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Saintonge

 

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 pavillon Saintonge
Flag of Saintonge
– Drapeau de Saintonge,
Source, by: Wikipedia (FR)





Flagge Fahne flag drapeau pavillon region Poitou-Charentes
1960–2016,
Unofficial flag of the Region of Poitou-Charentes
– Drapeau de officieux de la Region Poitou-Charentes,
Source, by: http://svowebmaster.free.fr, Thanks to: Thierry Gilabert




Flagge Fahne flag drapeau pavillon Poitou-Charentes
1960–2016,
Unofficial flag of the Region of Poitou-Charentes
– Drapeau de officieux de la Region Poitou-Charentes,
Source, by: Wikipedia (FR)



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Meaning/Origin of the Flag

The flag of the Saintonge shows the image of the coat of arms, a silvery miter between three golden lilies on blue. The between 1960 and 2016 existing Region of "Poitou-Charentes", to which Saintonge belonged, used two unofficial flags. In "Poitou-Charentes" was a flag in use, modeled after historical coats of arms. One model shows two horizontal stripes in silver and black and a red lion in the middle. That flag is of recent origin, and it is reminiscent of the old coat of arms of Poitou from the time of the Plantagenets (look Poitou). Another model combines the heraldry of the four former provinces, in which Poitou-Charentes consists, Poitou (white-black with red lion), Angoumois (golden-red oblique chessboarded), Aunis (partridge) and Saintonge (Mitra).

Source: Wikipedia (FR), Volker Preuß

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Coat of Arms


Wappen arms crest blason Saintonge
Coat of arms of Saintonge
– Blason du Saintonge,
Source, by: Wikipedia (FR)

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Meaning/Origin of the Coat of Arms

The coat of arms of the Saintonge shows a silvery miter between three golden lilies on blue. The miter is those of the Holy Eutropius, the first bishop of Saintes. When the coat of arms was introduced is not known. The lilies suggest the takeover by the House of Capet, probably in 1369 represented by the Duke of Berry, because Berry is heraldical displayed with three lilies.

Source: heraldique.org, 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 · settlement by the Celtic tribe of the Santones

52 B.C. · Roman conquest, the area of the today's Poitou comes to the province of Celtica, later to the province of Aquitania

418 A.D. · the Visigoths be settled as federates

5th century A.D. · conquest of Gaul by the Franks (under King Clovis) to 507 conquest of Aquitaine, expansion of the empire to the Atlantic Ocean, the Pyrenees and the Alps

639 · death of King Dagobert I., the power goes over to the Mayors of the Palace (maior domus) of Austrasia (House of the Carolingians)

687 · Pepin II. asserts itself as Mayor of the Palace throughout the Frankish Empire

8th century · fights between the Dukes of Aquitania and the Frankish kings

751 · Pepin the Short (III., grandson of Pepin II.) eliminates the Merovingian monarchy and let hisself elect to the king from the Franks

839 · first mention of a County of Saintonge as "pagus santonum"

843 · division of the Frankish Empire (Treaty of Verdun), there arise the West Frankish Kingdom of Charles II. (the Bald), the Middle Frankish Kingdom of Lothar (Lotharingia), and the East Frankish Kingdom of Louis II., Aquitaine (including Poitou and Saintonge) comes to the Empire of Charles the Bald

870 · at the division of the Frankish Empire (Treaty of Meersen) arises the West Frankish Kingdom, the East Frankish Kingdom, and the Frankish Kingdom of Italy

877 · Ludwig ascends the West Frankish throne, Aquitaine is given as a fief and a duchy to Rainulf, Count of Poitiers, (House of the Ramnulfids)

880 · by the division of the Frankish Empire (Treaties of Verdun and Ribbemont) arises the West Frankish Kingdom (later France), the East Frankish Kingdom (later German Empire), the Kingdom of Italy, the Kingdom of Upper Burgundy (under Rudolf the Welf) and the Kingdom of Lower Burgundy persists

