Tudor Crown

Tudor Crown
The crown in a portrait of Charles I
Heraldic depictions
Details
Country	Kingdom of England
Made	No later than 1521
Destroyed	1649

The Tudor Crown was a crown created in the early 16th century for either Henry VII or Henry VIII, the first Tudor monarchs of England, and destroyed in 1649 during the English Civil War. It was described by the art historian Sir Roy Strong as 'a masterpiece of early Tudor jeweller's art'.^[1]

A representation of the Tudor Crown is a widely used symbol in the heraldry of the United Kingdom. In use officially from 1901 to 1952 and again from 2022, it is used to represent 'the Crown' as the sovereign source of governmental authority. As such, it appears on numerous official emblems in the United Kingdom, British Empire, and the Commonwealth.^[2][3]

Its date of manufacture is unknown, but Henry VII or his son and successor Henry VIII probably commissioned the crown, first documented in writing in a 1521 inventory of Henry VIII's jewels, naming the crown as 'the king's crown of gold'.^[4] More elaborate than its medieval predecessor, it took the form of a closed crown, originally with two arches, five crosses pattée and five fleurs-de-lis, and was decorated with emeralds, sapphires, rubies, pearls, diamonds and, at one time, the Black Prince's Ruby (a large spinel).^[5][a] In the centre petals of the fleurs-de-lis were gold and enamel figurines of the Virgin Mary, St George and three images of Christ. In an effort by Henry VIII to secure his position as head of the new Church of England^[5] the figures of Christ were removed and replaced by three Kings of England: St Edmund, St Edward the Confessor and Henry VI, who at that time was also venerated as a saint. The crown was mentioned again in 1532, 1550, 1574 and 1597.

With the death of Elizabeth I and the end of the Tudor dynasty, the Stuarts came to power in England. Both James I and Charles I are known to have worn the crown.^[7] Following the abolition of the monarchy and the execution of Charles I in 1649, the Tudor Crown was broken up and its valuable components sold for £1,100.^[8] According to an inventory drawn up for the sale of the king's goods, it weighed 7 lb 6 oz troy (2.8 kg).^[9]

One of the royal figurines may have survived: a statuette of Henry VI matching the contemporary depiction of the crown was uncovered in 2017 by metal detectorist Kevin Duckett. The location, 'at Great Oxendon...between Naseby and Market Harborough',^[10] was on the route taken by Charles I of England as he fled after the Battle of Naseby and may have been lost at that time. The figurine was likely featured on Henry VIII's crown according to some sources.^[11] As of February 2021, the figure was being held at the British Museum for assessment and further research. According to historian and Charles I biographer Leanda de Lisle, 'the crown was melted down on the orders of Oliver Cromwell but it is believed the figurine – which was one of several adorning the royal treasure – could already have been removed'.^[12][13][14]

In 2012, a replica of the crown, based on research by Historic Royal Palaces, was made by the retired royal jeweller Harry Collins, using authentic Tudor metalworking techniques and 344 pearls and gemstones. It is exhibited as part of an exhibition within the Chapel Royal at Hampton Court Palace.^[15]

The heraldic depictions of the royal crown have undergone many changes in their form and enrichment. The crown began to assume its present form in the reign of Henry V.^[16] Henry V's crown consisted of a jewelled circlet heightened by four crosses pattée alternating with eight fleurs-de-lis in pairs, and two arches springing from behind the crosses and supporting at the top a mound and cross.^[16] In some reigns, additional arches were used, and the number of crosses pattée and fleurs-de-lis varied. By the reign of Charles I, the heraldic crown was depicted similarly to the Tudor Crown (made either for Henry VII or Henry VIII) which had four crosses pattée alternating with four fleurs-de-lis, and also four arches rising almost to a point, the arches being studded with pearls. This crown was destroyed during the English Civil War.^[16]

After the restoration of the monarchy, Charles II based the heraldic crown on the new St Edward's Crown of 1661.^[b] It had four crosses pattée alternating with four fleurs-de-lis; the number of arches was reduced to two and the curvature of the arches was depressed at the point of intersection. On this pattern the royal crown was depicted until the reign of Queen Victoria.^[16] Although Fox-Davies states that the St Edward's Crown is supposed to be heraldically represented over the Royal Arms and other insignia because 'it is the "official" crown of England', various other crowns were depicted under Victoria, whose coronation, unusually, did not feature the St Edward's Crown at all.^[2][17] Early depictions of the Royal Arms during her reign featured the Imperial State Crown which was created for Victoria's coronation in 1838 and was similar to the St Edward's Crown but with a flatter top.^[16][18] However, depictions varied depending on the artist.^[2]

In 1876, Victoria was proclaimed Empress of India, and in 1880, the heraldic crown was altered to give it a more imperial form by making the arches semi-circular.^[16][19] However, Victoria had favoured a Tudor style crown since at least the 1860s.^[20][21] Victoria had featured in William Wyon's gothic crown coin in 1847,^[22] and the Palace of Westminster, rebuilt from 1840 to 1876, makes extensive use of a gothic style crown. The British had assumed direct rule over India in 1858, and the Order of the Star of India, created in 1861, depicted a Tudor Crown from its inception.^[23] Victoria had a new crown made in 1870 which resembled the Tudor Crown,^[24] declining to wear the Imperial State Crown which she found heavy and uncomfortable.^[2]

