An approximation of the William Shakespeare family Coat-of-Arms
Shakespeare Coat-of-Arms
PERMISSION TO DISPLAY A COAT OF ARMS
The Shakespeare family made an application for the right to bear a Coat of Arms
The application cost 30 guineas
On October 20, 1596 permission from the Garter King of Arms was granted
John Shakespeare, and his children, had permission to display a coat-of-arms
The Shakespeare's were entitled to put "gentleman" after their name and the coat-of-arms could be displayed on their door and all their personal items
DESCRIPTION OF THE COAT OF ARMS
The description of the Coat of Arms grant to the Shakespeare family was as follows:
'Gold, on a bend (diagonal bar) sable (black), a spear of the first (i.e. gold), steeled argent (with a silver tip); and for his crest... a falcon his wings displayed argent (silver), standing on a wreath of his colours supporting a spear gold, steeled as aforesaid, (i.e. silver) set upon a helmet with mantles and tassles'
The motto was "Non sanz droict" or "Not without right"
The actual design of the crest design would have not formed part of the Heraldic Documentation
The Shakespeare family would have given the description and Heraldic Documentation to a designer
The designer would have then made an interpretation of the description and drawn a crest
The original crest design is not in existence so there are various interpretations of the Shakespeare Coat of Arms
The image shown on this page is an interpretation of the description of the Coat of Arms designed by william-shakespeare.info - it should not be viewed as a factual representation
