Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor, columns Argent, capital and base Or

Party per fess: 1 party per pale: 1 quarterly: 1 and 4 Gules, a castle triple-towered Or, port and windows Azure, masoned Sable [for Castile]; 2 and 3 Argent, a lion rampant Purpure, armed and langued Gules, crowned Or [for Leon]. 2 quarterly: 1 Or, four pallets Gules [for Aragon]; 2 quarterly per saltire: 1 and 4 Or, four pallets Gules; 2 and 3 Argent, an eagle displayed Sable [for Aragon-Sicily]. 3 Argent, a cross potent cantoned of four crosslets Or [for Jerusalem]. 4 Gules, a chain orlewise, crosswise, and saltirewise Or, charged in the fess point with an emerald Vert [for Navarre]. Enté en point Argent, a pomegranate proper, seeded Gules, slipped and leaved Vert [for Granada]. 2 quarterly: 1 Gules, a fess Argent [for Austria]; 2 Azure semé of fleurs de lis Or within a bordure compony Argent and Gules [for Burgundy modern]; 3 bendy Or and Azure within a bordure Gules [for Burgundy ancient]; 4 Sable, a lion rampant Or, armed and langued Gules [for Brabant]; overall an inescutcheon party per pale: 1 Or, a lion rampant Sable, armed and langued Gules [for Flanders]; 2 Argent, an eagle displayed Gules, crowned, armed, beaked, langued and membered Or, charged on the wings with two trefoiled stems Or [for Tyrol]. Crest: An imperial crown with two fanons Argent, fringed Or. Behind the shield a double-headed eagle displayed Sable, nimbed, beaked and armed Or, langued and membered Gules, enfiled by an open royal crown above the shield. Supporters: two columns Argent, capital and base Or, between in base waves Azure, in chief an imperial crown the dexter and a closed royal crown the sinister. Moto environing the columns: «Plus Ultra» Or over a scroll Gules. The shield is surrounded by the Golden Fleece.

Arms painted by me, illuminated with lights and shadows, outlined in Sable, with a semi-circular external shape and with a metal beaten finishing.

Arms of Charles, Holy Roman Emperor, emblazoned by me.

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Blazon keywords: Gules, Azure, Sable, Argent, Purpure, Or, Vert, One, Four, Party per fess, Party per pale, Quarterly, Castle, Triple-towered, Port and windows, Masoned, Lion, Rampant, Armed, Langued, Crowned, Pale, Quarterly per saltire, Eagle, Displayed, Cross potent, Cross couped, Cantoned, Crosslet, Chain, Orlewise, Crosswise, Saltirewise, Charged, In the fess point, Emerald, Enté en point, Pomegranate, Proper, Seeded, Slipped, Leaved, Fess, Semé, Fleur de lis, Bordure, Compony, Bendy, Overall, Inescutcheon, Beaked, Membered, Wing, Trefoiled, Stem, Crest, Imperial crown, Crown, Fanon, Fringed, Behind the shield, Double-headed, Nimbed, Enfiled, Open royal crown, Above the shield, Supporter (thing), Supporter, Column, Shafted, Between, In base, Wave, In chief, Dexter, Closed royal crown, Sinister, Motto, Environed, Scroll, Surrounded and Collar.

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

Classification: Civic, Interpreted, Boa and Coat of arms.

Bearer: Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor.

Or, an eagle displayed Sable.

Escudo de oro, un águila de sable.

Coat of arms painted by me, highlighted with lights and shadows, outlined in Sable, with an ogee external shape and with a freehand finishing.

Coat of arms of the Queen Beatrice of Swabia, 1205–1235, baptized as Elisabeth, wife of King Ferdinand III of Castile, 1199–1252. The eagle Sable on an Or field is a distinctive symbol of the Holy Roman Empire. This coat of arms has been emblazoned by me.

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Blazon keywords: Or, Sable, One and Eagle.

Style keywords: Outlined in sable, Illuminated, Ogee and Freehand.

Classification: Personal, Interpreted, Boa and Coat of arms.

Bearer: Beatrice of Swabia.