A heraldic crown of Queen Victoria from 1865, one of several used during Victoria's reign^[21][20]

The authorised heraldic crown of 1901 which was standardised across the British Empire^[2][3]

The heraldic crown of 2022 with a plain circlet, differently arranged jewels, and larger crosses and ermine^[25][26]

After the accession of Edward VII, the War Office raised the issue of a standardised design of the crown for use by the British Army, there being in use several crowns of different patterns.^[3] On 4 May 1901, the king approved a single Tudor Crown design based on the crown of Henry VII, as 'chosen and always used by Queen Victoria personally'.^[2][3] The design of the crown and the new royal cypher was issued as a sealed pattern by the War Office rather than by the College of Arms.^[3] The 1901 pattern crown depicted a thin ermine lining below a golden circlet holding a crimson cap; the circlet jewelled with an oblong shaped ruby in the centre between two oval emeralds and two oblong sapphires on the outside. Each jewel is separated by two small vertically arranged pearls. Above the jewels, an invected line and a band supporting two fleurs-de-lis between three crosses pattée, each cross studded with a pearl in the centre. There are nine larger pearls on each of the outer half-arches and five pearls on the central half-arch. The outer arches rise in a semi-circle, with no depression or flattening, to support a mound, while the central half-arch widens as it rises, appearing to sit slightly above the outer arch. The mound is an emerald banded in gold topped with a small golden cross which is centrally studded with a small pearl.^[27][28][29] The coronet of the Prince of Wales created for the 1902 coronation was heraldically represented similarly to the 1901 pattern crown, minus the central half-arch.^[30][28]

George VI had ceased to use the style 'Emperor of India' in 1948 following India's independence in 1947,^[31] and on the accession of Elizabeth II in 1952, she opted to change from the 1901 Tudor Crown to a design resembling St Edward's Crown, similar to that last used before the reign of Victoria.^[16][32]

Charles III adopted the Tudor Crown on his accession in 2022, similar to that last used under George VI but with some differences.^[25][26] The circlet is plain with larger jewels, crosses and ermine. In addition to being larger, the jewels in the circlet are arranged differently to the 1901 pattern and in different shapes. In the centre is a sapphire between two emeralds, and the outermost jewels are rubies, mirroring the heraldic St Edward's Crown of Elizabeth II.^[25][33] The sapphire and rubies are in a rhombus shape rather than oblong, while the emeralds are oval in shape.^[25] Unlike the 1901 Tudor Crown, the mound is solid gold rather than emerald banded in gold.^[33] The cap of the heraldic crowns is always represented as crimson, regardless of the colour of any actual crowns.^[2]

Unlike the strict uniformity enforced with the introduction of the 1901 crown design,^[3] a variety of different crown designs have been brought into service since 2022, mirroring the proliferation of designs under Queen Victoria.^[2] The 2023 design for use on police badges in the UK was a faithful reproduction of the crown selected by the King for the royal cypher but in a silver colour to match that of the Brunswick star.^[26] However, the designs announced for badges of the British armed forces in March 2023 in time for the coronation in May differed from the design selected by the King for his royal cypher. The Royal Navy and Royal Marines cap badges have a more detailed circlet which includes five pearls between each jewel, and also a more depressed arch, thus matching the footprint of the former St Edward's Crown design.^[34] The crown announced for use on British Army cap badges was initially the same as that of the Royal Navy^[35] but was quickly revised after the announcement to include only two pearls between each jewel on the circlet.^[36] The crown used by the RAF also displays two pearls between each jewel but has a more semi-circular arch in the same shape as that used in the 1901 and 2022 cyphers. Unusually compared to other heraldic designs which 'scrupulously adhered' to the display of only half fleur-de-lis,^[2] the crown used by the RAF also displays the base.^[37] In Canada, a specifically Canadian design was unveiled which takes inspiration from the 2022 Tudor Crown but differs significantly in detailing and has been controversial.^[38][39] Furthermore, the former St Edward's Crown design remains in use in many of the Commonwealth realms and has not been updated. The Financial Times reported in June 2024 that the rollout of the new British Army cap badges had been delayed by fears that badges manufactured in China may contain tracking devices or transmitters.^[40]

Use of the crowns for commercial purposes is specifically restricted in the UK (and in countries which are party to the Paris Convention) under sections 4 and 99 of the Trade Marks Act 1994, and their use is governed by the Lord Chamberlain's Office.^[41][42][43] It is also an offence under Section 12 of the Trade Descriptions Act 1968 to give a false indication that any goods or services are supplied to the monarch or any member of the royal family.^[44][43]

• St Edward's Crown
• Imperial State Crown
• Crown Jewels of the United Kingdom

Media related to Tudor Crown at Wikimedia Commons

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Tudor Crown in heraldry.

• Replica at Hampton Court Palace
• The Making of Henry VIII's Crown a video by Historic Royal Palaces
• The Lost Crown of Henry VIII a video by Allan Barton The Antiquary
• Download a 3D digital model at Thingiverse
• "United Kingdom: Crowns on Flags". Flags of the World.