More Arms of Governors General of Canada in Government House

To finish our look at the "architectural liber amicorum" that is the stairwell in Government House, the official residence of the Lieutenant Governor of the Province of British Columbia, we now come to the other side of the stairwell displaying arms of Governors General who have visited and stayed overnight at Government House.

Once again, I recommend clicking on the photographs below to see the larger, more detailed pictures.

And here, too, I am including links to each Governor General's Wikipedia page for those of you who would like to see a little more about these individuals.

On the left, you can just see a portion of the sinister side of the shield of Julian Byng, 1st Viscount Byng of Vimy, Governor General 1921-1926. Quarterly Sable and Argent in the first quarter a lion rampant of the second over all in bend sinister a representation of the colours of the 31st Regiment a crescent Gules for difference. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Julian_Byng,_1st_Viscount_Byng_of_Vimy

Here's an image of his arms taken from Wikimedia:

For the rest of the arms down this set of stairs, we have, from left to right:

Vere Ponsonby, 9th Earl of Bessborough, Governor General 1931-1935. Gules a chevron between three combs Argent. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vere_Ponsonby,_9th_Earl_of_Bessborough

Alexander Cambridge, 1st Earl of Athlone, Governor General 1940-1946. Quarterly: 1st & 4th grand-quarters, The Royal Arms as borne by a son King George III, differenced by a Label of three-points Argent, the centre point charged with a Cross Gules, and each of the other points with two Hearts in pale Gules; 2nd & 3rd grand-quarters, Or, three Stags' Attires fesswise in pale, the points of each Attire to the sinister Sable, impaling Or three Lions passant in pale Sable, langued Gules, the dexter forepaws Gules; overall an Inescutcheon lozengy bendy sinister Sable and Or (Teck); Over all at the fess point a Crescent Sable for difference. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alexander_Cambridge,_1st_Earl_of_Athlone

Vincent Massey, Governor General 1952-1959. Argent, on a Chevron Sable between three Lozenges of the last, each charged with a Fleur de Lis of the first, three Stags' Heads erased Or. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vincent_Massey

Roland Michener, Governor General 1967-1974. Azure four bendlets interlaced in saltire between in chief a representation of the Royal Crown Or and in base a Fleur de Lis Or. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roland_Michener

And finally, on the right in this photograph and on the left of the next one, Edward Schreyer, Governor General 1969-1977. Per pale Or and Vert a pale wavy of four Azure and Argent in chief a plate displaying a cross Gules charged with the Royal Crown proper; in dexter base a pomeis charged with a garb Or and in sinister base a bezant charged with a fir tree Vert. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edward_Schreyer

Continuing from left to right in this photo, following Edward Schryer, we find the arms of:

Ray Hnatyshyn, Governor General of Canada, 1990-1885. Per fess Bleu Céleste and Or in chief a lion passant guardant Or royally crowned proper holding in its dexter paw a maple leaf Gules fimbriated Or in base a lion passant guardant Bleu Céleste holding in its dexter paw a heart Gules. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ray_Hnatyshyn

Adrienne Clarkson, Governor General, 1999-2005. Gules a Chinese phoenix regarding a lightning flash and rising from flames issuant from a maple leaf the whole ensigned by a representation of the Royal Crown all Or. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adrienne_Clarkson

David Johnston, Governor General 2010-2017. Argent fretty Sable, on a chief Gules the Royal Crown between two open books Or. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Johnston_(governor_general)

Julie Payette, Governor General 2017-2021. Ms. Payette is a former astronaut, and the full achievement of her arms substitutes an astronaut's helmet for the usual metal helm. Per pale Azure and Sable a wing and in the canton the Royal Crown Argent. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Julie_Payette

Mary Simon, Governor General 2021-present. Argent an annulet, overall a fess nowy Azure charged with the Royal Crown Argent. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mary_Simon

Next time, the coats of arms of some of the Lieutenant Governors of the Province of British Columbia to be seen in Government House.

Heraldry of Governors General of Canada at Government House

Having looked at the coats of arms of Royal visitors to Government House in Victoria, British Columbia, today we're going to begin seeing the arms of various Governors General of Canada* whose visits to, and overnight stays at, Government House are commemorated in the main stairwell there.

