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The Borough of
Burslem
Burslem was created a borough in
1871 and in 1878 was granted a Charter of Incorporation and the right
to display arms.
All the six towns had and displayed arms
but only Burslem (as the 'Mother' town) received a grant.
Coats of arms are only
granted by Letters Patent from the senior heralds, the Kings of Arms.
A right to arms can only be established by the registration in the
official records of the College of Arms
Burslems' motto:
"Ready"
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Description of the
Burslem Arms:
The arms granted on the 8th
October 1878 were based on those of the Burslem Board of Health.
The crest is
a garb (sheaf of grain) and a fleur-de-lys, between two branches of
laurel.
The shield
was divided into four gold and red
quarters with two vertical and two horizontal stripes interlaced and counterchanged.
In the first
and fourth quarters a Portland Vase; in the second, a scythe; and in the
third a silver fret.
The Portland vase represents
local industry and the towns association with Josiah Wedgwood.
The scythe is from the arms of the
Sneyd family.
The Scythe also appears in the Tunstall arms.
The silver fretty cross "a fret couped argent" in the third quarter is from the
Audley arms.
It is said that the red
fleur-de-lys which surmounts the shield was the crest of Thomas Hulme,
Burslem's first Mayor.
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Contribution to the City Arms:
In 1912
arms were granted to the new county borough of Stoke-on-Trent. It was
made up of devices previously used in the arms of the constituent six
towns.
The scythe
from the Burslem and Tunstall arms were used in the city arms. Burslem
also contributed the Portland vase.
  
previous: examples of Tunstall
arms
next: examples of Burslem arms
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