VIBE 2017 Spring Newsletter

ISBN 2009-6437

Vexillology Ireland: Brateolaíocht Éireann

VIBE Spring Newsletter 2017

Vol. 1 No. 8

Welcome to Vexillology Ireland’s Spring Newsletter!

What a great time to spring up a newsletter on you. We will begin by focusing on the general theme of flags and art and take a look at the recent Standard Exhibition along with its Six Conversations about Flags booklet. Then we shall explore the abundance of the colour blue in flags. After that we will look at the Battle of Tallaght Anniversary, the Life and Language in Georgia Exhibition and then finish with the upcoming ICV27 in London this August.

Flag Study vs. Design Dr. Whitney Smith, the man who coined the term "vexillology", defined it in his book Flags Through the Ages and Across the World (1975) as "the scientific study of the history, symbolism, and usage of flags". Vexillology is a social science, meaning that vexillologists study why and how people use flags. Though the two are interrelated, many people continue to fail to see the difference between the “study” and the “design” of flags. Charles A. Spain, the Secretary-General of FIAV described the difference between vexillology and vexillography very eloquently: “Vexillography, the art and practice of flag design, is allied with vexillology, but is not synonymous with that discipline. Vexillography embraces aesthetic values, but vexillology, a social science, does not. To a vexillologist there are no bad flags, only flags to be studied.

A flag designer, however, most certainly has opinions on good and bad flags. While one can be both a vexillologist and a flag designer, it is important to distinguish between working as a social scientist versus working as a designer”. This is not a controversial subject.

Neither is it an issue of doctrine but rather basic principles and terminology. If you carry out proper research on flags then you are a “vexillologist”, if you design flags then you are a “vexillographer” and if you simply have an interest in and collect flags, but do not carry out any proper research, then you are a “vexillophile”. No need to be vexed!

Flags and Art Flags are art. In their very conception they are art objects. Flags have to be designed, drawn, painted, created, sewed, manufactured and any other processes you can think of. James Dignan, art critic, flag enthusiast and FOTW admin provides some enlightenment: “All good art, at its most basic, aims to create an emotional response in its viewers, and it is often the artist's specific intention to express a complex idea in graphic form in a way that words alone could not do justice. Flags express just such a complex idea (that of nationhood, for instance) in graphic form, and are designed at least in part to bring about an emotion in the viewer (of pride, patriotism, etc). Most flags are also designed to be aesthetically memorable and unique, something else which is also a quality of art”. What is a “good flag” and “good art” visually is up to you! (Photo left, Shinya Suzuki, Flicker) 1

Standard Exhibition Just recently Ireland saw its latest flag-themed art exhibition held from 10 March to 8 April 2017 at the ArtBox on James Joyce Street in Dublin. It definitely did not disappoint, as did not the name - Standard Exhibition. Curated by the wonderful Davey Moor, it featured artworks by six Irish artists Neil Carroll, Conor Mary Foy, Olivia Hassett, David Lunney, Alex de Roeck and Zoe Sheehy. Though largely focused on the abstract side of art, the flag theme was evident and stimulating. As part of the exhibition, Stan Zamyatin, the society’s head of Flag and Heraldic Studies was invited to take part in a panel discussion on 8 April 2017. The discussion involved a talk by the curator and individual descriptions by the artists of their own works, which gave much more meaning and sense to the abstract works. Stan thoroughly enjoyed attending the event and exhibition, especially answering questions on various aspects of flag design, history and meaning. We only hope that more flag and heraldic-themed exhibitions will take place in Ireland in the future.

Six Conversations about Flags To coincide with the Standard Exhibition, a booklet was produced entitled Six Conversations about Flags that documented the email exchanges between Davey and the six artists. We found many of the conversations very enlightening and thought-provoking. For this reason, we could not help but share some of these. We are very grateful to Davey for giving us permission to copy and paste certain parts of the conversations. We have divided the various extracts into different parts and have added our own images that we feel reflect the themes discussed. We hope you can enjoy them as much as we have.

