Flag of Montgomery County, Maryland

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Montgomery County
Flag of Montgomery County, Maryland
The current flag of Maryland's Montgomery County.
UseOther Small vexillological symbol or pictogram in black and white showing the different uses of the flag
Proportion2:3
AdoptedOctober 5, 1976[1]
DesignA rectangle, three parts wide and two parts tall, quartered by a crenellated line, separating the top two quarters from the two bottom quarters, and a straight vertical line, separating the left two quarters from the two right quarters, with the upper left and lower right quarters consisting of a gold fleur-de-lis on a blue background, with the upper right and lower left quarters consisting of a gold ring with a blue gem on a red background, with a crenellated line formed of 11 squares, 1/11 of flag length, with center block split in middle with left side red and right side blue, with rings and fleur-de-lises to be three times as high as a block in the crenellated line with width proportional, with rings and fleur-de-lises centered horizontally on their quarters and spaced vertically so that upper and lower edge of rings and fleur-de-lises at equal distance from the horizontal outside edge of quarter and nearest part of crenellated line.[1]
Designed byCollege of Arms
The former flag of Montgomery County, Maryland, used from May 3, 1944 to October 5, 1976.[2][3]
UseOther Small vexillological symbol or pictogram in black and white showing the different uses of the flag
AdoptedMay 3, 1944 – October 5, 1976[2][3]
Designed byLilly Catherine Stone[2][3]

The current flag of Montgomery County, Maryland, was adopted on October 5, 1976. It was designed by the British College of Arms.[1] It is commonly flown outside of the Montgomery County's governmental facilities, such as fire stations.

The flag is based on the coat of arms of the Montgomery family, a scion of which, Richard Montgomery, gave the county its name.[1] It is the county's second flag, replacing the first one, which had been in use from May 3, 1944, until its replacement in 1976.[2][3]

History

The Montgomery coat of arms after the marriage of John and Elizabeth, as carved at Eglinton Castle
The first Montgomery County flag with its designer Lilly Catherine Stone in 1944.
The Montgomery County flag being flown by firemen at the Pentagon after the September 11 attacks in 2001.

Former flag: 1944–1976

A former flag was used by Montgomery County from May 3, 1944, until October 1976. It was designed by Lilly Catherine Stone and featured the former Montgomery County coat of arms along on a white background, inscribed with the county's name and the date it was founded.[2][3]

Current flag: 1976–present

The current flag is a banner of the arms granted to the county by England's College of Heralds. At the request of the Montgomery County Executive, it was officially adopted by the Montgomery County Council as the county flag by Bill 38-76 on October 5, 1976.[1] Bill 38-76 has since been designated as Section 1-402 of the Montgomery County Code.[4]

The fleur-de-lis in two quarters of the flag comes from the arms of the Montgomery family. The oldest known depiction of the Montgomery fleur-de-lis appears on the seal of John de Mundegumri, who lived in the late 12th century.[5] In 1368, the family's chief Sir John Montgomery married Elizabeth, the heiress of the Eglinton family, whose arms incorporated three rings.[6] Their descendants combined the Montgomery fleurs-de-lis with the Eglinton rings in one quartered shield.[6]

The indented line which separates the upper and lower quarters of the flag represent the borders of local government.[1] The shades of red and blue are said to be identical to those on the national flag of the United States, whereas the shade of gold is identical to that found on the Maryland state flag, denoted as PMS 124 on the Pantone Matching System scale.[1]

Design

According to the Montgomery County government in 1999, the flag was described as:

The following specifications are used to produce the County flag: Height to length, 2 to 3. The flag will be quartered by a crenellated line, separating the top two quarters from the two bottom quarters, and a straight vertical line, separating the left two quarters from the two right quarters. The upper left and lower right quarters shall consist of a gold fleur-de-lis on a blue background. The upper right and lower left quarters shall consist of a gold ring with a blue gem on a red background. Crenellated line formed of 11 squares, 1/11 of flag length, with center block split in middle with left side red and right side blue. Rings and fleur-de-lises to be three times as high as a block in the crenellated line with width proportional. Rings and fleur-de-lises centered horizontally on their quarters and spaced vertically so that upper and lower edge of rings and fleur-de-lises are equal distance from horizontal outside edge of quarter and nearest part of crenellated line.

— Montgomery County government, 1999.[1]

Colors

The official description of the flag in the county code states that the shade of red and blue used on the flag are to be identical to that found on the county's coat of arms.[7]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h Montgomery County, Maryland (1999). "Montgomery County Flag". Archived from the original on November 29, 1999. The flag uses some elements of the family arms of General Richard Montgomery for whom the County was named. It is based on the shield of the official coat of arms of Montgomery County which was designed and approved by The College of Arms in London, England and officially adopted by Bill 38-76 enacted by the County Council on October 5, 1976 at the request of the County Executive. The gold fleur-de-lis in two quarters of the flag are reminders of the French ancestry of the Montgomery family. The gold rings with blue gemstones in two quarters of the flag proclaim royal favor and protection and are found in the family coat of arms of General Montgomery's family. The indented line which separates the upper quarters of the flag from the lower quarters of the flag represents the borders of a local government. The following specifications are used to produce the County flag: Height to length, 2 to 3. The flag will be quartered by a crenellated line, separating the top two quarters from the two bottom quarters, and a straight vertical line, separating the left two quarters from the two right quarters. The upper left and lower right quarters shall consist of a gold fleur-de-lis on a blue background. The upper right and lower left quarters shall consist of a gold ring with a blue gem on a red background. Crenellated line formed of 11 squares, 1/11 of flag length, with center block split in middle with left side red and right side blue. Rings and fleur-de-lises to be three times as high as a block in the crenellated line with width proportional. Rings and fleur-de-lises centered horizontally on their quarters and spaced vertically so that upper and lower edge of rings and fleur-de-lises are equal distance from horizontal outside edge of quarter and nearest part of crenellated line. Red and blue should be the same shade as is used in the United States flag and gold should be same shade as is used in the Maryland State flag.
  2. ^ a b c d e McEwan, Peggy (November 14, 2012). "The story of the Cabin John woman behind Stoneyhurst Quarry: Lilly Stone helped build Montgomery County homes and history". The Gazette. Gaithersburg, MD: Post-Newsweek Media, LLC. Archived from the original on April 15, 2015. Retrieved October 14, 2013.
  3. ^ a b c d e McEwan, Peggy (November 20, 2012). "Lilly Stone Drive's eponym put Montgomery on the road to development". The Washington Post. Washington, D.C. Archived from the original on March 16, 2016. Retrieved March 16, 2016.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  4. ^ Montgomery County Maryland: Our History and Government. 1999. Archived from the original on 1999-11-29. {{cite book}}: |work= ignored (help)
  5. ^ Boutell, Charles (1914). The Handbook to English Heraldry. London: Reeves & Turner. p. 10.
  6. ^ a b Nisbet, Alexander (1816). A System of Heraldry. Vol. 1. Edinburgh: William Blackwood. p. 375.
  7. ^ "American Legal Publishing Corporation".

External links

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