The most singular supporters, perhaps, in the whole circle of heraldry are those of the noble French family of Albret. Two lions couchant, wearing helmets, support the lower part of the shield, and, above, are two eagles, each standing with one foot upon the head of the lion, while with the other he holds the upper part of the escocheon. The French armorists make a distinction betweensupportsandtenans: in this instance the lions are known by the former term, and the eagles by the latter.
Mottoes will form the subject of a short separate chapter: it therefore only remains, in this brief view of extra-scutal insignia, to noticeBadges.
Some families, as has already been observed, have no crests; a still greater number have no mottoes; and supporters belong to an exclusive few. Badges are still more unusual, and in modern times it would perhaps be a matter of difficulty to enumerate twenty families who use them.
Badge, in its ordinary acceptation, signifies the mark or token of any thing; thus we are accustomed to call fetters thebadgeof slavery, and a plain gold ring thebadgeof matrimony; and thus in a figurative, or moral sense, Shakspeare says,
“Sweet mercy is nobility’s truebadge.”
The word is of uncertain etymology. Junius derives it from ‘bode,’ or ‘bade,’ a messenger, and supposes it to be acontractio per crasinfrom ‘badage,’ the credential of a messenger. Skinner and Minsheu, again, deduce it from ‘bagghe,’ Dutch, a jewel, or from ‘bague,’ French, a ring.But Johnson, with more reason, considers it a derivative of the Latin ‘bajulo,’ to carry.
“But on his breast a bloody cross he bore,The dear resemblance of his dying lord;For whose sweet sake that gloriousbadgehe wore.”Spenser.
In heraldry,badgesare a kind of subsidiary arms used to commemorate family alliances, or some territorial rights or pretensions.[179]Sometimes, also, and perhaps more generally, they serve as trophies of some remarkable exploit achieved by an ancestor of the bearer. In the feudal ages most baronial families had their peculiar badges, and their dependents were recognized by having them embroidered upon their sleeves or breasts. They were generally placed upon a ground tinctured of the livery colours of the family.[180]Something analogous to this fashion is retained in the crest which adorns the buttons of our domestic servants, and still more so in the badges by which the firemen and watermen of London are distinguished. Badges were also employed in various other ways, as, for example, on the furniture of houses, on robes of state, on the caparisons of horses, on seals, and in the details of gothic edifices. An instance of the various applications of the badge of one noble family has been familiar to me from childhood—the Buckle, the badge assumed by Sir John de Pelham in commemoration of his having beenprincipally concerned in the capture of John, king of France, at the battle of Poictiers.[181]This trophy occurs, as an appendage to the familyarms, into which it is also introduced as a quartering; on theecclesiastical buildingsof which the family were founders, or to which they were benefactors;[182]on the architectural ornaments of theirmansionsat Laughton, Halland, &c.; on antientseals; as thesign of an innnear their estate at Bishopstone, &c.; and among the humbler uses to which theBUCKLEhas been applied may be mentioned the decoration of the cast-iron chimney-backs in the farmhouses on the estate, the embellishment of milestones, and even the marking of sheep. Throughout the whole of that part of eastern Sussex over which the Pelham influence extends there is no ‘household word’ more familiar than thePelham Buckle.[183]
The following are the badges of a few other antient families:
The Lords Hungerford used a golden garb, which seems to have been taken from the arms of the Peverells, whose co-heiress married William Lord Hungerford, temp. Henry V. They were ‘Azure, three garbs or.’
Edward Lord Hastings, who married the grand-daughter and heiress of the peer just named, bore on his standard thegarb with a sickle—another badge of the Hungerfords—united by a golden cord.
John de Willoughby de Eresby, temp. Edward III, used two buckles, which he probably borrowed from the arms of his wife, the heiress of Roceline: ‘Gules, crusily and three buckles argent.’
One of the Nevilles, Lords Bergavenny, bore two badges: first, two staples interlaced, one gold, the other silver; and second, a fret gold: these occur on a tomb at Mereworth, co. Kent.[184]
The badge of the Lords Dacre was an escallop united to a ragged staff, as in the margin.
The family of Parr used a tuft of daisies; and the Percies a silver crescent:
“The minstrels of thy noble house,All clad in robes of blue,With silver crescents on their arms,Attend in order due.”Hermit of Warkworth.
In the ‘Rising of the North Countrie’ this badge and thedun bullof the Nevilles are mentioned. Of the latter we are told:
“Lord Westmoreland his ancyent raysde,Thedun bullhe rays’d on hye,And three dogs with golden collars,Were there set out most royallye.”[185]
Mowbray, Duke of Norfolk, used the punning device oflions andmulberry-trees; and Vere, Earl of Oxford, a long-necked silver bottle, with a blue cord, allusive to his hereditary post of lord high chamberlain.
