The Great Seal of the Realm or Great Seal of the United Kingdom (known prior to the Treaty of Union of 1707 as the Great Seal of England; and from then until the Union of 1801 as the Great Seal of Great Britain) is a

seal Seal may refer to any of the following: Common uses * Pinniped, a diverse group of semi-aquatic marine mammals, many of which are commonly called seals, particularly: ** Earless seal, or "true seal" ** Fur seal * Seal (emblem), a device to impr ...

that is used to symbolise the Sovereign's approval of state documents. Scotland has had its own great seal since the 14th century. The Acts of Union 1707, joining the kingdoms of Scotland and England, provided for the use of a single Great Seal for the new Kingdom of Great Britain. However, it also provided for the continued use of a separate Scottish seal to be used there, and this seal continues to be called the Great Seal of Scotland, although it is not technically one. A new Welsh Seal was introduced in 2011.

Sealing wax Sealing wax is a wax material of a seal which, after melting, hardens quickly (to paper, parchment, ribbons and wire, and other material) forming a bond that is difficult to separate without noticeable tampering. Wax is used to verify something s ...

is melted in a

metal A metal (from Greek μέταλλον ''métallon'', "mine, quarry, metal") is a material that, when freshly prepared, polished, or fractured, shows a lustrous appearance, and conducts electricity and heat relatively well. Metals are typica ...

mould or matrix and impressed into a wax figure that is attached by cord or

ribbon A ribbon or riband is a thin band of material, typically cloth but also plastic or sometimes metal, used primarily as decorative binding and tying. Cloth ribbons are made of natural materials such as silk, cotton, and jute and of synthetic mat ...

to documents that the Monarch wishes to seal officially. The formal keeper of the seal is the

Lord High Chancellor of Great Britain The lord chancellor, formally the lord high chancellor of Great Britain, is the highest-ranking traditional minister among the Great Officers of State in Scotland and England in the United Kingdom, nominally outranking the prime minister. Th ...

History

At some time before the year 1066

Edward the Confessor Edward the Confessor ; la, Eduardus Confessor , ; ( 1003 – 5 January 1066) was one of the last Anglo-Saxon English kings. Usually considered the last king of the House of Wessex, he ruled from 1042 to 1066. Edward was the son of Æthe ...

began to use a "Great Seal", which created a casting in wax of his own face, to signify that a document carried the force of his will. With some exceptions, each subsequent monarch up to 1603, when the king of Scotland succeeded to the throne of England, chose his or her own design for the Great Seal.

Levina Teerlinc Levina Teerlinc (1510s – 23 June 1576) was a Flemish Renaissance miniaturist who served as a painter to the English court of Henry VIII, Edward VI, Mary I and Elizabeth I. She was the most important miniaturist at the English court betw ...

is believed to have designed the seal of Queen Mary I, and also the earliest seal used by her successor Elizabeth I, in the 1540s. When opening Parliament on 3 September 1654, the Lord Protector Oliver Cromwell was escorted by the three "Commissioners of the Great Seal of the Commonwealth of England", who were Whitelock, Lisle, and Widdrington. This Seal was inscribed with 'The Great Seal of England, 1648', displaying a map of England, Ireland, Jersey, and Guernsey on one side, with the Arms of England and Ireland. On the other side was shown the interior of the House of Commons, the Speaker in his chair, with the inscription, 'In the first year of Freedom, by God's blessing restored, 1648.' In 1655, Cromwell appointed three Commissioners of the Great Seal of Ireland, Richard Pepys, Chief Justice of the Upper Bench, Sir Gerard Lowther, Chief Justice of the Common Bench; and

Miles Corbet Miles Corbet (1595–1662) was an English politician, recorder of Yarmouth and Regicide. Life He was the son of Sir Thomas Corbet of Sprowston, Norfolk and the younger brother of Sir John Corbet, 1st Baronet, MP for Great Yarmouth from 1 ...

