Glesga Coat o Airms


re-told by rableather

Ask oany Glaswegian aboot their City's coat of arms and motto and they'll tell yi..




The Tree that Ne'er Grew

Yin cald cald winter's nicht St Mungo made an auld stump o frozen tree burst inta flames fur nae ither reason than he telt it tae. An why? becuase the fire at his auld sckuil hud gone oot an the weans wur freezin.

The Burd that Ne'er Sang

The same sckuil where the sckuilie's pet robin hud been killed by some evil laddies fur fun. St Mungo had broucht the bird back tae life

Thi Fish That Ne'er Swam

A lang time ago in a country ca'd Strathclyde (no jist an area o Scotland) there lived a King an his Queen, The Queen o Cadzow. The King luved his Queen a lot sae he gied hir a muckle great diamond ring. Nae that lang efter the King hud tae gang awa tae war an thi Queen hud tae rule thi kingdom aw by hirsel.

While he wis goan the Queen gave thi ring tae a knight that hud done hir a favour. When the knight wis leavin thi palace he hud tae cross the Avon waater an he drapped thi ring. He searched an he searched, bit he could nae fun it. He went back tae the palace an telt the Queen.... she wis awfie upset... whit wid thi King say when he got back?

She sent fur a local monk, St Mungo, an confided hir problem tae him. He telt the knight tae gang tae a certain spot oan the The Avon Waater, tae hunker doon an grab thi first fish he fun there.

The knight, wi nae idea if it wid wurk, did as he wis telt. He hunkered doon by the muckle boulder an caught thi fish. He took the fish tae the banks o thi river an cut it open an there, in it's belly he fun thi ring.



The Bell that Ne'er Rang.



The bell is said tae be a presant fae thi Pope tae St Mungo, who broucht it back taeStrathclyde. Thi legend says that he rung it jist the wance and said "Let GLasgow Flourish". This wis taken by the people o Glesga as thier motto and thi story o St Mungo is shown oan the Glesga coat o arms.

Things tae think aboot



  • 1.In which river did the knight loose the ring?
  • 2.Where is the Avon Water? (Glasgow, Perth, Hamilton)
  • 3.What was the name of the monk who sent the knight to catch the fish?
  • 4.Was the Queen wise to give the knight the ring in the first place?
  • 5.How many of these stories do you think could be true?
  • 6.Label the coat of arms with the heading for each story?
  • 7.Choose any story you know and draw a symbolic picture that could be put on a coat of arms

    If you need a picture of this coat of arms for use in the classroom click the thumbnail


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