In 1952, the Scottish people were so outraged over a monogram they tarred public mailboxes and planted fake bombs in protest. That seems an extreme reaction over some silly letters, but in fact, those letters carry deep meaning and are steeped in history.
The focus of their ire was the royal cipher (or cypher in British English) of the newly crowned Queen Elizabeth II, which they saw as an affront because it disregarded their beloved Mary, Queen of Scots.
Royal ciphers are basically special monograms for a reigning sovereign. The use of ciphers traces back to Queen Victoria.
They are used to adorn buildings, gates and other items in a sovereign's honor, as well as official items during his or her reign such as stamps and coins.
Royal ciphers are designed by the College of Arms for the incoming sovereign, who selects the final design among several choices. For King Charles III, the intersecting initials "C" and "R" with the roman numeral three inside the "R" form his cipher along with an image of the crown.
The “R” stands for either Rex or Regina, the Latin words for King and Queen respectively. For example, the new king's “CR” means “Charles Rex” and his mother was “ER” for Elizabeth Regina.
King Charles III actually has two official royal ciphers – one for England and one for Scotland. The two are exactly the same except the Scottish version includes that country's crown. Surely this choice traces back to his mother’s cipher controversy in 1952.
The problem for his mother had to do with her being named the second, so her cipher was “EIIR.” That roman numeral caused a big fuss.
Scots Up In Arms
The first Queen Elizabeth ruled from 1558-1603, but was only crowned Queen of England and Wales, not Scotland. Elizabeth's cousin, Mary, was named Scotland’s queen in 1542 when she was only 6 days old, according to the Royal Collection Trust.
Interestingly, it was Mary's son, James, who united Scotland and England in rule. James was already King of Scotland when he was crowned King of England after Elizabeth I died in 1603. She was famously called "The Virgin Queen" and had no heirs.
Mary and Elizabeth had a long and tangled relationship, especially since Mary had legitimate claims to the English throne.
With this history in perspective, it makes more sense why the Scots were upset when the cipher for Queen Elizabeth II appeared on the country's post boxes (mailboxes).
According to the Postal Museum, a letter by a group calling themselves “Scottish Patriots,” was sent to the chief of Scotland’s police “demanding that steps be taken against the Postmaster General for their ‘historical inaccuracy' in using the cypher EIIR"
Protests escalated from damaging post box ciphers with hammers to planting bombs. Even though the bombs were designed not to detonate, the message was clear.
Prime Minister Winston Churchill got involved claiming England would not back down (it’s well known he was a big royalist and a fan of the young, new queen). Post boxes were destroyed and repaired again and again. Threatening notes and actions continued for months until finally a change was made.
Instead of "EIIR" a single image of the Crown of St. Andrew, which is part of the Scottish Crown Jewels, was chosen – with no accompanying initials – as the new cipher for official mailboxes and vehicles in Scotland.
Hunting Ciphers
When visiting London, finding ciphers and figuring out their meaning and history is a fun game while enjoying the big tourist sites. London’s Postal Museum calls this “cypher spotting.” From the huge and obvious to the small and simple, the ciphers are artful and cleverly integrated into their surrounding environment.
We were in the United Kingdom just after King Charles III’s coronation. As expected, his cipher was everywhere. For instance, at the Tower of London the cipher was prominently featured on the building housing the Crown Jewels and on the uniforms of the yeoman who guard the tower grounds. With the Tower of London's rich history and museums, spotting ciphers for past royals was easy, as well.
Near Parliament and across the Westminster Bridge, I noticed lampposts adorned with an intertwined “V” and "A" for royals of the past – Queen Victoria and her husband Prince Albert.
Much has been written about their successful, loving marriage and, in my opinion, this special cipher is a clear nod to the deep love between them.
While spotting royal ciphers around London, you'll also find cipher-like insignia for businesses, communities and non-royal nobility, a class of aristocrats with an inherited or granted title such as Duke or Earl.
For instance, the Earl's Court Gate entrance to Holland Park in London's Royal Borough of Kensington is adorned with "HH" for Holland House. Holland Park, according to official borough information, is 54 acres spread across what was once the grounds of Cope Castle, the home to the Earl of Holland. When the Earl died his wife renamed the home Holland House.
There's a much discussed monogram found throughout the City of Westminster in greater London. Stroll along those city streets and notice lampposts adorned with a fancy “W” and a pair of reverse facing "Cs" that look like the Chanel fashion house logo.
The popular story is that the Duke of Westminster carried on a long affair with Coco Chanel during the 1920s. As a public declaration of his love, the Duke displayed their initials on lampposts all over the city.
Adding to the intrigue is the 2011 book, “Sleeping With The Enemy: Coco Chanel’s Secret War,” by Hal Vaughan. The author dampens the flames of love with claims the French designer was a German spy during WWII with the code name “Westminster,” which the House of Chanel has denied.
Did Chanel take advantage of the love-struck Duke for riches, access and information? Whatever the result, they’re forever together on practically every lamppost in sight.
Or, so most people think.
“The Telegraph” reported in 2010 that the “W” stands for the city itself and the double "Cs" means “City Council," according to Westminster officials in the story. Plus, the adorned lampposts weren't even installed until the 1950s, long after Chanel and the Duke were an item.
Well, that’s no fun.
The article also said the city was switching out the lampposts for plain ones. Those plans were either scrapped or the wheels of change are really slow because I spotted plenty of the monogramed lampposts.
Royal Cipher Spotting Beyond London
You know how once you’re made aware of something, then suddenly you start noticing it everywhere? That certainly happened to me with ciphers in and around London and even back in the U.S. during a visit to the Charleston Museum in Charleston, S.C.
There, nestled among antique dishes and pots in a display case, I spotted ciphers for different King Georges. The ciphers were on items designed in the late 1600s to early 1800s for export to London. These artifacts are a reminder of the connection between the two countries and their historic cities.
For a deep dive on ciphers, check out the website for The College of Arms. Another great option is The Postal Museum’s website, which has a wealth of information on ciphers, especially in stamp design.
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