Broad arrow
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
A broad arrow or pheon is a type of arrow with a typically flat barbed head. It is a symbol used traditionally used heraldry.
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[edit] Use in heraldry
The broad arrow as an heraldic device has two tapering blades, known as barbs. When these barbs are engrailed on the inside, it is called a pheon. Woodward's A Treatise on Heraldry: British and Foreign with English and French Glossaries, makes the following distinction between the broad arrow and pheon: "A BROAD ARROW and a PHEON are represented similarly, except that the Pheon has its inner edges jagged, or engrailed. Parker's A Glossary of Terms Used in Heraldry states, "A broad arrow differs somewhat... and resembles a pheon (q.v.), except in the omission of the jagged edge on the inside of the barbs."
The pheon, the engrailed broad arrow, occurs in heraldry in the arms of the Sidney family, and hence in the arms of Sidney Sussex College, Cambridge. The college's newsletter for alumni is also called Pheon.
[edit] Origin of use for Government property
A member of the Sidney family, Henry Sidney, served as Master of Ordnance under William and Mary and used this device to mark government property. From this derive the arrows on prisoners' uniforms (notably transportees to British penal colonies such as Australia), and also the arrow marks on the property of the Ministry of Defence.
[edit] Use in the American Colonies
The Broad Arrow was an emblem used by the British to mark the King's property. One of the more onerous uses of the broad arrow was to mark timber in North America during colonial times. During those times, the abundance of large shipbuilding-grade timber in North America was exploited by the British Royal Navy who exercised a form of eminent domain power by emblazoning the broad arrow mark, essentially three axe strikes resembling an arrowhead and shaft, on large “mast-grade” trees destined for delivery to shipbuilders in England. Use of the broad arrow mark commenced in earnest in 1691 with the Massachusetts Bay Charter which contained a "Mast-Preservation" Clause specifying, in part:
"...for better providing and furnishing of Masts for our Royal Navy wee do hereby reserve to us...ALL trees of the diameter of 24 inches and upward at 12 inches from the ground, growing upon any soils or tracts of land within our said Province or Territory not heretofore granted to any private person. We...forbid all persons whatsoever from felling, cutting or destroying any such trees without the royal license from us..."
In the years immediately after 1691 colonists paid little attention to the Charter's “Mast-Preservation” Clause. Tree harvesting activity increased with a growing disregard for protecting broad arrow marked trees. Since England imported much of its naval timber from the Baltic during this period, little effort was made to enforce the restriction. Nevertheless, the British timber trade was a changing industry that increasingly depended on imports of large trees for use in shipbuilding. As supplies of large trees from the Baltic region decreased, the harvesting of trees in North america and hence enforcement of broad arrow policies increased.
Persons appointed to the position “Surveyor-General of His Majesty’s Woods” were responsible for implementing the King’s broad arrow policies including selecting, marking and recording trees as well as policing and enforcing the unlicensed cutting of protected trees. Contractors licensed to harvest timbers for the Royal Navy could only do so under the watchful eye and step-by-step approval process of a Surveyor-General, or his agent, who approved the terms of contract if it compared favorably with terms of license, approved the contractor’s selection of trees, approved felling only trees covered by license, approved the method of felling so that damage to the felled tree was minimized, and approved the method of transporting felled timbers to sawmills or ports. Mast-grade white pines often weighed many tons and usually could not be dragged. When possible they were floated down rivers but with great care to avoid rapids and falls. If moved overland, they were laced on several pair of wheels and pulled by many yoke of oxen at the front and along each side of the mast log.
An appointment as “Surveyor-General of His Majesty’s Woods” could be lucrative. Contractors paid well for enlisting the help of Surveyor-Generals and their agents to expedite the many approvals needed to complete the harvesting process.
From 1691 onward, bitterness between the Colonies and the British steadily increased due to implementation of the Massachusetts Bay Charter and its offensive “Mast-Preservation Clause”. The ever-tightening restrictions on colonists felling “broad arrow” marked trees along with other grievances eventually led to the American Revolutionary War in 1775.
[edit] References
Reference addition: Captain Frederick Marryat in his book "The King's Own" (first published in 1830), refers to the broad arrow as a mark of the King's property, in this case particularly involving the subject of the book, a young boy, marked with the broad arrow as a symbol of his father's intention that the boy be dedicated to a life of service to the King.
