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| Collar of Esses | |
|---|---|
| Name | Collar of Esses |
| Established | 15th century |
| Country | England |
| Type | Livery collar |
| Awarded by | Monarchy of England |
| Eligibility | Members of royal household, nobility |
| Status | Historic; occasional ceremonial use |
Collar of Esses is a medieval livery collar associated with the House of Lancaster, House of York, and later Tudor and Stuart courts, used as a mark of royal favour, office, and identity. Originating in late medieval England, it became prominent in the courts of Henry V, Edward IV, Henry VII, and subsequent monarchs, appearing in portraits, inventories, and ceremonial regalia connected to orders, households, and heraldic display.
The collar first appears in sources from the reign of Henry V and the late medieval period alongside other livery devices connected to Richard II, Lancaster, and the dynastic conflicts of the Wars of the Roses, with mentions in royal wardrobe accounts, treasury records, and diplomatic gift lists involving figures such as John of Gaunt, Henry VI, and Margaret of Anjou. Early examples and iconography are recorded in the inventories of Richard III and in the civic pageantry of London, where the collar functioned as a badge in livery lists alongside the insignia of Guildhall, City of London, and municipal processions during events like the Coronation of Henry VI. The motif persisted into the Tudor era under Henry VII and Henry VIII, evidenced in portraiture by artists working for Hans Holbein the Younger, Lucas Cranach the Elder, and court painters recording sitters such as Thomas Wolsey and Thomas Cromwell.
The collar is typically constructed from a sequence of repeated letter-form links—rendered as stylized S-forms—interspersed with other heraldic elements such as knots, roses, and badges associated with dynastic houses like the White Rose of York and the Red Rose of Lancaster. Surviving examples and depictions show ornamentation in gold, enamel, and gem settings comparable to contemporary pieces recorded in the inventories of Henry VII and the jewel collections of Elizabeth I, with affinities to collars of orders such as the Order of the Garter and the Order of the Bath. The meaning of the S has been debated by historians referencing sources tied to Lancaster, Salisbury, and the linguistic and emblematic practices of medieval heraldry as interpreted in studies of court culture tied to figures like Geoffrey Chaucer and chroniclers such as Polydore Vergil.
Recipients included leading magnates, royal household officers, and foreign envoys: prominent wearers appear in portraits of Edward IV’s retinue, the household of Henry VII, and the entourage of Mary I and Elizabeth I. Wardrobe rolls and account books for the Privy Purse, Great Wardrobe, and royal jewel inventories list issuance to peers such as the Duke of Norfolk, Earl of Oxford, and household officials like the Lord Chamberlain and the Master of the Horse. Diplomats, ambassadors, and municipal dignitaries from Burgundy, Flanders, and Castile are also recorded as recipients in exchange contexts alongside gifts recorded in the papers of Erasmus and diplomatic correspondence of Charles V.
Within coronation and state ceremonial practice—tied to events such as the Coronation of Henry VII, the Field of the Cloth of Gold, and mayoral processions at Guildhall—the collar served as a visible mark of royal favour, rank, and affiliation to royal livery companies like the Worshipful Company of Mercers and the Worshipful Company of Clothworkers. Officers charged with ceremony, including holders of offices such as the Earl Marshal, Lord High Steward, and members of royal retinues, wore the collar during ceremonial entries, embassy receptions, and judicial occasions at the Court of Chancery and the Star Chamber. The collar features in state portraiture and funerary monuments in cathedrals like Westminster Abbey and Canterbury Cathedral, where effigies of nobles are depicted wearing livery collars in the manner recorded in funerary accounts and bequests.
Variants of the S-collar appear in continental practice and in other English livery devices, including collars incorporating badges such as the Lancastrian Rose, the Yorkist sunburst, and the Tudor Sovereign’s badge. The collar’s relationship to institutional insignia is visible in parallels with the Chain of Office used by civic mayors, the collars of chivalric orders like the Order of the Garter, and the badges of noble houses exemplified by the collars depicted in the collections of Windsor Castle and the inventories of Hampton Court Palace. Regional adaptations occurred in Scotland and Ireland, where noble collars and chains used by figures connected to James IV and Henry VIII’s Irish administration display conversant motifs.
The collar appears in paintings by court artists such as Hans Holbein the Younger, Antonio Moro, and Nicholas Hilliard and in Tudor-era tapestries and effigies recording the iconography of magnates like Earl of Surrey and Thomas Howard. It informed later Victorian and Georgian revivalist interest in medieval regalia seen in the work of antiquarians like Sir Thomas Phillipps and institutions such as the Victoria and Albert Museum and the British Museum. Modern scholarship by historians connected to universities such as Oxford University, University of Cambridge, and King’s College London continues to analyse the collar’s material culture through conservation projects at sites including Windsor Castle and archival collections at the National Archives and the British Library.
Category:Orders, decorations, and medals of England