Garter Principal King of Arms (also Garter King of Arms or simply Garter) is the senior king of arms and officer of arms of the College of Arms, the heraldic authority with jurisdiction over England, Wales and Northern Ireland. The position has existed since 1415.
Garter is responsible to the Earl Marshal for the running of the college. He is the principal adviser to the sovereign of the United Kingdom with respect to ceremonial and heraldry, with specific responsibility for England, Wales and Northern Ireland, and, with the exception of Canada, for Commonwealth realms of which Charles III is the sovereign. He also serves as the king of arms of the Order of the Garter and his seal and signature appear on all grants of arms made by the college.
On the death of the British monarch it is Garter's duty to proclaim the new monarch. Initially, the Accession Council meets at St James's Palace in central London to declare the new monarch from the deceased monarch's line. Once the new monarch has made a sacred oath before the council, Garter King of Arms steps out into the Proclamation Gallery which overlooks Friary Court to proclaim the new monarch.
The current Garter Principal King of Arms is James Peill. History
Foundation William Bruges, the first Garter King of Arms, held the office by 1417. The exact date of his appointment is not known and no record of it survives. John Anstis discovered a royal warrant under the Privy Seal dated 22 May in the fifth year of the reign of Henry V (1417) wherein Bruges is called by his previous title, Guyenne King of Arms; the warrant orders that another be passed under the Great Seal of the Realm protecting Bruges while he travelled abroad with the king.Anstis 1742, vol. 2, p. 321. Ailes 1998, p. 239 notes that the bill of privy seal is C81/1137 no. 28 at The National Archives (TNA) and the letters of protection are recorded in the Treaty Rolls under C76/100 membrane 15, also at TNA Anstis then outlines two further pieces of evidence: (1) an instrument of 1422 or 1423 by which Bruges settled pension arrangements with the knights in which it is stated that he was appointed Garter at a previous full chapter meeting, and (2) a decree by Thomas of Lancaster, Duke of Clarence dated either 3 or 13 September 1417 which mentions "Garretier Roy d'armes des Anghis"Anstis 1742, vol. 2, p. 322 (note k for the quote) As Henry V left for France on 27 July 1417, it can be deduced that Bruges must have been appointed in late July of that year.Anstis 1742, vol. 2, p. 322
This was accepted until Hugh Stanford London published evidence which appeared to date Bruges' appointment two years earlier than Anstis suggested.Begent 1995, p. 134 William Bruges' father, Richard, left a will dated 4 July 1415 and split into two parts: a testament dealing with his burial, charitable bequests and legacies to his wife, and a voluntas, which dealt with personal bequests. Although the testament (recorded in the London registry) makes no mention of anyone other than Richard's wife, the voluntas (copied in Archbishop Henry Chichele's registers) makes mention of his children. Reference is made to his son William, variously called "Gien", "Gyen" and "Gartere", and William's wife, called "Agnes Garter".Begent 1995, p. 137 The other register entries around the voluntas date to 1418 and 1419, so E. F. Jacob, the editor of a printed version of the register, suggests that the references to Garter may be a later gloss.Begent, p. 137, citing Jacob 1937, pp. 188, note 4 But, Stanford London argued that later annotations would be consistent and refer to him as either Garter and Guyenne or simply Garter throughout, while Agnes would not have been called just Garter if it were a gloss. Instead, he suggests that Richard forgot to call his newly appointed son Garter at first and later included it alongside his old title in the will.Stanford London 1970, pp. 13–14
Criticising this point, Peter Begent finds no reference to Bruges being called anything but Guyenne or the equivalent title of Aquitaine King of Arms in records between 1415 and 1417, which is problematic for Stanford London's position. He argues that it is entirely possible that, if not a gloss, the voluntas was edited after 1415 as Richard Bruges included more bequests to his family.Begent 1995, pp. 136–138. Stanford London also highlights a later account of how Bruges as Garter hosted Emperor Sigismund in 1416; Begent argues that Bruges, a wealthy man, could have done so as the informal senior herald before his appointment as Garter.
Later history The Garter Principal King of Arms was placed by King Henry V over all the whole body of heralds.Noble (1804), p. 59
He may be said to have two distinct capacities united in his person, one relative to the Order of the Garter, the other as head of the College of Arms, and on this account he not only takes an oath in a chapter of the Garter, before the Sovereign and Knights, but as king at arms another oath before the Earl Marshal, and therefore he is styled both principal officer of arms of the most noble order of the Garter and principal king of English arms.
He has power to appoint a herald for his deputy: he must be a native of England and a gentleman bearing arms. It was anciently held that he was to be neither a knight nor a clergyman; but there has been one instance of a Garter having been a foreigner; and since the reign of Henry VII many of them have received knighthood: one was created a knight of the Bath. The office entitles him to the privilege of correcting errors or usurpations in all armorial bearings, to grant arms to such who deserve them, to present to the House of Lords a genealogy of every new peer, to assign his place in the chamber of parliament and to give him and the knights of the Bath supporters.
Coat of arms The official arms of the Garter Principal King of Arms were in use by around 1520. They are Argent a Cross Gules on a Chief Azure a crown enclosed in a Garter between a lion passant guardant and a fleur de lis all Or.
