Surcoats of the Sovereign, and the other Knights were wrought in
Embroidery upon blue Taffaty with Cyprus, and Soldat Gold and Silk of
divers Colours, and the Letters Gold. And as the Sovereign was not
limited in the Proportion of Cloth or Velvet for his Surcoat, no more
was he confined to the Number of Garters, wherewith to adorn it; nor do
I find that any of the Knights-Companions were, until the Precedent of
the Livery of the Garter was settled, for _Anno_ 1 _Henry_ V. the Dukes
of _Holland_ and _Clarence_, the Earl of _Arundel_, the Dukes of
_Bedford_ and _Gloucester_ had each of their Surcoats adorned with 120
Garters, but the Duke of _York_, and the rest wore but 100. The
Settlement in the Precedent of the Livery was, in relation to Degrees
of Honour, a greater or less Number of Garters: Thus,
A Duke 120 }
A Marquis 110 }
An Earl 100 }
A Viscount 90 } Garters.
A Baron 80 }
A Baronet 70 }
A Knight-Batchelor 60 }
ABOUT the Reign of King _Henry_ VI. the Sovereigns Number of Garters
did not much exceed those which the Founder allow’d to himself at the
Institution; for the Surcoat and Hood of the said King consisted of
173; and the King of _Portugal_, _Anno_ 13 _Henry_ VI. 120 Garters. But
this Drapery of their Robes became at length quite obsolete, perhaps
when Cloth was altered to Velvet, and the plain Surcoat hath to this
Day continued in Use.
WHILE these Surcoats remained of Cloth, they were lined with Bellies of
pure Minever Fur, only the Sovereigns was purfled with Ermin; and of
these, it seems, a like Proportion was at first stated to all the
Knights-Companions, _viz._ 200 Bellies. Yet in the Reign of King
_Richard_ II. some Difference began in the Allowance to the
Knights-Companions, for a Baron, and all Degrees upward had 200
Bellies; but under a Baron 120 only. However, _Anno_ 1. _Henry_ V. the
Barons were tantamount to the Knights-Batchelors, for all Degrees above
a Baron were allow’d, a Fur of 200 Bellies. But the Barons and
Knights-Batchelors Furs were only 120 Bellies.
AFTERWARDS, by the Precedent of the Garter, there was another
Proportion limited, the Prince, a Duke, a Marquis, an Earl, had each of
them Five Timber of pure Minever allowed to a Surcoat; but the
Viscount, Baron, Baronet and Batchelor-Knights but Three Timber apiece.
In time these Furs were disused, and the Surcoats came to be lined with
white Sarcenet, to which, _temp. Eliz._ white Taffaty succeeded, and
that still continues.
WHAT became of the old Surcoats, since the Knights-Companions had new
ones every Year, the Black Book of the Order informs us, That on the
Eve of the Feast of St. _George_, the Knights wore to Vespers, the
Sovereigns Livery or Surcoats, used by them the preceding Year, which
after that Night they threw off, (for the new Surcoats were worn on the
Feast-Day); but the Ensigns and Ornaments of this Kind were disposed of
to the Use of the Colledge.
THE Hood and Cap comes in the next Place to be spoken of, which Hood in
King _Henry_ VIII’s Statutes, and the Black Book of the Order is called
_Humerale_; but in the Rolls of the Great Wardrobe, _Capucium_. In the
_French_ it is _Chaperon_, a Word used in the Statute, _Anno_ 1.
_Richard_ II. _C._ 7. and also retained in the Old _English_ Copy of
_Henry_ VIII’s Statutes made of his Reign, and annexed to this
Treatise. They were anciently wore for Defence of the Head against the
Inclemencies of Weather, but of later Times Caps and Hats have supplied
their place. How they sat upon the Head, may be observed in the
Portraitures of the first Founders; as also with some Variety of
Fashion in succeeding Ages: Yet is not the Hood quite thrown by, since
’tis still kept reclining upon the Back, almost like a Pilgrim’s Hat.
