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118-648: The fleur-de-lis , also spelled fleur-de-lys (plural fleurs-de-lis or fleurs-de-lys ), is a common heraldic charge in the ( stylized ) shape of a lily (in French, fleur and lis mean ' flower ' and ' lily ' respectively). Most notably, the fleur-de-lis (⚜️) is depicted on the traditional coat of arms of France that was used from the High Middle Ages until the French Revolution in 1792, and then again in brief periods in

236-662: A Scythian king uncovered at the Ak-Burun kurgan and conserved in Saint Petersburg 's Hermitage Museum . See also the very similar lily symbol on coins from the Achemenid and Ptolemaic province of Yehud (c. 350-200 BC) and Hasmonean-ruled Judah (2nd and 1st century BC). For the transition from religious to dynastic symbolism and the beginning of European heraldic use of the fleur-de-lis , see France section , chronologically followed by England through claims to

354-490: A church or a whole town, and cities, towns and Scots burghs often bear a mural crown (a crown in the form of a wall with battlements or turrets) in place of a crown over the shield. Ships of various types often appear; the most frequent being the ancient galley often called, from the Gaelic, a lymphad . Also frequent are anchors and oars . The maunch is a 12th-century lady's sleeve style. Its use in heraldry arose from

472-407: A Frank throws his angon in an engagement. If the spear strikes a man anywhere the point will penetrate, and neither the wounded man nor anyone else can easily pull it out because the barbs that pierce the flesh hold it in and cause terrible pain, so that even if the enemy is not fatally hit he still dies as a result. And if it sticks in the shield, it fixes in it at once and is carried around with it,

590-422: A beast is shown; for example, the demi-lion is among the most common forms occurring in heraldic crests. Heads may appear cabossed (also caboshed or caboched ): with the head cleanly separated from the neck so that only the face shows; couped : with the neck cleanly separated from the body so that the whole head and neck are present; or erased : with the neck showing a ragged edge as if forcibly torn from

708-421: A charge appears alone, it is placed with sufficient position and size to occupy the entire field. Common mobile charges include human figures, human parts, animals , animal parts, legendary creatures (or " monsters "), plants and floral designs, inanimate objects, and other devices. The heraldic animals need not exactly resemble the actual creatures. A number of geometric charges are sometimes listed among

826-403: A church. Sometimes it is shown with a key, because Saints Peter and Paul are paired together. Other weapons occur more often in modern than in earlier heraldry. The mace also appears as a weapon, the war mace, in addition to its appearance as a symbol of authority, plain mace. The globus cruciger , also variously called an orb , a royal orb , or a mound (from French monde , Latin mundus ,

944-417: A deer. The griffin combines the head (but with ears), chest, wings and forelegs of the eagle with the hindquarters and legs of a lion. The male griffin lacks wings and his body is scattered with spikes. The bird most frequently found in armory is, by far, the eagle . Eagles in heraldry are predominantly presented with one or two heads, though triple-headed eagles are not unknown, and one eagle appearing in

1062-760: A label of three points (for the House of Orléans ), alluding to François d'Orléans, Prince of Joinville , son of King Louis-Philippe I of France, who married Princess Francisca of Brazil in 1843. The fleur-de-lis pattern is clearly depicted in an illustration of emperor Nikephoros Phocas's welcome ceremony in Constantinople (963 AD) included in Synopsis Istorion (dated 1070s). The fleur-de-lis pattern can also be found on Ionic capital of Panagia Skripo church (dated 870AD): The Royal Banner of France or "Bourbon flag" symbolizing royal France ,

1180-570: A larger one). A castle is generally shown as two towers joined by a wall, the doorway often shown secured by a portcullis . The portcullis was used as a canting badge by the House of Tudor ("two-doors"), and has since come to represent the British Parliament. The modern chess-rook would be indistinguishable from a tower; the heraldic chess rook, based on the medieval form of the piece, instead of battlements, has two outward-splayed "horns". Civic and ecclesiastical armory sometimes shows

1298-547: A lily. Some modern usage of the fleur-de-lis reflects "the continuing presence of heraldry in everyday life", often intentionally, but also when users are not aware that they are "prolonging the life of centuries-old insignia and emblems". The fleur-de-lis is represented in Unicode at U+269C ⚜ FLEUR-DE-LIS in the Miscellaneous Symbols block. Fleur-de-lis is the stylized depiction of

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1416-596: A lot less in common with ordinary lilies than the flowers called flambas [in Occitan ], or irises, from which the name of our own fleur-de-lis may derive. What gives some colour of truth to this hypothesis that we already put forth, is the fact that the French or Franks, before entering Gaul itself, lived for a long time around the river named Lys in the Flanders. Nowadays, this river is still bordered with an exceptional number of irises —as many plants grow for centuries in

1534-459: A mane and a pointed snout. Dogs of various types, and occasionally of specific breeds, occur more often as crests or supporters than as charges. According to Neubecker, heraldry in the Middle Ages generally distinguished only between pointers, hounds and whippets, when any distinction was made. The unicorn resembles a horse with a single horn, but its hooves are usually cloven like those of

1652-463: A particular religious meaning (as a symbol of Christ sacrificing Himself), and became so popular in heraldry that pelicans rarely exist in heraldry in any other position. Distinction is however observed, between a pelican "vulning herself" (alone, piercing her breast) and "in her piety" (surrounded by and feeding her chicks). The swan is also often seen, and the peacock in heraldry is described as being in its pride . The domestic cock (or rooster )

1770-534: A result of being the dominant charge on the imperial Byzantine , Holy Roman , Austrian and Russian coats of arms, the double eagle gained enduring renown throughout the Western world. Among the present day nations with an eagle charge on their coat of arms are: Albania , Austria , Germany , Montenegro , Poland , Romania , Russia , and Serbia . Additionally, the Double-Headed Eagle of Lagash

