The coat of arms of the City of Canberra, also known as Armorial Bearings (Coat of Arms) of the City of Canberra, was granted to the

Federal Capital Commission The National Capital Authority (NCA) is a statutory authority of the Australian Government that was established to manage the Commonwealth's interest in the planning and development of Canberra as the capital city of Australia. Timeline of the ...

, its successors and the City of

Canberra Canberra ( ) is the capital city of Australia. Founded following the federation of the colonies of Australia as the seat of government for the new nation, it is Australia's largest inland city and the eighth-largest city overall. The ci ...

King George V George V (George Frederick Ernest Albert; 3 June 1865 – 20 January 1936) was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 6 May 1910 until his death in 1936. Born during the reign of his grandmother Que ...

in 1928. It has been used by the

Australian Capital Territory The Australian Capital Territory (commonly abbreviated as ACT), known as the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) until 1938, is a landlocked federal territory of Australia containing the national capital Canberra and some surrounding townships. ...

as its ''de facto'' coat of arms, as the territory does not have its own

coat of arms A coat of arms is a heraldry, heraldic communication design, visual design on an escutcheon (heraldry), escutcheon (i.e., shield), surcoat, or tabard (the latter two being outer garments). The coat of arms on an escutcheon forms the central ele ...

. A modified version of this coat of arms also appears on the

flag of the Australian Capital Territory The current flag of the Australian Capital Territory was officially adopted by the Australian Capital Territory Legislative Assembly in 1993. The flag differs from the Australian state flags as it is not a defaced Blue Ensign. It is similar i ...

since 1993.

Symbolism

The various symbols of the coat of arms are explained below: *The ''crown'' symbolises

Royal Royal may refer to: People * Royal (name), a list of people with either the surname or given name * A member of a royal family Places United States * Royal, Arkansas, an unincorporated community * Royal, Illinois, a village * Royal, Iowa, a cit ...

authority; *The ''mace'' symbolises the

Parliament of Australia The Parliament of Australia (officially the Federal Parliament, also called the Commonwealth Parliament) is the legislature, legislative branch of the government of Australia. It consists of three elements: the monarch (represented by the ...

; *The ''sword'' symbolises the Sword of State; *The ''castle'' has three towers, symbolising the three branches of government (

executive Executive ( exe., exec., execu.) may refer to: Role or title * Executive, a senior management role in an organization ** Chief executive officer (CEO), one of the highest-ranking corporate officers (executives) or administrators ** Executive dir ...

legislature A legislature is an assembly with the authority to make law Law is a set of rules that are created and are enforceable by social or governmental institutions to regulate behavior,Robertson, ''Crimes against humanity'', 90. with its p ...

and

judiciary The judiciary (also known as the judicial system, judicature, judicial branch, judiciative branch, and court or judiciary system) is the system of courts that adjudicates legal disputes/disagreements and interprets, defends, and applies the law ...

); *The ''White Rose'' is the badge of the Duke of York who opened the old Parliament of Australia building in 1927, and who would later be crowned as

King George VI George VI (Albert Frederick Arthur George; 14 December 1895 – 6 February 1952) was King of the United Kingdom and the Dominions of the British Commonwealth from 11 December 1936 until his death in 1952. He was also the last Emperor of Ind ...

. *The crowned ''

portcullis A portcullis (from Old French ''porte coleice'', "sliding gate") is a heavy vertically-closing gate typically found in medieval fortifications, consisting of a latticed grille made of wood, metal, or a combination of the two, which slides down gr ...

'' again symbolises the legislature (parliament), this being the traditional symbol of the

Palace of Westminster The Palace of Westminster serves as the meeting place for both the House of Commons of the United Kingdom, House of Commons and the House of Lords, the two houses of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Informally known as the Houses of Parli ...

, which houses the

Parliament of the United Kingdom The Parliament of the United Kingdom is the supreme legislative body of the United Kingdom, the Crown Dependencies and the British Overseas Territories. It meets at the Palace of Westminster, London. It alone possesses legislative suprema ...

; *Behind the portcullis is a

gum tree Gum tree is a common name for smooth-barked trees and shrubs in several genera: * Eucalypteae, particularly: **''Eucalyptus'', which includes the majority of species of gum trees. **''Corymbia'', which includes the ghost gums and spotted gums. **' ...

which represents the growth and progress of Canberra, and the fact that it is garden city; *The supporters are the Australian

black swan The black swan (''Cygnus atratus'') is a large waterbird, a species of swan which breeds mainly in the southeast and southwest regions of Australia. Within Australia, the black swan is nomadic, with erratic migration patterns dependent upon c ...

, representing

Aboriginal Australians Aboriginal Australians are the various Indigenous peoples of the Australian mainland and many of its islands, such as Tasmania, Fraser Island, Hinchinbrook Island, the Tiwi Islands, and Groote Eylandt, but excluding the Torres Strait Islands ...

, and the European white

mute swan The mute swan (''Cygnus olor'') is a species of swan and a member of the waterfowl family Anatidae. It is native to much of Eurosiberia, and (as a rare winter visitor) the far north of Africa. It is an introduced species in North America, home ...

, representing white settlers; *The motto is "For the Queen, the Law and the People", the English translation of "Pro Rege, Lege et Grege", which is found on the arms of the city of

Perth, Scotland Perth (Scottish English, locally: ; gd, Peairt ) is a city in central Scotland, on the banks of the River Tay. It is the administrative centre of Perth and Kinross council area and the historic county town of Perthshire. It had a population o ...

, as well as those of the Ponsonby family.

History

The creation of the Coat of Arms of the City of Canberra originated from a request by the Commonwealth Department of Defence to the Commonwealth Department of Home Affairs and Territories in July 1927. The request was made so that the Coat of Arms could be used on the newly commissioned ship, HMAS ''Canberra''. In August 1927, the Federal Capital Commissioners (FCC) announced a competition to design a Coat of Arms for the FCC and for the City of Canberra. The

(FCC) commenced the competition to design a

for the City of Canberra in 1928. In April 1928, the design of one Mr C. R. Wylie, having won the competition, was sent to the

College of Arms The College of Arms, or Heralds' College, is a royal corporation consisting of professional Officer of Arms, officers of arms, with jurisdiction over England, Wales, Northern Ireland and some Commonwealth realms. The heralds are appointed by the ...

, in London, for approval. The coat of arms at this stage did not include a motto. After minor adjustments,

granted the design in pursuance of a Royal Warrant dated 8 October 1928. The College of Arms issued the official exemplification (artistic rendition) and blazon (description) on 7 November 1928, along with a

crest Crest or CREST may refer to: Buildings *The Crest (Huntington, New York), a historic house in Suffolk County, New York *"The Crest", an alternate name for 63 Wall Street, in Manhattan, New York *Crest Castle (Château Du Crest), Jussy, Switzerla ...

Coat of Arms of the Australian Capital Territory

There is currently no coat of arms for the

, so instead, the coat of arms of the City of Canberra is often used in place as the territory coat of arms. However, in March 2019, following the adoption of the Southern Brush-tailed Rock-wallaby as the mammal emblem for the territory, the

Australian Capital Territory Legislative Assembly The Legislative Assembly for the Australian Capital Territory (known in short as the ACT Legislative Assembly) is the unicameral legislature of the Australian Capital Territory (ACT). It sits in the Legislative Assembly Building on Civic Sq ...

is also considering the idea of a separate ACT Coat of Arms. It is intended that the new ACT coat of arms be created in addition to the existing Canberra coat of arms.

References

External links

ACT Flags and Emblems

Archives of ACT
{{Australian coat of arms

Australian Capital Territory