Office of the Chief Herald of Ireland
Encyclopedia
Republic of Ireland
Ireland , described as the Republic of Ireland , is a sovereign state in Europe occupying approximately five-sixths of the island of the same name. Its capital is Dublin. Ireland, which had a population of 4.58 million in 2011, is a constitutional republic governed as a parliamentary democracy,...
for heraldry
Heraldry
Heraldry is the profession, study, or art of creating, granting, and blazoning arms and ruling on questions of rank or protocol, as exercised by an officer of arms. Heraldry comes from Anglo-Norman herald, from the Germanic compound harja-waldaz, "army commander"...
. The Chief Herald authorises the granting of arms
Coat of arms
A coat of arms is a unique heraldic design on a shield or escutcheon or on a surcoat or tabard used to cover and protect armour and to identify the wearer. Thus the term is often stated as "coat-armour", because it was anciently displayed on the front of a coat of cloth...
to Irish bodies and Irish people
Irish people
The Irish people are an ethnic group who originate in Ireland, an island in northwestern Europe. Ireland has been populated for around 9,000 years , with the Irish people's earliest ancestors recorded having legends of being descended from groups such as the Nemedians, Fomorians, Fir Bolg, Tuatha...
, including descendants of emigrants
Irish diaspora
thumb|Night Train with Reaper by London Irish artist [[Brian Whelan]] from the book Myth of Return, 2007The Irish diaspora consists of Irish emigrants and their descendants in countries such as the United Kingdom, the United States, Canada, Australia, Argentina, New Zealand, Mexico, South Africa,...
. His office was constituted on 1 April 1943 as successor to the Ulster King of Arms, established in the Anglo-Norman Kingdom of Ireland
Kingdom of Ireland
The Kingdom of Ireland refers to the country of Ireland in the period between the proclamation of Henry VIII as King of Ireland by the Crown of Ireland Act 1542 and the Act of Union in 1800. It replaced the Lordship of Ireland, which had been created in 1171...
in 1552. The Ulster King of Arms' duties in Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland is one of the four countries of the United Kingdom. Situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, it shares a border with the Republic of Ireland to the south and west...
were taken over by the Norroy and Ulster King of Arms
Norroy and Ulster King of Arms
Norroy and Ulster King of Arms is one of the senior Officers of Arms of the College of Arms, and the junior of the two provincial Kings of Arms. The current office is the combination of two former appointments...
.
The Genealogical Office was formerly based in Dublin Castle
Dublin Castle
Dublin Castle off Dame Street, Dublin, Ireland, was until 1922 the fortified seat of British rule in Ireland, and is now a major Irish government complex. Most of it dates from the 18th century, though a castle has stood on the site since the days of King John, the first Lord of Ireland...
. It was made part of the Department of Education
Department of Education and Science (Ireland)
The Department of Education and Skills is a department of the Government of Ireland. It is led by the Minister for Education and Skills who is assisted by two Ministers of State.-Departmental team:...
in 1943. The office later relocated to the National Library of Ireland
National Library of Ireland
The National Library of Ireland is Ireland's national library located in Dublin, in a building designed by Thomas Newenham Deane. The Minister for Arts, Sport & Tourism is the member of the Irish Government responsible for the library....
(NLI), and was formally recognised as part of the NLI in 1997. In 2002, it was transferred from Education to the Department of Arts, Sport and Tourism
Department of Arts, Sport and Tourism (Ireland)
The Department of Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht is a department of the Government of Ireland. The mission of the department is to contribute to the economic, social and cultural progress of Irish society and the enrichment of its quality of life through promoting sustainable tourism;...
.
Jurisdiction
The tradition of the Irish abroad seeking grants of arms from the Chief Herald continues to the present. Responding to this demand is an expression of the nation's "special affinity with those of Irish ancestry living abroad who share its cultural identity and heritage". (Article 2, Constitution of IrelandConstitution of Ireland
The Constitution of Ireland is the fundamental law of the Irish state. The constitution falls broadly within the liberal democratic tradition. It establishes an independent state based on a system of representative democracy and guarantees certain fundamental rights, along with a popularly elected...
) The Office accepts petitions for grants of arms
Grant of Arms
A grant of arms is an action by a lawful authority, such as an officer of arms, conferring on a person and his or her descendants the right to bear a particular coat of arms or armorial bearings...
from the following:
- All Irish citizens, male or female
- Persons normally resident in Ireland
- Persons living abroad who are of provable Irish descent in either the paternal or maternal line
- Persons with significant links to Ireland
- Corporate bodies within Ireland and corporate bodies with significant links to Ireland but based in countries with no heraldic authority.
In November 1945 the Chief Herald granted the Coat of arms of Ireland
Coat of arms of Ireland
The arms of Ireland is blazoned as Azure a harp Or, stringed Argent . These arms have long been Ireland's heraldic emblem. References to them as being the arms of the king of Ireland can be found as early as the 13th century...
to the State itself.
At the request of the Irish Government a Grant of Arms was made to U.S. Presidents
President of the United States
The President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....
