THE USE OF BADGES, KNOTS, AND THE REBUS
Definition of a Badge; Difference between Crests and
Badges; Examples of Badges; The Ostrich-Feather Badge; The
White Hart, etc.; Introduction of Badges into Heraldry;
Their Prevalence; Allusive Badges; Badges of obscure
Origin; Knots and Badges; The Rebus.
Closely allied with crests, but borne and used in an entirely different
way, are the devices called badges.
The whole history of these is in itself of great interest, and the
facility with which they lend themselves to artistic heraldic decoration
renders badges of peculiar value.
A badge is, properly speaking, any distinctive device, emblem, or figure
assumed as the mark or cognisance of an individual or family; and it
should be borne alone, without any shield, torse, or other accessory.
But a badge may be and often was, like a crest, accompanied by a word,
reason, or motto. There is however this important difference between a
crest and a badge, that the crest was pre-eminently the personal device
of its owner, while his badge might also be used by his servants and
retainers. Such a use of the badge still survives in the 'crest' on the
buttons of liveried servants.
The most famous and best known badge is that of the three ostrich
feathers encircled by a crown or coronet borne by the Prince of Wales.
It was probably introduced by Queen Philippa, who is known to have
possessed plate ornamented with 'a black scocheon of ostrich feathers,'
perhaps allusive of the Comté of Ostrevant, the appanage of the eldest
sons of the house of Hainault. A single ostrich feather, alone or stuck
in a scroll, occurs after 1343 in several seals of Edward prince of
Wales, and on his tomb at Canterbury the shield of his own arms
alternates with his mother's black shield with three silver ostrich
feathers, each transfixing a scroll with the word ~ich diene~; over the
shield is likewise a scroll inscribed with the same words (fig. 85).
John of Gaunt duke of Lancaster is said to have borne an ostrich feather
powdered with ermine tails, and Thomas of Woodstock duke of Gloucester,
the youngest of Queen Philippa's sons, bore the feathers with a strap
(which some have regarded as a Garter) extended along the quill (fig.
86). The Queen's great-grandson, Richard duke of York and earl of March
(1436), bore the feather with a chain similarly placed; perhaps Edmund
of Langley, his grandfather, had done the same. Henry of Lancaster, the
son of John of Gaunt, on his seal as earl of Derby in 1385 (pl. XXIV C)
and on that as duke of Hereford in 1399, has an ostrich feather stuck in
the end of a scroll which is entwined about the feather and inscribed
with the significant word ~souvereyne~, and the same word is repeated
many times on his tomb as King Henry IV at Canterbury.
[Illustration: FIG. 85. Shield with ostrich-feather badge from the tomb
of Edward prince of Wales (_ob._ 1376) at Canterbury.]
[Illustration: FIG. 86. Seal of Thomas of Woodstock duke of Gloucester
with ostrich-feather and Bohun swan badges.]
Another notable badge is the couched white hart of King Richard II, with
which may be named the white hind borne by his kinsman, Thomas Holand
earl of Kent (pl. XVIII B).
[Illustration:
A Joan Arundel wife of William lord Beauchamp, 1416.
B Thomas Holand earl of Kent, 1398.
C Robert Corbet
D Joan Stafford countess of Kent and lady of Wake, 1437.
PLATE XVIII.--Examples of supporters.]
The fetterlock-and-falcon (fig. 87) and the white rose of the house of
York, the white lion of the earls of March, the rayed rose of Edward IV,
and the silver boar of Richard III are of course well-known badges; as
well as the red and the red and white roses, the crowned fleur-de-lis,
and the Beaufort portcullis, used by the Tudor kings (fig. 88).
[Illustration: FIG. 87. Fetterlock-and-falcon badge of the house of
York, from Henry VII's chapel at Westminster.]
[Illustration: FIG. 88. Crowned rose and portcullis from King's college
chapel at Cambridge.]
