The Queen's Beasts are ten

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 ...

statues representing the genealogy of Queen Elizabeth II, depicted as the

Royal supporters of England The royal supporters of England are the heraldic supporter creatures appearing on each side of the royal arms of England. The royal supporters of the monarchs of England displayed a variety, or even a menagerie, of real and imaginary heraldic beas ...

. They stood in front of the temporary western annexe to

Westminster Abbey Westminster Abbey, formally titled the Collegiate Church of Saint Peter at Westminster, is an historic, mainly Gothic church in the City of Westminster, London, England, just to the west of the Palace of Westminster. It is one of the Unite ...

for the Queen's coronation in 1953. Each of The Queen's Beasts consists of a heraldic beast supporting a shield bearing a badge or arms of a family associated with the ancestry of Queen Elizabeth II. They were commissioned by the British Ministry of Works from the sculptor

James Woodford James Arthur Woodford (1893–1976) was an English sculptor. His works include sets of bronze doors for the headquarters of the Royal Institute of British Architects and Norwich City Hall; the Queen's Beasts, originally made for the Coronation i ...

, who was paid the sum of £2,750 for the work. They were uncoloured except for their shields at the coronation. They are now on display in the

Canadian Museum of History The Canadian Museum of History (french: Musée canadien de l’histoire) is a national museum on anthropology, Canadian history, cultural studies, and ethnology in Gatineau, Quebec, Canada. The purpose of the museum is to promote the heritage ...

Gatineau, Quebec Gatineau ( ; ) is a city in western Quebec, Canada. It is located on the northern bank of the Ottawa River, immediately across from Ottawa, Ontario. Gatineau is the largest city in the Outaouais administrative region and is part of Canada's ...

. The original models are the King's Beasts which survive at Hampton Court Palace near London, sculpted in stone for King Henry VIII (1509–1547) and his third wife

Jane Seymour Jane Seymour (c. 150824 October 1537) was Queen of England as the third wife of King Henry VIII of England from their marriage on 30 May 1536 until her death the next year. She became queen following the execution of Henry's second wife, Anne ...

. Copies survive at nearby

Kew Gardens Kew Gardens is a botanic garden in southwest London that houses the "largest and most diverse botanical and mycological collections in the world". Founded in 1840, from the exotic garden at Kew Park, its living collections include some of the ...

. In the 1920s a set of 76 similar heraldic beasts was replaced on the roof of

St George's Chapel, Windsor Castle St George's Chapel at Windsor Castle in England is a castle chapel built in the late-medieval Perpendicular Gothic style. It is both a Royal Peculiar (a church under the direct jurisdiction of the monarch) and the Chapel of the Order of the Gart ...

, having been taken down in 1682 due to dilapidation.

Origins

There are ten heraldic beasts of a very like sort at Hampton Court Palace near London. They were restored at the beginning of the twentieth century but were derived from originals made in 1536/7 for King Henry VIII and his third wife Jane Seymour (d.1537), and are known as the "King's Beasts". They are carved in stone and each sits erect, supporting a shield upon which there is a coat of arms or a heraldic badge. From the beasts themselves and the emblems which they carry on their shields, it is evident that they stood for King Henry and his third Queen, Jane Seymour. In the autumn of 1952, the Minister of Works, in preparation for the coronation some months ahead, called upon the Royal Academician and sculptor James Woodford, OBE, to create ten new beasts similar in form and character to the ten at Hampton Court but more particularly, appropriate to the Queen. Exact replicas of those at Hampton Court would have been unsuitable for the occasion, for some of them would have little connection with Elizabeth II's own family or ancestry, as although the Queen is descended (via female lines) from King Henry VII (the father of King Henry VIII), she is not descended from Jane Seymour whose only son King Edward VI died unmarried.

Characteristics

The beasts are about six feet (1.8 m) high and weigh about 700 pounds (320 kg) each. They are made from

plaster Plaster is a building material used for the protective or decorative coating of walls and ceilings and for moulding and casting decorative elements. In English, "plaster" usually means a material used for the interiors of buildings, while "re ...

, so cannot be left exposed permanently to the elements. Originally uncoloured except for their shields, they are now fully painted.

Display at the coronation

The Beasts were on display outside the western annexe of

, a glass-fronted structure in which to marshal the long processions before the service. The statues were placed along the front with the exception of the Lion of England which was placed in the alcove formed by the north wall of the annexe and the entrance used by the Queen to enter the Abbey on her arrival in the

Gold State Coach The Gold State Coach is an enclosed, eight-horse-drawn carriage used by the British Royal Family. Commissioned in 1760 by Francis Rawdon-Hastings, 1st Marquess of Hastings for King George III, it was built in the London workshops of Samuel Bu ...

