Thursday, August 17, 2023

Personal Crests on Military Memorials


Having looked at memorials in Ely Cathedral to military men containing in the first instance Regiment badges and in the second instance personal coats of arms, we now come to memorials to soldiers, all from the 4th Battalion Suffolk Regiment bearing the personal crests of those being memorialized.


This is the memorial to Col. Harry Frost (1845-1898), placed here by his brother officers, past and present.


At the top of the memorial is his crest: A trefoil slipped between a pair of wings erect azure.


Next is the memorial of Capt. and Hon. Major Albert Julian Pell (1864-1916) (another casualty of World War I).


Here, too, at the top is his crest: On a mural crown a mullet pierced sable, along with his motto: Mente Manuque (With mind and hand).


And finally, we have the memorial of Lt. Col. William Browne Ferris (1841-1906), erected here by his family.


At the top we find his crest: Issuant from a crest coronet a sinister hand appaumy between a pair of wings erect all proper, along with his motto: Toujours pret (Always ready).

The variety in crests is almost as great as that in coats of arms, and it always is of interest (at least to me) to see crests used as a means of memorializing someone.

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