1888-463: A round shield, eventually becoming a heraldic charge. The fasces (not to be confused with the French term for a bar or fess ) is emblematic of the Roman magisterial office and has often been granted to mayors . Keys (taking a form similar to a " skeleton key ") are emblematic of Saint Peter and, by extension, the papacy , and thus frequently appear in ecclesiastical heraldry. Because St. Peter

2006-402: A scattering of small golden fleurs-de-lis ), the so-called France Ancient , but Charles V of France changed the design to a group of three in about 1376 (see next section for France Modern ). In the reign of King Louis IX (St. Louis) the three petals of the flower were said to represent faith, wisdom and chivalry, and to be a sign of divine favour bestowed on France. During the next century,

2124-425: A simple charge in undifferenced arms. Its attitude is usually statant (and is never blazoned as such); but it can also be found volant. The pelican is notable as frequently occurring in a peculiar attitude described as in her piety ( i.e. wings raised, piercing her own breast to feed her chicks in the nest, which is how it is actually often blazoned, 'in its piety' being a fairly modern conceit). This symbol carries

2242-404: A token of pilgrimage to the shrine of Santiago de Compostela . The sea-lion and sea-horse , like the mermaid , combine the foreparts of a mammal with the tail of a fish, and a dorsal fin in place of the mane. (When the natural seahorse is meant, it is blazoned as a hippocampus .) The sea-dog and sea-wolf are quadrupeds but with scales, webbed feet, and often a flat tail resembling that of

2360-468: A wavy form) or nowed (as a figure-eight knot ). Griffins and quadrupedal dragons constantly appear segreant ( i.e. rampant with wings addorsed and elevated) and, together with lions, may appear combatant ( i.e. two of them turned to face each other in the rampant position). Plants are extremely common in heraldry and figure among the earliest charges. The turnip , for instance, makes an early appearance, as does wheat . Trees also appear in heraldry;

2478-469: Is rampant ( i.e. standing on one hind leg with forepaws raised as if to climb or mount - sometimes including an erect member). Beasts also frequently appear walking, passant or, in the case of stags and the occasional unicorn, trippant , and may appear statant (standing), salient or springing (leaping), sejant (seated), couchant or lodged (lying prone with head raised), or occasionally dormant (sleeping). The principal attitude of birds, namely

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2596-480: Is a subject of constant disagreement. The remainder are often termed sub-ordinaries , and narrower or smaller versions of the ordinaries are called diminutives . While the term ordinaries is generally recognised, so much dispute may be found among sources regarding which are "honourable" and which are relegated to the category of "sub-ordinaries" that indeed one of the leading authors in the field, Arthur Charles Fox-Davies (1871–1928), wrote at length on what he calls

2714-585: Is a traditional symbol of the Bosniak people . It is still used as official insignia of the Bosniak Regiment of the Armed Forces of Bosnia and Herzegovina . Fleurs-de-lis today also appear in the flags and arms of many cantons , municipalities , cities and towns of Bosnia and Herzegovina. In Brazil, the arms and flag of the city of Joinville feature three fleurs-de-lis surmounted with

2832-662: Is a type of javelin that was used during the Early Middle Ages by the Anglo-Saxons , Franks , Goths , and other Germanic peoples . It was similar to, and probably derived from, the pilum used by the Roman army and had a barbed head and long narrow socket or shank made of iron mounted on a wooden haft. It was rare on the battlefield, despite the claim by the Greek historian Agathias , being found mostly in

2950-524: Is again similar with our fleurs-de-lis, that is to say exclusively the one from the river Luts whose white petals bend down too when the flower blooms. The heraldist François Velde is known to have expressed the same opinion: However, a hypothesis ventured in the 17th c. sounds very plausible to me. One species of wild iris, the Iris pseudacorus , yellow flag in English, is yellow and grows in marshes (cf.

3068-488: Is always shown slipped (i.e. with a stem), unless blazoned otherwise. The cinquefoil is sometimes blazoned fraise (strawberry flower), most notably when canting for Fraser. The trillium flower occurs occasionally in a Canadian context, and the protea flower constantly appears in South Africa, since it is the national flower symbol. Wheat constantly occurs in the form of "garbs" or sheaves and in fields (e.g. in

3186-588: Is believed to originate from the arms of the Sapieha house, a Lithuanian noble family which was responsible for Jurbarkas receiving city rights and a coat of arms in 1611. The three fleurs-de-lis design on the Jurbarkas coat of arms was abolished during the final years of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth , but officially restored in 1993 after the independence of present-day Lithuania

3304-468: Is exceedingly common in Hungarian arms. Natural mountains and boulders are not unknown, though ranges of mountains are differently shown. An example is the arms of Edinburgh , portraying Edinburgh Castle atop Castle Rock . Volcanos are shown, almost without exception, as erupting, and the eruption is generally quite stylised. In the 18th century, landscapes began to appear in armory, often depicting

3422-497: Is of the field drum type. Since musical notation is a comparatively recent invention, it is not found in early heraldry, though it does appear in 20th century heraldry. Japanese mon are sometimes used as heraldic charges. They are blazoned in traditional heraldic style rather than in the Japanese style. Angon The angon ( Medieval Greek ἄγγων , Old High German ango , Old English anga "hook, point, spike")

3540-410: Is rarely used for a similar treatment. In Portuguese heraldry, but rarely in other countries, trees are sometimes found decorticated . The most famous heraldic flower (particularly in French heraldry) is the fleur-de-lis , which is often stated to be a stylised lily, though despite the name there is considerable debate on this. The "natural" lily , somewhat stylised, also occurs, as (together with

