Last modified: 2005-04-09 by ivan sache
Keywords: ille-et-vilaine | dinard | ermines: 11 (black) | ermine (black and white) | bear: crowned (black) | cercle celtique de dinard | cross (white) | yacht-club de dinard | star (red) |
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![[Flag of Dinard]](../images/f/fr-35-dd.gif)
by Pascal Vagnat
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Dinard is a famous seaside resort located opposite Saint-Malo, across the river Rance.
In 1997, the Municipal Council of Dinard decided to adopt a new flag and instructed the Breton Vexillological Society to submit proposals. The only requirement was an explicit reference to King Arthur, the founder of the city. The final version of the flag was sketched by Philippe Rault and designed by the professional art designer Jakez Derouét. It was presented to the public on 25 May 1998.
The flag has a wide vertical golden stripe along the hoist,
charged with a standing black bear (in
Berlin style). The bear is surmonted by an
antique golden crown. The rest of the flag is filled with ten
horizontal, alternating blue and white stripes.
Blue and white were adopted as colors of the city in 1989. They refer
to the legendary arms of King Arthur (d'azur à trois
couronnes d'or; Azure, three crowns or). The horizontal stripes
represent the sea and the famous beach tents of Dinard, which are
blue and white striped. The number of stripes is meaningless.
Gold represents the thin sand of the beaches.
The bear is the symbolic representation of King Arthur. King Arthur landed near what is now Dinard in spring 513 to help the Breton King Hoël to defeat the Frisian invaders. He built there a fort named Dinarthu, the Bear's fort. In Breton, arth (ancient Breton) or arz (modern Breton) means bear and represents the miltary power of royal essence. Dinarthu became Dinarth and later Dinarz, translated to French as "Dinart", and finally and erroneously changed to "Dinard" when the place became popular at the end of the XIXth century.
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