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In the thread above, Jason makes a reasonable stab at outlining the basics but his all too brief post contains a number of inaccuracies. I have taken the liberty to address each of his points in turn.
(1) Jason says: [quote]A coat-of-arms is NOT a family crest. A crest is simply something that goes on top of the helmet, that is, if there's a helmet over the shield. [End Quote]
Spot on Jason; this is one of the most basic of all misconceptions and is a common mistake made by almost everyone who has not embarked upon even a basic study of armory.
(2) Jason Says: [Quote] A coat-of-arms does NOT belong to an entire family. Coats-of-arms belong to individuals within a family, but the coat-of-arms doesn't belong to EVERY family member. For instance, if a father has a son, then the father and son would both have a coat-of-arms, but the son's coat-of-arms would have a difference(s) to distinguish his coat-of-arms from his dad. [End Quote]
This one really needs some clarification as it really does depend on which country’s arms we are talking about. It isn’t quite that simple or straight forward. A Polish coat of arms, for example, belongs to numerous people who do not even use the same surname. It is often said that they are “Clan” arms but I think perhaps that is too simple a definition.
It may be that Jason has Scotland in mind and if so, then he is on the right track as that is to all intents and purposes the only country which enforces the fact that a coat of arms belongs to one person only; all others of the same family have to matriculate differenced versions of the stem coat of arms.
If Jason is referring to English arms then the reality is that one coat of arms to all intents and purposes does belong to an entire family. Not, I hasten to add to a surname but undoubtedly to a family. In a recent reply to a letter from Ralph Brocklebank to Garter King of Arms (The Heraldry Gazette December 2007), Garter replied thus:
“I believe it right in England and Wales for a branch to use cadency marks sparingly and only if they wish to do so.” Mr. Brocklebank comments that it seems continental style family arms are tolerated and here to stay.
(3) Jason says [Quote] A woman can have a coat-of-arms if she's married to a man who has a coat-of-arms. It's known as impaling one's coat-of-arms, I do believe, correct me if I'm wrong--I'm no heraldry expert, but I do some basic stuff about heraldry. [End Quote]
A woman can be armigerous in a number of ways:
1. She can be armigerous in her own right – i.e. she can be the recipient of a grant of arms to herself.
2. She can be armigerous in right of her father – i.e. her father is an armiger and therefore she has a right to display his armorial bearings and may do so all her life whether or not she marries a man who is not armigerous.
3. She can be armigerous in right of her husband – i.e. her husband is armigerous and she has a right to use his arms. If she also has a right to the arms of her father then these arms together can be impaled. In England, if she is an heiress to the arms, then her husband can bear them on an escutcheon of pretense on his own shield.
4. She may have inherited the arms along with a peerage.
A recent ruling on the bearing of arms by women from the College of arms can be seen on my Cheshire Heraldry web site http://cheshire-heraldry.org.uk/decree.html
In Scotland, a man who is not himself armigerous can be so in right of his armigerous wife if he takes her surname. This is only if she herself is armigerous.
I would not attempt to describe any rules, if there are any, for the bearing of arms on in Europe by those of the fair sex.
(4) Jason says [Quote] A woman can have a coat-of-arms in her own right, for instance, if her dad was a baron, or some higher aristocrat (e.g., viscount, earl, marquess, duke), or even merely a gentleman, or a baronet, and he dies, then she could inherit her dad's coat-of-arms. [End Quote]
See above. A woman, regardless of her rank can be armigerous in her own right. Females can only transmit arms to their heirs if they are armigerous in their own right or if they are heraldic heiresses. If an armigerous man dies without a son but with one or more daughters, all his daughters inherit his arms. These arms can be used by the daughters but can only be transmitted to her offspring as a quartering.
(5) Jason says [Quote] There are many online stores that profess to sell your own individual coat-of-arms. Whether or not those particular coat-of-arms might even belong to you and your ancestors, is a matter of chance. You may or not be entitled to a coat-of-arms. Simply because someone with the same surname as you, doesn't mean that you also descend from an armigerous ancestor; although, it's always possible. [End Quote]
Correct. As a broad rule of thumb if you don’t know whether or not you have a coat of arms, you don’t have one.
(6) Jason says; [Quote]You can always hire a herald from one of the heraldic authorities depending upon your ancestry to find out whether or not you are a descendant in the direct male line of an armigerous ancestor because there's always a possibility that you might be. There was an American woman, who was rich, who never knew that she descended from a Scottish baron and she inherited his feudal barony. Only valid research can discover whether or not you're entitled to a coat-of-arms.[End Quote]
What you need is a good genealogist.
Jason says: [Quote] The good news is that if you find out you're not the descendant of a coat-of-arms, then you can always create your own and pay for it; although, it's not cheap. [End Quote] Of course if you are from a country such as the USA where there is no heraldic authority you can just assume arms yourself but if you do, please take advice from a competent professional or amateur. I have seem so many assumed pigs' ears.
Of course this in no way answers all the questions but it does address some of the misconceptions.
Regards,
Martin
http://cheshire-heraldry.org.uk
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