3658-490: Is said to more often termed a " mullet of five points pierced" by English heralds. Crowns and coronets of various kinds are constantly seen. The ecclesiastical hat and bishop's mitre are nearly ubiquitous in ecclesiastical heraldry . The sword is sometimes a symbol of authority, as in the royal arms of the Netherlands , but may also allude to Saint Paul , as the patron of a town (e.g. London ) or dedicatee of

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3776-440: Is sometimes called dunghill cock to distinguish it from the game cock which has a cut comb and exaggerated spurs, and the moor cock , which is the farmyard cock with a game bird's tail. Other birds occur less frequently. The category of sea creatures may be seen to include various fish, a highly stylized "dolphin", and various fanciful creatures, sea monsters, which are shown as half-fish and half-beast, as well as mermaids and

3894-642: Is the Thopia family a ruling house in Medieval Albania during the Medieval Kingdom of Albania . A few other notable Albanian families that have distinctly featured the iconic fleur-de-lis in their heraldic coat of arms are the Durazzo family , Skuraj family , Muzaka family , Luccari family , Angeli family and many other Albanian noble families . The fleurs-de-lis was the symbol of

4012-422: Is the inescutcheon, the seventh is the chevron, the eighth is the saltire, and the ninth is the bar, while stating that "some writers" prefer the bordure as the ninth ordinary. Volborth, having decidedly less to say on the matter, agrees that the classifications are arbitrary and the subject of disagreement, and lists the "definite" ordinaries as the chief, pale, bend, fess, chevron, cross and saltire. Boutell lists

4130-902: Is the patron saint of fishermen, keys also notably appear in the arms of the Worshipful Company of Fishmongers . The sun is a disc with twelve or more wavy rays, or alternating wavy and straight rays, often represented " in his splendour " ( i.e. with a face). The moon "in her plenitude" (full) sometimes appears, distinguished from a roundel argent by having a face; but crescents occur much more frequently. Estoiles are stars with six wavy rays, while stars (when they occur under that name) have straight rays usually numbering five in British and North American heraldry and six in continental European heraldry. Clouds often occur, though more frequently for people or animals to stand on or issue from than as isolated charges. The raindrop as such

4248-401: Is typically shown as a simple lizard surrounded by flames. Also notably occurring (undoubtedly owing much of its fame to Napoleon , though it also appears in much earlier heraldry) is the bee . Animals' heads are also very frequent charges, as are the paw or leg ( gamb ) of the lion, the wing (often paired) of the eagle, and the antlers ( attire ) of the stag. Sometimes only the top half of

4366-447: Is unknown, though drops of fluid ( goutte ) is known. These occasionally appear as a charge, but more frequently constitute a field semé (known as goutté ). The snowflake occurs in modern heraldry, sometimes blazoned as a "snow crystal" or "ice crystal". The oldest geological charge is the mount , typically a green hilltop rising from the lower edge of the field, providing a place for a beast, building or tree to stand. This feature

4484-663: Is used as an emblem by the Scottish Rite of Freemasonry . There are many meanings attached to this symbol, and it was introduced in France in the early 1760s as the emblem of the Knight Kadosh degree. The martlet , a stylized swift or swallow without feet (sometimes incorrectly, at least in the Anglophone heraldries these days, said to have no beak), is a mark of cadency in English heraldry, but also appears as

4602-506: The Battle of Maldon in Essex , England, in 991 AD, describes an encounter between the earl Byrhtnoth and a group of Norsemen in which an exchange of javelins is made before the warriors draw their swords and engage in close combat. The maximum effective range of the angon and other javelins was probably 12 to 15 m (40 to 50 ft) depending on the length and weight of the weapon and

4720-555: The Battle of Vouillé . Through this propagandist connection to Clovis, the fleur-de-lis has been taken in retrospect to symbolize all the Christian Frankish kings, most notably Charlemagne . The graphic evolution of crita to fleur-de-lis was accompanied by textual allegory . By the late 13th century, an allegorical poem by Guillaume de Nangis (d. 1300), written at Joyenval Abbey in Chambourcy , relates how

4838-591: The Black Madonna in the arms of Marija Bistrica , Croatia . Moors—or more frequently their heads, often crowned—appear with some frequency in medieval European heraldry. They are also sometimes called moore , blackmoor or negro . Moors appear in European heraldry from at least as early as the 13th century, and some have been attested as early as the 11th century in Italy , where they have persisted in

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4956-524: The Canadian Red Ensign that served as the nautical flag and civil ensign for Canada from 1892 to 1965 and later as an informal flag of Canada before 1965 featured the traditional number of three golden fleur-de-lys on a blue background. The arms of Canada throughout its variations has used fleur-de-lys, beginning in 1921 and subsequent various has featuring the blue "Bourbon Flag" in two locations within arms. The Canadian royal cypher and

5074-474: The Codex Manesse has its wing bones fashioned into additional heads. Eagles and their wings also feature prominently as crests. Eagles most frequently appear full-bodied, with one head, in numerous positions including displayed , statant , passant and rising . The demi-eagle , which is shown only from the waist up, occurs less frequently. Double-headed eagles almost always appear displayed . As

5192-513: The French republics , that unlike other republican nations, never officially adopted a coat of arms. Although the origin of the fleur-de-lis is unclear, it has retained an association with French nobility and associated cities and regions. It is widely used in French city emblems as in the coat of arms of the city of Lille, Saint-Denis, Brest, Clermont-Ferrand , Boulogne-Billancourt , and Calais . Some cities that had been particularly faithful to