John F. Kennedy
John F. Kennedy
John Fitzgerald "Jack" Kennedy , often referred to by his initials JFK, was the 35th President of the United States, serving from 1961 until his assassination in 1963....
in 1963 and Bill Clinton
Bill Clinton
William Jefferson "Bill" Clinton is an American politician who served as the 42nd President of the United States from 1993 to 2001. Inaugurated at age 46, he was the third-youngest president. He took office at the end of the Cold War, and was the first president of the baby boomer generation...
in 1995.
Titles of Nobility
Article 40.2.1 of the Constitution of Ireland prohibits the conferral or of a new title of nobility by the State, and Article 40.2.2 prohibits acceptance by any citizen of any title of nobility or of honour "without the prior approval of the Government."The Constitution does not prohibit the grantings of honours, other than nobility, by the State. The Government acknowledges titles of nobility that have in the past derived from the British Crown as the fount of honour
Fount of honour
The fount of honour refers to a nation's head of state, who, by virtue of his or her official position, has the exclusive right of conferring legitimate titles of nobility and orders of chivalry to other persons.- Origin :...
then exercising sovereignty over Ireland, and in fact such titles continue to be mentioned in confirmations of arms by the Chief Herald of Ireland.
Chiefs of the Name
When the Kingdom of IrelandKingdom of Ireland
The Kingdom of Ireland refers to the country of Ireland in the period between the proclamation of Henry VIII as King of Ireland by the Crown of Ireland Act 1542 and the Act of Union in 1800. It replaced the Lordship of Ireland, which had been created in 1171...
was created in 1541, the Dublin administration wanted to involve the Gaelic chiefs into the new entity, creating new titles for them such as the Earl of Tyrone, or the Barons Inchiquin
Early Barons Inchiquin
There were six early Barons Inchiquin in Ireland between 1543 and 1654. The title was granted to Murrough O'Brien, the brother of Conor O'Brien, King of Thomond, when he surrendered his Irish royalty to King Henry VIII in 1543...
. In the process they were granted new coats of arms from 1552. The associated policy of surrender and regrant
Surrender and regrant
During the Tudor conquest of Ireland , "surrender and regrant" was the legal mechanism by which Irish clans were to be converted from a power structure rooted in clan and kin loyalties, to a late-feudal system under the English legal system...
involved a change to succession to a title by primogeniture
Primogeniture
Primogeniture is the right, by law or custom, of the firstborn to inherit the entire estate, to the exclusion of younger siblings . Historically, the term implied male primogeniture, to the exclusion of females...
, and not by tanistry
Tanistry
Tanistry was a Gaelic system for passing on titles and lands. In this system the Tanist was the office of heir-apparent, or second-in-command, among the Gaelic patrilineal dynasties of Ireland, Scotland and Man, to succeed to the chieftainship or to the kingship.-Origins:The Tanist was chosen from...
where a group of male cousins of a chief were eligible to succeed by election. This was accepted by the new title-holders but not by some of their cousins. Thereafter the chiefs of the name succeeded by primogeniture for several centuries, in a similar way to the clan chiefs in Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
.
Many other clan chiefs were never given formal titles or knighthoods from the Kingdom of Ireland, but were issued with arms and usually registered their genealogies with the heralds in Dublin, and became a significant part of the landed gentry
Landed gentry
Landed gentry is a traditional British social class, consisting of land owners who could live entirely off rental income. Often they worked only in an administrative capacity looking after the management of their own lands....
.
After the Battle of Kinsale in 1601 and the subsequent Flight of the Earls
Flight of the Earls
The Flight of the Earls took place on 14 September 1607, when Hugh Ó Neill of Tír Eóghain, Rory Ó Donnell of Tír Chonaill and about ninety followers left Ireland for mainland Europe.-Background to the exile:...
, some dozens of the old Gaelic aristocracy
Aristocracy
Aristocracy , is a form of government in which a few elite citizens rule. The term derives from the Greek aristokratia, meaning "rule of the best". In origin in Ancient Greece, it was conceived of as rule by the best qualified citizens, and contrasted with monarchy...
scattered throughout Catholic Europe. Some of their descendants were granted courtesy recognition in 1943 by the Chief Herald as Chiefs of the Name
Chiefs of the Name
The Chief of the Name, or in older English usage Captain of his Nation, is the recognised head of a family or clan...
, signifying that they are the senior male line descendant from the last recognized chief of the name.
The issue of the chiefs' succession arose again after the creation of the Chief Herald of Ireland in 1943. Some Chiefs of the Name favour tanistry while others see primogeniture as a more practical system. In an address to the Irish Senate in December 2006 John O'Donoghue
John O'Donoghue (politician)
John O'Donoghue is a former Irish Fianna Fáil politician. He was a Teachta Dála for the Kerry South constituency from 1987 to 2011. He is a former Ceann Comhairle of Dáil Éireann, the lower house of the Oireachtas. He resigned as Ceann Comhairle on 13 October 2009 due to controversy about his...
