Part 6

The length of the standard when borne in the field denoted the rank of the leader: that of a duke was seven yards long; a peer of lower degree raised a standard five yards in length; that of a knight banneret was only four. In modern times standards of peers or knights banneret are seldom displayed but in funeral processions. The standard is then long and narrow, and pointed at the end; that of a duke is about fifteen feet in length, peers of lower degree about twelve.

The flag borne as the ensign of a regiment of cavalry is called a standard. The flags of foot soldiers are called colours.

STAR. This celestial figure is always represented as argent, and is supposed to have six rays or points; if they have more points the number must be named. See ETOILE.

STATANT. An animal standing still with all its legs on the ground. See LION STATANT.

SUPPORTERS are figures standing on the scroll, placed on each side of the shield as if to support it. Supporters in English Heraldry are granted only to persons included in the rank of nobility or to knights banneret by favour of the sovereign.

The origin of this addition to the external ornaments of the escutcheon may be traced to the practice which originally prevailed in the regulation of tournaments. Some days prior to the tournament taking place, each knight desirous of entering the lists was required to hang up his shield, upon which his arms were emblazoned, at the place appointed by the prince or nobleman that proclaimed the tournament, that they might be examined by the heralds, to prevent unqualified persons entering the lists. Each shield thus exhibited was guarded or supported by the servants of the knight to whom it belonged, and to disguise their livery these guardians of the shield assumed the appearance of savages, Moors, lions, griffins, and various other animals.

In after times, on the creation of a peer, the Heralds selected the supporters they deemed most appropriate, having some allusion either to the deeds, name, title, arms, or motto of the newly-created peer.

SURMOUNTED. A figure or bearing having another over it.

Ex. Gules, a sword erect in pale, argent, surmounted by two keys, saltier, or.

SURTOUT. The French word for "over all." See ESCUTCHEON OF PRETENCE and OVER ALL.

TALBOT. A dog formerly used for hunting. It is formed something between a hound and a beagle, with a large snout, and long, round, thick ears.

Ex. Argent, a talbot's head erased, semé of billets.

TENNE, or TAWNEY. One of the tinctures used in emblazoning arms. It signifies orange colour, and is represented in engraving by lines drawn diagonally from the sinister to the dexter side of the shield, traversed by perpendicular lines from the base to the chief.

TIARA. The Pope's mitre, with its triple crowns.

TINCTURE. A term used in Heraldry to express colour.

TOPAZ. The name of a precious stone, formerly used instead of or, in emblazoning the arms of the English nobility.

TORTEAUX. Red roundlets.

Ex. Argent, three torteaux in bend, sinister.

TOURNAMENTS were combats of honour, in which persons of noble birth entered the lists to gain reputation in feats of arms. The name is derived from _tourner_, to turn, from the horsemen turning frequently as they rode round the enclosure, and during the course of the engagement. The design of tournaments was to train the nobility to the use of arms; none, therefore, were admitted to these sports but persons of noble birth, who could prove their descent, at least, by three generations. They were also required to be men of unspotted honour and integrity.

It was customary for princes, on some public festivity or rejoicing, to appoint a day for these entertainments, and give public notice to the knights in their own territories, as well as in the neighbouring states.

The knights generally made their appearance four days before the combat. They endeavoured to excel each other in the splendour of their equipage and dress, and in the excellence and beauty of their horses, which were adorned with the most costly caparisons. Their armorial ensigns were displayed with great pomp during three days, that all who viewed them might judge if they were worthy of entering the lists. The field where the tournament was to be held was railed in with pales. This place was called the lists. A king was appointed to preside over the sports, as were also judges to examine the knights' armour and arms, and to see that no unfair advantage was taken. A number of other officers were appointed, which our space will not allow us to mention.

A short distance from the lists were the galleries and pavilions for the spectators; the most splendid was that fitted up for the lady who presided as queen of the tournament and her attendants, all splendidly attired. The most noble and most beautiful ladies of the court crowded to these martial entertainments to inspire the combatants with ardour, by giving them some token or favour, such as a scarf, veil, or bracelet, with which the knight adorned his helmet or spear.

Their arms were lances of light wood, without iron at the top; swords without edge or point; in some instances wooden swords were used. The knights were formed into two parties, and entered the lists by different barriers, riding round the lists several times to pay their respects to their sovereign and the ladies. At length the heralds sounded to arms; the quadrils, or troop, took their stations; when the charge was sounded, the knights rushed against each other with the utmost impetuosity. The clashing of swords, the sounding shields, the war-cry of the knights, who shouted the name of their ladye-love in the midst of the mimic strife, greatly excited the spectators, who, in return, cheered and encouraged the combatants. When the knights were brave and determined, the contest lasted some hours; the vanquished, that is, those who were thrown from their horses, withdrew from the lists as quietly as possible, leaving the field to their successful opponents. The victory was decided by the number of knights unhorsed. The prizes to the victors were adjudged and delivered by the queen and the ladies. This authority of the fair sex contributed greatly to polish the manners of the nobility and gentry of the middle ages, who were anxious to court the favour of those who were the distributors of public honours.