Sometimes these insignia answered the double purpose of the crest and the badge. Some badges, however, as Mr. M. remarks, are not at all suitable for crests. This applies particularly toKnots, which were composed either of silk, or of gold and silver lace, and were antiently a favourite species of badge. The families of Harrington, Wake, Bouchier, Stafford, Heneage, and others, each bore a peculiar knot.
The regal heraldry of this country is peculiarly rich in badges. Mr. Montagu has, with great research, compiled a nearly perfect list of them from William Rufus to James I, to which the reader who desires further information on this subject is referred.[186]Meantime I shall notice a few of the most celebrated.
The broom-plant, orplanta-genesta, was introduced by Henry II. From this badge the illustrious line of Plantagenet derived their surname. The story of its origin, be it true or false, is well known.
The first monarch who assumed the rose was Edward I, who bore the flower or, the stalk green. From this, in some way as yet unexplained, probably originated the white and red roses of his descendants, the rival houses of York and Lancaster. Richard II adopted the white hart and white falcon, both of which afterwards became the titles of pursuivants. The white swan of Henry IV is said to have been derived from the Bohuns, Earls of Hereford, the family of his first wife. The double S,[187]concerning which so muchconjecture has been wasted, was another badge of this monarch.
“The device of Margaret of Anjou, Queen of Henry VI, was a daisy, in allusion to her name:
‘The daise a floure white and rede,In French called la belle Margarete.’Chaucer.”
The extensive use of badges by the retainers of princes is shown by the order of Richard III for the making of thirteen thousandboars“wrought upon fustian,” to be used at his coronation.
The rose and portcullis are amongst the most familiar of royal badges. These were used by the Tudors. The Tudor rose was a blending of the white and red roses of the two factions, united in this line of sovereigns. The portcullis came originally from the family of Beaufort. James I combined the dexter half of the Tudor rose with the sinister moiety of the Scottish thistle, ensigned with a crown. At present, when the badges of the three kingdoms are represented with the royal arms, little attention is paid to heraldric propriety. The rose, shamrock, and thistle are figured, notsecundum artem, but according to the fancy of the painter.
Henry VIIIth’s regard to heraldric matters is shown by his giving to pieces of ordnance names corresponding with the titles borne by the officers of arms.[188]This is further exemplified by the names he gave the ships composing his fleet, as Hart, Antelope, Tegar, and Dragon. The smaller vessels were mostly distinguished by the names of the royalbadges, such as the Fawcon and Fetterlock, Portquilice, Hynde, Double-Rose, Hawthorn,[189]&c.[190]Some of these badges are still retained as signs of inns, particularly the Swan and White-Hart, both of which should be ducally gorged and chained, though these appendages, from the ignorance of sign-painters, are frequently omitted.
(Abbot Islip’s Rebus, vide p.125)
Heraldric Mottoes.
“We ought to be meek-spirited till we are assured of the honesty of our ancestors; for covetousness and circumvention make no goodmottofor a coat.”Collier.
“We ought to be meek-spirited till we are assured of the honesty of our ancestors; for covetousness and circumvention make no goodmottofor a coat.”
Collier.
A mottois a word, or short sentence, inserted in a scroll placed generally under a coat of arms, and occasionally over the crest. The word is Italian, and equivalent toverbum. As usual with things of long standing, a variety of opinions exists as to the origin of these pithy and interesting appendages to family ensigns. It would beerroneous to suppose that mottoes belong exclusively to Heraldry, for they are of much more antient date than the first outline of that system. Both sacred and profane history furnish us with proofs of their very early use. The declaration of the Almighty to Moses,[191]“I am that I am,” may be regarded as a motto expressive of the immutability of the Divine perfections. Among mankind, mottoes must have been chosen to express the predominant feelings of piety, love, moral virtue, military courage, and family pride, as soon as those feelings manifested themselves, that is to say, in the earliest stages of social existence. Without tarrying to enter into the philosophy of this subject, it will be sufficient for us here to inquire in what way these brief expressions of sentiment became the almost indispensable adjunct to the armorial honours of individuals and of families.
