard Bradshaw late of Borny in the saide countie gent to make searche in the Registers and Records of my Office for the auncient Armes of those two severall houses whereof they are descendid, whereupon I have made search accordingly and do finde that the saide Henry Stanley may beare as his auncestors heretofore have don these armes and creast hereafter following THAT IS TO SAY golde thre Egle's Legges rased gules on a chief indented azure thre Staggs' heads caboshed golde, and to the creast upon the healme on a wreath silver and azure an Egle's head golde with thre pellatts and in his beake an Egle's foote rased gules, manteled gules debled silver And also that the aforesaid Anne wife to the saide Henry Stanley may also beare as her auncestors heretofore have done these armes herafter following VIDELICET silver to benletts betwene two martletts sables, as more plainly apeareth in the margent THE WHICH SEVERALL ARMES AND CREAST, and every part and parcell thereof I ye saide Clarencieulx Kinge of Armes by power and authority unto my Office annexed and granted by letters patent under the greate seale of England do ratifie confirme and allowe unto and for the saide Henry Stanley gent and Anne his wife and to their posteritie with their due differences according to the Lawe of Armes and they the same to have and enjoy forever without impediment let or interuption of any person or persons IN WITNES WHEROF I the saide Clarencieulx Kinge of Armes have sett hereunto my hand and seale of Office the eighteenth day of March Anno Domini 1576 and in the nineteenth yere of the reigne of oure Souvereigne Lady Quene Elizabeth

Robt Cooke Alias Clarencieulx
Roy D'armes

Commentary:

Robert Cooke (Clarenceux King of Arms, 1567 to 1593) is reputed to have been the most active sixteenth-century granting King of Arms. A count of Cooke's patents for which there is evidence at the College of Arms produces over nine hundred. Sir William Segar (Garter 1606-33) wrote that Cooke "confirmed and gave Armes and Creastes without nomber to base and unworthy persons for his private gaine onely without the knowledge of the Earle Marshall". The large number of patents issued by Cooke may in part be accounted for by those which confirmed both arms and crest, such as that above. Whereas Cooke made many grants of crests to existing arms, as did other sixteenth and early seventeenth century Kings of Arms, the confirmation of both by Patent seems to be particularly associated with Cooke.

An initial view of grants made by Robert Cooke does not immediately show the base and unworthy persons to whom Segar referred. Amongst churchmen are Thomas Godwin, Bishop of Bath and Wells, and John Whitgift, Archbishop of Canterbury. Lawyers incude the Lord Chief Justice of the Common Pleas, Sir James Dyer, Matthew Ewens, a Baron of the Exchequer, and members of the Bar such as Hugh Browker of the Inner Temple, one of the Prothonotaries of the Common Pleas; examples of Doctors of Physic are Isaac Barrow of Cambridge, Thomas Larking, and John Simminges. The Queen's Surgeon George Baker was a grantee of Cooke's, as were Sir Francis Drake and the astrologer John Dee. Perhaps Sir William Segar viewed with less pleasure the Queen's two Master Cooks Cordell and Pindat, and the Sergeant of the Pastry John Dudley.

Note that the Patent shown was issued by Cooke alone and not with one of the other Kings of Arms, as the basis of the present system, whereby Garter and Norroy grant together north of the River Trent, and Garter and Clarenceux grant together south of the Trent, was only agreed in 1680.

