BERKSHIRE COUNTY COUNCIL (former) |
ARMS: Azure two Lions passant guardant in pale Or a Bordure embattled Ermine. Arms and Crest [the stag argent] granted 18th July 1947. Crest changed and supporters granted 7th April 1961. The former Berkshire County Council was created in 1889. In 1974 it was abolished and a large area around Abingdon and the Vale of the White Horse became part of Oxfordshire while Slough, which had been within Buckinghamshire, became part of Berkshire. |
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The two Royal Lions are appropriate because Berkshire is a Royal County, a privilege is unique among shire counties. They are derived from the arms attributed to the Norman kings and have association with Reading Abbey, which was founded by Henry I. The embattled border to the shield is intended to represent the castles of the County, of which Windsor is the best known survivor. |
BERKSHIRE COUNTY COUNCIL (later) |
ARMS: Azure two Lions passant guardant in pale each crowned with an ancient Crown Or within a Bordure embattled Ermine. Granted 1974. The later Berkshire County Council was created in 1974. On 1st April 1998 it was abolished and the districts became unitary authorities. |
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The arms were based very much upon the former Berkshire Arms. The principal change was the substitution of a Black Horse for a White Horse as the right-hand supporter, the White Horse representing the White Horse of Uffington which is no longer in the county. The Black Horse represents the county's considerable connections with horse-racing, there being a reference in old county histories to the ancient native horses of Berkshire being black. The six-pointed star on the collar, refers to the six borough and districts in the county, and also to the close association of Slough with the celebrated astronomer Sir William Herschel. |
CAMBRIDGESHIRE COUNTY COUNCIL (former) |
ARMS: Azure a Bend wavy and a double Tressure flory counterflory both Or. Motto 'PER UNDAS PER ARGOS' - By water and land. Image from the Heraldry Society Image Library. |
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The wavy bend stands for the River Cam, formerly a channel of trade and a source of prosperity, hence it is tinctured gold. It also represents the Cambridgeshire Fens, the last English home of the great bustard (now extinct in this country) which supports the shield and represents the wild life of the shire. The double-tressure of fleurs-de-lis is from the Royal Arms of Scotland, its presence in the arms of this English County being due to the fact that in the twelfth century the Earldom of Cambridge (united with that of Huntingdon) was held by David I, King of Scotland, husband of Earl Waltheof's daughter Matilda. |
CAMBRIDGESHIRE AND ISLE OF ELY COUNTY COUNCIL |
ARMS: Or a double Tressure flory counterflory Gules over all on a Bend wavy Azure three [open] Crowns Or; the shield ensigned with a Mural Crown Or. Motto 'SAPIENTES SIMUS' - Let us be men of understanding. |
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The wavy blue band across the shield, like that in the arms of the former Cambridgeshire CC, refers to the River Cam, which apart from being a geographical feature was for long important as a trade route and a source of prosperity. The three golden crowns are from the of arms of the Isle of Ely CC. Forming a border on the shield are double lines set with fleurs-de-lis; this is derived from the Royal Arms of Scotland because the Earldom of the shire was held by Kings of Scotland in the twelfth century. Above the shield is a mural crown, a common symbol of civic government. |
CLEVELAND COUNTY COUNCIL |
ARMS: Argent a Lion rampant Azure crowned Or and gorged with a Collar compony Ermine and Or breathing Flames proper on a Chief wavy Azure on a Pale Sable fimbriated between on the dexter a Cogwheel and on the sinister a voided Hexagon Argent an ancient Ship sails furled pennons flying Or. Motto 'ENDEAVOUR'. The County of Cleveland was formed in 1974 from the Hartlepool County Borough, the Teesside County Borough, the south-eastern part of the County of Durham and the north-eastern part of the North Riding of Yorkshire. It was abolished in 1996. |
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The blue lion is from the arms of the Brus family who, following the Norman Conquest, were given substantial lands in what is now Cleveland, and its collar and crown are similar to those in the heraldry of the Dukes of Cleveland. Charles II created Barbara Villiers Duchess of Cleveland in 1670 and their illegitimate son became the first Duke upon the death of his mother in 1709. The flames symbolize the energy industry generally, the ancient ship represents shipping, the cogwheel - engineering and the hexagon - the petro-chemical industry. The two vertical lines separating these symbols represent the railways and are a reminder that the
World's first passenger railway had its terminus at Stockton-on-Tees. |
GREATER LONDON COUNCIL |
