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Key Characteristics in Castilian Heraldry

Some of the main characteristics of the heraldry of Castile are:

• the rounded shapes, with a semicircle at the base,
• the importance of bordures,
• the inclusion of words and also letters in the coat of arms,
• the 2^nd most common animal, after the lion, is the wolf [Valero de Bernabé, L.; 2010], and, of course,
• our castle triple-towered Or, port and windows Azure, masoned Sable [Valero de Bernabé, L.; 2009a].

The following image shows 4 examples of coats of arms, each of which has some of these characteristics, including one Castilian castle.

Comparing Castilian and English Heraldry

In the United Kingdom, there are several heraldic traditions, one of them being English heraldry.

In the Kingdom of Spain, there are several heraldic traditions, for example, the Castilian tradition.

In my humble opinion, we should compare at the same level, English heraldry with, for example, Castilian heraldry, but not with all Spanish heraldry. We shouldn't do it for the same reason we don't mix Scottish heraldic tradition with English, as they are so different.

In the case of Castilian heraldry, the 8 main differences with English heraldry are:

• The rounded shapes, with a semicircle at the base.
• The importance of bordures and the existence of the diminished bordure, called in Castilian «filiera».
• The inclusion of words and also letters in the coats of arms.
• The wolf is the 2^nd most common animal, after the lion.
• The castle, triple-towered, which is different from the English and French types of castles.
• We can inherit arms from our mother and/or father; for example, the castle in the 1^st quarter of the coat of arms of Castile and the coat of arms of Spain comes from a mother, Queen Berenguela of Castile, mother of King Fernando III, the Saint.
• There are 3 kinds of supporters with their owns heraldic names: «tenantes», human forms; «soportes», animals; and «sostenes», plants and things.
• Our quarterings do not necessarily mean that the arms are marshalled by inheritance. [Williams, N.; 2017; page 135, paragraph 26.02] describing the arms of Éamon de Valera, 1882-1975, President of Ireland, writes «Those arms are Spanish in appearance. The quartering without functions as a means of marshalling, is distinctively Iberian».

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Categories: Criterion, Semi-circular, Bordure, Letter, Lion, Wolf, Castle, Triple-towered, Port and windows, Masoned, Or, Azure, Sable, Diminished bordure, Quarterly, Supporter (human form), Supporter, Supporter (animal) and Supporter (thing).

Lino Chaparro D'Acosta, «Heráldica de los Apellidos Canarios», foreword by Vicente de Cadenas y Vicent, 2 volumes, Volume I from A to L, 285 surnames, 293 pages, Volume II from M to Z and a heraldic dictionary, 387 surnames, 439 pages, edited by Estudios Tecnicos del Blason, ISBN of the complete work 84-300-2000-4, ISBN of Volume I 84-300-1989-8, ISBN of Volume I II 84-300-418010-8, Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, 1979.

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Bibliographical reference of century XX.

Classification: Black and white with color plates and Castilian language.

The author is Chaparro D'Acosta, Lino.

The following article cites this bibliographic reference:

• Lazcano, lineage of the Canary Islands

Party per pale: 1 Gules, in base a castle triple-towered Or, port and windows Azure, and masoned Sable; 2 Argent, in base a lion rampant Gules, crowned Or; overall a psi letter sable; a diminished bordure Or.

Arms emblazoned by me, in plain tinctures, contoured in Sable, with a semi-circular outer contour and with a texturized finishing.

Coat of arms of Crepsi, «Centro Regional de Psicología». These arms were designed by my lieutenant colonel and friend Miguel Angel Nuñez Amador, and in this image, they have been emblazoned by me.

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Blazon keywords: Gules, Argent, Or, Azure, Sable, Party per pale, In base, Castle, Triple-towered, Port and windows, Masoned, Lion, Rampant, Crowned, Overall, Letter and Diminished bordure.

Style keywords: Outlined in sable, Plain tincture and Semi-circular.

Classification: Military, Interpreted, Boa and Coat of arms.

Bearer: Crepsi.