THIS Hood was ordained, and is yet retained as part of the Habit of
this most Noble Order. And tho’ neither it nor the Surcoat is mentioned
in the Statutes of Institution, or in either its Exemplars, nor doth
King _Henry_ V. lay any Stress upon it, yet it is of equal Antiquity
with the rest, as appears from the Rolls of the great Wardrobe, and
_Henry_ VIII’s Statutes have made remarkable Observation of it, for the
Mantle, Surcoat, Hood, and Collar are called the Habit of the Order:
And in the Black Book, _Anno_ 22. _Henry_ VII. at the Investiture of
_Philip_ King of _Castile_, the Mantle, Kirtle, Hood and Collar are
expresly called _Whole Habit_.
IT was heretofore, and now is generally made of the same Materials as
the Surcoat, and was anciently trimmed and set off with a small
Proportion of Garters lined with Cloth of a different Colour, and such
as would best strike the Sight; but now with Taffaty, as is the Lining
of the Surcoat.
AS to the Cap, which was instituted to succeed the Hood; it hath been,
and yet is, fashioned of black Velvet lin’d with Taffaty; but the
Figure hath several Times varied; for _Temp. Henry_ VIII. it was flat,
in Queen _Elizabeth_’s Reign it was a little raised in the Head; but in
King _James_’s Time they were much more high-crown’d. This Cap hath
been usually adorn’d with Plumes of White Feathers, and Spriggs, and
bound about with a Band set thick with Diamonds; so was the Cap for the
Installation of King _Charles_ II. and sometimes the Brims have been
tack’d up with a large and costly Jewel.
THIS Custom of wearing Caps and Feathers at the Grand Solemnities of
the Order, had, for some Time, about the Beginning of King _James_ I.
Reign, been omitted, and thereupon, in a Chapter held the 13th of
_April_, _Anno_ 10. _Jac._ I. this commendable Custom was
re-establish’d.
TO these may be added the Cross of the Order encompass’d with a Garter,
which by the Sovereign was ordain’d the 27th of _April_, 2 _Car._ I. to
be worn upon the Left Side of the Cloaks, Coats, and riding Cassocks of
the Sovereigns and Knights-Companions, of the Prelate and Chancellor at
all Times, when they were not adorn’d with their Robes, and in all
Places and Assemblies (but not embellish’d with Pearls and Stones) that
the wearing thereof might be a sufficient Indication to the World, of
that Height of Honour they arriv’d to from the said most Noble Order,
instituted for Persons of the greatest Merit and Worth.
AND it was not long after e’er the Glory or Star, as it was usually
call’d, having certain Beams of Silver, that shot out in Form of a
Cross, was introduc’d and annex’d to it, in Imitation (as thought) of
the _French_, who after the same manner wore the chief Ensign of the
Order of the _Holy Ghost_, being the Representation of a Dove
irradiated with such like Beams.
AND whereas some Painters affirm the Symbol of the Holy Ghost to be
thus adorn’d congruous enough, yet censure it improper for a Garter,
let them consider that King _Edw._ IV. erected his White Rose with the
like Glory, whereof both the Stone Work and Wood Work of St. _George_’s
Chapel in _Windsor_, manifestly illustrate, whose Antiquity makes a
Precedent for it long before the Institution of the Order of the _Holy
Ghost_; but this King assum’d this Device upon appearance of three
Suns, which suddenly united together into one immediately, before his
successful Victory at _Mortimer_’s-_Cross_, a happy _Æra_ he thought
himself oblig’d to perpetuate. And they mistake who suppose it to be
the Garter that is thus irradiated, whereas it is something else more
worthy of the Glory, for from it, not the Garter, do the Rays diffuse,
_viz._ the inclos’d Cross of the Order, celebrated as glorious, since
it darted its bright Beams from Heaven, when it appear’d to
_Constantine the Great_; as the same is represented on a Silver Medal:
On the one Side whereof was a _Bust in profile_, or side Face of King
_Charles_ I. and on the Reverse, this Badge of the Order, within a
Garter, inscrib’d, _Honi_, &c. a Cross irradiated, dispersing its Beams
in a Rhombular Form of Eight Angles, beyond the Orbit or bounding Lines
of the said Garter, having for Circumscription, _Prisci decus Ordinis
Auctum_, 1629.