, Chief Baron of the Exchequer. But they held the seal only until 1656, when Cromwell nominated William Steele, Chief Baron of the Court of Exchequer in England, Lord Chancellor of Ireland. In 1688, while attempting to flee to France during the Glorious Revolution, James II allegedly attempted to destroy his Great Seal by throwing it into the River Thames, in the hope that the machinery of government would cease to function. James's successors, William III and Mary II, used the same seal matrix in their new Great Seal. This may have been a deliberate choice, in order to imply the continuity of government. A new obverse was created, but the reverse was crudely adapted by inserting a female figure beside the male figure. When

Mary Mary may refer to: People * Mary (name), a feminine given name (includes a list of people with the name) Religious contexts * New Testament people named Mary, overview article linking to many of those below * Mary, mother of Jesus, also call ...

died, the obverse returned to the design used by James II, while the female figure was deleted from the reverse. Thus, William III used a seal that was identical to James II's, except for changes to the legend and coat of arms.

Edward VIII Edward VIII (Edward Albert Christian George Andrew Patrick David; 23 June 1894 – 28 May 1972), later known as the Duke of Windsor, was King of the United Kingdom and the Dominions of the British Empire and Emperor of India from 20 January 1 ...

, who abdicated in order to marry Wallis Simpson only a few months after succeeding to the throne, never selected a design for his own seal and continued to use that of his predecessor,

George V George V (George Frederick Ernest Albert; 3 June 1865 – 20 January 1936) was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 6 May 1910 until his death in 1936. Born during the reign of his grandmother Quee ...

. Only one matrix of the Great Seal exists at a time, and since the wax used for the Great Seal has a high melting point, the silver plates that cast the seal eventually wear out. The longer-lived British monarchs have had several Great Seals during their reigns, and Queen Victoria had to select four different Great Seal designs during her sixty-three years on the throne. The current seal matrix was authorised by the Privy Council in July 2001. It was designed by James Butler and replaced that of 1953, designed by

Gilbert Ledward Gilbert Ledward (23 January 1888 – 21 June 1960), was an English sculptor. He won the British Prix de Rome for sculpture in 1913, and in World War I served in the Royal Garrison Artillery and later as a war artist. He was professor of ...

. The

obverse Obverse and its opposite, reverse, refer to the two flat faces of coins and some other two-sided objects, including paper money, flags, seals, medals, drawings, old master prints and other works of art, and printed fabrics. In this usage, '' ...

shows a middle-aged Elizabeth II enthroned and robed, holding in her right hand a sceptre and in her left the orb. The circumscription is the abbreviated Latin form of the royal title. On the reverse are the full

royal arms The royal coat of arms of the United Kingdom, or the royal arms for short, is the arms of dominion of the British monarch, currently King Charles III. These arms are used by the King in his official capacity as monarch of the United Kingdom. Varia ...

, including crest, mantling and supporters. This is the first time that the royal arms have provided the main design for one side of the English or British Great Seal. The obverse of the 1953 version depicted the Queen on horseback, dressed in uniform and riding

sidesaddle Sidesaddle riding is a form of equestrianism that uses a type of saddle which allows female riders to sit aside rather than astride an equine. Sitting aside dates back to antiquity and developed in European countries in the Middle Ages as a wa ...

, as she used to attend the annual Trooping the Colour ceremony for many years until the late 1980s. The seal's diameter is , and the combined weight of both sides of the seal matrix exceeds .

Usage

The Great Seal is attached to the official documents of state that require the authorisation of the monarch to implement the advice of

His Majesty's Government ga, Rialtas a Shoilse gd, Riaghaltas a Mhòrachd , image = HM Government logo.svg , image_size = 220px , image2 = Royal Coat of Arms of the United Kingdom (HM Government).svg , image_size2 = 180px , caption = Royal Arms , date_es ...

. Under today's usage of the Great Seal, seals of dark green wax are affixed to letters patent elevating individuals to the peerage,

blue Blue is one of the three primary colours in the RYB colour model (traditional colour theory), as well as in the RGB (additive) colour model. It lies between violet and cyan on the spectrum of visible light. The eye perceives blue when ob ...

seals authorise actions relating to the Royal family, and scarlet seals appoint bishops and implement various other affairs of state. In some cases the seal is replaced by a wafer version, a smaller representation of the obverse of the Great Seal embossed on coloured paper attached to the document being sealed. This simpler version is used for royal proclamations, letters patent granting

royal assent Royal assent is the method by which a monarch formally approves an act of the legislature, either directly or through an official acting on the monarch's behalf. In some jurisdictions, royal assent is equivalent to promulgation, while in othe ...

