Badge, Cognizance

(Cognisance)

Badge of Portcullis Pursuivant

A device, having a signification of its own, quite distinct from a  shield or crest and with a provenance more ancient than armorial bearings. From earliest times, persons of rank adopted a device which was used on seals,  pennons as well as livery. In fact the terms livery and badge seem to have been synonymous in the time of Henry I.

In his Accidence of Arms, Gerard Leigh mentions nine badges borne by Roman emperors; and Polidore asserts that the wolf, minotaur, horse and bear were cognizances of the Romans.

In England, examples of royal badges abound. The Plantagenets, for instance, adopted the broom plant (Planta genista), the house of Lancaster a red rose, while the badge of the house of York was a white rose. None of these badges developed into arms though examples of arms derived from badges do exist.

A badge is not charged or placed upon a  shield, but it may be displayed as part of a complete achievement. Unlike armorial bearings which are personal to the bearer, a "household" badge may be worn by retainers and adherents and used on uniforms, military equipment and personal effects like furniture.

One form of badge takes the form of intertwined cords or knots. Examples of this type of badge may be found under Knot.

Sometimes the device used in a badge or cognizance was also adopted in the crest, and vice versa. However the terms are quite distinct from each other, although some ancient authors have been known to use the terms indiscriminately.