Taken from "The Oxford Guide to Heraldry", by Thomas Woodcock and John Martin Robinson

English Patent of Arms to an Individual, 1986

TO ALL AND SINGULAR to whom these Presents shall come Sir Alexander Colin Cole, Knight Commander of the Royal Victorian Order, upon whom has been conferred the Territorial Decoration, Garter Principal King of Arms and Sir Anthony Richard Wagner, Knight Commander of the Most Honourable Order of the Bath, Knight Commander of the Royal Victorian Order, Clarenceux King of Arms, Send Greeting! Whereas WILLIAM JOHN CAMPBELL-KEASE of Meck Farm House in the Parish of Hazelbury Bryan in the County of Dorset, Gentleman, a Chartered Engineer and Fellow of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers hath represented unto The Most Noble Miles Francis Stapleton, Duke of Norfolk, Knight of the Most Noble Order of the Garter, Knight Grand Cross of the Royal Victorian Order, Companion of the Most Honourable Order of the Bath, Commander of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire, upon whom has been conferred the Decoration of the Military Cross, Earl Marshal and Hereditary Marshal of England that being qualified in such respect as he hath submitted and is desirous of having Letters Patent of Armorial Ensigns granted and appointed unto him and duly recorded in Her Majesty's College of Arms he hath requested therefore the favour of His Grace's Warrant for Our granting and assigning such Arms and Crest and in the same Patent such Device or Badge as We deem suitable to be borne and used by him and his descendants all with their due and proper differences and according to the Laws of Arms And forasmuch as the said Earl Marshal did by Warrant under his hand and Seal bearing date the Twenty-sixth day of February 1986 authorise and direct Us to grant and assign such Arms and Crest and in the same Patent such Device and Badge accordingly Know Ye therefore that We the said Garter and Clarenceux in pursuance of His Grace's Warrant and by virtue of the Letters Patent of Our several Offices granted by The Queen's Most Excellent Majesty to each of Us respectively do by these Presents grant and assign unto the said WILLIAM JOHN CAMPBELL-KEASE the Arms following that is to say:- Per fess Sable and Or a Pile issuant from the base counterchanged of the field and three Bristol Nails two and one Argent And for the Crest upon a Helm with a Wreath Argent and Gules Issuant from an Ancient Crown Or a demi-Bull rampant polled Sable winged unguled tufted and having an Unicorn's Horn Gold and holding between the forelegs a Bristol Nail Argent, Mantled Sable doubled Or And by the Authority aforesaid We do further grant and assign the following Device or Badge that is to say:- A Bristol Nail Argent enfiling an Ancient Crown Gold as the same are all in the margin hereof more plainly depicted to be borne and used for ever hereafter by the said William John Campbell-Kease and by his descendants with their due and proper differences according to the Laws of Arms In witness whereof We the said Garter and Clarenceux have to these Presents subscribed Our names and affixed the Seals of Our several Offices the First day of July in the Thiry-fifth year of the Reign of Our Sovereign Lady Elizabeth the Second by the Grace of God of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and of Her other Realms and Territories Queen, Head of the Commonwealth, Defender of the Faith and in the year of Our Lord One thousand nine hundred and eighty six.

A COLIN COLE Garter J P BROOKE-LITTLE for Clarenceux

Commentary:

Even after some four hundred years, it can be seen that the text of the Patent of Arms issued in 1986 is still very similar to its sixteenth century counterpart.

Despite the passage of the years, the grantees in the twentieth century are much the same as they were in the sixteenth century. The Kings of Arms are authorised in their patents of appointment to grant, with the consent in writing of the Earl Marshal, arms and crests by Letters Patent to "eminent men". This phrase first appears in the 1741 patent of appointment in English of Stephen Martin Leake as Clarenceux. Earlier patents in Latin only refer to the consent in writing of the Earl Marshal (a clause first inserted by the Earl Marshal in 1677) without specifying the grantees. Grants also have always been made to eminent women, lawyers, physicians, clerics, members of county families, office holders, those associated with the Court, and corporate bodies such as livery companies are to be found amongst grantees of arms in every century as, inevitably, through the College being in the City of London, are Lord Mayors, Sheriffs, and others eminent in the City.