Funding In addition to the official annual salary paid by the Crown of £49.07, HM Treasury pays Garter King of Arms for work undertaken for the Government. As of 27 January 2021, the payments made to Thomas Woodcock, since his appointment as Garter totalled £651,515. Additionally, since 2018, the Treasury has provided Garter with an expenses fund of £35,000 per annum to cover business expenses such as secretarial support, cleaning and postage. As of 27 January 2021, Garter has received £74,579.02 to cover expenses.
Holders of the office Portraits
List ArmsName Dates of office Notes Ref William Bruges By September 1417 – 9 March 1450 The son of Richard Bruges, Lancaster King of Arms, Bruges was appointed Chester Herald in 1398, making him part of the household of Henry, Prince of Wales and Earl of Chester (later Henry V); he was employed by Henry IV between 1407 and 1410.Ailes 2004a In 1413, he was appointed Guyenne King of Arms and travelled with the King on his campaign at Agincourt in 1415; he was entrusted with a number of diplomatic responsibilities and bore the title Aquitaine King of Arms interchangeably with Guyenne. As Garter, he officiated at Henry V's funeral and was frequently occupied with diplomatic missions under Henry VI. He attended the English heralds' first chapter meeting in 1421 and was responsible for drafting the first armorial of the Order of the Garter in 1430. Godfrey and Wagner 1963, p. 40 John Smert 3 April 1450 – before 6 July 1478 The parentage and origins of John Smert are not known, although he did hold land in Gloucestershire and was possibly a lawyer. He married a daughter of William Bruges, Garter, and may have been the Guyenne King of Arms mentioned in 1444 and sent on diplomatic duties in 1449; he was certainly Guyenne by the time he was appointed Garter. Smert was employed on a number of diplomatic missions, including his attendance at Princess Margaret's marriage to Charles the Bold of Burgundy in 1468 and a Garter mission to Burgundy the following year. Godfrey and Wagner 1963, pp. 40–41 John Writhe (or Wrythe) 6 July 1478 – March or April 1504 The ancestry of John Wrythe is not known, but he was likely the son of William Wrythe, a receiver of the Duke of Somerset and briefly Member of Parliament for Cricklade.Ailes 2004c A draper and citizen of London, the younger Wrythe was also said to have been Antelope and Rouge Croix Pursuivant, but this is dismissed by modern scholars; he was definitely Faucon Herald by 1474 and was appointed Norroy King of Arms in 1477.Godfrey and Wagner 1963, pp. 41-43" He took part in the funeral of Edward IV and coronation of Richard III, who confirmed him as Garter in 1483, but he resigned on 4 January 1485. He resumed his office at the accession of Henry VII, which was confirmed by a patent of 13 February 1486. Wrythe was sent on diplomatic missions to Scotland, Ireland, Brittany, Calais, Burgundy and Maximilian I, Holy Roman Emperor. He produced a "magnificent" book containing many pedigrees and drawings of arms belonging to Knights of the Garter. Godfrey and Wagner 1963, pp. 41–43 Sir Thomas Wrythe alias Wriothesley 26 January 1505 – 15 November 1534 The elder of son John Wrythe, Garter, Wriothesley was made Wallingford Pursuivant and entered the service of Prince Arthur and then Prince Henry. As Garter, he attended Henry VIII at Thérouanne, the Field of the Cloth of Gold and Calais, and was sent on Garter missions to Guidobaldo II della Rovere, Duke of Urbino, Philip of Castile, Ferdinand of Austria and Francis I of France. Otherwise, he concerned himself with domestic matters including the funeral of Henry VII, the coronation of Henry VIII and the Westminster Tournament of 1511.Yorke 2004b He also effectively monopolised the granting of arms and was allowed to carry out visitations, although another herald was permitted to conduct them independently in 1530. Wriothesley's workshop produced Prince Arthur's Book, the Westminster Tournament Roll and the Parliament Roll of 1512, alongside numerous pedigrees, rolls of arms and books on heraldry. Godfrey and Wagner 1963, pp. 43–45 Thomas Wall 9 December 1534 – 27 June 1536 The son of Thomas Wall, Norroy, the younger Wall was appointed Rouge Croix in 1521 and Windsor in 1525. He was engaged on a number of diplomatic missions during the 1520s and 1530s to France, Italy and Austria, as well as a Garter mission to James V of Scotland in 1535. He also compiled Wall's Book of Arms (College MS Anstis 679) in 1530 and an alphabet of arms in the college's manuscript collection (MS L. 1). Godfrey and Wagner 1963, p. 45 Sir Christopher Barker 15 July 1536 – 2 January 1550 Barker's father was from Stokesley in Yorkshire, and his mother from a Newcastle family called Carlill or Carlisle; one of his uncles was Christopher Carlill, Norroy King of Arms. He was in Charles Brandon, 1st Duke of Suffolk's service as Lisle Pursuivant (c. 1513) and then Suffolk Herald (c. 1517), before being appointed Richmond Herald at the college in 1522 and Norroy in June 1536. He was attached to foreign missions between 1514 and 1544, the early instances with the Duke of Suffolk and later including work with the English embassy in Spain and at the peace talks at Cambrai in 1529. He also oversaw the funeral of Henry VIII and the coronation of Edward VI and managed to maintain reasonably friendly relations with the provincial Kings of Arms. Godfrey and Wagner 1963, p. 46Yorke 2004a Sir Gilbert Dethick 29 April 1550 – 3 October 1584