DIFFERENT KINDS OF ARMS.
In heraldic science, arms are distinguished by different names, to denote the causes of their being borne, such as arms of dominion, of pretension, of concession, of community, of patronage, of family, of alliance, of succession, and of assumption. Those of dominion and sovereignty are those which emperors, kings, and sovereign states constantly bear, being, as it were, annexed to the territories, kingdoms, and provinces they possess. Thus there are the arms of England, of France, of the United States, &c. Arms of pretension are those of kingdoms, provinces, or territories, to which a prince or lord has some claim, and which he adds to his own, although such kingdoms or territories are possessed by another prince or lord. Arms of concession, or augmentation of honor, are entire arms, as the fortress of Gibraltar on the escutcheon of Lord Heathfield. Arms of community belong to bishoprics, cities, companies, &c. Arms of patronage, to governors of provinces, lords of manors, &c. Arms of family are the property of individuals; and it is criminal in any persons not of the family to assume them. Arms of alliance show the union of families and individuals. Arms of succession are taken up, by those who inherit certain estates, manors, &c., either by will, entail, or donation, and which they impale or quarter with their own. This multiplies the titles of some families from necessity, and not from ostentation. Arms of assumption, or assumptive arms, are taken up by the caprice or fancy of persons who assume them without a legal title. They are also such as a man of his proper right may assume, with the approbation of his sovereign and of the king of arms.