Royal warrants of appointment have been issued since the 15th century to those who supply goods or services to a

royal court A royal court, often called simply a court when the royal context is clear, is an extended royal household in a monarchy, including all those who regularly attend on a monarch, or another central figure. Hence, the word "court" may also be appl ...

or certain royal personages. The warrant enables the supplier to advertise the fact that they supply to the royal family, thereby lending prestige to the brand and/or supplier. In the United Kingdom, grants are currently made by the two most senior members of the British royal family to companies or tradespeople who supply goods and services to individuals in the family. Suppliers continue to charge for their goods and services – a royal warrant of appointment does not imply that they provide goods and services free of charge. The warrant is typically advertised on billboards or company hoardings in British English, letter-heads and products by displaying the

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 ...

or 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 royal personage as appropriate. Underneath the coat of arms will usually appear the phrase "By Appointment to..." followed by the title and name of the royal customer, and then what goods are provided. No other details of what is supplied may be given. File:Royal Coat of Arms of the United Kingdom.svg, Royal Warrant by Appointment to HM The King File:Prince of Wales's feathers Badge.svg, Royal Warrant by Appointment to HRH Prince of Wales File:Coat of Arms of Philip, Duke of Edinburgh (Knight of the Thistle).svg, Royal Warrant by Appointment to HRH The Duke of Edinburgh (until 2021 when Prince Philip died)

History

The granting of royal patronage or royal charter was practised across Europe from the early

Medieval period In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire a ...

. Initially, however, royal patronage was mainly granted to those working in the arts. Royal charters began to replace royal patronage in around the 12th century. The earliest charters were granted to the trade guilds, with the first recorded British royal charter being granted to the Weavers' Company in 1155 by

Henry II of England Henry II (5 March 1133 – 6 July 1189), also known as Henry Curtmantle (french: link=no, Court-manteau), Henry FitzEmpress, or Henry Plantagenet, was King of England from 1154 until his death in 1189, and as such, was the first Angevin kin ...

. By the 15th century, the royal warrant of appointment replaced the

royal charter A royal charter is a formal grant issued by a monarch under royal prerogative as letters patent. Historically, they have been used to promulgate public laws, the most famous example being the English Magna Carta (great charter) of 1215, b ...

in England, providing a more formalised system of recognition. Under a royal warrant, the

Lord Chamberlain The Lord Chamberlain of the Household is the most senior officer of the Royal Household of the United Kingdom, supervising the departments which support and provide advice to the Sovereign of the United Kingdom while also acting as the main c ...

appointed tradespeople as suppliers to the royal household. The printer

William Caxton William Caxton ( – ) was an English merchant, diplomat and writer. He is thought to be the first person to introduce a printing press into England, in 1476, and as a printer to be the first English retailer of printed books. His parentage a ...

was one of the first recipients of a royal warrant when he became the king's printer in 1476. One of the early monarchs to grant a warrant was King

Charles II of England Charles II (29 May 1630 – 6 February 1685) was King of Scotland from 1649 until 1651, and King of England, Scotland and Ireland from the 1660 Restoration of the monarchy until his death in 1685. Charles II was the eldest surviving child o ...

. A royal warrant sent a strong public signal that the holder supplied goods of a quality acceptable for use in the royal household, and by inference, inspired the confidence of the general public. At a time when product quality was a public issue, a royal warrant imbued suppliers with an independent sign of value. By the 18th century, mass market manufacturers such as

Josiah Wedgwood Josiah Wedgwood (12 July 1730 – 3 January 1795) was an English potter, entrepreneur and abolitionist. Founding the Wedgwood company in 1759, he developed improved pottery bodies by systematic experimentation, and was the leader in the indus ...

and

Matthew Boulton Matthew Boulton (; 3 September 172817 August 1809) was an English manufacturer and business partner of Scottish engineer James Watt. In the final quarter of the 18th century, the partnership installed hundreds of Boulton & Watt steam engin ...

, recognised the value of supplying royalty, often at prices well below cost, for the sake of the publicity and kudos it generated. Royal warrants became keenly sought after and manufacturers began actively displaying the royal arms on their premises, packaging and labelling. By 1840, the rules surrounding the display of royal arms were tightened to prevent fraudulent claims. By the early 19th century, during the

reign of Queen Victoria In the history of the United Kingdom and the British Empire, the Victorian era was the period of Queen Victoria's reign, from 20 June 1837 until her death on 22 January 1901. The era followed the Georgian period and preceded the Edwardian ...

, the number of royal warrants granted rose rapidly with the granting of 2,000 warrants. Since 1885, an annual list of warrant holders has been published in ''

The London Gazette ''The London Gazette'' is one of the official journals of record or government gazettes of the Government of the United Kingdom, and the most important among such official journals in the United Kingdom, in which certain statutory notices are ...

''. Food and drink manufacturers have been some of the most important warrant holder suppliers to the palace. High-profile food and beverage suppliers with a royal warrant include

Cadbury Cadbury, formerly Cadbury's and Cadbury Schweppes, is a British multinational confectionery company fully owned by Mondelez International (originally Kraft Foods) since 2010. It is the second largest confectionery brand in the world after Mar ...

;

Twinings Twinings () is a British marketer of tea and other beverages, including coffee, hot chocolate and malt drinks, based in Andover, Hampshire. The brand is owned by Associated British Foods. It holds the world's oldest continually used company log ...

of London; Bollinger; Fortnum & Mason;

Heinz The H. J. Heinz Company is an American food processing company headquartered at One PPG Place in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the co ...

; Tanqueray Gordon & Co and

Schweppes Schweppes (, ) is a beverage brand that originated in the Republic of Geneva; it is made, bottled and distributed worldwide by multiple international conglomerates, depending on licensing and region, that manufacture and sell soft drinks. Schwep ...

