Maltese Cross Meaning For Firefighters

There were many of these knights who risked their lives to save their comrades or structures from the fires.

Maltese cross meaning for firefighters. But there is. It means that the fire fighter who wears this cross is willing to lay down his life for you just as the crusaders sacrificed their lives for their. The firefighter s cross widely used as the symbol for firefighters especially in the united states has often been attributed to st. During the crusades many knights became fire fighters out of necessity.

The maltese cross is a symbol of protection. The maltese cross is a cross symbol consisting of four v or arrowhead shaped concave quadrilaterals converging at a central vertex at right angles two tips pointing outward symmetrically. The maltese cross firefighters. While it s not really there for aesthetic appeal this emblem has a very rich history and it symbolized an elite group of people that have dedicated their lives to serve their everyone in need.

The cross was later called the maltese cross and represented the principles of charity loyalty chivalry gallantry generosity to friend and foe protection of the weak and dexterity in service. The maltese cross is our symbol of protection. It is a heraldic cross variant which developed from earlier forms of eight pointed crosses in the 16th century. The cross is sometimes also confused with the maltese cross.

The story is that these knights had a cross on their tunics and that the saracens used fire as a weapon against them. This cross is almost universally used as the symbol of firefighters around the world. This is the story that this symbol of chivalry has to tell and bring to light the correlation between it and the fire service. So in this article we re going to do a deep dive into what the cross is what it symbolizes and how it s actually used.

It s fitting that the national volunteer fire council and the international association of fire fighters as well as thousands of fire departments across the country have adopted the maltese cross as a symbol that exemplifies the courage and abilities of firefighters. Today firefighters across the country wear the time honored. Although chiefly associated with the knights hospitaller and by extension with the island of malta it has come to be used by a wide array of entities since the early modern period notably the o. Symbolism of the firefighter emblem maltese florian cross the firefighter cross is a symbol of honor valor courage and integrity.

The legend of the maltese cross grew as it became associated with the admirable qualities of loyalty bravery and defender of the weak. It means that the firefighter that wears it is willing to protect and lay down his own life for the safety of his brother just as the crusaders did centuries ago. One can easily find a hundred web sites that will tell you that the symbol of the fire service comes from the knights of malta and their battles with ottoman pirates or the saracens. All of this is true.

The maltese cross is a badge of honor signifying that he works in courage a ladders rung away from death.