Vilvoorde

The arms from 1819/1939 The arms from 1985	VILVOORDE Country : Belgium Province : Vlaams-Brabant Additions: 1977 Peutie Boroughs : Het Voor Loading map... {"minzoom":false,"maxzoom":false,"mappingservice":"leaflet","width":"250px","height":"250px","centre":false,"title":"","label":"","icon":"","lines":[],"polygons":[],"circles":[],"rectangles":[],"copycoords":false,"static":false,"zoom":7,"defzoom":14,"layers":["OpenStreetMap"],"image layers":[],"overlays":[],"resizable":false,"fullscreen":false,"scrollwheelzoom":true,"cluster":false,"clustermaxzoom":20,"clusterzoomonclick":true,"clustermaxradius":80,"clusterspiderfy":true,"geojson":"","clicktarget":"","imageLayers":[],"locations":[{"text":"","title":"","link":"","lat":50.3258000000000009777068044058978557586669921875,"lon":5.90679999999999960635932438890449702739715576171875,"icon":""}],"imageoverlays":null}

Official blazon
Dutch	(1819) Van rood beladen met een getoomde burgt en ter wederzijde verzeld van een banier, alles van goud. (1839) Een rood veld met een gulden kasteel. (1985) In keel een burcht van goud, verlicht en gemetseld van sabel, bestaande uit een middengebouw met geopende poort en opgetrokken valdeur, met een schilddak waarin drie dakkapellen, tussen twee zijtorens met kegelspits en windvaan, begeleid door twee staande afgewende banieren van keel met vrijkwartier van goud.
English	blazon wanted

Origin/meaning

The arms were first granted on September 15, 1819, confirmed on May 6, 1839 and again on April 1st, 1985.

Vilvoorde was fortified in 1192 and ever since considered a city. The oldest seal of the city is known since 1346 and shows a castle with two towers. The second seal, known since 1366 shows a more complex castle with two towers and two banners. The banner showed a plain red field with a silver free quarter in another colour, this composition was also used as arms for the city (see image from 1500 below).

The arms are based on the third seal, which showed the same composition as the present arms, including the banners beside the towers. The castle itself is a symbol of the fortified character of the city.

The main change in the new arms from 1985 is the colour of the banners, which are now red instead of gold, the historically correct version.

In 1981 the Flemish Heraldic Committee advised to the new municipality to add the boar's head of Peutie on the banners. The municipality did not agree with this proposal. Anywat, the head would be impossible to see on smaller versions of the arms.

Image gallery

Seal from 1355
The arms around 1500
The arms in a 17th century manuscript
The arms in 1650
The arms in the Koffie Hag/Café Hag albums +/- 1930
The arms on a Roulertas Confiserie label
The arms on a police badge (source)

Literature: Servais, 1955; Information provided by the city of Vilvoorde, 2000; Het Volk December 10, 1981.

Belgium heraldry portal

This page is part of the Belgium heraldry portal	Heraldry of the World
Civic heraldry: National arms of Belgium Arms of provinces and communities Arms of cities and towns Heraldic literature of Belgium Total pages in the Belgium section : 6,368 of which images : 5,138	Other heraldry: Ecclesiastical heraldry Military heraldry Educational heraldry Institutional heraldry Corporate heraldry Collector's items Heraldic postcards Heraldic stamps Personal arms