What is the emblem of Scotland. Symbols of Scotland: flag and anthem, kilt and bagpipes. Symbolism in traditional cuisine

Hello dears!
Today we will finish the topic of European coats of arms, started here: and continued here:. However, as you understand, general theme Naturally, we are not finished with state heraldry, in particular, and heraldry, in general. Therefore, you will have to endure my exercises further :-)
Today we'll talk about Great Britain and Portugal.
The coat of arms of Great Britain, or more correctly the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, is similar to the coat of arms of the British monarch and ruling family. As everyone knows, the current monarch (God bless her) of Great Britain is Elizabeth II of Windsor (aka Saxe-Coburg and Gotha).

Wedding royal princess Elizabeth and Philip Mountbatten. 1947

The coat of arms of Her Royal Majesty could be seen by many, and it is one of the most recognizable in the world of heraldry. It can be described something like this:
On the green lawn, which serves as the main one, there is an English heraldic shield of Gothic form, surrounded by a garter ribbon and embroidered on it with the motto of the Order of the Garter “Honi soit qui mal y pense” on both sides supported by a crowned Rampant Guardant lion and a unicorn on a chain . The lawn contains rose, clover and thistle. At the very bottom there is a motto in French: “ DIEU ET MON DROIT“. The coat of arms is divided into 4 quarters. In the 1st and 3rd quarters there are 3 marching, straight-looking (Passant Guardant) golden lions in a scarlet field, which are usually called leopard lions or simply leopards. In the 2nd quarter there is a scarlet lion with azure weapons (claws and tongue) in a golden field with a scarlet double inner border, overgrown with lilies, and in the 4th quarter there is a golden harp in an azure background. The shield is crowned with a tournament helmet crowned with the imperial crown, surrounded by a mantle, and on top of the helmet there is a golden crowned leopard.


Official Coat of Arms of the United Kingdom and Monarchy

Before we begin to analyze in detail the elements of this coat of arms, it is necessary to say about one of its interesting feature. This coat of arms has another version, which is called Scottish and is used, accordingly, exclusively in Scotland. We will talk about the differences between the main coat of arms and its Scottish version a little later, but now I propose to start looking at the main coat of arms.
In violation of all blazing rules, we will start not with the shield, but with the base. Yes, yes, exactly from the base (soil). Agree that the short-cropped English green lawn is as integral an attribute of Foggy Albion as, say, the monarchy and the five-o-clock. So I cannot help but note how correctly and competently the soil (base) was chosen. However, on the soil there are 3 more interesting heraldic elements - a rose, a clover and a thistle, and these elements are repeated twice and the most paradoxical thing is that they grow from the same stem. These plants are included in the coat of arms with special intent. The fact is that the rose is a symbol of England, the clover is of Northern Ireland, and the thistle is of Scotland.

Everything is clear with the rose of England; everyone has probably heard or read about the War of the Scarlet and White Roses. The Hampshire rose was the ancestral sign of two families claiming hegemony in the kingdom - the Lanksters (Scarlet Rose) and the Yorks (White Rose). King Henry VII, who came to the throne in 1485, in order to finally end the feud between the families, combined these 2 roses into one - a white flower on top of a scarlet one, or divided into four scarlet and white sectors (“quarters”), or into two parts of scarlet and white flowers vertical stripe in the middle. Since Henry VII became the ruler of the royal Tudor Dynasty (which ruled until 1604), this rose is often also called the Tudor Rose.


The emblem of the football club from Northern Ireland "Cliftonville"

The three-leaf green clover is an ancient symbol of Ireland. According to legend, the patron saint of the island, Patrick, used the clover flower to explain the doctrine of the Trinity. Green is the color of this saint. In addition, the ancient Celts considered clover better protection from the forces of evil and witchcraft. Great Britain now controls part of the island, a territory called Northern Ireland, but the presence of clover seems to imply that the British claim not a part, but the entire green island of Ireland.

