Black Rod is the abbreviated title of the Gentleman Usher of the Black Rod, an official of the House of Lords of the British Parliament. He is the sovereign’s personal attendant in the Lords and is also usher of the Order of the Garter. It is his duty to arrest any peer found guilty of breach of privilege. He summons members of Parliament to the Lords to hear a speech from the Throne and to hear the royal assent to bills. To gain admittance to the House of Commons, he knocks on the door with a gold-mounted ebony rod.
