Coat of arms of Ontario
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Through Queen Victoria, De facto and de jure and Deer
The original arms, consisting of only the shield, were granted by royal warrant of Queen Victoria on 26 May 1868. The arms were further augmented with supporters, a crest and a motto, by royal warrant of King Edward VII on 27 February 1909.
The shield, on a Red Ensign, features in the provincial flag of Ontario.
History
The year following Confederation, arms were granted by royal warrant from Queen Victoria on 26 May 1868 to Ontario, along with the three other provinces of the new Dominion of Canada, Quebec, Nova Scotia and New Brunswick. The Dominion Arms were simple and lacked supporters. The Arms of Ontario comprised what is now the escutcheon or shield of the current Arms of Ontario. This original arms can be seen on the Flag of Ontario, which consists of a defaced Red Ensign, with the Royal Union Flag in the canton and the arms in the fly. Also seen on the Arms used by the Lieutenant Governor of Ontario surrounded by a wreath of gold maple leaves.
In the warrant, Queen Victoria authorized the four arms of the first provinces to be quartered for use on the Great Seal of Canada, and while this was not done for the first Great Seal, it is through this reference it became the de facto Arms of Canada until 1921. That arms was then also used in the first Canadian Red Ensign, which was flown at the Battle of Vimy Ridge.
The supporters, crest, and motto, designed by Toronto barrister Edward Marion Chadwick, were added on 27 February 1909, by warrant of King Edward VII.
The province's arms stand out for being without royal symbols, namely a crown—although the motto of Ontario, which translates from the Latin "Ut Incepit Fidelis Sic Permanet" as "Loyal She Began, Thus She Remains" references perpetual loyalty to the Crown.
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Symbolism
- The crest is a black bear, native to Ontario, passant sable, on a gold and green wreath.
Shield
- The shield of arms consists of three gold maple leaves, representative of Ontario, on a green background, above which on the upper third is a wide white band with a red Saint George's Cross, which recalls the historic connection with Britain in Upper Canada.
Supporters
- The motto is "Ut incepit fidelis sic permanet", Latin for "Loyal she began, loyal she remains". It refers to the Loyalist refugees from the American Revolution, who settled in the colony of Quebec, and for whom the area was separated as Upper Canada.
Legislative Assembly variant
History
As part of the celebration in 1992 of the bicentennial of the first meeting of the legislature of Upper Canada at Newark (Niagara-on-the-Lake) on 17 September 1792, a petition was made by the then-Speaker, David Warner, to the Chief Herald of Canada for the granting of a unique coat of arms which would emphasize the distinctive character of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario and distinguish the assembly's identity from the government's. To that point, the assembly had used the coat of arms of the Government of Ontario. The petition was granted and the new coat of arms was presented by then Governor-General Ramon Hnatyshyn at a ceremony in the Legislative Chamber on 26 April 1993. Ontario's is the first legislature in Canada with a coat of arms separate from the provincial coat of arms.
Symbolism
- The crest has a green griffin holding a gold calumet.
- The griffin is an ancient symbol of justice and equity. The calumet symbolizes the meeting of spirit and discussion that Ontario's first peoples believe accompanies the use of the pipe.
Coronet
- The coronet on the wreath represents national and provincial loyalties. Its rim is studded with the provincial gemstone (amethyst), and the coronet is topped with three red maple leaves (symbolizing Canada) and two white trilliums (the flower of Ontario).
Shield
- The shield of arms consists of two crossed maces, joined by the shield of arms of Ontario, on a field of green with a gold rim.
- The mace is the traditional symbol of the authority of the Speaker. Shown on the left is the current mace. On the right is the original from the time of the first parliament in 1792.
Supporters
- A white-tailed doe (dexter) and a white-tailed stag (sinister), which are native to Canada.
- These animals represent the natural riches of the province.
- The Loyalist coronets at their necks honour the original European settlers in Ontario who brought with them the parliamentary form of government.
- The Royal Crowns, left 1992, right 1792, recognize the parliamentary bicentennial and recall Ontario's heritage as a constitutional monarchy. They were granted as a special honour by Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II on the recommendation of the Governor General.
Compartment
- In the base, the maple leaves are for Canada, the white trilliums for Ontario and the roses for York (now Toronto), the provincial capital.
- The motto is "Audi alteram partem", one of a series of Latin phrases carved in the Chamber of the Ontario Legislative Building. It challenges MPPs to "hear the other side".