§ 5. HAVING finish’d our Discourse concerning the Robes of the Order,
we shall speak of the Robes and Hoods assign’d to the Queen,
Knights-Companions Wives, and other great Ladies, by the Donation of
the Sovereigns, set off and embellished with Minute Garters, and lin’d
with Rich Furs, which Robes they were adorn’d with during the Solemnity
of the Feast of St. _George_, a Custom almost as ancient as its
Institution. The first Mention we find recorded of the Feminine Habit
occurs, _Anno_ 7. _R._ II. when the Queen, the Sovereign’s Mother, the
Dutchess of _Lancaster_, the Countesses of _Cambridge_, _Buckingham_,
_Pembroke_, _Oxford_, and _Salisbury_, the Ladies _Philippa_ and
_Catherine_, Daughters to the Duke of _Lancaster_, and the Lady _Mohun_
had such kind of Robes and Hoods provided for them. They were made of
Cloth, Violet in Grain, like as the Sovereign and Knights-Companions
that Year, the Robes lin’d with Fur, but the Hoods with Scarlet, and
both embroidered over with little Garters, and the Proportion of Cloth,
Furs, and Garters, were stated according to their several Ranks and
Degrees; for the Queen had Eight Ells, and Half an Ell of Scarlet for
the Lining of her Hood. The Sovereign’s Mother had allow’d her one
whole Piece, and a double Proportion of Scarlet; but from the large
Quantity it is conceiv’d she had Two Robes and Hoods made at this time:
Besides, the particular Number are but Eleven Persons, and cannot else
reach the Total of the Robes that were made up and expressly set down
to be Twelve. The Dutchess of _Lancaster_ had the Allowance of Half a
Piece, and Half an Ell of Scarlet; the Countess of _Cambridge_ Seven
Ells of Cloth and Half an Ell of Scarlet, and the rest of the Ladies
the same Proportion of Cloth with the Knights-Companions, _i. e._ each
Five Ells a-piece, and Half an Ell of Scarlet. According to their Cloth
was also their Proportion of Minever; the Queen’s Allowance was Two
Furs, each containing Three Hundred Bellies of pure Minever; the
Sovereign’s Mother had twice that Proportion, the Dutchess of
_Lancaster_, and Countess of _Cambridge_ had the same Allowance as the
Queen; but all the rest of the Ladies had only one Fur of Two Hundred
Bellies. Besides the embroidered Garters to deck out the Twenty-four
Surcoats of the Sovereign and Knights-Companions, and the Twelve Robes
for the Queen, and other Ladies, amounted to the Number of 2900.
AGAINST the Feast of St. _George_, _Anno._ 11. _R._ II. there were
prepared Fifteen Robes and Hoods for the Queen and other Ladies, of the
same Livery and suit with the Sovereign and Knights-Companions, _viz._
White long Cloth, and Blue Cloth for the Lining of their Hoods, bearing
the same Proportion in all Things as the former, _Anno_ 13. _Rich._ II.
the Ladies Robes and Hoods were Sanguine Cloth, and the Lining of their
Hoods Cloth in Grain. And in the 19th _Rich._ II. they were Blue Cloth,
and long Cloth in Grain for Lining their Hoods. In both these Years we
find the Dutchess of _Aquitaine_ had double the Proportion of Cloth
allow’d her (as had also the Dutchess of _York_) _viz._ Fourteen Ells,
(the Queen having then but the former Allowance of Eight Ells) and yet
her Proportion of Lining, both for the Robe and Hood, was no more than
allow’d the Queen.
BUT _Anno_ 1 _Henry_ V. the same Quantities of Cloth, Minevers, and
Garters, were the same to Ladies of all Degrees, and that was to each
Five Ells of White Woollen Cloth, only the Queen-Mother had Eight Ells
of White Cloth and Eight Ells of Black Cloth, a Fee containing Two
Hundred Bellies of Minever, and an Hundred embroidered Garters, and 12
_Henry_ VI. the Master of the great Wardrobe was commanded to make
ready the like Livery, both for Colour of Cloth, number of Ells,
Bellies of Minever, and Garters, for the Countess of _Suffolk_, against
the approaching Feast of St. _George_.
A plainer Narrative is made of these Liveries, _Anno_ 16 _Edw._ IV.
when at the Feast of St. _George_ at _Windesor_, the Queen, the Lady
_Elizabeth_, the King’s Daughter, and Dutchess of _Suffolk_, the King’s
Sister, had for their Livery Murrey Gowns embroidered with Garters.
