Royal Consent

Royal Consent

A recurring question on D.A.R. history is the use of the Crown on various items. To use an item that in any way represents the British Royalty, one must receive Royal Consent by means of an instrument such as a Royal Charter or Royal Warrant granted by the Queen, the Privy Council or in Canada by the Queen in Council. Alternately, The Lord Chamberlain's Office is empowered to grant the consent to use a device such as the crown as a trademark if it could be construed as a device that represented the British Royalty.

To date there is the question of what was the consent that allowed the D.A.R. to officially use a St. Edward style Royal Crown on locomotive engine number plates, food service silverware and the D.A.R. Steamship Co. crest. However, the St. Edward Crown on the engine number plate is unique in it's styling and no other copy of this crown can be found so far. All the key elements of the orb on top (with the Cross Pattée), the dipped arches trimmed with gold beads, Fleur-de-Lis and Cross Pattée circling the band with jewels set in the band and Ermineskin trim at the bottom of the band can be found but the dipped arches are uniquely shaped and the centre dipped arch normally shown is missing, or in other words only the two side dipped arches are shown.

No evidence so far of any British Royal Charter, Warrant nor other special consent has been found leaving us to wonder just how it was that the crown was used from the creation of the D.A.R. in 1894 through to what appears to be the mid thirties.

Photographic evidence shows that locomotives No. 1 though to No. 45 all sported the Crown number plates in addition to the D.A.R. Steamship Line.

Gallery

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  The Captain and his officers on what could be the fan tail of the SS Prince Rupert.

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  An early plate judging by the crest in the centre.

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  A D.A.R. Steamship Lines broach estimated to be 1895 - 1912.

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  This silver gravy boat bears an earlier version of the St. Edward crown on the crest that may have been made into the mid 30's.

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• DAR0037b.jpg

  “Haliburton” number plate on display at CRHA Delson, Quebec.

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  DAR No. 39 number plate.

External Links

• https://www.royal.uk/sites/default/files/media/royal_arms_blue_booklet20152.pdf
• http://www.newworldencyclopedia.org/entry/Charter#Canada
• http://www.royal.gov.uk/MonarchUK/Symbols/UseroftheRoyalArms.aspx
• http://www.royal.gov.uk/pdf/Charlotte%20Martin%20Dec11/ROYAL%20ARMS%20BLUE%20BOOKLET%20-%202011.pdf
• http://www.royal.gov.uk/pdf/Coats%20of%20arms/ANNEX%20B%20-%20Crowns.pdf
• http://flagspot.net/flags/gb-crown.html
• http://www.gg.ca/document.aspx?id=81
• http://www.heraldry.ca/main.php