UNITED KINGDOM
Above and opposite page bottom: Images from the Service at All Saint’s Church in Wandsworth, London. Image credits: © Jessica Taylor, UK Parliament
the early days of the office and the Serjeant at Arms wears Georgian court dress and carries a sword. At the head of
the daily Speaker’s Procession, the Serjeant at Arms is required to carry the Mace and also processes into the House of Lords during the State Opening of Parliament, Prorogation and during the election of the Speaker - but without the Mace. Many Commonwealth Parliaments have a Serjeant at Arms with similar roles to the
UK Parliament, responsible for a combination of day-to-day security and keeping order in the Chambers of Parliament and a ceremonial role in the Parliament at different times of the year. A small exhibition containing historical artefacts, photographs and pictures as well as information about the role of the UK’s Serjeant at Arms is displayed in the Norman Porch at the Houses of Parliament until the end of August. This provides the many visitors to the UK Parliament who undertake public tours over the summer to learn more about the modern role and its history.
A book has also been revised by the UK Parliament’s House of Commons library that expands upon the history of the role and includes accounts of fascinating events such as the role the Serjeant at Arms played in the many confrontations with the Suffragettes and during the
English Civil War. It is available from the UK Parliamentary bookshop.
*Lawrence Ward, the Serjeant at Arms, has worked in the House of Commons at the UK Parliament since 1997, holding the post of Assistant Serjeant at Arms since 2008. Mr Ward took up the post of Serjeant at Arms on 1 May 2012.
Below: Association of Commonwealth Serjeants at Arms Conference 2015 delegates pictured with The Speaker of the UK Parliament’s House of Commons, Rt Hon. John Bercow MP and The Lord Speaker of the House of Lords, Baroness D’Souza (centre). Image credit © Roger Harris, UK Parliament
The Parliamentarian | 2015: Issue Three | 237
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