The Worshipful Company of Fletchers’ coat of arms is ‘sable, a chevron gold, thee broad arrows of the same, garnished silver’. The crest shows an ‘angel proper’ on a wreath of gold and sable. She holds in both hands a bundle of arrows.
The Fletchers’ motto – adopted on 25 November 1872 – is ‘True and Sure’ which refers to the requirement of an arrow to bend round the bow when loosed and fly straight almost immediately so that the arrow hits its target.
The Worshipful Company of Fletchers received its Grant of Arms on 12 October 1467 – see 49 for further information. The crest was granted in 1486.
In the process of petitioning for a Royal Charter in 2020 it was discovered that the Supporters that appeared on the Arms that were in current use had never been approved by the College of Arms. If the Arms including the Supporters were to feature on the Royal Charter, assuming it be granted, it would be necessary that the Arms including the Supporters be approved by the College of Arms. An application to the College was duly made, and on the 10th June 2020 the use of the Supporters approved. The College suggested that wording to the following effect should appear on the Royal Charter:
“That by Letters Patent under the hand and Seal of Clarenceux King of Arms bearing date the Twelfth day of October 1467 certain Arms were appointed given and granted to The Master and Wardens of the Mystery and Craft of Fletchers of the City of London That a Crest was granted to the said Company by Clarenceux King of Arms in the second year of the reign of King Henry VII That the said Arms and Crest were viewed ratified and approved by Sir Henry St George Richmond Herald in 1634 That the said Company is now known as The Worshipful Company of Fletchers That certain Supporters were granted unto the said Company under the hand and Seal of Garter King of Arms bearing date the Tenth day of June 2020”. The new, approved Supporters and Coat of Arms are shown below.
The “new” Supporters are described by the College as below:
Supporting with their elbows proper issuant from a Campana Urn Sable garnished and charged with four Roses three in chief one and two and one in the nombril point all with slips conjoined and leaved Or on the dexter a young Man proper crined Or vested with a Cotton Toga proper belted a Bag over the sinister hip pendent from the dexter shoulder holding in the dexter hand a Bow string outwards and in the sinister hand an Arrow point downwards all Or barbed and flighted Argent and on the sinister a naked Maiden proper crined and winding a Trumpet bendwise held in the dexter hand and holding in the sinister hand a like Trumpet palewise bell upwards all Or.
