The Cambridge University Heraldic and Genealogical Society was formed as the result of the merger in 1957 of a previous Heraldic Society (founded 1948) with the Cambridge University Society of Genealogists (founded 1954).

Foundation of the society

The first Cambridge University Heraldic Society was founded in 1948 from the remnants of the late nineteenth-century

Monumental Brass A monumental brass is a type of engraved sepulchral memorial, which in the 13th century began to partially take the place of three-dimensional monuments and effigies carved in stone or wood. Made of hard latten or sheet brass, let into the paveme ...

Society. In 1954, a separate Cambridge University Society of Genealogists was formed. Not surprisingly many members of one society were members of the other and on 10 June 1957, sponsored by some vice-presidents, by agreement between the secretaries, special general meetings of both societies were held and resolutions passed abolishing both societies on condition that a new joint society was formed later in the day. Meetings held earlier in the term had led to the formal culmination of a series of discussions for the consolidation and amalgamation. The structure of the new society was to include a patron and a number of honorary vice-presidents. The committee was to consist of a president, a secretary, a senior treasurer, a junior treasurer and ordinary committee members.

The society today

Four speaker meetings are held in each of the Michaelmas and

Lent Lent ( la, Quadragesima, 'Fortieth') is a solemn religious observance in the liturgical calendar commemorating the 40 days Jesus spent fasting in the desert and enduring temptation by Satan, according to the Gospels of Matthew, Mark and Luke ...

terms and a ninth at the beginning of the Easter term. These are in the general area of

heraldry Heraldry is a discipline relating to the design, display and study of armorial bearings (known as armory), as well as related disciplines, such as vexillology, together with the study of ceremony, rank and pedigree. Armory, the best-known branch ...

and genealogy but also include cognate subjects such as ceremonial dress, tartan, local history, customs, military medals or indeed anything of an

antiquarian An antiquarian or antiquary () is an fan (person), aficionado or student of antiquities or things of the past. More specifically, the term is used for those who study history with particular attention to ancient artifact (archaeology), artifac ...

nature. There are generally two outings each year—one in Michaelmas and one in Lent-–to places of heraldic and genealogical interest. In recent years, the society has visited the College of Arms, the Society of Genealogists and various cathedrals and museums. The society also hosts one large dinner each term with the Annual Dinner (in the Lent term) attracting up to 70 diners. There is also a garden party in the Easter term. In 2022 the society hosted the 35th

International Congress of Genealogical and Heraldic Sciences The International Congress of Genealogical and Heraldic Sciences is a biennial conference discussing topics of heraldic and genealogical interest. The Congress brings together scholars and other interested persons from all the nations of Europe and ...

patronized by The Earl of Wessex, and attended by officers of arms from many different nations (including

Garter King of Arms The Garter Principal King of Arms (also Garter King of Arms or simply Garter) is the senior King of Arms, and the senior Officer of Arms of the College of Arms, the heraldic authority with jurisdiction over England, Wales and Northern Ireland. ...

, Lord Lyon King of Arms, and the

Deputy Chief Herald of Canada Chief Herald of Canada is the title held by the head of the Canadian Heraldic Authority. The Chief Herald of Canada directs the operations of the Canadian Heraldic Authority and makes the grants of arms. There are exceptions to this, such as cert ...

Patrons

Patrons of the society since 1957: *

Louis Mountbatten, 1st Earl Mountbatten of Burma Louis Francis Albert Victor Nicholas Mountbatten, 1st Earl Mountbatten of Burma (25 June 1900 – 27 August 1979) was a British naval officer, colonial administrator and close relative of the British royal family. Mountbatten, who was of German ...

KG GCB OM GCSI GCIE GCVO DSO ADC PC FRS, 1957–1979. *Archbishop Bruno Heim, ( Apostolic Pro-Nuncio to Great Britain 1982–1985), 1980–2003. * Edward Fitzalan-Howard, 18th Duke of Norfolk GCVO DL, Earl Marshal and Hereditary Marshal of England, 2003–present. Sir Arthur Cochrane ( Clarenceux King of Arms) was Patron of the original Heraldic and Genealogical Societies until his death in 1954. The position was still vacant when the amalgamation took place. The Cambridge University Society of Genealogists had had a president in the person of the late Earl Mountbatten of Burma, a keen genealogist. Therefore,

Lord Mountbatten Louis Francis Albert Victor Nicholas Mountbatten, 1st Earl Mountbatten of Burma (25 June 1900 – 27 August 1979) was a British naval officer, colonial administrator and close relative of the British royal family. Mountbatten, who was of German ...

was invited to be Patron of the new (1957) society, a post which he held until his assassination in 1979.

was succeeded as Patron by Archbishop Bruno Heim, a leading authority on the

of the Roman Catholic Church who designed armorial bearings for several Popes. Heim donated a copy of a number of his own publications to the society. After his death he was followed by the Duke of Norfolk, Earl Marshal and Hereditary Marshal of England.

