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Versailles (Municipality, Yvelines, France)

Flag of Versailles, heraldically correct version (left) and version in use (right) - Images by Pascal Vagnat, 18 June 2004

Flag of Versailles
Cercle Nautique de Versailles

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Flag of Versailles

The flag of Versailles is divided horizontally white over blue in a ratio of about 1:3. It is defaced with the arms of the town, namely a shield with three three gold fleurs de lis on a blue field in the base and a double-headed rooster in natural colours on a white field in the chief. The shield is crowned with a mural crown composed of alternating towers and fleurs de lis.

The colours of the flag are of course those of the coat of arms. 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 created. The coat of arms was painted on the flag used by the National Guards in Versailles. The actual design of the coat of arms is by the French heraldist Robert Louis.

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. However, the brain is able to reconstruct the shield border probably because it expects to "see" a shield (and you need to look carefully to "blur" your brain and see there is no border).
- the smaller flag, hoisted in various places in the town, has a rather thick and not so aesthetical black border, as on the images shown on this page.
- on the greater flag, the mural crown surmonting 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.
- there is a plain white flag with the municipal coat of arms flying over a hotel in the center of the town.

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 municipality.

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