Sometimes this entertainment was followed by jousts. Two cavaliers, out of gallantry, would break a lance in honour of the ladies. These were followed by others until the lists were again cleared for the tournament. The difference between tournaments and jousts was, that the former were in the nature of battles, the latter of duels.

When the sports were over, the heralds and pursuivants declared the names and titles of the knights, and proclaimed the heraldic ornaments which the emperor, king, or prince that presided at the tournament granted to those whom he pleased to reward or favour.

Notwithstanding all the precautions to prevent the mischief that might happen at these martial exercises few were exhibited in which a great number were not wounded, some killed in the melée, others crushed by the falling of the scaffolds, or trod to death by the horses. Kings, princes, and gallant knights from every part of Europe have perished at different times while attending or taking part in those mimic battles. Successive popes thundered out their anathemas against all that encouraged this warlike and dangerous amusement. Those who perished in these sanguinary entertainments were denied the honour of Christian burial; and yet, so strong was the passion of the nobility of Europe for these martial sports, from a desire to display their grandeur, courage, and address before the ladies and the assembled multitude, that no bulls, decretals, or anathemas of the church were able to restrain them. The use of gunpowder, and the consequent inutility of armour to defend the person in battle, gradually put an end to these animating shows. The tragical death of Henry II. of France, in 1559, who was accidentally killed in a tournament, caused laws to be passed prohibiting their being held in that kingdom. They were continued in England till the beginning of the seventeenth century.

An attempt was made to revive these martial exhibitions in Scotland, a few years ago, by Lord Eglintoun, the acknowledged leader in all manly sports, elegant athletic exercises, and baronial liberality. This noble peer proclaimed a tournament to be held at Eglintoun Castle on the 28th and 29th of August, 1839. The lists were duly prepared, a covered pavilion was erected for the accommodation of the ladies, which would contain 3000 persons. In front of this pavilion was the throne of the Queen of Beauty and her attendants. Around the lists, at convenient distances, were arranged the tents or pavilions of the knights, over which floated the gonfalon, or great banner, emblazoned with the arms and motto of the knight to whom the tent was appropriated, penons and penoncils fluttered at each angle of the pavilion, and the shield was placed over the entrance. The knights vied with each other in the decoration of their pavilions; all was in accordance with ancient customs: and if the shade of Froissart had witnessed the scene, it could not have complained of modern innovation or misplaced ornament. The procession of the King of the tournament, the Queen of Beauty, with the judges, heralds, pursuivants, halberdiers, musicians, men-at-arms, as also the splendid retinues of the noble challenger and the gallant knights, presented a scene unparalleled for magnificence and heraldic emblazonment since the days of Edward IV. Every form was observed in this modern tournament; and a more interesting scene for the historian, the antiquary, and armorist, could not be exhibited. Unfortunately, the continued rain cast a gloom over this animated spectacle, which nevertheless excited the highest admiration of all who beheld it: a spectator of the scene could well imagine the enthusiasm similar ones would create in the minds of the gay and brave of former times. It is deemed necessary to briefly notice the last tournament held in Britain; as any one that requires full information on every part of heraldic ornament, processional arrangement, and technical definition, may find positive examples in the details of this gorgeous exhibition.

TRANSPOSED. Charges or bearings placed contrary to their usual situation.

Ex. Argent, a pile, azure, issuing from the chief between two others, transposed.

TREFOIL. Three-leaved grass: the shamrock of Ireland. When a flower or leaf is introduced as a charge in a shield of arms, if it is of its natural colour, or, in heraldic language, proper, the tincture is not named, but if of any other colour it must be described.

Ex. Argent, three trefoils, gules, one over two.

TRESSURE. An ordinary not so broad as an orle. It generally forms a border to the inescutcheon. Tressures are frequently borne double, and sometimes treble. They are generally ornamented flory and counter-flory. The example contains only a single tressure. The arms of Scotland exhibit an example of a double tressure flory and counter-flory, as exhibited in the shield on the title-page of this Manual. See DOUBLE TRESSURE.

TRICORPORATED. Three lions rampant, conjoined, under one head, guardant, in the fess points. See LIONS.

TRIPPING. The motion of deer, between running and walking.

Ex. Argent, a stag proper, tripping.

TURBAND. In coats of arms, where the knight was a Crusader, this figure often appears. It was the form of the sultan's turban at that period.

