Heraldry of the House of Habsburg

Last updated

The coats of arms of the House of Habsburg were the heraldic emblems of their members and their territories, such as Austria-Hungary and the Austrian Empire. Historian Michel Pastoureau says that the original purpose of heraldic emblems and seals was to facilitate the exercise of power and the identification of the ruler, due to they offered for achieving these aims. These symbols were associated with the kingdom, and eventually also represented the intangible nature of the national sentiment or sense of belonging to a territory. [1]

Contents

A complete listing of the arms can be found at the Habsburg Armory.

Heraldry

Arms of Maximilian I of Habsburg.svg
Habsburg Lorraine.png
Habsburg Lorraine Tuscany.png
Habsburg Lorraine Trishield.png
Arms of Austria impaled with Burgundy (ancient). The most personal arms of Austrian princes from 1477 until 1740 (see here Personal Arms of Joseph II and Marie Antoinette showing Austria (Habsburg arms) impaled with Lorraine (Lorraine arms).Tripartite personal arms of Leopold II and Francis II/I showing Austria (Habsburg arms), Lorraine (Lorraine arms) and Tuscany (Medici arms), and used by the House of Austria-Tuscany (see Archduke Sigismund, Grand Duke of Tuscany).Tripartite personal arms of the "Habsburg" ruling house after 1805 showing the return to prominence of the old Habsburg arms. Used today by most archdukes/archduchesses.


Arms of Dominion of the Austro-Hungarian Empire

The arms of dominion began to take on a life of their own in the 19th century as the idea of the state as independent from the Habsburg dynasty took root. They are the national arms as borne by a sovereign in his capacity as head of state and represent the state as separate from the person of the monarch or his dynasty. That very idea had been, heretofore, foreign to the concept of the Habsburg state. The state had been the personal property of the Habsburg dynasty. Since the states, territories, and nationalities represented were in many cases only united to the Austro-Hungarian Empire by their historic loyalty to the head of the house of Habsburg as hereditary lord, these full ("grand") arms of dominion of Austria-Hungary reflect the complex political infrastructure that was necessarily to accommodate the many different nationalities and groupings within the empire after the Austro-Hungarian Compromise of 1867.

Shield of the Austrian part of the empire (1867-1915). Imperial Coat of Arms of the Empire of Austria.svg
Shield of the Austrian part of the empire (1867–1915).
Enumeration Coat of arms of Austria-Hungary with numbers 1867-1915.png
Enumeration

After 1867 the eastern part of the empire, also called Transleithania, was mostly under the domination of the Kingdom of Hungary. The shield integrated the arms of the kingdom of Hungary, with two angels and supporters and the crown of St. Stephen, along with the territories that were subject to it:

The Kingdom of Dalmatia, the Kingdom of Croatia, the Kingdom of Slavonia (conjoined with Croatia as the Kingdom of Croatia-Slavonia - formally known as the Triune Kingdom of Croatia, Slavonia, and Dalmatia, although the claim to Dalmatia was mostly de jure), the Great Principality of Transylvania, the Condominium of Bosnia and Herzegovina (1915–1918), the City of Fiume and its district (modern Rijeka), and in the center, the Kingdom of Hungary.

The western or Austrian part of the empire, Cisleithania , continued using the shield of the Empire in 1815 but with the seals of various member territories located around the central shield. Paradoxically, some of these coats of arms belonged to the territories that were part of the Hungarian part of the empire and shield. This shield, the most frequently used until 1915, was known as the middle shield. There was also the small shield, with just the personal arms of the Habsburgs, as used in 1815.

