Mayor's Insignia
The Mayor's robes, gowns, chains and badges of office are the outward signs of the civic offices they hold i.e. their insignia - 'the mark, sign or badge of office or the badges or distinguishing marks of office honour' (Shorter Oxford English Dictionary)
Civic Dress Normal
The generally accepted rules for the Mayor's wearing of civic regalia in order to retain the dignity of the Mayoral Office and to respect the precedence of the Royal Family and other Mayors are as follows:
| Occasion | Accepted form of dress |
|---|---|
| At a special function within the Royal Borough when Royalty is present | Robe, chains and badges |
| At a public function connected with the business of the Council at which Royalty is present | Robe, chains and badges |
| At Mayor's own dinners and receptions | Robe, chains and badges at reception; chains and badges afterwards |
| At public functions within the Royal Borough at which the Mayor is present by invitation | Chains and badges |
| At charity meetings, bazaars and private functions within the Royal Borough | As decided by the Mayor |
| At any function outside the Borough at which Royalty is present | Chains and badges (or otherwise in conformity with wishes of Royalty and the Mayor of the Borough within which the function takes place) |
| At any other function outside the Borough | Badges only, with the consent of the Mayor or Chair of the District concerned. (This will also apply to the wearing of former Mayor's and Mayoress' badges at civic functions outside the Borough) |
Each Council will have its own historical reasons for its dress Normal. In the Royal Borough the Deputy Mayor is not allowed to wear the chain of office in the presence of the Mayor, except on civic occasions when the Council is 'robed' (e.g. Council Meetings)
The Robes
On appropriate civic or ceremonial occasions the Mayor wears a scarlet robe made of superfine scarlet wool with a fake fur trimming. The robes are worn with a lace jabot (like a cravatte) at the neck, lace cuffs worn on black sleeves and white cotton gloves. The same robes are worn whether the Mayor is male or female. If male, the Mayor wears a black cocked hat or, in the case of a female, a tricorne hat.
The Mace
The original maces were large sticks with a heavy round ball on the end, the purpose of which was to crush armour and by implication the person contained within. There were some variations however where some maces had a ball and chain, others had spikes attached to the ball.
The standard mace however adopted a symbol of Authority and those used by Councils would have the stamp of the Royal Arms on the bottom. The Mace is a symbol of the Queens' authority vested in the Mayor. It is placed in front of the Mayor at all meetings of the Council and carried in front of the Mayor on all appropriate ceremonial occasions.
Kingston Maces
The position of Mayor is a relatively recent one in Kingston with the first Mayor only appearing in 1835 apart from a brief period between 1685 and 88 when James 11 effectively introduced a direct rule.
Prior to that there were two Bailiffs, a senior and junior one. The senior Bailiff (now the Mayor) had the Great Mace. 99cm in length and made of silver gilt; the Mace-head, footknop and foot from a pair of maces purchased in 1617, the mace was refashioned on a baluster shaft in 1861.
The head compromises royal badges between sprigs of roses and fleur-de-lys in panels divided by caryatides. There is also a band representing fur surmounted by a royal crown surrounding the head. Within the coronet of crosses and fleur-de-lys is the original cushion with the royal arms and supporters of the Stuart sovereigns.
The junior Bailiff (the Deputy Mayor) had the 'small mace'. Once again made out of silver gilt but only 80cms in length, the small mace consisted of a plain band with simple dividing bands. A footknop was chased with eaves below and two roses and two fleur-de lys above. On the end is a shield of the Borough Arms, three salmon. The head is divided by armless female caryatides, from which rise arches of laurel into four panels with the Royal badges appliqué and engraved floral devices. On top is a Royal Crown with the Royal arms of the Stuart Sovereigns on the cap.
The maces are rare as during the Civil War, virtually all regalia of this type was destroyed including famously the House of Commons 'bauble' which was destroyed by Cromwell himself.
Kingston avoided this by removing the Arms of James I and adding the Commonwealth Arms. At the Restoration the original Arms were replaced.
Chains and Badges
Following the amalgamation of the former Boroughs of Malden and Coombe and Surbiton with the Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames in 1965 it was agreed that the use of chains and badges should be as follows:
The Mayor - The chain and badge of office of the Mayor of the former Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames
The Mayoress - The chain and badge of office of the Mayoress of the former Royal Borough
Mayor's Consort - There is no chain or badge of office specifically for a Consort who normally wears the Mayoress' badge of office on a ribbon
Deputy Mayor -The former Surbiton deputy Mayor's chain, with the former Royal Borough's deputy Mayor's badge of office.
Deputy Mayoress -The former Malden and Coombe Mayoress' chain with the badge of office of the Deputy Mayoress of the former Royal Borough
The Mayor's Chain (1820)
The chain is made of sterling silver of 92.5% purity. A Herald's silver collar on the Lancastrian pattern with gilt shoulder pieces composed of the crown, shamrock and thistle, all crowned with the motto: 'Dieu et mon Droit' (meaning God and My Right). On the reverse of each link and on the shoulder pieces are engraved the names of all the Mayors from 1835 to 1965.
The seventh link from the left on the lower chain (worn across the Mayor's back) has been enamelled as a sign of respect for a Mayor who died in office)
Hallmark: Geo. IV London 1820
The Mayor's badge
Made of 18 carat gold, the badge is worn suspended from the chain or, when outside the Royal Borough from a ribbon.
The badge bears a representation of the Borough Arms comprising three salmon with an 'R' in silver on an enamel background. This is surrounded by three lions in gold relief enclosed by a border of oak leaves and acorns with three roses.
At the head is a rose: at the base are three lilies: on either side a scallop shell and decorations.
The following inscription is engraved on the reverse:
'This is a gift of Henry W Peek, Baronet first Member of Parliament for Mid-Surrey to the Worshipful the Mayor and for the time being of the Ancient Corporation of Kingston-on-Thames'
The Chain and Badge were presented to the Council on March 16th 1875.
Deputy Mayor's Chain and Badge
Made of yellow gold with a raised carved white 9-carat gold border with wording 'Deputy Mayor Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames', the Deputy Mayor's badge was presented by A.B. Rogers, Town Clerk of Kingston upon Thames, upon the occasion of his retirement on May 31st 1960.
The badge is oval in shape and measures 2 inches in length and 1 3/4 inches in width. The badge has raised white 9-carat gold floral ornaments in a raised 9-carat gold and enamel shield with the Arms of Kingston upon Thames.
The badge is worn on the Deputy Mayor's chain of Surbiton.
The Mayoress' Chain and Badge of Office
The Badge is of 9-carat gold, lozenge shaped, with a carved wavy line border. It bears a representation of the Borough Arms comprising three salmon on a blue enamel background. It is attached to a god bow set with rose cut diamonds. Presented by Mrs E G B Finny JP in July 1957.
The Mayoral Car
The Mayoral Car (RBK 1) is provided to transport the Mayor and Mayoress, with other dignitaries when appropriate to and from engagements.
The Coat of Arms is shown on the front windscreen on the Mayoral car and the Borough flag, in the form of a pennant, is flown when the Mayor is in the car.
Kingston Museum
Some items of regalia can be seen at Kingston Museum.