Quarterly: 1 and 4 Gules, a castle triple-towered Or, port and windows Azure, and masoned Sable; 2 and 3 Argent, a lion rampant Purpure, armed and langued Gules; a bordure compony of sixteen sections: eight Gules, a castle triple-towered Or, port and windows Azure, and masoned Sable, eight Or, an eagle displayed Sable.

Escudo cuartelado: 1^o y 4^o de gules, un castillo de oro, aclarado de azur, mazonado de sable; 2^o y 3^o de plata, un león rampante de púrpura, armado y lampasado de gules; una bordura componada de dieciseis compones: ocho de gules, un castillo de oro, aclarado de azur, mazonado de sable, ocho de oro, un águila de sable.

Coat of arms emblazoned by me, illuminated with lights and shadows, contoured in Sable, with an ogee outer contour and with a freehand finishing.

Coat of arms of the Infanta Berenguela of Castile, 1228–1279, 5^th daughter of the King Ferdinand III of Castile, 1199-1252, and the Queen Beatrice of Swabia, 1205–1235. There are discrepancies regarding the year of her death, with sources suggesting either 1279 or 1288. She bore her father's arms with a bordure compony featuring the arms of Castile and those of her mother, from Swabia. [Menéndez Pidal de Navascués, F.; 1982; page 104 and illustration between pages 112 and 113] writes «We know of a seal of this infanta that displays in the field the royal quarterly, surrounded like a bordure by 4 castles and 4 eagles, alternating», and in the illustration he depicts the bordure with 8 castles and 8 eagles, which is the version I have interpreted. I am particularly fond of compony arms, and this one is, to me, among the most beautiful and quintessentially Castilian.

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Blazon keywords: Gules, Or, Azure, Sable, Argent, Purpure, One, Sixteen, Eight, Quarterly, Castle, Triple-towered, Port and windows, Masoned, Lion, Rampant, Armed, Langued, Bordure, Compony and Eagle.

Style keywords: Outlined in sable, Illuminated, Ogee and Freehand.

Classification: Personal, Kingdom of Castile and Leon, Interpreted, Boa and Coat of arms.

Bearer: Berenguela of Castile, Infanta.

Quarterly: 1 and 4 Gules, a castle triple-towered Or, port and windows Azure, and masoned Sable; 2 and 3 Argent, a lion rampant Purpure, armed and langued Gules; a bordure compony of sixteen sections: eight Gules, a castle triple-towered Or, port and windows Azure, and masoned Sable, eight Or, an eagle displayed Sable. Crest: An open royal crown.

Arms emblazoned by me, illuminated with lights and shadows, contoured in Sable, with an ogee external shape and with a metal beaten finish.

Coat of arms of the Infanta Berenguela of Castile, 1228–1279, 5^th daughter of the King Ferdinand III of Castile, 1199-1252, and the Queen Beatrice of Swabia, 1205–1235. The coat of arms of Infanta Berenguela of Castile, besides being beautiful, has always seemed to me the epitome of the Castilian arms: quartered, bearing Leon and Castile, and surrounded by a bordure compony with castles. This coat of arms has been emblazoned by me.

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Blazon keywords: Gules, Or, Azure, Sable, Argent, Purpure, One, Sixteen, Eight, Quarterly, Castle, Triple-towered, Port and windows, Masoned, Lion, Rampant, Armed, Langued, Bordure, Compony, Eagle, Crest, Open royal crown and Crown.

Style keywords: Outlined in sable, Illuminated, Ogee and Metal beaten.

Classification: Personal, Kingdom of Castile and Leon, Interpreted, Boa and Coat of arms.

Bearer: Berenguela of Castile, Infanta.

The question is: «Does Spain have a heraldic badge similar to how the British Isles have heraldic badges? I’ve found nothing so far for Spain except the Yoke and Arrows from the Catholic Monarchs»

Spain does not have badges, national insignias, equivalent to the badges of the British Isles, and this is not an absence or a gap, but rather the result of a different historical tradition.

