Later Herodotus wrote “And to them is allowed the invention of three things, which have come into use among the Greeks: for the Carians seem to be the first who put crests upon their helmets and sculptured devices upon their shields.” (Clio § 171). The Romans were devoted to the eagles with which their standard bearers led them into battle, and the use of that eagle symbol on banners was resuscitated in the time of Charlemagne, crowned Emperor at Rome in 800 A.D., possibly as a personal emblem.

At Hastings in 1066 the traditional view is that, in the absence of systematically decorated shields embroidered on the Bayeux Tapestry, heraldry was yet to be invented, but this ignores the standard of the Count of Boulogne, who is depicted on horseback bearing a device to be found a few years later on the shield of his successor (about the time classical heraldry was imported into Scotland).

Scottish heraldry is applauded as “classical” because during the next eight centuries it retained its purity and simplicity ~ its elegance. As a means of personal identification it remained functional, no two men of the same family using the same design (as has become the practice in other countries). As a means of decoration it retained its splendour, the decadence of baroque embellishment and aquatint artistry having been successfully resisted by the disciplines of the Lords Lyon, who as King of Arms act for the Sovereign in heraldic matters. As symbolism it is effective and unambiguous, and thus eminently suitable for the game of Regency.

Of these the ten printed in red met premature deaths in battle, in prison, or at the hands of an assassin. During this same period, the first four kings of the name of James died similarly, as did the only legitimate child of the fifth, Mary, Queen of Scots, and two of her three husbands.