The Heraldry Society of Scotland

Objectives and activities

The Heraldry Society of Scotland ~ «The Heraldry Society of Scotland», was founded in 1977. Its objectives are to promote the study of heraldry and to encourage its correct use both in Scotland and abroad.

The HSS (acronym for The Heraldry Society of Scotland) encourages those who have a coat of arms and those who intend to adopt their own arms to become members of the society and also encourages to join all those interested in Scottish heraldry, therefore the HSS admits and has members from all over the world.

The HSS holds active and regular meetings throughout the year and organizes conferences and visits to places of historical and heraldic interest, both within Scotland and in other countries.

Online content

They also maintain and update a website, whose domain is Heraldry-Scotland.co.uk, with interesting and abundant reading material, among which their list of online armorials with blazons in English stands out, among which the following armorials can be highlighted:

• Sir David Lindsay's Armorial from 1542, with 504 coats of arms and identification letters «DL», from «DL001» to «DL504». Includes imaginary coats of arms, for example, that of «DL011» of Hector of Troy which it imagines as «Sable, two lions combatant Or», which [Avilés, J.; 1725a; page 7] blazons with a Gules field, this difference would allow tracing the sources of each author, which would be interesting as it is, moreover, imaginary.
• Hamilton Armorial, from 1560, with 82 coats of arms they say, although only 79 appear, and identification letters «HM», from «HM001» to «HM079», where for example, «HM001» is the arms of Scotland «Or, a lion rampant Gules armed and langued Azure within a double tressure flory counter-flory Gules» and «HM026» is the insignia of Scotland «Or, a lion rampant within a double tressure flory counter-flory Gules».
• Queen Mary's Roll from 1562, with 204 coats of arms and identification letters «QM». from «QM001» to «QM204».
• Forman's Armorial from 1563, with 258 coats of arms they say, although only 247 appear, and identification letters «FAL», that is, from «FAL001», the arms of Scotland, to «FAL247».
• Slains Armorial from 1565, with 712 coats of arms they say, although only 638 appear, and identification letters «SL», that is, from «SL001» to «SL638».
• Armorial of Sir David Lindsay of the Mount, Secundus from 1599, with 285 coats of arms and identification letters «DLS».
• Seton Armorial from 1599, with 422 coats of arms and identification letters «SN», from «SN001» to «SN422».
• Dunvegan Armorial estimated to be around 1600, with 282 coats of arms they say, although only 52 appear, and identification letters «DV», only 2 digits and without leading zeros, from «DV1» to «DV52».
• Kings and Nobilities Arms, 2^nd volume from 1638, with 111 coats of arms and identification letters «KNB», from «KNB001», the arms of the King of Scotland, to «KNB111».
• Nisbet's A System of Heraldry published in 1722, with 2,608 coats of arms, according to my count, and which I reference as [Nisbet, A.; 1722], 1^st edition and [Nisbet, A.; 1816], for a later one that I have available. On the same page appears the blazon of Alexander Nisbet himself, in entry 1,926 according to my calculations, as «Argent, three boars' heads erased Sable within a bordure invected Gules», that is, «Argent: three boars' heads erased Sable; a bordure invected Gules» where «invected» ~ «acanalado» as opposed to «engrailed» ~ «angrelado».

I also find very interesting, for example, their pages on the basic principles of heraldic design, written by Doctor Patrick Barden.

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Categories: Institution, Interpreted, Socioeconomic, Illuminated, Outlined in sable, Iridescent (nacar), Freehand, Semi-circular, Coat of arms, Without divisions, Azure, Saltire, Argent, Thistle, Couped (tree), In chief, In base, Inescutcheon and Gules.

Azure, a saltire between, in chief and in base, two thistle couped Argent; an inescutcheon Gules.

Escudo de azur, un sotuer acompanado, en jefe y en punta, de dos cardos de nuridos todo de plata; un escusón de gules.

Coat of arms interpreted with the following characteristics: the shape of its shield is semicircular; the field is a flat tint of Azure; the two thistles and the saltire are illuminated of the metal Argent and outlined in Sable; the inescutcheon is illuminated of the colour Gules and, also, outlined in Sable; and the whole with a mother-of-pearl finish with a raised stroke.

Inescutcheon ~ escusón

The English term «inescutcheon» corresponds to our Spanish term «escusón». It is called an inescutcheon when there is only one and it is placed in the abyss of the shield.

Escutcheon ~ escudete

The English term «escutcheon» corresponds to our Spanish term «escudete». It is used when there are several, for example, 3. Although in this case there is only one, this is the term used in the official blazon of this coat of arms, as will be seen below.