When badges first came into use in this country is uncertain, but after
the middle of the fourteenth century they abound. They are foreshadowed
by the free treatment of earlier decorative heraldry, such as the
little leopards on the footgear and pillows of King Henry III's
gilt-latten effigy at Westminster, and the plate with its lozengy diaper
of leopards on which it lies; also the lozengy diaper of castles and
lions which covers the metal plate whereon lies the effigy of Queen
Eleanor of Castile.
Many badges, too, originated in devices borrowed from various sources
and arranged about the shield on seals, as in figs. 89 and 90, which
are only two out of a number of such appended to the Barons' Letter.
[Illustration: FIG. 89. Seal of Robert de Clifford, with arms surrounded
by rings in allusion to his mother Isabel Vipont.]
[Illustration: FIG. 90. Seal of Robert de Toni as CHEVALER AU CING with
the arms encircled by swans and talbots.]
The famous white swan badge of the Bohuns (fig. 91) is found perched
upon the shield in the seal of Humphrey Bohun earl of Hereford and
Essex, 1298 (pl. XIX B). Later on its neck was encircled by a crown for
a collar, with a chain attached, and in this form it appears on the
seals of Thomas of Woodstock, who married Eleanor Bohun (fig. 86), and
on that lady's brass at Westminster. It was also borne by the sons and
descendants of King Henry IV by his wife Mary Bohun.
[Illustration: FIG. 91. Seal of Oliver Bohun with swans about the
shield.]
[Illustration:
A Stephen Longespee, ob. 1260.
B Humphrey de Bohun earl of Hereford and Essex, constable of England,
1298.
PLATE XIX.--Origin of supporters.]
The gilt-latten effigies of Richard II (fig. 92) and Anne of Bohemia
have their dresses pounced all over with badges, such as the white
hart, the sun-burst, and the broom sprigs on that of the king, and the
ostrich and a peculiar knot on that of the queen. In 1380 Edmund
Mortimer earl of March left a bequest of 'our large bed of black satin
embroidered with white lions and gold roses, with scocheons of the arms
of Mortimer and Ulster,' and in 1385 Joan princess of Wales bequeathed
to her son the King (Richard II) 'my new bed of red velvet embroidered
with ostrich feathers of silver and leopards' heads of gold with boughs
and leaves issuing from their mouths.' In 1397, Sir Ralph Hastings,
whose arms were a red maunch or sleeve on a gold ground, and his crest a
bull's head, left bequests of a silver bason and laver 'stamped with a
bull's head (_cum capite tauri_), a vestment of red cloth of gold with
orfreys before and behind worked with maunches (_cum maunches_) and with
the colours of mine arms,' and six salts stamped with maunches. In 1388
John of Gaunt duke of Lancaster mentions in his will 'my great bed of
cloth of gold, the field powdered with roses of gold set upon pipes of
gold, and in each pipe two white ostrich feathers,' also 'my new
vestment of cloth of gold the field red worked with gold falcons.' Two
falcons holding hanging locks in their beaks are also shown on one of
the duke's seals (pl. XXI A). In 1400 Thomas Beauchamp earl of Warwick
left a bed of silk embroidered with 'bears of mine arms'; and in 1415
John lord le Scrope mentions in his will documents sealed _cum signato
meo de Crabb_, and in a codicil made in 1453 he bequeaths 'j fayre pile
of coppis conteyning xij coppis of gilt, with crabbis in ye myddes, and
two coveryngis to thame with crabb.' In the north of England a crab is
often called a scrap, whence its assumption by the Scropes.
[Illustration: FIG. 92. Gilt-latten effigy at Westminster of King
Richard II, pounced with badges, etc.]
Such examples as the foregoing could be multiplied indefinitely, but
they will suffice to show the prevalence of badges and the many ways in
which they were used. They of course abounded on seals as well as on
monuments of all kinds, and in conjunction with architecture. Under this
last head may be quoted such examples as the arches in Wingfield church,
Suffolk (fig. 93), studded with leopards' heads, wings, and Stafford
knots, commemorative of Michael de la Pole earl of Suffolk (_ob._ 1415)
and his wife Katharine Stafford; the porch and other parts of Lavenham
church, displaying the boars and molets of John de Vere earl of Oxford;
bishop Courtenay's chimney-piece in the bishop's palace at Exeter
(fig. 94); and the great displays of Tudor badges on the deanery gateway
at Peterborough (fig. 95), the gatehouses at Christ's (fig. 96) and St.