Flags as artwork Davey: The flag can be a vehicle while not necessarily the journey. Most artists in the show have used vexillological instruments as a support for varied personal narratives ideas...there will be much to explore. In a way, perhaps all artworks are flags, of sorts. What do you think? (Left, Mark B. Schlemmer, Flicker) Zoe: I do agree that all artworks could be flags – a monument of what the artist wants to express: their ideas/feelings or their process. A flag I suppose, on its very basic level, is used to communicate something and itself needs a context and particular place to be understood, which is very like an artwork.

Flags as versatile Zoe: I think the height of flags are very interesting – like certain heights of masts demand such authority – especially with national flags and how changing their height communicates different things, like a flag half-mast means a sign of respect etc. I think this lends itself in a way to artwork, in how it is placed and where it is placed, or if a work is large or small, it really affects the way the observer interprets it.

Davey: As you say, height and positioning is vital to reading, as is angle and orientation.

That versatility is one thing that sets them apart as artistic representation I guess, as fine art is more fixed in these terms, usually. Curators have certainly been known to push this boundary, sometimes to the chagrin of artists. (Photo right, Mactographer, Wikipedia) 2

Flags as markers of an end point Zoe: I think it’s interesting how flags have been used in exploration to mark the end of a journey...The first thing I really remember about flags was learning about the Moon landing and how the American flag was put on the Moon (I always thought that was such a mad thing to do) ... it’s such a weird concept when you really think about it, yet this was how they symbolised the end of this massive venture – putting up this flag and how it had a sense of ownership and authority to it... There’s such a human quality to needing a kind of symbol (and ritual) of finishing something and to leave a mark (even how out of place it is). And I think this lends itself to this idea of all art works being flags – that the finished piece is the marker of the end point of the art process for the artist that is put up and displayed – the artist leaving their mark.

Davey: You pin down the vexillological nature of artworks when you say they are destination markers. It’s interesting you bought up lunar flags—I read an article about them last week. It focuses on Apollo 11, the first landing. There were questions at the time whether the US should use the Stars & Stripes and not, say, the UN flag. America was and is a signatory to the so-called Outer Space Treaty, which prohibits claiming any part of space as sovereign, so it was something they gave considerable thought to. But having thrown down the gauntlet it was inevitable they would mark it nationalistically.

Flags as antagonistic Olivia: In relation to my practice on reflection I see commonalities between the antagonisms upheld and glorified through heraldry and the original framework of my practice, where the binary tensions between the outside/inside, male/female, hard/soft elements of the human body were represented as a tension within the works. (Photo right, Oast House Archive) Davey: I appreciate your identifying heraldry as antagonistic. This idea may be, by extension, true of vexillology in general. By their act of identifying bounded ideas of belonging, they are by and large exclusive. Even flags which ostensibly are allencompassing inclusive, such as the many that have been created to represent Earth—I especially like Van Kirk’s World Peace Flag and the Flag of Earth—are excluding our potential extra-terrestrial brethren.

Flags as exclusive and inclusive Davey: It could be said that flags are generally exclusive, as opposed to inclusive. Walking under them typically requires some sort of statement of membership. Rainbow flags are on the softer side of this. When I researched the LGBT banner I discovered a wealth of affiliations to similar designs, both past and present. It’s fair to say a common thread is one of inclusiveness and unity. Rainbows just don’t scream bigotry.

Neil: I agree that the LGBT rainbow flag is a powerful subjective symbol of inclusiveness and unity. It does not delineate a territory or doctrine, but rather an aspiration to equality and self-determinism. And though a rainbow can make us feel joyous, it symbolises a very pertinent aspiration. (Photo left, Max Pixel) 3

Flags as evocative symbols David: When you see the Canadian flag, you know it refers to Canada because you have seen it before and have been told at an early age what Canada is. Flags can be very evocative of a place, what for example could be more quintessentially British than The Union Jack? When the audience see my flags in the exhibition they will not have any foreknowledge. I will have to use other means to convey a strong sense of place whilst retaining the essentially flagginess of the works.

