This page is part of © FOTW Flags Of The World website

Castillo de Bayuela (Municipality, Castilla-La Mancha, Spain)

Last modified: 2020-03-28 by ivan sache
Keywords: castillo de bayuela |
Links: FOTW homepage | search | disclaimer and copyright | write us | mirrors



[Flag]

Flag of Castillo de Bayuela - Image by Ivan Sache, 8 September 2019


See also:


Presentation of Castillo de Bayuela

The municipality of Castillo de Bayuela (917 inhabitants in 2018; 2,395 ha) is located 80 km north-west of Toledo and 30 km north-east of Talavera de la Reina.

Castillo de Bayuela was probably named during the Muslim period from the words "Castil" (castle) and "Valle de Alá" (blessed valley). Another etymology refers to "bayal", "a flax field".
The Castle's hill was the site of a Celtiberian camp, subsequently reused by the Romans and the early Christians as the nucleus of the village. The villagers subsequently built downhill the hamlet of Las Pajares, which was progressively absorbed by Castillo de Bayuela.
Castillo de Bayuela was granted in 1393 the status of villa by King Henry III. The domain of Castillo de Bayuela included also Las Pajares, La Hinojosa, Nuño Gómez, Marrupe, Garciotún and El Real de San Vicente.
[Mancomunidad Sierra San Vicente]

Ivan Sache, 8 September 2019


Symbols of Castillo de Bayuela

The flag of Castillo de Bayuela (photo, photo, photo) is prescribed by an Order issued on 23 January 2003 by the Government of Castilla-La Mancha and published on 3 February 2003 in the official gazette of Castilla-La Mancha, No. 14, pp. 1,438-1,439 (text).
The flag is described as follows:

Flag: Composed of two horizontal stripes, parallel and equal in size, the upper, red, the lower, green. A white triangle running from the hoist to the flag's center; in this space, the coat of arms of the town, centered.

The Royal Academy rejected the flag proposed in 2001 because it includes a coat of arms not officially approved, and recommended to initiate the process of approval of the coat of arms.
[Boletín de la Real Academia de la Historia 199:1, 149. 2002]

The coat of arms of Castillo de Bayuela is prescribed by an Order issued on 23 January 2003 by the Government of Castilla-La Mancha and published on 3 February 2003 in the official gazette of Castilla-La Mancha, No. 14, p. 1,439 (text).
The coat of arms is described as follows:

Coat of arms: Quarterly, 1. and 4. Vert a bend gules fimbriated or, 2. and 3. Or the writing "Ave Maria-Gratia" azure. Grafted in base, argent a saltire gules. Inescutcheon oval with a tower on a base, with the writing "Bayuela" surrounded by two branches of lilies. The shield surmounted by a Marquess' coronet.

The Royal Academy rejected the proposed coat of arms.
The proposal, based on a model used in 1933 and slightly modified, is the union of different arms. On one side, the arms of the Mendoza, who were made Marquess of Castillo de Bayuela in 1530, with a grafted base representing St. Andrew. On the other side, a modern shield once used by the municipality, featuring a castle (represented as a tower, following the use of the 19th century), originally surrounded by a cat and a hen, substituted here by two branches of lily.
The Academy found it opportune to keep both the feudal arms and the proper arms, which are based on a sufficient tradition. The general arrangement, showing the proper arms as inescutcheon over the feudal arms, was deemed adequate, too.
There is no reason to add the saltire to the arms of the Mendoza.
Moreover, the writing beneath the castle, derived from a bad drawing of the 19th century not compliant with centenary traditions, should "absolutely" be suppressed. The proposal omits to mention the colors of the shield, which are shown on the drawing with an unacceptable chromatism (field light blue; tower, branches and base proper). The bends on the arms of the Mendoza are, here again, represented and described in a wrong way, or coticed gules instead of gules fimbriated or. The proposed Marquis' coronet can "in no way" be accepted. The crown should express the current situation and not be a reminiscence of the past. The sole acceptable crown for a present-day's Spanish municipality is the Spanish Royal crown.
The Academy validated the proposed flag, provided the coat of arms is amended as suggested.
[Boletín de la Real Academia de la Historia 200:2, 173. 2003]

Diego Hurtado de Mendoza y Figueroa (1415/1417-1479), the elder son of Íñigo López de Mendoza, First Marquis of Santillana, was made Duke of the Infantado (full title, "Duque de las Cinco Villas del Estado del Infantado") in 1475; subsequently, the Dukes of the Infantado were made first-rank Grandees of Spain, and were therefore allowed to wear their hat in the presence of the king. Íñigo de Arteaga y Martín (b. 1941) is the 19th Duke of the Infantado.
"Vert a bend gules fimbriated or" are the oldest known arms of Mendoza; subsequently modified several times, the arms always included a red bend on a green field. The arms quartered per saltire were introduced by the first Marquis of Santillana and appear on a seal dated 1440; the marquis quartered his father's arms (Mendoza) with his mother's arms (de la Vega). His descendants were known as Mendoza de Guadalajara or Mendoza de l'Ave María. In the representations of these arms, the first quarter is inscribed with "AVE MARÍA" while the third quarter is inscribed with "PLENA GRATIA" (or, at least "GRATIA").
[José Luis García de Paz (UAM), Los poderosos Mendoza]

Ivan Sache, 8 September 2019