This is a Grant of Arms issued by the College of Arms in London in 1975, formally granting a coat of arms, crest, supporters and badge to the Borough of Wyre in Lancashire.
The document is an official Letters Patent, written in traditional heraldic language and calligraphy.
The document also repeatedly refers to: “Wyre District Council” and explains the local government reorganisation that created the district in 1974.
It states that: Wyre District Council desired to have armorial ensigns duly granted with lawful authority. In other words, the newly created council wanted an official coat of arms.
The three arms displayed above the text belong to the officers who issued the grant:
1. Clarenceux King of Arms
2. Garter Principal King of Arms
3. Norroy and Ulster King of Arms
Their signatures and seals appear at the bottom of the document.
The document records that under the Local Government Act 1972, a new authority called Wyre District Council was created on 1 April 1974.
The new district was formed from areas previously administered by:
• Fleetwood Borough Council
• Poulton-le-Fylde Urban District Council
• Thornton Cleveleys Urban District Council
• Garstang Rural District Council
• Preesall Rural District Council
The council then petitioned the Kings of Arms for official heraldic bearings.
The large crest on the left is the Borough of Wyre coat of arms. The motto reads UTRAQUE PARTE FLUMINIS and has a Latin meaning: “On both sides of the river” A reference to the River Wyre and the communities on each bank.
The crest includes a windmill above the helmet which represents the Fylde’s and Thornton’s agricultural heritage.
The shield is supported by:
• a white wolf
• a golden lion
These draw on historical local families and heraldic traditions connected to the area.
The shield contains:
• blue wavy bands representing the River Wyre
• a ship, representing Fleetwood and maritime activity
• red Lancashire roses
• additional emblems linking the borough’s constituent areas
The circular badge shown in the centre of the text contains:
• a windmill representing ‘Windmill Land’ along the Fylde Coast
• blue and white waves
This served as a simplified civic emblem.
This is effectively the birth certificate of Wyre’s civic identity following the 1974 local government reorganisation. It legally established the Borough’s heraldic arms and symbols.
It records the creation of modern Wyre and the symbolism chosen to represent the borough’s history, river, maritime connections, agriculture and constituent communities.
The date visible in the closing section is the 3 December 1975, when the grant was formally issued.