Coat of arms of the Second Spanish Republic facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Arms of the Spanish Republic
Armiger	Second Spanish Republic
Adopted	1931
Crest	Mural crown
Blazon	Quarterly of Castile, Leon, Aragon and Navarre enté en point of Granada.
Supporters	Two Pillars of Hercules
Motto	PLVS VLTRA

National flag of the Second Spanish Republic

The Coat of arms of the Second Spanish Republic was the official symbol of the Second Spanish Republic. This was a government that ruled Spain from April 14, 1931, until April 1, 1939. It began when King Alfonso XIII left the country. It ended when the last Republican forces gave up during the Spanish Civil War.

This special coat of arms was placed in the middle of the yellow stripe on the national flag. However, the Spanish Republican merchant flag, used by ships, did not have this coat of arms.

History of the Spanish Republic's Coat of Arms

How the Design Started

After the Revolution of 1868, Queen Isabella II was no longer in charge. A new temporary government took over. They decided to change Spain's national symbols. They wanted to remove any signs of the old royal family, the Bourbons.

After looking at different ideas, they chose a new design. This design showed symbols from old Spanish kingdoms: Castile, Leon, Aragon, and Navarre. It also included a small part for Granada. Instead of a king's crown, the coat of arms had a mural crown. This type of crown looks like the walls of a city.

The First Spanish Republic, which started in 1873, used this same coat of arms. It was Spain's official symbol until 1874. That's when General Arsenio Martínez-Campos led a coup d'état (a sudden takeover of the government). This brought the Bourbon kings back to power.

The 1931 Changes

When the Spanish Republic returned in 1931, it brought back the coat of arms from the First Spanish Republic. This design had first appeared after the 1868 Revolution. There was only one small change: the lion symbol in the second part of the shield was shown without a crown.

The coat of arms of the Second Spanish Republic had two Pillars of Hercules on its sides. These pillars are ancient symbols, often linked to the Strait of Gibraltar. They held scrolls with the motto Plus Ultra. This Latin phrase means further beyond. The scrolls were usually white or light gold. But sometimes, they were shown in red.

Gallery

• 

  Proposal of 1868 with a Civic Crown as crest, Provisional Government term, led by Francisco Serrano
  (1868–1870)

• 

  Coat of arms displaying a crowned lion, used during the Provisional Government term and the First Republic
  (1873–1874)

• 

  5 Peseta coin with the coat of arms first used by the Provisional Govt.

• 

  Variant with white pillars

• 

  Republican Coat of arms carved in stone. Located at the Town Hall square in Santander, it had quietly survived General Franco's era until it was removed in December 2008

• 

  Seal of the 'National Defence Ministry' (Ministerio de la Defensa Nacional)

• 

  Coat of arms of the Spanish Republic on a 1935 Peseta coin

• 

  Cover of the 1931 Constitution of the Spanish Republic with cream coloured scrolls

• 

  Enameled metal plate of a National Girls' School with red coloured scrolls

• 

  Spanish Republican Coat of arms on the Bank of Spain facade in Madrid

See also

In Spanish: Escudo de la Segunda República española para niños

• Coat of arms of Spain
• List of coats of arms of Spain
• Flag of the Second Spanish Republic
• Spanish heraldry