This famous white and red rose symbol, called the Tudor
Rose, dates back to the "Wars of the Roses"
in the second half of the fifteenth century in England
and named after the Tudor dynasty of whom Queen Elizabeth
I was the last.
During the "War of the Roses" in the 15th
Century, many of the inns and hostels in the Yorkshire
countryside had roses carved in the ceiling panels and beams of
the bar rooms.
Matters related to the War discussed “under the rose”
were treated as being top secret and not to be repeated to others
under pain of death. "Under the rose" therefore
came to be accepted as meaning the imparting of secret matters
and "Sub-Rosa" (Latin for "Under The
Rose") was used extensively to indicate secret information
right up to the early part of the twentieth century and even during
World War II.
These days the term "Sub Rosa" would be familiar
to movie-going audiences as it has been used in popular films
such as "The Da Vinci Code" and "Elizabeth:
The Golden Age" - both dealing with subjects dating back
to earlier centuries. And the symbol of the Tudor Rose
is still used to indicate a professional company dealing with
secret intelligence.
We have made this iconic symbol of the Tudor Rose
with the words "Sub Rosa" available here on a
wide rangeof t-shirts, greeting cards, posters,
prints, mugs and gifts.
Any
portraits or engravings used in designs for these products have
either been scanned from 19th Century or early 20th Century books
on the subject or photographed from the original images by Sally
McLean or photographers acting on her behalf. The images have
then been digitally cleaned up, restored and formatted for use.