. The statues were placed left to right in the following order when facing the annexe from the west: The Lion of England, the greyhound, the yale, the dragon, the horse, the lion of Mortimer, the unicorn, the griffin, the bull, and the falcon. This was not the same order as they relate to the royal pedigree, but were ordered in this way for balance and symmetry in display. The Scottish Unicorn, Horse of Hanover, Griffin and Falcon replace four of the Beasts at Hampton Court (Seymour Black Lion, Seymour colour-spotted Panther & Seymour Unicorn and either the so-called Tudor Dragon or the Royal Dragon). Molly Guion painted the Beasts in 1953.

Relocations

After the coronation they were removed to the Great Hall in Hampton Court Palace. In 1957 they were moved again to

St George's Hall, Windsor Windsor Castle is a royal residence at Windsor in the English county of Berkshire. It is strongly associated with the English and succeeding British royal family, and embodies almost a millennium of architectural history. The original cas ...

. The beasts were taken into storage in April 1958 while their future was considered. It was eventually decided to offer them to the Commonwealth governments; Canada, being the senior nation, was offered them first. In June 1959 the Canadian government accepted the beasts and they were shipped there in July. Originally the only coloured parts of the statues were their heraldic shields, but for the celebrations of the Centennial of Canadian Confederation in 1967, the statues were painted in their full heraldic colours. They are now in the care of the

in Gatineau.

Replicas

In 1958 Sir Henry Ross, Chairman of the

Distillers Company The Distillers Company Limited was a leading Scottish drinks and pharmaceutical company and, at one time, a constituent of the FTSE 100 Index. It was taken over by Guinness & Co. (now part of Diageo) in 1986 in a transaction which was later ...

Edinburgh Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian on the southern shore of t ...

, paid for Portland stone replicas of the statues to be made, which are on display outside the Palm House at

. The beasts also served as models for

topiary Topiary is the horticultural practice of training perennial plants by clipping the foliage and twigs of trees, shrubs and subshrubs to develop and maintain clearly defined shapes, whether geometric or fanciful. The term also refers to plants w ...

at Hall Place,

Bexley Bexley is an area of south-eastern Greater London, England and part of the London Borough of Bexley. It is sometimes known as Bexley Village or Old Bexley to differentiate the area from the wider borough. It is located east-southeast of Ch ...

. The original sculptures have been commemorated in the following forms:

bone china Bone china is a type of ceramic that is composed of bone ash, feldspathic material, and kaolin. It has been defined as "ware with a translucent body" containing a minimum of 30% of phosphate derived from animal bone and calculated calcium phospha ...

figurines, cups and saucers, glass tray sets, plaster models, reclaimed material reproductions, porcelain candlesticks, British postage stamps issued in 1998, silver teaspoons, and tea towels. In 2016 the Royal Mint launched a series of ten

Queen's Beasts The Queen's Beasts are ten heraldic statues representing the genealogy of Queen Elizabeth II, depicted as the Royal supporters of England. They stood in front of the temporary western annexe to Westminster Abbey for the Queen's coronation in ...

coins A coin is a small, flat (usually depending on the country or value), round piece of metal or plastic used primarily as a medium of exchange or legal tender. They are standardized in weight, and produced in large quantities at a mint in order t ...

, one for each beast.

Historical explanations

The Lion of England

The Lion of England is the crowned golden lion 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 b ...

, which has been one of the supporters of the Royal Arms since the reign of Edward IV (1461–1483). It supports a shield showing the Arms of the United Kingdom as they have been since

Queen Victoria Victoria (Alexandrina Victoria; 24 May 1819 – 22 January 1901) was Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until her death in 1901. Her reign of 63 years and 216 days was longer than that of any previo ...

's accession in 1837. In the first and last quarters of the shield are the arms of the House of Plantagenet (the "Lions of England", technically in heraldic language "Leopards of England"), taken from the arms of

King Richard I Richard I (8 September 1157 – 6 April 1199) was King of England from 1189 until his death in 1199. He also ruled as Duke of Normandy, Aquitaine and Gascony, Lord of Cyprus, and Count of Poitiers, Anjou, Maine, and Nantes, and was ...

(1157–1199), "The Lionheart". The lion and

tressure In heraldry, an orle is a subordinary consisting of a narrow band occupying the inward half of where a bordure would be, following the exact outline of the shield but within it, showing the field between the outer edge of the orle and the edge o ...

(armorial border) of Scotland appear in the second, and the Harp of Ireland is in the third.

The White Greyhound of Richmond

The White Greyhound of Richmond was a badge of John of Gaunt, 1st Duke of Lancaster, Earl of Richmond, third son of

King Edward III Edward III (13 November 1312 – 21 June 1377), also known as Edward of Windsor before his accession, was King of England and Lord of Ireland from January 1327 until his death in 1377. He is noted for his military success and for restoring ...