Tartan and thistle. Real Scotland

Thistle is the national plant of Scotland. Since ancient times, it has been credited with having a magical effect on evil spirits. In addition, according to legend, in the 10th century, the coastal settlements of the Scots suffered from raids by the Danish Vikings. In 990, near Perth, the Danes came ashore to defeat the army of King Kenneth II under cover of darkness. The Scotts did not expect that the Danes would attack them at night, so they slept peacefully, without even setting up external posts. In order not to make noise when moving, the Danes took off their shoes, but by a fatal accident, one of them stepped on a thistle and screamed in pain, waking up the entire camp of the Scots king with a scream. Awakening from sleep, the Scots put up a worthy rebuff to the Danes and put them to flight. This is the legend. And finally, some wits joke that thistle perfectly illustrates national character, especially in relation to money.
Thus, 3 out of 4 parts of the United Kingdom in the coat of arms, even at a minimal level, are not offended. It will only go around Wales, whose plant symbols - leeks or daffodils, I could not find on the coat of arms. Maybe you can help?


Flag of Wales

Let's continue further. And let's go to the order ribbon surrounding the shield. The blue strap with a gold buckle is a garter, the badge of the highest and oldest English Order of the Garter, established by King Edward III in 1348. If you translate the motto from French into Russian, you get something like “Let him who thinks badly of it be ashamed.” I will not dwell in detail on this Royal Order for the same reasons that I did not examine the Order of the Seraphim on the coat of arms of Sweden (I describe all this in my third book and hope to publish it someday), but still without a few explanations can't get by here. According to one of the most widespread legends, the playful and cheerful lady (and at the same time also a mistress, according to some sources of the aforementioned King Edward III), the Countess of Salisbury at one of the royal balls went into such a dance frenzy that she dropped one of the intimate parts of a woman’s toilet - a garter - on the floor. Everyone around laughed, plunging the poor countess into the throes of shame, but the gallant king picked up the garter and tied it on his own leg with the words “Let him be ashamed who thought ill of it,” which became the motto of the order. The legend is of course beautiful, but if you look closely at the ribbon of the order on the coat of arms, you will probably notice that most of all it is not on the garter at all, but rather on the belt on which the sword was hung. But this is true, by the way.

Regalia of the Order of the Pendant

At the bottom of the coat of arms we can see another motto - " Dieu et mon droit", which translated into Russian sounds like " God and my right". Since the beginning of the 15th century, this has been the personal motto of English monarchs, indicating the divinity of the monarch's rights to power and the crown. And do not be confused by the French spelling of all these mottos - it is quite understandable. Firstly, the English dynasties of that time had French roots, and most kings didn't know at all in English, which was considered the language of the common people (an example here could be the most famous, perhaps the king of England, Richard I the Lionheart), and secondly, Henry V, under whom this motto first began to be used, had every chance of uniting in his hands the crowns of not only England, but also France, therefore, he acted with special intent, drawing the motto in French. The current dynasty would probably have written it in German.

English King Henry V

Well, perhaps it's time to move on to the shield. Leopard lions or leopards located in the 1st and 3rd quarters are an ancient coat of arms of England. Its official name is “walking lions on guard.” It was created by Richard I the Lionheart in 1190. The coat of arms of William the Conqueror and the Norman dynasty was taken as a basis, slightly modified and another one was added to the 2 existing lions. The British, as well-known traditionalists, stick to their basics.
The red lion on a golden background, which we can see in the second quarter, is the oldest symbol of Scotland. It is believed that it was taken from the coat of arms of the county of Fife, and they in turn adopted it from the Vikings. For the first time in state emblem it began to be used by the Scottish monarch William I the Lion of Scotland, who reigned from 1165 to 1214, who added a fancy double border to the lion. This coat of arms was officially enshrined in Alexandra III, who sat on the throne from 1249 to 1286.

Somewhere in Edinburgh...

Since then, this coat of arms has remained unchanged (despite all the intermediate disturbances associated with various historical events, such as kinship with the French royal house and others like it). After royal dynasty Scotland, with the accession to the English throne of the Scottish monarch James I, ceased to exist, the coat of arms of Scotland became part of the Royal Arms of Great Britain.


