The Flag of Wales incorporates the red dragon, now a popular Welsh symbol, along with the Tudor colours of green and white. It was used by Henry VII at the battle of Bosworth in 1485 after which it was carried in state to St. Paul's Cathedral. The red dragon was then included in the Tudor royal arms to signify their Welsh descent. It was officially recognised as the Welsh national flag in 1959. The British Union Flag incorporates the flags of Scotland, Ireland and England but does not have any Welsh representation. Technically, however, it is represented by the flag of England due to the Laws in Wales act of 1535 which annexed Wales following the 13th century conquest.
The flag of Owain Glyndŵr, Prince of Wales, which combined the flags of Powys and Deheubarth, blazoned Quarterly or and gules, four lions rampant two and two counterchanged. The red lion on a yellow field represented Powys, and the yellow lion on a red field represented Deheubarth. Owain was the senior heir of both Powys and Deheubarth. The flag harkened back to the Aberffraw flag, linking Owain's rule with the Aberffraw princes of Wales in an effort to legitimize his rule. It is currently in use by the National Eisteddfod of Wales, Cymdeithas yr Iaith Gymraeg and widely amongst pro-independence groups.
The Red Dragon, part of the national flag design, is also a popular Welsh symbol. The oldest recorded use of the dragon to symbolise Wales is from the Historia Brittonum, written around 820, but it is popularly supposed to have been the battle standard of King Arthur and other ancient Celtic leaders. This myth is likely to have originated from the tale of Merlin's vision of a Red (The Native Britons) and a White (The Saxon Invaders) dragon battling, with the red dragon being victorious. Following the annexation of Wales by England, the red dragon was used as a supporter in the English monarch's coat of arms. The red dragon is often seen as a shorthand for all things Welsh, being used by many indigenous public and private institutions (e.g.: The Welsh Assembly Government, Visit Wales, numerous local authorities including Blaenau Gwent, Cardiff, Carmarthenshire, Rhondda Cynon Taf, and sports bodies, including the Sport Wales National Centre, the Football Association of Wales, Newport Gwent Dragons, London Welsh RFC, etc.)
The leek is the national emblem of Wales.[2] According to legend the patron saint of Wales, Saint David, ordered his Welsh soldiers to identify themselves by wearing the leek on their helmets in an ancient battle against the Saxons that took place in a leek field. The origin is also dramatized in Shakespeare'sHenry V when the Welsh captain Fluellen remarked that Welsh soldiers fought a battle "in a garden where leeks did grow" for England in the time of Edward III. It is still worn on St David's Day each March 1.
Traditional Welsh costume, such as the Welsh hat and bedgown, is now recognised as the national dress of Wales. It was originally worn by rural women throughout Europe and Britain, it survived longest in Wales up until the 1880s. Today it is worn by women at events such as Royal visits, by choirs, at church and chapel, for photographs and occasionally at eisteddfodau. It was first worn by girls as a celebration on Saint David's Day just before the First World War.
^The arms and flag have four squares alternating in gold and red (representing the Royal House of Aberffraw and iron, or Mars the god of War). Each square has a lion of the opposite colour. The lion is looking at the observer and has 3 paws on the ground and one raised high in the air ("passant guardant"); the tongue is stuck-out ("langued") and the claws outstretched claws ("armed"). Both are blue ("Azur". This represents primacy in Wales).
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