Last modified: 2021-12-31 by rob raeside
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![[Flag of Halifax]](../images/c/ca-ns-hf-l.gif)
9:16 (1:2 usage) image by Eugene Ipavec
Source: Canadian City Flags,
Raven 18
The Halifax Regional Municipality came into existence on April 1, 1996 as a
result of the amalgamation of the cities of Halifax and Dartmouth, the Town of
Bedford and Halifax County Municipality.
Chris Pinette, 03 April 1999
Text and image(s) from Canadian City Flags, Raven 18 (2011), courtesy of the North American Vexillological Association, which retains copyright. Image(s) by permission of Eugene Ipavec.
The flag of the Halifax Regional Municipality has a blue field
bearing a saltire (X-shaped cross) in yellow. In the centre is a yellow disc,
half the height of the flag, bearing a kingfisher (Alcedo atthis) in blue with
yellow details, looking toward the hoist. On each arm of the cross, near the
disc, are short broad arrow shapes in blue pointing toward the corners of the
flag. In the hoist and fly quarters are stylized 18th-century ships, with three
masts, square sails, and pennants flying, in yellow and sailing toward the left.
Rob Raeside, Canadian City Flags,
Raven 18,
2011
The flag is a banner of the municipality’s arms. The Halifax Regional Municipality Council’s Coat of Arms Committee originally proposed the saltire, a St. Andrew’s cross, to celebrate the Scottish heritage of many citizens and to recall the cross in the provincial flag, symbolizing the municipality’s status as the capital of Nova Scotia. The arms honour the four communities forming the Halifax Regional Municipality in 1996 (Halifax, Dartmouth, Bedford, and Halifax County). Each is represented on the arms by a specific element: the kingfisher for the City of Halifax, the 1760-era ships for the City of Dartmouth, the wavy blue bars (appearing only on the coat of arms, not on the flag) for the County of Halifax, and the broad arrows for the Town of Bedford. Some elements are repeated for aesthetic balance.
The
blue field represents the harbours, the sea generally, and the nearby lakes, rivers,
and the Shubenacadie Canal. The broad arrows refer not only to Bedford,
but recall the long involvement of the authorities of the sovereign in defence
and the presence of both land and sea-based forces. The arrows point in four
directions, symbolizing the region’s naval tradition, and indicating connections
with all corners of the world. The sailing ships refer to the naval tradition
of Halifax and the history of settlement. The kingfisher is a symbol of
industry and appears in the centre, in part as it is the oldest symbol specifically
created for a public government in the capital region (1860).
Rob Raeside, Canadian City Flags,
Raven 18,
2011
The Halifax Regional Council applied to the Canadian
Heraldic Authority for a grant of a flag, which it adopted through Administrative
Order Number 19, respecting the Corporate Coat of Arms, Logo, and
Flag. The Canadian Heraldic Authority made the formal grant on 15 July 1999.
Rob Raeside, Canadian City Flags,
Raven 18,
2011
Robert D. Watt, Chief Herald of Canada, Canadian Heraldic
Authority.
Rob Raeside, Canadian City Flags,
Raven 18,
2011
The flag was not initially available to the public,
and was provided only to civic authorities and flown only on civic property.
An amendment to the Administrative Order in 2010 made the flag available
for sale to the public, but restricted its use to “respectful purposes”.
Rob Raeside, Canadian City Flags,
Raven 18,
2011
![[Flag of Halifax]](../images/c/ca-ns-hf).gif)
image based on
Canadian Heraldic Authority
The symbols of the Halifax Regional Municipality were granted on 15 June 1999
by Letters Patented published in the Public Registry of Arms, Flags and Badges,
Vol. III, p. 333, as announced on 22 July 2000 in the Canada Gazette, Vol. 134,
p. 2,264.
Blazon
Arms
Azure a saltire or and a bezant merged
thereon a kingfisher between four broad arrows points outward azure in fess two
sailing vessels tempore 1760 flags flying to the dexter or;
Crest
On
a mural coronet or issuant therefrom a sprig of mayflower of four blossoms
proper;
Supporters
On a grassy mound vert set dexter with garbs or and
sinister with spruce trees vert between barry wavy azure and argent dexter a
seahorse or gorged with a circlet set with maple leaves vert pendant therefrom
an open book argent bound azure holding between its legs a staff argent flying
therefrom the banner of the Province of Nova Scotia proper sinister a like
seahorse similarly gorged pendant therefrom two paddles in saltire azure holding
between its legs a staff argent flying therefrom the banner of Halifax Regional
Municipality proper;
Motto
E MARI MERCES;
Flag
A banner of
the arms;
Badge
A bezant charged with a saltire of four anchors flukes
outward first and fourth fouled azure ensigned by a coronet argent set with
mayflowers proper.
