Dublin Coat of Arms

The True Coat of Arms of Dublin

When people picture the coat of arms for Dublin, it’s usually a blue shield with three burning castles.  It’s everywhere: on T-shirts, coasters, keyrings, the Mansion House door, old street lamps, even the Dublin GAA jersey.  These three castles are deeply woven into the city’s identity.  But interestingly, they only belong to Dublin City, not the traditional County Dublin.

City, Not County

The city arms: three flaming castles on a blue (‘Azure’) field, traditionally symbolise the courage of Dublin’s citizens in defending the city.  They were officially granted to the city in 1607, though the imagery had been used as a town seal for centuries prior.

County, Not City

The ceremonial County Dublin bears a very different coat of arms: a gold (‘Or’) shield with a single black (‘Sable’) corvid or raven, topped off with a flame as its Crest.  The raven nods to Dublin’s Viking roots, as Norse settlers often used the raven as a badge.  Beneath the bird is a woven hurdle, referencing the Irish name Baile Átha Cliath (“Town of the Hurdle Ford”).

This shield is significantly younger, having been granted by the freshly separated Office of the Chief Herald in 1944.  The City’s ‘Three castles’ coat of arms is fundamentally ancient, and so when the County was finally granted Arms in the 1940s, it’s unsurprising that it never gained widespread knowledge. 

No. 11 Parnell Square

At No. 11 Parnell Square, the former headquarters of Dublin County Council, the Georgian façade proudly displays the County arms, a rare and important reminder of the historical difference between city and county, as well as Ireland’s long heraldic tradition.

When the Irish Heritage Trust in partnership with Poetry Ireland/ Éigse Éireann took responsibility for No. 11 and began conservation work, preserving the stone shield became a priority in order to preserve this story.  Making this preservation work more urgent was the 1993 Local Government (Dublin) Act, which had formally abolished County Dublin, replacing it with three new local authorities, resulting in three new coats of arms.  As IHT Board member Avril Doyle (a T.D. at the time) remarked of the passing of the Bill, “I find it rather strange that we in this House are abolishing County Dublin.  I am not sure whether Dubliners realise that that is what we are about today.”  So for Dubs of all stripes, Northside, Southside, or West, it’s the gold shield and the looming black raven, still visible at Parnell Square, that truly represents the heritage of the whole County Dublin.