Registered by The International Register of Arms, 1^st of December of 2022, Registration number 0690, Volume 4.

In Spanish heraldry, there are three terms for supporters: «sostenes» for objects or plants, «tenantes» for human figures, and «soportes» for animal forms. The following applies to sostenes, tenantes, and soportes. Unlike other heraldic traditions such as English heraldry, in Spanish heraldry there are no rules for the use of supporters; their use is at the armiger's discretion, without specific restrictions. Supporters are not reserved only for nobility; their use is free for all.

In the words of [Cadenas y Vicent, V. de; 1975; page 173] «there is no rule that determines the use of tenantes, soportes, and sostenes».

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Categories: Armorial roll, Party per fess, Azure, One, Book, Open, Or, Leaved, Argent, Charged, Mullet, Gules, Tree, Erased, Between, Two, Apple, Diminished bordure, Embattled, Crest and mantling, Helm, Fimbriated, Wreath, Mantling, Dexter, Sinister, Crest, Pegasus, Rampant, Nascent, Flame, Supporter (animal), Supporter, Lion, Langued, Quill, Claw, Parchment (scroll), Rolled, Seal, Letter, War cry and Motto.

External link:

• Fernando Marán Bié at The Armorial Register.

Root: The Armorial Register.

Argent, the letters «GVA» conjoined Sable, a trimount in base Vert; on a chief Azure, three mullets of eight points Or, 1 and 2. Crest: Upon a helm befitting his degree, with a wreath Or and Azure, a crown of Noble. Mantling: Azure doubled Or. Motto: «Guallini».

Coat of arms emblazoned by me, highlighted with lights and shadows, outlined in Sable, with an ogee outer contour and with a freehand finishing.

R0067, Chief Herald of Malta's register of the arms of Mario Antonio Guallini. These arms have been emblazoned by me for such register.

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Blazon keywords: Argent, Vert, Sable, Azure, Or, One, Three, Eight, Letter, Conjoined, Trimount, In base, Chief, Mullet, Disordered, Upon (wreath), Helm, Wreath, Crown of Noble, Crown, Mantling, Doubled and Motto.

Style keywords: Outlined in sable, Illuminated, Ogee and Freehand.

Classification: Personal, Interpreted, Boa and Coat of arms.

Bearer: Guallini, Mario Antonio.

Quarterly: 1 and 4 Gules, a lion rampant, double queued Argent, armed, langued, and crowned Or; 2 Azure, a letter «G» Or; 3 Azure, a coronet trefoiled Or

Escudo cuartelado: 1^o y 4^o de gules, un león rampante, de cola horquillada de plata, armado, lampasado y coronado de oro; 2^o de azur, una letra «G» de oro; 3^o de azur, una corona trebolada de oro

This coat of arms is illuminated with lights and shadows and has a finish like glass.

The Hradec Králové Region is an administrative unit of the Czech Republic. It is located in the historical region of Bohemia. Its capital is Hradec Králové, whose Latin name is «Gradicium», hence its old name «Gradec». The letter «G» seen in both the coat of arms of the Hradec Králové Region and the coat of arms of its capital originates from this historical name. The lion rampant Anrgent, double queued and crowned in the 1^st and 4^th quarters is the symbol of Bohemia, and it also appears in the 1^st and 4^th quarters of the coat of arms of the Czech Republic. «Králové» means «of the queen» in Czech and there is a trefoiled crown in the 3^rd quarter

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Blazon keywords: Quarterly, Gules, One, Lion, Rampant, Tail, Double queued, Argent, Armed, Langued, Crowned, Or, Azure, Letter, Coronet trefoiled, Ancient coronet, Crown and Trefoiled.

Style keywords: Glass, Outlined in sable, Illuminated and Semi-circular.

Classification: Civic and Interpreted.

Bearer: Hradec Králové Region.

Publication on the blog Twelve Lineages of Soria about the armorial I produced for the ISCH under the title: The eminent heraldist Mr. Antonio Salmerón Cabañas brings us his latest edition of February 25, 2018 of the Roll of Arms of the International Society of Commoners Heraldry ISCH.

