Last modified: 2025-03-08 by 
klaus-michael schneider
Keywords: san sebastian de la gomera | tower | caravel | kettle |
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![[San Sebastián de la Gomera commune flag]](../images/e/es-tf-sg.jpg)
On 28 February 2022 the municipal plenary session of San Sebastián approved, with only the votes in favor of the government group, the flag that will represent the citizens of said municipality in the future.
According to the Spanish society of vexillology, the colour red would refer to the Herrera lineage (counts of the island, including the bloodthirsty Hernán Peraza). Blue, on the other hand, is related to Christopher Columbus and the sea, which has sparked controversy and criticism from some citizens.
Source: this webpage
Valentin Poposki, 7 Aug 2025
Rectangular flag with ratio 2:3 of red colour (Pantone 485 C), charged with two blue bars wavy (Pantone P 116-3 C) fimbriated white, each of them of a width of approx. 1/5 of total height, in centre the municipal coat of arms with height being 2/3 of total height of the flag.
Meaning:
Red had been the main tincture of the shield of the Herrera family, who had been among others Counts of La Gomera. Furthermore it had been the colour of the banner, hoisted as an act of defiance on top of the Fort of Our Lady of the Remedies, painted on a wall paper, referring to the defense of San Sebastion against an assault of a British flotilla, commanded by Charles Windham in 1743. The blue bars wavy are referring to the sea, which played an important role in the local history, as San Sebastian had been the last stopover before crossing the ocean since the first voyage of Cristobal Colón (= Christopher Columbus).
Klaus-Michael Schneider, 15 Aug 2022
Shield Azure, a tower in proper colours over waves of Argent and Azure three caravels proper, orle Gules charged with 12 kettles Or, crested b a counts coronet proper, beneath the shield a scroll Or with inscription "DE AQUI PARTIÓ COLÓN" (= Colimbus headed (to America) from here).
Meaning:
The arms also refer to the Herrera family and to Cristobal Colón. The tower is a representation of the local tiny Tower of the Count. Hernán Peraza the Elder occupied the island in 1447. His consort had been Inés Peraza de las Casas, heiress of Diego Garcia Herrero de Ayala, who died in 1452. In 1477 Hernán Peraza the Younger was appointed a Lord of La Gomera. The appointment was confirmed on 26 May 1478 by the Catholic Kings. The new lord created an alliance with the tribes of the Hipalán and the Mulagua. The target of the alliance had been, to enslave the other tribes, despite of the fact that those paid their debts and had been baptised. In 1484 an insurrection broke out and Peraza called for fresh troops from Gran Canaria and Fuerteventura. The well trained soldiers of Pedro de Vera, the commander, stroke down the insurrection very quickly and 200 inhabitants were sold as slaves to Spain. But during a new insurrection in 1488 Peraza was killed. The Hipalán didn"t join the insurrection and Peraza"s widow Beatriz de Bobadilla was brought to the Tower of the Count. With help of the tribe she kept in touch with the Catholic kings, Inés Peraza and Pedro de Vera, meanwhile governor of Gran Canaria. The kings ordered a severe punishment of the rebels on 4 March 1489. De Vera arrived with 400 soldiers in the spring of 1489 and ordered a funeral for the late Hernán Peraza. At the end of the funeral the tribes of Orone and Agana were denoted as traitors, responsible for the death of their ruler and sentenced to death. The enforcement had been done immediately and 500 men were slaughtered bestially. Their women and children were sold as slaves to Spain.
The orle is taken from the family arms of the Herrera y Ayala family and is also part of the arms of La Gomera Island. The coronet is alluding to the fact that the family gained the title of a Count of La Gomera, which was ruled by the family as vassals of the Catholic Kings. Other islands like San Miguel de la Palma had been under direct rule of the kings.
The waves, the caravels and the scroll are referring to Christopher Columbus, who headed to America from San Sebastian, the last Spanish base of logistics at the eastern edge of the Atlantic.
Source: Klaus-Michael Schneider: "Die kleineren Kanarischen Inseln und ihre Symbole I", published in "Der Flaggenkurier", no.54, November 2021, pp.9-30
Klaus-Michael Schneider, 15 Aug 2022
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