The flag, coat of arms and anthem of Spain are the main symbols of the kingdom. Flag and coat of arms of Spain: history of creation Flag of Spain description and meaning

The flag of Spain is made in the form of a rectangular canvas, divided into three horizontal stripes, the aspect ratio of the canvas is 2:3. The top and bottom stripes are red, the middle stripe is yellow. The middle stripe is twice as wide as the outer ones. The wide yellow stripe depicts the coat of arms of Spain, offset to the flagpole.

The meaning of the colors of the flag is symbolic and is associated with the legend of its origin. The legend says that the king of Aragon wanted his army to have its own banner. The king's subordinates were given the task of coming up with this banner. When the projects were completed, the king, having examined them, chose from all those proposed one banner with a smooth golden field. The king looked at the monochromatic banner for a long time and finally ordered a cup of blood to be brought to him. When the cup was brought, the king dipped two fingers into it and ran them along the banner. Two red stripes were imprinted on the banner, top and bottom.

As already mentioned, the central yellow stripe of the Spanish flag features a coat of arms. The history of the coat of arms is very rich and should be discussed separately. In the center of the coat of arms is a shield with images of the emblems of the kingdoms. In the upper half of the shield there are two emblems: Castile (in the form of a castle) and Leon (an image of a lion). Castile and Leon began the unification of the kingdoms in 1479. These two kingdoms united with the kingdom of Aragon, whose emblem is included in the lower left part of the shield. After Granada was recaptured, its emblem was placed in the lower central part of the shield. And then Navarre was recaptured in 1512 and the emblem in the form of a golden chain and lattice fell into the lower right part of the shield. The blue oval with gold lilies in the center of the shield is the emblem of the Bourbons. On top of the shield is a golden royal crown. On the sides of the shield are the famous “pillars of Hercules”, reminiscent of Gibraltar and Tangier - two fortresses located respectively on the sides of the Strait of Gibraltar. In ancient times, the “pillars of Hercules” belonged to Spain, but now the Strait of Gibraltar is the property of Britain. Tangier began to belong to Morocco, which is why one of the “pillars” is crowned with a Moorish crown. The pillars were depicted on the coat of arms in the 16th century, but they were transferred to the flag only in 1873. The pillars on the coat of arms are surrounded by a ribbon on which the motto is written: “Plus Ultra”, which means “nowhere further”. This motto symbolized the advance of the empire westward - to the shores of America. During the reign of General Franco (1939-1975), three words were added to the legendary motto: “Una Grande Libre,” which means “One Great Free.” Thus the changed motto began to read: “Una Grande Libre Plus Ultra” - “Great freedom is most important.” Apparently, the new motto has acquired a certain political slant. And also, during the reign of Franco, the coat of arms on the flag of Spain was supplemented with a single-headed black eagle - a shield holder. The crown at that time was depicted as an open crown, since the throne of the monarch was empty.

The national and state flags of Spain were officially approved on December 19, 1981. By the way, the bottom line during the revolutions of 1873-1876. and 1931-1939 It was painted not red, but purple. Now the lion on the national flag is purple. And also in 1931-1939, the horizontal stripes on the flag were absolutely the same in width. And during the reign of the Bourbons, the flag of Spain was white.

As you can see, the history of the flag and coat of arms is quite extensive and full of a huge number of events. Currently, the flag exists in its approved form.

The main national symbol of the Spanish state consists of three stripes, which are not equal to each other. Also on the Spanish flag, unlike other states, the country's coat of arms is always depicted. The national symbol has its own history and also has certain characteristics.

Historical significance of the Spanish flag

There is a legend about the fact that the Spanish flag has two red stripes and one yellow. It tells how the king of Aragon decided to decorate his own golden banner, and to do this, he dipped his fingers in the blood of animals, and then drew two red stripes on a golden background.

In Spanish history, yellow and red have always had important heraldic significance. They were the flowers of the nobility of Castile and Aragon.

The first version of the flag with red and yellow colors was approved in 1785 by Charles III.

