Coat of arms of the Prince of Wales of the duchy on his coat of arms. This title has been granted to every heir apparent since 17 March 1337, in accordance with a charter issued by King Edward III for Prince Edward the Black Prince, his eldest son and heir. The family of the Prince of Wales is entitled to use certain heraldic features. The consort of the Prince of Wales (titled the Princess of Wales) is granted a unique coat of arms upon marriage, based on the impaling of the prince's arms (on the dexter side) and her father's arms (on the sinister side). The consort is
Edward the Black Prince differenced royal arms. His younger brother, John of Gaunt, used a similar shield on which the ostrich feathers were ermine. Edward's "shield for peace" is believed to have inspired the badge of three ostrich feathers used by later Princes of Wales. Edward married his cousin, Joan, Countess of Kent (1328–1385), on 10 October 1361. She was the daughter and heiress of Edmund, Earl of Kent, the younger son of King Edward I by his second wife Margaret of France. They had two sons, both born in Aquitaine: From his marriage to Joan, he also became stepfather to her children by