IIIIIIIVV
Coa Hungary Country History (19th Century).svg Wappen Konigreich Galizien & Lodomerien.png Wappen Erzherzogtum Osterreich unter der Enns.png Wappen Herzogtum Salzburg.png Wappen Herzogtum Steiermark.png
Kingdom of Hungary Kingdom of Galicia and Lodomeria Archduchy of Austria Duchy of Salzburg Duchy of Styria
VIVIIVIII
Wappen Gefurstete Grafschaft Tirol.png Wappen Herzogtum Karnten.png Wappen Herzogtum Krain.png Wappen Markgrafschaft Mahren.png Wappen Herzogtum Schlesien.png
Duchy of Tirol Duchy of Carinthia and Duchy of Carniola (Marshalled) Margraviate of Moravia and Duchy of Silesia (Marshalled)
IXXXI
Wappen Grossfurstentum Siebenburgen.png CoA of Kingdom of Illyria.svg Wappen Konigreich Bohmen.png
Great Principality of Transylvania Kingdom of Illyria Kingdom of Bohemia

In 1915, in the middle of World War I, Austria-Hungary adopted a heraldic composition uniting the shield that was used in the Hungarian part, also known as the Lands of the Crown of St. Stephen, with a new version of the medium shield of the Austrian part as depicted above in the section on the mainline of the Emperors of Austria.

Before 1915, the arms of the different territories of the Austrian part of the Empire (heraldry was added to some areas not shown in the previous version and to the left to the Hungarian part) appeared together in the shield positioned on the double-headed eagle coat of arms of the Austrian Empire as an inescutcheon. The eagle was inside a shield with a goldfield. The latter shield was supported by two griffins and was topped by the Austrian Imperial Crown (previously these items were included only in the large shield). Then, shown in the center of both arms of dominion, as an inescutcheon to the inescutcheon, is the small shield, i.e. personal arms, of the Habsburgs. All this was surrounded by the collar Order of the Golden Fleece. [2] [3]

Middle Coat of arms of the Austrian part of the Empire in 1915. It shows as a center shield (inescutcheon) the personal arms of Habsburg-Lorraine over the arms of dominions of the Habsburg lands. It usually had the personal arms of Habsburg-Lorraine in the center. Middle Coats of arms of Austria (1915-1918).svg
Middle Coat of arms of the Austrian part of the Empire in 1915. It shows as a center shield (inescutcheon) the personal arms of Habsburg-Lorraine over the arms of dominions of the Habsburg lands. It usually had the personal arms of Habsburg-Lorraine in the center.

In the heraldic composition of 1915, the shields of the two foci of the empire, Austria and Hungary, were brought together. The griffin supporter on the left was added for Austria and an angel on the right as a supporter for Hungary. The center featured the personal arms of the Habsburgs (Habsburg, Austria, and Lorraine). This small shield was topped with a royal crown and surrounded by the collar of the Order of the Golden Fleece, below which was the Military Order of Maria Theresa, below which was the collars of the Orders of St. Stephen's and Leopold. At the bottom was the motto that read "AC INDIVISIBILITER INSEPARABILITER" ("indivisible and inseparable"). Other simplified versions did not have the supports depicted, and the simple shields of Austria and Hungary. These were the arms of the Empire of Austria with an inescutcheon of Austria, and the Arms of Hungary (with chequer of Croatia at the tip).

Middle Common Coat of Arms of the Austro-Hungarian Empire in 1915 showing most of the larger possessions of the Austrian Empire (left shield) and the Kingdom of Hungary (right shield). The personal arms of the Habsburg-Lorraine are in the center. The collection of territories that acknowledged the head of the Habsburgs as personal ruler shown by this representation put the Empire at a distinct disadvantage in comparison with the unified nation-states that it shared the continent of Europe with. Austro-hungarian coat of arms 1914.svg
Middle Common Coat of Arms of the Austro-Hungarian Empire in 1915 showing most of the larger possessions of the Austrian Empire (left shield) and the Kingdom of Hungary (right shield). The personal arms of the Habsburg-Lorraine are in the center. The collection of territories that acknowledged the head of the Habsburgs as personal ruler shown by this representation put the Empire at a distinct disadvantage in comparison with the unified nation-states that it shared the continent of Europe with.
Austrian Lands
ShieldPartitionTerritory
Austrian shield.jpg Wappen Osterreichische Lander 1915 (Mittel) Numbers.png