BESIDES these Robes worn by the Ladies at the Festivals of the Order,
there seems to be some Imitation of wearing a Garter also on their Left
Arms, as the Knights did on their Left Leg, as it is observ’d on the
Countess of _Tankervile_’s Monument, where she is so pourtray’d.
AFTER a long Disuse of these Robes, _Anno_ 14 _Car._ I. there was an
endeavour to restore it; for the Deputy Chancellor sollicited the
Sovereign in Chapter, That the Ladies of the Knights-Companions might
be granted the Privilege to wear a Garter of the Order about their
Arms, and an upper Robe at Festival Times, according to ancient Usage,
upon which Motion the Sovereign gave Order that the Queen’s Pleasure
should be known herein, and the Affair left to the Ladies particular
Request, and the Year ensuing, upon the Deputy Chancellor’s Report at
another Chapter at _Windesor_, it was then left to a Chapter to be
called by the Knights-Companions, to preponderate of every
Circumstance, how it were fittest to be effected for the Honour and
Lustre of the Order; which was appointed to be held at _London_ about
_All-hollantide_ next; But the unhappy War breaking out, this Matter
entirely broke off.
§ 6. THERE remains now the Collar and _George_, brought in by King
_Henry_ VIII. And first, of Collars in general, which is an Ornament
not of late, but ancient Invention, and the wonderful Consent of most
Nations plead for it: Sacred Writ sets down the Collar of Gold for one
of the Ornaments _Pharaoh_ conferr’d upon _Joseph_. The Images of
_Isis_ and _Osiris_ were represented with such like Collars, in a
manner, extending to their Shoulders, as _Kircher_ informs us. Their
Workmanship seems wonderfully curious, being intersected with various
Lines, and divided with Tablets and precious Stones. The Collar was of
an illustrious Original among the _Romans_, and gave Denomination to
the Family of _Torquati_, descended from _L. Manlius_, whom the
Soldiers surnam’d _Torquatus_, because he fought with a Champion of the
_Gauls_, _Anno V. C._ 392. and, having foil’d him in fight, cut off his
Head, and then pluck’d off his Collar, bloody as it was, and put it
about his own Neck. In further Memory of which Action were found
several _Roman_ Coins referring to _L. Torquatus_, Consul with _L.
Cotta_, _Anno V. C._ 688. And it’s remarkable that when one of another
Tribe was adopted into this Family, he did also assume this Badge of
Honour, as in the Coin of _D. Junius Silanus_, tho’ the Fashion of the
Work somewhat differ’d from the former.
IN pristine Times none but Kings and Princes wore Collars, and
therefore their Use seems of Dignity and Power, as is evident from
_Daniel_, where the _Assyrian_ Kings used this Ornament. Afterwards Men
famous for Wisdom and Council, had them as a distinguishing Badge, as
in the Example of _Joseph_, and from the Proclamation of _Belshazzar_
King of _Babylon_, who proposed it as a Præmium to him that could
interpret the Hand-Writing upon the Wall. And Men famous for Military
Atchievements had it conferr’d upon them, in Recompence of their
Merits; thus Collars were of the Number of the _Dona & Præmia
Militaria_ among the _Romans_, and the Honour of receiving them thought
worthy to be consign’d to Posterity in Marble Inscriptions. From them
the later Emperors receiv’d it, and we read of investing a Knight of
the _Holy Sepulchre_ with a Collar at his Creation; where, as soon as
the Ceremony of his Ordination is over, the Padre Guardian Kisses the
new Made Knight, and puts about his Neck (according to the mode of the
Ancients) a Golden Collar, with a Cross hanging at it.
MOST aptly therefore have the Sovereigns of Military Orders annex’d
this Ornament of the Collar to their Habit, and conferr’d it on the
Fellows and Companions, many of whom have meritoriously deserv’d it for
their great Wisdom and valorous Exploits, and for this reason it was
instituted in additional Glory to the Ensigns of the Garter, compos’d
in a peculiar manner, in Relation to the Name and Title; to the wearing
of which the Sovereign oblig’d both himself and Knights-Companions, and
his and their Successors.
