I recently came back from a vacation in France during which I also spent a little time in the Confœderatio Helvetica, more commonly known as Switzerland (derived from Schwyz, the leading of the three founding cantons at the time of the confederation in 1291). It is a country that does not have a monarchy and yet where heraldry runs rampant (pardon the pun) thus giving the lie to the notion that heraldry is an antiquated idea associated with outmoded forms of government, like elitist monarchies. Elitism and monarchy do not necessarily go hand in hand. The Swiss have survived for centuries without a monarch and yet have managed, nonetheless, to become quite elitist!