Original concept of Robert D. Watt, Chief Herald of
Canada, assisted by the heralds of the Canadian Heraldic Authority.
Painter:
Linda Nicholson
Calligrapher: Suzzann Wright
Symbolism
Arms
The principal charge on the arms, St. Andrew’s cross, identifies the
municipality as the seat of government of the Province of Nova Scotia, whose
arms also feature this charge. The four arms of the cross represent the four
predecessor municipalities – the City of Halifax, the City of Dartmouth, the
County of Halifax, and the Town of Bedford – which were amalgamated in 1996 into
the Halifax Regional Municipality. The kingfisher is taken from the arms of the
City of Halifax, while the ships and arrows recall the emblems of Dartmouth and
Bedford respectively.
Crest
The crest is a version of that granted to
the City of Halifax by the Chief Herald of Canada in 1992. The mural coronet is
a centuries-old symbol of municipal government. The mayflower is the
floral emblem of Nova Scotia, and its four blossoms honours the Halifax Regional
Municipality’s four predecessor local governments.
Supporters
The
sea-horses signify Halifax’s maritime location and heritage; their maple-leaf
coronets celebrate the community’s status as Canada’s eastern gateway, and
commemorate its contribution to the country’s defence. The book honours the
community’s position as the seat of several institutions of higher
learning. The paddles recall the canoes of the Mi’kmaq people and of the local
settlers that once plied the region’s waterways; they also pay tribute to the
community’s proud tradition of recreational water sports. The Nova Scotia flag
is included by permission of the provincial government in recognition of the
municipality’s status as the provincial capital. The municipal flag recognizes
the municipal government’s obligations to defend the community’s interests. The
garbs of wheat and the trees represent the region’s agricultural lands and
forests respectively, and the blue and white wavy bars symbolize its maritime
location while recalling the emblem of the former County of Halifax.
Motto
E MARI MERCES, meaning “Wealth from the sea”, was for many years the
motto of the City of Halifax.
http://archive.gg.ca/heraldry/pub-reg/project.asp?lang=e&ProjectID=855 -
Public Registry of Arms, Flags and Badges
The memoir produced by Robert
D. Watt (final version, 29 September 1999) provides an even more detailed
description of the coat of arms. Some "technical" considerations were not
repeated in the final grant:
Arms (Shield):
[..]
Council's Coat of
Arms Committee proposed the idea of the St. Andrew's cross. [...]
It should
be noted that the reason for repeating certain elements is purely aesthetic - to
respect the rules of the artform and ensure balance. It is noteworthy, also,
that several elements have multiple significance. The blue quadrants represent
the harbours, the sea generally, as well as lakes, rivers and the canal. The
broad arrows not only refer to Bedford but recall the long involvement of the
authorities of the Sovereign in defense and the presence of the forces, both
land and sea-based. The ships have a symbolism beyond Dartmouth and can
represent the ongoing importance of the great sheltered harbour, of
maritime-based commerce and defense. The kingfisher is placed in the centre, in
part, as it is the oldest symbol specifically created for a public government in
capital region (1860).
Crest (above the shield):
At the Committee's
request, this is set directly on the shield. Torques or wreaths are granted with
most municipal arms in Canada but this grant continues the exception given in
the grant to the former City of Halifax in 1992. [...]
Compartments and
Supporters:
[...]
The seahorses were selected by the Committee and
approved by Council as being the best option for meaning, symmetry and optimum
aesthetic impact. [...]
Motto:
[...] After the motto of the Province,
this is the second oldest motto for a government in Nova Scotia.
