Crown (heraldry)

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A Crown is often an emblem of the monarchy, a monarch's government, or items endorsed by it; see The Crown. A specific type of crown (or coronet for lower ranks of peerage) is employed in heraldry under strict rules. Indeed some monarchies never had a physical crown, just a heraldic representation, as in the constitutional kingdom of Belgium.

Crowns are also often used as symbols of religious status or veneration, by divinities (or their representation such as a statue) or by their representatives, e.g. the Black Crown of the Karmapa Lama, sometimes used a model for wider use by devotees.

A crown can be a charge in a coat of arms, or set upon the shield to signify the status of its owner.

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[edit] As a display of rank

If the bearer of a coat of arms has the title of baron or higher (or hereditary knight in some countries), he or she may display a coronet of rank above the shield, usually below the helm in British heraldry, often above the crest (if any) in Continental heraldry.

In this case the appearance of the crown follows a strict set of rules. A royal coat of arms may display a royal crown such as that of Norway. Princely coats of arms display a princely crown and so on right down to the mural crown which is commonly displayed on coats of arms of towns and some republics. These forms of crowns are often inspired by the actual appearance of the respective country's royal and princely crowns.

Ships and other units of some navies have a naval crown above the shield of their coats of arms.

[edit] Commonwealth usage

The coat of arms of the Barons Hawke displays a baronial coronet.

In formal English the word crown is reserved for the crown of a monarch whereas the word coronet is used for all other noble crowns.

In the peerage of the United Kingdom, the design of a coronet shows the rank of its owner, as in German, French and various other heraldic traditions. The coronet of a duke has eight strawberry leaves, that of a marquess has four strawberry leaves and four silver balls (known as "pearls", but not actually pearls), that of an earl has eight strawberry leaves and eight "pearls" raised on stalks, that of a viscount has sixteen "pearls", and that of a baron has six "pearls". Since a person entitled to wear a coronet customarily displays it in their coat of arms above the shield and below the helm and crest, this can provide a useful clue as to the owner of a given coat of arms.

Members of the British Royal Family have coronets on their coats of arms, and may wear them at coronations. They are according to regulations made by King Charles II in 1661 shortly after his return from exile in France (getting a taste for its lavish court style; Louis XIV started monumental work at Versailles that year) and Restoration, and vary depending upon the prince's relationship to the Monarch. Occasionally additional royal warrants vary the designs for individuals.

In Canadian heraldry, coronets are used to designate descent from United Empire Loyalists. A military coronet signifies ancestors who served in Loyalist regiments during the American Revolution, while a civil coronet is used by all others. The loyalist coronets are used only in heraldry, never worn.

Crown of Saint Edward (Heraldry).svg Sovereign - St. Edward's Crown Royal Crown of Scotland (Heraldry).svg Sovereign - Crown of Scotland Tudor Crown (Heraldry).svg Sovereign - Imperial/Tudor Crown Coronet of the British Heir Apparent.svg Heir Apparent
Coronet of a Child of the Sovereign.svg Prince or Princess - son or daughter of a sovereign Coronet of a Child of the Heir Apparent.svg Prince or Princess - children of the Heir Apparent Coronet of a Grandchild of the Sovereign.svg Prince or Princess - children of other sons of the Sovereign, other princes or princesses Coronet of a Child of a Daugther of the Sovereign.svg Prince or Princess - Children of a Daughter of the sovereign.
Old Duke.png Old ducal hat Coronet of a British Duke.svg Duke Coronet of a British Marquess.svg Marquess Coronet of a British Earl.svg Earl
Coronet of a British Viscount.svg Viscount Coronet of a British Baron.svg Baron Loyalists military coronet.svg Loyalists military coronet (Canadian) Loyalists civil coronet.svg Loyalists civil coronet (Canadian)

[1]

[edit] Continental usages

Precisely because there are many traditions and more variation within some of these, there is a plethora of continental coronet types. Indeed there are also some coronets for positions that don't exist, or do not entitle use of a coronet, in the Commonwealth tradition.

Such a case in French ('old', i.e. royal era) heraldry, where coronets of rank did not come into use before the 16th century, is the vidame, whose coronet (illustrated) is a metal circle mounted with three visible crosses (no physical headgear of this type known).

Often coronets are substituted by helmets, or only worn on a helmet.

[edit] German-Speaking countries

Coat of arms of the principality of Schwarzburg-Sondershausen displaying a Fürstenhut (Princely hat).

The Holy Roman Empire and consequently its successor states - Austria, Germany and others - had a very similar system to the British, though the design varied.

