flag of Spain

Many symbols used today by Spain have origins that, according to tradition, stretch back for centuries. Even when not documented, the myths associated with these symbols are powerful forces for national pride. For example, the lion symbol of León is supposed to have been used by a Roman legion in the 1st century ad, and the gold shield with four red bars of the kingdom of Aragon and modern Catalonia is associated with a 9th-century event in which the grandson of Charlemagne honoured the count of Barcelona for his heroism.

Under the Bourbon dynasty in the 17th and 18th centuries, Spanish flags were generally white and bore versions of the coat of arms that included the Pillars of Hercules with its motto proclaiming “Plus ultra” (“More beyond”) to reflect the discoveries by Spanish explorers. King Charles III decided that Spain should have a flag that was clearly distinguishable from those of other countries. From among the proposals submitted to him he chose unequal horizontal stripes of red-yellow-red with the national arms on the yellow near the hoist. Introduced in 1785, it has continued ever since to be the “core flag” of Spain. (The only exception was the 1931–39 flag of the Spanish Republic, which had equal horizontal stripes of red-yellow-purple.) While the basic flag has remained the same, the arms have been altered a number of times to reflect political conditions.

The simple crowned shield of Castile and León disappeared from the Spanish flag in 1931; in its place an elaborate coat of arms was added to the flag in 1938, during the early days of the fascist regime of General Francisco Franco. It included the eagle of St. John and the yoke and arrow symbols of Franco’s Falange supporters under the slogan “Una, grande, libre” (“One, great, free”). That basic design was modified in 1945 and 1977, but the death of Franco and the resurgence of Spanish democracy under King Juan Carlos called for a new coat of arms. The current design dates from December 18, 1981. The basic shields of the old Spanish kingdoms and the Pillars of Hercules are retained, but a crown is prominently displayed to honour the role of the monarchy in the modern Spanish state. The red and gold colours are traditional but have no official symbolic interpretation.