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Spain

España

Civil Flag

State Flag

(1981)
Zeljko Heimer, 1996-04-16

Flag of 1793
War Flag of 1897
Spain 1913
Spanish Republic (1931/1936)
Flag of 1936
Flag of 1977
Flag of 1981
Merchant flag 1870
Naval jack

See also:

Flag of 1793

The Spanish national flag from 1793 consisted of a yellow field with red stripes at the top and bottom in the same proportions as the current design (1:2:1 ?). The arms located on the yellow were offset towards the hoist and consisted of an oval with the castle of Castille to the observer's left and the lion of Leon to the observer's right. This oval emblem was surmounted by a crown.

Nick Artimovich, 1996-04-10

Flags of 1897

Zeljko Heimer, 1996-09-26

The war flag was red-yellow-red with arms in the first third of the yellow stripe. The arms are crowned, and vertically divided, left red with a tower, right white with a lion.

Zeljko Heimer, 1996-09-26

The merchant flag was five yellow and red stripes, 1:1:2:1:1.

Spain 1913

The same as the current flag except the arms are on an oval shield under a crown without the pillars of Hercules.

Nathan Augustine, 1995-12-05

Spanish Republic (1931-1936)

Zeljko Heimer, 1996-10-01

The flag of the Spanish Republic (1931-36) was a three-color one (red, yellow and purple) in horizontal stripes of the same dimension, unlike the traditional red-yellow-red Spanish flag, with a shield in the middle. The purple color is inspired in the second quarter of the spanish arms (both republican and monarchist): Leon- silver, a lion purple. A shield with squared-edges topped by a crown and inquarted with the coat of arms of these four regions: Castilla (a castle), Leon (a lion), Navarra (golden chains in asterisk shape on a purple shield), Catalunya (vertical yellow-red stripes), clockwise. Left and right of the shield are the "Hercules columns" with the motto "Plus ultra".

There is an important scene about this flag in Spanish film about the civil war "Ay, Carmela!".

Alessio Bragadini

Flag of 1936

When Franco took over in 1936 he used the unequal red/yellow/red with the Eagle of St. John behind the (more complicated) shield, the pillars, arrows, yoke, crown, etc. Actually, the pillars were located to the left and right of the eagle's outspread wings.

Nick Artimovich, 1996-04-10

Certain government agency/ministry flags had the arms centered. For example, the Fishery Inspection had "V" to the observer's left and "P" to the right of the arms. Customs had a crowned "H" on either side of the arms, and the Air Force ensign had the arms in the center with the word "Aviacion" beneath and a "pilot's wings" emblem in the red stripe above it.

Nick Artimovich, 1996-04-25

Flag of 1977

Upon Franco's death in 1977, the eagle was modified and the columns representing the Pillars of Hercules were relocated to be within the eagle's wingspan. The shield and other devices, including the motto "una, grande, libre" at the eagle's head" didn't change much. (The ribbon went from behind the eagle's head to a position above it.)

Nick Artimovich, 1996-04-10

Flag of 1981

In 1981 the eagle disappeared from the Spanish national flag, leaving the current red/yellow/red with crowned arms (greatly simplified, including for the first time a small oval in the center with three fleurs-de-lis.) The crowned pillars flank the shield.

Nick Artimovich, 1996-04-10

The arms are quartered, first and fourth quartered Castille and Leon, second and third per pale Aragon and Navarra, and in the base Grenada. There is an oval estucheon with three fleur-de-lys. The crown is quite different. Behind the eagle's head is a yellow disc, and motto 'VNA GRANDE LIBRE', between the wings and the tail is a batch of arrows and a yoke. The pillars are basically the same, but are crowned with two different crowns, and the bands with motto 'PLVS VLTRA' have just one part in front of the pillar and two behind. The waves under them are stylized in a different way. The arms are stretch into the red stripes of the flag.

Zeljko Heimer, 1996-04-16

The old arms had a bunch of Arrows and a Yoke. These two items originally referred to Ysabel (yugo, or "yoke") and Ferdinand (flechas, or arrows) the Catholic Majesties of Spain.

Nick Artimovich, 1996-04-16

We should notice that the oval escutcheon isn't simply azure three fleurs-de-lys or, arms of the Kingdom of France, but it also has a bordure gules, making it identical with the arms of Anjou. This is a "brisure", because King Juan Carlos does not have the right to have the plain arms of France. Only his uncle, who is a direct descendant of the Bourbons (Louis XIV etc) could claim the throne of France, if France were to be a monarchy again.

Also, the old arms, without any eagle, still exist with yugo and flechas and the chain of gold on the flag of the King. Blue square flag with the arms, adopted in 1976.

Pascal Vagnat, 1996-04-17

Merchant flag of 1870

The Spanish Merchant flag from the 1870's to the Civil War was a yellow field with narrow red stripes near the top and bottom. It was essentially five stripes of yellow, red, yellow, red, yellow in approximate proportions 1:1:2:1:1.

Nick Artimovich, 1996-04-10

Naval Jack

The naval jack is a square banner of the arms, without Grenada. [bro68]

Pascal Vagnat, 1996-05-02