to legislation, writs of summons to Parliament, licences for the election of bishops, commissions of the peace, and many other documents. It formerly constituted treason to forge the Great Seal. The Great Seal of the Realm is in the custody of and is administered by the Lord Keeper of the Great Seal. This office has been held jointly with that of Lord Chancellor since 1761. The current Lord Chancellor is Dominic Raab. The

Constitutional Reform Act 2005 The Constitutional Reform Act 2005 (c 4) is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, relevant to UK constitutional law. It provides for a Supreme Court of the United Kingdom to take over the previous appellate jurisdiction of the Law Lor ...

reiterates that the Lord Chancellor continues to be the custodian of the Great Seal. Though, in the past, the Great Seal has been delivered to and remained in the custody of the Sovereign when it has been used to seal instruments that related to or granted gifts or emoluments to the Lord Chancellor. The

Clerk of the Crown in Chancery A clerk is a white-collar worker who conducts general office tasks, or a worker who performs similar sales-related tasks in a retail environment. The responsibilities of clerical workers commonly include record keeping, filing, staffing service ...

, who is also Permanent Secretary of the

Ministry of Justice A Ministry of Justice is a common type of government department that serves as a justice ministry. Lists of current ministries of justice Named "Ministry" * Ministry of Justice (Abkhazia) * Ministry of Justice (Afghanistan) * Ministry of Justi ...

, heads His Majesty's Crown Office, and is responsible for the affixing of the Great Seal. He is assisted by the Deputy Clerk of the Crown. Day-to-day custody is entrusted to the Clerk of the Chamber, and subordinate staff include a Sealer and two Scribes to His Majesty's Crown Office. Section 2 of the Great Seal Act 1884 governs the use of the Great Seal of the Realm:

Inscriptions on the Great Seal

The Great Seal for each successive monarch is inscribed with the monarch's style (in Latin) on both sides of the seal. Some of those used in the past are shown below. Where the inscriptions on both sides of the seal are identical, only one is given. Where they are the same except for the use of abbreviations, the one with the fuller forms is given. Where they are different, they are shown separated by a slash.

Kingdom of England

. SIGILLVM EADVVARDI ANGLORVM BASILEI ** Seal of Edward, Sovereign of the English. * William I. HOC NORMANNORVM WILLELMVM NOSCE PATRONVM SI / HOC ANGLIS REGEM SIGNO FATEARIS EVNDEM ** Know you this, William Patron of the Normans / By this sign recognise him King of the English * William II. WILLELMVS DEI GRATIA REX ANGLORVM ** William, by the grace of God, King of the English. *

Henry I Henry I may refer to: 876–1366 * Henry I the Fowler, King of Germany (876–936) * Henry I, Duke of Bavaria (died 955) * Henry I of Austria, Margrave of Austria (died 1018) * Henry I of France (1008–1060) * Henry I the Long, Margrave of the N ...

. HENRICVS DEI GRATIA REX ANGLORVM / HENRICVS DEI GRATIA DVX NORMANNORVM ** Henry, by the grace of God, King of the English / Henry, by the grace of God, Duke of the Normans. * Stephen. STEPHANVS DEI GRATIA REX ANGLORVM ** Stephen, by the grace of God, King of the English. * Henry II. HENRICVS DEI GRATIA REX ANGLORVM / HENR CVSDEI GRA IADVX NORMANNORVM ET AQUIT NORVMET COM SANDEG VORVM/small> ** Henry, by the grace of God, King of the English / Henry, by the grace of God, Duke of the Normans and of the Aquitanians and Count of the Angevins. * Richard I. RICARDVS DEI GRATIA REX ANGLORVM / RICARDVS DEI GRATIA DVX NORMANNORVM ET AQUITANORVM ET COMES ANDEGAVORVM ** Richard, by the grace of God, King of the English / Richard, by the grace of God, Duke of the Normans and of the Aquitanians and Count of the Angevins. * John. IOHANNES DEI GRACIA REX ANGLIE ET DOMINVS HIBERNIE / IOH NNE DVX NORMANNIE ET AQUITANIE COMES ANDEGAVIE ** John, by the grace of God, King of England and Lord of Ireland / John, Duke of Normandy and of Aquitaine, Count of Anjou. * Henry III. HENRICVS DEI GRACIA REX ANGLIE DOMINVS HIBERNIE DVX AQUITANIE ** Henry, by the grace of God, King of England, Lord of Ireland, Duke of Aquitaine. *

