History and Information on Inn Signs of Pubs and Taverns beginning with the letter "B" for Local Historians, Family Research and Genealogy

History and Information on Inn Signs of Pubs and Taverns beginning with the letter "B" for Local Historians, Family Research and Genealogy

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Camp

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A soldier stands on guard at the edge of the military camp on this sign at Kings Norton, now a suburb of Birmingham. The pub was given this name because soldiers camped close to the pub during the English Civil War. An older pub at the village green, The Saracen's Head, is famous for being the resting place of Queen Henrietta Maria, wife of Charles I. During the Civil War she was riding to join her husband at the Royalist capital of Oxford and, for safety, travelled with an armaments train. However, the Roundheads stumbled upon the train just after it had left King's Norton and a fierce skirmish ensued. Indeed, the Roundheads used St.Nicholas' church as a redoubt. Heavily outnumbered, they could not stop the train from escaping along the Icknield way and the queen reached the sanctuary of Oxford.

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Cross-Keys
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The Cross Keys is a very common sign around Great Britain and is related to Christian heraldry. The cross keys refer to Saint Peter, to whom Jesus said: "I will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven." It is not surprising therefore to find that the papal arms features the crossed keys. In addition, they often appear in the arms of various bishops. The sign of the Cross Keys appears on signs close to churches and can indicate that the building was closely associated with it.