5310-496: The House of Kotromanić , a ruling house in medieval Bosnia during the medieval Kingdom of Bosnia , adopted by the first Bosnian king, Tvrtko I , in recognition of the Capetian House of Anjou support in assuming the throne of Bosnia. The coat of arms contained six fleurs-de-lis , where the flower itself is today often considered to be a representation of the autochthonous golden lily, Lilium bosniacum . The emblem

5428-975: The Migration Era . In Finland, a local version of the weapon was popular during the Early Middle Ages . Although not very frequent in the Baltic countries , examples have also been found at various sites in Estonia, including burial sites at Sõrve and Hinniala . Evidence for the length of insular Anglo-Saxon spears is limited, but based on grave finds it has been estimated that they ranged in length from 1.6 to 2.8 m (5 ft 3 in to 9 ft 2 in), compared to continental examples found at Nydam Mose in Denmark which range from 2.3 to 3 m (7 ft 7 in to 9 ft 10 in) long. Although shorter and lighter spears with smaller heads were generally preferred for use as javelins, an exception

5546-629: The United States Air Force with charges blazoned as "mythical", or beasts as "chimerical", but those conceptions are meaningless and irrelevant to the conception of heraldry, and it does not affect the appearance of those charges. Unlike mobile charges , the ordinary charges reach to the edge of the field. Some heraldic writers distinguish, albeit arbitrarily, between (honourable) ordinaries and sub-ordinaries . While some authors hold that only nine charges are "honourable" ordinaries, exactly which ones fit into this category

5664-629: The arms of Pope Benedict XVI feature a moor's head, crowned and collared red. Nevertheless, the use of moors (and particularly their heads) as a heraldic symbol has been deprecated in modern North America, where racial stereotypes have been influenced by a history of Trans-Atlantic slave trade and racial segregation, and applicants to the College of Arms of the Society for Creative Anachronism are urged to use them delicately to avoid creating offensive images. Parts of human bodies occur more often than

5782-411: The beaver . Reptiles and invertebrates occurring in heraldry include serpents, lizards, salamanders and others, but the most frequently occurring of these are various forms of dragons. The " dragon ", thus termed, is a large monstrous reptile with, often, a forked or barbed tongue, membraned wings like a bat's, and four legs. The wyvern and lindworm are dragons with only two legs. The salamander

5900-432: The center of balance and thus the best place to hold the weapon. Before the battle lines joined and warriors engaged in hand-to-hand combat, they would attempt to thin the enemy ranks with ranged weapons. This would begin with archery, followed by an exchange of javelins and throwing axes before closing. The scholar Agathias recorded the use of angons by Frankish warriors at the Battle of Casilinum in 554: Suppose

6018-407: The coat of arms of Brandenburg ). It is important to distinguish between the ordinaries and divisions of the field , as they typically follow similar patterns, such as a shield divided "per chevron", as distinct from being charged with a chevron . While thousands of objects found in religion, nature, mythology, or technology have appeared in armory, there are several charges (such as the cross,

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6136-408: The fess ), and chevronels . In addition to those mentioned in the above section, the following are variously called "honourable ordinaries" by different authors, while others of these are often called sub-ordinaries . The so-called mobile charges (or sometimes common charges ) are not tied to the size and shape of the shield, and so may be placed in any part of the field, although whenever

6254-405: The fleur-de-lis for its royal coat of arms as a symbol of purity to commemorate the conversion of Clovis I, and a reminder of the fleur-de-lis ampulla that held the oil used to anoint the king . So, the fleur-de-lis stood as a symbol of the king's divinely approved right to rule. The thus "anointed" kings of France later maintained that their authority was directly from God. A legend enhances

6372-535: The fleur-de-lis is, alongside the Serbian Cross , Serbian eagle and Serbian Flag , national symbols of the Serb people . Heraldic charge The term charge can also be used as a verb; for example, if an escutcheon depicts three lions , it is said to be charged with three lions ; similarly, a crest or even a charge itself may be "charged", such as a pair of eagle wings charged with trefoils (as on

6490-497: The fleur-de-lis was a religious symbol before it was a true heraldic symbol. Along with true lilies, it was associated with the Virgin Mary, and when the 12th-century Capetians , Louis VI and Louis VII, started to use the emblem, their purpose was of connecting their rulership with this symbol of saintliness and divine right. Louis VI (r. 1108–1137) and Louis VII (r. 1137–1180) of the House of Capet first started to use

6608-668: The grave goods of the wealthy. The Fragmentary Chronicle of Saragossa credits an ango with killing King Amalaric of the Visigoths . By the 7th century it had ceased to be used. It also went out of fashion, together with other forms of throwing spears and javelins, in Francia , by the early 7th century. They are found in abundance in war graves in Illerup-Ådal, Denmark. They are also quite common in Norwegian graves from

6726-477: The rampant position; while birds, particularly the eagle, most often appear displayed . While the lion, regarded as the king of beasts, is by far the most frequently occurring beast in heraldry, the eagle, equally regarded as the king of birds, is overwhelmingly the most frequently occurring bird, and the rivalry between these two is often noted to parallel with the political rivalry between the powers they came to represent in medieval Europe. Neubecker notes that "in

6844-519: The "utter absurdity of the necessity for any [such] classification at all", stating that the ordinaries and sub-ordinaries are, in his mind, "no more than first charges". Apparently ceding the point for the moment, Fox-Davies lists the generally agreed-upon "honourable ordinaries" as the bend, fess, pale, pile, chevron, cross, saltire, and chief. Woodcock sheds some light on the matter, stating that earlier writers such as Leigh, Holme and Guillim proposed that "honourable ordinaries" should occupy one-third of

6962-493: The 14th, the tradition of Trinity symbolism was established in France, and then spread elsewhere. In 1328, King Edward III of England inherited a claim to the crown of France, and in about 1340 he quartered France Ancient with the arms of Plantagenet , as "arms of pretence ". After the kings of France adopted France Modern , the kings of England adopted the new design as quarterings from about 1411. The monarchs of England (and later of Great Britain ) continued to quarter