Once again, I recommend clicking on the image above to see the full-size version, where the shields and their elements are much easier to zoom into and see.

I have also included links to the individual Wikipedia articles about each of these Governors General should you wish to know more about them.

From left to right, we see the arms of Michaëlle Jean, Governor General 2005-2010. Sable a sand dollar ensigned by the Royal Crown Or. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Micha%C3%ABlle_Jean

Roméo LeBlanc, Governor General 1995-1999. Argent on a pile Gules the Star of Acadia ensigned by a representation of the Royal Crown Or. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rom%C3%A9o_LeBlanc

 Jeanne Sauvé, Governor General 1984-1990. Azure the Mace of the House of Commons of Canada Or in bend between in chief an Eagle displayed Or bearing in its beak a bolt of lightning Gules and in base a Lion passant guardant Or imperially crowned proper holding in the dexter paw a Maple Leaf Gules fimbriated Or. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jeanne_Sauv%C3%A9

Jules Léger, Governor General 1974-1979. Blue Céleste in chief an owl affronty hovering Argent in base a maple leaf ensigned by the Royal Crown both Or. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jules_L%C3%A9ger

Georges Vanier, Governor General 1959-1967. Or, a Chevron paly Azure and Gules of eight pieces charged with two swords Or between a fleur-de-lys Azure in dexter, trefoil Vert in sinister and in base the gate of La Citadelle of Quebec surmounted by the standard of the Governor General of Canada proper; in chief an oak tree proper. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Georges_Vanier

Harold Alexander, 1st Earl Alexander of Tunis, Governor General 1946-1952. Per pale argent and sable a chevron and in base a crescent all counterchanged on a canton azure a harp or stringed argent. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harold_Alexander,_1st_Earl_Alexander_of_Tunis

John Buchan, 1st Baron Tweedsmuir, Governor General 1935-1940. Azure a fess between three lions' heads erased Argent. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Buchan

Freeman Freeman-Thomas, 1st Marquess of Willingdon, Governor General 1926-1931. (Viceroy and Governor General of India, 1931-1936) Quarterly, 1st and 4th: Argent three lions rampant Gules a chief azure (Thomas); 2nd and 3rd: Ermine two pallets in pale Azure over all three fusils conjoined in fess Or (Freeman). https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Freeman_Freeman-Thomas,_1st_Marquess_of_Willingdon

Here again, from left to right we see the arms of:

John Young, 1st Baron Lisgar, Governor General 1869-1872. Argent three piles Sable each charged with a trefoil slipped Or on a chief Sable three annulets Or and in canton the augmentation of a baronet being an inescutcheon a dexter hand erect couped at the wrist and appaumé Gules. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Young,_1st_Baron_Lisgar

John Campbell, 9th Duke of Argyll, Governor General 1878-1883. Quarterly: 1 and 4, Gyronny of eight or and sable (Campbell); 2 and 3, Argent a lymphad sable sails furled flag and pennants flying and oars in action proper (Lordship of Lorne). https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Campbell,_9th_Duke_of_Argyll

Frederick Stanley, 16th Earl of Derby, Governor General 1888-1903. Argent on a bend Azure three stags' heads caboshed Or a crescent Azure for difference. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frederick_Stanley,_16th_Earl_of_Derby

Gilbert Elliot-Murray-Kynynmound, 4th Earl of Minto, Governor General 1989-1904. Quarterly: 1 and 4 Grand-quarters: Quarterly: i and iv, Argent a hunting horn sable stringed gules on a chief azure three mullets argent (Murray of Melgund); ii and iii, Azure a chevron argent between three fleurs-de-lis or (Kynynmound of that Ilk); 2 and 3, Gules on a bend engrailed or a baton azure all within a bordure vair; Overall a chief of augmentation, Argent a Moor’s head in profile couped proper (arms of Corsica). https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gilbert_Elliot-Murray-Kynynmound,_4th_Earl_of_Minto

Next time, the arms of Governors General on the other side of the staircase.

* The Governor General of Canada is the federal representative of the Canadian monarch, currently King Charles III.

Royal Heraldry in the Stairwell at Government House

One of the heraldically interesting things that they have done at Government House, the official residence of the Lieutenant Governor of the Province, in Victoria, British Columbia, is to display the coats of arms of important visitors: kings, queens, princes, princesses, and, of course, Governors General of the nation of Canada.