. Non-food suppliers with royal warrants include:

Aston Martin Aston Martin Lagonda Global Holdings PLC is an English manufacturer of luxury sports cars and grand tourers. Its predecessor was founded in 1913 by Lionel Martin and Robert Bamford. Steered from 1947 by David Brown, it became associated wi ...

;

Land Rover Land Rover is a British brand of predominantly four-wheel drive, off-road capable vehicles, owned by multinational car manufacturer Jaguar Land Rover (JLR), since 2008 a subsidiary of India's Tata Motors. JLR currently builds Land Rove ...

;

Jaguar cars Jaguar (, ) is the luxury vehicle brand of Jaguar Land Rover, a British multinational car manufacturer with its headquarters in Whitley, Coventry, England. Jaguar Cars was the company that was responsible for the production of Jaguar car ...

; Boots;

Axminster Carpets Axminster Carpets Ltd is an Axminster, Devon based English manufacturer of carpets, particularly the same-named Axminster carpets. Background Whilst visiting Cheapside Market, London, Devon-based weaver Thomas Whitty was impressed by a large T ...

;

Paragon China The Paragon China Company was a British manufacturer of bone china from 1919 to 1960, based in Longton, Stoke-on-Trent, previously known as the Star China Company, and more recently part of the Royal Doulton group. Paragon was noted for produci ...

; The Irish Linen Company and

Yardley of London Yardley of London (usually referred to simply as Yardley or Yardleys) is a British personal care brand and one of the oldest firms in the world to specialise in cosmetics, fragrances and related toiletry products. Established in 1770,

Organisation

Royal Warrant - Jenners in Edinburgh - 2004-10-22

Warrants are currently granted by the

King King is the title given to a male monarch in a variety of contexts. The female equivalent is queen regnant, queen, which title is also given to the queen consort, consort of a king. *In the context of prehistory, antiquity and contempora ...

and the

Prince of Wales Prince of Wales ( cy, Tywysog Cymru, ; la, Princeps Cambriae/Walliae) is a title traditionally given to the heir apparent to the English and later British throne. Prior to the conquest by Edward I in the 13th century, it was used by the rule ...

. Warrants issued by the

Queen Mother A queen mother is a former queen, often a queen dowager, who is the mother of the reigning monarch. The term has been used in English since the early 1560s. It arises in hereditary monarchies in Europe and is also used to describe a number of ...

automatically expired no later than 2007, five years after her death. Upon the death of

Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh (born Prince Philip of Greece and Denmark, later Philip Mountbatten; 10 June 1921 – 9 April 2021) was the husband of Queen Elizabeth II. As such, he served as the consort of the British monarch from E ...

in April 2021, warrants issued in his name became void; however warrant holders were permitted to continue to use the

Royal Arms The royal coat of arms of the United Kingdom, or the royal arms for short, is the arms of dominion of the British monarch, currently King Charles III. These arms are used by the King in his official capacity as monarch of the United Kingdom. Varia ...

and the legend for up to two years. The same occurred upon the death of Queen

Elizabeth II Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 1926 – 8 September 2022) was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until her death in 2022. She was queen regnant of 32 sovereign states durin ...

in September 2022. Royal warrants are only awarded to

tradesmen A tradesman, tradeswoman, or tradesperson is a skilled worker that specializes in a particular trade (occupation or field of work). Tradesmen usually have work experience, on-the-job training, and often formal vocational education in contrast ...

, such as carpenters, engravers, cabinet makers, dry-cleaners, even chimney sweeps. Some are well-known companies; many are not. The professions, employment agencies, party planners, the media, government departments, and "places of refreshment or entertainment" (such as pubs and theatres) do not qualify. Today, some 850 individuals and companies, including a few non-UK companies, hold more than 1,100 warrants to the British Royal Family. The royal warrant signifies there is a satisfactory trade relation in place between the grantor and the company and that the goods nominated are suitable for supply to the royal household. Within the company, there is a nominated person called the grantee. That person is in all respects responsible for all aspects of the royal warrant. It takes at least five years of supplying goods or services to the member of the royal family before a company is eligible to have its application considered for recommendation. That application is then presented to the royal household and goes to the buyer who makes its recommendation for inclusion. It then goes in front of the Royal Household Warrants Committee, which is chaired by the

, which decides whether to accept the recommendation. It then goes to the grantor, who personally signs it. The grantor is empowered to reverse the committee's decision, and therefore the final decision to accept or withhold a grant is a very personal one. Some royal warrants have been held for more than a hundred years. Goods need not be for the use of the grantor. For example, cigarettes were only bought for the use of guests of the Royal Family, but these warrants were cancelled in 1999 as a matter of public policy. For business, the granting of a royal warrant is a huge boost, because royal approval may be displayed in public with the coat of royal arms of the grantor, implying that their services or products are of high quality. Most warrant holders are members of the Royal Warrant Holders Association, which liaises closely with the palace.

Gallery

Examples of royal warrants in use: File:Bernard Weatherill 2517 cropped.jpg, Bernard Weatherill File:Goring Royal Warrant.jpg, Goring Royal Warrant File:Prince Royal Warrant.jpg, Prince Royal Warrant File:James Arthur Messenger -poster.png, James Arthur Messenger File:Fortnum & Mason 2014 (2).JPG, Fortnum & Mason File:Colmans mustard jar.jpg, Colmans Mustard File:Schweppes Royal Warrant.jpg,

Tangerine

References

Bibliography

External links

Royal Warrants
at the Royal Family website
The Royal Warrant Holders Association
{{British Royal Warrant holders de:Hoflieferant