The coat of arms of the London Borough of Hackney is the official heraldic arms of the London Borough of Hackney. The coat of arms were granted on 25 July 1969. The present arms is mainly based on the arms of the former Metropolitan Borough of Hackney, from which the cross and the horizontal partition ("per fess", as it is called in blazons) in the upper field of the shield is taken. The eight-pointed Maltese cross is for the Orders of the Knights Templar and Knights of St. John; the Knights Templar wore a red Maltese Cross on white surcoats and mantles and the Knights of St. John wore black surcoats and mantles with a white Maltese Cross on them. Both orders have at different times in history been the owner of the Hackney manor. The bordure of the shield has waves representing the waterwa