Royal coat of arms of the United Kingdom
 |
The Royal Coat of Arms of the United Kingdom |
The Royal Coat of Arms of the United Kingdom is the official coat of arms of the
British monarch, currently
Queen Elizabeth II. These arms are used by the Queen in her official capacity as monarch, and are officially known as her
Arms of Dominion. Variants of the Royal Arms are used by other members of the
Royal Family; and by the
British Government in connection with the administration and government of the country. In
Scotland, the Queen has a separate version of the Royal Arms, a variant of which is used by the
Scottish Executive.
The
shield is quartered, depicting in the first and fourth quarters the three
lions passant guardant of
England; in the second, the rampant lion and double tressure
fleury-counter-fleury of
Scotland; and in the third, a
harp for
Ireland.
The
crest is a lion statant guardant wearing the imperial crown, itself on another representation of that crown.
The dexter
supporter is a likewise crowned lion, symbolizing
England; the sinister, a
unicorn, symbolizing
Scotland. According to legend a free unicorn was considered a very dangerous beast; therefore the British heraldic unicorn is chained.
The coat features both the
motto of British monarchs
Dieu et mon droit (God and my right) and the motto of the
Order of the Garter,
Honi soit qui mal y pense (Shamed be he who thinks ill of it) on a representation of the Garter behind the shield.
The official heraldic description of the Royal Arms is as follows:
Quarterly, first and fourth Gules three lions passant gardant in pale Or (for England) second quarter Or a lion rampant within a double tressure flory-counter-flory Gules (for Scotland) third quarter Azure a harp Or stringed Argent (for Ireland) the whole surrounded by the Garter for a Crest upon the royal helm the imperial crown Proper thereon a lion statant gardant Or imperially crowned Proper for Supporters dexter a lion rampant gardant Or crowned as the crest sinister, a unicorn Argent, armed, crined, and unguled Proper gorged with a coronet composed of crosses patée and fleurs de lis a chain affixed thereto passing between the forelegs and reflexed over the back also Or. Motto. 'Dieu et mon Droit' in the compartment below the shield, with the Union rose, shamrock, and thistle engrafted on the same stem. |
The Royal Arms, as used in Scotland |
The Queen has a separate version of her arms for use in
Scotland, which gives the Scottish elements of her arms pride of place.
The
shield is quartered, depicting in the first and fourth quarters the lion
rampant and double tressure fleury-counter-fleury of Scotland; in the second, the three lions
passant guardant of England; and in the third, the harp of Ireland.
The
crest is a red lion sitting on a crown, holding a sword and a sceptre. This was the crest used in the
Royal Arms of the Kingdom of Scotland. A motto also appears above the crest which is taken from the battle cry 'In My Defens God Me Defend', abreviated to 'In Defens'.
The supporters change sides, and both are crowned. The
dexter supporter is a crowned and chained unicorn, symbolising Scotland. The
sinister supporter is a crowned lion, symbolising England. Between each supporter and the shield is a lance displaying the flag of their respective Kingdom.
The coat features both the motto
Nemo me impune lacessit (No-one wounds (touches) me with impunity) and the insignia of the
Order of the Thistle around the shield.
The Royal Arms as shown above can only be used by the Queen. They also appear in
court rooms, recognising the monarch as the
font of justice in the UK.
Judges are officially servants of the crown, demonstrated by them bowing to the Queen's Coat of Arms which sits behind the judge on the wall of every court in the land, with the exception of the magistrates court in the
City of London, in which a sword stands vertically behind the judge which is flanked by the arms of the City and the Crown.
The British Government also uses the Royal Coat of Arms as a National symbol of the United Kingdom, and, in that capacity, the Coat of Arms can be seen on several Government Documents and forms, passports, in the entrance to embassies and consulates, etc. However, when used by the Government and not by the Sovereign herself, the coat of arms is usually represented without the helm.
The Queen also awards
Royal Warrants to various businesses that supply the Royal Household. This allows the business to display the Royal Arms on their packaging and stationery.
A banner of the arms, the
Royal Standard is flown from the Royal Palaces when the Queen is in residence; and from public buildings only when the Queen is present. At
Buckingham Palace, the Queen's main residence, the Royal Standard is flown when she is there. When she is not, the
Union Flag is flown instead.