It is, if you will, an architectural liber amicorum, or "book of friends", whose visits to and overnight stays at Government House are remembered.

Today, we're going to look at the shields of some of their royal visitors which are displayed in the main staircase going from the ground floor up to the next one.

From left to right in this picture, we have the arms of:

His Majesty King George VI;

Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth, née Bowes-Lyon (more familiarly, to me at least, Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother;

Mary, Princess Royal and Countess of Harewood, daughter of King George V (1897-1965). for those of you less familiar with her, Princess Mary has her own entry on Wikipedia at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mary,_Princess_Royal_and_Countess_of_Harewood;

Queen Elizabeth II;

and Princess Alexandra, The Honourable Lady Ogilvy (Alexandra Helen Elizabeth Olga Christabel; born 25 December 1936) the only daughter of Prince George, Duke of Kent, and Princess Marina of Greece and Denmark.

And then we have, also from left to right:

Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon;

Prince Philip, the Duke of Edinburgh, who visited in 1951;

Her Royal Highness, the Princess Elizabeth (shortly afterwards Queen Elizabeth II), also in 1951;

Prince George, Duke of Kent. Again, for those of you less familiar with Prince George, he has his own entry on Wikipedia at: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prince_George,_Duke_of_Kent.

What a great way to commemorate the visits of members of the Royal Family over the years!

Smaller Coats of Arms in the Large Stained Glass Window in Government House

You may (or may not) have noticed some other coats of arms to be found in this large armorial stained glass window in Government House, the official residence of the Lieutenant Governor of the Province of British Columbia, Canada.

Well, today we're going to look at those in more detail.

Once again, you will be served best by clicking on the images below to see the full-size version where the real detail in this window can be seen, as these individual panels are very small and hard to make out in the space allowed here.

In the lower left-hand portion of the window, among the panels which commemorate former Governors of the Province and Lieutenant Governors (each placed beneath the cyphers of the Crowns under which they served: Queen Victoria, King Edward VII, King George V, King Edward VIII, King George VI, and Queen Elizabeth II), going from left to right we find the arms of:

Frederick Seymour: Governor of the United Colonies of Vancouver Island and British Columbia, 1866-1869. Frederick Seymour was born on 6 September 1820 to Henry Augustus Seymour and Margaret Williams, in Belfast, Northern Ireland. His father was the illegitimate son of Francis Seymour-Conway, 2nd Marquess of Hertford. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frederick_Seymour. The arms are: Quarterly: 1 and 4, Or on a pile gules between six fleurs-de-lis azure three lion passant guardant or; 2 and 3, Gules two wings conjoined in lure or; all within a bordure wavy ermine.

And further along:

Sir Henri Gustave Joly de Lotbinière: Lt. Governor 1900-1906. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Henri-Gustave_Joly_de_Lotbinière. Per fess Azure and Argent in chief perched on the trunk of a tree fesswise Or two partridges Argent all ensigned by the coronet of a French marquis Or and in base issuant from water three bulrushes proper.

Now, moving to the right-hand side of the window:

Here again, we move from left to right, to find the arms of:

Robert Randolph Bruce, Lt. Governor 1926-1931. Or a saltire on a chief engrailed Gules a beaver statant Argent. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Randolph_Bruce

Walter Stewart Owen: Lt. Governor 1973-1978. (I have been unable to find a blazon of his arms. A very rough blazon would be: [Field] a sword erect with a hanging balance at its tip on a chief a crown between a [something round-ish] and a rose.) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Walter_Stewart_Owen

Henry Bell-Irving: Lt. Governor 1978-1983. Quarterly first and fourth Argent three holly leaves proper second and third Azure on a fess Argent between three bells Argent two dogwood flowers proper leaved Vert seeded Or. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Henry_Pybus_Bell-Irving

Col. Robert Gordon Rogers. Lt. Governor 1983-1988. Or an eagle displayed Azure beaked and legged Gules charged on the breast and wings with three escutcheons Or each charged with a pine tree Proper. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Gordon_Rogers

David C. Lam, Lt. Governor 1988-1995: Gules a Chinese dragon Or reaching for a pearl Argent on a chief Or a Latin cross Gules between two pine trees Vert. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Lam

Col. Garde B. Gardom, Lt. Governor 1995-2001. Or an open book Argent bound Azure charged with a representation of the Mace of the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia in bend Or between a chief dancetty of five and in base three barrulets wavy Azure. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Garde_Gardom

More Arms in the Large Stained Glass Window in Government House

Getting back now to the big armorial stained glass window in Government House in Victoria, British Columbia, we're going to take a closer look at the other coats of arms to be found there.

