BRITISH MONARCHY AND ITS INFLUENCE UPON GOVERNMENTAL INSTITUTIONS

tradition, the new portrait continues to show the Queen in profile facing

to the right. Her Majesty is wearing the tiara which she was given as a

wedding present by her grandmother Queen Mary.

Images of the monarch on bank notes are a much more recent invention.

Although bank notes began to be issued from the late seventeenth century,

they did not come to predominate over coins until the nineteenth century.

Only since 1960 has the British Sovereign been featured on English bank

notes, giving The Queen a unique distinction above her predecessors.

STAMPS

There is a close relationship between the British Monarchy and the postal

system of the United Kingdom. Present-day postal services have their

origins in royal methods of sending documents in previous centuries.

Nowadays, the image of The Queen on postage stamps preserves the connection

with the Monarchy.

For centuries letters on affairs of State to and from the Sovereign's

Court, and despatches in time of war, were carried by Messengers of the

Court and couriers employed for particular occasions. Henry VIII's Master

of the Posts set up post-stages along the major roads of the kingdom where

Royal Couriers, riding post-haste, could change horses. In Elizabeth I's

day, those carrying the royal mail were to 'blow their horn as oft as they

met company, or four times every mile'. Letters of particular urgency - for

example, reprieves for condemned prisoners - bore inscriptions such as

'Haste, haste - post haste - haste for life for life hast' and the sign of

the gallows. During the reign of James I (1603-25) all four posts of the

kingdom still centred on the Court: The Courte to Barwicke (the post to

Scotland); The Courte to Beaumoris (to Ireland); The Courte to Dover (to

Europe) and The Courte to Plymouth (the Royal Dockyard).

Charles I opened his posts to public use, as a means of raising money.

Although public use of the royal posts increased, the running of the mail

continued to centre round the post requirements of the Sovereign's Court.

Until the 1780's the Mails did not leave London until the Court letters had

been received at the General Post Office, and as late as 1807 Court letters

coming into London were, unlike ordinary letters, delivered the moment the

mail arrived. The postal system rapidly spread during Victoria's reign with

the introduction of the Uniform Penny Postage in 1840, and the Queen's

letters bore postage stamps like everyone else's. Royal Messengers

continued to carry certain letters by hand. The increase in the Court's

mail led to special postal facilities being provided in 1897 in the form of

a Court Post Office - an arrangement which still exists today under the

management of the Court Postmaster.

Symbols of the royal origins of the UK's postal system remain: a

miniature silhouette of the Monarch's head is depicted on all stamps; the

personal cyphers of The Queen and her predecessors (going back to Victoria)

appear on many letterboxes dating from their respective reigns throughout

the country; and the postal delivery service is known as the Royal Mail.

COATS OF ARMS

The function of the Royal Coat of Arms is to identify the person who is

Head of State. In respect of the United Kingdom, the royal arms are borne

only by the Sovereign. They are used in many ways in connection with the

administration and government of the country, for instance on coins, in

churches and on public buildings. They are familiar to most people as they

appear on the products and goods of Royal Warrant holders.

The Royal Coat of Arms of the United Kingdom have evolved over many years

and reflect the history of the Monarchy and of the country. In the design

the shield shows the various royal emblems of different parts of the United

Kingdom: the three lions of England in the first and fourth quarters, the

lion of Scotland in the second and the harp of Ireland in the third. It is

surrounded by a garter bearing the motto Honi soit qui mal y pense ('Evil

to him who evil thinks'), which symbolises the Order of the Garter, an

ancient order of knighthood of which the Queen is Sovereign. The shield is

supported by the English lion and Scottish unicorn and is surmounted by the

Royal crown. Below it appears the motto of the Sovereign, Dieu et mon droit

('God and my right'). The plant badges of the United Kingdom - rose,

thistle and shamrock - are often displayed beneath the shield.

Separate Scottish and English quarterings of the Royal Arms originate

from the Union of the Crown in 1603. The Scottish version of the Royal Coat

of Arms shows the lion of Scotland in the first and fourth quarters, with

that of England being in the second. The harp of Ireland is in the third

quarter. The mottoes read In defence and No one will attack me with

impunity. From the times of the Stuart kings, the Scottish quarterings have

been used for official purposes in Scotland (for example, on official

buildings and official publications).

The special position of Wales as a Principality was recognised by the

creation of the Prince of Wales long before the incorporation of the

quarterings for Scotland and Ireland in the Royal Arms. The arms of the

Prince of Wales show the arms of the ancient Principality in the centre as

well as these quarterings.

Coats of Arms of members of the Royal Family are broadly similar to The

Queen's with small differences to identify them.

GREAT SEAL

The Great Seal of the Realm is the chief seal of the Crown, used to show

the monarch's approval of important state documents. In today's

constitutional monarchy, the Sovereign acts on the advice of the Government

of the day, but the seal remains an important symbol of the Sovereign's

role as Head of State.

The practice of using this seal began in the reign of Edward the

Confessor in the 11th century, when a double-sided metal matrix with an

image of the Sovereign was used to make an impression in wax for attachment

by ribbon or cord to royal documents. The seal meant that the monarch did

not need to sign every official document in person; authorisation could be

carried out instead by an appointed officer. In centuries when few people

could read or write, the seal provided a pictorial expression of royal

approval which all could understand. The uniqueness of the official seal -

only one matrix was in existence at any one time - also meant it was

difficult to forge or tamper with official documents.