7080-509: The 19th century. This design still represents France and the House of Bourbon in the form of marshalling in the arms of Spain , Quebec , and Canada — for example. Other European nations have also employed the symbol. The fleur-de-lis became "at one and the same time, religious, political, dynastic, artistic, emblematic, and symbolic", especially in French heraldry . The Virgin Mary and Saint Joseph are among saints often depicted with

7198-661: The Baptist in the Florentine fiorino . Several towns subjugated by Florence or founded within the territory of the Florentine Republic adopted a variation of the Florentine lily in their crests, often without the stamens. In Italy, fleurs-de-lis have been used for some papal crowns and coats of arms, the Farnese Dukes of Parma , and by some doges of Venice . The design of the arms of Jurbarkas

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7316-580: The Caribbean, Saint Barthélemy , an overseas collectivity of France, and French Guiana . The overseas department of Réunion in the Indian Ocean uses the same feature. It appears on the coat of Port Louis , the capital of Mauritius which was named in honour of King Louis XV. On the coat of arms of Saint Lucia it represents the French heritage of the country. While the fleur-de-lis has appeared on countless European coats of arms and flags over

7434-651: The Counts Colleoni of Milan bear arms blazoned: "Per pale argent and gules, three hearts reversed counterchanged;" but in less delicate times these were read as canting arms showing three pairs of testicles ( coglioni = "testicles" in Italian). The community of Cölbe in Hesse has a coat of arms with a similar charge. Animals, especially lions and eagles, feature prominently as heraldic charges. Some differences may be observed between an animal's natural form and

7552-470: The French tricolore with the royal crown and fleur-de-lys was possibly designed by the count in his younger years as a compromise His condition that his country needed to abandon the red and blue colors that it had adopted to symbolize the ideals of the French Revolution of 1789 was rejected and France became a republic . It remains an enduring symbol of France which appears on French postage stamps, although it has never been adopted officially by any of

7670-470: The French Crown were awarded a heraldic augmentation of two or three fleurs-de-lis on the chief of their coat of arms; such cities include Paris, Lyon , Toulouse , Bordeaux , Reims , Le Havre , Angers, Le Mans , Aix-en-Provence , Tours, Limoges , Amiens , Orléans, Rouen, Argenteuil, Poitiers, Chartres , and Laon , among others. The fleur-de-lis was the symbol of Île-de-France , the core of

7788-401: The French arms until 1801, when George III abandoned his formal claim to the French throne . On 29 December 1429, King Charles VII ennobled the family of Joan of Arc , seen as a French hero in the ensueing Hundred Years' War , with an inheritable symbolic denomination. The Chamber of Accounts in France registered the family's designation to nobility on 20 January 1430. The grant permitted

7906-462: The French coat of arms. Another (debated) hypothesis is that the symbol derives from the angon or sting , a typical Frankish throwing spear. It has consistently been used as a royal emblem, though different cultures have interpreted its meaning in varying ways. Gaulish coins show the first Western designs which look similar to modern fleurs-de-lis . In the East it was found on the gold helmet of

8024-453: The French crown . List in alphabetical order by country: In Albania, fleur-de-lis ( Albanian : Lulja e Zambakut ) has been associated with the different Albanian noble families . This iconic symbol holds a rich historical significance and has adorned the emblems and crests of various noble houses, reflecting both cultural heritage and a sense of identity within the country. One notable household that has prominently featured this emblem

8142-513: The French kingdom. It has appeared on the coat-of-arms of other historical provinces of France including Burgundy, Anjou, Picardy, Berry, Orléanais, Bourbonnais, Maine, Touraine, Artois, Dauphiné, Saintonge, and the County of La Marche. Many of the current French departments use the symbol on their coats-of-arms to express this heritage. The fleur-de-lis appears for instance on the coat-of-arms of Guadeloupe , an overseas département of France in

8260-458: The Lion of the House of Welf ." The beast most often portrayed in heraldry is the lion . When posed passant guardant (walking and facing the viewer), he is called a léopard in French blazon . Other beasts frequently seen include the wolf , bear , boar , horse , bull or ox , and stag or hart. The tiger (unless blazoned as a Bengal tiger ) is a fanciful beast with a wolflike body,

8378-512: The area became known as Fleur-de-Lys , and it also features a red fleur-de-lis on its flag and coat of arms. The fleur-de-lis was the symbol of the House of Nemanjic , a ruling Serbian Orthodox house in medieval Serbia during the medieval Principality of Serbia , Grand Principality of Serbia , Kingdom of Serbia and Serbian Empire , adopted by the Serbian king , Stefan I Nemanjić . The coat of arms contained two fleurs-de-lis . Today,

8496-414: The arms of Arkhangelsk . The Devil or a demon is occasionally seen, being defeated by the archangel Saint Michael . Though the taboo is not invariably respected, British heraldry in particular, and to a greater or lesser extent the heraldry of other countries, frowns on depictions of God or Christ , though an exception may be in the not-uncommon Continental depictions of Madonna and Child , including

8614-458: The arms of Canada feature St Edward's Crown that displays five cross pattée and four fleur-de-lys. The fleur-de-lis is featured on the flag of Quebec , known as the fleurdelisé , as well as the flags of the cities of Montreal , Sherbrooke and Trois-Rivières . The fleur-de-lis symbolic origins with French monarchs may stem from the baptismal lily used in the crowning of King Clovis I (r. c. 481–509). The French monarchy may have adopted

