The Gentleman Usher of the Scarlet Rod is the

Gentleman Usher Gentleman Usher is a title for some officers of the Royal Household of the United Kingdom. See List of Gentlemen Ushers for a list of office-holders. Gentlemen Ushers as servants Historical Gentlemen Ushers were originally a class of servants fou ...

to the

Most Honourable 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) as on ...

, established 14 January 1726. The Brunswick Herald, an

officer of arms An officer of arms is a person appointed by a sovereign or state with authority to perform one or more of the following functions: * to control and initiate armorial matters; * to arrange and participate in ceremonies of state; * to conserve a ...

of 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 ...

, was annexed with the position at the time it was established. The office lapsed in 1857 when the Order of the Bath was remodelled. The Brunswick Herald was not part of the

College of Arms The College of Arms, or Heralds' College, is a royal corporation consisting of professional officers of arms, with jurisdiction over England, Wales, Northern Ireland and some Commonwealth realms. The heralds are appointed by the British Sover ...

, although the final four officer holders were officers in ordinary of the college. The

heraldic badge A heraldic badge, emblem, impresa, device, or personal device worn as a badge indicates allegiance to, or the property of, an individual, family or corporate body. Medieval forms are usually called a livery badge, and also a cognizance. They are ...

of the enamelled with the arms of the Braunschweig (Brunswick) family, ''Gules, two lions passant guardant or''.

Office Holders from 1725

*1725 – ?: Edmund Sawyer *bef. 1763 – aft. 1789: Henry Hill *bef. 1806 – 2 July 1814: Sir Isaac Heard *2 July 1814 – 1841:

George Frederick Beltz George Frederick Beltz, KH (9 August 1774 – 23 October 1841) was an English genealogist, appointed Lancaster Herald in 1822. Life Beltz was the second of seven children of George Nicholas Beltz of St George's, Bloomsbury, a coal merchant, and E ...

*2 December 1841 – 1857?:

Albert William Woods Sir Albert William Woods (16 April 18167 January 1904) was an English officer of arms, who served as Garter Principal King of Arms from 1869 to 1904. The Woods family has a strong tradition of service at the College of Arms. Albert Woods was t ...

*1857? – 18 May 1863: Hon. Frederick Arthur Henry Chichester *1863–1911?: Charles George Barrington *''vacant''? *7 March 1913 – 30 March 1928: Colonel Sir Charles Wyndham Murray *30 March 1928 – 15 November 1932: Admiral Richard Grenville Arthur Wellington Stapleton-Cotton *15 November 1932 – 14 May 1948: Air Vice Marshal Sir Charles Alexander Holcombe Longcroft *14 May 1948 – 12 March 1954: Major General Douglas Neil Wimberley *12 March 1954 – 17 July 1964: Rear Admiral

Robert St Vincent Sherbrooke Rear Admiral Robert St Vincent Sherbrooke, (8 January 1901 – 13 June 1972) was a senior officer in the Royal Navy and a recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British an ...

*25 September 1964 – 3 August 1979: Air Marshal Sir Anthony Dunkerton Selway *9 February 1968 – 3 August 1979: Rear Admiral Colin Duncan Madden *3 August 1979 – 1985: Air Marshal Sir Denis Crowley-Milling *19 August 1985 – 18 July 1990: Rear Admiral David Edward Macey *18 July 1990 – 13 September 2001: Air Vice Marshal Sir Richard Charles Fairfax Peirse *15 March 2002 – 13 June 2006 : Rear Admiral

Iain Henderson William Iain Henderson (born 21 February 1992) is an Irish professional rugby union player who plays lock for Ulster, Ireland, and the British and Irish Lions. He has been the captain of Ulster since the 2019, and first captained Ireland in 2021 ...

(appointment dated from 13 September 2001) *13 June 2006 – 15 July 2018 : Major General

Charles Vyvyan Major General Charles Gerard Courtenay Vyvyan, (born 29 September 1944) is a retired British Army officer. He served as Head of the British Defence Staff and Defence Attaché in Washington, D.C. (1997–2000), and Gentleman Usher of the Scarlet ...

*16 July 2018 - present : Major General James Gordon

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Scarlet Rod Order of the Bath Ceremonial officers in the United Kingdom 1725 establishments in Great Britain