Cadency labels of the British royal family

Label and charges

Heraldic labels are used to differentiate the personal coats of arms of members of the royal family of the United Kingdom from that of the monarch and from each other. In the Gallo-British heraldic tradition, cadency marks have been available to "difference" the arms of a son from those of his father, and the arms of brothers from each other, and traditionally this was often done when it was considered important for each man to have a distinctive individual coat of arms and/or to differentiate the arms of the head of a house from junior members of the family. This was especially important in the case of arms of sovereignty: to use the undifferenced arms of a kingdom is to assert a claim to the throne. Therefore, in the English royal family, cadency marks were used from the time of Henry III, typically a label or bordure alluding to the arms of the bearer's mother or wife. After about 1340, when Edward III made a claim to the throne of France, a blue label did not contrast sufficiently with the blue field of the French quarter of the royal arms; accordingly most royal cadets used labels argent: that of the heir apparent was plain, and all others were charged.^[1] Bordures of various tinctures continued to be used into the 15th century.

The label[]

In the ordinary system of differences a label of three points (which has also been termed a label with three files) is the distinction of the eldest son during the lifetime of his father. In the oldest rolls of arms the labels are all of five points; but labels of three points were at an early period used interchangeably. Besides being used as mere temporary marks of cadency, labels are also employed as permanent distinctions, borne (like any other charge) by every member of some particular branches of certain families. Labels are the principal cadency marks used in certain royal families. In the British royal family, all labels are argent (white). The sons and daughters of the sovereign all bear labels of three points argent; that of the arms of the Prince of Wales is plain, but all others are charged. Further descendants of princes bear labels of five points charged. All such differences should be borne on the arms, crest, and supporters.

Charges[]

Red Cross	Rose	Heart	Fleur-de-lis blue	Anchor	Thistle	Trefoil	Red Lion	Ermine	Crown	Escalope	Bee	Roundel

The system of a special mark for difference for each member of the family goes back to the time of Henry III, whose successor, as a prince, placed such a mark on the shield of England. Since 1340 this label has almost always been white, and overlaid with small figures, or charges, such as red crosses of St George.^[2] This red cross represents England and its patron saint, and was first borne by Richard of Bordeaux (future king Richard II) before the death of his father Edward, the Black Prince in 1376. Other charges used:

• A blue anchor, a symbol of hope, or of naval service, as borne by several Dukes of York.
• The Crown of England (sometimes called the Imperial or St Edward's Crown) borne by the abdicated king the Duke of Windsor, which is as unusual as the occurrence itself.
• Roses: the Tudor Rose (combined red and white) has been used as an English royal badge since 1485.
• Red hearts may allude to the arms of Lüneburg (part of the Hanoverian arms) or – for the descendants of Edward VII and Alexandra of Denmark – to the coat of arms of Denmark.
• The blue fleur-de-lis appears amongst the Royal Badges in England of the Stuarts.
• The thistle is an ancient badge of Scotland.
• The escallop shell was traditionally a token of pilgrimage on the Way of St James. The shell in the labels of The Duke of Cambridge and Prince Harry alludes to those of the Spencer arms of their mother, Diana, Princess of Wales.
• The bee is a canting charge in the label of Princess Beatrice of York.
• The trefoil is a badge of Ireland, associated with St Patrick, who used it to illustrate the doctrine of the Trinity.

Labels used since the Hanoverian succession[]

• 

  UK Arms since accession of Victoria, 1837

• 

  Albert, Prince Consort

• 

  Prince Alfred (as Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha)

• 

  Prince Alfred (as Duke of Edinburgh)