The origin of heraldric mottoes might probably be traced to two sources, in themselves diametrically opposed to each other; I mean Religion and War. “Extremes,” we are told, “sometimes meet,” and certainly these two feelings did coalesce in the institutions of chivalry, if we may be allowed to prostitute the holy name of religion by identifying it with the frenzy which possessed the human mind in such enterprises as the Crusades. It is uncertain whether we ought to deduce the origin of mottoes from those devout ejaculations, such as‘Drede God!’—‘Jesu mercy—Lady helpe,’which occur on antient tombs, or from theword of onset, employed by generals on the battle-field to stimulate their soldiers to great feats of prowess. The preponderance in point of number of religious mottoes would incline us to the former supposition; but the general opinion of our bestauthors favours a military origin. The war-cry, known in Latin as theClamor militaris, in French as theCri de guerre, and in the Scottish language as theSlughorn, orSlogan, is of very remote antiquity. In early scripture history we have an example in “The sword of the Lord and of Gideon,” the word of onset employed by the Hebrews against the Midianites in the valley of Jezreel.[192]Among barbarous nations at the present day it has its representative in the war-whoop, or yell, employed as well to animate the courage of their own party as to inspire terror in the hearts of their enemies. From an early period the phrase ‘a boo!’ was employed by the Irish for these purposes. This expression, in course of time, became the motto of many of the great families of that island, with the adjunct of their surname or the name of their chief fortress. Hence the ‘Crom a boo’ of the Earls of Leinster; the ‘Shanet a boo’ of the Earls of Desmond; the ‘Butler a boo’ of the Butlers; the ‘Galriagh a boo’ of the Bourkes, Lords Clanricarde, &c. &c. In England, France, and other countries, an invocation of the patron saints, St. George, St. Denis, &c. constituted the war-cry of the common cause; but in intestine wars each party had their separate cry, and every commander urged on his forces by the well-recognized shout of his own house. That this practice prevailed in England so recently as the close of the fifteenth century appears from an Act of Parliament, passed in the tenth year of Henry VII, to abolish these cries as productive of rancour among the nobles, who, with their retainers, were thenceforth enjoined to call only upon St. George and the king.
The following are some of the antientcris-de-guerre:
The kings of France, ‘Montjoye[193]St. Denis!’The kings of England, ‘Montjoye Notre Dame, St. George!’Edward III (in a skirmish near Calais) ‘Ha! St. Edward! Ha! St. George!’The dukes of Burgundy, ‘Montjoye St. Andrew!’The kings of Scotland, ‘St. Andrew!’The dukes of Normandy, ‘Dieu aye!’ (aide.)The emperors of Germany, ‘A dextre et a sinistre!’The counts of Milan, ‘Milan the Valiant!’The counts of Hainault, ‘Hainault the Noble!’
The kings of France, ‘Montjoye[193]St. Denis!’
The kings of England, ‘Montjoye Notre Dame, St. George!’
Edward III (in a skirmish near Calais) ‘Ha! St. Edward! Ha! St. George!’
The dukes of Burgundy, ‘Montjoye St. Andrew!’
The kings of Scotland, ‘St. Andrew!’
The dukes of Normandy, ‘Dieu aye!’ (aide.)
The emperors of Germany, ‘A dextre et a sinistre!’
The counts of Milan, ‘Milan the Valiant!’
The counts of Hainault, ‘Hainault the Noble!’
The use of mottoes became very fashionable in England from the example of Edward III. The motto of the Garter, ‘Honi soit qui mal y pense,’ with the order itself, dates from this reign.[194]Edward made use of various mottoes suited to different occasions and circumstances. Many of these are now obscure, and appear destitute of point, such as ‘It is as it is,’ embroidered upon a white linen doublet made for this king. Others are more easily understood, as the daring and profane couplet wrought upon his surcoat and shield, provided to be used at a tournament:
“Hay, hay, the wythe Swan;By Gode’s soul I am thy man!”
Mottoes upon antient seals are extremely rare. Mr. Montagu says, “I have examined many hundred early sealsand engravings and drawings of seals preserved in the British Museum, and I know but of about half a dozen.... One is of the year 1418, inscribed ‘Sigillum Jean de Juch,’ and contains the mottoBien Sur. Perhaps the very earliest instance of a motto anywhere is afforded by the seal of Sir John de Byron, appended to a deed dated 21oEdward I.”[195]The motto here isCrede Beronti, surrounding the arms.[196]
Many mottoes retain their original orthography, and stand in Old English or Old French. The greater number are Latin or French, though we occasionally see mottoes in Welsh, Irish, Cornish, Scottish, and Italian; and I have even met with two or three in Greek.
Mottoes have been divided into three sorts: the enigmatical, the sentimental, and the emblematical. A better classification might probably suggest itself; but, in the absence of one, I shall make use of this in the examples which follow.
TheENIGMATICALare those whose origin is involved in mystery, as that of the Duke of Bedford, “Che sara, sara,”What will be, will be; and that of the Duke of Bridgewater, “Sic donec,”Thus until——!A late barrister used “Non Bos in Lingua,”I have no Bull upon my Tongue!alluding to the Grecian didrachm, a coin impressed with that animal, and expressive, probably, of the bearer’s determination not to accept a bribe.[197]The motto of the Lords Gray was “Anchor, fast anchor,” and that of the Dakynses, of Derbyshire, “Strike Dakyns; the Devil’s in the Hempe”—enigmatical enough, certainly!
