George Nayler
Encyclopedia
Sir George Nayler, KH
(bapt.
29 June 1764, Stonehouse, Gloucestershire
– 28 October 1831, Hanover Square
, Mayfair
) was a long-serving officer of arms
at the College of Arms
in London
.
He was born the fifth son of George Nayler, surgeon, of Stroud, Gloucestershire, and his wife Sarah, daughter of John Fark of Clitheroe, Lancashire.
, Nayler began his heraldic career in 1792 (the year he married Charlotte Williams, the illegitimate daughter of Sir John Guise, 1st Baronet). That year, he acquired a loan of £1300 to purchase the resignation
of John Suffield Brown as Genealogist of the Order of the Bath
and Blanc Coursier Herald
and Nayler was appointed on 15 June 1792. Upon the resignation of Lancaster Herald
in 1793, Nayler acquired a post in the College of Arms as Bluemantle Pursuivant
for £60 and on the accidental deaths of Somerset
and York Herald
s at Haymarket in 1794, he was promoted to York Herald that year.
In 1813, Nayler was knighted by The Prince Regent
at Carlton House
, possibly as a consolation for not having been appointed Garter Principal King of Arms
' deputy to invest Alexander I of Russia
with the Order of the Garter
. In 1816 and 1818 respectively, Nayler was appointed King of Arms
of the newly created orders of the Royal Guelphic Order
(of which he was made a knight in 1816) and the Order of St Michael and St George
.
In 1820, he was promoted as Clarenceux King of Arms
and officiated in place of the aged Garter, Isaac Heard
at the coronation of George IV in 1821. A year later, Nayler succeeded Heard as Garter and went on foreign missions to award the Garter to Frederick VI of Denmark
in 1822, John VI of Portugal
(who created Nayler a Knight Commander of the Order of the Tower and Sword
) in 1823, Charles X of France
in 1825 and Nicholas I of Russia
in 1827.
He was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society in June 1826.
Nayler's presence at the coronation of William IV
in 1831 was to be one of his last official functions before his death almost two months later. He was buried in his family vault at the church of St John the Baptist
in Gloucester
.
Royal Guelphic Order
The Royal Guelphic Order, sometimes also referred to as the Hanoverian Guelphic Order, is a Hanoverian order of chivalry instituted on 28 April 1815 by the Prince Regent . It has not been conferred by the British Crown since the death of King William IV in 1837, when the personal union of the...
(bapt.
Baptism
In Christianity, baptism is for the majority the rite of admission , almost invariably with the use of water, into the Christian Church generally and also membership of a particular church tradition...
29 June 1764, Stonehouse, Gloucestershire
Stonehouse, Gloucestershire
Stonehouse, Gloucestershire is an urban area within the Stroud District, in the UK. It is home to a number of factories, such as Dairy Crest and Schlumberger. The town is close to the M5 motorway. Stonehouse railway station has a regular train service to London...
– 28 October 1831, Hanover Square
Hanover Square, London
Hanover Square, London, is a square in Mayfair, London W1, England, situated to the south west of Oxford Circus, the major junction where Oxford Street meets Regent Street....
, Mayfair
Mayfair
Mayfair is an area of central London, within the City of Westminster.-History:Mayfair is named after the annual fortnight-long May Fair that took place on the site that is Shepherd Market today...
) was a long-serving officer of arms
Officer of arms
An officer of arms is a person appointed by a sovereign or state with authority to perform one or more of the following functions:*to control and initiate armorial matters*to arrange and participate in ceremonies of state...
at the College of Arms
College of Arms
The College of Arms, or Heralds’ College, is an office regulating heraldry and granting new armorial bearings for England, Wales and Northern Ireland...
in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
.
He was born the fifth son of George Nayler, surgeon, of Stroud, Gloucestershire, and his wife Sarah, daughter of John Fark of Clitheroe, Lancashire.