There has been much argument whether an English grant of arms is also, as most certainly is the case with its Scotish counterpart, a patent of nobility. This point will be discussed in detail elsewhere in the British Heraldic Archive but suffice it to say that Mr Campbell-Kease is described as already being a gentleman when he petitioned the Earl Marshal for a grant of arms. It is the English view that one must already have reached the "port of gentility" before being in a position to apply for a grant of arms. To put it another way, one can be a gentleman without having arms, but can never have arms without being a gentleman!

The charge of a Bristol Nail is possibly unique in heraldry. In medieval times trading was frequently conducted in the street. In Bristol a number of metal pedastals with flat tops were provided and, as they were used for counting money, to "pay (cash) on the nail" passed into the language. Four such nails originally dating from c.1600 were, in 1771, re-sited outside the Corn Exchange in Corn Street, Bristol. Mr Campbell-Kease's connection with these unusual objects is that he was born in Bristol and in the 1930s his father re-cast a damaged nail.

Irish Patent of Arms to an Individual, 1986

TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS shall come, I, Donal Begley, Chief Herald of Ireland, send Greeting. WHEREAS application hath been made into me by STEPHEN PATRICK CRACROFT-BRENNAN of Wimbledon in the London Borough of Merton, England, Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales and Freeman of the City of London, son of Harry Brennan, born in Kingston-upon-Hull, grandson of Mark Brennan of the same and great-grandson of William Brannan, born in the County of Meath, Ireland, about the year 1841, setting forth that he is desirous that certain Armorial Ensigns may be duly marshalled and assigned by lawful authority unto him such as without injury or prejudice to any other he may for ever bear and advance and praying that I would grant and assign unto him and to the other descendants of the said Mark Brennan such Armorial Ensignes as aforesaid and that the Armorial Ensigns so granted and assigned may be registered and recorded in my Office to the end that the Officers of Arms there and all others upon occasion may take full notice and have knowledge thereof. NOW I, the said Chief Herald of Ireland, having taken the said applicaton into consideration and having enquired into and examined the circumstances, am pleased to comply with the said application and do, by these Presents, acting on behalf of and by the authority of the Government of Ireland, grant and assign unto the said STEPHEN PATRICK CRCROFT-BRENNAN and to the other descendants of the said Mark Brennan the ARMS following, that is to say:- Per chevron gules and sable, in chief two lions rampant combattant or and in base a rose argent barbed and seeded proper, with the CREST:- A demi-lion rampant or holding between the paws a rose argent barbed and seeded proper, mantled gules semee of roses argent doubled or and with the MOTTO:- Servbo te, the whole more clearly depicted in the margin hereof. TO HAVE and to hold the said ARMS unto the said STEPHEN PATRICK CRACROFT-BRENNAN and to the other descendants of the said Mark Brennan for ever and the same to bear, use, shew, set forth and advance in shield or banner or otherwise according to the Laws of Arms and with out the let, hindrance, molestation, interruption, controlment or challenge of any manner of person or persons whatsoever. TO the said STEPHEN PATRICK CRACROFT-BRENNAN and to him solely for the term of his life I do hereby grant the BADGE following:- Two swords in saltire points upwards proper pommels and hilts or surmounted by a rose argent barbed and seeded also proper as in the margin hereof. IN WITNESS whereof I have hereunto subscribed my Name and Title and affixed the Seal of my Office this 11th day of February, 1986.

Vol.W, fol.43

Donal Begley
Chief Herald of Ireland

Commentary:

As is to be expected, there is much similarity between the wording of an Irish and an English grant, although the Irish grant does seem to echo the sixteenth century English grant more than its modern equivalent.

All British grants of arms are made as a result of a petition. It is this point that gives the lie to the accusation that if a grant is some form of honour, then the payment of fees means that in some way an honour is been bought. In his book, The Nature of Arms, the late Robert Gayre of Gayre and Nigg has this to say:

Nothing is bought which is the subject of a petition. The petitioner for arms has no right to demand the arms, or to enforce the sale of arms. The College of Arms may say, as it does, that its scale of fees are £XYZ for a grant of English arms. This is not an offer for sale of the arms, and the petitioner cannot in any court of English law enforce the sale of the arms to himself. Therefore the arms are not bought, they are conferred by the Crown, acting through the Earl Marshal and the Kings of Arms, in accordance with the Law of Arms, to a petitioner who has humbly prayed for them to be conceeded.