8732-425: The arms of the province of Alberta , Canada), though less often as ears, which are shown unwhiskered (though some varieties of wheat are naturally whiskered). Ears of rye are depicted exactly as wheat, except the ears droop down and are often whiskered, e.g. in the arms of the former Ruislip-Northwood Urban District . Barley , cannabis , maize , and oats also occur. The "garb" in the arms of Gustav Vasa (and in

8850-608: The azure field, for water). Its name in German is Lieschblume (also gelbe Schwertlilie), but Liesch was also spelled Lies and Leys in the Middle Ages. It is easy to imagine that, in Northern France, the Lieschblume would have been called 'fleur-de-lis'. This would explain the name and the formal origin of the design, as a stylized yellow flag. There is a fanciful legend about Clovis which links the yellow flag explicitly with

8968-412: The body. While cabossed heads are shown facing forward ( affronté ), heads that are couped or erased face dexter unless otherwise specified for differencing. Heads of horned beasts are often shown cabossed to display the horns, but instances can be found in any of these circumstances. A lion's head cabossed is called simply a face , and a fox's head cabossed, a mask . The attitude , or position, of

9086-579: The butt dragging on the ground. The man who has been hit cannot pull out the spear because the barbs have gone in, and he cannot cut it off because of the iron that covers the shaft. When Frank sees this he quickly treads on it with his foot, stepping on the ferrule [iron finial on the butt of a spear or other pole weapon] and forcing the shield downwards so that the man's hand is loosened and his head and breast bared. Then, taking him unprotected, he kills him easily either cleaving his head with an axe or piercing his throat with another spear. The poem recording

9204-452: The center. Certain features of an animal are often of a contrasting tincture. The charge is then said to be armed (claws and horns and tusks), langued (tongue), vilené or pizzled (penis), attired (antlers or very occasionally horns), unguled (hooves), crined (horse's mane or human hair) of a specified tincture. Many attitudes have developed from the herald's imagination and ever-increasing need for differentiation, but only

9322-518: The centuries, it is particularly associated with the French monarchy in a historical context and continues to appear in the arms of members of the Spanish branch of the French House of Bourbon , including the king of Spain , as well as that of the unrelated grand duke of Luxembourg . According to French historian Georges Duby , the three petals represent the three medieval social estates :

9440-428: The chief, pale, bend, bend sinister, fess, bar, cross, saltire and chevron as the "honourable ordinaries". Thus, the chief, bend, pale, fess, chevron, cross and saltire appear to be the undisputed ordinaries, while authors disagree over the status of the pile, bar, inescutcheon, bordure and others. Several different figures are recognised as honourable ordinaries , each normally occupying about one-fifth to one-third of

9558-430: The coat of arms of Sweden) is not a wheatsheaf, although it was pictured in that way from the 16th to 19th century; rather, this "vasa" is a bundle but of unknown sort. Very few inanimate objects in heraldry carry a special significance distinct from that of the object itself, but among such objects are the escarbuncle , the fasces , and the key . The escarbuncle developed from the radiating iron bands used to strengthen

9676-483: The commoners, the nobility, and the clergy. In Italy, the fleur de lis - called giglio bottonato ( it ) - is mainly known from the crest of the city of Florence . In the Florentine fleurs-de-lis the stamens are always posed between the petals . Originally argent (silver or white) on gules (red) background, the emblem became the standard of the imperial party in Florence ( parte ghibellina ), causing

9794-443: The conventional attitudes (positions) into which heraldic animals are contorted; additionally, various parts of an animal (claws, horns, tongue, etc.) may be differently coloured, each with its own terminology. Most animals are broadly classified, according to their natural form, into beasts, birds, sea creatures and others, and the attitudes that apply to them may be grouped accordingly. Beasts, particularly lions, most often appear in

9912-401: The creature's body is usually explicitly stated in English blazon. When such description is omitted, a lion can be assumed to be rampant , a leopard or herbivore passant . By default, the charge faces dexter (left as seen by the viewer); this would be forward on a shield worn on the left arm. In German armory, animate charges in the dexter half of a composite display are usually turned to face

10030-414: The custom of the knights who attended tournaments wearing their ladies sleeves, as "gages d'amour" (tokens of love). This fashion of sleeve would later evolve into Tippet -style stoles. In French blazon this charge is sometimes informally referred to as manche mal taillée (a sleeve badly cut). Spurs also occur, sometimes "winged", but more frequently occurring is the spur-rowel or spur-revel , which

10148-536: The eagle, and the lion) which have contributed to the distinctive flavour of heraldic design. Only these and a few other notable charges (crowns, stars, keys, etc.) are discussed in this article. In addition to being shown in the regular way, charges may be blazoned as umbrated (shadowed), detailed , (rather incorrectly) outlined , highly unusually shaded and rather irregularly in silhouette or, more ambiguously, confusingly, and unhelpfully, futuristic , stylized or simplified . There are also several units in

10266-678: The eagle, is displayed ( i.e. facing the viewer with the head turned toward dexter and wings raised and upturned to show the full underside of both wings). Birds also appear rising or rousant ( i.e. wings raised and head upturned as if about to take flight), volant (flying), statant (standing, with wings raised), close (at rest with wings folded), and waterfowl may appear naiant (swimming), while cranes may appear vigilant (standing on one leg). Fish often appear naiant (swimming horizontally) or hauriant (upwards) or urinant (downwards), but may also appear addorsed (two fish hauriant, back to back). Serpents may appear glissant (gliding in

10384-416: The emblem, on sceptres for example. Louis VII ordered the use of fleur-de-lis clothing in his son Philip's coronation in 1179, while the first visual evidence of clearly heraldic use dates from 1211: a seal showing the future Louis VIII and his shield strewn with the "flowers". Until the late 14th century the French royal coat of arms was Azure semé-de-lis Or (a blue shield "sown" ( semé ) with