John's Colleges (fig. 172) at Cambridge, and the noble chapel of King's
College. Special mention must also be made of the magnificent bronze
doors of Henry VII's chapel at Westminster, than which no more beautiful
example of the use of badges for decorative purposes could possibly be
found (fig. 97).
[Illustration: FIG. 93. Piers and arches in Wingfield church, Suffolk,
with badges of Michael de la Pole earl of Suffolk (_ob._ 1415) and his
wife Katharine Stafford.]
[Illustration: FIG. 94. Chimney-piece in the Bishop's Palace at Exeter
with the arms and badges of bishop Peter Courtenay, 1478-87.]
[Illustration: FIG. 95. Gateway to the Deanery at Peterborough. Built by
Robert Kirkton abbot 1497-1526.]
[Illustration: FIG. 96. The gatehouse of Christ's College, Cambridge.]
[Illustration: FIG. 97. Bronze door with badges of York and Beaufort,
from the Lady chapel of Westminster abbey church.]
The sources of badges were various. As a matter of fact a man's badge
was often the same device as his crest, like the Courtenay dolphin, or
the boar of the Veres, or the sickle of the Hungerfords. Sometimes the
badge was derived from a part of the arms, such as the leopards' heads
and the wings of the de la Poles, the water-bougets of the Bourchiers
(fig. 98), the silver molet of the Veres (fig. 99), and the Phelip eagle
(fig. 100). If by chance a badge could have any punning or allusive
meaning it was the more popular, and it then often served as a rebus.
The boar (_verre_) of the Veres (fig. 99), the crab or scrap of the
Scropes, the pike or luce of the Lucys, the long swords of Longespee
(pl. XIX A), the _gray_ or badger of Richard lord Grey of Codnor (fig.
102), and the wood-stock or tree stump of Thomas duke of Gloucester, who
was born at Woodstock, are all good examples of a practice that should
be followed whenever possible, even in these degenerate days.
[Illustration: FIG. 98. Signet with badge and crested helm of Lewis lord
Bourchier, 1420.]
[Illustration: FIG. 99. Seal of Hugh de Vere with boar badge and two
wivers as supporters. From the Barons' Letter.]
[Illustration: FIG. 100. Signet of William Phelip lord Bardolf (_c._
1410) with eagle badge derived from his arms.]
[Illustration: FIG. 101. Signet with flote badge and word of Sir William
Oldhalle in 1457.]
[Illustration: FIG. 102. Seal with badge (a _gray_ or badger) of Richard
lord Grey of Codnor, 1392.]
[Illustration: FIG. 103. Seal of Thomas lord Stanley as earl of Derby
and seneschal of Macclesfield, 1485, with the eagle's claw badge of
Stanley and the legs of the Isle of Man.]
But in a large number of cases the badge has a different and often
quite obscure origin, like the Bohun swan, the Percy crescent and
swivel, the Beauchamp bear and ragged staff, the Lovel hanging-lock, the
Zouch eagle and crooked billet, and the Berkeley mermaid.
[Illustration: FIG. 104. Daisy plant (_marguerite_) badge of the Lady
Margaret Beaufort, from Henry VII's chapel at Westminster.]
A few families, _e.g._ the Staffords (fig. 105), the Bourchiers, and the
Wakes, used as a badge some special form of knot, and attention has
already been called to the peculiar knots pounced upon the effigy of
Queen Anne of Bohemia. Interesting examples of the Bourchier knot may be
seen on the tomb of archbishop Thomas Bourchier at Canterbury, and on
the brass of Sir Humphrey Bourchier at Westminster (fig. 106), and a
good instance of the application of the knot is afforded by the seal of
Joan Stafford countess of Kent and lady of Wake, who encircles her
impaled shield with a cordon of Stafford knots (pl. XVIII D). On the
tomb at Lowick (Northants) of Edward Stafford earl of Wiltshire (_ob._
1498) the shields are encircled with cordons of Stafford knots with
another Stafford badge, the nave of a wheel, alternating with the knots
(fig. 107). On the canopy of the tomb at Little Easton in Essex of Henry
Bourchier earl of Essex (_ob._ 1483) and his wife Isabel, sister of
Richard duke of York, is a badge formed by placing a Bourchier knot
within a fetterlock of York.