In England and in the Anglo-British world, the badge developed as a personal and later territorial symbol, detached from the full coat of arms and easily reproducible. In the Hispanic Monarchy, by contrast, symbolic weight almost always rested on the coat of arms and on standards, not on simplified badges.

That said, if we accept badges in a functional sense, as a simple symbol that immediately refers to Spain, then the following can be stated:

• Indeed, the yoke and the arrows is a very characteristic symbol. It originates with the Catholic Monarchs and is derived from a crossed use of the initials of their names: the yoke with the Y of Ysabel (a contemporary spelling), and the arrows ~ «Flechas» with the F of Fernando. It is also commonly interpreted as symbolizing strength (the yoke) and unity (the bundle of arrows). The Gordian knot and the yoke are associated with Ferdinand; the Yoke uses the Y of Ysabel, his wife, and the arrows ~ «Flechas» are the symbol of Ysabel, using the F of her husband Ferdinand. It is a badge based on crossed symbolism.
• Ferdinand the Catholic also used the symbol of the Gordian knot cut with a sword, derived from the legend of Alexander the Great. This emblem is sometimes represented alongside the yoke and the arrows, although it was less widely used and less central, and it does not refer to Spain as strongly as the previous symbols.
• Later, Philip the Handsome, who was married to our Queen Joanna of Castile, daughter of the Catholic Monarchs, introduced the Cross of Burgundy into the Spanish monarchy. It was used on military flags, for example by the Tercios. The Cross of Burgundy refers to Spain more clearly than the Gordian knot, but less so than the yoke and the arrows.
• Following the chronological order, we can consider the two Pillars of Hercules with their motto «Plus Ultra», introduced by the grandson of the Catholic Monarchs, Emperor Charles. These two separate columns serve as the supporters of the coat of arms of Spain, and when they are joined and linked by the scroll bearing the motto «Plus Ultra», they appear, for example, in decorations and on the coins known as «Reales de a Ocho» ~ «Spanish Dollars», which circulated across the globe and became the world monetary standard, functioning as the planet’s reserve currency during their period of predominance, occupying the position later held by the pound sterling and today by the United States dollar. These columns, interlaced with a scroll bearing the motto «Plus Ultra», immediately evoke Spain, and would be the most generally accepted badge.
• Finally, outside the royal and historical sphere, any badge featuring a black fighting bull ~ «toro bravo» in a defiant or noble stance will immediately refer to Spain for whoever sees it.

Other possibilities that come to mind are the Order of the Golden Fleece and the Cross of Santiago, both associated with their respective orders of chivalry, which could also function as a badge ~ «insignia». If one had to choose between them, I would undoubtedly choose the Cross of Santiago.

In summary:

• Formally, Spain does not have a badge ~ «insignia» in the British sense.
• Historically, it did have clear dynastic insignias, such as the yoke and the arrows of the Catholic Monarchs, but today they are scarcely usable.
• Functionally, I believe that the Pillars of Hercules, with or without crowns, entirely in silver, as I personally prefer, or with silver shafts and gold bases and capitals, preferably with water at the base to enhance the symbolism of the motto and linked by a scroll bearing that motto, are the best possible answer.
• At present, a newly created insignia incorporating a fighting bull refers to Spain, from anywhere in the world, in an almost unbeatable way.

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Categories: Inquiry, Badge, Column, Scroll and Motto.

Quarterly: 1 and 4 Gules, a castle triple-towered Or, port and windows Azure, and masoned Sable; 2 and 3 Argent, a cross flory Purpure.

Escudo cuartelado: 1^o y 4^o de gules, un castillo de oro, aclarado de azur, mazonado de sable; 2^o y 3^o de plata, una cruz flordelisada de púrpura.

Coat of arms emblazoned by me, illuminated with lights and shadows, contoured in Sable, with an ogee external shape and with a freehand finish.

Coat of arms of the Infante Henry of Castile, 1230–1303, 6^th offspring of the King Ferdinand III of Castile, 1199-1252, and the Queen Beatrice of Swabia, 1205–1235. He bore his father's arms, replacing the lion Purpure of the Kingdom of León with a cross flory Purpure, likely due to his close association with the Order of Calatrava, whose emblem is a cross flory Gules. However, he retained the metal Argent field in the 2^nd and 3^rd quarters and the lion's purpure color, suggesting this was more of a conceptual change than a quartering by alliance with the Order of Calatrava.