At that time, the flag was military and included in its structure the coats of arms of Leon, as well as Aragon.

King Carlos III of Bourbon decided to change the white banner of his noble house to a gold background with a coat of arms and narrow red stripes. He wanted the Spanish colors on the flag to be different from the banners of his crowned relatives.

Spanish flag today

The tricolor with a wide gold stripe and a coat of arms at the holder received its official designation in 1981.

In 1931, a military mutiny temporarily ended Spain's republican system, and the purple stripe on the flag was replaced by a red stripe after the end of the civil war.

Today, in addition to its historical significance, the colors of the flag are interpreted as follows:

Red, like the blood shed in the struggle for the republican system;
Yellow represents the wealth and prosperity of the country.

The appearance of the main symbol of the country is fixed by law. The cloth is available in all official institutions of the state. The flag is also raised when significant holidays take place in the country, and lowered in the event of a mass tragedy.

In the modern world, there are quite heated debates around the Spanish flag. They are associated with the declaration of independence of the Spanish province of Catalonia. Many do not recognize the region's official secession, but in Girona and Figueres, Spanish flags have already been removed from city halls. Although Catalonia does not yet have new symbols, the provincial authorities have clearly indicated their intention to become an autonomous region, not under the control of the central government of Spain.

Throughout the rest of the country, national symbols are treated with great reverence. According to the law, for defacing a flag or showing disrespect for it, a person can receive a real fine or prison sentence.

Each Spanish province, in addition to the main banner, has separate insignia. The state's naval forces go to sea under the civilian flag, but also have an emblem with a crown and an anchor under it.

Spain is a country that has undergone many wars and regime changes. Due to the unstable situation with governance, the Spaniards changed their main symbols many times, but they did not forget their history, which is why the current version of the flag contains red and yellow colors.

FLAG OF SPAIN: history of origin and formation

Flags in modern Spain have a long history. The use of banners in the Iberian Peninsula was recorded long before Spain was established as an independent state.

The first flags in what is now Spain there were, in all likelihood, the so-called vexillum - standards used by Roman legionaries. The Visigoths, who replaced the Romans, continued to use the same standards, but until the Muslim invasion, the prototypes of modern flags did not appear on the territory of the Iberian Peninsula. It was the Muslims, as well as their opponents, the crusaders, who first began to use fluttering pieces of fabric of the correct shape on sticks. Flags were used primarily to represent kings, princes, or lords rather than nations or territories.

Quite quickly, these symbols began to be adopted by the kings of the region, as well as people who held titles of nobility. Some of the kingdoms that formed on the Iberian Peninsula after the end of Islamic rule in 1492 used different banners and standards.

Kingdom of Leona used as standard image of a mythological animal. Aragon used the standard with horizontal red and yellow stripes of equal size. It was this standard that became the prototype of the modern flag of Spain. Standard of the State of Navarre contained images of a series of yellow chains. On the flag of Castile a purple lion and castle were placed.

Symbolic meaning of the colors of the flag of spain a legend connects with its origin. Legend has it that this flag was created by one of the Aragonese kings, who decided to make his own banner and commissioned several designs. Among the proposed banner designs, he liked the option with a golden field. To complement the overly minimalistic look of the flag and make it more recognizable, he applied two stripes with his fingers on the top and bottom, dipping his hands in a goblet of animal blood.

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Spain as a state arose in 1479 after the marriage that was concluded between King Ferdinand of Castile and Queen Isabella of Aragon. In 1492, complete unification of the peninsula was achieved through conquest and the expulsion of Islamic rule from the Iberian Peninsula. As a result of the union of the states of the Iberian Peninsula, the kings adopted a standard that combined the coats of arms of the united kingdoms.

However, the first flags that represented the new united country began to be used during the reign of John I. Following the adoption of the symbol of the House of Austria, Spain began to be recognized nationally and internationally. At the same time, the banner began to be used Cross of Burgundy : red jagged cross on a white background.

