The Haiti Earthquake, and an Heraldic Response

Clive Cheesman, Rouge Dragon Pursuivant at the College of Arms in London and editor of The Armorial of Haiti, has posted the following on the rec.heraldry newsgroup.  I'm passing it along here to those of you who might not otherwise see it, and to urge you, if you do not already have a copy of this book, to buy one.  (And if you do already have a copy, you know how great a book it is, and maybe you should buy another copy to give to a friend.)    You'd be doing your personal heraldic library a favor, and helping a nation in need at the same time.

In response to the calamitous earthquake that struck Haiti yesterday evening, the College of Arms has decided that all proceeds arising from future sales of The Armorial of Haiti: Symbols of Nobility in the Reign of Henry Christophe (ISBN 978-09506980-2-1) will be donated to the relief effort.

The book is an edition, with commentary, of an extraordinary heraldic manuscript created in Haiti in the second decade of the nineteenth century and now held in the College of Arms. It was published by the College in 2007 and is available on-line for 45 pounds sterling (plus despatch costs) at http://www.college-of-arms.gov.uk/Haiti.htm and through amazon.co.uk. Production costs for the book have been met, and all sums received by the College over and above normal packing and postage costs will be held for the benefit of a recognised charity working towards the international relief effort, the charity to be selected on the basis of official advice.

I would urge those who have not yet acquired a copy of this book to consider doing so, and to mention it to others who may be interested either in New World heraldry, in Caribbean history or specifically in the politics and culture of Haiti. Doing so will raise money directly for the relief of the nation that produced this unusual and fascinating artefact.

If you have already purchased a copy of the book, or as an alternative to doing so now, please consider donating directly to the effort to the relief campaign through a charity of your choice.

Clive Cheesman
Rouge Dragon
College of Arms
Queen Victoria Street
London
EC4V 4BT