Coat of Arms of The King of Spain - Quartered Shield

Quartered Shield

The shield is divided into four quarters, blazoned as follows:

• 1st, gules a castle or, triple-embattled and voided gate and windows, with three towers each triple-turreted, of the field, masoned sable and ajoure azure, which is for Castile;

• 2nd, argent a lion rampant purpure crowned or, langued and armed, of the second, which is for León;

• 3rd, or, four pallets gules, which is for Aragon;

• 4th, gules a cross, saltire and orle of chains linked together or, a centre point vert, which is for Navarre;

Argent enté en point, with a pomegranate proper seeded gules, supported, sculpted and leafed in two leaves vert, which is for Granada.

Inescutcheon azure bordure gules, three fleurs-de-lys or, which is for Bourbon-Anjou.

Joined to the shield, the red saltire of Burgundy and, to the dexter and sinister of the base point, the yoke gules in its natural position with ribbons, of the field, and the sheaf of five arrows gules with the arrowheads inverted and ribbons, of the field, which used to be the symbol of the Catholic Monarchs of Spain.

All surrounded by the chain of the Golden Fleece and crowned with a crown of the same metal and precious stones, with eight rosettes, five visible, and eight pearls interspersed, closed at the top by eight diadems also adorned with pearls and surmounted by a cross on a globe, which is the royal crown of Spain.

In 1969, General Francisco Franco appointed Juan Carlos I as his "successor to the Headship of the Spanish state with the title of King" but gave him the new title of Prince of Spain instead of the traditional title of Prince of Asturias. From 1971 to 1975, Juan Carlos as Prince of Spain used a coat of arms which was virtually identical to the one later adopted when he was became King in 1975. The earlier coat of arms differed only that it featured the royal crown of a Crown Prince of Spain, the King's royal crown has eight half-arches of which five are visible, while the Prince's one has only four half-arches of which three are visible.