  • The normal Adelskrone for lower nobility(= Laubkrone) is a golden ring with pearls and precious stones that features eight tines of which typically only five are visible. Out of those the center and the outer tines are normally leaves, whereas the others are headed by pearls. In the southern states of Bavaria and Württemberg quite often all tines are headed by pearls.
  • The Freiherrnkrone (baron's coronet)shows seven tines with pearls.
  • The Grafenkrone (count's coronet)shows nine tines with pearls. Some of the senior houses used coronets showing five leaves and four pearls (Some mediatized counties and minor principalities had other types of coronets that distinguished them from normal counts).
  • The Fürstenkrone (coronet of a prince; similar in rank to a marchess) is a golden ring with precious stones and five leaves and a crimson cap, that is surrounded by three visible arches with an imperial globe on top.
  • The Herzogskrone (duke's coronet) has five arches, but only four tines. Between the arches crimson cloth is visible.

Considering the highly religious nature of the Holy Roman Empire, one can say that, except for the short-lived Napoleonic states, no continental secular system of heraldry historically was so neatly regulated as under the British crown. Still, there are often traditions (often connected to the Holy Roman Empire, e.g. those in Sweden, Denmark or Russia), including the use of crown and coronets. While most languages don't have a specific term for coronets, but simply use the word meaning crown, it is possible to determine which of those crowns are for peerage or lower level use, and thus can by analogy be called coronets.

[edit] Holy Roman Empire

Ströhl-Regentenkronen-Fig. 16.png Imperial Crown Ströhl-Regentenkronen-Fig. 06.png King of Bohemia Archducal Coronet.svg Archducal hat Oldest Electoral hat.svg Oldest Electoral hat
Rangkronen-Fig. 43.svg Older Electoral hat Ducal Hat.svg New Electoral hat & New Ducal hat Regentenkronen-Fig. 17.png Ducal hat of Styria Ströhl-Rangkronen-Fig. 03.png Ducal crown
Princely Hat.svg Princely hat Ströhl-Rangkronen-Fig. 11.png Princely crown Ströhl-Rangkronen-Fig. 07.png Crown of a Landgraf Ströhl-Rangkronen-Fig. 08.png Crown of a Landgraf
Rangkronen-Fig. 15.svg Older crown of counts Rangkronen-Fig. 18.svg Newer crown of counts Rangkronen-Fig. 50.svg Older crown of a Baron/Freiherr Rangkronen-Fig. 27.svg Newer crown of a Baron/Freiherr
Rangkronen-Fig. 38.svg Older Crown of Nobility Rangkronen-Fig. 37.svg Newer Crown of Nobility

[edit] Since 1803 / Austrian Empire

Wappen Kaiser Franz II. 1804.svg Imperial Crown (HRR) 1804-1806 Imperial Crown of Austria.svg Imperial Crown (Austria) 1804-1918 Ströhl-Rangkronen-Fig. 01.png Newer Crown of a King Ströhl-Rangkronen-Fig. 02.png Newer Crown of a Grand Duke
Ströhl-Rangkronen-Fig. 17.png Mediatized Sovereigns of the Old Empire
titled as "Illustrious Highness"

[edit] German Empire

Deutsches Reich - Kaiserkrone (1889).svg Imperial Crown of the German Empire (1871) 1888-1918 Ströhl-Regentenkronen-Fig. 05.png Empress Ströhl-Regentenkronen-Fig. 08.png Crown Prince
Crown of Prussia.svg King of Prussia Royal Crown of Bavaria.svg King of Bavaria

[edit] Low Countries

[edit] Ancien Regime

Some of these styles are still used by old nobility.

Princely Hat.svg Prince Crown of a Duke of France (variant).svg Duke Crown of a Marquis of France (variant).svg Marquess Rangkronen-Fig. 48.svg Count
Rangkronen-Fig. 19.svg Count
(Older)		 Crown of a Viscount of France (variant).svg Viscount Rangkronen-Fig. 28.svg Baron Rangkronen-Fig. 38.svg Crown of Nobility

[edit] Belgium

Heraldic Royal Crown of Belgium.svg King Rangkronen-Fig. 10.svg Prince Rangkronen-Fig. 04.svg Duke Rangkronen-Fig. 15.svg Marquess
Crown of a Count of France (variant).svg Count Rangkronen-Fig. 25.svg Viscount Rangkronen-Fig. 27.svg Baron Rangkronen-Fig. 34.svg Hereditary Knight
(Chevaliér/Erfridder)

