Fleur-de-lis
The fleur-de-lis, also spelled fleur-de-lys, is a common heraldic charge in the shape of a lily. Most notably, the fleur-de-lis is depicted on multiple flags of Quebec and on the traditional coat of arms of France that was used from the High Middle Ages until the French Revolution in 1792, and then again in brief periods in the 19th century. This design still represents France and the House of Bourbon in the form of marshalling on the arms of other countries, including Spain, Quebec and Canada.
Other European nations have also employed the symbol. The fleur-de-lis became "at one and the same time, religious, political, dynastic, artistic, emblematic, and symbolic", especially in French heraldry. The Virgin Mary and Saint Joseph are among saints often depicted with a lily.
Some modern usage of the fleur-de-lis reflects "the continuing presence of heraldry in everyday life", often intentionally, but also when users are not aware that they are "prolonging the life of centuries-old insignia and emblems".
Etymology
Fleur-de-lis is the stylized depiction of the lily flower. The name itself derives from ancient Greek > Latin lilium > French lis.The lily has always been the symbol of fertility and purity, and in Christianity it symbolizes the Immaculate Conception.
Origin
According to Pierre-Augustin Boissier de Sauvages, an 18th-century French naturalist and lexicographer:File:Fleur.iris.2.png|upright=1.23|thumb|Iris compared with fleur-de-lis ornament
The old fleurs-de-lis, especially the ones found in our first kings' sceptres, have a lot less in common with ordinary lilies than the flowers called flambas, or irises, from which the name of our own fleur-de-lis may derive. What gives some colour of truth to this hypothesis that we already put forth, is the fact that the French or Franks, before entering Gaul itself, lived for a long time around the river named Lys in the Flanders. Nowadays, this river is still bordered with an exceptional number of irises —as many plants grow for centuries in the same places—: these irises have yellow flowers, which is not a typical feature of lilies but fleurs-de-lis. It was thus understandable that our kings, having to choose a symbolic image for what later became a coat of arms, set their minds on the iris, a flower that was common around their homes, and is also as beautiful as it was remarkable. They called it, in short, the fleur-de-lis, instead of the flower of the river of lis. This flower, or iris, looks like our fleur-de-lis not just because of its yellow colour but also because of its shape: of the six petals, or leaves, that it has, three of them are alternatively straight and meet at their tops. The other three on the opposite, bend down so that the middle one seems to make one with the stalk and only the two ones facing out from left and right can clearly be seen, which is again similar with our fleurs-de-lis, that is to say exclusively the one from the river Luts whose white petals bend down too when the flower blooms.
The heraldist François Velde is known to have expressed the same opinion:
However, a hypothesis ventured in the 17th c. sounds very plausible to me. One species of wild iris, the Iris pseudacorus, yellow flag in English, is yellow and grows in marshes. Its name in German is Lieschblume, but Liesch was also spelled Lies and Leys in the Middle Ages. It is easy to imagine that, in Northern France, the Lieschblume would have been called 'fleur-de-lis'. This would explain the name and the formal origin of the design, as a stylized yellow flag. There is a fanciful legend about Clovis which links the yellow flag explicitly with the French coat of arms.
Alternative derivations
Another hypothesis is that the symbol derives from the angon or sting, a typical Frankish throwing spear.Ancient usages
It has consistently been used as a royal emblem, though different cultures have interpreted its meaning in varying ways. Gaulish coins show the first Western designs which look similar to modern fleurs-de-lis. In the East it was found on the gold helmet of a Scythian king uncovered at the Ak-Burun kurgan and conserved in Saint Petersburg's Hermitage Museum.See also the very similar lily symbol on coins from the Achemenid and Ptolemaic province of Yehud and Hasmonean-ruled Judah.
Among the pre-Columbian Maya of Central America, the water lily represented the watery surface of the underworld and the Earth's regenerative power, being depicted as a fleur-de-lis in Maya art. The fleur-de-lis also appears alongside some depictions of the rain god Chaac, the Maya counterpart of the Aztec Tlaloc or Zapotec Cocijo.