The fees paid are analogous to the fees which were paid up to the First World War by all peers. It was only on so many service chiefs having peerages conferred upon them, at that time, and the fact that they represented that they could not afford to pay them, that such fees were remitted. The "nobiles majores" have been relieved of these exactions, but the "nobiles minores" have not.

Unlike English or Scottish grants, the number of grants made each year by the Chief Herald of Ireland is very low and in many ways can be considered a particular mark of respect of the Irish State, acting through the Chief Herald of Ireland.

English Patent of Arms to a Corporate Body, 1992

TO ALL AND SINGULAR to whom these Presents shall come Sir Alexander Colin Cole Knight Commander of the Royal Victorian Order upon whom has been conferred the Territorial Decoration Garter Principal King of Arms Sends Greeting! WHEREAS The Right Honourable Charles Baron Forte Chairman of Lillywhites Limited hath represented unto The Most Noble Miles Francis Stapleton Duke of Norfolk Knight of the Most Noble Order of the Garter Knight Grand Cross of the Royal Victorian Order Companion of the Most Honourable Order of the Bath Commander of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire upon whom has been conferred the Decoration of the Military Cross Earl Marshal and Hereditary Marshal of England that Lillywhites was first established by James Lillywhite as a sports goods shop in central London in 1863 and that on the Twenty-seventh day of January 1922 was incorporated as Lillywhites Limited under and by virtue of the terms of the Companies Act 1908 to 1917 as athletic and general sports outfitters and in 1925 established premises at Piccadilly Circus in the City of Westminster That the management of the said Company is vested in a Board of Directors and whereas the said Directors being desirous that Lillywhites Limited as a corporate body should have Armorial Ensigns established under lawful authority and and recorded in Her Majesty's College of Arms it having been submitted that the said Company by reason of its business record and general reputation was eligible so to petition have required him as Chairman of Lillywhites Limited and on behalf of the Board of Directors thereof to request the favour of His Grace's Warrant for My granting and assigning such Arms and Crest and in the same Patent such Supporters and such Device or Badge as are deemed suitable to be borne and used for ever hereafter by Lillywhites Limited on its Common Seal or otherwise according to the Laws of Arms and forasmuch as the said Earl Marshal did by Warrant under his hand and Seal bearing date the Twenty-seventh day of November 1991 authorize and direct Me to grant and assign the said Arms and Crest and Supporters and such Device or Badge accordingly KNOW YE THEREFORE that I the said Garter in pursuance of His Grace's Warrant and by virtue of the Letters Patent of My Office granted by The Queen's Most Excellent Majesty to Me do by these Presents grant and assign unto the said LILLYWHITES LIMITED the Arms following that is to say Vert two Fleur-de-lis in chief and in base a Lily of the field slipped Argent And for the Crest Upon a helm with a wreath Argent and Vert A Mount Vert thereon a Lily of the Field Argent seeded slipped and leaved proper between two Fleurs-de-lis also Argent Mantled Gules doubled Or and by the Authority aforesaid I do further grant and assign the Supporters following that is to say Upon a grassy compartment growing therefrom Lillies of the Valley on the dexter side a male figure being a representation of William Lillywhite as a bowler and on the sinister sie a male figure being a representation of James Lillywhite as a batsman both habited as cricketers of the mid-19th century each in his own fashion and both proper And I do further grant and asign the following Device or Badge that is to say Within an Annulet fleury a figure representing Eros all Argent as the same are all in the margin hereof more plainly depicted to be borne and used forever hereafter by the said LILLYWHITES LIMITED on its Common Seal or otherwise according to the Laws of Arms In witness whereof I the said Garter have to these Presents subscribed My name and affixed the Seal of My office this Eighteenth day of August in the Forty-first year of the Reign of Our Sovereign Lady Elizabeth the Second by the Grace of God of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and of Her other Realms and Territories Queen Head of the Commonwealth Defender of the Faith in the year of Our Lord One thousand nine hundred and ninety two