Controversial figure English history James I Stuart

And finally, in the 4th quarter we can see the coat of arms of Ireland. This is the so-called Irish Harp, which has become a symbol of the “Green Island” since the 13th century. I must say that this is the only one on this moment the country in which the symbol is musical instrument, so it’s difficult to confuse something here. The appearance of the golden harp is associated with ancient Irish folklore (which, by the way, is very rich, interesting and unusual - if you have the opportunity, check it out). So, according to legend supreme gods light and warmth were given to the Supreme King of the Tribes by the goddess Dana, named Dagde, by certain magical harps, the sounds of which helped the common people to live and enjoy. One flute was called Daurdabla(“The Oak of Two Greens”), another Coir Ketarcuir(“Song of the Four Corners”).

A well-known airline with the symbol of Ireland on its livery

So, in fact, the Irish began to be called from those times as the people of the harp. But this is only one of the legends, of which there are many. Some are associated with such notorious characters as Tristan, and even King David. Be that as it may, the golden harp in a green field became the coat of arms of the province of Leinster, and through it the coat of arms of the state of Ireland. Following the unification of Ireland, England and Scotland under James I of England in March 1603, the harp appeared on the third quarter of the royal coat of arms of the United Kingdom. I would like to note, however, that the coat of arms of Northern Ireland differs from the all-Ireland one. So here, too, one can discern not only a tribute to tradition, but also claims to the whole of Ireland.


Coat of arms of Northern Ireland

Well in Once again I would like to note that such an important part of the kingdom as Wales has been ignored. On the one hand, Wales has the status of a principality; it has never had sovereign state within the present borders (even Welsh football clubs such as Swansea play in the English championship), and its national coat of arms has not been approved, but still some injustice is felt in the absence of Welsh symbols in the heraldry of the United Kingdom. This injustice, apparently, was also felt by the English monarchs, who tried to level out the imbalance in another way. The heir to the British crown bears the title Prince of Wales.

Welsh coat of arms. Leeks present

A few words must be said about shield holders. The lion as a shield holder supports the shield on the right. White horse with a helical horn in the forehead - a unicorn on the left. Everything is clear with Leo - the symbol of England. But what about the unicorn, you ask? Along with the thistle and tartan, the unicorn is considered an alternative national symbol of Scotland to the red lion. This mystical beast is full of symbolism, but why is it considered a symbol of Scotland, I’m sorry, but I can’t tell you - I don’t know. I only know that it replaced the Welsh dragon as a shield holder at the beginning of the 17th century. In addition to the red dragon, the shield-bearers were a silver antelope, a silver swan, a silver boar and a silver hound.

and this is in Glasgow

Well, the coat of arms is crowned with a golden helmet with a closed visor. He wears an imperial crown (about 12 more can definitely be seen in England) with a crest - a golden crowned leopard, which is colloquially called the “British lion”. To the right and left of the helmet is a golden mantle lined with ermine.
Perhaps this is where we will complete the blazing and analysis of the main British coat of arms. However, at the beginning of the story, we mentioned that there is also a Scottish version of the coat of arms. It differs in detail and significantly. First of all, the shield holders are swapped, and the unicorn is crowned as well as the lion, which hold in their paws and hooves scarlet staffs with the national flags of England (a white flag with the cross of St. George) and Scotland (a blue flag with a white cross of St. Andrew). It is not the imperial crown that is used, but the crown of the King of Scotland with a crest in the form of a red Scottish lion holding a scepter and sword in its paws. Above the crest is the motto "In Defense", which is part of the full Scottish motto sounding like " In My Defense God Me Defend". This, of course, is not in English at all, because all the rules of grammar are violated, but roughly I could translate it like this: In my defense, God is my helper. Well.. something like this.


