Coat of arms of Newport
Encyclopedia
The coat of arms of Newport is the heraldic
emblem of the city of Newport
, south Wales
. They have been borne by the present Newport City Council
since 24 July 1996 following the municipal reorganisation
in April of that year.
Supporters
Motto
Heraldry
Heraldry is the profession, study, or art of creating, granting, and blazoning arms and ruling on questions of rank or protocol, as exercised by an officer of arms. Heraldry comes from Anglo-Norman herald, from the Germanic compound harja-waldaz, "army commander"...
emblem of the city of Newport
Newport
Newport is a city and unitary authority area in Wales. Standing on the banks of the River Usk, it is located about east of Cardiff and is the largest urban area within the historic county boundaries of Monmouthshire and the preserved county of Gwent...
, south Wales
Wales
Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...
. They have been borne by the present Newport City Council
Newport City Council
Newport City Council is the governing body for the city of Newport, one of the subdivisions of Wales within the United Kingdom. It consists of 50 councillors, representing the city's 20 wards. Since the 2008 election, the council has been controlled jointly by the Conservatives and Liberal...
since 24 July 1996 following the municipal reorganisation
Local Government (Wales) Act 1994
The Local Government Act 1994 is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom which created the current local government structure in Wales of 22 unitary authority areas, referred to as principal areas in the Act, and abolished the previous two-tier structure of counties and districts...
in April of that year.
Symbolism
Shield- The shield is that of the Staffords, EarlEarl of BuckinghamThe peerage title Earl of Buckingham was created several times in the Peerage of England.It was first created in 1097 for Walter Giffard, but became extinct in 1164 with the death of the second earl. It may have been created again in 1164 for Richard de Clare , who died without issue in 1176...
s and DukeDuke of BuckinghamThe titles Marquess and Duke of Buckingham, referring to Buckingham, have been created several times in the peerages of England, Great Britain, and the United Kingdom. There have also been Earls of Buckingham.-1444 creation:...
s of Buckingham, Lords of the ManorManorialismManorialism, an essential element of feudal society, was the organizing principle of rural economy that originated in the villa system of the Late Roman Empire, was widely practiced in medieval western and parts of central Europe, and was slowly replaced by the advent of a money-based market...
of Newport in the 14th and 15th centuries, but the reversed chevron marks the difference between these Borough Arms and those of the family.
Supporters
Supporters
In heraldry, supporters are figures usually placed on either side of the shield and depicted holding it up. These figures may be real or imaginary animals, human figures, and in rare cases plants or inanimate objects...
- The winged sea dragon and a winged sea lion represent strength on land, sea and in the air. They also allude to Newport and MonmouthshireMonmouthshire (historic)Monmouthshire , also known as the County of Monmouth , is one of thirteen ancient counties of Wales and a former administrative county....
as historically part of both England and Wales.
Motto
Motto
A motto is a phrase meant to formally summarize the general motivation or intention of a social group or organization. A motto may be in any language, but Latin is the most used. The local language is usual in the mottoes of governments...
- The motto Terra Marique was adopted at the same time as the supporters and means 'By land and sea', in reference to Newport's position as a port.