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| The Arms of Her Majesty in Right of Canada | |
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| Details | |
| Armiger | Elizabeth II, Queen of Canada |
| Adopted | 1921 |
| Crest | A golden lion, royally crowned, bearing a red maple leaf and standing on a helm below a royal crown; white and red mantling (in the form of maple leaves since 1994) |
| Escutcheon | Tierced in fess: Top two fesses quarterly the coats of arms of England, Scotland, Ireland, and royal France; bottom fess a sprig of three maple leaves proper |
| Supporters | A golden lion in dexter bearing a flagpole with the Union Flag and a silver unicorn in sinister bearing a flagpole with a banner of the royal arms of France |
| Other elements | The circlet of the Order of Canada Motto: A mari usque ad mare Tudor rose, Lily, Shamrock, and Thistle |
| Earlier versions | see below |
| Use | On all Acts of Parliament; the cover of all Canadian passports; various government departments |
The Coat of Arms of Canada, formally known as The Arms of Her Majesty in Right of Canada,Royal Heraldry Society of Canada: The Coat of Arms is the official coat of arms of the Canadian monarch, currently Queen Elizabeth II. These arms are used by the Queen in her official capacity as monarch, and are officially known as her Arms of Dominion. The arms were first proclaimed by King George V on November 21, 1921 as the Arms or Ensigns Armorial of the Dominion of Canada,Canadian Heritage - The arms of Canada proclamation and have been augmented or altered over the ensuing decades.
Canada\'s royal coat of arms is very closely modelled after the royal coat of arms of the United Kingdom – those of the Jacobean era in particular – though with distinctive Canadian elements replacing or added to those derived from the UK.
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The shield is divided into five sections:
The first division at the viewer\'s top left contains the three golden lions that have been a symbol of England since at least the reign of King Richard I. The second quarter bears the red lion rampant of Scotland in a double tressure border with fleurs-de-lis, used as a symbol of Scotland since at least the reign of William I. The third quarter shows the Irish harp of Tara. Legend states that this golden harp with silver strings was used in royal banquets at Tara, a capital of ancient Ireland, and was later given to Henry VIII by the pope during his attempt to succeed to the Irish throne. The gold fleurs-de-lis of royal France, the first European emblem raised in Canada by Jacques Cartier during his landing at Gaspé, fill the fourth quarter.
The fifth charge, a sprig of red maple leaves at the bottom is a distinctly Canadian symbol that became gradually identified with the country throughout the 19th century. They were first proposed as a symbol in 1834, were established in 1868 on the arms of Quebec and Ontario and officially became the national emblem in 1965, with the proclamation of the Flag of Canada.Canadian Heritage - Ceremonial and Canadian Symbols Initially, the leaves were depicted as coloured green on the coat of arms because it was thought to represent youth, as opposed to the red colour of dying leaves in autumn (however, they are blazoned as "proper," so could be shown as either red or green, and it is the blazon, rather than any depiction, which is regarded as authoritative). The leaves were later redrawn in official depictions in 1957 with the current colour to be in line with the official colours of Canada.
The tinctures of the quarters are Gules (red), Or (gold), Azure (blue), Azure and Argent (silver) respectively.
The shield forms the basis of the royal standard of Canada.
The ribbon is marked desiderantes meliorem patriam, meaning "desiring a better country." It is the motto of the Order of Canada. This component was added, by the Queen on the advice of the Prime Minister, to the arms used to represent the Queen in 1987, after a new Canadian "law of arms" was created, which included the rule that the motto of the Order of Canada would be included around the personal coat of arms of any Canadian who received an appointment to the Order, while the arms used by government ministers and departments remained without the ribbon. Since 1994 the arms used by government ministers and institutions now reflect the personal arms of the Queen.
The arms show a royal helmet, which is a barred helm of gold looking outward, and draped in a mantle of white and red which are the official colours of Canada. The golden helmet facing the viewer symbolizes Canada\'s sovereignty.
The crest is based on the Royal Crest of England but differenced by the addition of a maple leaf, and appears on the Governor General\'s blue flag denoting that the Governor General is a representative of the Sovereign.
It consists of a crowned gold lion standing on a twisted wreath of red and white silk and holding a maple leaf in its right paw. Above the crest is St Edward\'s Crown, the style preferred by the Queen. (See the article on the royal coat of arms of the United Kingdom for a discussion of different styles of crown historically used in the Commonwealth.)
The 1921 design was a Tudor crown, and the style was modernized to its current form in 1957 by the Canadian government, although the Queen had indicated her preference in May 1952, shortly after ascending the throne in February 1952.
Supporting the shield on either side are the English lion and Scottish unicorn, which are also the supporters of the UK coat of arms. The lion stands on the viewer\'s left and holds a gold-pointed silver lance flying the Union Flag. The unicorn has a gold horn, a gold mane, gold hooves, and around its neck a gold, chained coronet of crosses and fleurs-de-lis; it holds a lance flying the three gold fleurs-de-lis of royal France on a blue background. Unlike the British version, the lion is not crowned, nor is it facing the viewer.
The motto of Canada is in latin a mari usque ad mare ("from sea to sea"), a part of Psalm 72:8.Wikisource - Psalm 72:8 This phrase was first suggested by Samuel Leonard Tilley, a Father of Confederation. The motto appears at the base of the arms. The motto was originally used in 1906 on the head of the mace of the Legislative Assembly of Saskatchewan. It was included in the Arms of Canada in 1921.Canadaonline - Time for a New Motto for Canada?
