Portal:Heraldry

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Welcome to the Heraldry and Vexillology Portal!

Heraldry encompasses all of the duties of a herald, including the science and art of designing, displaying, describing and recording coats of arms and badges, as well as the formal ceremonies and laws that regulate the use and inheritance of arms. The origins of heraldry lie in the medieval need to distinguish participants in battles or jousts, whose faces were hidden by steel helmets.

Vexillology (from the Latin vexillum, a flag or banner) is the scholarly study of flags, including the creation and development of a body of knowledge about flags of all types, their forms and functions, and of scientific theories and principles based on that knowledge. Flags were originally used to assist military coordination on the battlefield, and have evolved into a general tool for signalling and identification, particularly identification of countries.

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Sir Anthony Richard Wagner, KCB, KCVO, FSA (6 September 1908–5 May 1995) was a long-serving officer of arms at the College of Arms in London. He served as Garter Principal King of Arms before retiring to the post of Clarenceux King of Arms. He was one of the most prolific authors on subjects of the heraldry and genealogy of the 20th century. (more...)

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Selected coat of arms

The coat of arms of Amsterdam is the official symbol of the city of Amsterdam. It consists of a red and black shield with three silver Saint Andrew's Crosses, the Imperial Crown of Austria, two golden lions, and the motto of Amsterdam. Several heraldic elements have their basis in the history of Amsterdam. The crosses are thought to represent the three traditional dangers to the city: flood, fire and pestilence. The crown was awarded in 1489 by Maximilian I, Holy Roman Emperor, out of gratitude for services and loans. The crosses and the crown can be found as decorations on different locations in the city. (more...)

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Selected flag

Polish naval airport flag

Polish national law defines flags either through an act of parliament or a ministerial ordinance. Apart from the national flag, these are mostly military flags, used by one or all branches of the Polish Armed Forces, especially the Polish Navy. Flags flown by vessels of non-military uniformed services are also included in the list.

Most of the flags feature white and red, the national colors of Poland. The national colors, officially adopted in 1831, are of heraldic origin and derive from the tinctures (colors) of the coats of arms of Poland (the White Eagle) and Lithuania (the Pursuer). Additionally, some flags incorporate the White Eagle itself, either identical with that of the national coat of arms or one of its variants, known as military eagles, used by the Armed Forces. (more...)

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Pursuivants in procession to St George's Chapel, Windsor Castle for the 2006 service of the Order of the Garter: Peter O'Donoghue, Bluemantle Pursuivant of Arms in Ordinary (left), Alastair Bruce of Crionaich, Fitzalan Pursuivant of Arms Extraordinary (right).

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Did you know...

...that during World War II the records of the College of Arms were stored in Thornbury Castle (pictured), home of Sir Algar Howard, Norroy and Ulster King of Arms?

...that Marcus Vulson de la Colombière, a French heraldist of the 17th century, was involved in a dispute with Silvester Petra Sancta over who invented the method of hatching to indicate heraldic tinctures?

...that Albany, New York has a life-size version of its coat of arms that was sculpted by a local political cartoonist?

...that Newt Heisley designed the POW/MIA flag in 1971 for the National League of Families, which the US Congress requires be flown at federal and military buildings on six days annually?