This livery collar or chain of office was first seen on Jeremy Northam as Sir Thomas More in Showtime’s 𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝑻𝒖𝒅𝒐𝒓𝒔. It was worn again in 2012 on Geoffrey Palmer as the Lord Chief Justice in 𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝑯𝒐𝒍𝒍𝒐𝒘 𝑪𝒓𝒐𝒘𝒏: 𝑯𝒆𝒏𝒓𝒚 𝑰𝑽 𝑷𝒂𝒓𝒕 𝟐. Livery collars were generally used to denote the holding of an office or as a symbol of loyalty to a specific person or house. This particular design, usually referred to as a “Collar of Esses,” was used as early as 1371. There is speculation that the “S” stands for “Soverayne” (sovereign) or Spiritus Sanctus (Holy Spirit), though the actual meaning is unknown. Throughout the reigns of Henry IV, V, and VI, the “Esses” were typically considered to be a badge of the House of Lancaster. The pendant that adorned the end of the chain at this time was generally a white swan. The chain was used again during the reign of Henry VIII, where Hans Holbein’s famous portrait of the Lord Chamberlain, Sir Thomas More, was painted wearing a chain of Esses, adorned at the end with a Tudor Rose. This particular chain had to remove the Tudor Rose for 𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝑯𝒐𝒍𝒍𝒐𝒘 𝑪𝒓𝒐𝒘𝒏, as the Wars of the Roses had not yet begun, and thus the Tudor Rose – the combination of the Houses of York and Lancaster – did not yet exist. Learn more on our website! Bit.ly/Acces080
