Details have been released this week that the City of Limerick will have an official coat of arms confirmed at an historic ceremony which is set to take place later this month. The Office of the Chief Herald designed the arms that are now being granted and Chief Herald, Fergus Gillespie will read the proclamation in Irish and in English at a ceremony in City Hall, Limerick, on Thursday, May 28 next.
It has been discovered that the Arms of the City of Limerick as we know them today are not heraldically correct and Limerick has never had an official coat of arms until Limerick City Council applied to have a grant of arms confirmed.
“The original coat of arms for the city which has been used since at least the seventeenth century was unregistered and so unprotected from unofficial use,” explained Mayor of Limerick, Cllr John Gilligan.
“So we applied on behalf of the Council to the Chief Herald of Ireland to confirm the Council in its right to arms on the basis of long use.”
The arms which are now being confirmed to Limerick City Council show a castle with two towers and the portcullis raised.
The shield is of the 14th century. The motto “Urbs Antiqua Fuit Studiisque Asperrima Belli” which means “An ancient city well versed in the arts of war” surrounds the shield.
Fergus Gillespie, the Chief Herald is the holder of the oldest state office, which in its present form has been in existence since 1552.
The function of the Chief Herald is to devise coats of arms, grant them by means of letters patent and record them in the Register of Arms in his office.
The office is known internationally for the high standard of heraldry produced and for its outstanding design continuing a tradition of painting and drawing unbroken for more than four and a half centuries.
Limerick City Council’s document is engrossed on calf vellum and the conditions of the grant appear in both the Irish and English languages.
A painting of the arms also appears on the document as well as being shown in the form of a banner which when flown will proclaim the presence of the Council.
Armorial bearings, or coats-of-arms, originated during the late medieval period as a means of recognition on the battlefield and at the tournament. They were soon employed also to attest documents and identify property. Clearly, a system of identification, to be effective, required regulation because use of the same arms by more than one person would result in confusion. Specialists, known as heralds, were therefore employed to keep the necessary records and advise on all related matters. Such officers of arms have functioned for Ireland since 1382.
The post of Ulster King of Arms, Herald of all Ireland, was created by the Crown in 1552 and continued under the name until 1943 when the Office of Arms was transferred to the Government of Ireland and renamed the Genealogical Office. Since then, the office has operated as a branch of the National Library and under the direction of the Chief Herald of Ireland.
