By Rafe Calder
Gift season brings out the tins. Many carry a royal coat of arms with the words “By Appointment to”. The mark is common enough that people take it for a general stamp of quality. The rules say it is narrower.
We read the royal household’s own page on royal warrants, a law firm’s article on how the arms may be displayed, and Wikipedia.
What it is
The royal household’s page describes a Royal Warrant as a mark of recognition for people or companies that have regularly supplied goods or services to the Royal Household. The monarch decides who may grant warrants, and the King currently grants them. The same page says warrants are initially granted for up to five years to a named individual at a company, called the Grantee.
Notice what that sentence says. The Grantee is a person at a company. The warrant attaches to the holder and the goods or services it supplies, not to everything the holder sells.
What it does not mean
The household page is plain. A warrant gives “nothing more than a right to display the Royal Arms.” It gives no exclusive right of supply. Goods and services are not provided free; all transactions are commercial. The company does not need to be British-owned or UK-based.
The law firm adds that holders may not claim exclusive supply or imply royal patronage or authorisation that does not exist. The arms must not be used as a trade mark, logo or part of a brand device. They must be displayed separately from the holder’s brands.
How it is displayed
The law firm says the coat of arms must always be accompanied by a “Legend” naming the grantor, the company, the goods or services, and the head office address. The Lord Chamberlain’s Rules govern display on products, stationery, advertising, premises and delivery vehicles. Wikipedia says advertising typically shows the royal coat of arms or heraldic badge, followed by “by appointment to”, the royal customer’s title and name, and the goods supplied. Scottish holders, the firm adds, must use the Scottish version of the Royal Arms, even for goods sold outside Scotland.
So a tin showing arms with no named goods and no legend is worth a second look. We say that as our reading: it is what the rules would lead you to expect, not a finding about any tin.
How a company gets one, and loses one
A company can apply after supplying the Royal Household for at least five of the previous seven years, including the 12 months before applying, according to the household page. The Royal Household Warrants Committee reviews every warrant in the year before it expires. Warrants can be cancelled at any time, and are reviewed automatically if the Grantee dies or leaves the business, or if the firm goes bankrupt or is sold.
The law firm says around 20 to 40 warrants are cancelled each year and a similar number are granted, and that after cancellation holders are normally allowed up to 12 months to change packaging, stationery, advertising, buildings and vehicles. When a grantor dies the warrants become void, and holders may continue to use the arms for up to two years, according to both Wikipedia and the law firm.
Dates in order
- 1155: the first recorded British royal charter, to the Weavers’ Company, according to Wikipedia.
- 1476: William Caxton becomes king’s printer, which Wikipedia uses to show warrants had replaced charters by the 15th century.
- 1840: rules on displaying arms are tightened to prevent fraudulent claims, according to Wikipedia.
- 1885: an annual list of holders begins to appear in The London Gazette, according to Wikipedia.
Side by side
The sources give different totals. The household page says over 800 holders. Wikipedia says that as of May 2024 about 750 individuals and companies held about 800 warrants. The law firm says approximately 850 warrants held by around 750 holders. Different dates, different counting of warrants and holders: our reading. We choose none.
On Queen Victoria, Wikipedia says about 2,000 warrants were granted in her reign, while the law firm says almost 2,000. Those two agree closely.
What kind of sources these are
The household page is the grantor’s own account. The law firm’s article is professional advice written for its clients. Wikipedia can be edited by anyone and updates often. We read no copy of the Lord Chamberlain’s Rules, and we say nothing about penalties for misuse because none of our sources describes them beyond cancellation.
Questions a buyer would ask
Which company holds the warrant, and for what goods? Is the legend printed with the arms? Does the seller say “royal approved” about a single product? The household page says a warrant is a right to display the arms, not an endorsement of each product; the law firm says holders may not imply authorisation that does not exist. We have checked no tin.
What we left out
Individual holders’ names, opinions on the monarchy, the grantors’ personal lives, prices and any list of current holders.
Quick answers
What does a Royal Warrant mean? According to the royal household, it recognises companies that have regularly supplied goods or services to the Royal Household. It gives nothing more than a right to display the Royal Arms.
How long does a Royal Warrant last? The household page says warrants are initially granted for up to five years and reviewed in the year before they expire. They can be cancelled at any time.
Can a product be “royal approved”? The law firm says holders may not imply royal patronage or authorisation that does not exist, and the arms must not be used as a brand logo.
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