The origin of the Stafford Knot is shrouded in the mists of antiquity, but it can be said that the somewhat barbaric tale of a certain Sheriff who invented it to hang three criminals with one rope at the same time, may be dismissed as an effort of the imagination.

The following is an extract from "The Church of Stoke upon Trent"

"Our Oldest Christian Relic is the shaft of a stone cross which stands in the Churchyard. It's date is probably somewhere between 750 and 850 AD. You can trace, in the carving on one side, the design of the Stafford Knot, which probably here makes it's first appearance in history. "

The problem with this is that the carving may have been added at a later date. The earliest authentic appearance of the Stafford Knot is on a seal in the British Museum. This was the property of Lady Joan Stafford, who became Lady Wake. On this seal is depicted quite clearly a cordon or string of four knots in the form of the Stafford Knot. It would appear that the Lady Wake wanted to use on her seal a border made up from her husband's badge, the Wake Knot, which consists of the initials W and O (for Wake and Ormond) intertwined. The Knot was passed down through the Earls of Stafford Family and as the days of feudalism passed and individual and civic liberties grew, it was gradually adopted by the citizens, Freemen and Burgesses until ultimately it was included in the Stafford Borough Coat of Arms.

Other organisations using the Knot are The Staffordshire Regiment, The Staffordshire Police Authority, The Staffordshire County Agricultural Society, The Staffordshire Guides, and many other societies and Institutions far too numerous to mention.

Strictly speaking, this ornament should never be spoken of as the Staffordshire Knot. It was a badge of the Stafford Family and as such it is linked definitely to the Borough of Stafford.

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While every care has been taken in the compilation of this information, Bill Harrison will not be held responsible for any loss, damage or inconvenience caused as a result of any inaccuracy or error within these pages.