HERALDRY. 



at Windsor, to attend the solemnity at 

 their installation, to cause their arms to 

 be put over their seats in the chapel 

 there, to marshal the funeral rites and 

 ceremonies of those knights, to carry the 

 Garter to foreign kings and princes, that 

 are chosen to be knights of that most no- 

 ble order, to take cognizance of the arms 

 of the nobility, and to make supporters 

 to those created to any new degree of 

 peerage ; for which he has allowed him 

 a salary and fees, both from the Sove- 

 reign and the knights. 



This officer, as principal Herald or 

 King of Arms in England, (as Lion is in 

 Scotland, and Ulster in Ireland), marshals 

 the solemn funerals of the higher nobility 

 of England, as Princes, Dukes, Marquis- 

 ses, Earls, Viscounts, and Barons, as also 

 does many other services to the King and 

 State ; and therefore, as the other Kings 

 have, has a salary out of the Exchequer, 

 and double their fees at the instalments 

 of the Knights of the Garter, and a com- 

 position for the uppermost garment of 

 each knight at his installation. 



It may not be improper to notice the 

 peculiar bearings or attributes of the 

 greatest antiquity, before we proceed to 

 treat of more modern facts. The Hea- 

 then divinities had each their distinctive 

 mark; Jupiter wielded the lightning in 

 his right hand ; Neptune bore the three 

 pronged trident ; Mars the spear ; Sa- 

 turn the scythe ; and Bacchus the spear, 

 encircled by ivy ; the Phrygians, the sow; 

 the Goths, a bear ; the Thracians, Mars ; 

 the ancient French, the lion, which was 

 afterwards changed to the toad, and that 

 again for the fleur de lis, sent them from 

 Heaven by an angel, whose commission 

 was directed to Clovis, their first Chris- 

 tian monarch ; the Saxons, a horse ; the 

 Flemings, a bull; the King of Antioch, 

 an eagle grasping a dragon ; the Romans, 

 the eagle ; Pompey, a lion holding a 

 sword ; yet the Roman people, who were 

 saved by the gackling of geese, despised 

 that bird in too great a degree to admit it 

 into their ensigns : exclusive of the above, 

 there were many nations and individuals, 

 who distinguished themselves by exhi- 

 biting every description of weapons on 

 their banners. It should also be observ- 

 ed, that the most ferocious beasts and 

 birds were selected as emblematic of ho- 

 nour and courage ; for this reason, shields, 

 with their figures only, are 'considered as 

 most honourable and ancient ; but those 

 with trees, flowers, plants, the sun, moon, 

 planets, varieties of colours, or charged 

 "with any of the honourable ordinaries, or 



artificial objects, are deemed of less inv 

 portance. 



The science of heraldry consists prin- 

 cipally of blazoning and marshalling ; the 

 former is the art of diplaying a coat of 

 arms in its proper colours, the latter is 

 the combining various arms in one shield. 

 In blazoning it is usual to begin with the 

 field, and then proceed with the charge, 

 and in naming the objects charged in the 

 field, to mention the most predominant, 

 and next the field, first; and then the 

 most remote. Gwillim observes, that tinc- 

 ture is a variable hue of arms, and as ap- 

 plicable to differences as to the arms, and 

 is distributed into colours and furs. The 

 same author considers colours an exter- 

 nal dye, or the gloss of any illuminated 

 object, and the colour alluded is consider- 

 ed general and special. The general 

 implies the natural colour of bodies, whe- 

 ther artificial or otherwise ; those borne 

 in their natural colours must be blazoned 

 proper, without mentioning the colours. 



There are forms in heraldry which 

 have names only applied to them, and no 

 colour specified in the blazoning, the 

 term sufficiently explaining the colour of 

 each ; they resemble a globe or ball, and 

 are called besants, the colour or plates ar- 

 gent ; hurts, azure ; torteauxes, gules ; 

 pellets or ogresses, sable ; pomeis, vert ; 

 golpes, purpure ; orange, tenne ; and 

 grosses, sanguine. In these nine varieties 

 are included all the colours generally 

 used in blazonry. 



The blazoning of the arms of gentle- 

 men, esquires, knights, and baronets, is 

 derived from metals and colours ; those 

 of barons, viscounts, earls, marquisses, 

 and dukes, from precious stones ; and 

 those of princes, kings, and emperors, 

 from the planets. See COLOURS. 



Or, gold, is expressed by dots (see 

 Plate I. of Heraldry, fig. 1) and is intend- 

 ed as an intimation that, as gold surpasses 

 all other metals in value and purity, he 

 that bears it should endeavour to excel 

 in the same proportion ; the same insinu- 

 ation is implied in the topaz and the sun. 



Argent, or white, is represented by a 

 perfect blank (see fig. 2,) this colour 

 ranks next to Or, and without gold and 

 silver Heraldry would be imperfect ; ar- 

 gent signifies innocence, temperance and 

 hope ; the pearl was supposed by the an- 

 cients to possess a restorative property, 

 and Luna is acknowledged to be the mis- 

 tress of honour, the seas and tides. 



Gules, red, is expressed by perpendi- 

 cular lines, or lines paleways from the 

 chief to the base (see fig. 3,) this colour 





