Widow who promised to honor her late husband's wish for the Three Lions emblem on his gravestone is devastated when she realizes she needs the KING's permission
- Tracy Bilclough, 63, Warks made the pledge when her husband died in 2020
A widow who promised to honor her late husband's wish to place the Three Lions emblem on his gravestone is devastated after the judge tells her she needs the king's permission.
Retired carer Tracy Bilclough, 63, made the promise to her football-obsessed husband John before he died aged 60 in 2020 in Stretton-on-Dunsmore, Warks.
However, she was told to remove the iconic symbol from the headstone after a Church of England judge said the 'stylized heraldic lions' belonged to the Crown.
Mrs Bilclough has a year to appeal or get the King's permission, and she has already written to our monarch twice to get permission, with no response yet.
John Bilclough died in 2020 at the age of 60 and his wife promised to add the Three Lions symbol to his gravestone
A judge told Mrs Bilclough to remove the Three Lions symbol from the headstone as it belonged to the Crown and therefore she needed his permission
'It just seems wrong that you can have a symbol of another country you like but not one of England in England.
'I feel sorry for John. It feels like he has been betrayed by the country he loved. When I was forced to have the Three Lions sanded away, I cried my eyes out,” she told the Sun.
The judge ruled that the Three Lions are part of the Royal Coat of Arms of England and therefore cannot be used on the gravestone with permission. “Unfortunately, any use must be properly authorized.”
Retired carer Tracy Bilclough, 63, was devastated when she was told to remove it and 'cried her eyes out'
She added: “It's so disappointing not to hear from the king.”
At Mr Bilclough Cemetery, just two rows away, there is a gravestone with a Fleur de Lis on it, another heraldic symbol, but one associated with the French royal family.
Another grave nearby contained a thistle emblem, symbolizing Scotland.