Sentimentalmottoes are very numerous. A multitude of them are of a religious character, as “Spes mea in Deo,” My hope is in God; “In Deo salutem,” In God I have salvation; “Sola virtus invicta,” Virtue alone is invincible; “Non mihi, sed Christo,” Not to myself, but to Christ; “Sub Cruce,” Under the Cross. Many are loyal and patriotic, as “Vincit amor patriæ,” Love of country conquers; “Non sibi sed patriæ,” Not for himself, but for his country; “Patria cara, carior Libertas,” My country is dear, but my liberty is dearer. Others are philanthropic, as “Homo sum,” I am a man; “Non sibi solum,” Not for himself alone. Treffry of Cornwall used ‘Whyle God wylle,’ and Cornwall of the same county, ‘Whyle lyff lasteth.’
But the most curious class of mottoes are theEMBLEMATICAL, some of which allude to the charges in the arms, and others to the surname, involving a pun. Of those allusive to the arms or crest, the following are examples: That of the Earl of Cholmondeley is “Cassis tutissima virtus,” Virtue the safest helmet; alluding to the helmets in his arms: and that of the Egertons, “Leoni, non sagittis fido,” I trust to the lion, not to my arrows; the arms being a lion between three pheons or arrow-heads. The crest of the Martins of Dorsetshire was an ape, and their motto, HE . WHO . LOOKS . AT . MARTIN’S . APE, MARTIN’S . APE . SHALL . LOOK . AT . HIM!
Much wit, and, occasionally, much absurdity are found in punning mottoes. That the soundness of a sentiment is not necessarily injured, however, by the introduction of a pun, is proved by such mottoes as these:—
Adderleyof Staffordshire.Addere Le-gi Justitiam Decus. ’Tis a support to the Law to add Justice to it.Fortescue(E.)Forte Scu-tum salus ducum. A strong shield is the safety of commanders.Petyt.Qui s’estimepetytdeviendra grand. He who esteems himself little shall become great.Jefferayof Sussex.Je ferayce que je diray. I shall keep my word.
Adderleyof Staffordshire.Addere Le-gi Justitiam Decus. ’Tis a support to the Law to add Justice to it.
Fortescue(E.)Forte Scu-tum salus ducum. A strong shield is the safety of commanders.
Petyt.Qui s’estimepetytdeviendra grand. He who esteems himself little shall become great.
Jefferayof Sussex.Je ferayce que je diray. I shall keep my word.
Some mottoes are intentionally ambiguous, as—
Honeof Ireland.Honesta Libertate,OR,Hone, sta Libertate. With a just Liberty, or, Hone, support liberty!Vernon.Vernonsemper viret,OR,Ver nonsemper viret; Vernon ever flourishes,OR, Spring does not always bloom.
Honeof Ireland.Honesta Libertate,OR,Hone, sta Libertate. With a just Liberty, or, Hone, support liberty!
Vernon.Vernonsemper viret,OR,Ver nonsemper viret; Vernon ever flourishes,OR, Spring does not always bloom.
By far the greater number, however, exhibit punning for its own sake; for example—
Bellasise.Bonne etbelle assez. Good and handsome enough.Caveof Northamptonshire.Cave!Beware!D’Oyleyof Norfolk.‘Do’ no ‘yll,’ quoth Doyle!Dixieof Leicestershire. Quoddixi dixi. What I’ve said I have said.Estwick.Est hic.Here he is.Fairfax.Fare, fac! Speak, do! (A word and a blow!)Hartof Berks. Un cœur fidelle. A faithfulheart.Onslow.Festina lentè.On slow!OR, Hasten cautiously.Piereponte.Pie repone te.Repose piously.Scudamore.Scutum amoris divini. The shield of Divine Love.Courthope.Court hope!
Bellasise.Bonne etbelle assez. Good and handsome enough.
Caveof Northamptonshire.Cave!Beware!
D’Oyleyof Norfolk.‘Do’ no ‘yll,’ quoth Doyle!
Dixieof Leicestershire. Quoddixi dixi. What I’ve said I have said.
Estwick.Est hic.Here he is.
Fairfax.Fare, fac! Speak, do! (A word and a blow!)
Hartof Berks. Un cœur fidelle. A faithfulheart.
Onslow.Festina lentè.On slow!OR, Hasten cautiously.
Piereponte.Pie repone te.Repose piously.
Scudamore.Scutum amoris divini. The shield of Divine Love.
Courthope.Court hope!
Here is atruism:
VereEarl of Oxford.Veronilverius. Nothing truer than truth.
VereEarl of Oxford.Veronilverius. Nothing truer than truth.
And here aCockneyism:
Wrayof Lincolnshire. Et juste etvray. Both just and true.“Set on!” saysSeton, Earl of Wintoun; “Boutez en avant!” Lead forward! says Viscount Buttevant;‘Fight on,’ quoth Fitton!‘Smite,’ quoth Smith!
Wrayof Lincolnshire. Et juste etvray. Both just and true.
“Set on!” saysSeton, Earl of Wintoun; “Boutez en avant!” Lead forward! says Viscount Buttevant;
‘Fight on,’ quoth Fitton!‘Smite,’ quoth Smith!