• 

  Princess Beatrice

• 

  The Duke of Windsor

• 

  Mary, Princess Royal and Countess of Harewood

• 

  Prince Henry, Duke of Gloucester

• 

  Prince George, Duke of Kent

• 

  Princess Margaret

• 

  Princess Alexandra

• 

  The Duke of Kent

• 

  Prince Michael of Kent

• 

  The Prince of Wales

• 

  The Princess Royal

• 

  The Duke of York

• 

  The Earl of Wessex

• 

  The Duke of Cambridge

• 

  The Duke of Sussex

• 

  Princess Beatrice of York

• 

  Princess Eugenie of York

King George I to Queen Victoria
Name	Title	Royal Warrant	Label argent[2][3]															Notes
King George I (1660–1727)	Electoral Prince of Hanover British King from 1714.	As George was never a cadet member of the British royal family, he never had such a label.
Ernest (1674–1728)	Duke of York and Albany, Earl of Ulster	1716																Brother of George I. Bishop of Osnabrück.
George (1683–1760)	Prince of Wales 1714																	Future King George II.
Frederick (1701–1751)	Duke of Gloucester 1718, Duke of Edinburgh 1726
	Prince of Wales 1729
Anne (1705–1759)	Princess Royal	1719																2nd child, eldest daughter of George II. Princess of Orange-Nassau.
		1727
Amelia (1711–1786)		1719
		1727
Caroline (1713–1757)		1719
		1727
William (1721–1765)		1725
	Duke of Cumberland 1726	1727
Mary (1723–1772)		1727
Louise (1724–1751)		1727																Queen of Denmark and Norway
Augusta (1737–1813)		1813																Duchess of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel
George (1738–1830)	2nd Duke of Edinburgh, Prince of Wales 1751																	Future king George III
Edward (1739–1767)	Duke of York and Albany 1760	1752
William (father) (1743–1805)	Duke of Gloucester and Edinburgh 1764
Henry (1745–1790)	Duke of Cumberland and Strathearn 1766
Frederick (1750–1765)		Posthumous
George (1762–1830)	Prince of Wales 1762																	Future King George IV
Frederick (1763–1827)	Duke of York and Albany 1784
William (1765–1837)	Duke of Clarence and St Andrews 1789	1781																Future King William IV
Charlotte (1766–1828)	Princess Royal																	Queen of Württemberg
Edward (1767–1820)	Duke of Kent and Strathearn 1799																	Father of Queen Victoria
Augusta Sophia (1768–1840)		1789
Elizabeth (1770–1840)		1789																Landgravine of Hesse-Homburg
Ernest Augustus (1771–1851)	Duke of Cumberland and Teviotdale 1799																	King of Hanover 1837
Augustus Frederick (1773–1843)	Duke of Sussex 1801
Adolphus (1774–1850)	Duke of Cambridge 1801
Mary (1776–1857)		1789																Duchess of Gloucester and Edinburgh
Sophia (1777–1848)		1789
Amelia (1783–1810)		1789
Leopold of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha (1790–1865)	as consort of Princess Charlotte of Wales																	Later first King of the Belgians
Charlotte of Wales (1796–1817)		1816
Queen Victoria to Queen Elizabeth II
Alexandrina Victoria of Kent (1819–1901)		No known arms were assigned to her as Princess.																Future Queen Victoria
Albert of Saxe-Coburg & Gotha (1819–1861)	Prince Consort	1837																Husband of Queen Victoria. Quartered these arms with his paternal arms of Saxony.
Victoria (1840–1901)	Princess Royal	1841																German Empress
Albert Edward (1841–1910)	Prince of Wales	1841																Future King Edward VII (1901)
Alice (1843–1878)		1858																Grand Duchess of Hesse.
Alfred (1844–1900)	Duke of Edinburgh	?																Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha
Helena (1846–1923)		1858																Princess of Schleswig-Holstein.
Louise (1848–1939)		1858																Duchess of Argyll
Arthur (1850–1942)	Duke of Connaught and Strathearn	1874
Leopold (1853–1884)	Duke of Albany 1881	1856
Beatrice (1857–1944)		1858																Princess of Battenberg.
Albert Victor (1864–1892)	Duke of Clarence and Avondale	1890																The firstborn son of Edward Prince of Wales, died in 1892.
George (1865–1936)	Duke of York	1892																Future King George V (1910)
	Prince of Wales	1901
Louise (1867–1931)	Princess Royal 1905	1889																Duchess of Fife
Victoria (1868–1935)		1896
Maud of Wales (1869��1938)		1896																Queen of Norway
Alfred of Edinburgh (1874–1899)		?																Hereditary Prince of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha
Marie of Edinburgh (1875–1938)		?																Queen of Romania
Victoria Melita of Edinburgh (1876–1936)		?																Grand-duchess of Hesse, later Grand-duchess of Russia
Alexandra of Edinburgh (1878–1942)		?																Princess of Hohenlohe-Langenburg
Margaret of Connaught (1882–1920)		1905																Crown princess of Sweden
Arthur of Connaught (1883–1938)		1904
Alice of Albany (1883–1981)		1934																Countess of Athlone
Beatrice of Edinburgh (1884–1966)		?																Duchess of Galliera.
Charles Edward of Albany (1884–1954)	2nd Duke of Albany	none	Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. Deprived of his British titles 1919. Never granted arms in right of the United Kingdom, but used the arms of Dominion of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha as was his right as its sovereign.
Patricia of Connaught (1886–1974)		1919																Lady Patricia Ramsay
Edward (1894–1972)	Prince of Wales	1911																King Edward VIII, abdicated 1936
	Duke of Windsor	1937																Unique use of a Crown for an abdicated monarch.
Albert (1895–1952)	Duke of York 1920	1912																Future King George VI (1936)
Mary (1897–1965)	Princess Royal 1952	1921																Countess of Harewood
Henry (1900–1974)	Duke of Gloucester 1928	1921
George (1902–1942)	Duke of Kent 1934	1921
Alastair of Connaught (1914–1943)	2nd Duke of Connaught and Strathearn	1942	Quarterly 1 and 4 his grandfather's arms; 2 Fife; 3 Duff.
Elizabeth II
Philip (1921–2021)	Duke of Edinburgh; Prince Consort	1947–49: his arms included an inescutcheon of his ancestor Princess Alice (Grand Duchess of Hesse): the Royal Arms with a label as shown above.[4]
Elizabeth (born 1926)		1944																Future queen Elizabeth II (1952)
Margaret (1930–2002)		1944																Countess of Snowdon
Edward of Kent (born 1935)	2nd Duke of Kent	1948
Alexandra of Kent (born 1936)		1961																Lady Ogilvy
William of Gloucester (1941–1972)		1962
Michael of Kent (born 1942)		1962
Richard of Gloucester (born 1944)	2nd Duke of Gloucester	1962
Charles (born 1948)	Prince of Wales	1958
	Duke of Rothesay	1974
Anne (born 1950)	Princess Royal	1962																Formerly Mrs Mark Phillips
Andrew (born 1960)	Duke of York	1962/63
Edward (born 1964)	Earl of Wessex	1983
William (born 1982)	Duke of Cambridge	2000																The escallop is taken from the arms of their mother Diana Spencer (1961–1997).
Harry (born 1984)	Duke of Sussex	2002
Beatrice of York (born 1988)		2006																Bee from the arms of her mother. The three bees are a canting of her first name.
Eugenie of York (born 1990)		2008																Thistles from the arms of her mother.

See also[]

• Royal Supporters of England
• Royal Standards of England

References[]