The Gentleman Usher of the Black Rod, is an officer of the Order of the Garter and of the House of Lords. He plays a leading role in Parliamentary Ceremonial and is in charge of supervising the administration of the House of Lords. As a ceremonial officer it is he who summons the House of Commons to hear the Queen's Speech at the State Opening of Parliament.

Madam Speaker - the Queen commands this honourable house to attend Her Majesty immediately in the House of Peers.
- Black Rod.

The first record of Black Rod summoning the Commons dates back to 1614. In 1641 Black Rod is said to have rushed into the Commons without his rod and entered before he was called in. To this the Commons took offence. One year later was the failed attempt of Charles I to arrest the five members, and since then the Commons have demanded that Black Rod knock three times before they admit him to their chamber.

Black Rod's Staff, the ebony stick from which he takes his name, was originally employed for awarding the Order of the Garter. At its top, the Royal Lion holds a shield which has King Edward VII's initials surrounded by the Garter and the motto of the Order, and surmounted by a crown Crown on top.

The other end of the Rod, the base, is the business end. This is made up of a gold sovereign inset into a gold knob. This is the end which Black Rod uses to knock three times on the door to the Commons when they meet to sit at the State Opening of Parliament. On such occasions, Black Rod wears full State Dress, and carries both his staff and a sword in a black scabbard.

Additional Information on
Gentleman Usher of the Black Rod

The origins of Black Rod's office can be traced back to King Edward III's reign when the knights of the realm assembled at Windsor for many festivals and processions. As the knights moved from one part of the Castle to another, they were led by an usher who carried a black rod. However, there is little recorded before the seventeenth century as to what his particular duties were.