UK Flag Institute Spring Meeting 2010: Part X

Alain Raullet is a veteran vexillologist and founder of the Brittany Flag Association. Raullet gave a colourful presentation about his activities to promote and expand vexillology with the public. It was entitled Voices of Vexillology.

Currently Raullet is the most broadcasted vexillologist in the world. Raullet has a set radio program in French, on a Christian radio station. Another activity for Vexillologists, Raullet explained, is to have community flag displays and promote children's design flag contests.

Alain also spiced up his presentation with humour via random slides of Mr. Bean, yawing people, women in sexy tights, and a ski jumping sumo wrestler. Raullet closed his presentation with an audio recording of his vexillology broadcast on French radio.

Painting By Leonardo da Vinci
Lady with Ermine 1490ish

The current popular flag of Brittany is similar to the design of the United States, but instead of stars it has stylized ermine fur skins. The ermine is a type of miniature weasel. The US/Greek design was made by Morvan Marchel in 1923. There is an earlier Breton flag called the Kroaz-Du, which is a black cross on a field of white.

If they ever make a film about Brittany in medieval times fighting for freedom, they can not use the Marchel Flag. The men and women who fought and died for Brittany used a version that more closely resembled the Kroaz-Du, the true blood stained flag of historic Brittany.

As for my flag symmetry idea I have partnered it up with the flag of Cornwall, which is a white cross on a background of black. These two flags exhibit 'Gamma Flag Symmetry' which is an inverse of colours with matching designs. Furthermore both Brittany and Cornwall are the outer members of the Celtic family of nations. Probably the most popular purveyor of things Celtic are the Irish, followed by the Scottish. The Welsh are in the middle, followed by the Cornish and Bretons.

Flag of Cornwall in UK

Flag of Brittany in France

Cornwall was its own Celtic Kingdom during the Anglo-Saxon Kingdom period in Britain. But the Cornish were overtaken by the Anglo-Saxon Kingdom of Wessex before Norman Conquest. Yet the Cornish were able to hold on to their language, today it is an endangered language. Brittany was a Celtic Duchy that resisted complete political domination by the French until the 1500s. A Duchy is one level below Kingdom.

Brittany and Cornwall are semi-official Celtic nations, long hidden in the background of England and France. Fate has shuffled them to peninsulas on the west ends of the English Channel. They are ancient Celtic cousins separated by the twisting hand of history. One tied to the UK the other France. It is fateful grace that their banners reflect their parallel coastlines.





















LE ERMINE:
The petite white weasel with a bit of black

Learn about Brittany's Pride and Flag Here