The King Edward’s School, Bath Combined Cadet Force was delighted to take receipt of its new Contingent Banner recently.
As a new Carolean age ushers in, and with just over a week to go before the Coronation, the Contingent Banner is believed to be the first of its kind to bear the Tudor Crown featured in the new cypher of His Majesty King Charles III.
The banner, used in ceremonial duties including Founder’s Day and at public events, is embroidered by hand in gold bullion and coloured silks, upon a ground of Royal blue, sleeved in red, with edged gold metallic fringe and matching gold metallic cords and tassels.
The design, approved by the College of Arms, includes an extract from the school’s cap badge within the heraldry; the Coat of Arms of King Edward VI. This appears within a circlet inscribed with the name of the school’s Contingent, surmounted by the Tudor Crown and surrounded by the Union Wreath.
His Majesty the King’s new cypher, which was revealed in September 2022, differs from the stylised crown used by the late Queen Elizabeth II which, with its higher and dipping arches, was closer in form to St Edward’s crown. The new cypher and new rendering of the crown is being introduced gradually, and generally only when military equipment or uniforms which bear them need to be replaced.
His Majesty’s cypher consists of the initial of the monarch’s name, Charles, and title, Rex, the Latin for King, together with his regnal number in Roman numerals – all beneath a representation of the crown.
The school’s new Contingent Banner was commissioned in October 2022 and its completion in April, close to the Coronation on 6 May is a happy coincidence which will make the school’s celebration of the Coronation even more special.
Commenting on the new banner, Capt Philip Jones, Contingent Commander and School Staff Instructor, said, “The receipt of this banner coincides with the 75th anniversary of the modern Combined Cadet Force, and aptly portrays the heritage of the Contingent and recognises our proud affiliation to the monarchy.”
The school’s CCF is numbered among the oldest contingents in the country, establishing a corps in 1900. It is an army only section and, since 2011, has been officially affiliated to the King’s Royal Hussars and combines their unique ‘brown beret’ with the school’s very own original cap badge.