In modern heraldry, a royal cypher is the monogram of a country's reigning sovereign, typically consisting of the initials of the monarch's name and title, often surmounted by a crown. In the system used by various Commonwealth realms, the title is abbreviated as either R for rex or regina (Latin for king and queen) or I for imperator or imperatrice (Latin words for emperor and empress).[1][2] The cypher is displayed on some government buildings, impressed upon royal and state documents, and is used by government departments.
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Commonwealth realms
The use of a royal cypher in the Commonwealth realms originates in the United Kingdom, where the public use of the royal initials dates at least from the early Tudor period, and was simply the initial of the sovereign with, after Henry VIII's reign, the addition of the letter R for Rex or Regina. The letter I for Imperatrix was added to Queen Victoria's monogram after she became Empress of India in 1877. The initials – which had no set pattern or form of lettering laid down – were usually shown in company with the royal arms or crown as on the king's manors and palaces – such as those of Henry VIII on the gatehouse of St James's Palace. The purpose seems to have been simply to identify an individual sovereign, as the royal coat of arms was often used by successive monarchs. The initials were used mostly on government papers, duty stamps and similar objects, and were sometimes surmounted by a stylised version of the Tudor Crown or, more recently, St. Edward's Crown. In Scotland, the Crown of Scotland appears in place of the Imperial Crown.[3]
Though royal symbols will differ amongst each of the sixteen Commonwealth realms, as they are separate monarchies, the one sovereign uses the same cypher throughout all of his or her countries. Distinction continues to be made between the personal cypher and the simpler, more workaday public initials, the former being the sovereign's own monogram and the latter simply a means of identifying a reign. Nowadays, the initials are also called the royal cypher, but to aid clarification the monogram is referred to as the royal cypher interlaced and reversed.
The present Queen's cypher is EIIR, standing for Elizabeth II Regina. Cyphers for other members of the Royal Family are designed by the College of Arms or Court of the Lord Lyon and are subsequently approved by the Queen. The use in Canada of the reigning monarch's cypher, which is sometimes uniquely surrounded by a garland of maple leaves, is as a symbol not only of the sovereign him or herself, but of Canada's full sovereignty as well.[4]
Elsewhere
Other royal houses have also made use of royal or imperial cyphers. Ottoman sultans had a calligraphic signature, their tughra.
Gallery
 The double-headed eagle, the most recognized emblem of the Byzantine Empire, with the sympilema (dynastic cypher) of the Palaeologi in the centre. |
 The arms of the Kingdom of Prussia included the cypher of Frederick I at the centre. |
 The cypher of George II of Great Britain, employing an Arabic numeral 2. |
 The Royal Cypher of Queen Victoria. |
 The Royal Cypher of Queen Victoria forms a part of the emblem of the Royal Victorian Order |
 The Royal Cypher of King Bhumibol Adulyadej. |
 The Royal Cypher of King Edward VIII. As with all cyphers before Queen Elizabeth II, it uses the Tudor Crown above the lettering. |
 The Royal Cypher of Queen Elizabeth II, surmounted by the St. Edward's Crown. |
 The Royal Cypher of Queen Elizabeth II adapted for exclusive use in Canada, this one specifically for the Queen's Golden Jubilee. |
 A variant of the cypher of Queen Elizabeth II in Jersey, showing an Arabic numeral 2 as opposed to the Roman II typically employed. |
See also
References
- ^ Morley, Vincent. "United Kingdom: Royal Navy". Flags Of The World. http://fotw.flaggen-profi.de/flags/gb-nav.html. Retrieved 30 October 2009.
- ^ Boutell, Charles; Wheeler-Holohan, V. (1931). Boutell's Manual of Heraldry. Detroit: F. Warne and Co. Ltd.. p. 244. http://books.google.com/books?num=100&id=yDkfAAAAMAAJ&dq=%22royal+cypher%22+%7C+Imperial+cypher%22&q=cypher&pgis=1#search. Retrieved 30 October 2009.
- ^ Boutell, Charles; Fox-Davies, A.C. (21 July 2008). The Handbook to English Heraldry. Echo Library. ISBN 978-1406827705. http://www.4crests.com/heraldrybook5.html.
- ^ MacLeod, Kevin S. (2008) (PDF), A Crown of Maples (1 ed.), Ottawa: Queen's Printer for Canada, p. 61, ISBN 978-0-662-46012-1, http://www.pch.gc.ca/pgm/ceem-cced/fr-rf/crnCdn/crn_mpls-eng.pdf, retrieved 21 June 2009
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