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Versailles (Municipality, Yvelines, France)

Flag of Versailles - Image by Pascal Vagnat & Ivan Sache, 23 April 2010

Flag of Versailles
Former flag of Versailles
Cercle Nautique de Versailles

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Flag of Versailles

A new municipal flag, with the coat of arms placed on a plain white field, appeared on 18 April 2010 in front of the town hall of Versailles. This flag has already been spotted, hoisted over a hotel, but certainly not with an official status.

The municipal coat of arms are "Argent three fleurs-de-lis or a chief argent a double-headed rooster issuant proper". The shield is surmounted with a mural crown composed, in turn, of three towers and two fleurs-de-lis.
According to GASO, the coat of arms of Versailles was adopted in September 1789. The double-headed roaster issuant symbolizes the burgeoning freedom. Fleurs-de-lis were logically added in chief since Louis XVI was still King of France when the arms were adopted. The coat of arms was painted on the flag used by the National Guards in Versailles. The actual coat of arms was designed by the French heraldist Robert Louis.

Ivan Sache, 23 April 2010

Former flag of Versailles

Former flag of Versailles, heraldically correct version (left) and the most recently used version (right) - Images by Pascal Vagnat, 18 June 2004

The former flag of Versailles is horizontally divided white-blue (c. 1:3) with the municipal coat of arms in the middle.
The colours of the flag are those of the coat of arms.

There are in fact slightly different versions of the municipal flag:
- the greater flag, hoisted in front of the town hall, has no black border betweem the shield and the main field.
- the smaller flag, hoisted in various places in the town, has a rather thick black border.
- on the greater flag, the mural crown surmounting the coat of arms is the only part of the coat of arms to be placed into the white stripe of the flag. On some flags, however, a more or less big portion of the shield is also placed into the white stripe.

Some of the municipal flags recently seen in Versailles have the upper part of the coat of arms light blue instead of white. This is the case on the greater flag hoisted in front of the city hall. We guess that several flags were recently changed together. Why light blue instead of white? It might be a manufacturer's mistake or someone's choice in the municipal administration.

Vincent Morley, Pascal Vagnat & Ivan Sache, 18 June 2004

Cercle Nautique de Versailles

Flag of CNV - Image by Ivan Sache, 17 December 2005

The rowing club Cercle Nautique de Versailles was founded in 1908. Its members row on Grand Canal, in the park of the palace of Versailles. Grand Canal, inaugurated in 1670, is made of two perpendicular arms of 1,650 x 62 m and 1,070 x 80 m. The buildings located near the Grand Canal are called Petite Venise (Little Venice). The Venitian seamen in charge of Louis XIV's flotilla (gondolas and scale models of civil and warships) lived there; the flottila was mostly used during the water festivals organized during the first part of Louis XIV's reign (until 1683 and his secrete marriage with the severe Madame de Montespan).
The club house of the CNV is housed in one of the buildings of the Petite Venise. The club organizes the famous Régates de Versailles on Grand Canal.

The flag of CNV is vertically divided white-red-white with the letters CNV counterchanged (red-white-red). There is probably a club burgee of the same design.

Source: CNV website

Ivan Sache, 17 December 2005