Pilgrim Badges

You will see many people sporting pewter badges on various garments. These are generally either pilgrim badges or the badge of a specific household, for instance the Stafford Knot of the Duke of Buckingham or the White Boar of Richard III. I find it best to avoid allegiance badges for everyday wear, as the dukes of Buckingham often changed sides during the Wars of the Roses, so you need to be careful about having a Yorkist badge when you are a Lancastrian etc. With pilgrim badges it is good practice to wear the badges of a shrine you’ve actually visited, such as Thomas Becket's shrine in Canterbury or Walsingham.