Edward I Edward I (17/18 June 1239 – 7 July 1307), also known as Edward Longshanks and the Hammer of the Scots, was King of England and Lord of Ireland from 1272 to 1307. Concurrently, he ruled the duchies of Aquitaine and Gascony as a vassal ...

. EDWARDVS DEI GRACIA REX ANGLIE DOMINVS HYBERNIE DVX AQUITANIE ** Edward, by the grace of God, King of England, Lord of Ireland, Duke of Aquitaine. *

Edward II Edward II (25 April 1284 – 21 September 1327), also called Edward of Caernarfon, was King of England and Lord of Ireland from 1307 until he was deposed in January 1327. The fourth son of Edward I, Edward became the heir apparent to ...

. EDWARDVS DEI GRACIA REX ANGLIE DOMINVS HYBERNIE DVX AQUITANIE ** Edward, by the grace of God, King of England, Lord of Ireland, Duke of Aquitaine. * Edward III. EDWARDVS DEI GRACIA REX ANGLIE D MI HIBERNIE ET AQUITANIE ** Edward, by the grace of God, King of England, Lord of Ireland and of Aquitaine. *

Richard II Richard II (6 January 1367 – ), also known as Richard of Bordeaux, was King of England from 1377 until he was deposed in 1399. He was the son of Edward the Black Prince, Prince of Wales, and Joan, Countess of Kent. Richard's father die ...

. RICARDVS DEI GRACIA REX FRANCIE ET ANGLIE ET D MI HIBERNIE ** Richard, by the grace of God, King of France and England and Lord of Ireland. * Henry IV. HENRICVS DEI GRACIA REX FRANCIE ET ANGLIE ET D MI HIBERNIE ** Henry, by the grace of God, King of France and England and Lord of Ireland. *

Henry V Henry V may refer to: People * Henry V, Duke of Bavaria (died 1026) * Henry V, Holy Roman Emperor (1081/86–1125) * Henry V, Duke of Carinthia (died 1161) * Henry V, Count Palatine of the Rhine (c. 1173–1227) * Henry V, Count of Luxembourg (121 ...

. HENRICVS DEI GRACIA REX FRANCIE ET ANGLIE ET D MI HIBERNIE / HENRICVS DEI GRACIA REX ANGLIE ET FRANCIE ET DOMINUS HIBERNIE ** Henry, by the grace of God, King of France and England and Lord of Ireland / Henry, by the grace of God, King of England and France and Lord of Ireland. * Henry VI. HENRICVS DEI GRACIA FRANCORVM ET ANGLIE REX ** Henry, by the grace of God, of the French and of England, King. * Edward IV. EDWARDVS DEI GRACIA REX ANGLIE & FRANCIE ET DOMINVS HIBERNIE ** Edward, by the grace of God, King of England and France and Lord of Ireland. *

Richard III Richard III (2 October 145222 August 1485) was King of England and Lord of Ireland from 26 June 1483 until his death in 1485. He was the last king of the House of York and the last of the Plantagenet dynasty. His defeat and death at the Battl ...

. RICARDVS DEI GRACIA REX ANGLIE ET FRANCIE ET DOMINVS HIBERNIE ** Richard, by the grace of God, King of England and France and Lord of Ireland. * Henry VII. HENRICVS DEI GRACIA REX ANGLIE ET FRANCIE ET DOMINVS HIBERNIE ** Henry, by the grace of God, King of England and France and Lord of Ireland. * Henry VIII. HENRICVS OCTAV DEI GRATIA ANGLIE ET FRANCIE ET HIBERNIE REX FIDEI DEFE OR ET NTER ECCLESIA A LICANE ET HIBERNICE SVPREM MCA VT/small> ** Henry the Eighth, by the grace of God, of England and France and Ireland King, Defender of the Faith, and on Earth, of the English and Irish Church, Supreme Head. * Edward VI. ... EDWARDI SEXTI DEI GRATIA ANGLIE FRANCIE / ET HIBERNIE REX FIDEI DEFE OR ET IN TERRA ECCLESIE ANGLICANE ET HIBERNICE SVPREMVM CAPVT ** ... of Edward the Sixth, by the grace of God of England, France / and of Ireland King, Defender of the Faith, and on Earth, of the English and Irish Church, Supreme Head. *

