The World Wars in Municipal Heraldry

 
Marcus K
 
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Marcus K
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08 June 2007 08:51
 

The Two World Wars have made thier marks in the Municipal Haraldry of several Countries in different ways. Here are some examples:

http://www.ngw.nl/int/fin/m/images/mikkeli.jpg

Arms of the Finnish city of Mikkeli (Sw. St. Michel). The Marshal’s Batons denotes that Marshal Mannerheim and the Finnish General Staff had its HQ here during the Russo-Finnish War 1939-40 and the Continuation War 1941-1944 and the Lappland War 1944-1945. The Bow is from the Provincial Arms of Savo (Sw. Savolax) where Mikkeli is situated.

 

http://www.ngw.nl/int/fin/u/images/uukuniem.jpg

CoA of the Finnish Municipality of Uukuniemi granted in 1969 symbolises with the silver area the part of the Municipality that after the land losses in 1947 remained in Finland.

 

http://www.ngw.nl/int/nor/f/images/frogn.gif

CoA of the Norwegian Municipality of Frogn. The Fess symbolises the Fortress of Oscarsborg, whose antiqued Canons in 1940 succeded in Sinking the German Cruiser Blücher in the Oslo Fjord.

 
Marcus K
 
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Marcus K
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08 June 2007 08:56
 

http://heraldry.hobby.ru/v/vlgobl.gif

CoA of the Volgograd Oblast, with the Statue erected to commemorate the victory at Stalingrad (which was then the name of Volgograd).

Picture from Blazons of Russian Towns http://heraldry.hobby.ru, all others from International Civic Arms.

 
Marcus K
 
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Marcus K
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08 June 2007 09:06
 

http://www.ngw.nl/int/yug/images/mionica.jpg

The CoA of the Serbian City of Mionica. The Division line in the Shield symbolises the distinctive Serbian military Cap (see the supporters). The Crowned Eagle denotes Colonel (later General) Drazha Mihailovich who during WW II led the Royal Yugoslavian Army in the Homeland. The Mountain stands for Ravna Gora where Mihailovich had his stongpoint. The Supporters are an Officer and a Soldier in uniforms of the WWII period. Picture from ICA.

 
Marcus K
 
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Marcus K
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08 June 2007 09:41
 

http://www.ngw.nl/int/fra/h/images/havre.jpg

CoA of the French City of Le Havre. The Canton shows the Belgian arms indicating the fact that the Belgian King Albert I led his troops from this City during WW I. Picture from ICA.

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/fb/Blason_oradour_sur_glane.svg/150px-Blason_oradour_sur_glane.svg.png

CoA of the French Municipality of Oradour Sur Glane. The Cross issuant from the flames denotes the inahabitants massacred by SS-troops symbolised by the Daggers. Many perished inside the burning Church. Oradour Sur Glane was later awarded the Legion of Honour, the highest French award. Picture from the French Wikipedia.

 

http://quaranta1.chez-alice.fr/ecussons/rhone_alpes/vassieux_en_vercors-blason.gif

CoA of the French municipality of Vassieux-en-Vercors denotes the Resistance Struggle against the Germans during WW II. This cost Vassieux-en-Vecors dearly as 72 of its inhabitants was executed on 21 and 22 July 1944 in retribution for the death of 24 Germans. For its Heroism the Municipality awarded the Order of the Liberation. Picture from http://quaranta1.chez-alice.fr/ecussons/

 
emrys
 
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emrys
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08 June 2007 09:55
 

http://perso.numericable.fr/~briantimms/images1/SainteMereEglise.gif

the arms of Sainte Mere-Eglise with a depiction of American Parachutists on D-Day.

 
MohamedHossam
 
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MohamedHossam
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08 June 2007 12:23
 

If I recall what I read in Slater, that American parchutist’s mission was depicted in the film "The Longest Day"?

 
Marcus K
 
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Marcus K
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08 June 2007 13:48
 

MohamedHossam;45931 wrote:

If I recall what I read in Slater, that American parchutist’s mission was depicted in the film "The Longest Day"?


Yes that’s right.

 
Patrick Williams
 
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Patrick Williams
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08 June 2007 13:59
 

MohamedHossam;45931 wrote:

If I recall what I read in Slater, that American parchutist’s mission was depicted in the film "The Longest Day"?

 


Yep, complete with Trini Lopez hanging by his chute from the steeple of the above depicted church being shot to bits by the Nazis.

 
Marcus K
 
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Marcus K
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08 June 2007 14:07
 

To add to the biscuit I also think that the Stained Glas Window in the very Church now commemorates the event. Probably the only Church Window in the World with a Parachutist on it!