Flag:
Following the major flag tradition in heraldry, the civic flag is a banner of
the arms, that is the elements of the shield are set out on a rectangle, redrawn
so that they properly fill the new space.
http://www.halifax.ca/Community/coatofarmsdetail.PDF - Municipal website
Administrative Order Number 19 "Respecting the Corporate Coat of Arms, Logo
and Flag", aka "Corporate Coat of Arms, Logo and Flag Administrative Order" was
passed by the Regional Municipality on 19 October 1999. The symbols are
described as in the grant of arms. Some Articles are specific to the flag
and its use:
3.4. The official flag shall be hung in the Council Chamber
and shall be flown at City Hall. The official flag shall be reserved for
official or ceremonial purposes such as presentation to community groups, use at
commemorative parks or use at traditional sites such as the Public Gardens and
Point Pleasant Park, with its availability and distribution to be in the
discretion of the Mayor and Councillors.
3.5. Not withstanding subsection
(4), the public may, in accordance with Schedule A, purchase duplicate
copies of the official flag for use in a manner respectful of the values and
image of the Municipality.
3.7. The logo flag may be flown at all
municipal buildings and facilities other than City Hall.
4.1. The coat of
arms, official flag, the shield and badge, and logo and logo flag of the
Municipality as well as any coats of arms, flags and symbols of the former City
of Dartmouth, City of Halifax, Town of Bedford and Halifax County Municipality
shall only be used by a corporation or individual other than the Municipality
with the permission of the Regional Council in accordance with the terms and
conditions set forth in Schedule “A”. [This Article suggests that the former
symbols of the components of the HRM were not formally abolished.]
Schedule A, approved on 16 January 2001, includes the following prescriptions:
1. The official flag shall only be used in public settings, provided that
the official flag is used in an appropriate and respectful manner.
a.
Duplicate copies of the official flag may be produced and sold to the public
provided that they are produced based on the standards and guidelines as
outlined by the Office of the Municipal Clerk to be registered in the registry
of the Government of Canada Public Register of Arms, Flags and Badges.
3.
a. The logo flag shall not be for use by members of the public.
http://www.halifax.ca/legislation/adminorders/documents/AO19.pdf - Municipal
website
The new flag was unfurled on 28 March 2000.
"Mayor Walter
Fitzgerald and Members of Halifax Regional Council will officially unfurl the
municipality's new flag at a ceremony in Grand Parade next week. Mayor
Fitzgerald will officially proclaim the flag, which bears the municipality's new
coat of arms, and raise it up the flagpole in Grand Parade. Citizens are invited
to attend the ceremony and share in a special cake which is being prepared,
bearing HRM's new coat of arms."
http://www.halifax.ca/mediaroom/pressrelease/pr2000/000324fe.html -
Municipal website, Media Room
A photo of the flag is shown on the
municipal website, presented by Halifax members of the Multinational Brigade,
North West (MNB NW) Headquarters located in Banja Luka, Bosnia-Hercegovina
(2004).
http://www.halifax.ca/council/mayor/news/bosnia2004.html - Municipal
website, Office of the Mayor
It appears that the blue shade is lighter
than on the image shown on the FOTW website, and that the flag has 1:2
proportions. Some details of the kingfisher are also omitted on our image.
As far as the
City of Halifax is concerned:
"Its prospering seaport and military
importance were symbolically linked in the City’s Coat of Arms granted in
1860. It displayed a fisherman with a cod fish in his right hand and a Naval
seaman as supporters of a blue shield consisting of a gold kingfisher (an
heraldic symbol for the fishing industry) surmounted by a golden mural crown
in the form of an embattled wall, a device widely used in civic heraldry. On
a ribbon at the shield’s base was the City’s motto E MARI MERCES (“WEALTH
FROM THE SEA”)."
http://www.halifax.ca/community/HalifaxCityHall/prospering_halifax.html - Municipal website
"During the celebrations
surrounding the bicentenary, the lack of standardization in the reproduction
of the City’s “arms”, caused City Council to authorize the preparation of a
revised coat of arms. After considerable deliberation, a new coat of arms
gained approval from Council and the Provincial government on 22 October 1964
before its official registration with the Patents Office in Ottawa to prevent
unauthorized use. It differed chiefly from the old coat of arms in having the
cod fisherman and naval seaman portrayed in 1860 dress, the year the first
arms had been adopted."
