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Royal
Crowns Through The Ages
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A recognition or honor of very high
stature has, since time immemorial, been displayed on the head.
A tiara for Miss Universe or Miss World, crown for the royalty,
a distinctive cap or helmet for tribal chieftains and so on are
some examples. A halo around the head is often associated with
seers and saints.
One can see several types of crowns in cathedrals, museums and
royal treasuries. During the religious ceremony of consecration
in Great Britain and the Vatican, the crown is still being used.
The evolution of crowns
Around a millennium back, English kings were invested with a
helmet set on an ornamental frame, that is the crown that we
associate with the royalty. Historians attribute evidence of
this to the seal of Edward the Confessor, wherein he wears a
helmet with an ornamental frame. |
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Another version of crown in early days in
England and in other countries reportedly consisted of a string of
jewels, which was tied at the back with a ribbon or set in a stiff
golden band. However, the nobility too adapted this helmet and there
arose a need for a headdress that would distinctly single out the
sovereign. The king’s helmet was embellished with a number of
ornaments that stood up from the rim. During the fifteenth century,
the headdress was further embellished by adding a few arches that
rose from the centre.
Carrying the heavy bejeweled crown from one place to another posed a
problem and therefore early European crowns were made in several
parts, each hinged together by long pins. Such a system also helped
when it came to the issue of size suitability for the wearer. It did
away with the need for making new crowns every time a new ruler
ascended the throne. Queen Victoria had a circlet that was also
hinged, but it was not detachable.
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A bejeweled crown on
display in a museum |
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During the seventeenth century, the pattern was slightly changed and
the arches were made to stand on the top of the surrounding
ornaments. This effected a change in the shape too, and the new head
dresses had a depression in the centre. People began to associate
the depression with an imperial significance.
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Jewel in the French crown
The fleur-de-lis, which means lily flower, is an
ornamentation associated with the French crown. It consists of
three petals. The one in the centre stands straight erect and
the two others lie curved on either side of the central one.
They are bound by a horizontal band. The smaller feet of the
petals are visible below the band.
According to French legend, a lily,
emblematic of purity, was sent from heaven to a |
The fleur-de-lis |
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French king at his Baptism. King Louis
VI of France used the device both as his seal and on coins and
King Louis VIII wore blue vestments embroidered with gold lilies
at his consecration. In due course, a blue shield sprinkled with
golden fleur-de-lis was adopted as the royal arms. It is
said that King Charles V of France limited the number of
fleur-de-lis to three, in the year 1376, in honor of the
Holy Trinity. The fleur-de-lis began to be included in
the arms of nobility in France. During the hundred years’ war,
English kings began quartering the French arms with their own to
represent their claims to French sovereignty. They did so until
the time of King George III. |
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