messages to Royalist forces in England. As a sign of their authority, the King broke four silver greyhounds from a bowl familiar to royal courtiers, and gave one to each man. A silver greyhound thus became the symbol of the Service. On formal occasions, the Queen's Messengers wear this badge from a ribbon, and on less formal occasions male messengers wear ties with a discreet greyhound pattern while working. In 1824 the messengers became a formal part of the UK Foreign Office. Modern day Modern communications have diminished the role of the Queen's Messengers, but as original confidential documents still need to be conveyed securely between countries, their function remains valuable, but declining. In 1995 a parliamentary question put the number of Messengers then at 27. The number in March 2015 was sixteen full-time and two part-time, and the departmental headcount was nineteen. In December 2015 an article in the Daily Express suggested that the Queen's Messenger service was "facing the chop by cost-cutting Foreign Office mandarins who see them as a legacy of a by-gone age". However the service continues, as part of the secure logistics operation of FCDO Services, part of the Foreign Office. The British Rail Class 67 diesel locomotive 67005 bears the name Queen's Messenger. King's Messengers have been officially ratified by King Charles III. This happened in November 2022 - info provided by a former Queens Messenger recently retired. See also Diplomatic courier BSAA Star Dust was carrying a King's Messenger at the time of its disappearance. SS Berlin was carrying Mr Herbert, a King's Messenger, at the time of its sinking. The Queen's Messenger (TV drama) References Further reading Antrobus, George Pollock, and Cecil Hunt. King's Messenger, 1918-1940, Memoirs of a Silver Greyhound. London: H. Jenkins, 1941. Bamber, Iain. From Pouch to Passport: A History of Kings & Queens Messenger Insignia. Mandurah, W.A.: DB Publishing, 2009. O'Brien-Twohig, Michael. Diplomatic Courier. Elek Books, 1960. Wheeler-Holohan, Vincent. The History of the King's Messengers. London: Grayson & Grayson, 1935. External links Queen's Messenger Story 1952, British Pathe film, 7:42 mins. Can be viewed online FCDO link for the Queen's Messengers Diplomats by role Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office British monarchy