King of Arms is the senior rank of an officer of arms. In many

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 branc ...

traditions, only a king of arms has the authority to grant armorial bearings and sometimes certify genealogies and noble titles. In other traditions, the power has been delegated to other officers of similar rank.

Heraldic duties

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe ...

, the authority to grant a

coat of arms A coat of arms is a heraldic visual design on an escutcheon (i.e., shield), surcoat, or tabard (the latter two being outer garments). The coat of arms on an escutcheon forms the central element of the full heraldic achievement, which in its ...

is subject to the formal approval of the Earl Marshal in the form of a warrant. In jurisdictions such as the

Republic of Ireland Ireland ( ga, Éire ), also known as the Republic of Ireland (), is a country in north-western Europe consisting of 26 of the 32 counties of the island of Ireland. The capital and largest city is Dublin, on the eastern side of the island. ...

the authority to grant armorial bearings has been delegated to a chief herald that serves the same purpose as the traditional king of arms.

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by to ...

also has a chief herald, though this officer grants arms on the authority of the

Governor General Governor-general (plural ''governors-general''), or governor general (plural ''governors general''), is the title of an office-holder. In the context of governors-general and former British colonies, governors-general are appointed as viceroy ...

as the Queen's representative through the Herald Chancellor's direct remit. Scotland's only king of arms, the Lord Lyon, exercises the royal prerogative by direct delegation from the Crown and like the Chief Herald of Ireland and the old Ulster King of Arms needs no warrant from any other office bearer. In the

Kingdom of Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = '' Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , ...

, the power to certify

coats of arms A coat of arms is a heraldic visual design on an escutcheon (i.e., shield), surcoat, or tabard (the latter two being outer garments). The coat of arms on an escutcheon forms the central element of the full heraldic achievement, which in i ...

has been given to the '' Cronistas de Armas'' (Chroniclers of Arms). The

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ...

and Scottish kings of arms are the only officers of arms to have a distinctive crown of office, used for ceremonial purposes such as at

coronation A coronation is the act of placement or bestowal of a crown upon a monarch's head. The term also generally refers not only to the physical crowning but to the whole ceremony wherein the act of crowning occurs, along with the presentation of o ...

s (as opposed to peers, who instead wear a coronet). At the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II, the kings of arms used a crown trimmed with sixteen acanthus leaves alternating in height, and inscribed with the words ''Miserere mei Deus secundum magnam misericordiam tuam'' (Have mercy upon me, O God, according to Thy great mercy; Psalm 51). When this crown is shown in pictorial representations, nine leaves and the first three words are shown. Recently, a new crown has been made for the Lord Lyon, modelled on the Scottish Royal crown among the Honours of Scotland. This crown has removable arches (like one of the late Queen Mother's crowns) which will be removed at coronations to avoid any hint of lèse majesté.

Kings of arms and heraldic authorities of the United Kingdom

Kings of arms of
England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe ...
,
Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the Bristol Channel to the south. It had a population in ...
and
Northern Ireland Northern Ireland ( ga, Tuaisceart Éireann ; sco, label=Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots, Norlin Airlann) is a part of the United Kingdom, situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, that is #Descriptions, variously described as ...

* Garter Principal King of Arms * Clarenceux King of Arms (England and Wales south of the Trent) * Norroy and Ulster King of Arms (England north of the Trent and Northern Ireland)

Scottish King of Arms

Lord Lyon King of Arms The Right Honourable the Lord Lyon King of Arms, the head of Lyon Court, is the most junior of the Great Officers of State in Scotland and is the Scottish official with responsibility for regulating heraldry in that country, issuing new grants ...

Orders of chivalry

Garter King of Arms is the herald of the Order of the Garter as is in Scotland Lord Lyon King of Arms the herald of the Order of the Thistle. The Norroy and Ulster King of Arms is the herald of the (now dormant) Order of St Patrick. Other British orders of chivalry have their own kings of arms: *

Bath King of Arms The King of Arms of the Order of the Bath, or Bath King of Arms, is the herald of the Order of the Bath. He is not a member of the Heralds College, but takes precedence next after the Garter King of Arms. He wears a crown A crown is a t ...

, for the

Order of the Bath The Most Honourable Order of the Bath is a British order of chivalry founded by George I on 18 May 1725. The name derives from the elaborate medieval ceremony for appointing a knight, which involved bathing (as a symbol of purification) a ...

King of Arms of the Order of St Michael and St George The King of Arms of the Order of St Michael and St George is the herald of the Order of St Michael and St George. Kings of Arms References * Galloway, Peter ''The Order of St Michael and St George'' (London, Third Millennium Publishing, 2000) pp ...

King of Arms of the Order of the British Empire The King of Arms of the Order of the British Empire is the herald of the Order of the British Empire, established in 1917 and effective since 1918. Kings of Arms Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire ...

Chief or state heralds of Ireland and the Commonwealth

* The Chief Herald of Canada * The Chief Herald of Ireland *

The National Herald ''The National Herald'' is an English-language weekly newspaper, based in New York City, focusing on the Greek-American community. It was founded in 1997 and added a website in 2004. Its headquarters are in the Long Island City neighborhood of t ...

(formerly State Herald) of South Africa * New Zealand Herald of Arms Extraordinary The Herald of Arms of New Zealand

State Herald of Sweden

*The State Herald (''Statsheraldiker'') of Sweden is the head of a branch of the National Archives of Sweden

Cronistas de Armas of Spain

* Cronistas Reyes de Armas

Former kings of arms of Portugal

* Rei de Armas Portugal or Portugal Rei de Armas (''Portugal King of Arms'') *

Rei de Armas Algarve ''Portugal Rei de Armas'' or ''Rei de Armas Portugal'' (Portuguese for "Portugal King of Arms") was the title of the main officer of arms of the Kingdom of Portugal. The office was established by King John I of Portugal, with its first holder be ...

(''Algarve King of Arms'') * Rei de Armas Índia (''India King of Arms'')

King of Arms of the Royal House of Bourbon Two Sicilies

King of Arms Royal House of Bourbon Two Sicilies King is the title given to a male monarch in a variety of contexts. The female equivalent is queen, which title is also given to the consort of a king. *In the context of prehistory, antiquity and contemporary indigenous peoples, the ti ...

(

Fernando Muñoz Altea Fernando Muñoz Altea (22 November 1925 - 2 March 2018) was the King of Arms of the Royal House of Bourbon-Two Sicilies. He was a Spanish/Mexican historian, specialised in the study of the aristocratic European colonist, colonial families of the Am ...

, first appointed by the

Prince Ranieri, Duke of Castro , title = Duke of Castro , image = Raniero.jpg , image_size = , caption = Portrayed with a cavalry uniform of the Spanish Army and the Order of Alcántara, c. 1914 , succession = Head of the House of Bo ...

)

References

External links

The Court of the Lord LyonThe College of Arms
*

* Genealogy & Heraldry Bill, 200

- new legislation on heraldry before the Irish Senate
King of Arms Royal House of Bourbon Two Sicilies (Appointed by the Duke of Castro)
{{Heraldry footer Officers of arms Government occupations Positions of authority