Pugnacious fellows!
Many a gibe has found vent in a motto. A London tobacconist who had set up his carriage, requiring a motto for his arms, was furnished with “Quidrides?” Why do you laugh? and a great hop-planter found the following chalked beneath the arms upon his chariot:
“Who’d ’a thought it,Hopshad bought it?”
Dr.Cox Macro, the learned Cambridge divine, consulting a friend on the choice of a motto, was pithily answered with “Cocks may crow!”
There are some ‘lippes,’ as Camden says, which like ‘this kind of lettuce.’ For the behoof of such the following list is set down, without regard to any classification:
Cavendish.Cavendotutus. Safe by caution.Charteris, Earl. (Crest, an arm brandishing a sword; over it) ThisisourCharter!Fane, Earl of Westmoreland.Ne vileFano. Dishonour not the temple. The first and second words allude to his descent from the family ofNeville.Gravesof Gloucestershire.Gravesdisce mores. Learn serious manners.Cole.Deumcole, Regem serva. Fear God, serve the King.James.J’aime jamais.I love ever.Collins.ColensDeum et Regem. Reverencing God and the King.Majorof Suffolk. (Arms, three Corinthian columns.) Deusmajorcolumnâ. God is a greater support than pillars.Wakeof Somersetshire.Vigilaet ora.Watchand pray.Purefoyof Leicestershire.Pure foyma joye. Sincerity is my delight.Riversof Kent. Secus rivos aquarum. By the rivers of waters.Poleof Devon.Polletvirtus. Virtue bears sway.Teyof Essex.Taisen temps. Be silent in time.Wisemanof Essex. Sapit qui Deum sapit. He iswisewho is wise towards God.Pagittof Surrey.PagitDeo. He covenants with God.Maynard, Viscount.Manus justanardus. A just hand is a precious ointment.Mosleyof Northumberland.Mos legem Regis. Agreeable to the King’s law.Roche, Viscount de Rupe, &c. Mon Dieu est maRoche. My God is my Rock.Vincent.Vincentidabitur. It shall be given to the conqueror.Vyvyan.Dumvivimus vivamus. While we live, let us live.Temple, Viscount Cobham.Templaquam dilecta. How beloved are thyTemples!Algood.Age omne bonum. Doall good.
Cavendish.Cavendotutus. Safe by caution.
Charteris, Earl. (Crest, an arm brandishing a sword; over it) ThisisourCharter!
Fane, Earl of Westmoreland.Ne vileFano. Dishonour not the temple. The first and second words allude to his descent from the family ofNeville.
Gravesof Gloucestershire.Gravesdisce mores. Learn serious manners.
Cole.Deumcole, Regem serva. Fear God, serve the King.
James.J’aime jamais.I love ever.
Collins.ColensDeum et Regem. Reverencing God and the King.
Majorof Suffolk. (Arms, three Corinthian columns.) Deusmajorcolumnâ. God is a greater support than pillars.
Wakeof Somersetshire.Vigilaet ora.Watchand pray.
Purefoyof Leicestershire.Pure foyma joye. Sincerity is my delight.
Riversof Kent. Secus rivos aquarum. By the rivers of waters.
Poleof Devon.Polletvirtus. Virtue bears sway.
Teyof Essex.Taisen temps. Be silent in time.
Wisemanof Essex. Sapit qui Deum sapit. He iswisewho is wise towards God.
Pagittof Surrey.PagitDeo. He covenants with God.
Maynard, Viscount.Manus justanardus. A just hand is a precious ointment.
Mosleyof Northumberland.Mos legem Regis. Agreeable to the King’s law.
Roche, Viscount de Rupe, &c. Mon Dieu est maRoche. My God is my Rock.
Vincent.Vincentidabitur. It shall be given to the conqueror.
Vyvyan.Dumvivimus vivamus. While we live, let us live.
Temple, Viscount Cobham.Templaquam dilecta. How beloved are thyTemples!
Algood.Age omne bonum. Doall good.
Havingdrawnthus largely upon the humour of motto-coiners, and, perchance, upon the patience of those readers who candrawno amusement from such conceits, I nowdrawthis chapter to a close, by quoting the motto of the antient company of thewire-drawersof the city of London, which is, Latinè, “Amicitiamtrahitamor,” and Anglicè, Lovedrawsfriendship!
(Conjectural origin of the Pile, p.63)
Historical Arms—Augmentations.
(Badge of Pelham.)
