Coat of arms of the Ldn Borough of Hillingdon

The coat of arms of the London Borough of Hillingdon is the official symbol of the

London Borough of Hillingdon The London Borough of Hillingdon () is the largest and westernmost borough in West London, England. It was formed from the districts of Hayes and Harlington, Ruislip-Northwood, Uxbridge, and Yiewsley and West Drayton in the ceremonial county ...

. They use elements from the coats of arms of the four previous districts. It is described as: London Borough of Hillingdon coat of arms - geograph

The four green civic crowns or wreaths on the shield proclaim the equal status of the four predecessor units (a borough and three urban districts). The motto 'Forward' was chosen from Hayes and Harlington's coat of arms. The eagle at the centre of the shield was taken from the old arms of Uxbridge Borough Council and

Yiewsley and West Drayton Urban District Council Yiewsley and West Drayton was a local government district in Middlesex, England from 1929 to 1965. Its area became the south-west of the London Borough of Hillingdon. Establishment and expansion The Yiewsley and West Drayton Urban District evo ...

. It was adapted by them from the arms of the Paget family, from the reign of Henry VIII's son Edward lords of the manor of West Drayton and later those of Dawley (in Harlington a place also known as Arlington) and of Harmondsworth and Earls of Uxbridge. The medieval-imaginary tiger supporting the shield on the left is also taken from the Paget family arms. The fleur de lys (or lily) on the left of the shield is from the arms of Ruislip-Northwood, and commemorates the fact that the manor of Ruislip was held for much of its history by the

Abbey of Bec An abbey is a type of monastery used by members of a religious order under the governance of an abbot or abbess. Abbeys provide a complex of buildings and land for religious activities, work, and housing of Christians, Christian monks and nuns ...

and then

King's College, Cambridge King's College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. Formally The King's College of Our Lady and Saint Nicholas in Cambridge, the college lies beside the River Cam and faces out onto King's Parade in the centre of the cit ...

, for both of whom the lily was a symbol of religious purity. The circlet or enclosure of brushwood from which the lion is rising on the crest is from the arms of Hayes and Harlington, and may refer back to its ancient heritage as forested hunting land. The same can be said of the stag with a circlet of brushwood supporting the shield on the right. The lion itself represents

Great Britain Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the northwest coast of continental Europe. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the largest European island and the ninth-largest island in the world. It i ...

. Its wings, with the

St George cross In heraldry, Saint George's Cross, the Cross of Saint George, is a red cross on a white background, which from the Late Middle Ages became associated with Saint George, the military saint, often depicted as a crusader. Associated with the cru ...

, are from the arms of Yiewsley and West Drayton and symbolise the arrival of Queen

Elizabeth II Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 1926 – 8 September 2022) was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until her death in 2022. She was queen regnant of 32 sovereign states during ...

at Heathrow airport in 1953. The blue 'astral' crown on the tiger supporting the shield is in the colours of the Royal Air Force, and celebrates its long history within the Borough. The Tudor rose on the same tiger is from the arms of Yiewsley and West Drayton and is a historic English royal badge. The eagle on the shield denotes the area's connections with the RAF and Heathrow/London Airport. The North Star, as shown on the crest, was traditionally used in navigation, so here again represents the Borough's airports. In the original arms of Ruislip-Northwood the colours were reversed. The cog wheel on the right of the shield is from the arms of Hayes and Harlington and reflects the industry of Hayes. The two ears of rye 'slipped' (with their stalks cut short) on the stag supporting the shield on the right, are a pun on the name Ruislip, and were taken from the arms of Ruislip-Northwood.

References

{{LB Hillingdon

Hillingdon Hillingdon is an area of Uxbridge within the London Borough of Hillingdon, centred 14.2 miles (22.8 km) west of Charing Cross. It was an ancient parish in Middlesex that included the market town of Uxbridge. During the 1920s the civ ...

London Borough of Hillingdon