Flag of Department of Alpes-Maritimes

The flag associated with Alpes-Maritimes is a white field with the coat of arms of the county of Nice in the centre, surrounded by a golden crown and two green branches of laurel.

How it came about

Alpes-Maritimes is a department in southern France, capital Nice. Its coat of arms is that of the historic county of Nice: a crowned red eagle, with spread wings, standing on three green hills rising out of a blue sea.

The department has no banner of its own; what flies is the banner of the county, with its motto ‘NICAEA FIDELIS’.

How it has changed

It has never changed. No approval date is recorded.

What it means

• White

  the colour of the field, plain and with no divisions.

• Coat of arms

  white, with a crowned red eagle and spread wings, over three green hills rising out of a blue sea.

• Crown

  golden, above the coat of arms.

• Laurel

  two green branches, one on each side of the coat of arms.

• Motto

  a white ribbon below, with the words ‘NICAEA FIDELIS’.

Fun facts

1. The motto Nicaea Fidelis means faithful to Nice

   The two Latin words of the scroll mean ‘faithful to Nice’. It is the motto of the county, and it appears on the department’s flag too: it is not an ornament of the coat of arms but its declaration of loyalty.

2. A coat of arms in three storeys

   The shield has three layers: the red eagle above, the three green hills in the middle and the blue sea below. It is a coat of arms of the landscape, with the same logic as that of Áncash: each figure is a part of the territory.

3. The department has no banner of its own

   Alpes-Maritimes has never adopted a departmental flag. What is used is the banner of the historic county of Nice, with its crown and its laurel. It is a usual case in departmental France.

Location