Saint Patrick's Saltire - Modern Use of The Flag - in Heraldry

In Heraldry

Regardless of the uncertainty over its origins, the red saltire, or saltire gules on a white field was used in the arms adopted by various Irish organisations, and some outside Ireland. The arms of Trinity College Dublin show two flags, a red cross on white and a red saltire on white, which Hayes-McCoy and Galloway interpret as representing England and Ireland respectively. The arms were granted by Arthur Vicars in 1901, based on a 1612 seal showing uncoloured cross and saltire flags. Bernard Burke's 1864 armory does not specify the flags' format, and nineteenth-century depictions of them vary.

The arms of Cork city show red-saltire flags on the two towers, though not on versions prior to 1800. Coleraine Borough Council includes Saint Patrick's Saltire, as Patrick is said to have given Coleraine its name. The saltire also appears in the coat of arms of the Co. Mayo town of Westport to commemorate the visit of St Patrick to the nearby mountain, Croagh Patrick. It also appears on the arms of Co. Fermanagh The Urban District Council of Rathmines and Rathgar was granted arms in 1929, a year before it was absorbed into Dublin Corporation; these featured a Saint Patrick's Saltire and a Celtic Cross. A red saltire also appears on the arms of County Kildare, but this is because of the association of Kildare with the Fitzgerald family.

The original arms of the Royal Irish Academy in 1786 did not have the saltire, but those granted in 1846 do. There are red saltires in the arms of the Queen's University in Ireland (est.1850, arms granted 1851; dissolved 1879) and its successor Queen's University Belfast (est.1908, arms granted 1910); and the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland.

The Church of Ireland diocese of Connor's arms, granted in 1945, include Saint Patrick's Saltire in memory of his supposed enslavement at Slemish. The Church of England Diocese of Truro, established in 1876, has a Saint Patrick's Saltire in its arms, representing Cornwall's Celtic heritage. The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of New York, whose cathedral is St Patrick's, incorporates the saltire.

St Patrick's National School in Drumcondra, Dublin City has a saltire on its arms St. Patrick's High School, Ottawa has the saltire in its flag and arms.