Dynastic and related territorial heraldry
For the transition from religious to dynastic symbolism and the beginning of European heraldic use of the fleur-de-lis, see [|France section], chronologically followed by England through [|claims to the French crown].List in alphabetical order by country:
Albania
In Albania, fleur-de-lis has been associated with the different Albanian noble families. This iconic symbol holds a rich historical significance and has adorned the emblems and crests of various noble houses, reflecting both cultural heritage and a sense of identity within the country. One notable household that has prominently featured this emblem is the Thopia family a ruling house in Medieval Albania during the Medieval Principality of Albania. Karl Thopia was a grandson of Robert of Anjou. A few other notable Albanian families that have distinctly featured the iconic fleur-de-lis in their heraldic coat of arms are the Durazzo family, Skuraj family, Muzaka family, Luccari family, Engjëlli family and many other Albanian noble families.Bosnia and Herzegovina
The fleurs-de-lis was the symbol of the House of Kotromanić, a ruling house in medieval Bosnia during the medieval Kingdom of Bosnia, adopted by the first Bosnian king, Tvrtko I in recognition of the Capetian House of Anjou support in assuming the throne of Bosnia. The coat of arms contained six fleurs-de-lis, where the flower itself is today interpreted by some to be a representation of the autochthonous golden lily, Lilium bosniacum.The emblem was revived in 1992 as a national symbol of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina and was part of the flag of Bosnia-Herzegovina from 1992 to 1998. The state insignia were changed in 1999. The former flag of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina contains a fleur-de-lis alongside the Croatian chequy. Fleurs also appear in the flags and arms of many cantons, municipalities, cities and towns. Today, it is a traditional symbol of the Bosniak people. It is still used as official insignia of the Bosniak Regiment of the Armed Forces of Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Fleurs-de-lis today also appear in the flags and arms of many cantons, municipalities, cities and towns of Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Brazil
In Brazil, the arms and flag of the city of Joinville feature three fleurs-de-lis surmounted with a label of three points, alluding to François d'Orléans, Prince of Joinville, son of King Louis-Philippe I of France, who married Princess Francisca of Brazil in 1843.Byzantium (Roman Empire)
The fleur-de-lis pattern is clearly depicted in an illustration of emperor Nikephoros Phocas's welcome ceremony in Constantinople included in Synopsis Istorion.The fleur-de-lis pattern can also be found on Ionic capital of Panagia Skripo church :
Canada
The Royal Banner of France or "Bourbon flag" symbolizing royal France, was the most commonly used flag in New France. The "Bourbon flag" has three gold fleurs-de-lis on a dark blue field arranged two and one. The fleur-de-lys was also seen on New France's currency often referred to as "card money". The white Royal Banner of France was used by the military of New France and was seen on naval vessels and forts of New France. After the fall of New France to the British Empire the fleur-de-lys remained visible on churches and remained part of French cultural symbolism. There are many French-speaking Canadians for whom the fleur-de-lis remains a symbol of their French cultural identity. Québécois, Franco-Ontarians, Franco-Ténois and Franco-Albertans, feature the fleur-de-lis prominently on their flags.The fleur-de-lys, as a traditional royal symbol in Canada, has been incorporated into many national symbols, provincial symbols and municipal symbols, the Canadian Red Ensign that served as the nautical flag and civil ensign for Canada from 1892 to 1965 and later as an informal flag of Canada before 1965 featured the traditional number of three golden fleurs-de-lys on a blue background. The arms of Canada throughout its variations has used fleur-de-lys, beginning in 1921 and subsequent various has featuring the blue "Bourbon Flag" in two locations within arms. The Canadian royal cypher and the arms of Canada feature St Edward's Crown that displays four crosses pattée and four fleurs-de-lys. The fleur-de-lis is featured on the flag of Quebec, known as the fleurdelisé, as well as the flags of the cities of Montreal, Sherbrooke and Trois-Rivières.
France
Royal symbol: background, later legends
The fleur-de-lis symbolic origins with French monarchs may stem from the baptismal lily used in the crowning of King Clovis I. The French monarchy may have adopted the fleur-de-lis for its royal coat of arms as a symbol of purity to commemorate the conversion of Clovis I, and a reminder of the fleur-de-lis ampulla that held the oil used to anoint the king. So, the fleur-de-lis stood as a symbol of the king's divinely approved right to rule. The thus "anointed" kings of France later maintained that their authority was directly from God. A legend enhances the mystique of royalty by informing us that a vial of oil—the Holy Ampulla—descended from Heaven to anoint and sanctify Clovis as King, descending directly on Clovis or perhaps brought by a dove to Saint Remigius. One version explains that an angel descended with the fleur-de-lis ampulla to anoint the king. Another story tells of Clovis putting a flower in his helmet just before his victory at the Battle of Vouillé. Through this propagandist connection to Clovis, the fleur-de-lis has been taken in retrospect to symbolize all the Christian Frankish kings, most notably Charlemagne.File:Image-Charlemagne-by-Durer.jpg|thumb|upright|Charlemagne, by Albrecht Dürer. The anachronistic coats-of-arms above him show the German eagle and the French fleur-de-lis
The graphic evolution of crita to fleur-de-lis was accompanied by textual allegory. By the late 13th century, an allegorical poem by Guillaume de Nangis, written at Joyenval Abbey in Chambourcy, relates how the golden lilies on an azure ground were miraculously substituted for the crescents on Clovis' shield, a projection into the past of contemporary images of heraldry.
In the 14th century, French writers asserted that the monarchy of France, which developed from the Kingdom of the West Franks, could trace its heritage back to the divine gift of royal arms received by Clovis. This story has remained popular, even though modern scholarship has established that the fleur-de-lis was a religious symbol before it was a true heraldic symbol. Along with true lilies, it was associated with the Virgin Mary, and when the 12th-century Capetians, Louis VI and Louis VII, started to use the emblem, their purpose was of connecting their rulership with this symbol of saintliness and divine right.