Lord Lyon King of Arms

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The Lord Lyon King of Arms, the head of Lyon Court, is the most junior of the Great Officers of State in Scotland and is the Scottish official with responsibility for regulating heraldry in that country, issuing new grants of arms, and serving as the judge of the oldest Heraldic court in the world that is still in daily operation. The post was formerly held by an important nobleman, whose functions were in practice carried out by his assistant, the Lyon-Depute. The practice of appointing Lyon-Deputes, however, ceased in 1866.

The Lord Lyon is responsible for overseeing state ceremonial in Scotland, for the granting of new arms to persons or organisations, and for confirming given pedigrees and claims to existing arms.

Lord Lyon King of Arms and the Duke of York proceeding to St. Giles' Cathedral in 1933
Lord Lyon King of Arms and the Duke of York proceeding to St. Giles' Cathedral in 1933

As a government department, fees paid for granting coats of arms are paid to the Treasury. The misuse of arms is a criminal offence in Scotland, and treated as tax evasion. Prosecutions are brought before Lyon Court, Lord Lyon being the sole judge. Appeals can be made to the Court of Session in Edinburgh, and ultimately to the House of Lords in London, following standard legal practice. There is no appeal if the Lord Lyon refuses to grant a coat of arms, as this is not a judicial function, but an exercise of the Royal Prerogative.

The Lord Lyon has several English equivalents.

  • Being responsible for Scottish state ceremonies he parallels the Earl Marshal in England.
  • Lord Lyon is Scotland's only "King of Arms", or a high heraldic officer. England has three: the Garter Principal, the Clarenceaux (responsible for southern England), and the Norroy and Ulster (responsible for northern England and Northern Ireland). Unlike the English Kings of Arms, he does not need permission from the Earl Marshal.
  • The Court of the Lord Lyon is the heraldic authority for Scotland, much as the College of Arms is responsible for granting arms in England

Whilst the Court of Chivalry (which last met in 1954) is a civil court, the Lyon Court meets often and has criminal jurisdiction. Lord Lyon is empowered to have assumed coats of arms, and whatever they are affixed to, destroyed. As an example, when Leith Town Hall, now used as a police station, was renovated during the 1990s, several of the coats of arms decorating the Council Chamber were found to be attributed to the wrong person. The police were given special permission to retain the display, on condition that the tourist guides pointed out the historical anomalies.

[edit] List of Office Holders

(incomplete)

[edit] External links

Court of the Lord Lyon
King of Arms: Lord Lyon
Heralds of Arms: Albany | Islay | Marchmont | Rothesay | Ross | Snowdoun
Pursuivants of Arms: Bute | Carrick | Dingwall | Kintyre | Ormond | Unicorn
Officers of Arms Extraordinary: Falkland | Linlithgow | March | Orkney
Other Officers: Procurator Fiscal | Lyon Clerk and Keeper of the Records | Herald Painter
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