9th century · the Counts of Poitou take over the County of Saintonge

987 · death of the childless West Frankish King Louis V. (House of Carolingians), his heir and uncle Charles of Lower Lorraine could not prevail, the nobility elects Hugh Capet (House of Capet) to the king, the Capetians are the Kings of France to 1328

1033 · William VI ., the Thick, Duke of Aquitaine, Count of Poitou, Count of Saintonge, is captured in Moncontour by Gottfried Martel, the release was only done against the investiture of the Saintonge

1060 · death of Gottfried Martel, Count of Anjou and Saintonge, the inheritance goes to the nephews (ancestors of the dynasty of Plantagenet)

1062 · Duke William VIII. of Aquitaine takes over the Saintonge again

1152 · Henry Plantagenet marries Duchess Eleanor of Aquitaine, the duchies of Aquitaine and Gascony, and in this way the Saintonge too, come to the house of Anjou-Plantagenet

1154 · death of Stephen of Blois (King of England) , Henry is his successor as Henry II., Anjou becomes in this way a fief of the French king, which is a part of the crown of England (House of Anjou-Plantagenet)

1204 · Philip Augustus, King of France, conquers Normandy, Anjou, Maine and Touraine (Angevin Empire of the Plantagenets)

1205 · Philip Augustus, King of France, conquers Poitou

1224 · King Louis VIII. of France, son of Philip Augustus, conquers Aquitaine, except Gascony the last possession of the Plantagenets in France, Poitou and Saintonge (including Aunis) come directly to the crown, La Marche, Périgord, Angoulême and Auvergne become fiefs

1259 · Treaty of Paris (Abbeville), King Henry III. of England recognizes the loss of Aquitaine, and receives in this way the Saintonge, which is united with Gascony to the Duchy of Guyenne, as fief

1328 · death of King Charles IV. (the Fair), extinction of the direct Capetian line, according to Salic Law Count Philip of Valois (Son of Prince Charles of Valois, first cousin of King Charles IV.) came on the French throne (as King Philip VI .), the English king Edward III. lays claim to the throne as a maternal nephew of Charles IV., reason for the "Hundred Years War" (Anglo-French War, 1338–1453), out of the House of Valois came all kings of France from 1328 to 1589

1356 · Battle of Maupertuis, Poitou is an English possession again

1360 · Treaty of Brétigny, Aquitaine (with Saintonge, Poitou and Aunis) becomes an English possession again and is even released from the feudal dependence of the French kings

1369 · Karl V., King of France, conquers Poitou and hands it over to his brother John, the Duke of Berry

1375 · Treaty of Bruges, the English king Edward III. cedes the Saintonge and other areas to France, formation of the provinces of Aunis and Saintonge

1428 · King Charles VII. of France hands over the County of Saintonge to James I. , King of Scotland

1469 · King Louis XI. of France hands over the County of Saintonge as appanage to his brother, Prince Charles of Valois

1472 · death of Charles of Valois, the title goes back to the Crown of France

1694 · the provinces of Saintonge and the Anuis become merged

1776 · the already in the 14th century created governorates of the civil administration of the kingdom of France become committed to a number of 39, and correspond in this way to the number of provinces, in previous years could any provinces be summarized in one governorate

1789 · French Revolution, the governorates and provinces become abolished, Saintonge and Aunis become summarized in the department of Charente-Inférieure (later Charente-Maritime)

1960 · reintroduction of regions in France, the Saintonge doesn't play a role, affiliation with the newly created Poitou-Charentes region (capital: Poitiers), of course not within the historic boundaries, just by integrating of the departments of Charente-Maritime, Charente, Deux-Sèvres and Vienne

2016 · the Poitou-Charentes region merges with the Limousin and Aquitaine regions in the new, larger region of New Aquitaine (Nouvelle-Aquitaine, capital: Bordeaux)

Source: Wikipedia, Taschenatlas Weltgeschichte

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Origin of the Country's Name

The name "Saintonge" goes back - like the name of the city "Saintes" - to the Celtic tribe of the Santones, who formerly lived here.

Source: Volker Preuß

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