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Anthony Wagner
Sir Anthony Richard Wagner KCB KCVO FSA (6 September 1908 – 5 May 1995) was a long-serving officer of arms at the College of Arms in London. He served as Garter Principal King of Arms before retiring to the post of Clarenceux King of Arms. He was one of the most prolific authors on the subjects of heraldry and genealogy of the 20th century.
Wagner's distant ancestor, Melchior Wagner, arrived in England from the Saxon city of Coburg in 1709 and became hatter to George I and George II.
Wagner's father, Orlando Wagner, ran a day-school in London. He attended Eton College and Balliol College, Oxford, on scholarships. He found the classics uninteresting and graduated with a third in Literae humaniores. From early age he had been interested in genealogy and his favourite book as a boy was Hereford Brooke George's Genealogical Tables Illustrative of Modern History.
Wagner joined the College of Arms as Portcullis Pursuivant of Arms in Ordinary in 1931. He was promoted to Richmond Herald of Arms in Ordinary in 1943 and Garter Principal King of Arms in 1961. In 1978 he retired to the subordinate position of Clarenceux King of Arms. Oxford University awarded him a DLitt and in 1979 he was appointed an honorary fellow of Balliol College.
He was a firm believer in the view that appointments to the college were for life. As a herald he enjoyed a very large practice and was able to train up a number of skilled and well-qualified assistants who later became officers of arms. His professional library was enormous, but he was also able to build up an important collection of early heraldic manuscripts from the Clumber and other sales.
During World War II he served in the War Office for four years, and then moved to the Ministry of Town and Country Planning, where he rose to be Principal Private Secretary to a series of ministers. Although he contemplated remaining in the Ministry, he returned to the College of Arms in 1946 and took over the extensive practice of Alfred Butler, Windsor Herald.
He took part in the Coronation of Queen Elizabeth ll in 1951 as Richmond Herald, and as Garter King of Arms took part in and was involved in the ceremonial aspects of the state funeral of Winston Churchill in 1965 and the Investiture of Charles, Prince of Wales at Caernarfon Castle in 1969.
One idea, which he pursued persistently, was the establishment of a museum in which to display the treasures of the College of Arms itself. Initially it was hoped to erect a building adjacent to the college, and a design was commissioned from Raymond Erith; this became impossible because of the increasing financial demands of repairs to the college itself. But in 1981 the Heralds' Museum opened in part of the Tower of London.
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Anthony Wagner
Sir Anthony Richard Wagner KCB KCVO FSA (6 September 1908 – 5 May 1995) was a long-serving officer of arms at the College of Arms in London. He served as Garter Principal King of Arms before retiring to the post of Clarenceux King of Arms. He was one of the most prolific authors on the subjects of heraldry and genealogy of the 20th century.
Wagner's distant ancestor, Melchior Wagner, arrived in England from the Saxon city of Coburg in 1709 and became hatter to George I and George II.
Wagner's father, Orlando Wagner, ran a day-school in London. He attended Eton College and Balliol College, Oxford, on scholarships. He found the classics uninteresting and graduated with a third in Literae humaniores. From early age he had been interested in genealogy and his favourite book as a boy was Hereford Brooke George's Genealogical Tables Illustrative of Modern History.
Wagner joined the College of Arms as Portcullis Pursuivant of Arms in Ordinary in 1931. He was promoted to Richmond Herald of Arms in Ordinary in 1943 and Garter Principal King of Arms in 1961. In 1978 he retired to the subordinate position of Clarenceux King of Arms. Oxford University awarded him a DLitt and in 1979 he was appointed an honorary fellow of Balliol College.
He was a firm believer in the view that appointments to the college were for life. As a herald he enjoyed a very large practice and was able to train up a number of skilled and well-qualified assistants who later became officers of arms. His professional library was enormous, but he was also able to build up an important collection of early heraldic manuscripts from the Clumber and other sales.
During World War II he served in the War Office for four years, and then moved to the Ministry of Town and Country Planning, where he rose to be Principal Private Secretary to a series of ministers. Although he contemplated remaining in the Ministry, he returned to the College of Arms in 1946 and took over the extensive practice of Alfred Butler, Windsor Herald.
He took part in the Coronation of Queen Elizabeth ll in 1951 as Richmond Herald, and as Garter King of Arms took part in and was involved in the ceremonial aspects of the state funeral of Winston Churchill in 1965 and the Investiture of Charles, Prince of Wales at Caernarfon Castle in 1969.
One idea, which he pursued persistently, was the establishment of a museum in which to display the treasures of the College of Arms itself. Initially it was hoped to erect a building adjacent to the college, and a design was commissioned from Raymond Erith; this became impossible because of the increasing financial demands of repairs to the college itself. But in 1981 the Heralds' Museum opened in part of the Tower of London.