THIS Collar was ordain’d to be of Gold Thirty Ounces Troy weight, but
not to exceed it; howbeit that Collar sent to _Gustavus Adolphus_, King
of _Sweden_, weigh’d Thirty-four Ounces and a Quarter, and that of King
_Charles_ I. 35 Ounces and an Half; which, after his Sufferings, fell
into the Hands of _Thomas Harrison_, one of _Oliver_’s Major-Generals,
and was by him delivered to the Trustees for Sale of the King’s Goods:
They, 1649. sent it to the _Mint_, with divers of the _Regalia_, to set
the Stamp on work for the first Gold that the upstart Common-wealth
coin’d.
IT was appointed by King _Henry_ VIII’s Statutes, that this Collar
should be compos’d of Pieces of Gold in Fashion of Garters, the Ground
enamelled Blue, and the Letters of the Motto Gold; in the midst of each
Garter, Two Roses plac’d, the innermost enamelled Red, and the
outermost White, contrarily in the next Garter, the innermost Rose
enamelled White, and the outermost Red, and so alternately; but of
later Times these Roses are wholly Red.
THE Number of these Garters are so many as be the ordain’d Number of
the Sovereign and Knights-Companions; at the Institution they were
Twenty-six, being fasten’d together with as many Knots of Gold, and
this Mode hitherto has continu’d invariable; nor ought the Collar to be
adorn’d or enrich’d with precious Stones, (as the _George_ may be) such
being prohibited by the Law of the Order.
AT the Middle of the Collar before pendant, at the Table of one of the
Garters in the Collar is to be fix’d the Image of St. _George_ arm’d
sitting on Horseback, who having thrown the Dragon on his Back
encounters him with a Tilting-Spear. This Jewel is not encompass’d with
a Garter or Row of Diamonds, as in the lesser _George_; but in round
Relief. It is allow’d to be beautified and sett off with Diamonds and
other Enrichments, at the Pleasure of the Knight-Companion who
possessed it, and upon that Score it hath been frequently adorn’d with
Variety of costly Work, whereon the Diamonds, and other precious
Stones, being set to that Advantage as might, upon its Motion and
Agitation, dart forth a resplendent Lustre.
BEFORE the Establishment of this Article by King _Henry_ VIII. it
appears that the Knights-Companions were invested with Collars at their
Installations, for the Black Book makes mention of a Collar among the
Ensigns of the Garter, wherewith _Philip_ King of _Castile_ was
invested, _Anno_ 22 _Henry_ VII. but whether a Collar of SS’s, or of
another Model, is not specifi’d: Nevertheless this Scruple is in part
clear’d up by an old Memorial of the Ceremonies, at the Creating
_Henry_ Lord _Stafford_ Earl of _Wiltshire_, 1 _Henry_ VIII. where it
is said in the Annals, that after he was invested with the Robes of his
State and Dignity, the Collar of the Garter was put about his Neck at
constituting him a Knight of the Order. And to make it more conspicuous
in a Vellum Book of the Statutes sent to _Maximilian_ the Emperor,
sign’d 1508. by the Register _T. Rowthale_, and in another of _Edward
Stanley_ Lord _Monteagle_, elected _ann._ 6. _Hen._ VIII. the Forty
First Article, enjoins a Collar to be worn by each Knight-Companion
expresly called the Collar of the Order, which tho’ it be not in all
Respects consentient to that prescribed by King _Henry_ VIII’s
Statutes, yet there is not much Variation, and ’tis reported to be a
_Gold Collar coupled together by several Pieces of Links, in Fashion of
Garters, with a Vermilion Rose, and the Image of St._ George _hung
thereat_. The Reason of the Knights-Companions wearing it at the Times
appointed, the License for putting it to mending, the Command not to
enrich the Collar, but the _George_ only; and under a Penalty not to
sell, pawn or alienate it upon any Necessity whatsoever, are wholly the
same as was afterwards enjoyn’d by King _Henry_ VIII. So that he did
but only annex to his Body of Statutes a Decree, which for the greatest
part had been put in practise before. In the 11th _Hen._ VIII. upon
Interpretation of the Eleventh Article of the Statutes, the Collar is
there enumerated as part of the entire Robes that a Knight-Companion is
oblig’d to wear, for a more convincing Proof, That the Collar of
Garters was used before King _Henry_ VIII’s Reign, the Monument of Sir
_Giles Daubeny_ plainly Delineates (who departed 22 _Henry_ VII.) in
_Westminster-Abbey_, where his Portraicture in the Robes of the Order
is adorned with such a Collar as King _Henry_ VIII’s Statutes do
afterwards describe.