Davey: It’s interesting that you note the quintessentially British nature of the Union Flag. Undoubtedly true, though not without an interesting history. Created as a marriage of England’s St George’s and Scotland’s St Andrew’s crosses in 1606 by James I, in 1801, after the Act of Union, St Patrick’s cross was (rather elegantly) added to represent Ireland, and there it somewhat awkwardly remains.

Flags as direct yet obscure Davey: It’s interesting that you identify national flags as being didactic. Have you been reading Good Flag, Bad Flag?! I think, to the patriotic, they are potent and immediate emotional triggers. The symbolism of many flags is obscure, despite sometimes seeming pretty self-evident, like for example the French tricolore: the national ideals of liberty, equality and fraternity only being a recent pairing for blue, white and red - though both originate from the eighteenth century. (Photo left, South African Tourism, Flicker) Alex: Yeah, I think I meant distinct and direct in their formal qualities rather than didactic in their message. Yeah, I’ve read Good Flag, Bad Flag a couple of times now and continue to feel more attracted to the busy overly designed flags for their pictorial qualities. I particularly like the last section where I get to choose which is good and bad.

Flags as embedded aspirations Neil: Because of our history of civil war and because I grew up in the 80s, I always had a feeling that the Irish flag was almost like a call to arms, or at least, a marking of a defiance and difference. I thought much the same of the British flag and when I saw it, I did not feel welcome. I think it said to me, ‘you are not us, so keep out’. Yet, in the US, the sighting of a flag meant almost the opposite. It was a show of solidarity and possibility. The ‘American Dream’ was contained in the image of the nation’s flag. Of course, I was a kid and in the 80s America seemed like a golden ticket. But it makes me think that flags can encapsulate the ‘mood’ of a populace. Our aspirations and those of our ancestors are embedded within these pieces of cloth. It’s almost like the way, in prehistoric times, the banner would be dipped in blood, soaked in that which signifies life. Memories, thoughts and aspirations too, signify a life lived, though they do not have a direct physical manifestation, but can only be symbolised in images such as flags.

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Flags as markers of achievement Davey: The use of flags in this way could be seen to illustrate another, far less delimitative aspect of their function: as a badge of pride and a marker of achievement.

Olivia: I recognise and welcome the intrinsic positive aspects of pride and achievement associated with heraldry and vexillology. The planting of a flag in honour of a new discovery, feat of human prowess or endurance is a perfect example of this. Of course it not only aligns the victor to a particular group or nation but with the raising of a national flag comes the onslaught of heightened emotions, excesses of camaraderie and a feeling that everyone in the group is a winner. (Photo right, Suntalkha, Wikipedia)

50 Shades of Blue The colour blue can be found everywhere, both below and above. The earth’s surface is made up of 70% water, as is an average adult human body. It is easy to see why this wonderful colour has historically captured the human imagination and has been used so extensively in art. In vexillology we know that blue is the third most common colour used amongst national flags after red (first) and white (second). For obvious reasons, the colour is usually associated with water and the sky, such as on the Greek and Finnish flags. It also symbolises wealth (Laos), loyalty (Estonia) and the monarchy (Thailand).

In the West it has traditionally been associated with the Virgin Mary and her blue mantle, the flag of Galicia (Spain) being the prime example. In the East it has traditionally been the colour of the Mongols and Turkic people (the word turquoise comes from French meaning "Turkish") and for this reason appears on the flags of Mongolia, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan and arguably Uzbekistan.

Blue – the national colour of Ireland It is true that the national colour of Ireland is green and everybody knows it.

However, despite what many people like to believe, blue is also the national colour, being the older and traditional one. Probably the best living proof of this is the Irish national coat of arms (blue field), which despite inconsistent usage and depiction can be traced back to an illustration in the 13th century French roll of arms known as the Wijnbergen Armorial (c.1270). In Irish mythology the sovereignty of Ireland (Flaitheas Éireann) was often depicted as a woman wearing a blue robe and the earlier Christian depictions of St. Patrick were all blue, the Legenda Aurea manuscript (c. 1270) containing probably the oldest illustration (right). In addition, the ancient Kingdom of Meath was symbolised as a king on a throne on a blue background and from 1386 the Lordship of Ireland was depicted with a blue emblem with three crowns, something that now symbolises the province of Munster.