Mary I Mary I (18 February 1516 – 17 November 1558), also known as Mary Tudor, and as "Bloody Mary" by her Protestant opponents, was Queen of England and Ireland from July 1553 and Queen of Spain from January 1556 until her death in 1558. Sh ...

. MARIA D IG ATIAANGLIE FRANCIE ET HIBERNIE REGINA EIVS NOMINIS PRIMA FIDEI DEFENSOR ** Mary, by the grace of God, of England, France and Ireland, Queen, first of that name, Defender of the Faith. * Elizabeth I. ELIZABETHA DEI GRACIA ANGLIE FRANCIE ET HIBERNIE REGINA FIDEI DEFENSOR ** Elizabeth, by the grace of God, of England, France and Ireland, Queen, Defender of the Faith.

Union of the Crowns

James VI and I James VI and I (James Charles Stuart; 19 June 1566 – 27 March 1625) was King of Scotland as James VI from 24 July 1567 and King of England and Ireland as James I from the union of the Scottish and English crowns on 24 March 1603 until h ...

. IACOBVS DEI GRACIA ANGLIÆ SCOTIÆ FRANCIÆ ET HIBERNIÆ REX FIDEI DEFENSOR ** James, by the grace of God, of England, Scotland, France and Ireland, King, Defender of the Faith. *

Charles I Charles I may refer to: Kings and emperors * Charlemagne (742–814), numbered Charles I in the lists of Holy Roman Emperors and French kings * Charles I of Anjou (1226–1285), also king of Albania, Jerusalem, Naples and Sicily * Charles I of ...

. CAROLVS DEI GRATIA ANGLIÆ SCOTIÆ FRANCIÆ ET HIBERNIÆ REX FIDEI DEFENSOR ** Charles, by the grace of God, of England, Scotland, France and Ireland, King, Defender of the Faith.

Commonwealth

Commonwealth A commonwealth is a traditional English term for a political community founded for the common good. Historically, it has been synonymous with "republic". The noun "commonwealth", meaning "public welfare, general good or advantage", dates from the ...

. THE GREAT SEAL OF ENGLAND / IN THE THIRD YEARE OF FREEDOME BY GODS BLESSING RESTORED * Oliver Cromwell. OLIVARIVS DEI GRA IAREIP BLICÆANGLIÆ SCOTIÆ ET HIBERNIÆ &C PROTECTOR ** Oliver, by the grace of God, of the Commonwealth of England, Scotland, and Ireland, etc., Protector. * Richard Cromwell. RICHARDVS DEI GRA IAREIP BLICÆANGLIÆ SCOTIÆ ET HIBERNIÆ &C PROTECTOR ** Richard, by the grace of God, of the Commonwealth of England, Scotland, and Ireland, etc., Protector.

(Restored)

* Charles II. CAROLVS II DEI GRA IAMAGNÆ BRITANNIÆ FRANCIÆ ET HIBERNIÆ REX FIDEI DEFENSOR ** Charles II, by the grace of God, of Great Britain, France and Ireland, King, Defender of the Faith. *

James II and VII James VII and II (14 October 1633 16 September 1701) was King of England and King of Ireland as James II, and King of Scotland as James VII from the death of his elder brother, Charles II, on 6 February 1685. He was deposed in the Glorious Re ...