I
II
III
IV
V
VI
VII
VIII
IX
X
XI
XII
XIII
XIV
XV
XVI
XVII
XVIII
XIX
XX

Kingdom of Galicia and Lodomeria
Kingdom of Bohemia
Kingdom of Dalmatia
Duchy of Upper and Lower Silesia
Duchy of Salzburg
Margraviate of Moravia
County of Tirol
Duchy of Bukovina
Province of Vorarlberg
Margraviate of Istria
County of Gorizia (part of the Princely County of Gorizia and Gradisca)
County of Gradisca (also part of the Princely County of Gorizia and Gradisca)
Province of Bosnia and Herzegovina (Conjoined)
Imperial Free City of Trieste
Archduchy of Lower Austria
Archduchy of Upper Austria
Duchy of Styria
Duchy of Carniola
Duchy of Carinthia
Archduchy of Austria
Territories of the crown of St. Stephen
ShieldPartitionTerritory
Coa Hungary Country History Mid (1915).svg Wappen Ungarische Lander 1915 (Mittel) Numbers.png I
II
III
IV
V
VI
VII
Kingdom of Dalmatia (Legally Hungarian)
Kingdom of Croatia
Kingdom of Slavonia
Grand Principality of Transylvania
Province of Bosnia and Herzegovina (Conjoined)
City of Fiume and its district
Kingdom of Hungary
Personal Shield of the Dynasty
ShieldPartitionSignificance
Habsburg Lorraine Trishield.png I
II
III
Count of Habsburg
Archduke of Austria
Duke of Lorraine
Wappen Ungarische Lander 1867 (Mittel).png Coa Hungary Country History med (1915).svg Imperial Coat of Arms of the Empire of Austria (1815).svg
Arms of the Lands of the Crown of Saint Stephen (1867–1915)Arms of the Lands of the Crown of Saint Stephen (1915–1918)Small Arms of Austria (Cisleithania) (1805–1918)
Imperial Coat of Arms of Austria.svg Coat of Arms of Emperor Franz Joseph I.svg Lesser Coat of arms of Austria-Hungary.svg
Simple Arms of Cisleithania (1915–1918)Personal Arms of the Emperor Franz Josef (1848–1916)Simple Arms of the Austrian and Hungarian parts of the empire (1915–1918)

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Flag of Croatia</span> National flag

The national flag of Croatia or The Tricolour is one of the state symbols of Croatia. It consists of three equal size, horizontal stripes in colours red, white and blue. In the middle is the coat of arms of Croatia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Coat of arms of Croatia</span> National coat of arms of the Republic of Croatia

The coat of arms of the Republic of Croatia consists of one main shield and five smaller shields which form a crown over the main shield. The main coat of arms is a checkerboard (chequy) that consists of 13 red and 12 white fields. It is also informally known in Croatian as šahovnica. The five smaller shields represent five different historical regions within Croatia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Counts of Celje</span>

The Counts of Celje or the Counts of Cilli were the most influential late medieval noble dynasty on the territory of present-day Slovenia. Risen as vassals of the Habsburg dukes of Styria in the early 14th century, they ruled the County of Cilli as immediate counts (Reichsgrafen) from 1341. They soon acquired a large number of feudal possessions also in today's Croatia and Bosnia. They rose to Princes of the Holy Roman Empire in 1436. The dynasty reached its peak with Ulrich II of Cilli, but with his death in 1456 they also died out, and after a war of succession, the Habsburgs inherited their domains.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Emperor of Austria</span> Hereditary ruler of the Austrian (later Austro-Hungarian) Empire

The emperor of Austria was the ruler of the Austrian Empire and later the Austro-Hungarian Empire. The hereditary imperial title and office was proclaimed in 1804 by Francis II, Holy Roman Emperor, a member of the House of Habsburg-Lorraine, and continually held by him and his heirs until Charles I relinquished power in 1918.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Croatia in personal union with Hungary</span> Personal union of two kingdoms

