How could I forget Princess Lilian?!
HRH Princess Lilian, Duchess of Halland
The problem was that Bertil's elder borther, HRH Prince Gustaf Adolf, had died in an a plane crash (which also claimed American movie star Grace Moore) in 1947. Although Gustaf Adolf's own father wouldn't ascend the Swedish Throne for another 3 years, the loss of a direct heir and the prospect of his son, the infant Carl Gustav (the present King), becoming King then, meant that Bertil might have had to act as regent. Bertil therefore chose not to marry Lilian and they lived together discreetly.
In the end, Carl Gustav came to the Throne in 1973 as an adult and a regent was never needed. As the new King did away with much of the old protocol and himself married a commoner, he was able to sanction his Uncle's marriage to Lilian and they lived as man and wife for just over 20 years.
Lilian was consequently raised to the rank and title of HRH Princess Lilian, Duchess of Halland. Requiring a Coat of Arms to place at the centre of Bertil's achievement and being of non-armigerous stock, she was assigned a personal Coat of Arms in the Swedish colours of blue and yellow - namely, a bunch of three fleurs-de-lys or lillies - as a pun on her name. It might also be the case that her nickname was Lily.
Lilian passed away in 2013 and was afforded a full royal funeral, surrounded by royalty and wreaths of pastel-coloured flowers. Echoing her bridal bouquet as well as her Arms, a bouquet of lilies-of-the-valley had been placed on top of her coffin which was draped with a Royal Standard.
Are there any others...?
- Prince Charles's title as Lord High Steward of Scotland as Heir to the Throne. This title came from a junior branch of the Stewart family and was merged with the Crown when Robert Stewart, 7th High Steward of Scotland inherited the throne of Scotland via his mother and became King Robert II In 1371. The title was re-granted by the monarch to his elder son and heir apparent, together with the titles Duke of Rothesay (created 1398) and Baron of Renfrew (created 1404). The Coat of Arms associated with the title are Or, a fess chequy argent and azure, i.e a white and blue chequered band on a yellow background. Part of the High Steward's role was managing the King's finances, the accounting for which was performed on a chequered cloth (as in the Exchequer in England) and may thus be considered a pun on the title. It may also, though be considered a representation of the title's function.
- Another possibility would be HRH The Duchess of Gloucester who was covered in a previous Blog regarding HRH's direct Grant of Arms due to her parents being divorced. HRH's name before marriage was Van Deurs, her mother's maiden name, whereas she was actually born Birgitte Eva Henriksen. The Grant being made to HRH herself, by Royal Warrant 10 days after her marriage in 1972 to the then Prince Richard of Gloucester, she does not marshal her Arms with her husband but carries them on an Inescutcheon on top of his Shield as depicted. The bird is a Lapwing and features in the heraldry of the Danish Family Van Deurs, i.e. her Mother's side. The Blazon for which appears to be Azure, a Lapwing Argent standing on soil Vert. In other words, a white/silver Lapwing standing on green ground against a blue background. HRH's Lapwing is in its natural colours rather than silver and the green ground has been replaced by crossed black Ostrich Feathers on a yellow/gold Chief at the top of the Shield. The Latin for the lapwing family is Vanellinae, which is nearly Van Deurs, but not quite. The Danish for lapwing is Vibe.
- Another possibility could have been HRH The Countess of Wessex whose maiden name was Sophie Rhys-Jones. Both surnames are of Welsh origin. Her Welsh family Motto translates as Hateful the man who loves not the country that nurtured him. Rhys means ardour or enthusiasm. Jones means Son of Iaon and is related to the first name John. So, nothing to do with backward-facing lions...
PS M. Alain Cavallier
I have rediscovered a depiction of M. Alain Cavallier's Coat of Arms to confirm what the secondary elements are. Those of his daughter, now HRH Princess Marie of Denmark, are red Hearts voided of inverted Fleurs-de-Lys. M. Cavallier shows his blue Knight on horseback between three simple red Fleurs-de-Lys. The Crest (on top of the Helm), which Marie does not use, is shown as a blue Horse (cheval in French) thereby reinforcing the pun on Marie's maiden surname. I apologise for the smallness and lack of quality of the image, only the link to the larger image has been removed as the website no longer exists. |
The Royal Forums also suggest that there is a pun on Marie's first name, but professes not to see it. The pun is, of course, the Fleur-de-Lys, which is a symbol of the Virgin Mary.