. IACOBVS SECVNDVS DEI GRATIA MAGNÆ BRITANNIÆ FRANCIÆ ET HIBERNIÆ REX FIDEI DEFENSOR ** James the Second, by the grace of God, of Great Britain, France and Ireland, King, Defender of the Faith. *

William William is a male Male (symbol: ♂) is the sex of an organism that produces the gamete (sex cell) known as sperm, which fuses with the larger female gamete, or ovum, in the process of fertilization. A male organism cannot reproduce sex ...

and

. GVLIELMVS III ET MARIA II DEI GRA IAANG IÆFRA CIÆET HIB RNIÆREX ET REGINA FIDEI DEFENSATORES ** William III and Mary II, by the grace of God, of England, France and Ireland, King and Queen, Defenders of the Faith. * William III. GVLIELMVS III DEI GRATIA MAGNÆ BRITANNIÆ FRANCIÆ ET HIBERNIÆ REX FIDEI DEFENSOR ** William III, by the grace of God, of Great Britain, France and Ireland, King, Defender of the Faith. * Anne. ANNA DEI GRATIA MAGNÆ BRITANNIÆ FRANCIÆ ET HIBERNIÆ REGINA FID IDEFENSOR ** Anne, by the grace of God, of Great Britain, France and Ireland, Queen, Defender of the Faith.

Kingdom of Great Britain

* Anne. ANNA DEI GRATIA MAGNÆ BRITANNIÆ FRANCIÆ ET HIBERNIÆ REGINA FID IDEFENSOR / BRITANNIA ANNO REGNI ANNÆ REGINÆ SEXTO ** Anne, by the grace of God, of Great Britain, France and Ireland, Queen, Defender of the Faith / Britain in the sixth year of the reign of Queen Anne. *

George I George I or 1 may refer to: People * Patriarch George I of Alexandria (fl. 621–631) * George I of Constantinople (d. 686) * George I of Antioch (d. 790) * George I of Abkhazia (ruled 872/3–878/9) * George I of Georgia (d. 1027) * Yuri Dol ...

. GEORGIVS DEI GRATIA MAGNÆ BRITANNIÆ FRANCIÆ ET HIBERNIÆ REX FIDEI DEFENSOR / BRVNSWICEN ISET LVNENBVRGEN ISDVX SACRI ROMANI IMPERII ARCHITESAVRARIVS ET PRINCEPS ELECTOR **George, by the grace of God, of Great Britain, France and Ireland, King, Defender of the Faith / Of Brunswick and Lüneburg, Duke, of the Holy Roman Empire, Arch-treasurer and Prince-Elector. *

George II George II or 2 may refer to: People * George II of Antioch (seventh century AD) * George II of Armenia (late ninth century) * George II of Abkhazia (916–960) * Patriarch George II of Alexandria (1021–1051) * George II of Georgia (1072–1089) ...

. GEORGIVS II DEI GRATIA MAGNÆ BRITANNIÆ FRANCIÆ ET HIBERNIÆ REX FIDEI DEFENSOR / BRVNSWICE SISET LVNEBVRGEN ISDVX SACRI ROMANI IMPERII ARCHITHESAVRARIVS ET PRINCEPS ELECTOR **George II, by the grace of God, of Great Britain, France and Ireland, King, Defender of the Faith / Of Brunswick and Lüneburg, Duke, of the Holy Roman Empire, Arch-treasurer and Prince-Elector. *

George III George III (George William Frederick; 4 June 173829 January 1820) was King of Great Britain and of Ireland from 25 October 1760 until the union of the two kingdoms on 1 January 1801, after which he was King of the United Kingdom of Great Br ...

. GEORGIVS III DEI GRATIA MAGNÆ BRITANNIÆ FRANCIÆ ET HIBERNIÆ REX FIDEI DEFENSOR **George III, by the grace of God, of Great Britain, France, and Ireland, King, Defender of the Faith.

United Kingdom

. GEORGIUS TERTIUS DEI GRATIA BRITANNIARUM REX FIDEI DEFENSORImpression from the seal of George III, Caernarfon, 1816–1837
Gathering the Jewels **George the Third, by the grace of God, King of the Britains, Defender of the Faith. * George IV. GEORGIUS QUARTUS DEI GRATIA BRITANNIARUM REX FIDEI DEFENSOR **George the Fourth, by the grace of God, King of the Britains, Defender of the Faith. *

William IV William IV (William Henry; 21 August 1765 – 20 June 1837) was King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and King of Hanover from 26 June 1830 until his death in 1837. The third son of George III, William succeeded ...