 
Marcus K
 
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Marcus K
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08 June 2007 17:45
 

http://www.ngw.nl/d/images/diever.gif

CoA of the Dutch Municipality of Diever (which in 1998 was incorporated into Westerweld). The Maple Leaf commemorates the Liberation in WW II of Diever by Canadian Troops.

http://www.ngw.nl/int/bel/c/images/couvin.jpg

The Belgian town of Couvin has in an echuteon the insignia of the 1st Belgian Brigade who fought alongside the Allies during WW II. The Brigade’s Commander general Piron was born in Couvain in 1896.

 

Pictures from ICA.

 
Marcus K
 
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Marcus K
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08 June 2007 18:07
 

http://www.ngw.nl/int/gbr/c/images/coventry.jpg

CoA of the British City of Coventry. The Phoenix symbolises the reconstrution of the serverly bombed city. The Black Eagle symbolises Leofric,husband of the Legendary Lady Godiva who rode naked through the Streets of Coventry as a protest agaist her Husband’s Tax raises. The Eagel can also be seen as a symbol of the German Aircrafts who bombed the City. Picture form ICA.

 
Marcus K
 
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Marcus K
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26 August 2007 12:46
 

http://the.heraldry.ru/images/piskarar.jpg

The Civic Municpality of Piskaryovka (of the city of St. Petersburg). The Eagle is from the arms of the Counts Kushelev which had estates in the area. The Garland in the Claws denotes the Memorial Cementary to the victims of the WW II siege of the then Leningrad. Picture from http://the.heraldry.ru/

 
Marcus K
 
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Marcus K
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27 August 2007 13:57
 

http://www.ngw.nl/int/dld/kreis/images/nordhaus.jpg

CoA of Landkreis Nordhausen in Thuringia (Germany). The checkquers are from the arms of the County of Hohenstein which once included the area. The tree stub denots old times and the destruction during WW II the spig denotes rebuilding after the War. Originaly assumed 1 January 1949 but abolished by the GDR authorities in 1952 and reinstated 13 Septemebr 1990.

http://www.ngw.nl/int/oos/a/images/attnang.jpg

CoA of Attnang-Puchheim in Austria, approved 28 March 1955. The Phoenix denotes rebuilding after WW II. The Fleur-de-Lys is fromthe arms of the Salburg family once the feodal lords of the area. The white and red field is from the provincial arms of Upper Austria where Attnang-Pucheim is located.

 
Daniel C. Boyer
 
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Daniel C. Boyer
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27 August 2007 16:16
 

Marcus K;45925 wrote:

The CoA of the Serbian City of Mionica. The Division line in the Shield symbolises the distinctive Serbian military Cap (see the supporters). The Crowned Eagle denotes Colonel (later General) Drazha Mihailovich who during WW II led the Royal Yugoslavian Army in the Homeland. The Mountain stands for Ravna Gora where Mihailovich had his stongpoint. The Supporters are an Officer and a Soldier in uniforms of the WWII period. Picture from ICA.


I’d be really interested in seeing a blazon of this.

 
Michael Swanson
 
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Michael Swanson
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27 August 2007 16:43
 

Daniel C. Boyer;48904 wrote:

I’d be really interested in seeing a blazon of this.


Here is the clue to the English blazon of the CoA of the Serbian City of Mionica: http://www.crwflags.com/fotw/flags/ch-lu094.html

 
Nenad Jovanovich
 
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Nenad Jovanovich
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27 August 2007 17:00
 

I remember seing a Serbian blazon once, but that would be of no help to you anyway, Daniel.

I should only add that Равна Гора (Ravna Gora) means Flat Mountain, hence this speciffic look of the mount at the Arms of the Town of Mionitza (not really a City).

 

BTW, there are many other civic arms in Serbia with the symbolism from the WWI and WWII.

 

 

http://img58.imageshack.us/img58/4833/lazarevatzcp8.jpg

 

 

First, here are the arms of the Town of Lazarevatz, employing in the escutheon a charge representing the local Church that is famous for it’s crypt holding the mortal remains of thousands of Serbian and Austrian soldiers fallen during the famous Klubara Battle during the WWI.

 

 

http://img66.imageshack.us/img66/5628/surdulitzabu0.jpg

 

 

This second CoA is of the Town of Surdulitza, employing in the centrepoint (charging the eagle upon the body) the rosette from a Chapel that once used to stay in the centre of the town and keep the mortal remains of the hundreds of Serbian civilians slained during the WWI (mass executions) by the Bulgarian invadors in this little town.

 

The interesting thing is that this rosette is the only thing that has survived from this Chapel since it was blown up by the Bulgarian Nazi invadors during the WWII…

 

So, it is a reminder of the grave suffering from both WWI and WWII…