WikiProject Scouting fleur-de-lis no scroll

The

fleur-de-lis The fleur-de-lis, also spelled fleur-de-lys (plural ''fleurs-de-lis'' or ''fleurs-de-lys''), is a lily (in French, and mean 'flower' and 'lily' respectively) that is used as a decorative design or symbol. The fleur-de-lis has been used in the ...

is the main element in the logo of most Scouting organizations, representing a major theme in Scouting: the outdoors and wilderness. The crest is white on a purple background. The white represents purity and the purple represents leadership and help given to others.

Background

The three petals or leaves represent the threefold

Scout Promise The Scout Promise (or Oath) is a spoken statement made by a child joining the Scout movement. Since the publication of ''Scouting for Boys'' in 1908, all Scouts and Girl Guides around the world have taken a Scout (or Guide) promise or oath to li ...

(Duty to God and Country, Duty to Self, Duty to Others) in much the same way as the three leaves of the

trefoil A trefoil () is a graphic form composed of the outline of three overlapping rings, used in architecture and Christian symbolism, among other areas. The term is also applied to other symbols with a threefold shape. A similar shape with four ring ...

represent the threefold promise for the Guides. Lord

Robert Baden-Powell Lieutenant-General Robert Stephenson Smyth Baden-Powell, 1st Baron Baden-Powell, ( ; (Commonly pronounced by others as ) 22 February 1857 – 8 January 1941) was a British Army officer, writer, founder and first Chief Scout of the wor ...

, the founder of the Scouting movement, explained that the Scouts adopted the fleur-de-lis symbol from its use in the

compass rose A compass rose, sometimes called a wind rose, rose of the winds or compass star, is a figure on a compass, map, nautical chart, or monument used to display the orientation of the cardinal directions (north, east, south, and west) and their i ...

because it "points in the right direction (and upwards) turning neither to the right nor left, since these lead backward again." The two small five-point stars stand for truth and knowledge. Together their ten points represent the ten original Scout laws. The reef knot or square knot represents the strength of World Scouting. The rope is for the unity of Scouts throughout the world. The ring holding the petals together represents the bond of brotherhood.

External links

References

Scouting uniform {{Scouting-stub