Sword and Maces
Maces were authorised to be carried before the bailiffs by the Charter of 1662. The present maces date from 1664 (Charles II) and 1690 (William and Mary). The right to have a sword carried in procession dates from the Charter of 1686 and the sword was presented to the City in that year by the Recorder, Lord Dartmouth. The sword and maces are carried before the Mayor on all civic processions.
Armorial Bearings
The heraldic shield was in use by the late seventeenth century. Its heraldic description is ‘Or, a cross square pierced ermine, five chevronells, gules’.
The Supporters on either side are a later addition, and a privilege granted by the College of Heralds only to royalty and very ancient families and corporations. On the dexter (right side, looking from behind) is St Chad, one of the patron saints of the Cathedral; on the sinister side is a robed master of St Mary’s Guild.
The motto “Salve, magna parens”, meaning ‘Hail, great mother’, is Samuel Johnson’s greeting to Lichfield in his Dictionary, and is a tribute to Lichfield as both his native city and the mother of the Kingdom of Mercia.