10502-538: The family to change their surname to du Lys. In about 1376, Charles V changed the design from the all-over scattering of flowers to a group of three, thus replacing what is known in heraldic terminology as the France Ancient , with the France Modern . France moderne remained the French royal standard, and with a white background was the French national flag until the French Revolution , when it

10620-403: The field, while later writers such as Edmondson favoured one-fifth, "on the grounds that a bend, pale, or chevron occupying one-third of the field makes the coat look clumsy and disagreeable". Woodcock goes so far as to enumerate the ordinaries thus: "The first Honourable Ordinary is the cross", the second is the chief, the third is the pale, the fourth is the bend, the fifth is the fess, the sixth

10738-466: The field. As discussed above, much disagreement exists among authors regarding which ordinary charges are "honourable", so only those generally agreed to be "honourable ordinaries" will be discussed here, while the remainder of ordinary charges will be discussed in the following section. Most of the ordinaries have corresponding diminutives , narrower versions, most often mentioned when two or more appear in parallel: bendlets, pallets, bars (multiples of

10856-501: The fleur-de-lis) in the arms of Eton College . The rose is perhaps even more widely seen in English heraldry than the fleur-de-lis. Its heraldic form is derived from the "wild" type with only five petals, and it is often barbed (the hull of the bud, its points showing between the petals) and seeded in contrasting tinctures. The thistle frequently appears as a symbol of Scotland . The trefoil , quatrefoil and cinquefoil are abstract forms resembling flowers or leaves. The trefoil

10974-556: The fleur-de-lys remained visible on churches and remained part of French cultural symbolism. There are many French-speaking Canadians for whom the fleur-de-lis remains a symbol of their French cultural identity. Québécois , Franco-Ontarians , Franco-Ténois and Franco-Albertans , feature the fleur-de-lis prominently on their flags . The fleur-de-lys, as a traditional royal symbol in Canada, has been incorporated into many national symbols , provincial symbols and municipal symbols,

11092-439: The flower of the river of lis . This flower, or iris, looks like our fleur-de-lis not just because of its yellow colour but also because of its shape: of the six petals, or leaves, that it has, three of them are alternatively straight and meet at their tops. The other three on the opposite, bend down so that the middle one seems to make one with the stalk and only the two ones facing out from left and right can clearly be seen, which

11210-580: The golden lilies on an azure ground were miraculously substituted for the crescents on Clovis' shield, a projection into the past of contemporary images of heraldry. In the 14th century, French writers asserted that the monarchy of France, which developed from the Kingdom of the West Franks, could trace its heritage back to the divine gift of royal arms received by Clovis. This story has remained popular, even though modern scholarship has established that

11328-504: The heroic poem by Heinrich von Veldeke based on the story of Aeneas , the bearer of the arms of a lion is set against the bearer of the arms of an eagle. If one takes the latter to be the historical and geographical forerunner of the Holy Roman emperor , then the bearer of the lion represents the unruly feudal lords, to whom the emperor had to make more and more concessions, particularly to the powerful duke of Bavaria and Saxony, Henry

11446-497: The like. The "sea lion" and "sea horse", for example, do not appear as natural sea lions and seahorses , but rather as half-lion half-fish and half-horse half-fish, respectively. Fish of various species often appear in canting arms , e.g.: pike , also called luce, for Pike or Lucy; dolphin (a conventional kind of fish rather than the natural mammal) for the Dauphin de Viennois . The escallop ( scallop shell) became popular as

11564-621: The lily flower. The name itself derives from ancient Greek λείριον > Latin lilium > French lis . The lily has always been the symbol of fertility and purity, and in Christianity it symbolizes the Immaculate Conception . According to Pierre-Augustin Boissier de Sauvages , an 18th-century French naturalist and lexicographer : The old fleurs-de-lis, especially the ones found in our first kings' sceptres, have

11682-522: The local heraldry and vexillology well into modern times in Corsica and Sardinia . Armigers bearing moors or moors' heads may have adopted them for any of several reasons, to include symbolizing military victories in the Crusades , as a pun on the bearer's name in the canting arms of Morese, Negri, Saraceni, etc., or in the case of Frederick II , possibly to demonstrate the reach of his empire. Even

11800-415: The most frequent tree by far is the oak (drawn with large leaves and acorns), followed by the pine . Apples and bunches of grapes occur very frequently, other fruits less so. When the fruit is mentioned, as to indicate a different tincture, the tree is said to be fructed of the tincture. If a tree is "eradicated" it is shown as if it has been ripped up from the ground, the roots being exposed. "Erased"

11918-500: The mullet or star, crescent and cross: In English heraldry the crescent , mullet , martlet , annulet , fleur-de-lis and rose may be added to a shield to distinguish cadet branches of a family from the senior line. It does not follow, however, that a shield containing such a charge necessarily belongs to a cadet branch. All of these charges occur frequently in basic ( undifferenced ) coats of arms. Humans, deities, angels and demons occur more often as crests and supporters than on

12036-464: The mystique of royalty by informing us that a vial of oil—the Holy Ampulla—descended from Heaven to anoint and sanctify Clovis as King, descending directly on Clovis or perhaps brought by a dove to Saint Remigius. One version explains that an angel descended with the fleur-de-lis ampulla to anoint the king. Another story tells of Clovis putting a flower in his helmet just before his victory at

12154-651: The patron of a town. Knights, bishops, monks and nuns, kings and queens also occur frequently. There are rare occurrences of a "child" (without further description, this is usually understood to be a very young boy, and young girls are extremely rare in heraldry), both the head and entire body. A famous example is the child swallowed by a dragon (the biscione ) in the arms of Visconti dukes of Milan . Greco - Roman mythological figures typically appear in an allegorical or canting role. Angels very frequently appear, but angelic beings of higher rank, such as cherubim and seraphim , are extremely rare. An archangel appears in