This symbol of the spanish monarchy underwent numerous changes and adaptations under each new sovereign. Despite this, for many centuries the Cross of Burgundy represented the Spanish crown both within Spain and in the colonial possessions that Spain began to acquire in the Middle Ages, especially in the Americas.

In 1700, the final changes in the evolution of the Spanish monarchy took place. After the death of the Spanish King Carlos II the Enchanted, who left no heir, the French King Philip V ascended the Spanish throne and remained there until 1746, with a short break in 1724. The king managed to avoid the War of Succession and firmly maintain power in the Iberian Peninsula. From the very beginning of his reign, important changes began to appear in Spanish state symbols, especially in relation to Spain flag .

Although the Cross of Burgundy continued to be used on flags, especially in the Spanish colonial territories, other symbols began to be placed on the flag. It should be noted that among various kingdoms, representatives of the House of Bourbon (Sicily, France) have become relevant to use as state flags white panels with the royal coat of arms on them A. Spain was no exception.

Almost immediately, after the accession of representatives of the Bourbon dynasty to the Spanish throne, state symbols of Spain White symbols began to appear. At first they were used mainly on Spanish ships. First naval standard of Spain was valid in the period 1701 - 1760. Due to its complexity, it had two versions: original and simplified.

The original version of the banner of Spain included all the coats of arms of the ancient Spanish kingdoms. They were surrounded by fleece and red ribbons.

The simplified version was limited to the image of the coat of arms of Castile and Granada, as well as the emblem of the Bourbon family in the form of three lilies on a blue background. The ribbons in this case were blue.

In 1760 naval standard of Spain changed after the accession of King Carlos III, the third son of Felipe V. Carlos III was crowned after the death of his brother Fernando VI, who left no descendants.

New flag of Spain changed in form and composition. The now united Spanish coat of arms was depicted as ovals, in which the coats of arms of the ancient Spanish kingdoms were divided into different spaces. The red ribbons were also retained.

Considering the excessive similarity spanish flag with the flags of different European kingdoms, King Carlos III decided to change it. The reason that many of these flags were similar was due to the presence of common symbols and imagery among the monarchies of the House of Bourbon.

On May 28, 1785, by decree of King Carlos III, a competition was announced for new spain flag design . As a result of the competition, by the decision of King Carlos III of Spain, two versions of the royal banner were chosen: one of them began to be used on Spanish warships, and the second on ships of the merchant fleet.

Flag of the Spanish Merchant Navy , chosen by the monarch, was a yellow coat with two light red stripes. They occupied a sixth of the flag and were located in the form of horizontal stripes on two sides of the central yellow area. Behind them were two yellow stripes. In this form, the flag of the Spanish merchant fleet existed until 1927.

Second version of the Spanish flag , which was used on military ships of Spain, was a panel divided into three stripes, of which the upper and lower ones were red, occupying a quarter of the surface area of the flag. The central stripe was yellow. On its left side was the Spanish coat of arms, which was simplified and consisted of the coats of arms of Castile and Leon, accompanied by a royal crown. This flag design has survived to this day, although it has undergone periodic changes.

The intention of the Spanish King Carlos III in approving these flags was mainly to ensure that Spanish ships would no longer encounter problems on the high seas due to difficulties in identifying their nationality, because. at that time, many European states used similar white banners with the emblems of the Bourbons as standards on ships.

Despite this, in 1793 it was ordered that Spain flag , which was used on military seagoing vessels, must be stationed in all Spanish ports, regardless of whether they receive merchant ships or Spanish warships. Thus, the Spanish naval symbol began to be used in port terminals.

This variant of the Spanish banner gained popularity in the War of Independence against Napoleonic invasion of Spain. Its use was widespread in the revolt in the city of Cortes de Cadiz. However, eliminating the discrepancies between the naval version and the one used by the ground forces took until 1843. This year the standards of the Spanish flag were unified and it was established that everyone must maintain the structure and colors Spanish military flag .

