Coat of arms of Canada

The coat of arms of Canada incorporates many elements of the coat of arms of the United Kingdom ; apart from the frequently appearing maple leaves, there are no symbols that only refer to Canada, apart from the combination of British symbols and bourbon lilies . The similarity of the two coats of arms - it is believed that no other two countries have such similar coats of arms - has existed since the Canadian coat of arms of 1904, on which symbols of the individual Canadian provinces were shown, was replaced by George V in 1921 because of the many Provinces made the coat of arms confusing.

As with the British model, the shield bears the national symbols of England (three golden leopards on a red background), Scotland (a red lion on a golden background, surrounded by red "double lilies") and Ireland (golden harp on a blue background). Here, too, a lion (for England) and a unicorn (for Scotland) carry the shield.

But there are also some differences. In contrast to the British coat of arms, the lion carrying the shield is not crowned and the English lions are not present twice on the shield - instead, the shield also features the lilies of the French kingdom (as a symbol of the French roots of Canada) and red maple leaves - the only one specific to Canada Symbol in the coat of arms, which is used all the more often.

The shield is surrounded by a ribbon with the Latin inscription "desiderantes meliorem patriam" . This means in German “they want a better country” or “wanting a better country”, or “those who want a better country” and is the motto of the Order of Canada .

The two coat of arms holders carry flags - similar to the Scottish version of the British royal coat of arms - but here the Union Jack and the lilies of the Bourbon kings of France.

The helmet over the coat of arms is a spangenhelm like the British one, but does not have a crown. The crowned lion, which is on the crown of the English version of the British coat of arms, stands here as a crest ornament directly on the helmet and holds a red maple leaf in its paw. Even more maple leaves - this time in red and white - make up the helmet cover, which has often been reminiscent of plants since the Baroque period , but which can never be clearly identified botanically. This helmet cover is a heraldic novelty that was added to the coat of arms in 1994.

The crown of St. Edward - the most important of the many crowns used by Canadian and British monarchs - hovers over the coat of arms. The Latin motto under the coat of arms is “a mari usque ad mare”, means “from sea to sea” in German and was derived from Psalm 72.8 ( Ps 72.8 EU ).

The patch of lawn under the motto, which is used in the British coat of arms, is here replaced by much more symbolic plants - there are again symbols of England ( Tudor rose ), Scotland (thistle), France (lily) and Ireland (shamrock). These plants (except for the lily) can also be seen on the British coat of arms, but mostly only as small, colorful spots above the banner.

The coat of arms of Canada can also be seen in a modified form on the version of the Royal Standard used in Canada , the flag of the British Queen.

Coat of arms of Canada

See also