The Kingdom of Croatia entered a personal union with the Kingdom of Hungary in 1102, after a period of rule of kings from the Trpimirović and Svetoslavić dynasties and a succession crisis following the death of king Demetrius Zvonimir. With the coronation of King Coloman of Hungary as "King of Croatia and Dalmatia" in 1102 in Biograd, the realm passed to the Árpád dynasty until 1301, when the (male) line of the dynasty died out. Then, kings from the Capetian House of Anjou, who were also cognatic descendants of the Árpád kings, ruled the kingdoms. Later centuries were characterized by conflicts with the Mongols, who sacked Zagreb in 1242, competition with Venice for control over Dalmatian coastal cities, and internal warfare among Croatian nobility. Various individuals emerged during the period, such as Paul I Šubić of Bribir, who was representing the most powerful Croatian dynasty at the time, the Šubić noble family. These powerful individuals were on occasion able to de facto secure great deal of independence for their fiefdoms. The Ottoman incursion into Europe in the 16th century significantly reduced Croatian territories and left the country weak and divided. After the death of Louis II in 1526 during the Battle of Mohács and a brief period of dynastic dispute, both crowns passed to the Austrian House of Habsburg, and the realms became part of the Habsburg monarchy.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Habsburg monarchy</span> Monarchy in Europe (1282–1918)

The Habsburg monarchy, also known as Habsburg Empire, was the collection of empires, kingdoms, duchies, counties and other polities that were ruled by the House of Habsburg. From the 18th century it is also referred to as the Danubian monarchy or the Austrian monarchy.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Duchy of Carniola</span> Historical land, Habsburg crown land

The Duchy of Carniola was an imperial estate of the Holy Roman Empire, established under Habsburg rule on the territory of the former East Frankish March of Carniola in 1364. A hereditary land of the Habsburg monarchy, it became a constituent land of the Austrian Empire in 1804 and part of the Kingdom of Illyria until 1849. A separate crown land from 1849, it was incorporated into the Cisleithanian territories of Austria-Hungary from 1867 until the state's dissolution in 1918. Its capital was German: Laibach, today Ljubljana.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kingdom of Dalmatia</span> Former lands of Austria and Austria-Hungary

The Kingdom of Dalmatia was a crown land of the Austrian Empire (1815–1867) and the Cisleithanian half of Austria-Hungary (1867–1918). It encompassed the entirety of the region of Dalmatia, with its capital at Zadar.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kingdom of Slavonia</span> Kingdom of the Habsburg monarchy and the Austrian Empire

The Kingdom of Slavonia was a kingdom of the Habsburg monarchy and the Austrian Empire that existed from 1699 to 1868. The kingdom included northern parts of present-day regions of Slavonia and Syrmia. The southern parts of these regions were part of the Slavonian Military Frontier, which was a component of the Military Frontier separating the Habsburg monarchy from the Ottoman Empire.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kingdom of Croatia-Slavonia</span> Territory within Austria-Hungary

The Kingdom of Croatia-Slavonia was a nominally autonomous kingdom and constitutionally defined separate political nation within the Austro-Hungarian Empire. It was created in 1868 by merging the kingdoms of Croatia and Slavonia following the Croatian–Hungarian Settlement of 1868. It was associated with the Kingdom of Hungary within the dual Austro-Hungarian state, being within the Lands of the Crown of St. Stephen, also known as Transleithania. While Croatia had been granted a wide internal autonomy with "national features", in reality, Croatian control over key issues such as tax and military issues was minimal and hampered by Hungary. It was internally officially referred to as the Triune Kingdom of Croatia, Slavonia and Dalmatia, also simply known as the Triune Kingdom, and had claims on Dalmatia, which was administered separately by the Austrian Cisleithania. The city of Rijeka, following a disputed section in the 1868 Settlement known as the Rijeka Addendum, became a corpus separatum and was legally owned by Hungary, but administered by both Croatia and Hungary.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lands of the Crown of Saint Stephen</span> Official name for the Hungarian territories of Austria-Hungary

The Lands of the Crown of Saint Stephen, informally Transleithania, were the Hungarian territories of Austria-Hungary, throughout the latter's entire existence, and which disintegrated following its dissolution. The name referenced the historic coronation crown of Hungary, known as the Crown of Saint Stephen of Hungary, which had a symbolic importance to the Kingdom of Hungary.

