Coat of arms of the Second Spanish Republic

The Coat of arms of the Second Spanish Republic was the emblem of the Second Spanish Republic, the government that existed in Spain between April 14, 1931, when King Alfonso XIII left the country, and April 1, 1939, when the last of the Republican forces surrendered to Francoist forces at the end of the Spanish Civil War.

Arms of the Spanish Republic
ArmigerSecond Spanish Republic
Adopted1931
CrestMural crown
ShieldQuarterly of Castile, Leon, Aragon and Navarre enté en point of Granada.
SupportersTwo Pillars of Hercules
MottoPLVS VLTRA
National flag of the Second Spanish Republic

The national flag of the Second Spanish Republic would have the coat of arms in the middle of the central yellow band. There was no coat of arms in the Spanish Republican Civil Ensign.

History

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Origin

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Following the 1868 Revolution that put an end to the unpopular reign of Isabella II the Provisional Government that was subsequently established decided to modify the Spanish symbols, doing away with the monarchic elements of the Bourbon Dynasty that had been up till then part of them. After reviewing a few proposals, one of which included a green civic crown, the following coat of arms was adopted: quarterly of Castile, Leon, Aragon and Navarre enté en point of Granada. The crown was a mural crown instead of the royal crown.[1]

The First Spanish Republic that was instituted in 1873 adopted the coat of arms of the 1868–1871 Provisional Government without changes.[2] The mural crown topped coat of arms was one of the main official symbols of Spain until the 1874 coup d'état by General Arsenio Martínez-Campos initiated the Bourbon Restoration, putting an end to the period known as Democratic Sexennium (Sexenio Democrático).[3]

1931

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The Spanish Republic reestablished in 1931 revived the coat of arms of the short-lived First Spanish Republic (1873–1874) which had originated in turn in the revision of Spanish symbols that followed the Revolution of 1868.[4] The only exception was that the lion of the second quarter was depicted uncrowned.[5]

The coat of arms of the Second Spanish Republic was flanked by the two Pillars of Hercules bearing scrolls with the motto Plus Ultra (Latin for further beyond). The colour of the scrolls is usually white or pale golden,[5] but there is a high proportion of official representations displaying the red colour.[6]

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See also

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References

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  1. ^ Juan Francisco Fuentes (2007). El fin del Antiguo Régimen (1808-1868). Política y sociedad. Madrid: Síntesis. ISBN 978-84-975651-5-8
  2. ^ María Victoria López-Cordón (1976). La revolución de 1868 y la I República. Madrid: Siglo XXI. ISBN 84-323-0238-4
  3. ^ Ángel Bahamonde (1996). España en democracia. El Sexenio, 1868-1874. Madrid: Historia 16-Temas de Hoy. ISBN 84-7679-316-2
  4. ^ Coat of Arms of Spain (1868-1870 and 1873-1874)
  5. ^ a b Cover of the 1931 Constitution
  6. ^ Coat of Arms of Spain (1931-1939) at the Ethnographic Museum in Vélez Rubio, Almería
  7. ^ ABC 18-12-08 - La Asociación para la Recuperación de la Memoria Histórica (ARMH), formada por familiares de víctimas del franquismo, saludó la retirada de la estatua, pero criticó que al mismo tiempo se elimine un escudo que a pocos metros recordaba a la Segunda República (1931-1939), como si éste periodo fuese equiparable a la dictadura militar (in Spanish)
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