ARMS: Barry wavy Argent and Azure on a Chief Gules a Saxon Crown Or. Arms granted 1st September 1965. Badge granted 5th October 1966. Greater London was formed in 1965 from the County of London, most of the County of Middlesex, parts of the Counties of Essex, Hertfordshire, Surrey and Kent. In addition the County Bouroughs of Croydon, East Ham and West Ham. |
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The arms combine the blue and white waves from the arms of the London County Council, where they represented the River Thames, with the Saxon corown from the arms of the Middlesex County Council. |
GREATER MANCHESTER COUNTY COUNCIL |
*ARMS: Gules ten Towers three two three two all within a Bordure embattled Or. Motto 'EVER VIGILANT'. Greater Manchester was formed in 1974 from the southern parts of Lancashire, the northern parts of Cheshire and a small part of the West Riding of Yorkshire. It was abolished in 1996. Picture and information courtesy of James Buckley. |
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The ten gold towers on a red background represent the ten cities and boroughs within the County. The embattled bordure gives the idea of all ten districts contained in the one County. |
HUNTINGDONSHIRE COUNTY COUNCIL See Huntingdonshire District Council. |
ISLE OF ELY COUNTY COUNCIL |
*ARMS: Argent three Bars wavy Azure a Pile Gules charged with three open Crowns Or. Granted 1st May 1931. The Isle of Ely CC was formed in 1889. It was abolished in 1965 and merged with Cambridgeshire CC to form Cambridgeshire and the Isle of Ely, which in turn was abolished in 1974. |
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R Young 2021 |
The three gold crowns on red are from the arms of the See of Ely, which were used by the County Council before they obtained arms of their own. They refer particularly to St Etheldreda, the foundress of the religious house which has become the Cathedral. Etheldreda was a lady of the royal house of East Anglia to which, long after its extinction, the heralds assigned for arms three gold crowns on blue. The blue and white waves refer to the fens and many local waterways. |
MERSEYSIDE METROPOLITAN COUNTY COUNCIL |
ARMS: Azure three Bendlets wavy Argent between six Mural Crowns three and three conjoined in pile Or. Motto 'UNITY IN THE SERVICE OF ALL'. The County of Merseyide was formed in 1974 from the City of Liverpool, the south western part of Lancashire and the Wirral area of Cheshire. It was abolished in 1986?. |
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The white and blue waves refer to the River Mersey and the six mural crowns, being civic emblems, to the six constituent districts. |
OXFORDSHIRE COUNTY COUNCIL (former) |
ARMS: Azure two Bendlets wavy Argent between in chief a Garb and in base an Oak Tree eradicated and fructed Or in the fess point an Ox's Head caboshed Gules. Motto 'SAPERE AUDE' - Dare to be wise. |
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The blue background represents Oxford University, and the wavy bends and the red ox's face play on the name Oxford, in a manner rather different from the arms of Oxford City. The wheatsheaf and oak-tree refer to the agriculture and woods of the County. |
SOKE OF PETERBOROUGH COUNTY COUNCIL |
*ARMS: Barry of ten Argent and Azure two Keys in saltire wards upwards Or. Motto 'COR UNUM' - One heart. The County of Soke of Peterborough was abolished in 1965, when it became part of the County of Huntingdon and Peterborough. |
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The gold crossed keys are those of St Peter, and are taken from the arms of the See and City of Peterborough. The white and blue barry field is from the arms of Cecil family, Marquesses of Exeter, in whom the civil government of the Liberty was vested, as Lord Paramount of Peterborough. |
SOUTH YORKSHIRE METROPOLITAN COUNTY COUNCIL |
ARMS: Sable a Pile throughout barry dancetty Argent and Gules over all a Pile reversed throughout counterchanged in the Sable a Rose Argent barbed and seeded proper between two like Roses dimidiated and issuing from the flanks. Motto 'EACH SHALL STRIVE FOR THE WELFARE OF ALL'. The County of South Yorkshire was abolished in 1986. Images from the Heraldry Society Image Library. Information courtesy of Laurence Jones. |
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The black diamonds on the shield recall the mining industry and the zig-zag pattern, coloured red and white, alludes to the heat processing of steel. The white rose of York appears in the arms and is repeated in the crest, here united with a gold coin which symbolises the riches of South Yorkshire - moral, intellectual and commercial. The crest rises from a mural crown, sign of civic authority. |
WEST YORKSHIRE METROPOLITAN COUNTY COUNCIL |
ARMS: Or two Piles Azure [over all] a Rose Argent barbed and seeded proper. Motto 'BY EFFORT ACHIEVE'. The County of West Yorkshire was abolished in 1986. Picture courtesy of Dennis Towner. |
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The two 'piles' on the shield form a letter W the initial of West and the white rose is for Yorkshire, thus representing heraldically the name of County. The shield is divided into five parts which stand for the five districts, as do the petals of the rose. |
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