Thistle ~ cardo

This coat of arms of The Heraldry Society of Scotland was registered and granted ~ «granted» on 7^th September 1977, by «The Court of the Lord Lyon», which is the official college of arms for Scotland, lyon-court.com, with the following blazon: «Azure, on a saltire argent between two thistles slipped argent, one in chief and one in base, an escutcheon gules» and it contains 2 thistles, which is the national flower of Scotland, and a saltire Argent on an Azure field, like the flag of Scotland.

Slipped ~ nurido

The usual way of representing the thistle ~ «thistle» in Castile is with its roots visible, it is called «arrancado». In this case the stem is cut and its roots are not visible, it is called «slipped» ~ «nurido».

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Blazon keywords: Without divisions, Azure, Saltire, Argent, Thistle, Couped (tree), In chief, In base, Inescutcheon and Gules.

Style keywords: Illuminated, Outlined in sable, Iridescent (nacar), Freehand and Semi-circular.

Classification: Interpreted, Socioeconomic and Coat of arms.

Bearer: The Heraldry Society of Scotland.

Lionheart ~ Corazón de León ~ Cœur de Lion.

Escudo de gules, dos leones de oro, afrontados, armados y lampasados de azur.

Coat of arms interpreted as follows: the mouth drawn as a semicircular (round) base; the field enamelled in a flat tint of Gules; the two lions outlined in the colour of the field and illuminated in Or and Azure; and the whole finished with a watercolour effect.

He was born in 1157, being the third of eight children of Henry II of England and Eleanor of Aquitaine, elder brother of Eleanor Plantagenet. He was king of England between 1189 and 1199, although he spent much of his life far from it; in fact, during his ten-year reign, he was on English soil only twice, which together did not amount even to six months. He died in 1199 in Normandy.

In 1198, during the Battle of Gisors, he supposedly used, as watchword or as motto, the expression «Dieu et mon Droit ~ God and my right». This phrase refers to his refusal to bow before Emperor Henry VI, since by his rank Richard acknowledged only God as superior. Later, Henry V of England adopted it as his motto, and since then it has been used by the British monarchy.

According to [Humphery-Smith, C.; 1983], Richard the Lionheart was the first English king who can be proved to have borne arms, although some of his predecessors may also have had them. He bases his statement on the existence of two seals of Richard I: on one, Richard bears a shield with a rampant lion, and on the other there already appear the three lions that are the forerunners of the arms of England. The use of this second seal does not imply that he stopped using the first.

In contrast, there are also British authors who maintain that his shield actually bore two affronted lions; this hypothesis is based on the lion on his first seal facing to sinister. That latter hypothesis is the one interpreted in this shield, remaining a purely artistic interpretation and without my entering into a complex and open discussion about how, when, and why the three leopards, «leones pasantes ~ lions passant» for the English, appeared —a discussion in which there are various alternatives— ranging from the combination of his hereditary arms to the wish to have more lions than his younger brother, who would later be King John I of England, to possible influences from other European realms.

This version of Richard I’s shield is similar to the imaginary shield of Hector of Troy, Gules with two lions Or affronté, which is a term used when «two things are placed facing each other, like two Lions, two Dogs, or other animals that look at one another» [Avilés, J.; 1725a; page 32].

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Blazon keywords: Without divisions, Gules, Lion, Or, Combatant, Armed, Langued and Azure.

Style keywords: Semi-circular, Illuminated, Outlined in sable and Freehand.

Classification: Interpreted, Personal, Coat of arms, House of Plantagenet and Kingdom of England.

Bearer: Richard I of England.

John Lackland ~ Juan sin Tierra ~ Sans-Terre.

Gules, three lions, passant, guardant, in pale Or, armed and langued Azure.

Escudo de gules, tres leopardos en palo de oro, armados y lampasados de azur.

Existing arms interpreted as follows: the mouth of the coat of arms is semicircular (round); the field has been enamelled in a flat tint of Gules; the three leopards are outlined in Sable and illuminated in Or and Azure; and the whole is executed with a raised-stroke effect.

Regarding this version of the shield of John I, [Humphery-Smith, C.; 1983] writes that «Richard's younger brother John... bore two lions because he was a junior member of the Plantagenet line», thus showing his belonging to a second level of the ruling family, although, after his brother Richard I of England, he not only ended up being king but it was also his line of succession that continued to reign in England.

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Blazon keywords: Without divisions, Gules, Or, Azure, Three, Leopard, Armed, Langued and In pale.

