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Other Decorations, Taken from Living Objects: England

The English have a shield on which three eagles are shown, and, although the origin of these eagles is not the object of this story, the fact that this one of all England's peers is allowed, after the first bow to his sovereign has been made, to clap his hat, or whatever covering he hath, upon his head, and then sit in the presence of his monarch as majestically as the king upon his throne, makes it curious enough to permit of our alluding to it. Courcey, Lord Kingsale.

A certain Sir John Courcey, a man who was possessed of as great physical power as he was of military genius, had so greatly distinguished himself in the wars that England carried on in Gascony, that Henry II. bade him aid a military superior in the government of Ireland. Sir John persuaded some of his comrades, well tried veterans in the French wars, to accompany him, and with them boldly invaded the County of Ulster. His army was but a small one, and the battles fought were fierce; but experience, talent, and courage were more than a match for the untrained fury of the men of Ulster, and the County was added to the king's dominions. For this he was rewarded by being made Earl of Ulster. Not only did he do this, but we are told that "he was continually doing prodigies of valor," and he stood high in the estimation of his king. But kings must die, as well as slaves; and Henry II. was no exception. King John ascended the throne, and he listened to the evil suggestions and lying reports that Hugh de Lacie, whom King John had appointed Governor of Ireland, whispered in his ear. De Lacie was envious of the splendor and rank of the Earl of Ulster, and the king permitted the black-hearted governor to seize the earl, as he stood, barefoot and unarmed, doing penance in the churchyard of Downpatrick, on Good Friday. He sent him a prisoner to England, and, as was the fate of all who pleased not England's king, he was incarcerated in the Tower. There he stayed for about a year. At the expiration of this time, King John and Philip Augustus had some warm words concerning the Duchy of Normandy, and it was agreed that single combat should decide the matter. King John appointed the day, and the French king procured his champion, while John was vainly hunting for one to represent him. No one could be thought of whose skill and strength equalled those of De Courcey, and, although the sentence passed upon him had been imprisonment for life, still, for lack of a worthier knight, he was despatched to France to fight for his ignoble master.

The day came and the champions appeared upon the field. The kings of France, Spain, and England acted as spectators, but, notwithstanding their august presence, no sooner had the French champion carefully scrutinized his opponent than, turning his horse's OTHER DECORATIONS, TAKEN FROM LIVING OBJECTS. 165 head, he fled precipitately from the field. The English king was consequently considered as the successful contestant, and so delighted was he that, on the French king's expressing his desire to see some exhibition of the English giant's strength, he gladly bade Sir John gratify his desire. The powerful knight grasped his sword and with one mighty blow cleft a helmet in twain. At this King John bade the knight ask what he would and it should be given him - this, too, with the assurance that he already had his freedom and full possession of his estates. The earl replied that he needed nothing, but, if the king desired him to prefer a request, it would be this - that he and his successors, so long as England had a sovereign, might, after making their first obeisance, remain covered in the royal presence. Permission to do this was instantly granted him, and continues until this day in the family of Lord Kingsale. But the eagle is not the only bird who flutters over the heraldic pages. The martlett is a very familiar charge, and is a curiouslooking little bird. It is always drawn without feet, in order to typify two ideas. The scarred veterans of the Holy Wars usually returned by water; in that case feet were unnecessary, so the bird became an emblem of their holy occupation. Another signification is that with which the younger sons placed it upon their fathers' coat-of-arms. This was to show that they were not the eldest son, and heir to the estate, and were, therefore, like footless birds, having nothing upon which to alight. The pelican, too, appears, ungainly as she is, and is usually represented as "vulning herself," that is, feeding her young with her blood; and although her story is an old one, it may be that you have not heard it. It is said that "the pelican loveth her young birds, yet when they become haughty and wax hot, they smite her in the face and wound her; she smiteth again, and so slayeth them. After three days she mourneth for them, and then, striking herself in the side until the blood runneth out, she sprinkleth it upon their bodies, and by virtue thereof they quicken again."

Pelican.

There is an old brass of a former Dean of Hastings, in Sussex, where a pelican is represented as so feeding her young, and under it is a Latin motto which means, "Thus hath Christ loved us." The swan, too, wishes us to remember that he was quite a favorite with Dame Heraldry. The earliest use of the swan known in England is on the shield of the Bohun family, to whom it descended from some very early ancestor of the name of Swann. They have handed it down, usually as a crest or badge, to a great many noted English families, like the Nevilles, the Staffords, and the Beauchamps. But on the Continent, especially in Germany, it is associated with a very pretty and very old legend, and the noble family who bear the arms of the Duke of Cleves sent it to England on the coat-ofarms of one of Henry VIII.'s many brides, Anne of Cleves, and from her shield the white swan passed to the British tavernboard signs. Bohun.