Thus, the Spanish flag has been adopted as the official flag of Spain since the mid-19th century . In fact, the flag of Spain has remained completely unchanged since that time. This situation continued until the declaration of the Spanish Republic in 1873.

The flag of the Spanish Republic has undergone some changes . The general red and yellow background has been retained. The changes affected the coat of arms of Spain, placed on the yellow field of the flag. Here the crown, as a symbol of the Spanish monarchy, was removed. However, in this form the flag of Spain lasted only 2 years, i.e. the period of preservation of the republican state system in Spain.

Its duration was as short as that of the republic, for soon after the two years were completed the restoration of the Bourbons and the disintegration of this form of state took place.

After the return of the Bourbons to the Spanish throne in 1874, the previous spanish flag with royal crown . This state of affairs continued without any changes until the creation of the so-called Second Spanish Republic.

Over time, the Spanish monarchy weakened. This became especially noticeable during the reign of Alfonso XIII, which saw a coup d'état by Captain Miguel Primo de Rivera in 1923, which established a military government with the consent of the monarch.

In 1930, Primo de Rivera resigned and went into exile, forcing the already discredited Alfonso XIII to find a new government president. After the ephemeral dictatorship of General Damaso Berenguer, Alfonso XIII appointed Juan Bautista Aznar as president of admiral rank, who consecrated the monarchical government.

The success of the Republicans in large and medium-sized cities led to the expulsion of King Alfonso XIII and the proclamation of the Republic on April 14, 1931.

Together with the republic a new national flag has arrived in Spain , which consisted of three horizontal stripes of equal size in red, yellow and purple. The greatest invention of this time was the inclusion of purple in the banner. Historically, this color was associated with the symbols of Castile and Leon. Purple flags were used by the forces of national liberation during the reign of King Ferdinand VII. During Isabella II's reign, purple was also used in the form of ties at the top of the flag: red, yellow and purple ribbons.

After Proclamation of the Spanish Republic tricolor flag was chosen quickly. Later they added a shield with four parts, two columns of Hercules and a castle instead of a crown.

In 1936, a civil war began in Spain, which changed the history of this European country. A nationalist political movement opposed the republican government and, after three years of conflict, eventually won and seized power. A dictatorship was established led by Francisco Franco, which lasted until 1975.

After the civil war, Franco's troops were again used old spanish flag . However, in 1938, a new design for the flag of Spain was created.

The main change was placing the San Juan eagle on the flag of Spain's new symbol . In addition, this coat of arms included the slogan "Una, Grande y Libre", which also identified the Franco regime. Also included were symbols of Falangism, Franco's political movement, in the form of a spear. The slogan "Plus Ultra", which still remains today, was also added to the crest.

In 1945, after the end of World War II, Spain flag changed due to changes in the coat of arms of Spain. In addition, the coat of arms was increased in size, reaching the areas of the outer red stripes of the flag. The color of the slats has also been changed to red.

After the death of F. Franco, a new stage in the development of the Spanish state began, known as the “Transition”. At this point the coat of arms of Spain also changes, resulting in a change and Spain flag . In 1977, changes came with a new vision for the eagle. It now had more open wings, and the motto "Una, Grande y Libre" was placed on top of the bird, which began to completely cover the coat of arms.

It is believed that this national flag of spain was adopted in such a way that the period of "Transition" to democracy would not have exactly the same symbol as the Franco regime. However, the changes to the coat of arms were cosmetic.

The Constitution, which turned Spain into a parliamentary monarchy and rule of law, was approved in 1978. Over the years, it was decided to end the use of the French eagle in national symbols. The process of excluding the eagle from state symbols was completed in 1981. Although the flag remained red and yellow in equal proportions, the coat of arms of Spain underwent significant changes.

Since 1981, the eagle has ceased to be used as the Spanish coat of arms and has been removed from Spain flag . The shield had simply barracks without duplicates: Castile, Leon, Aragon and Navarre, except for the tip of the Granada weapon.