Green as a whole only began to properly appear during the 18th century and became an established Irish national colour with the United Irishmen Rebellion of 1798 after which it grew in popularity and usage during the Romantic 19thcentury. However, blue was never fully replaced by green and continued to be introduced in various flags and emblems throughout the 20th century. These included the Starry Plough flag (not Banner) in 1934, the Presidential Standard in 1945, 2nd Brigade in 1966 and Naval Service Colour in 1996. Today blue is the second most common colour used on Irish county flags and features on ten of them: Dublin, Wicklow, Waterford, Tipperary, Clare, Laois, Roscommon, Longford, Cavan and Monaghan. Blue is also the colour of the Irish Constitution, the carpets of the lower house (Dáil), the upper house (Seanad), the Saint Patrick's Hall (used for presidential inaugurations) and until a certain point in the Presidential House (Áras an Uachtaráin).

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When George III created the Order of St. Patrick in 1783, he introduced the so-called St. Patrick’s Blue (light blue) in order to differentiate from the green Order of the Thistle and the dark blue Order of the Garter. The history of the colour and its depiction has been complicated. To add to this complexity, generally speaking, today Irish people regard St. Patrick’s Blue as “dark blue” and British people as “light blue”.

Perhaps the best compromise here is the Dublin GAA County flag (right).

Scottish Blue The Scottish St. Andrew’s Saltire was first hoisted in 1512. Historically various shades of blue were used for the flag. In 2003 the Scottish Parliament voted to standardize the blue by making it officially Pantone 300 and consequently lighter than the 280 Pantone used on the Union Jack (left). As is well known, the Scottish flag was combined with England’s St. George’s Cross in 1606 and then with Ireland’s St. Patrick’s Saltire in 1801 to form the modern British flag. Despite the official ruling in 2003, different shades of blue continue to be used to this day due to essentially many manufacturers doing their own thing. In light of Brexit, expect to see a wee bit of them in the next few years!

Argentinian Blue Exactly 300 years after the first Scottish flag, the Argentinian flag was first hoisted on 27 February, 1812, in the city of Rosario by Manuel Belgrano during the Argentinian War of Independence (1810-18). While this event has never been questioned, the colours on the other hand have historically been debated. Was the first flag of Argentina blue or light blue? Or in Spanish: ¿Fue la primera bandera de Argentina azul o celeste? It is said that the flag is based on the cockades of supporters which in turn came from the colours used in the May Revolution (1810). These in turn are said to come from the light blue on the Spanish Order of Charles III as they symbolised the allegiance to King Ferdinand VII of Spain.

In any case, the Argentinian flag proved to be inspirational during the Latin American Wars of Independence and consequently Argentina created a flag family of its own, just like France, the Netherlands and the US. The “Argentinian colours of Belgrano” were adopted by the newly created United Provinces of Central America in 1823.

Due to internal political divisions it gradually dissolved by 1840, giving way to various countries with various flags. Over time the Argentinian influence remained, giving rise to the modern flags of El Salvador (1912), Nicaragua (1908), Guatemala (1871) and Honduras (1866).

Uruguay (1830) and Costa Rica (1848) were also influenced, but they also incorporated elements from American and French flags respectively. As you can see on the chart to the right, all those countries have various shades of blue.

A recent study of the flag from the Church of San Francisco in Tucumán, the oldest existing Argentinian flag (1814), by a team of researchers from Argentina and Brazil, has revealed that it was in fact a darker shade of blue. Although not Belgrano’s first flag, it was based on it and ordered to be made after a meeting with Belgrano by the governor of Tucumán Bernabé Aráoz. The flag text translates as: To the School of San Francisco, Tucumán 1814, donated, Sir Bernabé Aráoz.

Now this might explain the dark shades of blue on the flags inspired by Argentina!