Scottish version of the coat of arms

Around the shield we can see the chain of the Order of the Thistle, another of Britain's most important and oldest organizations and awards. On the base (soil) thistle blooms in wild colors. Well, the inscription in Latin at the bottom of the coat of arms is the motto of the Order: Nemo me impune lacessit, that is, “No one will touch me with impunity.”
The shield is also different. Only the golden harp in the 3rd quarter remained unchanged. The 1st and 4th quarters are occupied by the Scottish Lion, but we can see the 2nd historical coat of arms England from 1558 to 1603, when the English kings considered themselves
I am the possible heir to the throne of France.
Well, to finish the topic, I must say that the coat of arms of the United Kingdom, which we carefully examined today, became such only during the reign of Queen Victoria.


The royal family in the vestments of the Knights of the Order of the Thistle.

Well, the last of all the European coats of arms, which I decided to consider, ironically turned out to be the heraldic sign of the only non-monarchical country of all those reviewed above, although in the past it had rich royal traditions. We will talk about the coat of arms of Portugal.
The coat of arms of Portugal is a golden armillary sphere on which is placed a heraldic shield. In the silver shield there are five azure shields with a cross with five silver bezants, on a scarlet border there are seven golden castles with triple towers, three of which are the main ones. The armillary sphere is framed by golden branches tied at the bottom with two ribbons - red and green.

Coat of arms of Portugal

Let's figure it out. Let's start with the most basic thing - the shield. Five shields in the form of a cross are associated with the events of the 13th century. The first Portuguese king Afonso Henriques, aka Afonso I of Portugal, aka Afonso the Great, aka Afonso the Conqueror, aka Afonso the Founder, or, if we switch to mocking Russian, Alfonso Henryovich of Burgundy in 1139 won a decisive victory over the united forces of the Arabs at Orica. In principle, from that moment he began to call himself king. Five blue shields in a silver field symbolize the five Islamic “kings” defeated at Oriko (apparently, they were talking about military leaders). The five silver nails on each of the blue shields were reminiscent of the crucifixion of Christ, the cross of St. Andrew, or the 5 wounds that Afonso received in battle, or 5 smaller skirmishes that he successfully fought before this battle. Over time, the 5 nails turned into a simple coat of arms, a bezant (circle), named after Byzantine gold coins. The meaning also changed, now it was not nails, but money, that is, the opportunity and right of the king to mint his own coin. The very number of bezants on the shield was also different - from 6 to 12. This was the original Portuguese coat of arms.

Afonso I

I will say that one of the first Portuguese flags was a white cloth with a blue straight cross (one of the symbols of Henry of Burgundy). White and blue colors until the beginning of the 20th century. were the main ones in Portuguese symbolism. Later, now it is impossible to establish exactly when a scarlet border with locks appeared around the silver field. The number of castles constantly changed from 8 to 12. King Afonso IV determined their number at 12, and Sebastian I finally approved 7, which is still the case today. Presumably they refer to Moorish castles recaptured by Portugal during the Reconquista. The fact that this is an allusion to the dependence of the Kingdom of Portugal on Castile is unlikely, since the castles are similar to Castilian ones, but unlike the Spanish ones, they do not have open gates.

Henry the Navigator

This shield is used as a small state emblem.
Such an interesting element of Portuguese heraldry as the armillary sphere (from the Latin armilla - bracelet, ring) is an astronomical instrument used to determine the equatorial or ecliptic coordinates of celestial bodies. This is a hint of Portugal's great contribution to the Age of Discovery, as well as the vastness of its former colonial possessions and also a personal sign of Henry the Navigator. The sphere depicts the celestial sphere with its main circles: 4 small arcs and one large (twice as wide as the others). The minor arcs correspond to the celestial equator, the tropics of Cancer and Capricorn, and the celestial meridian. The major arc corresponds to the ecliptic, big circle celestial sphere along which the visible annual movement of the Sun occurs.

Coravel of the Order of Christ. The stylized insignia of the order, albeit modified, is applied to the sails.

The green and red ribbon are made in the colors of the national flag. The meaning of these colors is ambiguous and everyone can choose one that suits them personally. The first meaning: green is the color of hope, and red is the color of the blood of those who died for the nation. Second - green color Cross of the Avis Military Spiritual Order. In other words, this is a symbol of one of the dynasties that once ruled the Kingdom of Portugal. Red is also the color of the cross, but of another military-spiritual organization - the Order of Christ. Third, the red color stands for Portugal itself, and the green pearl in its possessions stands for Brazil. Everyone chooses the version they personally like best.
Let's finish this for today.

