New Westminster’s

The Diocesan Coat of Arms appears in many cial “liveries” of the English monarchy. you wish. score. When in Montreal a decision was places. It was on the letter that the You’ll sometimes see “coronation portraits” delayed by provincial synod about who was sent to every Anglican family last month, for with the Sovereign wearing made History of the design to be the first bishop of Algoma (1879), example. But what does it symbolize? The Rev. from cloth of gold and lined in . The design was created with the in the waiting , Ashton Robert Black of Toronto, expert in the That’s what you see alluded to on the 1879 for the of the first bishop. It’s Oxenden of Montreal, doodled the new di- has graciously provided the following infor- shield, obviously because Westminster hard to know who designed it, but I have ocese’s design combining his own episco- mation. Abbey was a “Royal peculiar.” The first three leading contenders. pal arms with those of the secular prov- would, I am sure, not have been Under the former imperial system, a di- ince of Ontario. The eventual choice, Fre- unhappy to make such a close associa- ocese once began life with a coat of arms derick Fauquier, subsequently complained, The description tion for themselves. The roses stand issued by Royal warrant (i.e., direct- “I have been sent out for mission work for England, and the bishop’s ly from the ) to signify the ‘armed’ only with arms sketched on a The Letters Patent granting the arms of the (obviously!) for the Crown’s favour of its opera- scrap!” Diocese of New Westminster were granted bishop. The dividing tions. After the repeal of Oxenden knew something about her- through the in London between top and the centralist principal aldry, and so in the 1870’s did many gen- UK on February 10, 1960 (Grants, volume bottom is jagged in 1846, and the tlemen. Your diocesan shield most proba- CXXII, folio 212). The “” to represent granting of in- bly was designed by one of the Wyons, technical description is: “ a New West- ternal colonial members of the family who ran the British Patonce between Five Or on a minster’s self-govern- engraving company that produced episco- Chiefdancetty of three points Gold a pal seals and rings. They are certainly on ermine thereon a Mitre proper between two record as producing Bishop Sillitoe’s seal Roses barbed and seeded also proper.” in 1879. (Cf. Conrad Swan, “Sopie Cana- In plain English, the description would dian Seals by the Wyons” in Heraldry in be: The bottom part of the shield has a blue Canada.) background, on which is a gold “patonce” Then again the Toronto lawyer and cross surrounded by five martlets. The top heraldist, Edward Marion Chadwick, “fa- part has three indentations pointing to- ther of heraldry in Canada”, could also wards the bottom; the first and last third have designed it. He was very active at has a gold background featuring an En- this time and was very well known; the glish in its natural colours, and arms of Ottawa diocese, for example, the centre third has an ermine back- are his creation. It could also have been ground with a bishop’s mitre in its generated by the noted British heraldist colours. (and Scottish Episcopal priest) John The design Woodward. I wonder about this connec- As is often found in traditional tion because he is the first to mention it, heraldry, a shield design draws on first, in Notes & Queries for April 9, 1881, allusions to others with the same name. page 286, and then in his book A Treatise This shield is for “New” Westminster, a on Ecclesiastical Heraldry (1894) where he related institution, and so the explains the rationale behind it. design refers first of all to the “old” Artistic versions Westminster, in this case, the post- We have two professional versions of this Reformation arms borne by the Abbey shield, which I hope might be of use. First is a Church of St. Peter in Westminster, photograph of a painting of this shield by the London, England. Simple enough. Rev’d Kenneth Crawford, formerly of the The Abbey arms, in turn, were based diocese of Melbourne, Australia. on the “reputed” arms of King Edward the Second is a line drawing of this shield, Confessor, who in fact died before - made by Canada’s foremost heraldic artist, ry was in use. “His” arms (the bottom part Painting by Gordon Macpherson. It was produced with of your shield) was created long after the many others in 1987-88 for the “Heraldry and fact from coins designed and struck dur- the Rev. Kenneth ment, spiritu- Flag project,” General Synod Archives. The ing his realm. It is nowadays believed that al matters collection as a whole was purchased by Micha- the birds on the coins had been doves, tak- Crawford, came under lo- el Lloyd for the Anglican Book Centre, and en from his sceptre, and standing for peace Worcester, cal “state author- can be provided for any legitimate use. and “good news” (cf. end of the Flood ac- ity.” But bishops of count in Genesis), and therefore allude to new Anglican dioces- the gospel. What is shown is “messenger location at the edge of the Rocky Moun- es continued to want a Robert Black headed the “Heraldry and Flag birds” or martlets, invented by the medi- coat of arms, as if nothing Project” for the General Synod, and collected eval and always drawn without feet, tains. had happened, and so began information on diocesan arms, including since they were thought always to be in the All the details on the mi- tre that you mention are mere- to “assume” them. The princi- New Westminster’s. He lives in Toronto. air. Here they can still be claimed as “mes- pal, under the honours system still sengers of [good] news from the cross” ap- ly decorative, derived from (artis- tically degenerate) Georgian and in place, is analogous to giving your- propriate - enough for a diocese! self the right to wear a medal. The top is in gold and ermine, the offi- pseudo-Gothique models. (They drive me crazy.) You can show the mitre any way There’s a mildly amusing story on that

Cathedral has a Coat of Arms as well Christ Church Cathedral has a coat of bearing a Chi Rho Azure encircled arms as well as does the diocese. by three salmon in Salish style interlaced As the place where the bishop’s chair is .” kept, or the “,” the cathedral’s arms In other words a circle of three Salish incorporate the picture of a chair – and at style salmon, copper coloured, inside a the top, the diocese’s arms. Celtic cross, and at the very centre the The cathedral’s coat of arms is Greek letters chi and rho (the first letters Canadian (in Volume III, page 277, public of Christos), with waves at the bottom register of Arms, Flags and Badges of symbolizing the sea. Canada), and granted in 1998. The , “I hold before you an open The heraldric description: “Argent in door,” was the text (adopted from base two bars wavy Azure surmounted by Revelation 3:8) of the first sermon preached a Celtic cross throughout Gules at by the first , the Rev. H. P. Hobson, the centre with a Salish spindle whorl who was appointed in 1888.

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