Hainaut

HAINAUT

Official blazon

English

Ecartelé, aux 1 et 4 d'or au lion de sable, armé et lampassé de gueules; aux 2 et 3 d'or au lion de gueules, armé et lampassé d'azur; couronne comtale à treize perles dont trois relevées

Origin/meaning

The arms are a combination of the arms of the counties Vlaanderen and Holland.

Hainaut is a county in the southern part of the country and was first mentioned in the 11^th century. The oldest arms of the county show 3 chevrons sable on a shield or. These arms are known since Baldwin V (1171-1195). In the 12th-13th centuries the succession in Hainaut was very complicated. In 1279 Jan I of Vlaanderen inherited Hainaut. He did not use the old arms, but the arms of Vlaanderen instead. His son William I of Hainaut (II of Vlaanderen and Holland) used arms quartered of Vlaanderen and Holland. He did not use separate arms for Hainaut. The quartered arms have been in use ever since.

Image gallery

The arms in the Armorial Gorrevod (1460)
The arms in the Armorial Jörg Rügen (1495)
The arms in a 16^th century manuscript
The arms in a 17^th century manuscript
The arms in the Broodhuis museum, Brussels
The arms in the Wapen- en Vlaggenboek van Gerrit Hesman (1708)
The arms in the Koffie Hag/Café Hag albums +/- 1930
The arms on a tile, 1930s
The arms on a police badge (source)
The arms on a coin

Literature: Vries, H. de: Wapens van de Nederlanden, Amsterdam, 1995.

Belgium heraldry portal

This page is part of the Belgium heraldry portal	Heraldry of the World
Civic heraldry: National arms of Belgium Arms of provinces and communities Arms of cities and towns Literature Total pages in the Belgium section : 6,494 of which images : 5,233	Other heraldry: Ecclesiastical heraldry Military heraldry Educational heraldry Institutional heraldry Corporate heraldry Collector's items Heraldic postcards Heraldic stamps Personal arms