TURRETED. A wall or castle having small turrets. In the annexed example the square tower has circular turrets at the angles, and is therefore said to be turreted.

TUSKED. Any animal having tusks of a different tincture from its body is said to be tusked.

Ex. Argent, a boar's head, erased proper, tusked gules.

UNDY. A term used to express the word wavy by Gwillim and other ancient armorists.

Ex. Argent, a bend undy, gules.

VAIR. A kind of fur formerly used for the lining the garments of knights. It is represented in engraving by the figures of small bells ranged in lines, as in the annexed example. Unless the colour of the fur is named, vair is always argent and azure. The bend, the cross and saltier, are sometimes formed of this fur.

VAMBRACED. Armour for the arms.

Ex. Argent, three dexter arms, vambraced, couped.

VAMPLATE. A word used by ancient heralds for armour for the hand, instead of gauntlet.

VENUS. The name of the planet, used for the colour vert by ancient heralds, who emblazoned the arms of sovereigns by planets instead of metals and colours.

VERDOY. A bordure charged with eight leaves.

Ex. Vert, a bordure argent, verdoy, of trefoils.

VERT. Green. It is represented in engraving by diagonal lines drawn from the dexter to the sinister side of the shield.

VISCOUNT. A title of honour, a degree below an earl.

VOIDED. A term applied when any part of an ordinary is left open to the field.

Ex. Gules, a bend sinister, voided, argent.

VOIDER. A subordinate ordinary.

Ex. Azure, a voider, argent.

VOLANT. The French word for flying. It is used in Heraldry to express the same action.

VORANT. Swallowing or devouring: any animal, in a charge, devouring another creature.

Ex. Argent, a serpent crowned, or, vorant an infant.

VULNED. A word that signifies wounded, used in emblazonry to denote an animal wounded by another creature.

VULNING. Any creature in the act of wounding itself.

Ex. Argent, a pelican's head, erased, vulning.

WALLED. A term sometimes used in Heraldry. When an ordinary is edged or guarded by an embattled wall.

Ex. Azure, on a pale, walled on each side with three battlements argent, an endorse gules.

WAVY. Curved lines, undulating like the waves of the sea.

Ex. Argent, the lower half of the shield three bars wavy, azure.

WHITE. This word is only used to describe a plain fur. It is represented as argent.

WINGED. When the wings of a bird, or those of chimerical figures which are drawn with wings, are of a different tincture to their bodies, they are said to be winged. Thus, in the arms of the state of Venice there is a lion sejant guardant, winged or.

WINGS ERECT. Wings are called erect when their long feathers point upwards.

WINGS INVERTED. When the feathers point downwards.

WIVERN. A chimerical animal, the upper part resembling a dragon.

Ex. Argent, a wivern, wings raised.

WREATH. A chaplet of two different-coloured silks wound round each other, and placed on the top of the helmet for the crest to rest upon. In Heraldry it is usually drawn straight, as in the lower example.

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CHAP. VIII.

HERALDRY IN CONNECTION WITH HISTORY, ARCHITECTURE, INTERIOR DECORATION, COSTUME, AMUSEMENT, RELIGIOUS SOLEMNITIES, FUNERAL RITES, ETC.

In the preface to this Manual, we stated that Heraldry might be considered as the symbolic history of the nobility of Britain, from the Conquest to the reign of Elizabeth. It would require a volume of far greater pretensions than this to enter fully upon the heraldic history of the peerage; but the assertion may be borne out by merely glancing at the supporters of the shields containing the arms of the British monarchs during that period.

Supporters were not introduced in English heraldry previous to the reign of Richard II. The shield of this luxurious monarch is supported on each side by an angel habited, and beneath the shield by a white hart couchant, gorged and chained or, beneath a tree. The shield of Henry IV., the founder of the Lancastrian dynasty, was supported on the dexter side by a swan, on the sinister side by an antelope, both gorged and lined or. The shield of the gallant Henry V. was supported on the dexter side by a lion rampant guardant, crowned or; on the sinister side by an antelope, gorged and chained. Henry VI. had two antelopes as supporters to his achievement. The shield of the gallant Yorkist Edward IV. is supported on the dexter side by a lion rampant argent, the tail passed between his legs, and turned over his back; on the sinister by a white hart, and in some instances by a bull. The supporters of the shield of Richard III. were two boars rampant argent, tusked and bristled or. Henry VII., as a descendant of the Welch prince Cadwallader, assumed the red dragon as the supporter of the dexter side of his shield; the sinister was supported by a greyhound argent, collared gules. The shield of Henry VIII. was supported on the dexter side by a lion guardant, crowned or; on the sinister by a dragon gules. Edward VI. had the same supporters. Mary on her marriage with Philip of Spain, empaled the arms of Spain and England as baron and femme; the dexter side of the shield was supported by the imperial eagle, the sinister by a lion rampant, crowned or. Queen Elizabeth rescued England from this degradation; the crowned lion rampant of England resumed his place as the supporter of the dexter side of the shield, and the red dragon on the sinister. On the union of England with Scotland, the supporters of the royal arms were, on the dexter side a lion guardant, crowned or, on the sinister maned and unguled or, white unicorn, gorged and chained of the same. The supporters of the royal arms have continued the same to the present time; and, as an emblem of union and strength, long may they continue.