Since 1981, the eagle has ceased to be used as the Spanish coat of arms and has been removed from the flag of Spain. Modern national flag of Spain is a combination of three stripes - two narrow red ones on top and bottom, yellow and wide in the middle. The flag, adopted in 1981, is decorated with the coat of arms of Spain, consisting of the coats of arms of various Spanish provinces.

The castle on the coat of arms of Spain is the symbol of Castile, the pomegranate is the symbol of Andalusia, the lion is the symbol of Asturias, Leon and Galicia, the four red stripes on a yellow background on the shield symbolize Catalonia, Aragon and the Balearic Islands, the chains represent Navarre. The lilies in the center of the coat of arms are a symbol of the Angevin branch of the Bourbons, to which the royal family belongs. The crown means that Spain is a monarchical country. Columns or Pillars of Hercules are the symbol of Gibraltar.

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Coat of arms of Spain- bringing together its entire history. It represents all the kingdoms that united in modern Spain: Castile is represented by a castle; Leon, Asturias and Galicia - lion; Aragon, Catalonia and Balearic Islands - four red stripes on a gold background; Navarre - in the form of chains; Andalusia is depicted in the form of a pomegranate, since in Spain it grows mainly only on the lands of Granada - the last Muslim state captured by Christian kings during the Reconquista; in the heart of the coat of arms - on an oval-shaped shield, three golden lilies in an azure field with a scarlet border represent the Angevin branch of the Bourbon dynasty, to which the king and his family belong, and the crown crowning the coat of arms, - a sign that Spain - kingdom; the columns symbolize the Pillars of Hercules, as Gibraltar was previously called, which at one time was considered the end of the world. It is interesting to note that the well-known dollar sign - these are the same Pillars of Hercules, entwined with ribbon.

The motto is “PlvsVltra " - lat. beyond the limit(Before Columbus discovered America: NonPlvsVltra - lat. nowhere else, because the pillars of Hercules were considered the end of the world).

National flag of Spain consists of three horizontal stripes- the top and bottom are red, the middle is yellow, the width of which is twice as wide as the red one. On the yellow stripe there is an image of the coat of arms of Spain shifted to the shaft.

Legend associates the symbolic meaning of the colors of this flag with its origin. According to legend, one of the kings of Aragon wanted to have his own banner. Looking at the various banner designs, he settled on one with a smooth gold field. Then he ordered a cup of fresh animal blood to be presented and, dipping two fingers into it, the monarch ran them across the yellow cloth, on which two red stripes appeared.

The flag of Spain in its modern form has existed since 1785when the king

Carlos III Bourbon ordered Spanish warships to use signs to distinguish them from ships of other countries - the white naval standard of Spain, decorated with the coat of arms of the House of Bourbon, could easily be confused with the standards of ships of other countries. Since then, red and yellow colors have traditionally been associated with Spain, although they were adopted as state colors only in 1927 G.

It is perhaps difficult to find a person today who has never seen the Spanish flag in pictures, photographs or films. But at the same time, few people looked closely at its details, much less understand heraldry well enough to decipher its meaning. The article describes in detail about this most important symbol of Spain.

What does he look like

First, let's tell you what the Spanish flag looks like. The most noticeable elements are the red and gold stripe. The red ones are located at the bottom and top, together covering exactly half of the canvas. Between them is a golden stripe, which also occupies half of the flag.

It is on it that the coat of arms of Spain is located - between the first and second thirds of the shaft. It is quite complex, so it is useful to learn more about it.

In the center of the coat of arms is a shield with a rounded bottom. To the right and left are columns standing on blue pedestals with wavy silver and blue ribbons. They are intertwined with red ribbons with the inscriptions PLUS and ULTRA. On top, both are decorated with crowns, and different ones.

There is also a crown above the shield itself.

The shield is divided into six parts. In the center, in an oval, on a blue background with a red border, there are three golden lilies. The upper left corner of the red color is occupied by a golden tower. In the right corner on a silver background there is a pink lion in a gold crown, standing on its hind legs. The lower left corner is simply shaded with vertical stripes - gold and red. And in the lower right, on a golden background, there is a golden shield made of a chain. At the very bottom, on a silver background, is a plant - a pomegranate with two green leaves.

