Please note that the content of this book primarily consists of articles available from Wikipedia or other free sources online. The coat of arms of Barbados was adopted upon independence in 1966 by decree of Queen Elizabeth. Like other former British possessions in the Caribbean, the coat of arms has a helmet with a national symbol on top, and a shield beneath that is supported by two animals. The national symbol found on top of the helmet for Barbados is the fist of a Barbadian holding two sugar canes that are crossed to resemble St. Andrew's Cross. This is representative of the importance of the sugar industry as well as Barbados celebrating its national independence day on St. Andrew's Day.