. It was also used by his son King Henry IV and especially by

King Henry VII Henry VII (28 January 1457 – 21 April 1509) was King of England and Lord of Ireland from his seizure of the crown on 22 August 1485 until his death in 1509. He was the first monarch of the House of Tudor. Henry's mother, Margaret Beaufo ...

. The

Tudor double rose The Tudor rose (sometimes called the Union rose) is the traditional floral heraldic emblem of England and takes its name and origins from the House of Tudor, which united the House of Lancaster and the House of York. The Tudor rose consists ...

can be seen on the shield, one rose within another surmounted by a crown. It symbolizes the union of the two cadet houses of

Plantagenet The House of Plantagenet () was a royal house which originated from the lands of Anjou in France. The family held the English throne from 1154 (with the accession of Henry II at the end of the Anarchy) to 1485, when Richard III died in ...

– the House of York and the House of Lancaster.

The Yale of Beaufort

The

Yale Yale University is a private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and among the most prestigious in the wor ...

was a mythical beast, supposedly white and covered with gold spots and able to swivel each of its horns independently. It descends to the Queen through

, who inherited it from his mother, Lady Margaret Beaufort. The shield shows a portcullis surmounted by a royal crown. The portcullis (uncrowned) was a Beaufort

badge A badge is a device or accessory, often containing the insignia of an organization, which is presented or displayed to indicate some feat of service, a special accomplishment, a symbol of authority granted by taking an oath (e.g., police and ...

, but was used both crowned and uncrowned by Henry VII.

The Red Dragon of Wales

The red dragon ( cy, Y Ddraig Goch) is an ancient Welsh symbol, and a badge used by

Owen Tudor Sir Owen Tudor (, 2 February 1461) was a Welsh courtier and the second husband of Queen Catherine of Valois (1401–1437), widow of King Henry V of England. He was the grandfather of Henry VII, founder of the Tudor dynasty. Background Owe ...

. His grandson, Henry VII, took it as a token of his supposed descent from

Cadwaladr Cadwaladr ap Cadwallon (also spelled Cadwalader or Cadwallader in English) was king of Gwynedd in Wales from around 655 to 682 AD. Two devastating plagues happened during his reign, one in 664 and the other in 682; he himself was a victim of t ...

, the last of the line of Maelgwn. The beast holds a shield bearing a lion in each quarter; this was the coat of arms of

Llywelyn ap Gruffudd Llywelyn ap Gruffudd (c. 1223 – 11 December 1282), sometimes written as Llywelyn ap Gruffydd, also known as Llywelyn the Last ( cy, Llywelyn Ein Llyw Olaf, lit=Llywelyn, Our Last Leader), was the native Prince of Wales ( la, Princeps Wall ...

, the last native Prince of

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 ...

The White Horse of Hanover

Arms_of_Great_Britain_in_Scotland_(1714-1801)

The White Horse of

Hanover Hanover (; german: Hannover ; nds, Hannober) is the capital and largest city of the German state of Lower Saxony. Its 535,932 (2021) inhabitants make it the 13th-largest city in Germany as well as the fourth-largest city in Northern Germany ...

was introduced into the Royal Arms in 1714 when the crown of Great Britain passed to the Elector George of Hanover. This grandson of Elizabeth Stuart, sister of King Charles I, became

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 Dolgor ...

, King of Great Britain and Ireland. The shield shows the leopards of England and the lion of Scotland in the first quarter, the fleur-de-lis of France in the second (brought into the

royal arms of England The royal arms of England are the arms first adopted in a fixed form at the start of the age of heraldry (circa 1200) as personal arms by the Plantagenet kings who ruled England from 1154. In the popular mind they have come to symbolise the ...

by King Edward II) and the Irish harp in the third quarter. The fourth quarter shows the arms of Hanover.

The White Lion of Mortimer

The White Lion of

Mortimer Mortimer () is an English surname, and occasionally a given name. Norman origins The surname Mortimer has a Norman origin, deriving from the village of Mortemer, Seine-Maritime, Normandy. A Norman castle existed at Mortemer from an early point; ...

descends to the Queen through Edward IV, from

Anne de Mortimer Anne de Mortimer, also known as Anne Mortimer (27 December 1388 – 22 September 1411), was a medieval English noblewoman who became an ancestor to the royal House of York, one of the parties in the fifteenth-century dynastic Wars of the Roses. ...

. The shield shows a white rose encircled by a golden sun, known heraldically as a 'white rose en soleil' which is really a combination of two distinct badges. Both of these appear on the Great Seals of Edward IV and Richard III, and were used by George VI when Duke of York. Unlike the Lion of England, this beast is uncrowned.

