About the Bowyers

The Worshipful Company of Bowyers is one of the older and smaller of the City of London's livery companies. We celebrate our piece of history, we work hard at our charitable activity, and we provide a convivial sociable environment that keeps our members engaged... Find out more

"Piercing Plate Armour with Arrows - Fact or Fiction" - 10 March, 2021

On the evening of 10 March over 30 Bowyers joined Mr Mark Stretton, Bowyer Freeman, for an engaging and informative online lecture titled: "Piercing Plate Armour with Arrows - Fact or Fiction" and it gave us an true insight into just how much damage the weapons produced by our predecessors could do! We were delighted to welcome both the Master Fletcher, Mr Stuart Robbens and the Fletcher Upper Warden Professor Anne Curry as our guests on the evening.

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News from Suited & Booted

We were delighted to see in the 2021 New Year Honours list that the founder and director of the Suited & Booted charity, Dr Maria Lenn, has been made an MBE 'for services to unemployed in London'. We're delighted for her; it's very well-deserved recognition for all the selfless work she has put in over the past few years to building and running this extraordinarily successful small charity that kits out the unemployed for interviews and provides them with coaching.

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Bowyers' Sailing

Fellow Bowyers – Do you Sail? Or would you like to give Sailing "a go"?

Not long ago, a handful of us set up the Worshipful Company of Bowyers' Sailing Club as an informal group with fellow Bowyers. Some already had Sailing experience and others were new to Sailing, but all of us enjoyed being out on the water.

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Our Coat of Arms

The arms of the Company were granted by Sir Thomas Holme, Clarenceux King of Arms on 10 November 1488. The main charge is the 'flote' which was a device for planing and smoothing the bow stave. The chevron has no special meaning but is simply to separate the 'flotes' in the design. It is commonly found at this time in arms granted to corporations, livery companies and others. Likewise, so far as we know the mullets are merely decorative.

The Crest of three bows may represent the product in use and ties up neatly with the motto: Crecy, Poitiers, Agincourt.

The Supporters were granted in July 1996. The dexter is a representative of a medieval bowyer in the livery of his Company (black and white) holding a 'flote' as one of the tools of his trade. The sinister, a representation of an archer of the time of Agincourt symbolises the product in use.

The supporters stand upon a green mound which is strewn with pointed stakes set at an angle such as were used by the archers at Agincourt as a defence against cavalry.