The Great Seal matrix has changed many times throughout the centuries. A

new matrix is engraved at the beginning of each reign on the order of the

Sovereign; it is traditional that on the death of the Sovereign the old

seal is used until the new Sovereign orders otherwise. For many monarchs, a

single seal has sufficed. In the case of some long-reigning monarchs, such

as Queen Victoria, the original seal simply wore out and a series of

replacements was required.

The Queen has had two Great Seals during her reign. The first was

usage and the heat involved in the sealing process, the matrix lost

definition. From summer 2001 a new Great Seal, designed by sculptor James

Butler and produced by the Royal Mint, has been in use. At a meeting of the

Privy Council on 18 July 2001 The Queen handed the new seal matrix over to

the Lord High Chancellor, currently Lord Irvine of Lairg, who is the

traditional keeper of the Great Seal.

The Great Seal matrix will be used to create seals for a range of

documents requiring royal approval, including letters patent, royal

proclamations, commissions, some writs (such as writs for the election of

Members of Parliament), and the documents which give power to sign and

ratify treaties. During the year 2000-01, more than 100 documents passed

under the Great Seal. Separate seals exist for Scotland - the Great Seal of

Scotland - and for Northern Ireland.

The process of sealing takes place nowadays at the House of Lords in the

office of the Clerk of the Crown in Chancery. A system of 'colour coding'

is used for the seal impression, depending on the type of document to which

it is being affixed. Dark green seals are affixed to letters patent which

elevate individuals to the peerage; blue seals are used for documents

relating to the close members of the Royal Family; and scarlet red is used

for documents appointing a bishop and for most other patents.

FLAGS

A number of different types of flag are associated with The Queen and the

Royal Family. The Union Flag (or Union Jack) originated as a Royal flag,

although it is now also flown by many people and organisations elsewhere in

the United Kingdom by long established custom. The Royal Standard is the

flag flown when The Queen is in residence in one of the Royal Palaces, on

The Queen's car on official journeys and on aircraft (when on the ground),

and represents the Sovereign and the United Kingdom. The Queen's personal

flag, adopted in 1960, is personal to her alone and can be flown by no one

other than The Queen. Members of the Royal Family have their own personal

variants on the Royal Standard. The Prince of Wales has additional

Standards which he uses in Wales and Scotland.

CROWNS AND JEWELS

The crowns and treasures associated with the British Monarchy are

powerful symbols of monarchy for the British people and, as such, their

value represents more than gold and precious stones. Today the crowns and

treasures associated with English kings and queens since 1660 and earlier

are used for the Coronation of Monarchs of the United Kingdom. The crowns

and regalia used by Scottish monarchs (the Honours of Scotland) and Princes

of Wales (the Honours of the Principality of Wales) continue to have

symbolic meaning in Scotland and Wales. All three collections of treasures

can be viewed today in their different locations - the Tower of London,

Edinburgh Castle and the National Museum of Wales, Cardiff.

TRANSPORT

The Queen's State and private motor cars are housed in the Royal Mews.

For official duties - providing transport for State and other visitors as

well as The Queen herself - there are nine State limousines, consisting of

one Bentley, five Rolls-Royces and three Daimlers. They are painted in

Royal maroon livery and the Bentley and Rolls-Royces uniquely do not have

registration number plates. Other vehicles include a number of Vauxhall

Sintra 'people carriers'.

The most recent State car, which is used for most of The Queen's

engagements, is a State Bentley presented to The Queen to mark her Golden

Jubilee in 2002. The one-off model, conceived by a Bentley-led consortium

of British motor industry manufacturers and suppliers, is the first Bentley

to be used for State occasions. It was designed with input from The Queen,

The Duke of Edinburgh and Her Majesty's Head Chauffeur.

In technical terms, the car has a monocoque construction, enabling

greater use to be made of the vehicle's interior space. This means the

transmission tunnel now runs underneath the floor, without encroaching on

the cabin and has enabled the stylists to work with a lowered roofline

whilst preserving the required interior height. The rear doors have been

redesigned enabling The Queen to stand up straight before stepping down to

the ground. The rear seats are upholstered in Hield Lambswool Sateen cloth

whilst all remaining upholstery is in light grey Connolly hide. Carpets are

pale blue in the rear and dark blue in the front.

A Rolls-Royce Phantom VI was presented to The Queen in 1978 for her

Silver Jubilee by the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders. The

oldest car in the fleet is the Phantom IV, built in 1950, 5.76 litre with a

straight eight engine and a Mulliner body. There is also a 1987 Phantom VI

and two identical Phantom V models built in the early 1960s. The 1978

Phantom VI and the two Phantom V models have a removable exterior roof

covering, which exposes an inner lining of perspex, giving a clear view of

passengers.

All the cars have fittings for the shield bearing the Royal Coat of Arms

and the Royal Standard. The Queen has her own mascot for use on official

cars. Designed for her by the artist Edward Seago in the form of St George

on a horse poised victorious over a slain dragon, it is made of silver and

can be transferred from car to car as necessary. The Duke of Edinburgh's

mascot, a heraldic lion wearing a crown, is adapted from his arms.

For her private use The Queen drives a Daimler Jaguar saloon or a

Vauxhall estate (like every other qualified driver, The Queen holds a

driving licence). The Duke of Edinburgh has a Range Rover and, for short

journeys round London, uses a Metrocab. The private cars are painted

Edinburgh green.

A number of Royal Mews vehicles have now been converted to run on

liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) - a more environmentally friendly fuel than

petrol or diesel. Converted vehicles include one of the Rolls-Royce Phantom

IVs, a Daimler and The Duke of Edinburgh's Metrocab.

CARS