Saint Piran's Flag is the flag of Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. The earliest known description of the flag as the Standard of Cornwall was written in 1838. It is used by some Cornish people as a symbol of their identity. The flag is attributed to Saint Piran, a 5th-century Cornish abbot. One early use of a white cross and black background design is the 15th-century coat of arms of the Saint-Peran family.
Origins
There are claims that the design dates from prior to 1188 when the flag was used in the Crusades, and an article in the Encyclopædia Britannica tells that the flag was carried by the Cornish contingent at the Battle of Agincourt. However, the reference given by the Encyclopædia Britannica seems to have been confused with one that comes from a 1590 poem entitled Poly-Olbion by Michael Drayton. It states that the banner carried by the Cornish men at Agincourt depicted two Cornish wrestlers in a hitch. The earliest known evidence of this flag was recorded by Davies Gilbert in his 1838 work: The History of Cornwall, in which he gives reference to
a white cross on a black ground was formerly the banner of St Perran and the Standard of Cornwall; probably with some allusion to the black ore and the white metal of tin
The fact that Gilbert identifies it as being "formerly" a standard of Cornwall implies that he believed it to have been used before 1838. However, Gilbert did not leave a record of his background research, and referred only to his "recollection". One of the oldest depictions of the flag can be seen in a stained glass window at Westminster Abbey. It was unveiled in 1888, in memory of the famous Cornish inventor and engineer Richard Trevithick. The window depicts St Michael at the top and nine Cornish saints, Piran, Petroc, Pinnock, Germanus, Julian, Cyriacus, Constantine, Nonna and Geraint in tiers below. The head of St Piran appears to be a portrait of Trevithick himself, and the figure carries the banner of Cornwall.
Clues to its origin
Saint Piran's Flag has similarities to the old Breton flag and the flag of Saint David. The cultural links between Brittany, Wales and Cornwall are well recorded. Saint Piran's Flag is the negative image of the old Breton flag, a black cross on a white field. The flag of Saint David shares a black background with Saint Piran's Flag, but is surmounted by a gold, rather than a white, cross. |thumb It has also been suggested that it may have been based on the arms of the Earl of Cornwall, or the later Duchy of Cornwall; based on the arms of other Cornish families; or be linked with the black and white livery of the Knights of St John.
French and Breton family arms
The arms of the Saint-Peran family in Brittany, show a white cross pattee on a black field. Several other French and Breton families also had coats of arms that bear a striking resemblance to the St Piran's flag:
Saint Peran or Saint Pezran of Brittany, is described as, "sable a cross patée argent".
Geoffroy le Borgne of Brittany is described as "de sable à croix d'argent".
Rossillon de Gex, coat of arms described: "De sable à la croix d'argent".
Brunet, de la Besse, coat of arms described: "D'azur, à la croix d'argent".
