Malden and Coombe

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MALDEN AND COOMBE

Incorporated into: 1965 Kingston-upon-Thames

Official blazon

Arms : Ermine on a Chevron Vert between two Chevronels the upper one per pale Azure and Gules and the lower one per pale Gules and Azure a Cross pattée Or.
Crest : On a Wreath Argent and Vert issuant from a Chaplet of Bay Leaves Vert banded Or a demi Stag proper gorged with a Ducal Coronet Gold and holding between the fore legs a Fountain.
Motto: 'DUCIT AMOR OPPIDI' - The love of our town leads us.

Origin/meaning

The arms were officially granted on August 14, 1936.

The green chevron charged with a cross refers to the name Malden - Maeldune, 'the hill of the cross', The blue and red chevrons are from the arms of Merton College, Oxford, which still owns in Malden the estates conferred in the thirteenth century by Walter de Merton on his house of scholars. The ermine field denotes Coombe's longstanding connection with the Crown.

The green of the wreath and mantling refers to the abundance of open spaces and sports grounds in the area. Among these is part of Richmond Park, hence the stag, while the heraldic fountain which it holds indicates the brooks and streams, from which Cardinal Wolsey obtained water for Hampton Court. The bay-wreath, a symbol of honour in ancient Rome, is a reminder of Malden's note in Romano-British times, and the coronet refers to the Duke of Cambridge, formerly the chief landowner in Coombe.

Literature: Image and information from here

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