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Pays de la Loire (Region, France)

Last modified: 2024-01-28 by olivier touzeau
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[Flag]         [Flag]

Region Pays de la Loire
Left, Flag or the Region - Image by Philippe-Pierre Darras, 20 June 2003
Right, Flag of the Regional Council - Image by Olivier Touzeau, 22 September 2007

See also:

Administrative data

Departments: Loire-Atlantique, Maine-et-Loire, Mayenne, Sarthe, Vendée
Bordering Regions: Normandie, Bretagne, Centre-Val de Loire, Nouvelle-Aquitaine
Traditional provinces: Brittany, Anjou, Poitou, Maine

Area: 32,082 km2
Population (1995): 3,139,800 inhabitants
Regional prefecture: Nantes

Flag of Region Pays de la Loire

The flag of Region Pays de la Loire, designed in 1976 by the heraldist Hervé Pinoteau, was hoisted on the building of the Regional Council at Nantes in October 1986.
The flag is vertically divided, at hoist the banner of arms of Maine ("Azure semy de lis or a border gules in dexter chief a lion rampant argent"), at fly, the Breton plain ermine, surrounded by a wavy border symbolizing river Loire. In the middle are placed the two interlaced hearts of Vendée. Anjou is not represented but its banner of arms ("Azure, three fleurs-de-lis or a border gules") is quite similar to the banner of Maine.
The flag was designed after the insignia of the 33rd Military Territorial Division of Region Pays de la Loire.
[P. Rault. Les drapeaux bretons de 1188 à nos jours [rau98]]

Pascal Vagnat, 29 March 1999

Flag of the Regional Council

The flag of the Regional Council is white with the logo adopted in October 2006.
Oddly enough, the logo as shown on the flag does not strictly match the graphical charter. The words "PAYS DE LA LOIRE" should have appeared on a single line instead of two.

Valentin Poposki & Olivier Touzeau, 22 September 2007

Former flags of the Regional Council

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Former flags of the Regional Council of Pays de la Loire - Images by Olivier Touzeau, 21 September 2017
Left, 1985-1991
Middle, 1991-2002
Right, 2002-2006

The logotyped flag of the Regional Council shows a stylized map of the region. Blue and green stand for the ocean and the inland, respectively. The map pointing westwards and upwards should give the impression of dynamism.
Created in 1974 by Atelier Graphique Hypercut, the logo was modernized in 1985 and slightly modified in 1991 (Luc Doublet. L'aventure des drapeaux [dou87]).
The flags which were flying (1999) in front of the Regional Council of Pays de la Loire were banners of arms of the Region. The logotyped flag was used inside the building.

A new logo, still showing the map from the ancient logo, was adopted in 2002 and the flag was changed accordingly.

Olivier Touzeau, Philippe-Pierre Darras & Pascal Vagnat, 21 September 2017