http://www.halifax.ca/community/HalifaxCityHall/coat_of_arms_and_mace.html
- Municipal website
Ivan Sache, 1 August 2012
![[Provisional flag of Halifax]](../images/c/ca-ns2hf.gif)
image
by Jaume Ollé![[Provisional flag of Halifax]](../images/c/ca-ns-hflogo-l.gif)
1:2 image by Eugene IpavecIn the 1998 administrative
order adopting the flag, a Halifax
Regional Municipality logo flag was
also defined. It has a white field with
HALIFAX in large serif letters, running
over three-fourths the length of
the flag. The central “I” has a dot or a disc above it (in some variants this “I”
is shown in the shape of a lighthouse), with beams extending to the left and
right across the top of the word, and the middle five letters, “ALIFA”, shorter,
with a wave below them. All these are in blue with yellow highlights to the
left, giving the font and other elements a three-dimensional effect. Below,
running the length of “HALIFAX”, is Regional Municipality in blue serif
letters. This logo flag was widely used in the first few years of the existence
of the Halifax Regional Municipality, but has largely dropped out of use in
favour of the official flag, which has proven more popular. The logo flag is
restricted to municipal purposes only.
Rob Raeside, Canadian City Flags,
Raven 18,
2011
![[former flag of Dartmourth, Nova Scotia]](../images/c/ca-ns-hfx2014.gif)
image by Rob Raeside, 12 June 2017
I encountered a new flag in Grand Parade, which with a bit of googling turns
out to have been introduced in May 2014 (http://thechronicleherald.ca/metro/1209524-halifax-s-new-flag-flies-at-grand-parade).
“Halifax” commonly refers to the city on the east side of Halifax Harbour, but
can also refer to the Halifax Regional Municipality, which includes the former
city of Dartmouth, town of Bedford and Halifax County. I gather this new banner
is somewhat controversial as the name “Halifax” is being used alone, a term
which residents of other parts of the Regional Municipality object to.
The
colour in the article states that it is blue (specifically huckleberry blue, moss
blue, lupine blue and dogwood blue – I think that refers to the four shades from
darkest to lightest on the fly). The flag I observed was definitely on the
purple side of blue, but so are huckleberries, lupines and dogwood.
Rob
Raeside, 12 June 2017
Photographs seem to show it a bit less purple, to me, like lupins in more
acidic soil. More on the subject:
http://halifaxbloggers.ca/noticedinnovascotia/2015/01/run-it-up-the-flagpole.
Peter Hans van den Muijzenberg, 12 June 2017
![[former flag of Halifax, Nova Scotia]](../images/c/ca-ns-hfo-l.gif)
1:2 image by Eugene IpavecThe former flag of
the City of Halifax depicted a golden
yellow kingfisher, a symbol of industry,
on a blue field. Although use of the
kingfisher dates to 1860, the flag was
approved by the minister of municipal
affairs on 22 October 1964 and adopted on 1 July 1992 when the Chief Herald
of Canada granted the city its arms.
Rob Raeside, Canadian City Flags,
Raven 18,
2011
![[former flag of Dartmourth, Nova Scotia]](../images/c/ca-ns-dm-l.gif)
1:2 image by Eugene Ipavec
Source: Canadian City Flags,
Raven 18
The former flag of the City of Dartmouth
is a yellow over blue bicolour, horizontally
divided by four blue and yellow
wavy lines, and a semicircular field of
white at the hoist bearing the municipal
arms in blue, white, and yellow.
Rob Raeside, Canadian City Flags,
Raven 18,
2011
![[flag of Halifax Regional Fire & Emergency Service, Nova Scotia]](../images/c/ca-ns-hf_fe.gif)
image by Ivan Sache, 1 August 2012
The Union Fire Club was formed in
Halifax in 1754, effectively becoming the first organized fire department in
Canada, and one of the oldest in North America. It became the Union Engine
Company in 1768. In 1996, following the formation of HRM, 38 fire departments
were incorporated into Halifax Regional Fire and Emergency Service.
Halifax Regional Fire & Emergency Service unveiled its new flag on 13 January
2004, when celebrating its 250th anniversary. The flag is dark blue, with a
golden fringe, in the middle the badge of the service.
http://www.halifax.ca/fire/PDFs/feedline_vol_32.pdf - "FeedLine", No. 32,
January-February 2004
http://www.halifax.ca/fire/August172011.html -
Opening of the annual Halifax County Exhibition, 17 August 2011
Ivan Sache, 1 August 2012
![[flag of Halifax Regional Fire & Emergency Service, Nova Scotia]](../images/c/ca-ns-phfx.gif)
image by Dave Fowler, 21 December 2021
Flag is a logo on white.
Port website:
https://www.portofhalifax.ca/
Dave Fowler, 21 December 2021