Papal States

Separador heráldico
Escudo de Castilla y León

Adrian V

Bendy of six Azure and Argent.

186th Pope of the Church, only 40 days in 1276. «Hadrianus V», born Ottobuono de Fieschi, was born in Genoa.

Bendy of six Azure and Argent.

Escudo bandado de seis piezas de azur y plata.

Papal coat of arms interpreted by me with: a shield with a rounded arch top; the field in plain tincture of Argent; the bands illuminated in Azure and outlined in Sable; and the whole in an elevated line style.

The blazon in French is «Bandé d'azur et d'argent de six pièces».

The banding is defined in [Avilés, J.; 1725a; page 40] and [Avilés, J.; 1780a; page 45] as the shields and also, the chiefs, fesses, pales, and figures, such as animals, etc., that are «covered and filled with bands in equal number, with as many of metal as of color».


Blazon keywords: Without divisions, Bendy, Six, Azure and Argent.

Style keywords: Semi-circular, Illuminated, Outlined in sable and Freehand.

Classification: Interpreted, Religious and Papal States.

Bearer: Adrian V.

Separador heráldico
Escudo de Castilla y León

Benedict XII

Argent, a bordure Gules.

197th Pope of the Church, from 1334 to 1342. «Benedictus XII», born Jacques Fournier, was born in Saverdun, in the south of Occitania.

Argent, a bordure Gules.

Escudo de plata, una bordura de gules.

Papal coat of arms interpreted with: a round-topped shield; the field in plain Argent; the bordure outlined in Sable and illuminated in Gules; and the whole design in raised outline.


Blazon keywords: Without divisions, Argent, One, Bordure and Gules.

Style keywords: Semi-circular, Illuminated, Outlined in sable and Freehand.

Classification: Interpreted, Religious and Papal States.

Bearer: Benedict XII.

Separador heráldico
Escudo de Castilla y León

Benedict XIV

Or, three pallets Gules.

247th Pope of the Church, from 1740 to 1758. «Benedictus XIV», named Prospero Lorenzo Lambertini, born in Bologna.

Or, three pallets Gules.

Escudo de oro, tres palos de gules.

Papal coat of arms interpreted with: a rounded mouth; the field in flat tincture of Or; the pales outlined in Sable and illuminated in Gules enamel; and the whole with a raised stroke finish.


Blazon keywords: Without divisions, Or, Three, Pale and Gules.

Style keywords: Semi-circular, Illuminated, Outlined in sable and Freehand.

Classification: Interpreted, Religious and Papal States.

Bearer: Benedict XIV.

Separador heráldico
Escudo de Castilla y León

Clement V

Or, three fesses Gules.

195th Pope of the Church, from 1305 to 1314. «Clemens V», born Bertrand de Got, born in Villandraut, in the southwest of France, was the first pope to reside in Avignon in a stable manner.

Or, three fesses Gules.

Escudo de oro, tres fajas de gules.

Papal coat of arms interpreted with: a rounded triangular top; the field in plain Or enamel; the bars illuminated in Gules and outlined in Sable; and with a heavily hammered metal finish.


Blazon keywords: Without divisions, Or, Three, Fess and Gules.

Style keywords: Triangular curved, Illuminated, Outlined in sable and Hard metal.

Classification: Interpreted, Religious and Papal States.

Bearer: Clement V.

Blazon equivalent to: Fernández de Córdoba y Carrillo, Diego.

Separador heráldico
Escudo de Castilla y León

Clement XII

Bendy of six Gules and Argent; over all a fess Azure.

246th Pope of the Church, from 1730 to 1740. «Clemens XII», named Lorenzo Corsini, born in Florence and rests in St. John Lateran.

Bendy of six Gules and Argent; over all a fess Azure.

Escudo bandado de seis piezas de gules y plata; brochante sobre el todo una faja de azur.

Papal coat of arms interpreted with: a rounded mouth; the field in flat tincture of Argent; the fess and the bands outlined in Sable and illuminated in Gules and Azure; and the whole with a textured finish.

All are ordinaries, including the three bands and the fess, and since the blazon specifies that the fess is overall on the bands, therefore, it is not the Gules bands that are overall on the Azure fess, and they should be painted underneath.


Blazon keywords: Without divisions, Bendy, Six, Gules, Argent, Surmounted, Overall (deprecated), One, Fess and Azure.

Style keywords: Semi-circular, Illuminated, Outlined in sable and Freehand.

Classification: Interpreted, Religious and Papal States.

Bearer: Clement XII.

Separador heráldico
Escudo de Castilla y León

Eugene IV

Azure, a bend Argent.

Papa número 207 de la Iglesia, de 1431 a 1447. «Eugenius IV», de nombre Gabriele Condulmer, nació en Venecia.

Azure, a bend Argent.

Escudo de azur, una banda de plata.

Escudo papal que he interpretado con: la boca apuntada; el campo de tinta plana de azur; la banda iluminada de azur y delineada de sable; y el conjunto acuarelado.


