College of Arms

Royal College of Arms

Current Head: Squirrel King of Arms, Béneditsch Ardpresteir

Viceroy: Txec Róibeard Nordselva

Function: To maintain the heraldric armorial, determine protocol, and otherwise administer official symbology.

The Royal Talossan College of Arms maintains the heraldic armorial of the Kingdom, assists petitioners for arms in designing and obtaining arms from the Crown, and determines protocols of state and for peers and knights of the realm.

About the College

The College of Arms registers all arms and banners recognized by the Kingdom of Talossa, and catalogs them here in the Armorial. These are divided into the following seven categories:

• Flags of the Realm - banners identifying the Kingdom and its subdivisions.
• Arms of the State - arms identifying the royal house, realm, offices, and officers.
• Arms of the Government - corporate arms identifying the government ministries, bureaus, and offices.
• Arms of the Nobility - arms pertaining to members of the Talossan nobility
• Arms of the Knights of the Realm - arms pertaining to members of the Royal Orders
• Arms of the Gentry - arms identifying members the Talossan gentry (such arms are obtainable by the citizenry at large).
• Arms of the Kingdom - the complete Armorial, displaying all arms granted to our citizens, both noble and base.
• Non-Talossan Arms - arms recognized by the College identifying non-Talossan persons, nations, and other entities.

Duties

The Royal Academy of Vexillology, an arm of the College, maintains the official flags and other seals of the Kingdom.

The College is exclusively empowered to petition the Crown for grants of arms, and is also responsible for preparing grants of knighthood and nobility at the direction of the Crown.

Members of the College

The College is staffed by Heralds (senior members), Pursuivants (members who have achieved standing), and Fellows. Each member of the College holds and is known by a named seat or fellowship. The current faculty of the College is:

• The Squirrel King of Arms, the Noir Eagle Herald, Béneditsch Ardpresteir
• The Squirrel Viceroy of Arms, the Rouge Elephant Herald, Sir Txec dal Nordselvă, UrB
• The Dean of the College of Arms, The Noir Raven Herald, Baron Alexandreu Davinescu
  • The Noir Eagle Herald, Béneditsch Ardpresteir, formerly The Jolly Good Fellow (Alegreu Ben Cioc - ABC)
  • The Rouge Elephant Herald, Sir Txec dal Nordselvă, UrB, formerly The Fulbright Fellow and The Kingsbridge Pursuivant
  • The Noir Raven Herald, Baron Alexandreu Davinescu
  • The Well-Met Fellow, Cresti d. I. Nouacastra
  • The Long Fellow, Mic'haglh Autófil
  • The Fulbright Fellow, Carlüs Éovart Vilaçafat

Members Emeritus

An emeritus member of the College may request reinstatement at any time, and are considered to have retained prestige and seniority in their positions.

• The Blanc Wolf Herald emeritus, His Majesty King John
• The Rouge Lobster Herald emeritus, Baron Tepistà, Count of Thord, formerly The Squirrel King of Arms
• The Bartleby Pursuivant emeritus, Sir Cresti Siervicül, UrN, formerly the Squirrel Viceroy of Arms
• The Jaune Sabre Herald emeritus, Sir Trotxâ Betiñéir, UrN
• The Penzance Pursuivant emeritus, Sir Mick Preston, UrN, formerly the Dean of the College
• Fellow emeritus, Owen Edwards
• Fellow emeritus, Alèxandreu Soleighlfred
• Fellow emeritus, Sir Tamorán dal Navâ, UrN
• Fellow emeritus, Davíu Lundescu
• Fellow emeritus, Tímoþi Asmourescu
• Fellow emeritus, Pôl d'Aurìbuérg

Former Members

• Iustì Canun

Eligibility for Grants of Arms

Every citizen of Talossa, by the fact of his or her citizenship, is a Gentleman or Lady, and is held for all purposes to be "of gentle blood" and thus entitled to arms as a member of the Talossan gentry.

Coats of arms are granted on behalf of the King by Letters Patent from the senior herald, Squirrel King of Arms. A right to arms can only be established by making application through the College of Arms for a grant of arms, or by the registration in the official records of the College of Arms of a pedigree showing direct male line descent from an ancestor already appearing therein as entitled to arms. Grants may be made to corporations as well as to individuals.

Occasions of Granting Honours

The King may choose to grant mundane honours at any time, but traditionally the Crown announces honours at meaningful and historic times of the year:

Occasion of Granting Honours	Date
Wargaming Day Honours	21 February
Tafsut Imazighen (Berber Spring) Honours	20 April
St. Aaron's Day Honours	22 June
Monarchy Day Honours	24 August
Sovereign's Birthday Honours	12 October
Independence Day Honours	26 December

Should heraldic business pile up unreasonably between regular dates, the Squirrel King may choose to submit a petition for arms to His Majesty on any of following dates not included on the above calendar:

Alternate Occasion of Granting Honours	Date
Labour Day Honours	11 January
Accession Day Honours	14 March
Juneau Day Honours	28 May
Organic Law Day Honours	6 July
Democracy Day Honours	28 September
Victory Day Honours	25 November

The Armorial

• Arms of the State
• Arms of the Nobility
• Arms of the Knights and Dames
• Arms of the Gentry
• Registry of Badges

Rules of Heraldry

Choosing arms is not as simple as one might imagine. The Talossan rules for arms are governed by the official Rules of Heraldry.

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