'Hereford loggerheads' in south Shropshire

The East Window at Church Stretton St Laurence Church carries a number of heraldic panels, including these in this photo.  The arms on the left side carry the 'Hereford Diocese loggerheads' - three leopards' heads upside down with fleur-de-lys issuing from the top.  These upside down loggerheads are an integral part of the arms of the ancient see of Hereford.
Church Stretton is in the part of south Shropshire that is in the Diocese of Hereford.

The origin of the Hereford loggerheads is shrouded in mystery. 
The upside-down leopards' heads appear on the arms of the Bishop of Hereford Thomas de Cantilupe (died 1282) - but no one seems to know why the Cantilupe family had adopted them. If you do, let us know!

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Prince Rupert's glass

 

Some help please!  Of what organisation or family are these arms featuring loggerheads?

You’ll find these two windows in Church Street in Shrewsbury, an old cobbled street that links St Mary’s and St Alkmund’s churches. 
By coincidence, the windows face the old Loggerheads Public House, a hostelry that doesn’t seem to have changed much in its hundreds of years of existence.

The windows are in an equally ancient building, the Prince Rupert Hotel, so called because the king’s military commander – Prince Rupert – stayed there in the seventeenth century.
No one is suggesting the windows are that old, but it’s a nice connection.

The windows contain two shields with loggerheads in them: one is a set of three black-faced ones with a chevron device; the other a single one (with the more traditional gold face on a blue background) on a cross.

However – heraldry enthusiasts that I’ve spoken to don’t recognize the two shields here.
Clearly, the presence of loggerheads in them suggests Shrewsbury connections – but can anyone identify them?

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William Clement - 'Mister Shrewsbury'

The monument to William James Clement, the radical Shrewsbury politician, show three shields of arms on it – those of the borough of Shrewsbury, those the Royal (Shrewsbury) Grammar School and those – presumably – of William Clement himself (see photo above). 

He was a ‘commoner’ so he must have applied for the set of arms, and chosen the elements within it... and he chose loggerheads – the icon of his home town.

Clement served on the town council for over 30 years, getting involved in fine tussles with the dominant Tory group, and also did a stint as an MP for the town.
Did he choose the loggerheads for his device as a sign of his native credentials, to spite his Tory opponents?  Well… maybe, who knows?
In fact, are these definitely his arms?

You can find the monument just by Greyfriars Bridge (north side). There is also a portrait of him in the town art gallery, though it is not always on show.

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Civic pride loggerheads

 When one first sees the 1A Castle Gates building in Shrewsbury, it looks yet another great example of the town's ‘black & white’ Tudor buildings. In fact, although very attractive, it’s deceptive, as it was actually built in 1902, probably as a shop.

On the bottom corners of the third storey, it has two tiny heraldic shields, as you can see in the photo – with loggerheads on the left, the Cross of St George on the right. Another example of civic pride no doubt.

However, I have still yet to find out who built 1A Castle Gates, and what exactly its first use was.  Can anyone help? 

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Antique road sign - with odd yellows

It seems rather bizarre to realise that this shiny road sign in Shrewsbury is already an antique.  Like thousands of others in the area, it shows the arms of Shrewsbury & Atcham Borough Council - which no longer exists. It was abolished in 2009, and its powers were split between Shropshire County and the new Shrewsbury Town Council.  People mistakenly believe that the bridge in the picture is one of Shrewsbury's bridges, but, no, it's Atcham Bridge.

Of course, it would cost a fortune to replace all the road signs, so they will stay up until they decay, one supposes.

By the way, I have never been able to work out if the yellow markings are just a case of poor, misaligned printing or a deliberate attempt at a 'modern design' in scrolling.  Does anyone know?

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The arms of education

 
Recently, the University Of Chester established an outpost in Shrewsbury. Although the number of students here is small, it is growing.
Naturally, the arms of the new establishment had to include loggerheads.

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Loggerheads in Birmingham/Hereford

At the front of Birmingham Catholic Cathedral, one will find a number of heraldic designs in glass panels, including these arms. As we're a bit away from Shropshire, it was odd to see the loggerheads here.
However, the Birmingham Diocesan Archivist points out that they represent the coat of arms of Thomas Brown, the first Bishop of Newport & Menevia (died 1880).  The Catholic Diocese of Newport & Menevia, which doesn't exist any more, covered the whole of Wales (which is why the Welsh harp) plus, oddly, Herefordshire.  

So... what's the connection? Bit mysterious, this.
The usual explanation is that the ancient arms of the see of Hereford carry the three leopards' heads, which is why Bishop Brown adopted them - but the Hereford ones are upside down with fleur-de-lys issuing from them... so that explanation seems a bit thin, to me.
Does anyone have a better explanation? 

The leopards' faces are also rather crudely painted, which also struck me as odd.

Please let us have your thoughts... Use the comments field just down this page or email us direct.  

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Daubing on Butcher Row

Butcher Row is one of Shrewsbury's iconic medieval streets and is full of listed buildings - but it looks like someone once thought it a good idea to paint daubs on some of these venerable door frames.

You have to look for them, but when you find them, you'll see that one of the daubs is a set of loggerheads. The work is amateurish and includes an unusual heraldic lion.

The other daub  that interests us is a shield of arms (see below right) - which we don't recognise. 

So, the mysteries are: who painted the loggerheads, and when, and why?  And whose arms are those on the second image?

Please let us have your thoughts... Use the comments field just down this page or email us direct.  

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Police mislay two loggerheads

 

The shield of arms for West Mercia Police features emblems of the three counties it represents - lion for Worcestershire, three pears for Herefordshire, and... erm... one loggerhead for Shropshire.  But... why just the one???

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