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Blois

 

Contents

Flag

Meaning/Origin of the Flag

Coat of Arms

Meaning/Origin of the Coat of Arms

Map of the historical Regions in France

Explanations about the Regions

History

Origin of the Country's Name



Flag

Flagge Fahne flag drapeau Blois
Flag of Blois – Drapeau de Blois,
Source, by: Wikipedia (DE)



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Meaning/Origin of the Flag

The flag of Blois is a scutcheon flag. Its design displays the image of the coat of arms of the Counts of Blois.

Source: Volker Preuß

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Coat of Arms


Wappen arms crest blason Berry
ca. 940–1231, Blois
Coat of arms of the County of Blois
– Drapeau de Comté de Blois,
Source, by: Wikipedia (DE)


Wappen arms crest blason Blois Châtillon
1231–1391, Châtillon
Coat of arms of the Counts of Blois
– blason de Comté de Blois,
Source, by: By Jimmy44Image created for the Blazon Project of the French Wikipedia [GFDL or CC BY 3.0], via Wikimedia Commons


Wappen arms crest blason Blois Orléans
1391–1489, Orléans
Coat of arms of the Counts of Blois
– blason de Comté de Blois,
Source, by: Wikipedia (D)

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Meaning/Origin of the Coat of Arms

The coat of arms of Blois shows a white oblique-right bar on blue ground, which is bounded above and below by golden lines. After the extinction of the Counts of Blois, the county came in 1231 to the House of Châtillon, powerful gentries who were temporarily enfeoffed with several counties, but never ascended to the high nobility. Their coat of arms showed a six-fold clefted shield, between red and blue and white iron helmets, and a golden shield-head, which is added with blue strips for the Counts of Blois. The House of Châtillon sold Blois to the House of Orléans in 1391, who had the title of counts until 1489, as Blois came right to the crown.

Source: Heraldique Europeenne, Wikipedia (FR), Volker Preuß

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Map of the historical Regions in France

The historical, French Regions:

in black: governorate and province in 1776,
in red: former county, province oder governorate

Map: Volker Preuß

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Explanations about the Regions

The until the French Revolution existing provinces (or governorates) have been historically grown structures, which had their roots oftenly in former fiefdoms of the French crown, historic counties and duchies. They oftenly existed for hundreds of years and had preserved regionality (e.g. cultural particularities and regional languages). On the occasion of the French Revolution such phenomena were of course not desirable, and as part of their bloody and violent egalitarianism any regional references were eliminated. Shortly after the French Revolution the provinces were dissolved and France became divided into many départements, which should have approximately the same size and the same status. The départements were named after rivers or mountains, to use never and in no circumstances the name of an old province. However, there was no success in cutting the connections of the people of France to their respective regions, so that administrative regions were re-created in 1960, to have a better control in regional administrative processes. In this way became départements, which were placed in a historical province, administratively grouped to an oftenly historically named region. The resulted structures coincide only approximately with the boundaries of the old provinces. In the strictly centralist France any regionality is avoided, so that even the official flags of these regions mostly look like flags of companies, unloving, unhistorical, technocratic and modernistic, and these flags should not be a subject of any lexical considerations here. Only in a few of that regions, exist official flags which remember the historical models. But, even the existence of these today's regions is douptful, because in 2014 was passed a territorial reform valid from the year 2016, that reduces the number of the existing regions by merging to nearly the half. However, there exist unofficial flags in nearly all of these regions, which should remember the old provinces and the old heraldry.

Wikipedia Link to the regions of France: click or tap here
FOTW Link to the regions of France: click or tap here

Source: Flags of the World, Wikipedia (D), Volker Preuß

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History

Antiquity, Romans · the city of Blesae is an important place and becomes in the 9th century the center of the Carolingian County of Blesis (Pagus Blesensis) , the name of the place became transformed in the 15th century to Blaisois, and in modern times to Blois

5th century A.D. · conquest and settlement by the Franks, to the Frankish Empire

880 · Treaty of Verdun and Ribbemont, at the division of the Frankish Empire comes the region to the West Frankish Kingdom (later France)

about 940 · Robert the Brave, Marquis of Neustria, inherits the County of Blois to his son in law , the Viscount of Tours, a Capetian, who becomes the founder of the House of Blois

956/960 · Theobald I. of Blois, seizes the Counties of Chartres and Châteaudun

about 990 · acquisition of the Counties of Beauvais and Dreux by the Counts of Blois as a fief

1019/25 · the Counts of Blois get the Counties of Troyes and Meaux as a fief

1107–1152 · reign of Theobald IV., the Great, from the House of Blois, the Counties of Troyes and Meaux are merged to the County of Champagne

1152 · inheritance, the Champagne comes to the senior line of the House of Blois, the County of Blois comes to the junior line of the House of Blois

1218 · extinction the junior line of the House of Blois

1231 · the legacy of Blois junior line comes by marriage to the Counts of Saint-Pol from the House of Châtillon

1391 · the House of Châtillon solds the County of Blois to Duke Louis of Orléans, son of Charles V., King of France

1462 · the later Louis XII. , King of France, is born in Blois

1498 · Louis XII. , King of France , grandson of Charles V., makes Blois to a component of the Crown of France, Blois becomes the residence and resort of rhe kings and the seat of the imperial estates, comes later to the gouvernorate (province) of Orléanais

1588 · King Henry III. convenes the imperial assembly to Blois, murder of Duke Henry of Guise and execution of his brother, Cardinal Louis de Guise

1610–1643 · reign of King Louis XIII. over France, his brother John Gaston of Orléans resides at Blois

1643–1715 · reign of King Louis XIV. over France, his brother Philip of Orléans resides in Blois

1789 · French Revolution, the governorates (provinces) become abolished, the Orléanais is divided into departments

31st of March in 1814 · allied troops conquer Paris, Empress Marie Louise, wife of Emperor Napoléon I. of France, eludes on 1st of April in 1814 to Blois, on 2nd of April Napoléon was deposed by the Senate and on 6th of April he abdicates

Source: Wikipedia (D), Meyers Konversationslexikon

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Origin of the Country's Name

The name "Blois" has its roots in the capital of the county. Already in Romans times the city of Blesae is an important place and becomes in the 9th century the center of the Carolingian County of Blesis (Pagus Blesensis). The name of the place became transformed in the 15th century to Blaisois, and in modern times to Blois.

Source: Meyers Konversationslexikon, Volker Preuß

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