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Arms were
appreciated, if not created, for the purpose of identifying
leaders in combat. In order to avoid confusion on the
battlefield, therefore, it was important that a coat of arms
be unique to its bearer, otherwise it would be impossible to
know
who was who. This need led to the development of the
profession of herald, someone who kept records of arms and
knew them at sight. The job description of heralds evolved
very differently over the centuries. In the Middle Ages, they
could be royal envoys and attached to the high command of the
army. They also organized pageants and tournaments. Because
they kept records, they could ensure that new coats of arms
did not conflict with existing ones; and, when two parties
contested a coat of arms, the heralds would advise the judge.
Up till the 13th
century, heraldry was a matter for a minuscule percentage of
the population: almost exclusively royal and noble families.
But in the 14th and 15th centuries
Europe experienced massive social changes. Feudalism, the
foundation of medieval society and government, became obsolete
as monarchs strove to increase their authority over powerful
nobles and professionalize their armies. However, the demise
of chivalry in no way led to a decrease in demand for
heraldry. Growth in commerce and the professions led to a new
class of wealthy merchants, administrators and educated
persons who naturally aspired to improve their social status.
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The manner of
granting arms evolved in Europe as well. In most kingdoms,
the power to grant arms was retained by the sovereign, since
nobility was granted with arms. A different system was
developed in England. Richard III founded the College of
Arms (which is not a school and has neither professors nor
students) in 1483 and delegated to it the authority, under the
Earl Marshal, to grant arms. The English crown retains to
this day the power to confer peerages. From where does
nobility originate? A peerage or a grant of arms? The
question (occasionally debated today) mattered little since
the English peerage never enjoyed fiscal privileges similar to
those enjoyed by the Continental nobilities. Now, of course,
noble status, however acquired, confers no legal rights or
benefits. |
York
Herald of Arms
Henry
Edgar
Paston-Bedingford |
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Arms in Scotland
are granted by the Court of the Lord Lyon, the Lord
Lyon being the principal heraldic officer of the Scottish
kingdom. Unlike his English counterpart, Garter Principal
King of Arms, Lyon is a judge as well as a herald, and has
full authority to issue rulings in his Court. There is an
actual need for the court because Scottish heraldry requires
that all arms be matriculated and differenced, so that no two
persons (except father and eldest son) can bear the same
arms. |
An Irish Office
of Arms was established by Edward VI of England in the 16th
century. His role was to register arms and pedigrees of the
Irish nobility. As a dominion of the British Crown for
centuries, Ireland was governed by a royal lieutenant, later
elevated in rank to viceroy. The viceregal court was centered
at Dublin Castle and the Office of Ulster Herald was also charged with organizing state ceremonies. After
Irish independence, there existed a curious situation whereby
Ireland became a republic but the heraldic function (for Eire
and Northern Ireland) remained a Crown office. This
bureaucratic anomaly was resolved in 1943, after the last
Ulster Herald died. The Office of Arms was transferred to the
National Library of Ireland under a Chief Herald of Ireland.
The three
institutions above all issue arms today, both to citizens of
each country and to Americans that qualify.
There are still
some arms granting institutions on the Continent. In Spain,
for example, the King has the power to ennoble and grant arms
to individuals. In addition, there are Cronista Rey de
Armas, functionaries that are authorized to officially
recognize and record arms to individuals, be they Spanish
subjects or inhabitants of places that were once Spanish
possessions (Latin America, California, Florida, etc.).
The remaining
European monarchies (Belgium, Denmark, The Netherlands,
Norway, Sweden, Luxembourg, Liechtenstein and Monaco) issue
grants of nobility and/or arms to varying degrees.
There were
heralds (hérauts) in France, as might be
expected. (Much of English blazon is formed of old French
words.) But by the time of Louis XIV the stature of French
heralds had greatly diminished and they were replaced by
juges d'armes ("judges of arms"). These formed part of
the French civil service and reported to royal executives.
Probably the change was part of the greater plan of the King
to overlay a modern administrative structure on the old
medieval one. Possibly it also had to do with imposing a tax
on arms, which was attempted several times, without much
success. Another important functionary involved in heraldry
was the généalogiste du Roy, the official who vetted
proofs of nobility at the French court. Here we see the
distinction between nobility and heraldry: nobility was the
more significant factor, since it qualified its possessor to
be admitted to the presence of the monarch. Nobility went
hand in hand with heraldry; but a coat of arms was not proof
of nobility.
The French
Revolution did away with the feudal rights and tax exemptions
of the old nobility; and indeed all titles as well. The
Emperor Napoleon instituted a new nobility and a revamped
system of heraldry, neither of which, however, was more than
honorific. The restored Bourbons were not so foolish as to
attempt to undo the termination of either feudal privileges or
the Napoleonic nobility. There was a final surge of grants of
titles and coats of arms under Napoleon III. When the Second
Empire collapsed in 1870, France became a republic: titles had
no legal basis, although they continued to be used along with
coats of arms, which were recognized as a form of personal
property and therefore protected under the law. There is
today no official heraldic body in France.
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