To be continued….

If you ask an ordinary tourist what first comes to mind when he mentions Scotland, you will hear a wide variety of answers:

• For someone who is not alien to modern fashion, these are kilts and tartans.
• For those who know geography, this is Nessie, the famous Loch Ness monster.
• For connoisseurs of quality alcohol, this is Scotch whiskey.
• For people who are not alien to ethnic music - bagpipes.

What do the Scots themselves connect and associate themselves with? Oddly enough, not many people know the usual symbols of Scotland, and not all of them will be on the tourist list. Among the symbols of Scotland there are: thistle, unicorn, Apostle Andrew.

How did Scottish symbols appear?

The thistle is a seemingly ordinary plant, but nevertheless has the status of a semi-official national symbol of Scotland. You can see thistles at monetary units this country (by the way, Scotland, while remaining part of Great Britain, has the right to issue its own banknotes). Often the inhabitants of this country associate the character of this plant with their own: the unpretentious, stubborn, purposeful thistle is indeed similar to the Scots. But is it only for this that the thistle received the proud name “symbol of Scotland”?

The roots of this tradition go back more than a thousand years into history, to one battle of Lunkart, which the Scots were able to win, as the story goes, precisely thanks to the help of thistles. The cunning Vikings wanted to silently approach the sleeping camp of the Scots, but, as luck would have it, a thorny, stubborn plant fell under their feet. One of the Vikings shouted and immediately declassified the entire military operation.

In Scotland, there is even an Order of the Thistle - for the uninitiated it may sound a little funny, but, nevertheless, this is one of the most important and most ancient orders of this country, founded under King James II and having a knightly basis.

The unicorn is another symbol of Scotland. It can be found on many coats of arms of Scottish families (appeared in heraldry from about the fifteenth century), as well as on some coins (including the gold unicorn issued under James II). One of the most honorable places for a unicorn is the Royal Arms of Great Britain: before the accession of James of Scotland to the English throne, in its place was the symbol of Ireland - the dragon, which was later replaced by the monarch with a more familiar symbol of his country.

Another symbol of Scotland is Apostle Andrew, whose relics, according to historical data, were transferred to one of the Scottish towns - St. Andrews, where they are buried to this day. According to legend, the apostle was crucified on the cross unusual shape- in the shape of the letter X, with axes of equal length. You can see the St. Andrew's cross, which got its name from the murdered apostle and became one of the common symbols of Christianity, quite often in Scottish symbolism. In addition, the St. Andrew's cross is the central element on the country's flag.

Brief information about the country: Scotland

Scotland ( Scotland)- formerly an independent kingdom in northern Europe, is now the only autonomous monarchy (including its own parliament) of the four regions that make up the United Kingdom.

Capital- Edinburgh

Language- There is currently no officially accepted state language, however, three languages ​​are used in Scotland - English, Scottish Gaelic And Anglo-Scottish.

Flag of Scotland

The Scottish flag is one of the oldest national flags in the world. Its appearance, according to legend, dates back to 832, when King Angus, before the battle with the Anglo-Saxons, saw in the sky a sign in the form of an X-shaped cross, on which, according to legend, Andrew the First-Called, considered the patron saint of Scotland, was crucified. The battle was won, and the image of a white cross on a sky-blue field became one of the symbols of Scotland.
The Scottish flag was included as a component in the flag of Great Britain

Coat of arms of Scotland

The shield holders are two unicorns chained to a pedestal. Unicorns symbolize the indomitable spirit of the Scots. Unicorns support two standards: the royal one with a lion and the national one with the St. Andrew's cross. Initially, the coat of arms had only one motto, located according to the traditions of Scottish heraldry at the top. "In Defense" is an abbreviation of the motto "In My Defens God Me Defend"("God protects me"). Later, the regalia of the Order of the Thistle was added to the coat of arms - the order chain and motto "Nemo me impune lacessit"(“No one will attack me with impunity”), located below. The coat of arms lasted with minor decorative changes until 1603, when England and Scotland were united under one crown.