A Colin Cole Garter

Commentary:

Grants of arms to individuals can only be made by Garter acting together with one of the Provincial Kings of Arms. However, part of the authority of Garter is that he has the sole right to grant arms to corporate bodies.

The grant here is to Lillywhites, the internationally famous sports outfitters located at Piccadilly Circus in Cenral London. The arms depicted on the Letters Patent also include the motto "Non Pareil", which is not mentioned in the grant. The grant is beautifully decorated with a border of different types of lilies.

Scottish Extract of Matriculation for an Individual, 1991

EXTRACT of MATRICULATION of the Arms of STEPHEN PATRICK CRACROFT-BRENNAN

STEPHEN PATRICK CRACROFT-BRENNAN Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales, Freeman of the City of London, Honorary Fellow of the Heraldry Society, Chartered Accountant, residing at 49 Norcutt Road, Twickenham, in the County of Middlesex having by Petition unto the Lord Lyon King of Arms of date 28 September 1988 SHEWN: THAT he, the Petitioner, born Kingston-upon-Hull 29 April 1951, is the second son of Harry Brennan, Master Builder and Company Director, and his wife (married Kingston-upon-Hull aforesaid 9 September 1939) Mildred Zaidee, only daughter of Herbert Cracroft; THAT the Petitioner's said father (born Kingston-upon-Hull aforesaid 20 June 1916) was the fourth but third surviving son with issue of Mark Brennan, Master Plasterer, and his wife (married Leeds in the County of York, 4 August 1900) Eliza, daughter of Thomas Butler; THAT the Petitioner's said grandfather (born Leeds aforesaid 24 February 1878) was the fourth son of William Brannan, Master Plasterer, and his wife (married Leeds aforesaid 27 August 1864) Bridget, daughter of William Rowan; THAT certain Ensigns Armorial were granted unto the Petitioner under the hands and seal of the Chief Herald of Ireland of date 11 February 1986; AND the Petitioner having prayed that the aforesaid Ensigns Armorial might be matriculated of new with a suitable diference in the Public Register of All Arms and Bearings in Scotland, The Lord Lyon King of Arms by Interlocutor of date 5 September 1989 Granted Warrant to the Lyon Clerk to matriculate in the Public Register of All Arms and Bearings in Scotland in the name of the Petitioner the following Ensigns Armorial, videlicet: Per chevron Gules and Sable, in chief two lions rampant combattant Or and in base a Rose Argent barbed and seeded proper, a bordure engrailed Argent. Above the Shield is placed an Helmet befitting his degree, with a Mantling Gules semée of roses Argent doubled Or, and on a Wreath of the Liveries is set for Crest a demi-lion rampant Or holding between the paws a rose Argent barbed and seeded proper, and in an Escrol over the same this Motto "SERVABO TE".

Matriculated the 5th day of February 1991. Extracted furth of the 8th page of the 74th Volume of the Public Register of All Arms and Bearings in Scotland this 7th day of February 1991.

Elizabeth A Roads
Lyon Clerk and Keeper of the Records

Commentary:

This is a typical Scottish matriculation. In this particular case the arms being matriculated are those granted by the Chief Herald of Ireland in the Irish grant detailed above. Note that although the Chief Herald of Ireland granted Mr Cracroft-Brennan a personal life-time badge, this was not included in the matriculation as the Lord Lyon King of Arms is of the opinion that a badge properly belongs only to those entitled to display a standard. Under Scots heraldic law the only people so entitled are Clan Chiefs and Chieftains.