In March 2006, the premiers of Canada\'s three territories called for the amendment of the motto to better reflect the vast geographic nature of Canada\'s territory – Canada has three coastlines on the Arctic, Atlantic, and Pacific Oceans. Two suggestions for a new motto are A mari ad mare ad mare (from sea to sea to sea) and A mari usque ad maria (from the sea to the other seas).From sea to sea to sea, The Globe and Mail, 9 March 2006.\'To sea\' or not \'to sea\': that is the question - CBC article, 10 March 2006 The motto remains unchanged.
The heraldic blazon of Canada\'s coat of arms, proclaimed in 1921 was:
Tierced in fesse the first and second divisions containing the quarterly coat following, namely, 1st Gules three lions passant guardant in pale or, 2nd, Or a lion rampant within a double tressure flory-counter-flory gules, 3rd, Azure a harp or stringed argent, 4th, Azure, three fleurs-de-lis or, and the third division Argent three maple leaves conjoined on one stem proper. And upon a Royal helmet mantled argent doubled gules the Crest, that is to say, On a wreath of the colours argent and gules a lion passant guardant or imperially crowned proper and holding in the dexter paw a maple leaf gules. And for Supporters On the dexter a lion rampant or holding a lance argent, point or, flying therefrom to the dexter the Union Flag, and on the sinister A unicorn argent armed crined and unguled or, gorged with a coronet composed of crosses-patée and fleurs-de-lis a chain affixed thereto reflexed of the last, and holding a like lance flying therefrom to the sinister a banner azure charged with three fleurs-de-lis or; the whole ensigned with the Imperial Crown proper and below the shield upon a wreath composed of roses, thistles, shamrocks and lillies a scroll azure inscribed with the motto A mari usque ad mare.
The circlet of the Order of Canada was added around the shield in 1987.
| .jpg/58px-Coat of Arms of Canada (1923).jpg)
| .jpg/58px-Coat of Arms of Canada (1957).jpg)
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| 1905 | 1921 | 1957 | 1994 |
When the Dominion of Canada was formed in 1867 each of the four provinces was granted arms, but the Dominion itself was not. Instead the provincial arms were quartered for federal use, appearing first on the Great Seal of Canada. This shield implicitly became the arms identifying the Dominion of Canada.
The practical idea of a coat of arms is to easily and quickly identify the bearer. As new provinces joined the Confederation their arms were added, and the Dominion\'s arms soon became cluttered and unsuitable heraldically and practically.Canadian Heraldic Authority - The Coat of Arms of Canada - A Short History This is seen in the image of a postcard from 1905, when there were seven provinces; in the fall of that year there were nine.
King George V proclaimed the new arms in 1921. The official painted version, made by English heralds, had "fluttering" standards and the maple leaves were green.
In 1957 a new version painted by Commander Alan Beddoe was adopted. It showed red leaves, as Prime Minister Borden had intended, and the banners were redrawn.
The differences result from artistic licence, with two different artists\' interpreting the official written description, or blazon. The leaves were described as "proper" so any colour could be used if it is proper for maple leaves in the wild, so green, red or gold could be used for spring, summer or autumn leaves.
Redrawing the mantling as if cut into maple leaves, rather than the traditional British slashed cloak was artistic licence; placing the Motto of the Order of Canada was an "heraldic additament". Such a change needed Royal approval, which was given in 1994 when a new official emblazon was painted by Cathy Bursey-Sabourin, Fraser Herald and Principal Artist at the Canadian Heraldic Authority, and introduced gradually so as to minimize the expense of the changeover.
The full achievement of the Canadian Coat of Arms has been used by the Canadian Government centred on a plain red flag on occasion such as in 1967 for the country\'s centennial celebrations.Flags of the World (February 2004). Canadian Coat of Arms flag. Retrieved on 2007-04-14.
The Coat of Arms is protected under the Trade-marks Act. Section 9(a)(e) "Prohibited Marks" states:
| “ | Insert the text of the quote here, without quotation marks. | ” |
| Coats of Arms of Canada - National |
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Provinces: Alberta – British Columbia – Manitoba – New Brunswick – Newfoundland and Labrador – Nova Scotia – Ontario – Prince Edward Island – Quebec – Saskatchewan |
| Coat of arms of North America | ||
|---|---|---|
| Sovereign states | Antigua and Barbuda · Bahamas · Barbados · Belize · Canada · Costa Rica · Cuba · Dominica · Dominican Republic · El Salvador · Grenada · Guatemala · Haiti · Honduras · Jamaica · Mexico · Nicaragua · Panama* · Saint Kitts and Nevis · Saint Lucia · Saint Vincent and the Grenadines · Trinidad and Tobago* · United States |  |
| Dependencies and other territories | -->Anguilla · Aruba* · Bermuda · British Virgin Islands · Cayman Islands · Greenland · Guadeloupe · Martinique · Montserrat · Navassa Island · Netherlands Antilles* · Puerto Rico · Saint Barthélemy · Saint Martin · Saint Pierre and Miquelon · Turks and Caicos Islands · U. S. Virgin Islands | |
| * Territories also in or commonly reckoned elsewhere in the Americas (South America). | ||
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