The Flag of Nova Scotia: The Oldest Coat of Arms in the Commonwealth

A Heraldic Tradition Older Than Canada

Nova Scotia’s flag is based on the provincial coat of arms granted by King Charles I in 1625 — making it the oldest heraldic symbol in the Commonwealth outside Britain. The flag itself was authorized in 1858, predating Confederation by nine years.

Design and Symbolism

The flag features a blue St. Andrew’s Cross (saltire) on a white field, with the Royal Arms of Scotland (a red lion rampant on a gold shield) in the centre. The design effectively reverses the Scottish national flag, placing the blue saltire on white instead of the white saltire on blue. This inversion was deliberate — Nova Scotia means “New Scotland,” and the flag honours that connection while asserting a distinct identity.

The Royal Arms in the centre link Nova Scotia directly to Scottish royalty and the province’s founding as a Scottish colony under Sir William Alexander in 1621. The flag has remained essentially unchanged for over 160 years.