ByHistorical Arms I mean those coats which, upon the testimony either of record or tradition, have been acquired by an act of the original bearer, and which exhibit some trophy or circumstance connected therewith to the eye of the spectator.Augmentationsare marks of honour, granted by the sovereign, andsuperaddedto the paternalarms; and borne, for the most part, upon a canton or inescocheon, sometimes upon a chief, fesse, or quarter. This class of arms, the most interesting in the whole range of heraldry, has been subdivided into eight kinds; viz. 1, Those derived from acts of valour; 2, From acts of loyalty; 3, From royal and other advantageous alliances; 4, From favour and services; 5, From situation; 6, From profession, &c.; 7, From tenure and office; and 8, From memorable circumstances and events.[198]
It may be almost unnecessary to observe, that many of the anecdotes about to be related are of a very apocryphal description, referring to periods antecedent to the introduction of armorial bearings. Some of these, however, may be correct in the incidents though incorrect in point of time; and doubtless, in many cases, the arms have been assumed in rather modern times, to commemorate the exploits of ancestors of a much earlier period; the highly-prized family tradition having been confided to the safer custody of the emblazoned shield. At all events, I deliver them to the reader as I find them set down in ‘myne authoures,’ and leave theonus probandito the families whose honour is concerned in their perpetuation.
First among these pictorial mementoes should be noticed the well-known cognizance of the Prince of Wales, the Ostrich Feathers, the popular origin of which is known to every schoolboy.Whether the King of Bohemia fell by the trenchant blade of the Black Prince himself, or by that of some knight or ‘squier of lowe degree,’ it would now be useless to inquire; and whether the feathers and the mottoes,Ich DienandHoumout, signifying respectively in old German, ‘I serve,’ and ‘A haughty spirit,’ had any relation to that event is altogether a matter of dubiety. It has been shown by Mr. J. G. Nichols[199]that the King of Bohemia used (not ostrich feathers, but) a pair of vulture’s wings as a crest. It further appears that thebadgeof the Black Prince wasa single feather, while, on his tomb at Canterbury, thethreefeathers are represented singly upon a shield, the quill of each being attached to a scroll, with the motto ICH . DIENE. The popular version of the story, however, is somewhat supported by the fact that an ostrich, collared and chained, with a nail in his beak, was a badge of the Bohemian monarchs; and Mr. Nichols suggests that the feathers may probably have been adopted by Edward as a trophy of his victory. Randle Holme deduces the three ostrich feathers from a totally different source, and asserts that they were the ensign of the princes of Wales during the independence of that country, prior to the invasion of the English. After this event, (he adds) the eldest sons of the kings of England, as princes of Wales, continued the badge ensigned with a coronet, with the motto, ‘Ich Dien,’ I serve; to express the sentiment that, although of paramount dignity in that country, they still owed allegiance to the crown of England.[200]It is asserted by other authorities that a single ostrich feather was borne as a badge by Edward III, by all the brothers and descendants of the Black Prince, and by Thomas Mowbray, duke of Norfolk, who was descendedby the female line from Thomas de Brotherton, fifth son of Edward I. In the Harl. MS. 304, we are told that,
“The ostrich fether, sylver, and pen gold, is the King’s.The ostrich fether, pen and all sylver, is the Prince’s.The ostrich fether, gold, yepen ermyne, is the Duk of Lancaster’s.The ostrich fether, sylver, and pen gobone, is the Duk of Somersett’s.”
Who has not heard of the ‘Bear and ragged staff’ of the earls of Warwick? This is a combination of two badges of that antient line, which sprang, according to the family tradition, from Arthgal, one of the knights of King Arthur’s ‘Round Table.’ArthorNarth, in the British language, is said to signify a bear; hence this ensign was adopted as a rebus or play upon his name. Morvidus, another earl of the same family, a man of wonderful valour, slew a giant with a young tree torn up by the roots and hastily trimmed of its boughs. In memory of this exploit his successors bore as their cognizance a silver staff in a shield of sable.[201]
The supporters of the Scottish family of Hay, earls of Errol, are two husbandmen, each carrying an ox-yoke. In the year 980, when the Danes invaded this island, an engagement took place at Longcarty, near Perth, in which Kenneth III was routed. An honest yeoman, yclept John de Luz, and his two sons, were ploughing in a field hard by the scene of action. Seeing their countrymen fly before the victorious enemy, these stalwart ploughmen stopped them in a narrow pass with the gear of their ploughs, and upbraidingthem with cowardice induced them to stand the brunt of a new attack. The Danes, astonished at this unexpected turn of affairs, which they attributed to the arrival of fresh succours, wheeled about and made a hasty retreat, and the Scots obtained a signal victory. Kenneth, to reward the valour of his faithful subject, gave him as much land in the district of Gowrie, as a falcon, flying from his fist, should measure out before he perched. Hence the supporters and the crest (a falcon rising) of this family. The earls of Kinnoul, a younger branch of the family, further allude to the circumstance first mentioned in their motto,RENOVATE ANIMOS, ‘Rouse your courage,’ or ‘Rally.’
There are still existing indubitable evidences of a great conflict on the spot referred to in this legend; and it may be admitted that the ancestors of the family were concerned in it; but the above heraldric ensigns must be considered to have been adopted as remembrances of long past events, albeit their assumption may have taken place at a very early period.