Heraldic career
Originally a miniature painterMiniature painting
Miniature painting may refer to:* Miniature * Persian miniature* Ottoman miniature* Portrait miniature* Painting miniature figures used in wargaming or role-playing games...
, Nayler began his heraldic career in 1792 (the year he married Charlotte Williams, the illegitimate daughter of Sir John Guise, 1st Baronet). That year, he acquired a loan of £1300 to purchase the resignation
Resignation
A resignation is the formal act of giving up or quitting one's office or position. It can also refer to the act of admitting defeat in a game like chess, indicated by the resigning player declaring "I resign", turning his king on its side, extending his hand, or stopping the chess clock...
of John Suffield Brown as Genealogist of the Order of the Bath
Order of the Bath
The Most Honourable Order of the Bath is a British order of chivalry founded by George I on 18 May 1725. The name derives from the elaborate mediæval ceremony for creating a knight, which involved bathing as one of its elements. The knights so created were known as Knights of the Bath...
and Blanc Coursier Herald
Blanc Coursier Herald
Blanc Coursier Herald was an officer of arms in England in the 18th and 19th centuries, associated with the Order of the Bath. The name of the office derives from the white horse in the arms of the Hanoverian monarchs....
and Nayler was appointed on 15 June 1792. Upon the resignation of Lancaster Herald
Lancaster Herald
Lancaster Herald of Arms in Ordinary is an English officer of arms at the College of Arms in London. The title of Lancaster Herald first occurs in 1347 at Calais, and to begin with this officer was a servant to the noble house of Lancaster...
in 1793, Nayler acquired a post in the College of Arms as Bluemantle Pursuivant
Bluemantle Pursuivant
Bluemantle Pursuivant of Arms in Ordinary is a junior officer of arms of the College of Arms in London. The office is reputed to have been created by King Henry V to serve the Order of the Garter, but there is no documentary evidence of this. There is, however, mention of an officer styled...
for £60 and on the accidental deaths of Somerset
Somerset Herald
Somerset Herald of Arms in Ordinary is an officer of arms at the College of Arms in London. In the year 1448 Somerset Herald is known to have served the Duke of Somerset, but by the time of the coronation of King Henry VII in 1485 his successor appears to have been raised to the rank of a royal...
and York Herald
York Herald
York Herald of Arms in Ordinary is an officer of arms at the College of Arms. The first York Herald is believed to have been an officer to Edmund of Langley, Duke of York around the year 1385, but the first completely reliable reference to such a herald is in February of 1484, when John Water...
s at Haymarket in 1794, he was promoted to York Herald that year.
In 1813, Nayler was knighted by The Prince Regent
George IV of the United Kingdom
George IV was the King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and also of Hanover from the death of his father, George III, on 29 January 1820 until his own death ten years later...
at Carlton House
Carlton House
Carlton House was a mansion in London, best known as the town residence of the Prince Regent for several decades from 1783. It faced the south side of Pall Mall, and its gardens abutted St. James's Park in the St James's district of London...
, possibly as a consolation for not having been appointed Garter Principal King of Arms
Garter Principal King of Arms
The Garter Principal King of Arms is the senior King of Arms, and the senior Officer of Arms of the College of Arms. He is therefore the most powerful herald within the jurisdiction of the College – primarily England, Wales and Northern Ireland – and so arguably the most powerful in the world...
' deputy to invest Alexander I of Russia
Alexander I of Russia
Alexander I of Russia , served as Emperor of Russia from 23 March 1801 to 1 December 1825 and the first Russian King of Poland from 1815 to 1825. He was also the first Russian Grand Duke of Finland and Lithuania....
with the Order of the Garter
Order of the Garter
The Most Noble Order of the Garter, founded in 1348, is the highest order of chivalry, or knighthood, existing in England. The order is dedicated to the image and arms of St...