This armorial contains coats of arms painted by different heraldic artists, although all those shown in the illustration heading this article were painted by my own hand.

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Categories: Link, Gules, Azure, Vert, Sable, Purpure, Or, Argent, Without divisions, Gyronny, Party per pale, Quarterly, Bend, Saltire, Bordure, Chevron, Cross, Pile, Bendlet, Inescutcheon, Chequey, Hurt, torteau, pellet, pomme and golpe, Cadency, Thistle, Fleur de lis, Horse, Crown, Sun in splendour, Martlet, Wolf, Letter, Unicorn, Griffin, Dragon's head and Engouled.

Root: Twelve Lineages of Soria.

Azure, a pall couped Argent, its three arms charged with «es» Azure, within a triangle reversed Argent, its three arms charged with «no es» Azure, all debruised by four plates, three on the vertex of the triangle, in dexter chief, charged with «el Padre», in sinister chief, charged with «el Hijo», in base, charged with «el Espítiru», and one on the fess point, charged with «Dios» Azure; in chief a label of three points Argent.

Escudo de azur, una perla recortada de plata, sus tres brazos cargados con «es» de azur, dentro de un triángulo ranversado de plata, sus tres brazos cargados con «no es» de azur, todo resaltado de cuatro bezantes de plata, tres sobre los vértices del triángulo, en la diestra del jefe, cargado de «el Padre», en la siniestra del jefe, cargado con «el Hijo», en la punta, cargado con «el Espítiru» y uno sobre el corazón, cargado con «Dios» todo de azur; en jefe un lambel de tres pendientes de plata.

Imaginary coat of arms that I have interpreted with: a semicircular (round) base; its field illuminated in Azure; the rest illuminated in Argent and outlined in Sable; its letters in plain Azure ink; and the set with a rough finish.

Drawing a parallel between the coat of arms of Navarre that [[Menéndez Pidal de Navascués, F.; 1974]] transcribes for its original coat of arms as «Gules, a closed and pommetty carbuncle Or with an emerald...» I have characterized the pearl on the coat of arms as closed.

This is the imaginary coat of arms of the Holy Trinity with a label added for difference to the Son, to Jesus Christ.

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Blazon keywords: Without divisions, Azure, One, Pall, Couped, Argent, Three, Charged, Letter, Within, Triangle, Reversed, Four, Plate, In the dexter chief, In the sinister chief, In base, In the fess point, Cadency and Label of three points.

Style keywords: Semi-circular, Illuminated, Outlined in sable and Rough.

Classification: Religious, Interpreted, Imaginary and Coat of arms.

Imaginary bearer: Jesus Christ.

Argent, a Mexican cedar tree eradicated proper, fructed Or, its trunk charged with the letters «JML» Or, branded with a branding iron.

Escudo de plata, un cedro macho arrancado al natural, frutado de oro, su tronco cargado de las iniciales «JML» de oro, hechas a hierro de marcar.

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Blazon keywords: Argent, Or, One, Mexican cedar tree, Eradicated, Proper, Fructed, Trunk, Charged, Branding iron and Letter.

Style keywords: Outlined in sable, Illuminated, Semi-circular and Watercolor.

Classification: Personal, Interpreted, Schema, Boa and Coat of arms.

Bearer: Lanzagorta Aras, José María.

D'or à un arbre arraché de sinople, accosté à dextre de la lettre capitale «D» et à senestre de la lettre capitale «L» du même, et une étoile d'azur posée au canton dextre de la pointe.

Or, a tree eradicated Vert between a capital letter «D» and a capital letter «L» Sable, in the dexter of the base a mullet Azure.

Illuminated with lights and shadows and with a leather finish.

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Blazon keywords: Without divisions, Or, One, Tree, Erased, Vert, Between, Letter, Sable, Canton, Dexter, Base (lower 1/3), Mullet, Five and Azure.