The family of Keith, earls Marischal, bearArgent, on a chief or, three pallets gules,ORgules, three pallets or. These ensigns likewise originated in an engagement between the Scots and the Danes. An ancestor of the Keiths having greatly distinguished himself in a battle near Dundee, in which Camus, the Danish general, was killed, the Scottish monarch, Kenneth III, charmed with his valour, dipped his royal fingers in the blood of the Dane and drew three stripes or pallets on the top of his chieftain’s shield. Hence the arms of Keith. As in the former instance,this anecdote assumes the existence of armorial bearings, at too remote a date, though, as in that case, there are evident vestigia of a great battle at the place referred to. A stone called ‘Camus’s Cross’ was standing a few years since; and in the last century a large tomb, inclosed with four huge stones, containing bones, conjectured to have been those of the Northman, was discovered near the spot.[202]
Bulstrode, of Bulstrode, co. Bucks, bore, as a crest,A bull’s head, erased gules, attired argent, between two wings of the same. When William the Conqueror subdued this kingdom he gave the estate of this family to one of his own followers, and lent him a thousand men for the purpose of taking possession,vi et armis. The rightful owner calling in the aid of some neighbouring gentlemen, (among others, the ancestors of the Penns and the Hampdens,) gallantly resisted the invader, intrenching himself with an earthwork, which is still pointed out as evidence of the truth of the story. It seems that the besieged party, wanting horses, mounted themselves uponbulls, and, sallying out of their camp, so affrighted the Normans that many of the latter were slain and the rest put to flight. The king hearing of this strange affair, and not wishing to push matters to an imprudent extent, sent for the valiant Saxon, with a promise of safe conduct to and from his court. The Saxon paid the Conqueror a visit, riding upon abull, accompanied by his seven sons similarly mounted. The result of the interview was that he was allowed to retain his estate. In commemoration of these events, he assumed the crest above described, together with the name ofBullstrode!! The whole narration exhibits strong characteristicsof that peculiar genus of history, known as ‘Cock andBullstories,’ although it is probably quite as true as a distich preserved in the family, that
“When William conquered English ground,Bulstrode had per annum, Three Hundred Pound.”[203]
Among those Welsh chieftains who gallantly defended their country from the aggressions of the English, in the reign of Henry II, was Kadivor ap Dynawal, who recaptured the castle of Cardigan, by scalade, from the Earl of Clare. For this action he was enriched by Rhys, prince of South Wales, with several estates, and permitted to bear, as coat armour, a castle, three scaling-ladders, and a bloody spear. These arms were borne by Kadivor’s descendants, the Lloyds of Milfield, co. Cardigan, baronets, till the extinction of the family in the last century.
Williams, of Penrhyn, co. Caernarvon, Bart., bore, among other charges,three human heads, in commemoration of the exploit of Edwyfed Vychan, the great ancestor of his house, who in an engagement with the followers of Ranulph, earl of Chester, came off victorious, having killed three of their chief commanders. This happened in the thirteenth century.[204]
The Vescis, Chetwodes, Knowleses, Tyntes, Villierses, and various other families, bear crosses in their arms, traditionally derived from the period of the Crusades.
Sir Ancel Gornay attended Richard I on his crusade, and was present at the capture of Ascalon, where he took a Moorish king prisoner. From this circumstance he adopted as his crest, ‘A king of the Moors habited in a robe, and crowned, kneeling, and surrendering with his dexter hand,his sword, all proper.’ This crest was continued by the Newtons, of Barr’s Court, co. Gloucester, one of whom married the heiress of the Gornays. Among several other armorial ensigns dated from this same battle of Ascalon is the crest of Darrell, which may be briefly described as, ‘Out of a ducal coronet a Saracen’s head appropriately vested,’ and which was assumed by Sir Marmaduke Darrell, in commemoration of his having killed the infidel King of Cyprus; also the arms and crest of Minshull, of Cheshire, ‘Azure, an estoile issuant out of a crescent, in base argent.’Crest, ‘An Eastern warrior, kneeling on one knee, habited gules, legs and arms in mail proper; at his side a scymitar sable, hilted or; on his head a turban with a crescent and feather argent, presenting, with his sinister hand, a crescent of the last.’ These bearings were assigned to Michael de Minshull for his valour on that occasion, but the particular nature of his exploits is not recorded.
