Portal:Heraldry
Welcome to the Heraldry and Vexillology Portal!
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.
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.
Selected biography
Johannes Baptista Rietstap (12 May 1828–24 December 1891) was a Dutch heraldist and genealogist, who is often considered to be the father of modern heraldry in the Netherlands. Rietstap was proficient in English, French, German, Spanish and Latin in addition to his mother tongue, and from the 1850s to the 1870s published a large number of translations of both fiction and non-fiction works. He also worked as a stenographer for the Staten-Generaal for 37 years, eventually rising to the position of First Stenographer. He is most well-known however for his publication of the Armorial Général. This monumental work contains the blazons of the coats of arms of more than 130,000 European families, and is still one of the most complete works of its kind. (more...)
Selected flag
The Eureka Flag is a design which features: a dark blue field 260 x 400 cm (2:3.08 ratio); a horizontal stripe 37 cm wide and a vertical line crossing it of 36 cm wide; and 5 eight pointed stars, the central star being 65 cm tall (point to point) and the other stars 60 cm tall, representing the Crux Australis constellation. The design was first used for the war flag of the Eureka Rebellion of 1854 at Ballarat in Victoria, Australia.
The flag design has gained wider notability due to its adoption in Australian culture as a symbol of democracy, protest and other causes. It is listed as an object of state heritage significance on the Victorian Heritage Register and was named as a Victorian Icon by the National Trust in 2006. (more...)
Selected coat of arms
Pakistan has several official national symbols including a historic document, a flag, an emblem, an anthem, a memorial tower as well as several national heroes. The symbols were adopted at various stages in the existence of Pakistan and there are various rules and regulations governing their definition or use. The oldest symbol is the Lahore Resolution, adopted by the All India Muslim League on 23 March 1940, and which presented the official demand for the creation of a separate country for the Muslims of India. The Minar-e-Pakistan memorial tower which was built in 1968 on the site where the Lahore Resolution was passed. The national flag of Pakistan was adopted just before independence was achieved on 14 August 1947. The national anthem (Qaumi Tarana) and the state emblem of Pakistan were each adopted in 1954. There are also several other symbols including the national animal, bird, flower and tree. (more...)
Selected picture
The Coat of arms of the Russian Empire according to the "Manifesto On Full Blazon of All-Russian Empire", presented to Emperor on October 13, 1800.
Did you know...
- ...that Christopher E. Gadsden, the fourth Episcopal bishop of South Carolina, was the grandson of Christopher Gadsden, the designer of the Gadsden flag? (pictured)?
- ...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 the current rendering of the mermaid in the coat of arms of Ustka is the result of a two-year debate over the size of her breasts?
- ...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?
- ...that the civil flag of Monaco utilizes the heraldic colors of the House of Grimaldi?
Related portals
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Heraldry Web resources
Authorities
- Belgium - The Council of Nobility, Flemish Heraldic Council and Council of Heraldry and Vexillology of the French Community
- Canada - Canadian Heraldic Authority and see also Public Register of Arms, Flags and Badges
- England, Wales, and Northern Ireland - The College of Arms
- Ireland - The Office of the Chief Herald of Ireland
- Netherlands - High Council of Nobility
- Portugal - Instituto da Nobreza Portuguesa
- Scotland - The Court of the Lord Lyon
- South Africa - South African Bureau of Heraldry
- Sweden - National Board of Heraldry, The National Archive
- United States Army - The United States Army Institute of Heraldry
Societies
- Greek Heraldry Society
- The Academy of Heraldic Science Czech republic
- The American College of Heraldry
- The American Heraldry Society
- The Augustan Society
- The Australian Heraldry Society Inc.
- Bulgarian Heraldry and Vexillology Society
- The Center for Research of Orthodox Monarchism
- Cambridge University Heraldic and Genealogical Society
- Chiltern Heraldry Group
- The College of Dracology
- Croatian Heraldic and Vexillologic Association
- The Finnish Heraldic Society
- Fryske Rie foar Heraldyk
- Hellenic Armigers Society
- Guild of Heraldic Artists
- Genealogical Society of Ireland
- Heraldry Research Institute (Japan)
- The Heraldry Society
- The Heraldry Society of Africa
- The Heraldry Society of New Zealand Inc.
- The Heraldry Society of Scotland
- The Heraldry Society of Southern Africa
- The Institute of Heraldic and Genealogical Studies
- The International Association of Amateur Heralds
- Italian Center of Vexillological Studies
- Lancashire Heraldry Group
- Macedonian Heraldry Society
- New England Historic Genealogical Society Committee on Heraldry
- Norwegian Heraldry Society
- Oxford University Heraldry Society
- Polish Heraldry Society
- Polish Nobility Confederation
- Real Academia Matritense de Heráldica y Genealogía - Royal Academy of Heraldry and Genealogy of Madrid
- Romanian Institute for Genealogy and Heraldry
- The Royal Heraldry Society of Canada
- The Russian College of HeraldryThe Russian College of Heraldry
- Serbian Heraldic Society
- Societas Heraldica Scandinavica
- Societas Heraldica Slovenica
- Swedish Heraldic Society
- Ukrainian Heraldry Society
- Royal Association Genealogical and Heraldic Office of Belgium
Vexillology
Software
- Coat of Arms Visual Designer web-based program
- Puncher Heraldry Program
- Blazonry Server - pyBlazon
- DrawShield - creates SVG shield or arms image from blazon
- CoaMaker - web-based tool
- Blazon95 and BLAZONS! 2000, older Windows applications
Texts
- Heraldry, historical and popular : with seven hundred illustrations (1863)
- A Complete Guide to Heraldry (1909)
Other
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