Reference Letter; The Institute of Heraldry, United States Army, dated 7 November 1991. SUBJECT: Distinctive Unit Insignia
for the 14th Field Artillery
The distinctive unit insignia for the 14th Field Artillery, amended this date to correct the description
of the insignia and revise the symbolism, was:
a. Originally approved for the 14th Field Artillery by letter AG 421.7, 1st Bn. 14th FA, The Adjutant
General's Office, 20 October 1923.
b. Redesignated for the 14th Field Artillery (Armored) by letter AG 421.7 14th FA (Armored), The Adjutant
General's Office, 25 October 1940.
c. Redesignated for the 14th Armored Field Artillery Battalion by letter AG 421.7 14th Armd. Field
Artillery Bn. The Adjutant General's Office, 30 March 1942.
d. Redesignated for the 14th Artillery by letter QMACH 424.2 & 421.4 14th Arty Regt, Quartermaster
Activities (forerunner of the Institute of Heraldry), 21 November 1958.
e. Redesignated for the 14th Field Artillery, effective 1 September 1971, by letter AGAH-A, The Institute
of Heraldry, 3 December 1971.
2. The description and symbolism of the design are as follows:
DESCRIPTION
A silver color metal and enamel device consisting
of a red disc
charged with a white maltese cross within a ring of
fourteen
gouttes d' eau (silver) reversed; attached above a
wreath of the
colors, silver and red, on which is a red and white
American Indian
war bonnet surmounting a silver arrow. attached below,
a silver triparted
scroll inscribed "EX HOC SIGNO VICTORIA" in black
letters.
SYMBOLISM
Scarlet (red) is a color traditionally associated
with Artillery units.
The cross, a heraldic device, and utilized by
the Indians in Oklahoma,
is symbolic of the morning star and is
representative of the dawn of the
14th Field Artillery. The fourteen drops of
water correspond to the
numerical designation of the regiment. The irregular
placement of the
drops is to represent a dried peyote, a species
of small cactus, one
of the sacred emblems of the Comanche and Kiowa
Indians. The war
bonnet pierced by the arrow of Satanta, a noted
Kiowa chief of the
mid-19th century, is really a spear with feathered
end and leather grip.
Satanta was well known among all the Indians
of the Fort Sill region.
COAT OF ARMS.
Blazon:
Shield: Gules a broad armed Maltese cross with slightly reentrant ends
Argent with fourteen gouttes d'eau reversed arranged in the outline of peyote (one of the cactus family, in outline approximating
a circle).
Crest: On a wreath of colors, Argent and Gules, an American Indian war
bonnet Gules and Argent over Satanta's arrow of the last.
Motto: EX HOC SIGNO VICTORIA
Symbolism:
Shield: Scarlet (red) is a color traditionally associated with Artillery
units. The cross, a heraldic device, and utilized by the Indians in Oklahoma, is symbolic of the morning star and is representative
of the dawn of the 14th Field Artillery. The fourteen drops of water correspond to the nemerical designation of the Regiment.
The irregular placement of the drops is to represent a dried peyote, a species of small cactus, on of the sacred emblems of
the Comanche and Kiowa Indians.
Crest: The war bonnet pierced by the arrow of Satanta, a noted Kiowa
Chief of the mid-19th century, is really a spear with a feathered end and leather grip.
Background: The coat of arms was orginally approved for the 14th Field
Artillery regiment on 24 February 1921. It was amended to correct the blazon of the shield on 28 April 1923. It was redesignated
for the 14th Armored Field Artillery battalion on 30 March 1942. It was redesignated for the 14th Artillery Regiment on 21
November 1958. Effective 1 September 1971, it was redesignated for the 14th Field Artillery Regiment. The insignia was amended
to correct the blazon of the shield and revise the symbolism on 7 November 1991.
Chief Satanta was buried in a rather plain grave in Huntsville, but through the efforts of the Kiowa and Comanche, his
remains were moved to Fort Sill in 1963 and his grave is now prominent in the Fort Sill Cemetery.
