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A roundel is a circular disc used as a symbol. The term is used in
heraldry Heraldry is a discipline relating to the design, display and study of armorial bearings (known as armory), as well as related disciplines, such as vexillology, together with the study of ceremony, rank and pedigree. Armory, the best-known branch ...
, but also commonly used to refer to a type of national insignia used on military aircraft, generally circular in shape and usually comprising concentric rings of different colours. Other symbols also often use round shapes.


Heraldry

In
heraldry Heraldry is a discipline relating to the design, display and study of armorial bearings (known as armory), as well as related disciplines, such as vexillology, together with the study of ceremony, rank and pedigree. Armory, the best-known branch ...
, a ''roundel'' is a circular charge. ''Roundels'' are among the oldest charges used in
coats of arms A coat of arms is a heraldic visual design on an escutcheon (i.e., shield), surcoat, or tabard (the latter two being outer garments). The coat of arms on an escutcheon forms the central element of the full heraldic achievement, which in its wh ...
, dating from at least the twelfth century. Roundels in British heraldry have different names depending on their tincture. Thus, while a roundel may be blazoned by its tincture, e.g., ''a roundel vert'' (literally "a roundel green"), it is more often described by a single word, in this case ''pomme'' (literally "apple", from the French) or, from the same origins, ''pomeis''—as in "Vert; on a cross Or five pomeis". One special example of a named roundel is the fountain, depicted as ''a roundel barry wavy argent and azure'', that is, containing alternating horizontal wavy bands of blue and silver (or white).


Military aircraft

The
French Air Service The French Air and Space Force (AAE) (french: Armée de l'air et de l'espace, ) is the air and space force of the French Armed Forces. It was the first military aviation force in history, formed in 1909 as the , a service arm of the French Army ...
originated the use of roundels on military aircraft during the First World War. The chosen design was the French national cockade, whose colours are the blue-white-red of the
flag of France The national flag of France (french: link=no, drapeau français) is a tricolour featuring three vertical bands coloured blue ( hoist side), white, and red. It is known to English speakers as the ''Tricolour'' (), although the flag of Irelan ...
. Similar national cockades, with different ordering of colours, were designed and adopted as aircraft roundels by their allies, including the British
Royal Flying Corps "Through Adversity to the Stars" , colors = , colours_label = , march = , mascot = , anniversaries = , decorations ...
and
Royal Naval Air Service The Royal Naval Air Service (RNAS) was the air arm of the Royal Navy, under the direction of the Admiralty's Air Department, and existed formally from 1 July 1914 to 1 April 1918, when it was merged with the British Army's Royal Flying Corps t ...
, and (in the last few months of the war) the United States Army Air Service. After the First World War, many other air forces adopted roundel insignia, distinguished by different colours or numbers of concentric rings. The term "roundel" is often used even for those military aircraft insignia that are not round, like the Iron Cross- Balkenkreuz symbol of the Luftwaffe or the
red star A red star, five-pointed and filled, is a symbol that has often historically been associated with communist ideology, particularly in combination with the hammer and sickle, but is also used as a purely socialist symbol in the 21st century. I ...
of the
Russian Air Force " Air March" , mascot = , anniversaries = 12 August , equipment = , equipment_label = , battles = , decorations = , bat ...
.


Flags

Among national flags which display a roundel are the
flags of Bangladesh A flag is a piece of fabric (most often rectangular or quadrilateral) with a distinctive design and colours. It is used as a symbol, a signalling device, or for decoration. The term ''flag'' is also used to refer to the graphic design emplo ...
, Belize, Brazil,
Dominica Dominica ( or ; Kalinago: ; french: Dominique; Dominican Creole French: ), officially the Commonwealth of Dominica, is an island country in the Caribbean. The capital, Roseau, is located on the western side of the island. It is geographically ...
, Ethiopia,
Grenada Grenada ( ; Grenadian Creole French: ) is an island country in the West Indies in the Caribbean Sea at the southern end of the Grenadines island chain. Grenada consists of the island of Grenada itself, two smaller islands, Carriacou and Pe ...
, India,
Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...
,
Laos Laos (, ''Lāo'' )), officially the Lao People's Democratic Republic ( Lao: ສາທາລະນະລັດ ປະຊາທິປະໄຕ ປະຊາຊົນລາວ, French: République démocratique populaire lao), is a socialist ...
, Niger, North Korea, Palau, Paraguay, South Korea, Tunisia, and Uganda. Flags for
British Overseas Territories The British Overseas Territories (BOTs), also known as the United Kingdom Overseas Territories (UKOTs), are fourteen dependent territory, territories with a constitutional and historical link with the United Kingdom. They are the last remna ...
used a British Blue Ensign defaced with a white roundel displaying the
arms Arms or ARMS may refer to: *Arm or arms, the upper limbs of the body Arm, Arms, or ARMS may also refer to: People * Ida A. T. Arms (1856–1931), American missionary-educator, temperance leader Coat of arms or weapons *Armaments or weapons **Fi ...
or badge of the dependency until 1999. The same pattern is still used for all the states of Australia except Victoria.


In popular culture

* The roundel, especially that used by the Royal Air Force, has been associated with pop art of the 1960s, appearing in paintings by Jasper Johns. It became part of the pop consciousness when British rock group The Who wore
RAF roundels The air forces of the United Kingdom – the Royal Navy's Fleet Air Arm, the Army's Army Air Corps and the Royal Air Force use a roundel, a circular identification mark, painted on aircraft to identify them to other aircraft and ground forces. ...
(and Union Flags) as part of their stage apparel at the start of their career. Subsequently it came to symbolise Mods and the Mod revival. * Some of Paul Weller's material involves the use of a roundel in psychedelic colours. * Ben Harper's album ''
Fight For Your Mind ''Fight for Your Mind'' is the second album by Ben Harper. Released on August 1, 1995, it was his last solo album before adding the Innocent Criminals to his line-up. Reviews were generally very positive, praising Harper's fusion of multiple g ...
'' uses roundels from several air forces as graphics in the liner notes. * In the British television series ''
Doctor Who ''Doctor Who'' is a British science fiction television series broadcast by the BBC since 1963. The series depicts the adventures of a Time Lord called the Doctor, an extraterrestrial being who appears to be human. The Doctor explores the u ...
'', the circular decorations on the interior walls of the TARDIS control room are known as roundels.


Examples


Military aircraft roundels


Other roundels

Some corporations and organizations make use of roundels in their branding.


See also

* * Cockade * Fin flash *
Goutte A goutte is a droplet-shaped charge used in heraldry. Its name derives from the Old French for "droplet". A goutte may be blazoned by its tincture, as in a ''goutte argent'' (literally "a silver droplet"). Alternatively, there are special names ...


Notes


References

* * {{cite book , editor1-first=David , editor1-last=Donald , year=1986 , title=The pocket guide to Military Aircraft and the World's Air Forces , pages=136–189 , publisher=Temple Press Aerospace , isbn=0-600-55002-8 Symbols Circles