- Sep 9, 2022
- 4 min read

Cash, stamps and flags: how royal symbols will now change

- THE GUARDIAN - Robert Booth - SEP 8, 2022 -

A 1960 £1 note that featured the Queen for the first time. Photograph: Alamy

Unpicking Queen Elizabeth’s name, image and iconography from public life will take some time

When George VI died in his sleep at Sandringham during the early hours of 6 February 1952, his elder daughter, Princess Elizabeth, then visiting Kenya with her husband, immediately became Queen Elizabeth II.

“The same simultaneous process will occur at the death of Queen Elizabeth and assumption of the throne by King Charles III,” Robert Blackburn, a professor of constitutional law at King’s College London, has told parliament.

However, after the Queen’s record-breaking reign, unpicking her name, image and iconography from the fabric of national life in the UK and across the Commonwealth will take much longer. These are some of the things that will need to change.

Flags

From the flags that fly outside police stations across the UK to the standard used on a naval ship when a general is onboard, thousands of flags emblazoned with EIIR will need to be replaced. Military regiments fly “Queen’s colours”, many of which are studded with a golden embroidered EIIR; the fire service ensign includes her initials and countries where the Queen remains head of state, including Australia, Canada and New Zealand, have what flag experts call “E flags” – personal flags for the Queen that are used when she is visiting.

It is possible that the royal standard – the quartered flag that flies wherever the monarch is in residence – could also change. The version used by the Queen includes one quarter representing Scotland (a lion rampant), one for Ireland (a harp), and two representing England (three lions passant), but none for Wales. It has been in use since long before Wales had its own national flag, recognised in 1959. The next monarch could incorporate a Welsh element.

Bank notes and coins

There are 4.5bn sterling bank notes in circulation with the Queen’s face on them, worth a combined £80bn. Replacing them with alternatives featuring the head of the new monarch is likely to take at least two years. When the latest synthetic £50 notes were issued, the process of recall and replacement took the Bank of England 16 months. When the Queen acceded to the throne in 1952, the monarch was not featured on the banknotes. That changed in 1960 when the face of Elizabeth II began to appear on £1 notes in an image created by the banknote designer Robert Austin, which some criticised as too severe. An image of the new monarch would be agreed with Buckingham Palace. The Queen’s head also features on some $20 banknotes in Canada, on coins in New Zealand, and on all coins and notes issued by the Eastern Caribbean central bank, as well as other parts of the Commonwealth.

Coin designs may be changed more slowly if historical precedent is followed: it was common to have different monarchs in your wallet as the changeover in coins happened organically rather than through recall.

National anthem

One of the most straightforward changes, in theory, will be switching the words of the national anthem from “God save our gracious Queen” to “God save our gracious King” – although it may take time before large crowds sing the new version with confidence. The anthem has been in use since 1745 when an early version ran: “God save great George our king, Long live our noble king, God save the king.”

Prayers

The Queen was the “defender of the faith and supreme governor” of the Church of England, and there are prayers to her in the Book of Common Prayer, which dates from 1662. One asks God to “replenish her with the grace of thy Holy Spirit, that she may alway incline to thy will, and walk in thy way”. These are expected to be amended to become prayers for the new monarch. This must be done by legislation or a royal warrant and was last done after the Queen Mother died. Priests are also able to amend the prayer for temporary use, which means prayers for the monarch that are commonly said in Sunday services and evensong can quickly be adapted to the new defender of the faith.

In services of holy communion contained in the common worship, there is a “collect” for the sovereign that asks God to “rule the heart of thy chosen servant Elizabeth, our Queen and governor, that she may above all things seek thy honour and glory”. This can be changed by the General Synod.

Royal arms

The familiar royal arms, which feature a lion and a unicorn rampant against a shield, are used widely on government premises and stationery, and any change would be costly, but it may not be necessary. It would need to change if the new monarch decided to represent Wales on the shield in line with any change to the royal standard.

Royal warrants

From the Angostura bitters company in Trinidad and Tobago to the Sussex farrier Zack Treliving, the Queen’s royal warrant currently applies to more than 600 businesses that have a history of supplying the royal household. Brands enjoying the use of the Queen’s arms on their marketing materials include Steinway pianos, Jordans cereals, Gordon’s gin and Swarovski jewellers, as well as plumbers, fence makers, sound engineers, hedge trimmers and flour millers. After the death of the Queen they stand to lose their status, unless they are granted a new warrant by her successor or another member of the royal family who becomes a grantor – potentially a new Prince of Wales. This may not happen quickly. When Prince Philip died, his royal warrant holders were given two years’ grace. A new monarch could decide to adjust the criteria to be met to become a royal warrant holder, for example by increasing the emphasis on sustainability.