Oak tree as British symbol. Country study United Kingdom

Country study United Kingdom

Lesson 3 National symbols of the UK (plants)

England

The Tudor rose (the Rose of England) was adopted as a national emblem of England around the time of the Wars of the Roses (1455-1485) as a symbol of peace. It is a syncretic symbol where the white rose of the royal house of York and the red rose of the royal house of Lancaster were joined.

You can see it on the dress uniforms of the Yeomen Warders at the Tower of London.

It is featured on the British Twenty Pence coin.

Scotland

The thistle has been the national emblem since it was adopted by King James III, in the 15th century. In the language of flowers, the thistle is an ancient Celtic symbol of nobility of character.

For this reason the thistle is the symbol of the Order of the Thistle, a high knight order of Scotland.

Wales

The daffodil and the leek are symbols of Wales. The origins of the leek can be traced to the 16th century, while the daffodil became popular in the 19th century, encouraged by David Lloyd-George*.

There are many explanations of how the leek was adopted as a national emblem of Wales. One is that St.David advised the Welsh to wear leeks in their caps to distinguish friend from foe, on the eve of battle with the Saxons.

And the daffodil is traditionally worn on St.David's Day on 1st March.

* British Liberal politician and statesman.

Northern Ireland

The national flower of Northern Ireland is the shamrock, a three-leafed plant similar to clover. An Irish tale tells of how Patrick used the three-leafed shamrock to explain the Trinity. He used it in his sermons to represent how the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit could all exist as separate elements of the same entity. His followers adopted the custom of wearing a shamrock on his feast day.

The history

The term Royal Oak:

• is used to denote the escape of King Charles II from the grasps of the parliamentarians after his father's execution.

• is a symbol of England, representing strength and endurance.

Traditions

Oak Apple Day or Royal Oak Day is a holiday celebrated in England on 29th May to commemorate the restoration of the English monarchy, in May 1660. In some parts of the country, the day is also known as Shick Shack Day or Arbour Tree Day.

"Heart of Oak" is the official march of the Royal Navy of the United Kingdom. It is also the official march of the Canadian Navy.

The chorus:
Heart of oak are our ships, jolly tars are our men,
we always are ready; Steady, boys, steady!
We'll fight and we'll conquer again and again.

In 2000, Son of Royal Oak was badly injured during a storm and lost many branches. Another oak tree was planted near the site of the original Royal Oak in 2001 by Prince Charles.

In commemoration of the tree's significance in British history a number of places and things have been named after the Royal Oak. The Royal Oak is the third most common pub name in Britain.

Pubs

• Crown

• Red Lion

• Royal Oak

Next time we are going to talk about

Languages of the United Kingdom and

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