The current Royal Arms are a combination of the arms of the Kingdoms that make up the United Kingdom, and can be traced back to the first arms of the Kings of England and Scotland. Various alterations occurred over the years as the arms of other realms acquired or claimed by the Kings were added to the Royal Arms. The table below tracks the changes in the Royal Arms from the original arms of King Henry II of England, and King William I of Scotland.
| Kingdom of England | Kingdom of Scotland |
>|width = "50%" valign = top|| Arms | Dates | Details |
|---|
| ~1133 | The first known arms of an English monarch, a golden lion rampant on a red field was first used by King Henry II |
| 1198 - 1340 | The arms of King Richard I "The Lionheart", three golden lions on a red field was first used in 1198 before his accession to the throne. He later adopted them as his Royal Arms, as did his successors and they became the heraldic representation of the Kingdom of England. |
| 1340 - 1406 | King Edward III quartered the Royal Arms of England with the ancient arms of France, the fleurs-de-lis on a blue field, to signal his claim to the French throne. |
| 1406 - 1603 | King Henry IV updated the French arms to the modern version, three fleurs-de-lis on a blue field. |
width = "50%" valign = top|| Arms | Dates | Details |
|---|
| 12th century - 1603|A red lion rampant on a yellow field within a double tressure flory counter-flory, first used by King William I, and later by his successors, and becoming the heraldic representation of Scotland. |
|
| United Kingdom of Great Britain (1603-1801) |
| Arms | Dates | Details |
|---|
| 1603 - 1689 | King James VI of Scotland inherits the English and Irish thrones in 1603 (Union of the Crowns), and quarters the Royal Arms of England with those of Scotland. For the first time, the Royal Coat of Arms of Ireland is added to represent the Kingdom of Ireland |
| 1689 - 1702 | King James II of Great Britain is deposed and replaced with his daughter Mary and her husband, William, Prince of Orange ruling jointly as William III and Mary II of Great Britain. An escutcheon of Nassau was added (a golden lion rampant on a blue field). |
| 1702 - 1707 | Queen Anne inherits the throne upon the death of King William III, and the Royal Arms return the 1603 version |
| 1707 - 1714 | The Acts of Union 1707 created the Anglo-Scottish Parliament of Great Britain. The Royal Arms of England and Scotland are impaled and moved to the first and fourth quarters, France second quarter and Ireland third quarter. |
| 1714 - 1801 | The Elector of Hanover inherits the throne following the death of Queen Anne under the provisions of the Act of Settlement 1701, becoming King George I. The fourth quarter of the arms is changed to reflect the new King's domains in Hanover (Brunswick-Lüneburg-Westphalia, surmounted by Imperial Crown of the Holy Roman Empire for the Holy Roman office of Archbannerbearer/Archtreasurer). |
| United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland (1801-1927) United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland (1927 - ) |
| 1801 - 1837 | The Act of Union 1801 unites the thrones of Great Britain and Ireland. King George III drops the ancient claim to the French throne. The Royal Arms change with England now occuping the first and fourth quarters, Scotland the second, Ireland the third. For the Electorate of Hanover, there is an inescutcheon surmounted by the electoral bonnet. This is replaced in 1816 by a Royal Crown when Hanover was declared a Kingdom. |
| 1837 - present | The accession of Queen Victoria ends the personal union between the UK and Hanover, as Salic law prevents a woman ascending the Hanoverian throne. The escutcheon of Hanover is removed, and the Royal Arms remains the same. Note that there is no attempt to alter the Royal Arms to reflect later titles acquired by the British monarch such as Emperor of India, or when the dominions become Commonwealth Realms in their own right. |
Royal Family
Members of the
British Royal Family receive their own personalised arms which are based on the Royal Arms. Only children and grandchildren in the male line of the monarch are entitled to receive their own arms in this fashion. The arms of children of the monarch are differentiated by a three point label; grandchildren of the monarch are differentiated by a five point label. An exception is made for the eldest son of the Prince of Wales, who received a three point label. Since
1911, the arms of the Prince of Wales also has an
inescutcheon of the ancient
arms of the Principality of Wales.
