Today is May Day (at least when I started writing this post) and May has traditionally been Mary's month. What a better way to combine two subjects I love, Walsingham and heraldry. As such, I was able to finish up a project I started in 2014, painting the arms of the College of Guardians of the Holy House of Walsingham. I hung the plaque above an icon of Our Lady of Walsingham that I had commissioned back in seminary. I told you I was revisiting old hobbies.
I first encountered these arms when I was in Walsingham for the National Pilgrimage in 2009. I wish I would have paid more attention to Walsingham's heraldry, for it was everywhere! The Shrine's Facebook page has been generally more active of late, and I've spotted a few images they've shared that I'd like to re-share here.
If you look closely on the flag of St. George, you'll spot an escutcheon of the arms.
The arms of the College of Guardians ensigned by a gallero on the tombstone of The Rev. Alfred Hope Patten, the restorer of the Shrine. Interesting that his own arms were not used.
See my previous post on the matter.
So, it begs the deeper question, what is the provenance of these arms?
According to one source I found online, the arms of the Priory of Walsingham were recorded around 1510, blazoned, "argent a cross sable five lilies slipped [of the field]." These seem simple and most attractive. Simple enough. What, then, of the Holy House which we see on the shield today?
The next clue comes in 1945. The Shrine's restoration and expansion began in the 1930s, and it makes sense that as the enterprise grew, the corporate governing body (the Guardians) would want some device or brand for the Shrine. At that time, the Rev. Henry Joy Fynes-Clinton was actively involved with the work of the Shrine and approached the College of Arms in London for a grant of arms. He generously paid the heralds' fees for the grant on behalf of the Shrine. Fynes-Clinton wrote an article for "Our Lady's Mirror" in the Spring of 1945 entitled "Armorial Bearings of Our Lady," in which he describes the new grant.
Click here to read Fynes-Clinton's article.
Fynes-Clinton rightfully points out that the arms of the Priory of Walsingham, found in the local parish window, were already in existence. As such, the College of Guardians could not rightfully lay claim to those arms. Thus, the arms had to be differenced in order to be granted. In this case, the use of a canton is a brilliant way to difference these particular arms. Moreover, the Holy House would suffice for that differenced canton.
The Rev. Alfred Hope Patten had used the front of the seal to help create the statue of Our Lady. It's only fitting, then, that the obverse should be used to create the arms. The detail of the Holy House can be found on the Priory's seal.
And voila! The arms of the College of Guardians of the Holy House of Our of Walsingham have armorial bearings blazoned, "argent upon a cross sable, five lilies of the first slipped and seeded proper; a canton azure, charged with a Holy House or." The crest is blazoned, "upon a helm mantling of the colours, issuing from a celestial crown of 12 points and stars, or, three lilies argent seeded or." The motto is Domus Dei: porta caeli, which Fynes-Clinton translates as, "the House of God: the Gate of Heaven."
The letters patent. Photo is from the Walsingham Shrine's website.
A fine rendering of the mantling, arms, crest, and motto. Photo is from the Walsingham Shrine's Archives.
An ex libris (bookplate) from the College of St. Augustine, Walsingham. Here's where we see the use of the priest's galero as an external ornament.
If you look closely (click image to enlarge) at Mary's cloak or cope, you can spot both the arms of the Guardians (viewer's left) and the arms of the Shrine's restorer, Hope Patten (viewer's right). I had never noticed these arms here before!
And finally my rendering of the arms, acrylic on pine. Getting the detail of the Holy House just right was quite the challenge.
All told, it was fascinating to dive into the history of these arms and their association with the Shrine. I just can't believe it took a pandemic for me to finish these beautiful arms.