[Illustration: FIG. 105. Part of the brass at Exeter of canon William
Langeton, kinsman of Edward Stafford bishop of Exeter, 1413, in cope
with an orphrey of [~X~]'s and Stafford knots.]
[Illustration: FIG. 106. Elbow-piece and Bourchier knot, from the brass
of Sir Humphrey Bourchier (_ob._ 1471) in Westminster abbey church.]
[Illustration: FIG. 107. Alabaster tomb and effigy of Edward Stafford
earl of Wiltshire (_ob._ 1498) in Lowick church, Northamptonshire.]
Mention has been made above of the rebus. This was invariably a badge or
device forming a pun upon a man's surname, and at one time was
exceedingly popular. It no doubt originated in the canting or allusive
heraldry of earlier days, like the boars' heads of the Swynburnes, the
trumpets of the Trumpingtons, the hammers (Fr. _martel_) of the Martels,
or the scallop shells of the Scales. The _ox_ crossing a _ford_ in the
arms of Oxford, and the _Cam_ and its great _bridge_ in the arms of
Cambridge are also kindred examples. A large number of rebuses on names
ending in 'ton' are based upon a tun or barrel, like the _lup_ on a
_ton_ of Robert Lupton provost of Eton 1503-4, or the large church
(_kirk_) and _ton_ of abbot Kirkton on the deanery gate at Peterborough
(fig. 108), or the _beacon_ rising from a _ton_ of bishop Thomas
Beckington at Wells (fig. 109). The _gold wells_ of bishop Goldwell and
the _harts ly_ing in _water_ of bishop Walter Lyhart in their cathedral
church at Norwich are well known, as are probably the _eye_ and the
_slip_ of a tree which form, together with a man falling from a tree (I
slip!), the rebuses of abbot Islip at Westminster (fig. 110). An _ox_,
the letter N, and a _bridge_ make the rebus of canon John Oxenbridge in
his chantry chapel at Windsor, while an eagle and an _ox_ with ~ne~ on
his side gives the name of prior John Oxney at Christchurch, Canterbury.
Two large _hares_ with a spring or _well_ rising between them crouch at
the feet of bishop Harewell's effigy at Wells; and dean Gunthorpe's
oriel window in the deanery there is decorated with _guns_ (fig. 111).
Sir John Pechey's arms (_azure a lion ermine with a forked tail and a
gold crown_), in a window in Lullingstone church, Kent, are encircled by
a wreath of peach-branches, with peaches charged with the letter ~e~ for
the final syllable of his name (fig. 112).
[Illustration: FIG. 108. Rebus of abbot Robert Kirkton, from the Deanery
Gate at Peterborough.]
[Illustration: FIG. 109. Rebus of Thomas Beckington bishop of Bath and
Wells, 1477.]
[Illustration: FIG. 110. Rebus of John Islip abbot of Westminster, from
his chantry chapel.]
[Illustration: FIG. 111. Oriel window in the Deanery at Wells with badge
of King Edward IV, and rebus of Dean Gunthorpe.]
[Illustration: FIG. 112. Arms and rebus of Sir John Pechey (_ob._ 1522),
from painted glass in Lullingstone church, Kent.]
Here again it is needless to multiply examples of rebuses, but the fun
to be got out of them is ample justification for urging their adoption
and use in connexion with decorative heraldry.[7]
[7] The Rev. E. E. Dorling has taken for his rebus a little door
(doorling!) with the hinges ending in E's, and the author of this book
might fitly content himself with the anchor of Hope!