AS the Garter sent to _Gustavus Adolphus_ King of _Sweden_, so the
great _George_ (pendant at his Collar weighing Seven Ounces) was set
with large and resplendent Diamonds, to the Number of Eighty-Four.
IN what Regard this Noble Ensign of Honour the Collar, hath been with
the Sovereigns and Knights-Companions, not only of the Order of the
_Garter_, but other Military Orders, may be collected from the Pictures
of some of them, as well as from their Seals, Coins, and Medals, for in
these they have been pleased to exhibit their Effigies and Escutcheons
of Arms; and omitting Foreign Examples, the Collars, both of the
_Garter_ and _Thistle_, were express’d in the Coronation Medal of King
_Charles_ I. in _Scotland_, 1633. tho’ in that of his Coronation at
_Westminster_, and afterwards in that of King _Charles_ II. 1661. the
Collar of the Order of the _Garter_ are only put over their Royal Robes.
THESE Ornaments of the Collars, have been affix’d sometimes encircling
the Shields of their Arms; and in a Seal of _Charles the Bold_ Duke of
_Burgundy_, Sovereign of the Order of the _Golden Fleece_, plac’d to an
Instrument dated, 1470. it is worthy of Remark, that Collar adorns the
Neck of the Lyon of _Flanders_; but the Sovereigns of the _Garter_
usually encompass’d their Arms, not within the Collar of the Order, but
the Royal Garter, that being its principal Ensign; and sometimes,
having no Shield of Arms, the void Space within the Garter, exhibits
their Arms.
OBSERVABLE is the Seal of _Charles_ Count _Palatine_ of the _Rhine_,
wherein is a Shield quarterly of the _Palatinate_ and _Bavaria_,
obscuring the Lyon Guardant its Supporter, his Four SS’s only appearing
quadrangularly, and his Head a top ensign’d with an Electoral Crown;
this Shield is encircled both within the Garter and Collar of the
Order, and is the first Example wherein both these Ensigns are jointly
together. It is very frequent to express the Collars of different
Orders together: Thus I have seen the Arms of _Robert Dudley_ Earl of
_Leicester_, entour’d within the Garter, and a Collar of the Order of
St. _Michael_, having been Knight of these Orders, and the Funeral
Atchievement of the late _James Hamilton Douglas_ Duke of _Hamilton_,
had the Garter and a Collar of the Thistle about it. And in a Plate
under the Effigies of the Duke of _Aspernons_, a Shield of his Arms
quarter’d, is encompass’d with the chiefest Ensigns of those Three
Orders, whereof he was a Brother and Companion, _viz._ with the Garter
and the Collars of St. _Michael_ and the _Holy Ghost_. And the older
the Order is in the Roll of Antiquity, whose chief Ensign is there
represented, the nearer ought it to be plac’d to the Escutcheon of
Arms, being the more Honourable Post. A Mistake was committed in the
marshalling these Collars, when the Duke of _Chevereux_ affixed it over
his Stall at _Windsor_, the Collars of St. _Mithael_ and the _Holy
Ghost_ are plac’d nearer to his Escutcheon than that of the Garter.
§ 8. AND whereas we have spoke of another kind of Collar, call’d a
Collar of SS’s, worn as Badges of lower and inferior Honour, it will
not be amiss to inform our Judgment in other Affairs concerning them.
_Wicelius_ informs us from a Book in the Library of _Fulda_, where (in
the Life of the Two Brothers _Simplicius_ and _Faustinus_, both
Senators, and suffer’d Martyrdom under _Dioclesian_) there is a
Description of the Society of St. _Simplicius_, consisting of Noble
Personages in their own Families, and describing the Collar wore as the
Badge of it says, thus: _It was the Custom of those Persons to wear
about their Necks Silver Collars, compos’d of double SS’s, which denote
the Name of Saint_ Simplicius, _between these double SS’s. The Collar
consisted of Twelve small Plates of Silver, in which were engraven the
Twelve Articles of the Creed, together with a single Trefoil: The Image
of St._ Simplicius _hung at the Collar, and from it Seven Plates,
representing the Seven Gifts of the Holy Ghost. As to the manner of
their Martyrdom, they were bound together by the Neck to a Stone, and
thrown over the Bridge into the River_ Tyber.