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Battle of Tallaght Anniversary On 5 March 2017, a Sinn Féin-organized event was held in Tallaght in order to commemorate the 150th Anniversary of the Battle of Tallaght. The historic event took place in 1867, in the village of Tallaght, what is now Dublin’s largest southern suburb.

The battle was part of an Ireland-wide rebellion organized by the Fenian movement, the name Fenian coming from the legendry Irish fian, meaning “band of warriors”. The movement was originally founded as a reaction to the Famine in 1858 on both sides of the Atlantic, ten years after the failed Young Irelander Rebellion. It consisted of the American Fenian Brotherhood and the Irish Republican Brotherhood (IRB). While the Young Irelanders were inspired by France, the Fenians were inspired by the US. The Fenian rebellion or Fenian Rising of 1867 was a failure but nevertheless had an important impact on the future of Ireland, namely the 1916 Easter Rising which was organized by the IRB. While places like Cork and Limerick only saw small clashes against the Irish Constabulary (armed police), Tallaght was larger by comparison, involving several hundred Fenians. Interestingly, in honour of the Constabulary’s work in putting down the Rising, Queen Victoria granted them the prefix “Royal” including the insignia from the Order of St. Patrick in the same year.

Flag from the Battle of Tallaght To the best of our knowledge, the event on 5 March displayed many flags apart from the one that was actually associated with the Battle of Tallaght. The flag in the picture above is actually a modern interpretation of a flag that was said to have been used by of the Saint Patrick's Battalion of the Mexican Army during the Mexican–American War (1846-48). It should be noted that the Fenians did not have one flag but rather various flags that can be divided into three different categories: green harp flags, flags with the sunburst device and American-inspired flags. The flag captured at the Battle of Tallaght belongs to the last category, being based essentially on the canton of the American flag. It is a green silk flag that features 32 golden stars which represent the counties of the whole island and is today stored at the National Museum of Ireland (right, South Dublin Libraries).

Hayes McCoy described the flag in his work A History of Irish Flags (pp.158-159), commenting that it was “reminiscent of the canton of Moore’s flag”. Michael Moore was a Fenian who was arrested in 1865 with the “possession of a coloured drawing of a flag and an actual flag which appears to have been made up from the drawing”.

The drawing depicts a clearly American-inspired flag with a green canton, golden stars and four stripes, representing the four historical Irish provinces (left, National Archives of Ireland). For all you history geeks, 1867 was also the year of the formation of Austro-Hungary, the North German Confederation, Canadian Confederation and the purchase of Alaska by the US from Russia.

Life and Language in Georgia Exhibition The photographic exhibition "Life and Language in Georgia'' opened on 5 April 2017 at our local dlr LexIcon Library in Dún Laoghaire and will run until 29 May. Aimed at promoting the cultural heritage of Georgia it features photos of landscapes, architecture and three ancient Georgian writing systems. In many ways, it continues the work that we have made over the last few years in bringing our society, Dún Laoghaire and indeed Ireland closer to this beautiful 7

country in the Caucasus. In fact, for many years the Georgian Embassy was actually one of the only embassies to be based right in the centre of Dún Laoghaire before moving to Donnybrook. It is wonderful to see that we continue our relationship with them.

The exhibition was officially launched by An Cathaoirleach (chair) of Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown Cllr. Cormac Devlin, the Chargé d'Affaires of Georgia to Ireland George Zurabashvili and Senior Executive Librarian Marian Thérèse Keyes. Cormac Devlin made sure to mention that "our local Genealogical Society in September 2016 travelled to Tbilisi to give an important talk on “The Irish Harp – Then and Now”. The Irish harp dates back to the 9th century and so this talk was both symbolic and important in two ways; firstly it marked the 21st anniversary of diplomatic relations between our respective countries and secondly, Georgia had a connection with the harp too given the fact that the coat of arms of the main Royal family that ruled Georgia had a harp depicted on it too”. Make sure to pay a visit!