As a reminder, here's the overview picture of the window in its entirety.

In the lower half of the window, in the second panel from the left, we find this achievement of arms:

These are the arms of Jeanne Sauvé, Governor General of Canada 1984-1990. Her arms are blazoned: Azure the Mace of the House of Commons of Canada Or in bend between in chief an Eagle displayed Or bearing in its beak a bolt of lightning Gules and in base a Lion passant guardant Or imperially crowned proper holding in the dexter paw a Maple Leaf Gules fimbriated Or. We will see these arms again a little later.

Looking again, still in the lower half of the window but in the second panel from the right, we see this achievement of arms:

These are the arms of Col. Robert Gordon Rogers, Lieutenant Governor of British Columbia 1983-1988. His arms are blazoned: Or an eagle displayed azure beaked and legged gules charged on the breast and wings with three escutcheons or each charged with a pine tree proper. Crest: Issuant from a wreath of trillium flowers argent seeded or barbed vert a demi-eagle displayed azure gorged of a ducal cornet or. Motto: Aquila alte volat (The eagle flies high). Supporters: Two catamounts or semy-de-lys azure each gorged with a chaplet of maple leaves gules. We will see these arms again, too.

Coming up next time: More coats of arms from this amazing stained glass window.

It's International Heraldry Day!

Today is June 10, 2025, and once again it is time to celebrate International Heraldry Day!

Others have probably said it better than I could:

International Heraldry Day  focuses on one day each year when heraldry in all its forms is celebrated worldwide. Regardless of jurisdiction, geographic area, customs, favored styles and favored period, the community focuses on wider enjoyment of heraldry. The goal of the organizers is that eventually all heraldry enthusiasts will acknowledge the event in the years to come. The celebration was started in 2013 within the International Association of Amateur Heralds (IAAH). Tomasz Steifer (Poland), a Fellow of the IAAH described the effort:

“….We propose that this international day of heraldry at 10 June. On that day, in the year 1128, in Rouen was knighted, by his future father in law, Henry I Beauclerc, Godfrey Plantagenet. Suspended during the ceremony on the neck of [the] young knight [a] shield [of] blue decorated [with] six golden lions, [which] is recognized by most of the heralds, for the first time in history, [as a] fully formed coat of arms.”

Are we enthusiastic about this annual celebration of all things heraldic?

Why, yes. Yes, we are.

Though maybe not quite as much as some: "It’s like lions and unicorns and sinisters and rampants and shit and we’re like all over the slogans in Elvish and that yeah."

Anyway, Happy International Heraldry Day to you and yours!

An Armorial Stained Glass Window

During my recent trip to Victoria, British Columbia, the members of the Royal Heraldry Society of Canada were treated to a visit to Government House, the official residence of the Lieutenant Governor of British Columbia.

And one of the treats that we saw while there was this large heraldic stained glass window:

I recommend clicking on the image above to see the full-size version of this picture.

At the center of the upper part of the window you can see the achievement of arms of Canada, above which is the arms of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland within the garter of the Order of the Garter and royally crowned, between the initials "E R", for Queen Elizabeth II.

The arms of Canada are flanked on the left by the arms of the United Kingdom, and on the right by the arms of the Hudson's Bay Company.

Here's an image of the Hudson's Bay Company arms that I took on my previous trip to Victoria way back in 2007.

But I digress.

In the center of the lower part of the window we find the achievement of arms of British Columbia, flanked on the left by the old arms of the Dominion of Canada (which are a shield combining the arms of the then-seven Provinces), and on the right by the arms of Canada as established in 1921 and as they are now.

Once again, I highly recommend that you click on the picture of the window to get to the larger version where you can see all of these arms more clearly.

Later, we'll look at some of the other coats of arms that are to be found in this lovely work of stained glass.

