How do I obtain a coat of arms?
This is a legal process but is relatively simple and does not normally require a lawyer. The procedure was made much simpler by the publication of templates of the ‘prayer’ to the Lord Lyon for the matriculation of arms in Scots Heraldry by Sir Thomas Innes of Learney (see bibliography). The granting of new arms is normally straightforward, and very little information about an individual is required, but any genealogical claims must be proved by documentary evidence sufficient for a court of law. Provided that you are a person considered reputable and ‘deserving’, a coat of arms will normally be granted, painted onto vellum together with details of personal and family history and recorded in the Lyon Register. If you bear the surname of a Scottish family of which others of the name have recorded arms your arms may be devised to reflect in some way the arms of others of that name. The arms of those for whom there is a chief of name will have their arms based on those chiefly arms even though you may have no provable genealogical connection. The process of matriculation is different from the granting of arms and proof of your connection with a previous member of the family bearing the same surname is required before the Lord Lyon can authorise your own distinct coat of arms. In 2021 the cost of a new grant of shield and crest was around £2800 whilst a re-matriculation of previously recorded arms was around half that sum. For further details on acquiring arms, see the website of the Court of the Lord Lyon.