Let's take a closer look at the coat of arms

Now that you know what the Spanish flag represents, you can talk about the symbolism of the coat of arms, since it is on it.

Let's start with the shield. The five fragments, not counting the central one, symbolize the five largest kingdoms that became part of the country in the Middle Ages. They were: Aragon, Navarre, Castile, Leon and Granada. The sixth fragment recalls the French origin of the Angevin branch of the Bourbon dynasty - it was from them that the modern royal family descended.

The shield itself reminds us that at one time it was Spain that stood as a barrier on the way of the Arabs, who captured these lands and almost advanced to the northeast, to France and other European states.

The crown crowning the shield on top reminds ordinary Spaniards of the king, whom every law-abiding citizen should respect.

The two columns surrounding the shield are the Pillars of Hercules. This is what Gibraltar used to be called, which connects the Mediterranean Sea with the Atlantic Ocean and separates Africa from Asia. They are surrounded by red ribbons with the inscription PLUS ULTRA, which translates as “Beyond the Limit”. There is a fun fact associated with it. Before Columbus's voyage, it was believed in Europe that there was and could not be anything west of Gibraltar. Therefore, the slogan on the coat of arms read Nec Plus Ultra or “Nowhere Further.” But after America was discovered, the inscription was slightly modified and it took on a modern look.

How old is the modern flag of Spain?

Few people know, but the Spanish flag is one of the youngest in Europe. It was adopted in its modern form only on December 19, 1981.

For the first time, Spain had its own flag quite late: only in 1701. Since then it has changed quite often. What can I say, in the 20th century alone its appearance was changed five times! Let's talk about the different versions in a little more detail.

What previous flags looked like

The history of the Spanish flag is quite interesting. The first, as mentioned above, appeared in 1701. It depicted the coat of arms of the time on a white background. It existed until 1760. Then the coat of arms and, accordingly, the flag were changed.

But in 1785, King Carlos III of Bourbon ordered the development of a new one, which would be clearly visible on the mast of warships, since the white one was lost against the sky and confused with the flags of other powers. This is how a flag appeared, already quite similar to the modern one: three well-known stripes and the coat of arms of that time.

It was used for almost a hundred years, until 1873, when the coat of arms was changed again, removing the royal crown. True, the new flag lasted only a year, after which they returned to the previous, proven one, which lasted until 1931.

After the revolution, a republic was proclaimed, and the flag changed colors for the first time in a century and a half. Now the cloth was divided into three stripes: red, gold and purple. The coat of arms was moved strictly to the middle. True, it did not last long in this form. Five years later, General Francisco Franco suppressed the rebellion and the flag received its usual colors, and the coat of arms of that time again shifted slightly to the left.

Then the flag was changed three more times, adapting to the coat of arms: in 1938, 1945 and 1977. Finally, in 1981, it acquired its final form, the way it can be seen today.

Why are red and gold so popular?

When talking about the flag of Spain, we must not forget about the meaning of flowers, because they play a very important role in heraldry. Surely the reader has already wondered why, given that the flag was changed many times, three stripes (two narrow red and a wide gold) almost always remained.

The answer is simple. The red stripes symbolize Aragon, and the gold stripes represent Castile. These two kingdoms united in 1469, essentially becoming the core of modern Spain. Indeed, in the fifteenth century, on the territory of this country there were one and a half dozen kingdoms constantly at war with each other. The marriage of two rulers - Ferdinand of Aragon and Isabella of Castile - marked the beginning of the formation of a powerful country, whose sons fought all over the world, explored new countries, and built huge cities in the deserts and jungles.

Conclusion

Now you know what the Spanish flag and coat of arms look like, what they symbolize, when they were adopted, and how they changed. Surely, this has significantly expanded your horizons, making you an even more interesting interlocutor.