A Great Display of National and Provincial Heraldry

While wandering the streets of Victoria, British Columbia, I found myself walking by Confederation Garden Park which, in addition to having a lot of tourists (including me) and a large attractive fountain, has a great display of Canadian heraldry.

The central coat of arms is, of course, the full achievement of the arms of Canada:

And then, flanking the central achievement of arms, we find the coats of arms of the thirteen provinces of Canada:

On the left side, from left to right, the arms of Yukon, British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, and Ontario:

And on the right, from left to right, the arms of Quebec, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island, Newfoundland and Labrador, Northwest Territories, and Nunavut:

As you can see, although it took a bit of patient waiting and some careful timing, I did manage to get photographs of all of these shields without any tourists blocking the view.

And please feel free to click on any of the images above to go to a larger, more detailed picture to get the full effect of the detail in these coats of arms. They are well worth the look!

Anyway, it was nice to see such a great display of heraldry, right out there in the open for anyone walking by to enjoy!

Can You Guess Where I Went on My Most Recent Trip?

I recently came back from my first trip in two years. If I give you a heraldic clue, can you guess where I went?

Okay, not the clearest clue, I will admit. Is this one better? 

Here's another hint: here are the arms of the country I went to:

Many of you will recognize where I was now.

That's right! I was off in the "wilds" of British Columbia, Canada.

Specifically, I had returned to Victoria, British Columbia, for the annual general meeting of the Royal Heraldry Society of Canada. (Jo Ann and I had gone to Victoria in 2007 for that year's annual general meeting of the RHSC. Alas, this trip had to be made on my own owing to her death from cancer last October.)

I didn't happen to run across any depictions of the arms of the city of Victoria, but as you can see below, there are plenty of portrayals of the arms of British Columbia to be found, especially in Government House, the official residence of the Lieutenant Governor, which we visited while we were there:

The arms of British Columbia are blazoned as: Argent three bars wavy Azure issuant from the base over all a demi sun in splendour Or a chief of the Royal Union Flag charged in the centre with an antique crown Or.

That blazon is taken from the website of the CHA, hence the British spellings of “centre” and “splendour”.*

Victoria is a lovely city in a beautiful setting, and it was nice to be able to spend some time again there, and to see the use of the provincial coat of arms in various places.

* I am reminded of the old saw:

   Q: What is the difference between grey and gray?

   A: Grey is a colour, while gray is a color.

Heraldry in the Wild

I've said it many times before, and it continues to prove true:

You can find heraldry everywhere!

The most recent occasion for me was on one of my regular visits to a local gym. (At my age, I've got to do what I can to keep my body from deteriorating further, so I try to get there four times a week: twice to work on building up the sometimes painful right shoulder (one of my docs thinks it's got arthritis) and a half hour of cardio; and twice for the aqua fitness program that helps me stay flexible.)

Anyway, as I said, there I was in the gym parking lot early one morning and right there out in the "wilds" of Cedar Hill, Texas, I saw this:

On a custom automobile license plate, the arms of the Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, and just in case you didn't quite catch it, the plate was surrounded by a license plate holder proclaiming the driver to be a "proud member of S[outh]W[est] D[allas] C[ounty] A[lumnae]" Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta.

The Chapter's website notes that: "SWDCA is known for its diversity and leadership within the community. Our members are leaders in every facet of life within Delta Sigma Theta and their professional careers. With Service, Scholarship, Sisterhood, and Social Action at the forefront of our mission, SWDCA is a welcoming space for all members."

Delta Sigma Theta is a historically African American sorority. The organization was founded by college-educated women dedicated to public service with an emphasis on programs that assist the African American community. Delta Sigma Theta was founded on January 13, 1913 by twenty-two women at Howard University in Washington, D.C. Membership is open to any woman, regardless of religion, race, or nationality.

And here's a clearer image of the sorority's coat of arms, taken from Wikipedia:

As heraldry, sure, there can be some quibbles about the design and choice of colors. (For example: The cream color used here has the same issue as Pope Leo XIV's recently announced coat of arms; is it supposed to be argent [white] or or [gold/yellow]? On the other hand, it is certainly no worse, and in many cases is distinctly better, than the "arms" of many other American collegiate fraternities and sororities.

Still and all, it was fun to run across a coat of arms unexpectedly, out in the "wild" of a local gym parking lot.