[edit] Netherlands

Rangkronen-Fig. 01-Niederlande.png King Rangkronen-Fig. 01-Niederlande.png Prince
(royal family)		 Rangkronen-Fig. 10.svg Prince
(nobility)		 Rangkronen-Fig. 04.svg Duke
Rangkronen-Fig. 15.svg Marquess Rangkronen-Fig. 14.svg Count Rangkronen-Fig. 18.svg Count
(alternative style)		 Rangkronen-Fig. 23.svg Viscount
Rangkronen-Fig. 27.svg Baron Rangkronen-Fig. 34.svg Hereditary Knight
(Erfridder)		 Rangkronen-Fig. 34.svg Jonkheer

[edit] France

[edit] Ancien Regime

Royal Crown of France.svg King Crown of the Dauphin of France.svg Dauphin Crown of a Royal Prince of the Blood of France.svg Enfant de France Crown of a Prince of the Blood of France.svg Prince du Sang
Crown of a Duke of France.svg Duke and "Pair de France" Crown of a Duke of France (variant).svg Duke Crown of a Marquis of France.svg Marquis and "Pair de France" Crown of a Marquis of France (variant).svg Marquess
Crown of a Count of France.svg Count and "Pair de France" Crown of a Count of France (variant).svg Count Rangkronen-Fig. 48.svg Count (older) Crown of a Viscount of France (variant).svg Viscount
Crown of a Vidame of France.svg Vidame Crown of a Baron of France.svg Baron Crown of a Chevalier of France.svg Knight's crown (Bannerets) Torse of a Chevalier of France.svg Knight's tortillon

[edit] Napoleonic Empire

Imperial Crown of Napoleon.svg Bonnet d`honneur.png Crown of a Napoleonic Prince Souverain.svg Biret prince.png Biret duc.png Biret comte.png Biret baron.png Biret Chevalier.png
Emperor Bonnet
d'honneur		 Sovereign
Prince		 Prince Duke Count Baron Knight

[edit] July Monarchy

Crown of Orléans.svg
King of the
French

[edit] Greece

Crown of the Kingdom of Greece.svg Monarch

[edit] Italy

[edit] Kingdom of Italy (1861 - 1946)

Heraldic Royal Crown of Italy.svg King Crown of Italian hereditary prince.svg Crown Prince Ströhl-Rangkronen-Fig. 09.png Prince (royal family) Italian Crown of Heir apparent.svg Prince of Savoy-Aosta
Child's crown of the Italian's King.svg Prince of Savoy-Genova Crown of a Duke of France (variant).svg Duke Crown of a Marquis of France (variant).svg Marquess Rangkronen-Fig. 18a.svg Count
Rangkronen-Fig. 24.svg Viscount Crown of a Baron of France.svg Baron Rangkronen-Fig. 36.svg Noble Rangkronen-Fig. 33.svg Hereditary Knight
Rangkronen-Fig. 40.svg Patrician Italian Province (Crown).svg Province Corona di città.svg City Corona di comune.svg Municipality

[edit] Italian states before 1861

Tiara3.png Papal Tiara Ströhl-Regentenkronen-Fig. 36.png Grand Duchy of Tuscany Doge's Crown.svg Doge of Venice Ströhl-Regentenkronen-Fig. 38.png Crown of San Marino Corona ferrea monza (heraldry).svg Iron Crown of Lombardy

[edit] Portugal

Royal Crown of Portugal.svg Monarch Heraldic Crown of Portuguese Barons.svg Baron

[edit] Brazil

Brazil Imperial Crown.svg Emperor Brazil Prince Imperial Crown.svg Prince Imperial

[edit] Russia

Russian Imperial Crown.svg Rangkronen-Fig. 12.svg Rangkronen-Fig. 18b.svg Rangkronen-Fig. 27.svg Rangkronen-Fig. 30.svg Rangkronen-Fig. 38.svg
Tsar Prince
(Illustrious Highness)		 Count Baron Baron (alternative style) Crown of Nobility