. GULIELMUS QUARTUS DEI GRATIA BRITANNIARUM REX FIDEI DEFENSORGreat Seal of England of King William IV
British Museum, engraved by Benjamin Wyon **William the Fourth, by the grace of God, King of the Britains, Defender of the Faith. *

Victoria Victoria most commonly refers to: * Victoria (Australia), a state of the Commonwealth of Australia * Victoria, British Columbia, provincial capital of British Columbia, Canada * Victoria (mythology), Roman goddess of Victory * Victoria, Seyche ...

. VICTORIA DEI GRATIA BRITANNIARUM REGINA FIDEI DEFENSOR **Victoria, by the grace of God, Queen of the Britains, Defender of the Faith. *

Edward VII Edward VII (Albert Edward; 9 November 1841 – 6 May 1910) was King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and Emperor of India, from 22 January 1901 until his death in 1910. The second child and eldest son of Queen Victoria a ...

. EDWARDVS VII D꞉G꞉ BRITT꞉ ET TERRARUM TRANSMAR꞉ QVÆ IN DIT꞉ SVNT BRIT꞉ REX F꞉D꞉ IND꞉IMP꞉ (To be read: Edwardus Septimus Dei gratiâ Britanniarum et terrarum transmarinarum quae in Ditione sunt Britannicâ, Rex, Fidei Defensor, Indiae Imperator) **Edward VII, by the grace of God, of the Britains and of the lands across the sea which are in the British Dominion, King, Defender of the Faith, Emperor of India. *

. GEORGIVS V D G MAG BR HIB ET TERR TRANSMAR QVÆ IN DIT SVNT BRIT REX F D IND IMP (To be read: Georgius Quintus Dei gratiâ Magnae Britanniae, Hiberniae, et terrarum transmarinarum quae in Ditione sunt Britannicâ, Rex, Fidei Defensor, Indiae Imperator) **George the Fifth, by the Grace of God, of Great Britain, Ireland, and the Lands across the sea which are in the British Dominion, King, Defender of the Faith, Emperor of India. * George VI. GEORGIUS VI D G MAG BR HIB ET TERR TRANSMAR QUÆ IN DIT SUNT BRIT REX F D IND IMP (To be read: Georgius Sextus Dei gratiâ Magnae Britanniae, Hiberniae, et terrarum transmarinarum quae in Ditione sunt Britannicâ, Rex, Fidei Defensor, Indiae Imperator)From 1948 onwards, the inscription was changed so that 'FD IND IMP' became 'FIDEI DEF'. **George the Sixth, by the Grace of God, of Great Britain, Ireland, and the Lands across the sea which are in the British Dominion, King, Defender of the Faith, Emperor of India. * Elizabeth II. ELIZABETH II D G BRITT REGNORVMQVE SVORVM CETER REGINA CONSORTIONIS POPVLORVM PRINCEPS F D (To be read: Elizabeth Secunda Dei Gratia Britanniarum Regnorumque Suorum Ceterorum Regina Consortionis Populorum Princeps Fidei Defensor) **Elizabeth II, by the Grace of God, of the Britains and her other realms, Queen, Head of the Commonwealth of Nations, Defender of the Faith. *

Charles III Charles III (Charles Philip Arthur George; born 14 November 1948) is King of the United Kingdom and the 14 other Commonwealth realms. He was the longest-serving heir apparent and Prince of Wales and, at age 73, became the oldest person to a ...

. CAROLVS III D G BRITT REGNORVMQVE SVORVM CETER REX CONSORTIONIS POPVLORVM PRINCEPS F D (To be read: Carolus Tertius Dei Gratia Britanniarum Regnorumque Suorum Ceterorum Rex Consortionis Populorum Princeps Fidei Defensor) **Charles III, by the Grace of God, of the Britains and his other realms, King, Head of the Commonwealth of Nations, Defender of the Faith.

Notes

Bibliography

* * * * * * * * *

External links

{{NIE Poster, Great Seal
Great Seal
at British monarchy website
mold (matrix) used to make Great Seal of Scotland @ Queen Elizabeth II and Scotland webpage
1707 establishments in Great Britain 1801 establishments in the United Kingdom Realm, Greate Seal of the British monarchy English law Constitution of the United Kingdom