[[File:Battle of Poitiers.jpg|thumb|upright=1.2|The [[Battle of Poitiers]] 1356. The oriflamme can be seen on the top left.]]
The '''Oriflamme''' (from Latin ''aurea flamma'', "golden flame"), a pointed, blood-red banner flown from a gilded lance, was the [[battle standard]] of the [[King of France]] in the Middle Ages. ItThe wasoriflamme originated originallyas the sacred banner of the [[Abbey of St. Denis]],<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.xenophongroup.com/montjoie/orifl-fa.htm |title=Oriflamme Society |access-date=2005-10-25 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20051028022144/http://www.xenophongroup.com/montjoie/orifl-fa.htm |archive-date=2005-10-28 |url-status=dead }}</ref> a monastery near Paris. When the oriflamme was raised in battle by the French royalty during the Middle Ages, most notably during the [[Hundred Years War]], [[No quarter|no prisoners were to be taken]] until it was lowered. Through this tactic they hoped to strike fear into the hearts of the enemy, especially the nobles, who could usually expect to be taken alive for ransom during such military encounters.<ref>Robert Southey (1841) '' Joan of Arc: a poem'', Longman et autres. [https://archive.org/details/JoanOfArc1841/page/n322 <!-- quote=oriflamme no quarter given. --> p. 280]</ref>
In French, the term "''oriflamme''" has come to mean any banner with pointed ends, by association with the form of the original.