Past speakers and guests

The society is primarily a discussion group. Notable past speakers have included: * Sir Alexander Colin Cole,

Garter Principal King of Arms The Garter Principal King of Arms (also Garter King of Arms or simply Garter) is the senior King of Arms, and the senior Officer of Arms of the College of Arms, the heraldic authority with jurisdiction over England, Wales and Northern Ireland. ...

, 1978–1992. * Michael Maclagan, Richmond Herald, 1980–89, and Lord Mayor of Oxford, 1970–71. * Sir Conrad Marshall John Fisher Swan,

1992–5. * Wilfrid Scott-Giles, Fitzalan Pursuivant Extraordinary and heraldic writer * John Brooke-Little, Clarenceux King of Arms, 1995–7, and founders of the Heraldry Society. * Hubert Chesshyre, Clarenceux King of Arms, 1997–2010. * Jonathan Riley-Smith, Dixie Professor of Ecclesiastical History, 1994–2011. * Cecil Humphery-Smith, founder of the Institute of Heraldic and Genealogical Studies * Sir Peter Gwynn-Jones, Garter King, 1995–2010. * Rodney Dennys, Somerset Herald, 196–82, High Sheriff of East Sussex, 1983–4. *

Bobby Milburn Robert Leslie Pollington "Bobby" Milburn FSA (28 July 1907 – 14 February 2000) was an Anglican priest in the 20th century. Milburn was educated at Oundle School and Sidney Sussex College, Cambridge and ordained in 1935. Between then and ...

, Anglican priest, successively Dean of Worcester and

Master of the Temple The Temple Church is a Royal peculiar church in the City of London located between Fleet Street and the River Thames, built by the Knights Templar as their English headquarters. It was consecrated on 10 February 1185 by Patriarch Heraclius of Je ...

. * John George, Officer of Arms in the

Court of the Lord Lyon The Court of the Lord Lyon (the Lyon Court) is a standing court of law, based in New Register House in Edinburgh, which regulates heraldry in Scotland. The Lyon Court maintains the register of grants of arms, known as the Public Register of All A ...

. *

Sedley Andrus Francis Sedley Andrus LVO (26 February 1915 – 9 November 2009) was a long-serving English officer of arms who was Beaumont Herald of Arms Extraordinary. As such, he was a Royal officer of arms, though not a member of the College of Arms in ...

, Lancaster Herald, 1972–82. * Patric Dickinson, Clarenceux King, 2010–present. * Sir Henry Paston-Bedingfeld, 10th Baronet,

Norroy and Ulster King of Arms Norroy and Ulster King of Arms is the Provincial King of Arms at the College of Heralds with jurisdiction over England north of the River Trent, Trent and Northern Ireland. The two offices of Norroy and Ulster were formerly separate. Norroy King ...

, 2010–14, and Master of the Worshipful Company of Scriveners, 2012–3. * Thomas Woodcock, Garter King, 2010–present. * Prince Tomislav of Yugoslavia * Prince Michael of Kent * Sir Malcolm Innes of Edingight, Lord Lyon King of Arms, 1981–2001. * Timothy Duke, Norroy and Ulster King of Arms, 2014–present. * Marjorie Chibnall, mediaeval historian *

Alastair Lorne Campbell of Airds Alastair Lorne Campbell of Airds (1937-2022) is a former Scottish officer of arms and author. Campbell of Airds was appointed Unicorn Pursuivant of Arms in Ordinary in 1987. In 2008 he was appointed Islay Herald Extraordinary. As an active member ...

, Unicorn Pursuivant, 1986–2008. * Maurice Couve de Murville,

Archbishop of Birmingham The Archbishop of Birmingham heads the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Birmingham in England. As such he is the metropolitan archbishop of the Province of Birmingham. The archdiocese covers an area of and spans of the counties of Oxfordshire, S ...

, 1982–1999. * Major-General Alastair Bruce of Crionaich

OBE The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...