12272-505: The principal attitudes found in heraldry need be discussed here. These, in the case of beasts, include the erect positions, the seated positions, and the prone positions. In the case of birds, these include the "displayed" positions, the flying positions, and the resting positions. Additionally, birds are frequently described by the position of their wings. A few other attitudes warrant discussion, including those particular to fish, serpents, griffins and dragons. The principal attitude of beasts

12390-402: The same places—: these irises have yellow flowers, which is not a typical feature of lilies but fleurs-de-lis. It was thus understandable that our kings, having to choose a symbolic image for what later became a coat of arms, set their minds on the iris, a flower that was common around their homes, and is also as beautiful as it was remarkable. They called it, in short, the fleur-de-lis, instead of

12508-502: The shield. (Though in many heraldic traditions the depiction of deities is considered taboo, exceptions to this also occur.) When humans do appear on the shield, they almost always appear affronté (facing forward), rather than toward the left like beasts. Such as the arms of the Dalziel family of Scotland, which depicted a naked man his arms expanded on a black background. The largest group of human charges consists of saints , often as

12626-570: The sites of battles. For example, Admiral Horatio Nelson, 1st Viscount Nelson received a chief of augmentation containing a landscape alluding to the Battle of the Nile . By far the most frequent building in heraldry is the tower , a tapering cylinder of masonry topped with battlements , usually having a door and a few windows. The canting arms of the Kingdom of Castile are Gules, a tower triple-turreted Or ( i.e. three small towers standing atop

12744-425: The subordinaries (see above), but as their form is not related to the shape of the shield – indeed they may appear independent of the shield ( i.e. in crests and badges ) – they are more usefully considered here. These include the escutcheon or inescutcheon, lozenge, fusil, mascle, rustre, billet, roundel, fountain, and annulet. Several other simple charges occur with comparable frequency. These include

12862-538: The town government, which maintained a staunch Guelph stance, being strongly opposed to the imperial pretensions on city states, to reverse the color pattern to the final gules lily on argent background. This heraldic charge is often known as the Florentine lily to distinguish it from the conventional (stamen-not-shown) design. As an emblem of the city, it is therefore found in icons of Zenobius , its first bishop, and associated with Florence's patron Saint John

12980-462: The various alphabets are also relatively rare. Arms of merchants in Poland and eastern Germany are often based on house marks , abstract symbols resembling runes , though they are almost never blazoned as runes, but as combinations of other heraldic charges. Musical instruments commonly seen are the harp (as in the coat of arms of Ireland ), bell and trumpet . The drum , almost without exception,

13098-577: The whole, particularly heads (occasionally of exotic nationality), hearts (always stylized), hands, torso and armored limbs. A famous heraldic hand is the Red Hand of Ulster , alluding to an incident in the legendary Milesian invasion. Hands also appear in the coat of arms of Antwerp . Ribs occur in Iberian armory, canting for the Portuguese family da Costa . According to Woodward & Burnett,

13216-495: The world) is a ball or globe surmounted by a cross, which is part of the regalia of an emperor or king, and is the emblem of sovereign authority and majesty. Books constantly occur, most frequently in the arms of colleges and universities , though the Gospel and Bible are sometimes distinguished. Books if open may be inscribed with words. Words and phrases are otherwise rare, except in Spanish and Portuguese armory. Letters of

13334-588: Was Grandmaster himself from 1690 to 1697, also had a similar coat of arms with three fleurs-de-lis . The town of Santa Venera has three red fleurs-de-lis on its flag and coat of arms. These are derived from an arch which was part of the Wignacourt Aqueduct that had three sculpted fleurs-de-lis on top, as they were the heraldic symbols of Alof de Wignacourt , the Grand Master who financed its building. Another suburb which developed around

13452-552: Was re-established. Before restoration, several variant designs, such as using one over two fleurs-de-lis , had been restored and abolished. The original two over one version was briefly readopted in 1970 during the Soviet occupation , but abolished that same year. Three fleurs-de-lis appeared in the personal coat of arms of Grandmaster Alof de Wignacourt who ruled the Malta between 1601 and 1622. His nephew Adrien de Wignacourt , who

13570-500: Was replaced by the tricolor of modern-day France. The fleur-de-lis was restored to the French flag in 1814, but replaced once again after the revolution against Charles X of France in 1830. After the end of the Second French Empire , Henri, comte de Chambord , was offered the throne as King of France, but he agreed only if France gave up the tricolor and brought back the white flag with fleurs-de-lis . Curiously

13688-592: Was revived in 1992 as a national symbol of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina and was part of the flag of Bosnia-Herzegovina from 1992 to 1998 . The state insignia were changed in 1999. The former flag of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina contains a fleur-de-lis alongside the Croatian chequy . Fleurs also appear in the flags and arms of many cantons , municipalities , cities and towns. Today, it

13806-547: Was the barbed angon , one of which was found at Abingdon with a head measuring 52.5 cm (20.7 in). The barbs were designed to lodge in an opponent's shield (or body) so that it could not be removed and the long iron shank prevented the head from being cut from the shaft. The angon was likely designed to disable enemy shields, thus leaving combatants vulnerable, and disrupting enemy formations. The shaft may sometimes have been decorated or painted, and iron or bronze rings were sometimes fitted onto it which may have marked

13924-533: Was the most commonly used flag in New France . The "Bourbon flag" has three gold fleur-de-lis on a dark blue field arranged two and one. The fleur-de-lys was also seen on New France's currency often referred to as "card money" . The white Royal Banner of France was used by the military of New France and was seen on naval vessels and forts of New France. After the fall of New France to the British Empire

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