The Borough of Swindon coat of arms reflects the heritage of Swindon and the surrounding
area. It is made up of elements with specific relevance to the borough and has evolved over time as
the borough itself has changed.
The original coat of arms was adopted in 1901. This was replaced by a new coat of
arms for the Borough of Thamesdown in 1974, which was itself replaced upon the creation of the unitary
authority in 1997.
Borough of Swindon (1900-74)
The town of
Swindon as we know it (effectively an amalgamation of Old Town with ‘New’ Swindon) was officially created
on 22 January 1900, when Queen Victoria granted a Charter of Incorporation - incidentally, the last
she created before her death.
The creation of the new municipal borough necessitated the creation of a borough
coat of arms. A competition was organised and a committee sitting on 18 March 1901 chose two designs
from those submitted.
The final version - a combination of those two designs - was produced by the College
of Heralds and approved at a meeting on 27 June 1901.
At the same meeting, the motto ‘Salubritas et Industria’ (Health and Industry) was
adopted, and the mayor was requested to “kindly furnish a correct drawing of a modern GWR locomotive
for the use of the Herald’s College”.
The significance of the individual elements featured in the arm is as follows:
- The locomotive is a the GWR 4-2-2 ‘White Horse’ (No. 3029), which had been
built in Swindon in 1891
- The red and blue quarters represent ‘Old’ and ‘New’ Swindon
- The three crescents are from the coat of arms of the Goddard family – lords of the manor
of Swindon from 1560, who were closely associated with the development of Old Town
- The three castles similarly derive from the coat of arms of the Vilett family, lords of
the manor on which ‘New’ Swindon was founded
- The mitre represents Odo, Bishop of Bayeux, to whom William the Conqueror gave Old Town
in 1066 (as is recorded in the Domesday Book)
- The winged wheel signifies “swift travel” - another reference to the railway
- The strong arm and crossed hammers illustrate the motto (Health and Industry)
- The helmet surmounting the shield indicates the rank of the person or persons to whom
the arms have been granted – in this case ‘fourth and last degree’, ie: gentlemen and esquires.
Borough of Thamesdown (1974-97)
When the Borough of Swindon
and the Highworth rural district were amalgamated in 1974, a new borough was born. It was named ‘Thamesdown’
(in reference to the River Thames to the north and the Marlborough Downs to the south).The
Swindon motto of 'Salubritas et Industria' (Health and Industry) was retained, but it was necessary
to design a new coat of arms. This incorporated elements from both the old Swindon arms and the Highworth
Rural District arms, which had been adopted in 1968:
- The River Thames is represented by four blue and white waves, and the green
background of the shield represented the Downs
- The three crescents of the Goddard family are retained
- The castle of the Vilett family (which, on the Highworth arms also represented Liddington
and Barbury Castles) remain from the previous Swindon arms
- Above the shield, a stockaded crown on a hill represent Highworth
- At the top, a swan wearing a black and silver circlet represents both the Thames and the
prominent Warneford family of Highworth
- Two iron horses holding hammers support the shield; these represent Swindon’s railway
heritage
It is perhaps surprising to note that there is no locomotive
featured.
Borough of Swindon (1997 to present)
The
Borough of Swindon unitary authority, which covers the same geographical area as the old Thamesdown
Borough Council, was created in April 1997.
Its coat of arms, which was designed by Robert Noel, Bluemantle Pursuivant of the
College of Arms, incorporates elements from the previous coats of arms for the boroughs of Swindon,
Thamesdown and Highworth:
- Castles are again featured, as reference to the Vilett family and to Liddington
and Barbury Castles
- The hammers are also retained to represent Swindon industry and to commemorate the ‘Hammerman
Poet’ - South Marston-born Alfred Williams
- Sheaves of wheat are incorporated - reference to the fertile farm land of the old Highworth
Rural District
- Above the shield, the crowned hill, and the swan which originally represented the River
Thames and the Warneford family are retained, although the swan now stands on a motor wheel to represent
the motor industry
- The supporting horses of the Thamesdown arms have now evolved wings – representing ‘inspiration
and knowledge’
- A GWR locomotive makes a welcome return to the arms – arguably Swindon’s most famous engine:
4-6-0 King George V (No. 6000), which was built in 1927 and now resides in the STEAM Museum