New Zealand's Coat of Arms
History of the New Zealand Coat of Arms
The first recorded move to establish a Coat of Arms for New Zealand was in 1906. Designs were called for a Coat of Arms, however those being considered were destroyed when fire swept through the Old Parliament Buildings in 1907.
The competition was readvertised in 1908 and some 75 designs featuring everything from kiwis, sheep, cows, moas and lions, to stars, ships, British soldiers, Maori warriors and Union Jacks were received. Three entries were sent to England for final judging. The winning entry was a design by James McDonald, a draughtsman in the Department of Tourist and Health Resorts.
A Royal Warrant granting armorial ensigns and supports was issued on 26 August 1911 and was published in the New Zealand Gazette of 11 January 1912. These arms, known as the 1911 arms, are no longer used.
Although the Royal Warrant of 1911 gave a description of the New Zealand Coat of Arms, by the mid 1940s it was found that there were at least 20 versions of the design in use. A committee was established to arrange for the redrawing and standardisation of the Arms, and a revised version received The Queen's approval in 1956. The principal alterations were; in the crest (which now is St Edward's Crown to symbolise the fact that The Queen is Queen of New Zealand); the quarterings in the shield which were redrawn; the supporters were redrawn so that they faced inwards instead of to the front with the Maori chieftain losing his hei tiki and gaining a kapeu (a greenstone ear pendant); the scroll was replaced by two fern leaves and the name 'New Zealand' was used in the place of 'onward' so as to give a more direct New Zealand touch. These arms are still in use today.