Somerset Herald of Arms in Ordinary is an officer of arms at 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 ...

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

. In the year 1448 Somerset Herald is known to have served the Duke of Somerset, but by the time of the coronation of

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 Beaufort ...

in 1485 his successor appears to have been raised to the rank of a royal officer, when he was the only herald to receive

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 ...

liveries. By 1525 Somerset was again in private service, on the staff of the

Duke of Richmond and Somerset Duke is a male title either of a monarch ruling over a duchy, or of a member of royalty, or nobility. As rulers, dukes are ranked below emperors, kings, grand princes, grand dukes, and sovereign princes. As royalty or nobility, they are ranked ...

, Henry Fitzroy, although he was appointed by the King and shared the heralds' fees as a herald extraordinary. On the death of that nobleman in 1536 the

herald A herald, or a herald of arms, is an officer of arms, ranking between pursuivant and king of arms. The title is commonly applied more broadly to all officers of arms. Heralds were originally messengers sent by monarchs or noblemen ...

returned to the service of the crown, and all later officers called Somerset have been members of the royal household as heralds in ordinary. The

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 fi ...

of office is ''A Portcullis Or Royally Crowned''. This is a version of the Beaufort

. The post is currently vacant.

Holders of the office

References

;Notes ;Citations ;Bibliography * ''The College of Arms, Queen Victoria Street : being the sixteenth and final monograph of the London Survey Committee'', Walter H. Godfrey, assisted by Sir Anthony Wagner, with a complete list of the officers of arms, prepared by H. Stanford London, (London, 1963) * ''A History of the College of Arms &c'', Mark Noble, (London, 1804)

External links

The College of Arms
{{College of Arms Offices of the College of Arms

Holders of the office

See also

References

External links