Blazon keywords: Without divisions, Azure, One, Bend and Argent.

Style keywords: Pointed, Illuminated, Outlined in sable and Watercolor.

Classification: Interpreted, Religious and Papal States.

Bearer: Eugene IV.

Separador heráldico
Escudo de Castilla y León

Gregory X

Azure, a chief embattled Or.

184th Pope of the Church, from 1271 to 1276. «Gregorius X», born Teobaldo Visconti, was born in Piacenza and convened the 14th Ecumenical Council, known as the Second Council of Lyon.

Azure, a chief embattled Or.

Escudo de azur, el jefe almenado de oro.

Papal coat of arms interpreted by me with: a pointed and rounded shield shape; the field in plain Azure; the chief embattled, illuminated in metal Or and outlined in Sable; and the whole with a marbled finish.

My first version of the blazon in English was «Azure, a chief Or, embattled», but Michael McCartney suggested that it was more correct as «Azure, a chief embattled Or».


Blazon keywords: Without divisions, Azure, Chief, Or and Embattled.

Style keywords: Pointed and rounded, Illuminated, Outlined in sable and Marmoreal.

Classification: Interpreted, Religious and Papal States.

Bearer: Gregory X.

Separador heráldico
Escudo de Castilla y León

Innocent IV

Bendy of six Azure and Argent.

180th Pope of the Church, from 1243 to 1254. «Innocentius IV», born Sinibaldo dei Fieschi, was born in Manarola in northwest Italy.

Bendy of six Azure and Argent.

Escudo bandado de seis piezas de azur y plata.

Papal coat of arms interpreted by me with: a semicircular shield shape; a plain Argent field; bands illuminated in Azure and outlined in Sable; and the whole design with a watercolor finish.

Order of tinctures

In the bendy pattern, the tinctures are named starting from the one located at the dexter base of the shield and following an ascending sequence towards the sinister chief, although the most orthodox approach is to have only 2 tinctures, being one color and one metal.

Number of bands

It is said that it is not necessary to specify the number of bands when there are precisely 6, as in this case, and that it should be specified when there are, for example, 4 or 8. I have chosen to specify it for greater clarity of the blazon.

About the bendy pattern and the need to specify or not specify the number of its pieces, [Avilés, J.; 1725a; pages 40 and 41] and [Avilés, J.; 1780a; pages 45 and 46] say that it is «composed of four, six, or eight bends; in such a way that there are as many colors as metals, always specifying the number four and eight bands when blazoning, and not the one composed of six, as it is understood thus, without declaring the number of pieces» and without agreeing with it, and by its wording I believe that he is not entirely in agreement either, he adds «the reason that may exist for not specifying the number of six bends (although the authors do not express it) is that as the bend is one-third of the shield; and having six pieces, or six bends, the resulting number is doubled, as if the three parts were divided, which implies that the shield is filled with three bends; and taking the denomination of the figure infers, that the bendy is of six pieces: which does not happen with this equality in those of four and eight, requiring other proportions and consequently it becomes necessary to specify their number», therefore, note that the bendy of 6 does not follow the proportions of the bend, nor do those of 4 or 8, the only differential property of the one of 6 is being a multiple of 3, being 1/3 the width of the bend.


Blazon keywords: Without divisions, Bendy, Six, Azure and Argent.

Style keywords: Semi-circular, Illuminated, Outlined in sable and Watercolor.

Classification: Interpreted, Religious and Papal States.

Bearer: Innocent IV.

Separador heráldico
Escudo de Castilla y León

John XXI

Quarterly: 1 and 4 Argent, three crescents Gules; 2 and 3 Sable, two pallets Or.

187th Pope of the Church, from 1276 to 1277. «Johannes XXI», born Pedro Julião, also known as Pedro Hispano, born in Lisbon, Portugal.

Quarterly: 1 and 4 Argent, three crescents Gules; 2 and 3 Sable, two pallets Or.

Escudo cuartelado: 1o y 4o de plata, tres crecientes de gules; 2o y 3o de sable, dos palos de oro.

Coat of arms with: a shield with a pointed and rounded top; the field in plain Argent and Sable; the figures outlined in Sable and illuminated in Gules and Or; and the whole in an elevated line style.

John XXI should have actually been John XX, but Cardinal Pedro Julião, upon being elected pope, decided to skip the number XX and called himself John XXI, with the aim of correcting what was believed to be a historical error, which in the end was not so.

This historical error consisted of the belief in the existence of 2 popes named John XIV, as seemed to be deduced from the records of the «Liber Pontificalis». They were therefore referred to as: the 1st John XIV and the 2nd John XIV bis.

By skipping the number XX, John XXI believed he was correcting this historical error. But the reality is that there was only one Pope John XIV, the same pope with 2 entries in the «Liber Pontificalis», the 1st entry during the time of his pontificate in freedom and the 2nd entry for the time he exercised his pontificate in prison, imprisoned by his enemy, the so-called «antipope» Boniface VII, who, in turn, managed to occupy the papal throne twice, separated by a decade, in 974 and in 984, somewhat like a double «antipope».