The Unicorn of Scotland

From the end of the 16th century, two

unicorn The unicorn is a legendary creature that has been described since antiquity as a beast with a single large, pointed, spiraling horn projecting from its forehead. In European literature and art, the unicorn has for the last thousand years o ...

s were adopted as the supporters of the Scottish Royal Arms. In 1603 the crown of England passed to James VI of Scotland, who then became

James I James I may refer to: People *James I of Aragon (1208–1276) *James I of Sicily or James II of Aragon (1267–1327) *James I, Count of La Marche (1319–1362), Count of Ponthieu *James I, Count of Urgell (1321–1347) *James I of Cyprus (1334–13 ...

of England. He took as supporters of his royal arms a crowned lion of England and one of his Scottish unicorns. The unicorn holds a shield showing the royal arms of Scotland, a lion

rampant In heraldry, the term attitude describes the ''position'' in which a figure (animal or human) is emblazoned as a charge, a supporter, or as a crest. The attitude of an heraldic figure always precedes any reference to the tincture of the figure ...

within a ''double tressure flory-counter-flory''.

The Griffin of Edward III

The griffin of Edward III Queen's Beast is an ancient mythical beast. It was considered a beneficent creature, signifying courage and strength combined with guardianship, vigilance, swiftness and keen vision. It was closely associated with Edward III who engraved it on his private seal. The shield shows the Round Tower of

Windsor Castle Windsor Castle is a royal residence at Windsor in the English county of Berkshire. It is strongly associated with the English and succeeding British royal family, and embodies almost a millennium of architectural history. The original c ...

(where Edward III was born) with the

Royal Standard In heraldry and vexillology, a heraldic flag is a flag containing coats of arms, heraldic badges, or other devices used for personal identification. Heraldic flags include banners, standards, pennons and their variants, gonfalons, guidons, and ...

flying from the

turret Turret may refer to: * Turret (architecture), a small tower that projects above the wall of a building * Gun turret, a mechanism of a projectile-firing weapon * Objective turret, an indexable holder of multiple lenses in an optical microscope * Mi ...

, enclosed by two branches of oak surmounted by the royal crown.

The Black Bull of Clarence

The Black Bull of

Clarence Clarence may refer to: Places Australia * Clarence County, New South Wales, a Cadastral division * Clarence, New South Wales, a place near Lithgow * Clarence River (New South Wales) * Clarence Strait (Northern Territory) * City of Clarence, a l ...

descended to the Queen through Edward IV. The shield shows the Royal Arms as they were borne by Edward IV and his brother Richard III as well as all the sovereigns of the Houses of Lancaster and Tudor.

The Falcon of the Plantagenets

The

falcon Falcons () are birds of prey in the genus ''Falco'', which includes about 40 species. Falcons are widely distributed on all continents of the world except Antarctica, though closely related raptors did occur there in the Eocene. Adult falcons ...

was first used by Edward III of the House of Plantagenet as his

. It descended to Edward IV, who took it as his personal badge, the falcon standing within an open fetterlock. Originally closed, the slightly open fetterlock is supposed to refer to the struggle Edward IV had to obtain the throne — "he forced the lock and won the throne." The Queen's Beasts - The Lion of England.jpg, Lion of England The Queen's Beasts - The White Greyhound of Richmond.jpg, White Greyhound of Richmond The Queen's Beasts - The Yale of Beaufort.jpg, Yale of Beaufort The Queen's Beasts - The Red Dragon of Wales.jpg, Red Dragon of Wales The Queen's Beasts - The White Horse of Hanover.jpg, White Horse of Hanover The Queen's Beasts - The White Lion of Mortimer.jpg, White Lion of Mortimer The Queen's Beasts - The Unicorn of Scotland.jpg, Unicorn of Scotland The Queen's Beasts - The Griffin of Edward III.jpg, Griffin of Edward III The Queen's Beasts - The Black Bull of Clarence.jpg, Black Bull of Clarence The Queen's Beasts - The Falcon of the Plantagenets.jpg, Falcon of the Plantagenets

Notes

References

Bibliography

External links

Canadian Museum of History: A Queen and Her Country
(includes colour images of the Queen's Beasts)
Queen's Beasts Coins on Royal Mint Bullion

Photo of The Queen's Beasts in front of the annexe

Queen's Beasts And Robes (1953)

Abbey Coronation Annexe Newsreel (1952)

The Queen's Beasts Silver Coins by Royal Mint

The Queen's Beasts Gold Coins by Royal Mint

Picture of Molly Guion painting the Queen's Beasts in 1953
{{DEFAULTSORT:Queen's Beasts, The Buildings and structures in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames Wedding of Princess Elizabeth and Philip Mountbatten Lions in heraldry Animal sculptures in the United Kingdom Outdoor sculptures in London Sculptures of birds Sculptures of bovines Sculptures of dogs Sculptures of lions Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew Heraldic beasts 1953 sculptures