Queen consorts and the wives of sons of the monarch also receive their own personalised coat of arms. Typically this will be the arms of their husband impaled with their own personal arms or those of their father. However, the consorts of a Queen regnant are not entitled to use the Royal Arms. Thus
Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh uses his own personalised arms (See [
1])
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 |
| Arms | Royal | Details |
|---|
| The Prince of Wales | Three point label with an inescutcheon of the Coat of Arms of the Principality of Wales |
| Prince William of Wales | Three point label with a red escallop from the arms of his mother, Lady Diana Spencer | | Prince Harry of Wales | Five point label with a red escallop in the first, third and five points | | Prince Andrew, Duke of York | Three point label, the centre label bearing a blue anchor | | Prince Edward, Earl of Wessex | Three point label, the centre label bearing a Tudor rose | | Anne, Princess Royal | Three point label, the first and third labels bearing a red cross, the centre label bearing a red heart. | | Prince Richard, Duke of Gloucester | Five point label, the first, third and fifth labels bearing a red cross, the second and fourth labels bearing a red lion | | Prince Edward, Duke of Kent | Five point label, the first, third and fifth labels bearing a blue anchor, the second and fourth labels bearing a red cross | | Prince Michael of Kent | Five point label, the first, third and fifth labels bearing a red cross, the second and fourth labels bearing a blue anchor. | | Princess Alexandra, The Honourable Lady Ogilvy | Five point label, the first, third and fifth labels bearing a red heart, the second and fourth labels bearing a blue anchor. | | Consorts | | Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall | The arms of the Prince of Wales impaled with those of her father, Major Bruce Shand | | Sophie, Countess of Wessex | The arms of the Earl of Wessex impaled with her own personal arms | | | | | | | | | | | |
Government
The
British Government uses a version of the Royal Arms but without the helm or crest, while in Scotland, the
Scottish Executive uses the Scottish version, again without the
helm or
crest. In both arms, the crown sits directly on the shield
The Arms feature on
* All
Acts of Parliament;
* The cover of all UK passports; and
* As an inescutcheon on the Diplomatic flags for a British Ambassador
It is also used by the following government departments
* The
Foreign and Commonwealth Office;
*
HM Treasury;
* The shield of the Royal Arms with the motto of the Order of the Garter is used by the
Home Office; and
* The shield of the Royal Arms is used by the
Royal Mint.
This table breaks down the official blazons to enable comparison of the differences between the general coat and the coat used in Scotland.
| everywhere, except Scotland! Scotland |
|---|
| Quarterly I & IV | (gules, three lions passant guardant in pale Or, armed and langued azure) | (Or a lion rampant, within a double tressure fleury-counter-fleury gules) |
| II | (Or a lion rampant, within a double tressure fleury-counter-fleury gules) | (gules, three lions passant guardant in pale Or, armed and langued azure) |
| III | (azure, a harp Or stringed argent) | (azure, a harp Or stringed argent) |
| Surrounded by | a Garter with the words Honi soit qui mal y pense | the collar of the Order of the Thistle |
| Crest | Upon the Royal helmet an imperial crown proper, thereon statant gardant Or, a lion statant imperially crowned also proper. | Upon an imperial crown proper a lion sejant affronté gules, imperially crowned or, holding in his dexter paw a sceptre, and in his sinister a sword, both proper. |
| Supporters | | Lion of England, seen in the Kew Gardens, London |
Dexter, a lion rampant gardant Or, crowned as the crest; sinister, a unicorn argent, armed, crined, and unguled Or, gorged with a royal coronet, a chain affixed thereto passing between the forelegs and reflexed over the back of the last. | | a statue of a Unicorn, seen in St Stephen's Chapel, Westminster Palace, London |
Dexter, an unicorn argent royally crowned Or gorged with a royal coronet, armed and chained Or holding the standard of St Andrew; Sinister, a lion guardant royally crowned Or holding the standard of St George |
| Motto | Dieu et mon Droit | Nemo me impune lacessit |
| War-cry | | In Defens |
The Irish royal crest
On a torse azure and or, a castle triple-towered of the second, from the portal thereof a hart springing argent attired and hooved or is rarely if ever seen on the arms of the United Kingdom, as unlike the
Act of Union 1707 with Scotland, the
Act of Union 1800 with Ireland did not provide for a separate Irish version of the royal arms.
There is also no representation for
Wales in the Royal Arms, as Wales was never a separate
kingdom. However the
dragon was used as a supporter on the Royal Arms by the
Tudor Kings and Queens, reflecting that dynasty's Welsh origins.
*
Royal.gov.uk- Coat of Arms*
Number 10 Downing Street- Royal Coat of Arms*
Heraldica.org- The Royal Arms of Great Britain