VR DL, Governor of Edinburgh Castle (2019-present), Fitzalan Pursuivant Extraordinary. * Sir John Hamilton Baker, QC, Downing Professor of the Laws of England, 1998–2011. * Robert Shirley, 13th Earl Ferrers * The Lord Lingfield, educationalist * Clive Cheesman, Richmond Herald, 2010–present. * David Sellar, Lord Lyon King of Arms, 2008–14. *Prince Ermias Sahle Selassie of Ethiopia and the House of Solomon. *Prince Idris bin Abdullah al-Senussi of Libya and the House of

Senussi The Senusiyya, Senussi or Sanusi ( ar, السنوسية ''as-Sanūssiyya'') are a Muslim political-religious tariqa (Sufi order) and clan in colonial Libya and the Sudan region founded in Mecca in 1837 by the Grand Senussi ( ar, السنوسي ...

. * Kristóf Szalay-Bobrovniczky, former Hungarian Ambassador to the Court of St James's, 2016–2020, Minister of Defence (Hungary), 2022-present. * Sophie Katsarava MBE, Georgian Ambassador to the Court of St James's, 2020–present. * Joseph Morrow CBE, Lord Lyon King of Arms, 2014–present. * Balthazar Napoleon IV de Bourbon of the House of Bourbon-Bhopal. *

The Hon. ''The Honourable'' (British English) or ''The Honorable'' (American English; see spelling differences) (abbreviation: ''Hon.'', ''Hon'ble'', or variations) is an honorific style that is used as a prefix before the names or titles of certain ...

Richard Cubitt, heir apparent to Mark Cubitt, 5th Baron Ashcombe. *Graham Bartram, Chief Vexillologist and Trustee of the UK Flag Institute. *

Dr Philip Sidney, heir apparent to Philip Sidney, 2nd Viscount De L'Isle. * Simon Isaacs, 4th Marquess of Reading. *Liam Devlin, Rothesay Herald, 2021–present. *

Prince Juan de Bagration-Mukhrani Prince Juan Jorge de Bagration-Mukhrani (born 18 August 1977) is a Spanish-born Georgian prince and member of the House of Mukhrani of the Bagrationi dynasty and a distant relation to the Spanish royal family. Early life and family Prince J ...

of Georgia and the House of Mukhrani. * Elizabeth Roads LVO, Secretary of the

Order of the Thistle The Most Ancient and Most Noble Order of the Thistle is an order of chivalry associated with Scotland. The current version of the Order was founded in 1687 by King James VII of Scotland, who asserted that he was reviving an earlier Order. The ...

. *James Terzian CStJ, Registrar and Genealogist of the Venerable Order of St John (Priory in the USA). * Professor Kate Williams FRHistS

Publications

In the late 1950s and early 1960s, the society transcribed the registers of the Cambridgeshire parishes of Shepreth and Westley Waterless and published a small number of copies. Its most ambitious project, however, was to produce ''The Cambridge Armorial'' showing the arms of all the corporate armigers in Cambridge (including town, university, colleges, theological colleges and schools) with blazons and brief histories of each. Although begun in 1966, it was to be nineteen years before it was published through the efforts of Wilfrid Scott-Giles, Heather Peak, Cecil Humphery-Smith and Dr Gordon H Wright. In 1995 the society launched a magazine, called the ''Escutcheon'', which appears each term, edited by Derek Palgrave. It is now edited by Terence Trelawny-Gower.

Presidents

The following people have held the office of president of the society:

The Mountbatten Commemorative Lecture

Following the Assassination of Louis Mountbatten, 1st Earl Mountbatten of Burma, the society wished to honour its late Patron. With the permission of his elder daughter, Countess Mountbatten of Burma, the society inaugurated the Mountbatten Commemorative Lecture. This remains the most important meeting of the year and the lecture has frequently been given by senior members of the College of Arms which have included five successive Garter Kings of Arms (as well as two Lord Lyon Kings of Arms). In 1994, the society was greatly honoured when the Lecture was given by (as he now is) Prince Michael of Kent. The lecture for the year 1984–1985 was concerned with the genealogy of

himself and was delivered in the presence of

Prince Edward, Earl of Wessex Prince Edward, Earl of Wessex and Forfar, (Edward Antony Richard Louis; born 10 March 1964) is a member of the British royal family. He is the youngest child of Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, and the youngest sibl ...

