Inheraldry andvexillology, apale is acharge consisting of a band running vertically down the centre of a shield or flag.^[1] Writers broadly agree that the width of the pale ranges from about one-fifth to about one-third of the width of the shield, but this width is not fixed. A narrow pale is more likely if it isuncharged, that is, if it does not have other objects placed on it. Ifcharged, the pale is typically wider to allow room for the objects depicted there.^[1]

The pale is one of theordinaries in heraldry, along with thebend,chevron,fess, andchief. There are several other ordinaries and sub-ordinaries.^[1]

The wordpale originally referred to a picket (a piece of wood much taller than it is wide such as is used to build apicket fence) and it is from the resemblance to this that the heraldic pale derives its name^[2] (see'pale', English: Etymology 2 on Wiktionary).

pallet

In British heraldry when two or more pales appear on a field, they are conventionally termedpallets. While a pallet is generally classified as adiminutive of the pale, the pallets on a shield of two pallets may be no narrower than the pale on another where it has been narrowed to accommodate other charges on either side.^[1][3]

paly

A shield with numerous pales may be termedpaly, especially in early heraldry, though this term is now properly reserved to describe avariation of the field.^[1][3]

in pale

In pale refers to the appearance of several items on the shield being lined up in the direction of a pale.^[3]

palewise

A chargepalewise is vertical like a pale.^[3]

party per pale

A shield party per pale isdivided into two parts by a single line which runs in the direction of a pale.^[3]

A pale may becouped ("cut off" at either end, and so not reaching the top or bottom of the shield).^[3] The special term inCanadian heraldry for a couped pale is "a pale retrait" (this also applies to pallets; see below). If couped at the bottom it is blazoned as "a pale retrait in base".^[4]

TheCanadian pale, invented byGeorge Stanley for theflag of Canada, occupies fully half the field. On a 1:2 flag such as Canada's, it is square. The name was suggested by SirConrad Swan, and used whenElizabeth II proclaimed the new flag on 28 January 1965.^[5]

• Heraldic ordinaries
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