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Blazon keywords: Gules, Or, Azure, Sable, Argent, Purpure, One, Quarterly, Castle, Triple-towered, Port and windows, Masoned, Cross flory and Cross couped.

Style keywords: Outlined in sable, Illuminated, Ogee and Freehand.

Classification: Personal, Kingdom of Castile and Leon, Interpreted, Boa and Coat of arms.

Bearer: Henry of Castile, Infante.

Quarterly: 1 and 4 Gules, a castle triple-towered Or, port and windows Azure, and masoned Sable; 2 and 3 Or, an eagle displayed Sable.

Escudo cuartelado: 1^o y 4^o de gules, un castillo de oro, aclarado de azur, mazonado de sable; 2^o y 3^o de oro, un águila de sable.

Arms painted by me, illuminated with lights and shadows, outlined in Sable, with an ogee external shape and with a freehand finish.

Coat of arms of the Infante Philip of Castile, 1231–1274, 7^th offspring of the King Ferdinand III of Castile, 1199-1252, and the Queen Beatrice of Swabia, 1205–1235. This coat of arms has been emblazoned by me and can be consulted in [Messía de la Cerda y Pita, L.; 1990; page 146] with the field Or in the 2^nd and 3^rd quarters. He bears a quarterly shield combining the first quarter of his father’s arms, Castile, with his mother’s arms. Among all his siblings, he is the one who most closely combines the arms of both parents.

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Blazon keywords: Gules, Or, Azure, Sable, One, Quarterly, Castle, Triple-towered, Port and windows, Masoned and Eagle.

Style keywords: Outlined in sable, Illuminated, Ogee and Freehand.

Classification: Personal, Kingdom of Castile and Leon, Interpreted, Boa and Coat of arms.

Bearer: Philip of Castile, Infante.

Anonymous, «Armorial des chevaliers de la Table ronde», National Library of France ~ Bibliothèque nationale de France ~ BnF, call number Français 1437, manuscript, illuminated, 165 folios, 275 x 190 milímeters, France, 1485-1495.

Content

This vellum manuscript written in «bâtarde solennelle» contains the names, arms, and blazons of the Knights of the Round Table from the time of the Quest for the Holy Grail.

The armorial proper, from folios 2 recto to 146 recto of the 20th-century pencil numbering, includes 166 painted shields with crests and mottos. It consists entirely of imaginary heraldry, attributing shields and blazons created for the characters of the Arthurian legends.

The volume also incorporates a treatise on tournaments, from folios 146 verso to 161 verso, and the knights' oath, from folios 161 verso to 165 verso.

Notes

This manuscript was part of the collections of Gaston d'Orléans and kings Louis XIV and Louis XVIII of France.

It features ink foliation from the 18^th-19^th centuries and pencil numbering from the 20th century.

Sir Gawain

In this armorial, Sir Gawain, identified in the French text as «Messire Gauvain», is depicted on folio 54 verso bearing a shield of imaginary heraldry that differs from the English tradition. Instead of the pentacle described in the poem «Sir Gawain and the Green Knight», here he bears a «Argent, a double-headed eagle Or, beaked, membered and armed Azure». Sir Gawain was King Arthur's nephew and son of King Lot of Orkney; in this same armorial on folio 21 verso, the «Armes de Lot d'Orcanie» are also represented.

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Bibliographical reference of century XV.

Classification: Manuscript, Armorial roll, French language and In color.

Author: unknown.

The following article cites this bibliographic reference:

• Gawain, Sir

External link:

• National Library of France, information http://archivesetmanuscrits.bnf.fr/ark:/12148/cc44923s National Library of France, digitized manuscript.

Internal resources: TableRonde1490.ArmorialDesChevaliersDeLa.pdf PDF format.

Continue with: Sancho of Castile, Infante.