who was at that time an undergraduate at Jesus College. *2022 "The Heraldry and History of Georgia"

of Georgia and the House of Mukhrani *2021 "The Court of the Lord Lyon" Joseph Morrow CBE, Lord Lyon King of Arms *2020 "The Genealogy of Monsignor Alfred Newman Gilbey" Ronald Creighton-Jobe *2019 "The Graces of Cambridge Colleges and Related Dining Customs" J. Cable *2018 "The Monarchical Republic of Oliver Cromwell" Dr David Smith *2017 "The Heraldry of Eton College" David Broomfield, Membership Secretary *2016 "Out of the Blue: Oxford Academic Dress in the Twentieth Century" A.J.P. North *2015 "Norroy's Reminiscences " Sir Henry Paston-Bedingfeld Bt.,

*2014 "The College of Arms in the Second World War" Peter O'Donoghue (officer of arms), York Herald *2013 "Heraldry and Ceremonial in the Holy Roman Empire" Dr B.J.G.A. Kress, Secretary 2003–2006, The Warburg Institute *2012 Title to be announced Sir Thomas Woodcock,

*2011 "Heraldry of York Minster" Dr P.A. Fox, President 1984–1985 *2010 "The Role of the Lord Lyon" David Sellar, Lord Lyon King of Arms *2009 "‘Les Grandes d'Espagne ne danseront pas:’ Dukes, ducal lookalikes and the dilemmata of rank in Ancien Régime France" Dr Leonhard Horowski *2008 "The Court of Chivalry in Stuart Heraldry" Dr Vittoria Feola, Université libre de Bruxelles *2007 "The College of Arms in the Eighteenth Century" Peter O'Donoghue (officer of arms), York Herald *2006 "Music in Heraldry" Sir Henry Paston-Bedingfeld Bt.,

*2005 "The Society of Genealogists Library" Mrs Susan Gibbons *2004 "Early New Zealand Grants of Arms" David White,

*2003 "State Funeral of Sir Winston Churchill" Jack Darrah *2002 "Montgomery Heraldry" Dr E. Hugh Montgomery *2001 "Aspects of High State Heraldry" John Brooke-Little, Clarenceux King of Arms *2000 "Earl Mountbatten and Genealogy" Cecil Humphery-Smith *1999 "Back to the Future: European Heraldry after Communism" Dr T.A.H. Wilkinson, Leverhulme Trust Special Research Fellow, University of Durham *1998 "The Most Noble Order of the Garter" Hubert Chesshyre, Clarenceux King of Arms *1997 "Nelson's Heraldry" David White,

*1996 "Military Heraldry" Col. I.S. Swinnerton, TD JP DL, President of the Federation of Family History Societies *1995 Sir Conrad Swan,

*1994 "Lord Mountbatten" Prince Michael of Kent *1993 "The Bastards …" John Brooke-Little, Clarenceux King of Arms *1992 "Polish Heraldry" Sir Conrad Swan,

*1991 "The Baronies of East Anglia" John Norton, Treasurer of Norfolk Heraldry Society *1990 "The Work of the College of Arms"

, Lancaster Herald later Beaumont Herald Extraordinary *1989 "Some Thoughts on the Origins of Heralds" John Brooke-Little, Clarenceux King of Arms *1988 "Quinque saltus heraldici – Five Heraldic Leaps" Sir Peter Gwynn-Jones,

*1987 "European Armorials and Rolls – Some Thoughts and Comparisons" C.J. Holyoake *1986 "Garter Knights and Officers of the Order of the Garter" Sir Colin Cole,

*1985 "The Genealogy of the Earl Mountbatten of Burma" Cecil Humphery-Smith *1984 "The Work and Records of the College of Arms" John Brooke-Little, Clarenceux King of Arms *1983 "J.H. Round" Dr D. Stephenson *1982 "Arthurian Heraldry" Michael Maclagan, Richmond Herald (also Slains Pursuivant of Arms) *1981 "The Work of the College of Arms"

, Lancaster Herald later Beaumont Herald Extraordinary

Coat of arms

References

External links

The Cambridge University Heraldic and Genealogical Society
{{Authority control English heraldry 1957 establishments in England

Heraldry Heraldry is a discipline relating to the design, display and study of armorial bearings (known as armory), as well as related disciplines, such as vexillology, together with the study of ceremony, rank and pedigree. Armory, the best-known branch ...

Student organizations established in 1957 Heraldic societies Family history societies in the United Kingdom