Style keywords: Semi-circular, Illuminated, Outlined in sable and Freehand.

Classification: Interpreted, Personal, Coat of arms, House of Plantagenet and Kingdom of England.

Bearer: John I of England.

King of England and Lord of Ireland from 1199 to 1216.

Gules, three lions, passant, guardant, in pale Or, armed and langued Azure.

Escudo de gules, tres leopardos en palo de oro, armados y lampasados de azur.

Arms of King John interpreted with: a rounded (semicircular) base; the field enamelled with a flat tint of Gules; the leopards illuminated in Or and Azure, outlined in Sable, all three of the same size; and the whole finished with a crystalline effect.

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Blazon keywords: Without divisions, Gules, Or, Azure, Three, Leopard, Armed, Langued and In pale.

Style keywords: Rounded, Illuminated, Outlined in sable and Crystalline.

Classification: Interpreted, Personal, Coat of arms, House of Plantagenet and Kingdom of England.

Bearer: John I of England.

King of England, Lord of Ireland and Duke of Aquitaine from the year 1216 to the year 1272

Gules, three lions, passant, guardant, in pale Or, armed and langued Azure.

Escudo de gules, tres leopardos en palo de oro, armados y lampasados de azur.

Coat of arms interpreted as follows: the mouth of the shield is semicircular (round); its field has been enamelled in a flat tint of Gules; its leopards are illuminated in Or and Azure and outlined in Sable; and the whole has a finish of aged parchment.

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Blazon keywords: Without divisions, Gules, Or, Azure, Three, Leopard, Armed, Langued and In pale.

Style keywords: Semi-circular, Illuminated, Outlined in sable and Old parchment.

Classification: Interpreted, Personal, Coat of arms, House of Plantagenet and Kingdom of England.

Bearer: Henry III of England.

The one with the Cross on his back ~ Crouchback (1245–1296)

Arms of England; overall, a label Azure of three points, each charged with three fleurs-de-lis Or in pale.

Arms interpreted as follows: the mouth of the shield is semicircular (round); the field enamelled in a flat tint of Gules; the label and figures illuminated in Or and Azure and outlined in Sable; and the whole finished with a watercolour effect.

He was the second son of King Henry III of England, and took part in the Ninth Crusade, hence the epithet «Cross on the back».

In 1253 he was appointed Earl of Chester, holding dominion, among others, over the county of Cheshire, but the following year Pope Innocent IV granted him the crown of Sicily, so he ceded his earldom to his elder brother Edward I of England, however, he never came to occupy the throne of Sicily.

The label is an honourable ordinary and also «a kind of mark of cadency, and the most noble of all those used to differentiate the Arms of the younger sons of a House» [Avilés, J.; 1725a; page 248] and it can likewise be used by the eldest son while his father's arms are still in use, ceasing to bear the label when he inherits his father’s coat. When both the eldest and the second son bear a label, the latter’s label then has more points or is charged with figures to distinguish it.

The label is constructed with «a fillet, which is one-ninth of the width of the chief, with three pendants in the form of carpentry wedges or ill-shaped triangles, joined to it without any line of separation, falling twice as far as the fillet is wide, two placed at the ends and one in the middle, its usual position being in the centre of the chief’s length, without reaching the edges of the shield» [Avilés, J.; 1725a; page 248].

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Blazon keywords: Without divisions, Gules, Or, Azure, Three, Leopard, Armed, Langued, In pale, Surmounted, Overall (deprecated), Label, Suspended, Charged and Fleur de lis.

Style keywords: Semi-circular, Illuminated, Outlined in sable and Watercolor.

Classification: Interpreted, Personal, Coat of arms, House of Plantagenet and Kingdom of England.

Bearer: Edmund Plantagenet.

Apodado el Zanquilargo ~ Longshanks.

Gules, three lions, passant, guardant, in pale Or, armed and langued Azure.

Escudo de gules, tres leopardos en palo de oro, armados y lampasados de azur.

Escudo de armas que he interpretado con: la boca de medio punto; el campo esmaltado de tinta plana de color gules; los 3 leopardos iluminados de metal oro, color azur y delineados de sable y el que está en punta es algo menor para adaptarse a la forma del escudo; y el conjunto tiene un acabado rugoso.

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Blazon keywords: Without divisions, Gules, Or, Azure, Three, Leopard, Armed, Langued and In pale.

Style keywords: Semi-circular, Illuminated, Outlined in sable and Rough.

Classification: Interpreted, Personal, Coat of arms, House of Plantagenet and Kingdom of England.

Bearer: Edward I of England.

Continue with: Edward Longshanks.