, the then Minister for Arts, Sport and Tourism
Minister for Arts, Sport and Tourism (Ireland)
The Minister for Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht is the senior minister at the Department of Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht in the Government of Ireland.The current minister is Jimmy Deenihan, TD. He is assisted by:...
also expressed the opinion that it was a matter for those who bore these titles to decide on the system they used for succession, but that he found it strange that an English system had been used for the succession of titles originally created under a native Irish system.
Following advice from the Attorney General that the recognition of Chiefs of the Name was without basis in law, the practice of courtesy recognition was abandoned in July 2003.
Questions over legal status of the office
Due reportedly to uncertainty concerning the legal validity of grants of arms in the Republic of Ireland, the post of Chief Herald remained vacant from September 2003 until August 2005. It had been assumed that the prerogatives of the British Crown, including the power to grant arms, had been inherited after Irish independence in 1922, but a series of legal judgments have undermined this view, and doubts over the status of the Office of the Chief Herald are not entirely resolved.In May 2005 the government enacted section 13 of the National Cultural Institutions Act 1997. This enabled the Board of the National Library to "designate a member of its staff to perform the duty of researching, granting and confirming coats of arms and such member shall use the appellation Chief Herald of Ireland or, in the Irish language, Príomh-Aralt na hÉireann, while performing such duties". While this was intended to legitimise the granting of arms in Ireland, it actually initiated a debate as to whether any grants made since 1943 were valid. These would include the 1945 grant of the coat of arms of Ireland
Coat of arms of Ireland
The arms of Ireland is blazoned as Azure a harp Or, stringed Argent . These arms have long been Ireland's heraldic emblem. References to them as being the arms of the king of Ireland can be found as early as the 13th century...
to the state itself.
In May 2006 the Genealogy & Heraldry Bill
Genealogy and Heraldry Bill, 2006
The Genealogy and Heraldry Bill 2006 was a private member's bill introduced in Seanad Éireann by Brendan Ryan to reform the statuory basis for the office of Chief Herald of Ireland. The bill was drafted by Michael Merrigan, co-founder of the Genealogical Society of Ireland...
Genealogy & Heraldry Bill, 2006. was introduced into Seanad Éireann
Seanad Éireann
Seanad Éireann is the upper house of the Oireachtas , which also comprises the President of Ireland and Dáil Éireann . It is commonly called the Seanad or Senate and its members Senators or Seanadóirí . Unlike Dáil Éireann, it is not directly elected but consists of a mixture of members chosen by...
to reform the Office and provide a firm legal basis for grants and confirmations of arms.
The Bill was withdrawn on December 12, 2006 with consent of the sponsoring senator, and was referred to the board of the National Library
National library
A national library is a library specifically established by the government of a country to serve as the preeminent repository of information for that country. Unlike public libraries, these rarely allow citizens to borrow books...
for consideration by John O'Donoghue, the then Minister for Arts, Sport and Tourism
In September 2007 a notice was added to the National Library website noting the suspension of grants of arms until the legal situation was clarified. Following the receipt of legal advice, the Board of the National Library was "satisfied that it can exercise the heraldic powers conferred on it by the 1997 Act", and grants are again being made.
The Board did, however, note that "doubts exist regarding the legal basis of heraldic functions exercised in the State prior to the establishment of the Board" and that "with minor amendment, the wording of the Act could be made more succinct".
Chief Heralds
- Edward McLysaght (1943–54)
- Gerard SlevinGerard SlevinGerard Slevin was born in Cork, Ireland. Slevin was assistant to Edward McLysaght, the Chief Herald of Ireland, from 1944 to 1954, at which time he succeeded McLysaght...
(1954–81) - Donal Begley (1981–95)
- Patricia Donlon (1995–97)
- Brendan O Donoghue (1997–2003)
- Post vacant 2003–05
- Fergus Gillespie (2005-2009)
- Colette O’Flaherty (2010-)
Costs of granting and preparing arms
An applicant will be expected to provide genealogicalGenealogy
Genealogy is the study of families and the tracing of their lineages and history. Genealogists use oral traditions, historical records, genetic analysis, and other records to obtain information about a family and to demonstrate kinship and pedigrees of its members...
information including birth, marriage and death certificates back to an ancestor that bore arms. Alternatively, an entirely new grant of arms can be discussed and designed. Since 2003 the basic cost of a Grant of Arms (or confirmation of a prior grant) have been:
- Individual €3,300
- Corporate €10,000
- Schools and other bodies €5,000
Smaller amounts are charged for designing and granting supporters, badges
Heraldic badge
A heraldic badge is an emblem or personal device worn as a badge to indicate allegiance to or the property of an individual or family. Medieval forms are usually called a livery badge, and also a cognizance...
, copies of grants on vellum
Vellum
Vellum is mammal skin prepared for writing or printing on, to produce single pages, scrolls, codices or books. It is generally smooth and durable, although there are great variations depending on preparation, the quality of the skin and the type of animal used...
, subshields and other elements such as flags and pennants.
External links
- Chief Herald of Ireland
- An Irish Arms Crisis — Critical essay on status of the Office of the Chief Herald.
- Full text and explanatory memorandum of Genealogy & Heraldry Bill, 2006.