Style keywords: Leather, Outlined in sable, Illuminated and Semi-circular.

Classification: Interpreted, Lineage and Kingdom of France.

Blazon of the lineage Lazcano in the Canary Islands.

Vert, nine Poplar leaves ordered, in chief a «T» letter Or.

Illuminated and leather finishing.

It can be consulted at [Chaparro D'Acosta L.; 1979; página 251].

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Blazon keywords: Without divisions, Vert, Letter, Poplar leaf, Or and Nine.

Style keywords: Leather, Outlined in sable and Illuminated.

Classification: Interpreted.

Quarterly: 1 Sable, an «o» Or; 2 and 3 Or, two Wolves passant, in pale Sable; 4 Sable, an «XI» Or.

The image was produced using an alternative method for painting tartans. One of the key considerations has been the orientation of the twill: I have seen it represented both as bend sinisterwise and bendwise. In symmetric tartans, this difference may simply depend on how the cloth is positioned or, in photographs, on the direction from which the picture is taken. Photographing a piece of fabric from the south rather than from the east is enough to switch the diagonal from bend sinisterwise to bendwise, or vice versa. In symmetric tartans nothing essential changes except the visual direction of the twill.

However, in asymmetric tartans, such as the one shown here, these rotations do affect the order in which the design must be read and painted. I have also found books that consistently use one orientation, others that use the opposite one, and some that mix orientations depending on the specific tartan. I have seen a photograph of «The King Charles III tartan», (as can be seen in King Charles III Tartan, collage), worn by His Majesty himself, clearly shows the twill running in a bend sinisterwise direction, which gave me definitive confirmation that this orientation is perfectly valid for illustrating a tartan. Nevertheless, I do not rule out rendering it in the bendwise direction as well, since that is the style most commonly used in Tartan Register publications.

Additionally, the thread counts listed in the Tartan Register are typically double what the eye perceives in a woven cloth. This is because real weaving uses a double-pass system to achieve the density and colour blending characteristic of Scottish twill; consequently, the Register records the full structural count, while an accurate illustrated representation may require halving those numbers to match the visual appearance.

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Blazon keywords: Quarterly, Sable, Or, One, Letter, Two, Wolf, Passant, In pale and Number.

Style keywords: Pointed, Illuminated, Outlined in the field tincture, Freehand and Chinapieria.

Classification: Tartan, Created and Personal.

Bearer: Salmerón Cabañas, Antonio.

Party per fess: 1 Azure, an open book Argent, garnished Or, charged with a mullet Azure; 2 Gules, a tree eradicated between two apples Or; within a bordure embattled Or. Crest: Upon wreath Or, Azure and Gules, a demi-pegasus Argent issuant from flames of fire Gules, fimbriated Or. Supporters: Two lions rampant guardant Or, langued Gules, the one at dexter grasping in his sinister forepaw a quill Argent, the one at sinister grasping in his dexter forepaw a rolled scroll Argent, bearing a wax seal Gules, inscribed with the letters «MB» Sable. Warcry above the crest «Epimeleia Heautou». Motto: «Officium otium cum dignitate».

Arms emblazoned by me, illuminated with lights and shadows, outlined in Sable, with a semi-circular external shape and with a freehand finishing.

The coat of arms of Fernando Marán Bié designed by Ignacio Koblischek and emblazoned by me.

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Blazon keywords: Azure, Gules, Argent, Or, Six, One, Two, Party per fess, Open, Book, Garnished, Charged, Mullet, Tree, Eradicated, Between, Apple, Bordure, Embattled, Crest, Upon (wreath), Wreath, Demi, Pegasus, Issuant, Flame, Fimbriated, Supporter, Dexter, Sinister, Lion rampant guardant, Langued, Grasping, Forepaw, Quill, Rolled, Scroll, Inscribed, Letter, War cry, Above and Motto.

Style keywords: Outlined in sable, Illuminated, Semi-circular and Freehand.

Classification: Personal, Interpreted, Boa, Coat of arms and Seal.

Bearer: Fernando Marán Bié.