Coat of Arms of Poland - History

History

The symbol of an eagle appeared for the first time on the coins made during the reign of Bolesław I (992-1025), initially as the coat of arms of the Piast dynasty. The stylized bird's appearance caused dispute between scholars who could not identify its species. The most probable is the white-tailed eagle but peacock and rooster were also taken into consideration. Beginning in the 12th century, the eagle has appeared on the shields, ensigns, coins, and seals of the Piast dukes. It appeared on the Polish coat of arms during Przemysł II reign as a reminder of the Piast tradition before the fragmentation of Poland.

The eagle's graphic form has changed throughout centuries. Its recent shape, accepted in 1927, was designed by professor Zygmunt Kaminski and was based on the eagle's form from the times of Stefan Batory's reign. It is worth mentioning that it was adapted to stamps or round shields rather than to a rectangular shape.

The shield itself also changed shape. The Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth's shield was divided into four parts, with Polish Eagle and Lithuanian Pahonia on opposite sides. Kings used to place their own emblems in the center of the national coat of arms (i.e., House Vasa).

Despite the fact that new emblems were given to provinces established by the invaders after the partitions of Poland, the White Eagle remained there with or without crown and occasionally with face turned towards left and in some exceptions with Pahonia. But in most cases they were combined with the invader's emblem.

After the November Uprising, the tsars, titled also as Polish kings, adapted the Order of the White Eagle with blue ribbon, well accepted in Russia. Archangel, the symbol of Ukraine, joined the Eagle and Pahonia during the January Uprising. The Poles conscientiously collected coins from the pre-partitions period with the eagle on their obverse and reverse. The symbol of the eagle, often with Pahonia, appeared on numerous flags and emblems of the uprising.

The resurrection of a Polish Kingdom (Polish Regency) in the territories of the former Congress Poland (later ruled by the Russian Empire) was approved by Austria-Hungary and Wilhelm II's Germany in 1916. A year later, the first Polish banknotes (Polish Marka) with Crowned Eagle on an indivisible shield were introduced. After regaining total independence and the creation of the Second Polish Republic (1918–1939) the White Eagle was implemented by the act of 1919. Official image of the coat of arms (which remind Stanisław Poniatowski's emblem) was used until 1927 when Zygmunt Kamiński designed a new one.

After World War II, the communist authorities of the People's Republic of Poland removed the "reactionary" royal crown from the eagle's head. Still, Poland was the only country in the Eastern Bloc with no communist symbols (red stars, ears of wheat, hammers, etc.) on either its flag or its coat of arms. The crownless design was approved by resolution in 1955. To counter that, the Polish government in Exile introduced a new emblem with a cross added atop the crown. After the fall of communism in 1989, the crown came back, but without the cross.

The eagle appears on many public administration buildings, it's present in schools and courts. Furthermore it is placed on the obverse of Polish coins. However the issue on which conditions it should be exposed and how it should be interpreted is the topic of numerous debates in Poland. The eagle was formerly on the Poland national football team's shirts; a new shirt without the eagle was introduced in November 2011, prompting complaints from fans and president Bronisław Komorowski. Due to this overwhelming public pressure, the football shirts were redesigned with the Eagle reinstated in the centre of the shirt in December 2011.