The shield is divided into three horizontal fields. The first bears three gold fleurs-de-lis on a blue background, a traditional symbol of royal France. The second is a gold lion passant guardant on a red background, a traditional symbol of British royalty. The third is three green maple leaves on a gold background, a traditional symbol of Canada. The shield is surmounted by a royal crown, and accompanied by a silver scroll bearing the provicial motto, Je me souviens ("I remember").
Former Quebec coat of arms |
Or on a Fess Gules between two Fleur de Lis in chief Azure, and a sprig of three Leaves of Maple slipped Vert in base, a Lion passant guardant Or.
This was modified by Order-in-Council of the Quebec government in 1939 as follows:
Use the Royal arms of France Modern ["azure, three fleurs-de-lys Or"] in chief.
It has been argued that since heraldry is a royal prerogative, not provincial, that the Quebec government had no authority to make this change; however, this coat is the one used by the Quebec government since that time, and no serious attempt to change the situation has come to light.
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