The flag of Spain, its history and symbolic meaning

Many know what the flag of Spain looks like, but, probably, not everyone knows why the country chose such colors for its banner. Quite often, the standards of states reflect their history. Spain was not an exception. Her coat of arms and flag changed over the centuries, as a powerful centralized empire emerged from the small kingdom of Leon. There was metamorphosis in the twentieth century. National banners of the country changed during the Republic and during the dictatorship of Franco. So the current flag of Spain was officially approved relatively recently - in 1981, on December 19. How this country symbol was created, and how it looks today - read this article.

Tieg of Catalonia and Aragon

Legend argues that after the end of the reconquest (the conquest of Christian lands from the Moors), King of Aragon, Gottfried Berenguer dipped his fingers in the wounds of the Moorish king and blew several bands along the golden banner of the Vatican, thus symbolizing that from now on only the Roman- Catholic faith. On the coat of arms of the monarch, the lines were vertical. Their width was equal to the golden stripes. However, on the flag of the kingdom, and now the province of Catalonia, we see four horizontal red lines interspersed with five yellow (gold). There is no emblem on this banner. Since many of our compatriots go to rest on the Costa Brava or a little south of Barcelona, they have a false idea of what flag Spain has. The provinces in this country are endowed with great powers, and land banners are flown at state institutions.

Flag of the times of the centralized monarchy

When the King of Aragonese Alphonse married a successor to the throne, Princess Maria of Castile, in 1415, their lands merged. It was a huge conglomerate, including not only Catalonia and the lands around Toledo, but also Valencia, Naples, Mallorca, Asturias, Sicily, Sardinia. In the national symbols of the nucleus of the future empire was taken the emblem and the royal standard of Aragon - red and yellow equal-sized stripes. And when the Bourbon dynasty ascended the throne, the flag of Spain changed. Their "generic" color was white, with royal gold lilies all over the field. However, the family of the Bourbons and related Habsburgs took root in many monarchies. They ruled in France and Italy. Therefore, often there was confusion, especially on the seas, when recognizing the citizenship of the courts.

Back to the roots

In 1785, the monarch of Spain Carlos III Bourbon ordered his ships to change the white standards with the coat of arms to yellow and red. Returning to the heraldic colors of Aragon, the king nevertheless decided to insert on the panel his coat of arms. To the stripes do not cross out it, he reduced the number of red lines and made them thinner. On a yellow background, the royal coat of arms looked more impressive. In this form, the flag of Spain existed until 1927, when it was officially approved as a national symbol of the country. During the Republic (1931), the royal coat of arms was removed, and the banner began to consist of an equal yellow, purple and scarlet stripes. During the Civil War scarlet color was replaced by purple. After the victory of the Franco dictatorship, the flag again became red-yellow. It was decorated with a black eagle with a shield, and the crown was depicted in the form of an open bowl of a flower. This symbolized that the throne of the monarchy was empty.

The modern flag of Spain

The photo shows that the current main standard of the country is a rectangular panel with three horizontal stripes. Two of them - red color - are located on the upper and lower edge. These lines are equal to each other in terms of parameters. The yellow strip in the middle should be twice as wide as the red. At a distance of one-third of the shaft is the national coat of arms. It is located only on the yellow strip and does not touch the red. The coat of arms crowns the crown - a sign that Spain is a monarchy. This national symbol also experienced a number of modifications in its history. Now the coat of arms of the country consists of the heraldic shields of the five main provinces. The castle of Castile, the yellow-red stripes of Aragon, the lion of Leon, the Navarre gold chain with an emerald and the golden fruit of a pomegranate are gleaming on it against the silver background of Andalusia. The modern coat of arms and the flag of Spain were approved by King Juan Carlos in 1981.