The Heraldry Council is part of the

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the Atlantic Ocean, South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the ...

heraldic 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 bran ...

authority, established in

Pretoria Pretoria () is South Africa's administrative capital, serving as the seat of the executive branch of government, and as the host to all foreign embassies to South Africa. Pretoria straddles the Apies River and extends eastward into the foot ...

in June 1963, in terms of the Heraldry Act. It is the governing and policy-making body for the

Bureau of Heraldry Bureau ( ) may refer to: Agencies and organizations *Government agency *Public administration * News bureau, an office for gathering or distributing news, generally for a given geographical location * Bureau (European Parliament), the administrat ...

and consists of the National Herald ''ex officio'', and other members appointed by the Minister of Arts and Culture.

History

The Council's functions were originally defined as: advising the minister and provincial administrators on heraldic matters, approving applications for registration of arms, considering objections to applications, and hearing appeals against rejected applications.Heraldry Act 1962 In 1969, approval of applications was transferred to the Bureau, and the Council's advisory function was changed to one of determining the policy for approving arms.Heraldry Amendment Act 1969 Policies adopted over the years include: * the format of family association arms (1966), * the orientation of helmets to face the same direction as the crests (1982), * the discontinuation of the use of titles on registration certificates (1988), and * a moratorium on the registration of crowns and supporters and other additaments relating to foreign titles or ranks (2002). In the 1980s, the Council did the groundwork for the creation of the national orders,Department of National Education, ''Annual Report'' (1981, 1984, 1985) and recommended that the dark blue stripe of the then national flag be changed back to its original lighter shade. In 1999, it was consulted on the question of new national arms, but its proposals were turned down in 2000 in favour of a design from a commercial design studio.

Functions and composition

The Heraldry Committee, made up of selected Council members and, since 1984, the National Herald ''ex officio'', was originally set up to deal with matters referred to it from time to time. Since 1984, it has also been responsible for considering objections to applications for registration. The Council is usually composed of heraldists, historians, state archivists, artists and, since the mid-1990s, African language specialists and writers.

Chairpersons and Members of the Council

1963-1968 * Hon Victor Hiemstra (Chairman); Prof Barrie Bierman; Dr Allen Kieser;

Ivan Mitford-Barberton Ivan Mitford-Barberton (1896–1976) was a sculptor, writer and authority on heraldry. Early life and education Mitford-Barberton was born in Somerset East, in Cape Colony, in 1896. He was a descendant of several 1820 Settler families. His g ...

; Prof Jacobus Oberholster; Dr

Cornelis Pama Cornelis Pama (1916 - 1994) was a Dutch bookseller, publisher, heraldist and genealogist, who spent the second half of his life in South Africa. He was born in Rotterdam. During World War II, when the Netherlands were under German occupation, he ...

; Dr Willem Punt. 1968-1975 * Hon Victor Hiemstra (Chairman); Prof Barrie Bierman; Dr Allen Kieser;

(1968–72); Prof Jacobus Oberholster; Dr

; Dr Willem Punt; Maj Frank Waller (1972–75). 1975-1984 * Hon Victor Hiemstra (Chairman); Prof Barrie Bierman; Lt Gen Heinrich du Toit; Dr

; Johann Preller; Prof Hugh Smith; Dr Albert Werth (1975–76); Dr Nico Roos (1976–84). 1984-1989 * Lt Gen Heinrich du Toit (Chairman); Ernst de Jong; Hon Christoffel Eloff (1984–88); Prof Ben Hendrickx; Robert Laing; Dr

; Dr Johannes Snyman; Hon Kees van Dijkhorst (1988–89). 1989-1995 * Lt Gen Heinrich du Toit (Chairman); Ernst de Jong; Prof Kobus Ferreira; Prof Deon Fourie; Robert Laing; Dr Johannes Snyman (1989–93); Hon Kees van Dijkhorst; Prof Themba Msimang (1993–95); Frank Nel (1993–95). 1995-1997 * Prof Deon Fourie (Chairman); Prof Solomon Chaphole; Ernst de Jong; Prof Kobus Ferreira; Robert Laing; Prof Themba Msimang; Hon Kees van Dijkhorst. 1998-2003 * Prof Themba Msimang (Chairman); Mrs Priscilla Broberg; Prof

Martin Legassick Martin Legassick (1940–2016) was a South African historian and Marxist activist. He died on 1 March 2016 after a battle with cancer. He was one of the central figures in the "revisionist" school of South African historiography that, drawing ...

; Prof Bernard Magubane; Mrs Joan Merrington; Prof

Mbulelo Mzamane Mbulelo Vizikhungo Mzamane (28 July 1948 – 16 February 2014) was a South African author, poet, and academic. He was described by the late President Nelson Mandela as a "visionary leader and one of South Africa’s greatest intellectuals". ...

; Miss Marie Olivier (1998-2000). 2003-2008 * Prof Themba Msimang (Chairperson); Mrs Priscilla Broberg; Prof Deon Fourie; Prof

; Prof Bernard Magubane; Dr Marimuthy Govender; Mrs Christina Jikelo; P.M. Malaka; Wonga Tabata. 2008-2011 * No Council 2011-2015 * Prof Thenjiwe Miyewa (Chairperson); Prof Deon Fourie; Rev Richard Girdwood; Dr Marimuthy Govender; Mrs Christina Jikelo; Dr Peter Martinez; Ms C.T. Mtshali; Dr Joseph Ndaba; Collen Weapond.

References

* Heraldry Act 1962, as amended * Annual Reports of the Department of National Education * Annual Reports of the National Archives and Bureau of Heraldry

External links

South African Heraldry Website
{{Webarchive, url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181205003216/http://hwmw.net46.net/ , date=5 December 2018 Heraldic authorities South African heraldry Government agencies established in 1963

History

Functions and composition

Chairpersons and Members of the Council

See also

References

External links