RfS Part XI, Presumptuous Armory

#11PART XI - PRESUMPTUOUS Armory may not claim status or powers the submitter does not possess, as is required by General Principle 3b of these rules. This section defines categories of presumptuous armorial claims. #11.11. Reserved Charges. - Armory that contains elements reserved to or required of certain ranks, positions, or territorial entities, inside or outside the Society, is considered presumptuous. Symbols reserved or required solely inside the Society may only be registered to those entitled to the status associated with those symbols. Examples of such elements include the field Azure, semy-de-lys Or, which is restricted to French royalty; a laurel wreath, required for official Society branches; the knights annulet of chain, etc. Lists of these charges can be found in the glossary. Some elements, like the French royal field, are always restricted. Others are limited to specific segments of the Society. For example, individuals may not place laurel wreaths on their armory, while only those who are royal peers may use the insignia of those ranks. #11.22. Charge and Name Combination. - Armory that asserts a strong claim of identity in the context of the submitters name is considered presumptuous. Some otherwise permissible names and armorial elements cannot be used together because joining the two creates too strong an association with famous individuals from myth, literature, or history. For example, while Rhiannon can be used as a given name, and horses can be used as charges, the two cannot be used together as it suggests the Rhiannon of Welsh myth. Similarly, charges that merely allude to a specific name on their own may become presumptuous if several such charges are used. #11.33. Marshalling. - Armory that appears to marshall independent arms is considered presumptuous. Period marshalling combined two or more separate designs to indicate descent from noble parents and claim to inheritance. Since members of the Society are all required to earn their status on their own merits, apparent claims to inherited status are presumptuous. Divisions commonly used for marshalling, such as quarterly or per pale, may only be used in contexts that ensure marshalling is not suggested. >> a. Such fields may be used with identical charges over the entire field, or with complex lines of partition or charges overall that were not used for marshalling in period heraldry. >> b. Such fields may only be used when no single portion of the field may appear to be an independent piece of armory. >> No section of the field may contain an ordinary that terminates at the edge of that section, or more than one charge unless those charges are part of a group over the whole field. Charged sections must all contain charges of the same type to avoid the appearance of being different from each other. #11.44. Arms of Pretense and Augmentations of Honor -Armory that uses charges in such a way as to appear to be arms of pretense or an unearned augmentation of honor is considered presumptuous. Period and modern heraldic practice asserts a claim to land or property by surmounting an individuals usual armory with a display of armory associated with that claim. Such arms of pretense are placed on an escutcheon. Similarly, an augmentation of honor often, though not necessarily, takes the form of an independent coat placed on an escutcheon or canton. Generally, therefore, a canton or a single escutcheon may only be used if it is both uncharged and of a single tincture. For example, Argent, a fess gules surmounted by an escutcheon sable charged with a roundel argent// has the appearance of being arms of pretense or an augmentation. //Or, in saltire five escutcheons sable each charged with three roundels argent does not have this appearance, as it has multiple escutcheons, as so is acceptable. The exception to the restrictions of this rule is when the submitter is entitled to an augmentation as described in RfS VIII. 7. Augmentations of Honor.