- Flag of Leinster
The Flag of Leinster consists of an
Irish harp in gold on a green background:vert a harp or stringedargent . The arms ofLeinster are (among other examples) represented on the flag of theProvinces of Ireland , as well as in a stylised version in the logo of theLeinster Rugby team.Origins
A silver stringed golden
harp on a green background has long seen duty as the arms of the province ofLeinster .Fact|date=April 2008Possibly the oldest instance of the use of the harp device on a green field was the flag of
Owen Roe O'Neill . Owen Roe, nephew of Hugh, had entered the Spanish service after his uncle's defeat at Kinsale in1601 . Owen rose to prominence in the Spanish army, and in1642 returned toIreland to assist the Irish Confederation in the war that broke out the previous year. It is recorded that his ship, the St Francis, as she lay at anchor atDunkirk , flew from her mast top "the Irish harp in a green field, in a flag". [Prof. Brian Ó Cuív - Studia Hibernica - 1978] Because the confederation's headquarters were located inKilkenny – the principal city of Leinster "without the pale" – his flag may have had a special significance for that province.Fact|date=April 2008 The Confederation seal also incorporated, among a number of other motifs, a representation of theIrish harp .Fact|date=April 2008ee also
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Coat of arms of Ireland
*Green Ensign Notes
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