[edit] Spain

Heraldic Royal Crown of Spain.svg King Royal Crown for the Aragonese Terriories.svg King (Aragon, Catalonia, Balearics, Valencia) Heraldic Crown of the Prince of Asturias.svg Crown Prince Heraldic Crown of the Spanish Heir Apparent as Prince of Girona.svg Crown Price (Aragon, Catalonia, Balearics, Valencia)
Heraldic Crown of Spanish Infantes.svg Infante Crown of Spanish Infantes for the Aragonese Terriories.svg Infante (Aragon, Catalonia, Balearics, Valencia) Heraldic Crown of Spanish Grandee.svg Grandee of Spain
Heraldic Crown of Spanish Dukes (Variant 1).svg Duke Ströhl-Rangkronen-Fig. 45.png Older ducal crown Heraldic Crown of Spanish Marqueses (Variant 1).svg Marques Heraldic Crown of Spanish Count.svg Count
Ströhl-Rangkronen-Fig. 47.png Older crown of Counts Heraldic Crown of the Spanish Viscounts.svg Viscount Heraldic Crown of Spanish Barons.svg Baron Rangkronen-Fig. 51.svg Older crown of Barons
Heraldic Crown of Spanish Lords.svg Señor (Lord) Torse of a Chevalier of France.svg Knight's burelete (Caballero) Ströhl-Rangkronen-Fig. 35.png Older crown of Knights (Caballeros)

[edit] Scandinavia

[edit] Denmark

Royal Crown of Denmark.svg King Crown of the Crown Prince of Denmark.svg Crown Prince Crown of a Prince of Denmark.svg Prince
(royal family)		 Rangkronen-Fig. 15.svg Count Rangkronen-Fig. 27.svg Baron Rangkronen-Fig. 38.svg Crown of Nobility

[edit] Norway

Heraldic crown of the King of Norway.svg Crown of the Crown Prince of Norway.svg Rangkronen-Fig. 15.svg Rangkronen-Fig. 27.svg Rangkronen-Fig. 38.svg
King Crown Prince Count Baron Crown of Nobility

[edit] Sweden

Royal crown.svg King Kronprinslig krona.svg Crown Prince Hertiglig krona.svg Duke Grevlig krona.svg Count Friherrlig krona.svg Baron Adlig krona.svg Crown of Nobility

[edit] Catholic Church

[edit] Further Examples

Ströhl-Regentenkronen-Fig. 04.png Holy Crown of Hungary Ströhl-Regentenkronen-Fig. 15.png Steel Crown of Romania Royal Crown of Hawaii.svg Royal Crown of Hawaii
Ströhl-Regentenkronen-Fig. 20.png Crown of the Grand Principality
of Transylvania		 Bulgarian Krown.svg Crown of the Kingdom of Bulgaria Heraldic Royal Crown of Egypt.svg Royal Crown of Egypt
Pahlavi Crown of Imperial Iran (heraldry).svg Shah of Persia Eastern Crown 2.svg Eastern crown Spanish Mural Crown (Common).svg Mural Crown
Mural crown of the coat of arms of the Berlin boroughs.svg Mural Crown of Berlin's boroughs Corona Navalis.svg Naval Crown Great Crown of Victory (heraldry).svg Great Crown of Victory of the Kings of Siam and Thailand.

[2]

[edit] As a charge

The coat of arms of Sweden, with the national Three Crowns charge

In heraldry, a charge is an image occupying the field on an escutcheon (or shield). Many coats of arms display a crown as a charge. Most often in order to allude to royal or noble connections of the owner.

[edit] See also

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Royal crowns

[edit] References

  1. ^ Boutell, Charles (1914). Fox-Davies, A.C.. ed. Handbook to English Heraldry, The (11th Edition ed.). London: Reeves & Turner. pp. 104–156. http://www.gutenberg.org/etext/23186. 
  2. ^ Ströhl, Hugo Gerard (1899). Heraldischer Atlas. Stuttgart. 
Types of crowns
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Crowns
English, Scottish, Welsh
and British crowns
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Holy Roman Empire,
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Iron Crown of Lombardy · Reliquary Crown of Otto II · Crown of Otto III · Reliquary Crown of Empress Cunigunde · Reliquary Crown of Henry II · Imperial Crown of the Holy Roman Empire · Salian Funeral Crowns of Spires · Kamelaukion of Frederick II or Constance of Sicily · Reliquary Crown of Charlemagne (14th century) · Crown of St. Wenceslas (Bohemian lands) · Crown of Blanche of Valois (Bohemian lands) · Electoral Hat of Saxony · Ducal hat of Styria · Archducal hat (Archducal hat of Tyrol · Archducal hat of Joseph II) Crown of the Grand Duchy of Tuscany · Imperial Crown of Austria · Crown of Frederick I (Prussia) · Crown of Charlotte (Prussia) · Imperial Crowns of Charles VII · Napoleonic Crown of Italy · Royal Crown of Bavaria · Royal Crown of Württemberg · Royal Crown of Hanover · Grand Ducal Crown of Baden · Crown of Empress Elizabeth (Austria) Crown of Wilhelm I (Prussia) · German State Crown · Crown of Wilhelm II (Prussia)
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