Coat of Arms On The Leeds School Board Building – Leeds, UK - Coats of Arms on Waymarking.com

The Leeds School Board was formed after the passing of the 1870 Elementary Education Act.

During the industrial revolution cities had expanded rapidly and the population had moved from agricultural villages into the industrial cities. Provision of education for the children of workers in the cities was limited and many children went uneducated.

The act divided the United Kingdom in to school boards responsible for providing education for children up to the age of 10.

This building erected between 1878 and 1881 held the offices of the Leeds school board. As well as an examination hall for children architects were based here and were responsible for designing the new schools needed to fulfil the terms of the act.

This coat of arms has changed over the years in line with the changing fortunes of Leeds itself. The original arms from 1666 were simply a shield with 3 stars and a fleece. The 3 stars were taken from the arms of Sir Thomas Danby, the first Mayor of Leeds and the fleece symbolised that Leeds main trade was wool.

By the time of the Municipal Corporations Act of 1835 3 owls had been added. 2 Large ones as supporters and 1 on top of the shield. These were taken from the arms of Sir John Saville, the first Alderman of Leeds.

Leeds is very proud of its owls, and they have been used to decorate many places in the city on their own without being incorporated in the full coat of arms. The use of the owls by the Saville family dates back to before 1066 when the family was granted large tracts of land in England for helping William the Conqueror of Normandy to take over England. They appear to be Eagle Owls, but it is not sure why they were originally used because it is not believed any existed in Europe at that time.

The Latin motto ‘Pro Rege et Lege’ means ‘For King and the Law’.

Bearer of Coat of Arms: Town Full name of the bearer: The City of Leeds Where is Coat of Arms installed (short description) ?: Above Entrance of Leeds School Board Building Material / Design: Stone Address: Calverley Street Leeds West Yorkshire United Kingdom Web page about the structure where is Coat of Arms installed (if exists): [Web Link] Web page about the bearer of Coat of Arms (if exists): [Web Link] Blazon (heraldic description): Not listed

Visit Instructions:
Logging requirements: Please upload your own personal photo of the coat of arms. You or your GPS can be in the picture, but it’s not a requirement.

Recent Visits/Logs:

Date Logged Log   01/26/2013 greysman visited it