Therefore, John XXI, instead of correcting a historical error, made one, and for this reason, there is no Pope John XX in all of history, nor can there ever be one.


Blazon keywords: Quarterly, Argent, Three, Crescent, Gules, Ordered, Sable, Two, Pale and Or.

Style keywords: Pointed and rounded, Illuminated, Outlined in sable and Freehand.

Classification: Interpreted, Religious and Papal States.

Bearer: John XXI.

Separador heráldico
Escudo de Castilla y León

Lucius III

Lozengy Argent and Azure.

171st Pope of the Church, from the year 1181 to the year 1185. «Lucius III», born Ubaldo Allucinoli, was born in Lucca in northwest Italy.

Lozengy Argent and Azure.

Escudo losanjado de plata y azur.

Papal coat of arms interpreted by me with: a semicircular shield shape; a plain Argent field; checky or squares illuminated in Azure and outlined in Sable; and the whole design with a watercolor finish.


Blazon keywords: Without divisions, Lozengy, Argent and Azure.

Style keywords: Semi-circular, Illuminated, Outlined in sable and Hard metal.

Classification: Interpreted, Religious and Papal States.

Bearer: Lucius III.

Separador heráldico
Escudo de Castilla y León

Pius V

Bendy of six Gules and Or.

225th Pope of the Church, from 1566 to 1572. «Pius V», named Antonio Michele Ghislieri, was canonized in 1712.

Bendy of six Gules and Or.

Escudo bandado de seis piezas de gules y oro.

Papal coat of arms interpreted with: a rounded mouth; the field in flat tincture of Or; the bands outlined in Sable and illuminated in Gules; and the whole with a rough finish.

I have also seen this coat of arms described as «a shield banded of six pieces of Or and Gules».


Blazon keywords: Without divisions, Bendy, Six, Gules and Or.

Style keywords: Semi-circular, Illuminated, Outlined in sable and Rough.

Classification: Interpreted, Religious and Papal States.

Bearer: Pius V.

Separador heráldico
Escudo de Castilla y León

Urban IV

Quarterly: 1 and 4 Azure, a fleur de lis Or; 2 and 3 Argent, a rose Gules.

182nd Pope of the Church, from 1261 to 1264. «Urbanus IV», born Jacques Pantaleon of Court-Palais, was born in Troyes, France.

Quarterly: 1 and 4 Azure, a fleur de lis Or; 2 and 3 Argent, a rose Gules.

Escudo cuartelado: 1o y 4o de azur, una flor de lis de oro; 2o y 3o de plata, una rosa de gules.

Coat of arms of Urban IV with: a pointed and rounded shield shape; the field in plain Azure and Argent enamels; the figures outlined in the field, shaded and illuminated in Or and Gules; and with a watercolor finish.


Blazon keywords: Quarterly, Azure, One, Fleur de lis, Or, Argent, Rose and Gules.

Style keywords: Pointed and rounded, Illuminated, Shaded, Outlined in the field tincture and Watercolor.

Classification: Interpreted, Religious and Papal States.

Bearer: Urban IV.

Separador heráldico
Escudo de Castilla y León

Urban V

Gules, a chief dancetty of four full points Or.

200th Pope of the Church, from 1362 to 1370. «Urbanus V», born Guillaume de Grimoard, was born in Le Pont-de-Montvert, in the Languedoc.

Gules, a chief dancetty of four full points Or.

Escudo de gules, un jefe encajado de cuatro piezas enteras de oro.

Papal coat of arms interpreted with: a round-topped shield; the field in plain Gules; the chief indented, illuminated in metal Or, and outlined in Sable; and the whole design in hammered metal.

[Rietstap, J. B.; 1861] blazons it as Grimoard «de gueules, au chef émanché de quatre pièces d'or».


Blazon keywords: Gules, Chief, Dancetty, Or, Three and Two.

Style keywords: Semi-circular, Illuminated, Outlined in sable and Metal beaten.

Classification: Interpreted, Religious and Papal States.

Bearer: Urban V.

Separador heráldico
Escudo de Castilla y León

Urban VI

Or, an eagle displayed Azure.

202nd Pope of the Church, from 1378 to 1389. «Urbanus VI», named Bartolomeo Prignano, born in Itri, near Naples, in the Lazio region.

Or, an eagle displayed Azure.

Escudo de oro, un águila de azur.

Papal coat of arms interpreted with: a pointed mouth; the field in flat tincture of metal Or; the eagle illuminated in Azure, shaded and outlined in the color of the field; and the whole with a rough finish.


Blazon keywords: Without divisions, Or, One, Eagle and Azure.

Style keywords: Pointed, Illuminated, Outlined in the field tincture, Shaded and Rough.

Classification: Interpreted, Religious and Papal States.

Bearer: Urban VI.

 

Dr. Antonio Salmerón y Cabañas,
,
Paseo de la Castellana 135, 7th floor,
28046 Madrid, Spain.