The coat of arms of

Uganda }), is a landlocked country in East Africa East Africa, Eastern Africa, or East of Africa, is the eastern subregion of the African continent. In the United Nations Statistics Division scheme of geographic regions, 10-11-(16*) territor ...

was adopted three weeks before the proclamation of independence by the

Uganda Legislative Council The Uganda Legislative Council (LEGCO) was the predecessor of the Parliament of Uganda, prior to Uganda's independence from the United Kingdom. LEGCO was small to start with and all its members were Europeans. Its legislative powers were limited, ...

. On 1 October 1962 the arms were approved by Governor of Uganda

Walter Coutts Sir Walter Fleming Coutts (30 November 1912 – 4 November 1988) was a British colonial administrator and was Uganda's final Governor before independence, from 1961–1962. He was Governor-General of Uganda 1962–1963. He was ch ...

, and formally established by law on 9 October. The shield and spears represent the willingness of the Ugandan people to defend their country. There are three images on the shield: those on top represent the waves of

Lake Victoria Lake Victoria is one of the African Great Lakes. With a surface area of approximately , Lake Victoria is Africa's largest lake by area, the world's largest tropical lake, and the world's second-largest fresh water lake by surface area after ...

and Lake Albert; the sun in the centre represents the many days of brilliant sunshine Uganda enjoys; and the traditional drum at the bottom is symbolic of dancing, and the summoning of people to meetings and ceremony. The above explanation, about the symbolism of the drum, is a distortion that came about after the bloody 1966 national crisis when the Prime Minister of the day,

Milton Obote Apollo Milton Obote (28 December 1925 – 10 October 2005) was a Ugandan political leader who led Uganda to independence from British colonial rule in 1962. Following the nation's independence, he served as prime minister of Uganda from 1962 to ...

, made a violent military attack on the king of the Kingdom of

Buganda Buganda is a Bantu peoples, Bantu kingdom within Uganda. The kingdom of the Baganda, Baganda people, Buganda is the largest of the traditional kingdoms in present-day East Africa, consisting of Buganda's Districts of Uganda, Central Region, inclu ...

in central Uganda, Edward Mutesa II, who was the ceremonial president of the state at the time. The following year, 1967, the nation's constitution was abrogated and replaced with a new one which abolished the country's ancient monarchies—the kingdoms of Buganda,

Bunyoro Bunyoro or Bunyoro-Kitara is a Bantu kingdom in Western Uganda. It was one of the most powerful kingdoms in Central and East Africa from the 13th century to the 19th century. It is ruled by the King (''Omukama'') of Bunyoro-Kitara. The current ...

Ankole Ankole (Nkore language, Runyankore: ''Nkore''), was a traditional Bantu peoples, Bantu kingdom in Uganda and lasted from the 15th century until 1967. The kingdom was located in south-western Uganda, east of Lake Edward. History Ankole Realm, K ...

, Toro, and the Principality of

Busoga Busoga ( Lusoga: Obwakyabazinga bwa Busoga) is a kingdom and one of four constitutional monarchies in present-day Uganda. The kingdom is a cultural institution which promotes popular participation and unity among the people of the region throu ...

, turning Uganda into a republic and making Milton Obote president with unlimited executive powers. Before Obote's rule, the drum was symbolic of royalty and the authority of Uganda's kings. On a related note, the kings of Uganda were the first to use the traditional lentil shaped African shield in their heraldic arms. The shield is flanked on the heraldic left side by a crested crane (''Balearica regulorum gibbericeps''), a subspecies of the

grey-crowned crane The grey crowned crane (''Balearica regulorum''), also known as the African crowned crane, golden crested crane, golden crowned crane, East African crane, East African crowned crane, African crane, Eastern crowned crane, Kavirondo crane, South ...

and the

national bird This is a list of national birds, including official birds of overseas territories and other states described as nations. Most species in the list are officially designated. Some species hold only an "unofficial" status. National birds See al ...

of Uganda. On the right is the Ugandan kob (''Kobus kob thomasi''), a subspecies of

kob The kob (''Kobus kob'') is an antelope found across Central Africa and parts of West Africa and East Africa. Together with the closely related reedbucks, waterbucks, lechwe, Nile lechwe, and puku, it forms the Reduncinae tribe. Found along the ...

that here represents abundant wildlife. The shield stands on a green mound, representing fertile land, and directly above a representation of the

River Nile The Nile, , Bohairic , lg, Kiira , Nobiin: Áman Dawū is a major north-flowing river in northeastern Africa. It flows into the Mediterranean Sea. The Nile is the longest river in Africa and has historically been considered the longest rive ...

. Two main cash crops,

coffee Coffee is a drink prepared from roasted coffee beans. Darkly colored, bitter, and slightly acidic, coffee has a stimulant, stimulating effect on humans, primarily due to its caffeine content. It is the most popular hot drink in the world. S ...

and

cotton Cotton is a soft, fluffy staple fiber that grows in a boll, or protective case, around the seeds of the cotton plants of the genus ''Gossypium'' in the mallow family Malvaceae. The fiber is almost pure cellulose, and can contain minor perce ...

, flank the river. At the bottom is the national motto: "For God and My Country".

Blazon

For arms, sable upon the fess point a sun in his splendour and in base a Uganda drum gold the skin and guy-ropes argent, a chief barry wavy of six azure and argent; behind the shield two Uganda spears of estate crossed in saltire proper; and upon a compartment representing a grassy mound down the centre of which flows a river between in dexter a sprig of coffee and in sinister a sprig of cotton, both leaved and fructed proper, for supporters, on the dexter side a male Uganda kob proper and on the sinister side a crested crane likewise proper; together with this motto, FOR GOD AND MY COUNTRY.The National Flag and Armorial Ensigns Act

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Coat Of Arms Of Uganda National symbols of Uganda

Blazon

See also

References