. In 1816 and 1818 respectively, Nayler was appointed King of Arms
King of Arms
King of Arms is the senior rank of an officer of arms. In many heraldic traditions, only a king of arms has the authority to grant armorial bearings. In other traditions, the power has been delegated to other officers of similar rank.-Heraldic duties:...
of the newly created orders of the Royal Guelphic Order
Royal Guelphic Order
The Royal Guelphic Order, sometimes also referred to as the Hanoverian Guelphic Order, is a Hanoverian order of chivalry instituted on 28 April 1815 by the Prince Regent . It has not been conferred by the British Crown since the death of King William IV in 1837, when the personal union of the...
(of which he was made a knight in 1816) and the Order of St Michael and St George
Order of St Michael and St George
The Most Distinguished Order of Saint Michael and Saint George is an order of chivalry founded on 28 April 1818 by George, Prince Regent, later George IV of the United Kingdom, while he was acting as Prince Regent for his father, George III....
.
In 1820, he was promoted as Clarenceux King of Arms
Clarenceux King of Arms
Clarenceux King of Arms is an officer of arms at the College of Arms in London. Clarenceux is the senior of the two provincial kings of arms and his jurisdiction is that part of England south of the River Trent. The office almost certainly existed in 1420, and there is a fair degree of...
and officiated in place of the aged Garter, Isaac Heard
Isaac Heard
Sir Isaac Heard was a long-serving officer of arms at the College of Arms in London. He began his heraldic career as Bluemantle Pursuivant of Arms in Ordinary. He would go on to hold the posts of Lancaster Herald of Arms in Ordinary, Norroy King of Arms and Brunswick King of Arms. In 1784, he was...
at the coronation of George IV in 1821. A year later, Nayler succeeded Heard as Garter and went on foreign missions to award the Garter to Frederick VI of Denmark
Frederick VI of Denmark
Frederick VI reigned as King of Denmark , and as king of Norway .-Regent of Denmark:Frederick's parents were King Christian VII and Caroline Matilda of Wales...
in 1822, John VI of Portugal
John VI of Portugal
John VI John VI John VI (full name: João Maria José Francisco Xavier de Paula Luís António Domingos Rafael; (13 May 1767 – 10 March 1826) was King of the United Kingdom of Portugal, Brazil and the Algarves (later changed to just King of Portugal and the Algarves, after Brazil was recognized...
(who created Nayler a Knight Commander of the Order of the Tower and Sword
Order of the Tower and Sword
The Military Order of the Tower and of the Sword, of Valour, Loyalty and Merit is a Portuguese order of knighthood and the pinnacle of the Portuguese honours system. It was created by King Afonso V in 1459....
) in 1823, Charles X of France
Charles X of France
Charles X was known for most of his life as the Comte d'Artois before he reigned as King of France and of Navarre from 16 September 1824 until 2 August 1830. A younger brother to Kings Louis XVI and Louis XVIII, he supported the latter in exile and eventually succeeded him...
in 1825 and Nicholas I of Russia
Nicholas I of Russia
Nicholas I , was the Emperor of Russia from 1825 until 1855, known as one of the most reactionary of the Russian monarchs. On the eve of his death, the Russian Empire reached its historical zenith spanning over 20 million square kilometers...
in 1827.
He was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society in June 1826.
Nayler's presence at the coronation of William IV
William IV of the United Kingdom
William IV was King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and of Hanover from 26 June 1830 until his death...
in 1831 was to be one of his last official functions before his death almost two months later. He was buried in his family vault at the church of St John the Baptist
John the Baptist
John the Baptist was an itinerant preacher and a major religious figure mentioned in the Canonical gospels. He is described in the Gospel of Luke as a relative of Jesus, who led a movement of baptism at the Jordan River...
in Gloucester
Gloucester
Gloucester is a city, district and county town of Gloucestershire in the South West region of England. Gloucester lies close to the Welsh border, and on the River Severn, approximately north-east of Bristol, and south-southwest of Birmingham....
.