Symbol of Scotland

Scotland is rich not only in official state symbols; along with it, there are also so-called semi-official symbols.

The thistle is the plant symbol of Scotland, and it also has its own legend.

One day, warlike Viking troops landed on the coast of Scotland with the goal of conquering the country. The Scots sent their army towards the enemy, which stopped for a halt on the Tay River. At this time, the Vikings had just approached the crossing.

In order not to wake up the enemy army, they took off their shoes and began to gradually approach. But one of the warriors stepped on a thistle, cried out in pain, and the awakened Scots managed to meet them with a worthy rebuff.

In 1702, the thistle appeared on the royal coat of arms, along with the motto "None shall touch me without being hurt." And subsequently the “Order of the Thistle” was formed.

This symbol of Scotland means for local residents a lot, and the British jokingly nicknamed it the “Scottish rose.”

Royal coat of arms of Scotland(English) Royal coat of arms of Scotland ) - the official coat of arms of the Scottish king from the date of its approval in the 12th century until the abolition of the Kingdom of Scotland by the Act of Union 1707. Poetically described as "a lion of scarlet rising in borders of gold", it is still widely used as a symbol of Scotland and is placed in the quadruple shield of the coat of arms of Queen Elizabeth II along with the coats of arms of England and Ireland.

Heraldic description

The coat of arms is a scarlet rising lion, azure in tongue and armor, in a field of gold with a scarlet double inner border, flourished and counter-flourished with lilies (known as royal texture, “royal border”). The lilies in the royal border traditionally symbolize the "Ancient Alliance" with France, which is unlikely, since this alliance did not arise until the 13th century, when the royal border was firmly established as part of the coat of arms after many years had passed. It may have been added simply to make the coat of arms more distinctive, as the rising lion symbol had already been used by several lords and kings.

The shield is surmounted by a golden helmet crowned with a royal crown. On the crown is a sitting scarlet crowned lion, azure with tongue and arms. In the right paw the lion holds a state sword with a golden hilt and a silver blade, and in the left - a golden scepter.

Above the lion is the motto “In Defens,” an abbreviation for “In My Defens God Me Defend” (“In my defense, God protects me”), inscribed on a silver ribbon in scarlet letters. The mantling is golden, lined with ermine. Around the shield is the collar of the Most Ancient and Noble Order of the Thistle, with the sign of St. Andrew.

On the sides are rising crowned silver unicorns, golden in arms (mane, horns, and hooves), shackled in golden chains. The right one supports the coat of arms (with the fact that the lion depicted on the banner has its back to the staff, while according to the rules it should be facing the staff or flagpole); the left one supports the national flag of Scotland. Unicorns stand on green soil covered with thistle, the national flower of Scotland.

Story

The first known likeness of this coat of arms was used by King William I the Lion in the 12th century, although no trace of it could be found on his seal. However, the rising lion could clearly be depicted on the seal of his son Alexander II. Over the years, many authors have argued that he could be much older; even Alexander Nisbet, considered one of the most reliable Scottish heraldists, argued that the lion was first adopted as a personal sign by the legendary Fergus, and the royal border was added in the reign of Achaea. This is clearly not true: even if Fergus and Achaeus existed, it was several centuries earlier than heraldry arose.

Over the centuries, the coat of arms passed from monarch to monarch, changing only with slight variations in detail. In some early examples the lion holds a sword or wears a crown, and the royal border is sometimes interpreted as an inner or simple border. Many of these relatively minor changes appear to be the result of the personal efforts of masons, weavers, painters and sculptors who have endeavored over the centuries to create or reproduce a coat of arms of this period, as well as errors and misinterpretations on the part of foreign heraldists.

Write a review on the article "Coat of Arms of Scotland"

Notes

An excerpt characterizing the Coat of Arms of Scotland