Saturday 10 May 2008

Did Henry VII ever stop in Hay?

I had a fascinating conversation with a visitor the other day about the inn sign of the Blue Boar. On the sign the blue boar is carrying a flag, on which is depicted another blue boar and various crescents and other symbols, including a red cross on a white background. This seemed to be a very specific depiction to the visitor, who speculated that it could show that Henry VII once stayed in Hay.
I knew that the blue boar symbol often started off as a white boar on pub signs, to denote loyalty to Richard III, whose personal badge it was. However, when he was defeated by Henry Tudor, it became dangerous to admit to loyalty to the previous king. The obvious solution was to change the sign - and the easiest change to make was to paint the white boar blue - which just happened to be the badge of the Earl of Oxford, who was a general under Henry Tudor.
The Earls of Oxford also have an association with Hay - the road that the Blue Boar stands on is Oxford Road, for instance.
Personally, I don't think the pub is old enough to have any late medieval/Tudor associations, and the sign painter probably just made up a flag he thought looked good - but you never know.
I gave the visitor Rob Soldat's name, and told him where to find him. Rob Soldat knows everything there is to know about the history of Hay, and he could explain the pub sign if anyone can.

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