Editing Cadency (section)

{{short description|System in heraldry to distinguish family members}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2019}}
[[File:CadencyMarksMale.PNG|thumb|300px|Charges used as marks of cadency in English heraldry: 1: [[label (heraldry)|label]]  of three points; 2: [[crescent]]; 3: [[mullet (heraldry)|mullet]]; 4: [[martlet]]; 5: [[annulet (heraldry)|annulet]]; 6: [[fleur-de-lys]]; 7: [[Rose (heraldry)|rose]]; 8: [[cross moline]]; 9: [[Quatrefoil|octofoil]] ]]
{{Heraldic achievement}}

In [[heraldry]], '''cadency''' is any systematic way to distinguish [[Coat of arms|arms]] displayed by [[Lineal descendant|descendant]]s of the holder of a [[coat of arms]] when those family members have not been granted arms in their own right. Cadency is necessary in heraldic systems in which a given design may be owned by only one person at any time, generally the head of the senior line of a particular family.

As an [[armiger|armiger's]] arms may be used 'by courtesy', either by children or spouses, while they are still living, some form of differencing may be required so as not to confuse them with the original '''undifferenced''' or "plain coat" arms. Historically, arms were only heritable by males, and therefore cadency marks had no relevance to daughters; in the modern era, Canadian and Irish heraldry include daughters in cadency.{{cn|date=February 2023}}

These differences are formed by adding to the arms small and inconspicuous marks called '''brisures''', similar to [[Charge (heraldry)|charge]]s but smaller. They are typically placed on the [[fess]] point (the centre of the field), or in chief (the upper part of the field) in the case of the label.<ref name="Britannica-11-p704">Encyclopædia Britannica, 9th edition (1884), vol. 11, p. 704</ref> Brisures are generally exempt from the [[rule of tincture]]. One of the best examples of usage from the medieval period is shown on the seven Beauchamp cadets in the stained-glass windows of [[Collegiate Church of St Mary, Warwick|St Mary's Church]], [[Warwick]].<ref name="Britannica-11-p704" />