English system of cadency involves the addition of these brisures to the plain coat:

• for the first son, a label of three points (a horizontal strip with three tags hanging down)—this label is removed on the death of the father, and the son inherits the plain coat;
• for the second son, a crescent (the points upward, as is conventional in heraldry);
• for the third son, a mullet (a five-pointed star);
• for the fourth son, a martlet (a kind of bird);
• for the fifth son, an annulet (a ring);
• for the sixth son, a fleur-de-lys;
• for the seventh son, a rose;
• for the eighth son, a cross moline;
• for the ninth son, a double quatrefoil.

In heraldry, cadency is any systematic way of distinguishing similar coats of arms belonging to members of the same family. Cadency is necessary in heraldic systems in which a given design may be owned by only one person (or, in some cases, one man) at once. Because heraldic designs may be inherited, the arms of members of a family will usually be similar to the arms used by its oldest surviving member (called the "plain coat"). They are formed by adding marks called brisures, similar to charges but smaller. Brisures are generally exempt from the law of tincture.