ICV27 – London It gives us great pleasure to announce that the society will represent Ireland at the 27th International Congress of Vexillology (ICV) in London, UK. The prestigious event will take place at the Imperial College in Kensington from 7-11 August, 2017 and is being organised by our friends at the Flag Institute. This will be the society’s third attendance at an ICV, after previously attending Rotterdam (2013) and Sydney (2015). The beautiful flag you see above is the official flag for the ICV27. It is based on the flag of the city of London, which itself it simply the flag of England (St. George's Cross) with the addition of a red sword in the upper hoist which is associated with St. Paul who is the patron saint of the city. Interestingly, the flag resembles the Latvian Naval Jack which in turn was based on the Union Jack. In addition, St. Patrick’s Saltire can be made out, which as we all know constitutes the Union Jack.

“County Flags of Ireland” Paper Stan Zamyatin will lead the societal and Irish delegation, in addition to giving a paper on the County Flags of Ireland. Here is an abstract of his paper: This paper deals with the complex history and use of county flags on the island of Ireland. It is revealed that Ireland does not have official county flags, but rather official ‘county colours’, which act as de-facto ‘county flags’. In turn, many different variations of these flags are manufactured and used. To add to the complexity, they have varying degrees of use and recognition amongst the public due to their origins in the traditional Irish sports organization - GAA. In addition, their use in Northern Ireland amongst nationalists and republicans are dealt with along with the general political associations. The paper traces the origin of the ‘county colours’, explores the tradition of livery colours in Europe and demonstrates the similarities to English as well as French rugby and football clubs. In conclusion, the paper attempts to show that despite the unorthodoxy of county flags on the island of Ireland, they have a rightful place in vexillology.

Official Bid for 29th ICV in 2021 As part of the proceedings, we will also make our official bid to host the 29th International Congress of Vexillology in 2021. Currently we are in the process of organising a plan for the congress and already have the full support of the Irish tourist board Fáilte Ireland, our local Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council and many other 8

organisations. We hope to hold the congress in Dún Laoghaire - our beautiful seaside town, south-east of Dublin's city centre. In 2021 the town will commemorate the centenary of the change of its name from Kingstown to the Irish version of its former anglicised name - Dunleary. Even more importantly though the year will see a number of hugely important centenaries take place on the whole island.

2021 - Centenary of Ireland and Northern Ireland 2021 will mark the centenary of the Partition of Ireland and the emergence of our two jurisdictions - Ireland and Northern Ireland, the latter being part of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. As part of the commemorations, many events and exhibitions will be take place across the island on both sides of the border. There is no doubt that the year will involve controversial and sensitive issues, but it will also provide vexillologists with many unique and interesting themes for the study of flags and emblems. We hope that FIAV members will not miss out on this once in a life time opportunity - to come to Ireland, take part in the congress and commemorations and immerse themselves in everything that the Emerald Isle has to offer them in terms of history, culture, heritage, and a nice pint of Guinness. Ireland has a long history of flags – let’s celebrate them together in 2021!

From everyone at the Genealogical Society of Ireland, we wish Graham Bartram, Kath Kearney (Administrator), Ian Sumner (Programme Director), Maggie Sumner (Companion Programme) and Leigh Wetherall (Congress Secretary) the very best with the preparations for the congress. We are very much looking forward to it and are certain that it will be a great success. See you in August and Happy St. George’s Day!

VIBE Summer Newsletter 2017 The VIBE Summer Newsletter will be out in August, right after the London ICV27. We are now looking for people to contribute to this issue. If you would like to write a short piece on something related to flags and emblems, please send an email to bratachaeire@gmail.com. Go raibh míle maith agaibh!

Further Contact Email: bratachaeire@gmail.com Address: Genealogical Society of Ireland, 11, Desmond Avenue, Dún Laoghaire, Co. Dublin, Ireland. A96 AD76 Vexillology Ireland : Brateolaíocht Éireann Website: https://flagsireland.wordpress.com/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Flags.Ireland Twitter: https://twitter.com/flagsireland

Heraldry Ireland : Araltas Éireann Website: http://heraldryireland.com/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Heraldry.Ireland/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/HeraldryIreland

Published by the Genealogical Society of Ireland CLG, Dublin, Ireland ©2017

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