The reader may easily read the vicissitudes and changes of dynasty in the great change of these emblems of support and dignity during the period of time that elapsed from the reign of Richard II. to James I.; and even the brief notice here given would enable the reader to determine the date of any building if the royal arms and supporters were placed within it.

Heraldry had taken too firm a hold of the minds of the higher classes of society to escape the notice of the architects who were engaged by the sovereigns of England and by the wealthy barons, to erect those splendid ecclesiastical edifices that still exist as the architectural gems of Britain. Westminster Abbey teems with heraldic ornament, not only in the gorgeous chapel of Henry VII., but in those parts of the structure erected at a much earlier period. During the time when those styles of Gothic architecture prevailed that are now called the decorated and the perpendicular, the roof, the columns, the stained glass windows, the seats, altar, tombs, and even the flooring, were filled with emblazonment. A branch of art which our forefathers found so useful as an ornament to architecture cannot be beneath the notice of those who are desirous of treading in their footsteps.

Nor was heraldic ornament confined to architecture. It formed the grand embellishment of the interior of the palaces and baronial castles,

"The gorgeous halls which were on every side, With rich array and costly arras dight."

The canopies of state, the furniture and plate, were all emblazoned with the arms of the royal and noble owners. And even at the present day, heraldry is far more effective for interior decoration than the unmeaning Italian scroll-work that is substituted for it. Some idea of the value of both may be formed by glancing at the interior decoration of the new Royal Exchange; and it is to be regretted that the shields containing the arms of the different countries should not have occupied the walls, as an indication of the spot where the natives of those countries might be found; and that the compartments of the ceiling, if such ornament should be found in a building of this kind at all, should not be filled with the Italian floral scroll decoration.

In a preceding chapter of this Manual, the reader has been informed that the arms of a knight were emblazoned on the surcoat or outer garment that was worn over his armour, which was the origin of the term Coat of Arms. Heraldic emblazonment was plentifully strewed over the mantles of the nobility when they assembled on state solemnities. Nor was this ornament confined to the garments of males. Ladies delighted to appear in the cognizances of their lords, or in their own paternal bearings. Armourists that have amused themselves by treating on the curious and obsolete terms of heraldry, have supposed that the flanch and flasque represent that part of female attire which covered the body from the lower part of the neck to the waist, and that this part of the ladies' dress contained the heraldic bearing. Our contracted space will not allow our indulging in fanciful research, nor would it benefit our readers if we did so. Suffice it that we have ample proof that heraldry formed the decoration of female attire.

Numerous instances may be found, either in stained glass, monumental brasses, or illuminated genealogies, of female figures bearing heraldic devices on their apparel. A married lady or widow had her paternal arms emblazoned upon the fore part of her vest, which by ancient writers is called the kirtle, and the arms of the husband on the mantle, being the outer and the most costly garment, and therefore deemed the most honourable. This is called bearing arms kirtle and mantle.

Our frontispiece contains two figures kneeling, taken from _Dallaway's Heraldry_. They are to be found in an illuminated pedigree of the Weston family. The male figure is that of Sir John de Weston, of Weston-Lizars, in Staffordshire, and Isabel his wife, whose paternal name was Bromley. In three quarterfoils beneath the figures are shields: the first contains the arms of Weston, sable, an eagle displayed or, with a lable argent, fretty gules; the centre shield is argent, fretty gules; that under the lady is her paternal arms, quarterly per fess dancette, or and gules. The figure of the knight is represented in chain armour, over which is a surcoat, on which his arms are emblazoned. The vest or kirtle of the lady is formed entirely of the colours of her arms disposed quarterly, and parted horizontally, or fessways, by the line dancette. As both the knight and his lady appear together, each bears their own arms; but if either had been drawn separately, the arms of both would have appeared on one person; if on the male, they would have been empaled baron and femme upon the surcoat; if on the female, they would have appeared on kirtle and mantle. This lady is drawn with a kirtle only.

In some of the later monumental brasses, the arms on female figures are arranged differently; the arms of the baron appearing on the outside of the mantle, hanging over the dexter shoulder, the paternal arms of the femme on the lining of the mantle turned outwards on the sinister side of the figure.