The Bouchiers, earls of Essex, bore ‘Argent, a cross engrailed gules, between four water-bowgets sable.Crest.The bust of a Saracen king, with a long cap and coronet, all proper.’ All these bearings are emblematical of the crusades; and the water-bowgets are a play upon the name. “In the hall of the manor-house of Newton, in the parish of Little Dunmowe, in Essex,” says Weever,[205]“remaineth, in old painting, two postures (figures;) the one for an ancestor of the Bouchiers, combatant with another, being a Pagan king, for the truth of Christ, whom the said Englishman overcame; and in memory thereof his descendants have ever since borne the head of the said infidel, as also used thesurname of Bouchier,” in conformity with an antient practice, by which,as Saintfoix informs us, great heroes were honoured with the “glorious surname” ofButcher![206]
The arms of Willoughby, Lords Willoughby of Eresby, were ‘Sable, a cross engrailed or,’ and theirCrest, ‘A Saracen’s head crowned frontè, all proper.’ The only account I have seen of the origin of these ensigns is contained in the following lines, occurring in Dugdale’s Baronage. A Willoughbyloquitur.
“Of myne old ancestors, by help of Goddes might,(By reason of marriage and lineal descent,)A Sarasyn king discomfit was in fighte,Whose head my creste, shall ever be presénte.”
Sir Christopher Seton, ancestor of the Earls of Wintoun, at the battle of Methven, in 1306, rescued King Robert Bruce from the English. For this service Robert gave him his sister, the lady Christian, in marriage, and the following augmentation to his paternal arms: ‘Surtout, an inescocheon per pale gules and azure; the first charged with a sword in pale proper, hilted and pommelled, andsupporting a falling crownwithin a double tressure all or; the second azure a star of twelve points argent, for Wintoun.’
Robert Bruce desired that his heart might be carried to Jerusalem, and there interred in holy ground. The office of conveying it thither devolved upon his faithful and now sorrowing knight, Sir James Douglas, who was unfortunately slain on his return by the infidels, in the year 1331. To commemorate this service his descendants have ever since borne ‘Argent, a human heart royally crowned proper; on a chief azure, three mullets of the first.’ This stalwart soldieris said to have been engaged in fifty-seven battles and rencontres with the English, and thirteen with the Saracens, all in the space of twenty-four years. Certes, he must have been one of the noblest ‘butchers’ of his time!
The family of Pelham (now represented by the Earl of Chichester) bear, as a quartering, ‘Gules, two demi-belts, paleways, thebucklesin chief argent.’ This augmentation was allowed to the family in the early part of the seventeenth century; but they had previously, for many generations, borne the Buckle as a badge. They also occasionally gave it as a crest, together with a cage—both in commemoration of the capture of John, king of France, at Poictiers, by Sir John de Pelham. The story is thus briefly told by Collins:[207]
“Froysart gives an account, that with the king were taken beside his son Philip, the Earl of Tankerville, Sir Jaques of Bourbon, the Earls of Ponthieu and Eue, with divers other noblemen, who being chased to Poictiers, the town shut their gates against them, not suffering any to enter; so that divers were slain, and every Englishman had four, five, or six prisoners; and the press being great to take the King, such as knew him, cry’d,Sir, yield, or you are dead: Whereupon, as the chronicle relates, he yielded himself to Sir Dennis Morbeck, a Knight of Artois, in the English service, and being afterwards forc’d from him, more than ten Knights and Esquires challeng’d the taking of the King. Among these Sir Roger la Warr, and the before-mentioned John de Pelham, were most concerned; and in memory of so signal an action, and the King surrendering his sword to them, Sir Roger la Warr, Lord la Warr, had the crampet, or chape of his sword, for a badge of thathonour; and John de Pelham (afterwards knighted) had the buckle of a belt as a mark of the same honour, which was sometimes used by his descendants as a seal-manual, and at others, the said buckles on each side a cage; being an emblem of the captivity of the said King of France, and was therefore borne for a crest, as in those times was customary. The buckles, &c. were likewise used by his descendants, in their great seals, as is evident from several of them appendant to old deeds.”
It is somewhat remarkable that Froissart, Walsingham, Knyghton, and the other early chroniclers, are silent as to the names of the King’s captors; and were the story unsupported by strong indirect evidence, their silence would be almost fatal to its authenticity; but the occurrence of the Buckle upon the stonework of many ecclesiastical buildings founded by Sir John de Pelham himself and his immediate successors,[208]sufficiently corroborates the undisputed family tradition.[209]
The chape or crampet of a sword (the ornament at the end of the scabbard which prevents the point from protruding) is still borne as a badge by the Earl de la Warr, a lineal descendant of the Sir Roger la Warr referred to in the above extract.
The crest of the ancient family of De la Bere is ‘a ducal coronet or, therefrom issuant a plume of five ostrich feathers per pale argent and azure.’ This was conferred upon Sir Richard de la Bere, knight-banneret, by Edward the Black Prince, in reward for his having rescued him from imminentdanger on the memorable field of Cressy. The ducal coronet is emblematical of military command, and the feathers are an evident derivation from the Prince’s own badge. There is (or was at the beginning of the present century) in an old house at Cheltenham, the property of his lineal descendants, a painting supposed to be nearly contemporary with the occurrence, which represents the Prince in the act of conferring this mark of honour upon his faithful follower.[210]