<i>Reichsadler</i> Heraldic symbol used by various German polities

The Reichsadler is the heraldic eagle, derived from the Roman eagle standard, used by the Holy Roman Emperors and in modern coats of arms of Germany, including those of the Second German Empire (1871–1918), the Weimar Republic (1919–1933) and Nazi Germany (1933–1945).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kingdom of Croatia (Habsburg)</span> Division of the Habsburg Monarchy

The Kingdom of Croatia was part of the Lands of the Hungarian Crown, but was subject to direct Imperial Austrian rule for significant periods of time, including its final years. Its capital was Zagreb. It was also a part of the lands of the Habsburg monarchy from 1527, following the Election in Cetin, and the Austrian Empire from 1804 to 1867.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Coat of arms of Dalmatia</span> Heraldic symbol

The coat of arms of Dalmatia is the heraldic symbol used for the historical region of Dalmatia on the eastern coast of Adriatic Sea. It is also featured on the crest of the coat of arms of Croatia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Croatian–Hungarian Settlement</span> 1868 document governing Croatias political status in Hungary

The Croatian–Hungarian Settlement was a pact signed in 1868 that governed Croatia's political status in the Hungarian-ruled part of Austria-Hungary. It lasted until the end of World War I, when the Croatian Parliament, as the representative of the historical sovereignty of Croatia, decided on October 29, 1918 to end all state and legal ties with the old Austria-Hungary.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Triune Kingdom</span> Concept of a united kingdom between Croatia, Slavonia and Dalmatia

The Triune Kingdom or Triune Kingdom of Croatia, Slavonia and Dalmatia was the concept—advocated by the leaders of the 19th-century Croatian national revival—of a united kingdom between Croatia, Slavonia and Dalmatia, which were already within the Austrian Empire under one king, who was also the Emperor of Austria, but were politically and administratively separate entities. This concept had roots in the high medieval period, as a successor to the historical Kingdom of Croatia which was made up of those regions.

A national coat of arms is a symbol which denotes an independent state in the form of a heraldic achievement. While a national flag is usually used by the population at large and is flown outside and on ships, a national coat of arms is normally considered a symbol of the government or the head of state personally and tends to be used in print, on armorial ware, and as a wall decoration in official buildings. The royal arms of a monarchy, which may be identical to the national arms, are sometimes described as arms of dominion or arms of sovereignty.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Croatian checkerboard</span> National symbol of Croatia and Croats

The Croatian checkerboard or chequy is the national symbol of Croatia and Croats, it covers the main shield of Croatian coat of arms above which is the crown with five smaller shields. Squares are always arranged correctly and they are red and white, although the order has historically varied.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Flags of Austria-Hungary</span>

During its existence, Austria-Hungary did not have a common flag – a "national flag" could not exist since the Dual Monarchy consisted of two sovereign states. However, the black-gold flag of the ruling Habsburg Dynasty was sometimes used as a de facto national flag and a common civil ensign was introduced in 1869 for civilian vessels. Until 1918, the k.u.k. War Fleet continued to carry the Austrian ensign it had used since 1786 and the regiments of the k.u.k. Army carried the double-eagle banners they had used before 1867, as they had a long history in many cases. New ensigns created in 1915 were not implemented due to the ongoing war. At state functions, the Austrian black-yellow and the Hungarian red-white-green tricolor were used.

References

  1. García de Cortázar, J.A.; Sesma Muñoz, J.A. (1998) La Edad Media: una síntesis interpretativa [The Middle Ages: an interpretive synthesis]. Madrid: Alianza Editorial. P. 681. ISBN 84-206-2894-8
  2. H. Ströhl: Die neuen österreichischen, ungarischen und gemeinsamen Wappen. Hrsg. auf Grund der mit d. allerhöchsten Handschreiben vom 10. u. 11. Okt. 1915, bezw. 2. u. 5. März 1916 erfolgten Einführung. Vienna 1917.
  3. "Diem, P. Die Entwicklung des österreichischen Doppeladlers" . Retrieved 5 July 2012.