European dragon Somerset. The county once formed part of the early-medieval Anglo-Saxon kingdom of Wessex in western England, which too bore a dragon, or wyvern (a two-legged dragon-like creature, as opposed to a four-legged dragon), as a symbol. The Wessex beast is usually colored gold in illustrations. According to the writer on heraldry Arthur Charles Fox-Davies, the red dragon of Wales on the flag originated with the standard of the 7th-century king, Cadwaladr, and was used as a supporter by the Tudor dynasty (who were of Welsh origin). Queen Elizabeth, however, preferring gold, changed the royal mantle and the dragon supporter from
Flag of the Church in Wales the Church of England. In the 1930s, the Church of England started to fly flags of England with the coat of arms of the respective diocese in the upper left of the flag. This practice became popular and was adopted by the Church in Wales unofficially using a flag of St David with the colours reversed in place of the St George's Cross. In 1954 the Church in Wales' governing body passed a motion for an official flag to represent the church. Following negotiations with the College of Arms, it was decided that the new flag would consist of a