Last modified: 2016-04-24 by ivan sache
Keywords: vega de infanzones | grulleros |
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The municipality of Vega de Infanzones (929 inhabitants in 2009; 2,080 ha; municipal website) is located in the southeast of León Province, 60 km of León. The municipality is made of the villages of Vega de Infanzones proper (capital), Grulleros and Villa de Soto.
Ivan Sache, 11 January 2011
The flag of Vega de Infanzones (municipal website) is prescribed by a Decree adopted on 2 January 2003 by the Municipal Council, signed on 4 April 2003 by the Mayor, and published on 25 April 2003 in the official gazette of of Castilla y León, No. 78, p. 6,264 (text).
The flag is described as follows:
Flag: Made of three equal horizontal stripes, the upper and lower stripes red and the central stripe green. A blue triangle is placed at the viewer's left. In the middle is placed the municipal coat of arms.
The three stripes of the flag represent the three villages of the municipality. The colors match those of the villages' pennants: red, as the color of the Royal domains (realengo) for the three villages; green, as the color of the abbot's power, recalling that Grulleros was ruled by the Cistercian monastery of Carrizo de la Ribera for more than six centuries; blue for the Marian devotion expressed on the Grulleros pennant.
The coat of arms of Vega de Infanzones is prescribed by a Decree adopted on 17 July 2002 by the Municipal Council, signed on the same day by the Mayor, and published on 6 August 2002 in the official gazette of of Castilla y León, No. 151, p. 10,487 (text).
The coat of arms is not described in the Decree.
The first quarter of the coat of arms portrays an infanzón, represented armed for war. An infanzón was a noble of second rank, higher than an hidalgo but lower than a rico hombre (lit., rich man); the word infanzón comes from Lower Hispanized Latin infantio, infantionis, "a young noble", itself derived from infante, "a child". Originally, the noble heirs were called infantes (for instance, Los Infantes de Lara); from the 13th century onwards, the word Infantes was used only for the sons of the king. Infanzones were divided in different classes, including
Infanzones de Población, who were granted a village or a territory. In León, infanzones were often militia leaders rewarded by King Alfonso VI.
The second quarter shows a lion rampant purpure, the heraldic symbol
of the Kingdom of León.
The third quarter represents a barrage known as Presa ("barrage") del
Infantado or Presa del Bernesga, indeed a Mozarab barrage used for irrigation
at least since the 12th century.
The fourth quarter shows a scallop charged with the Cross of Saint James.
The red bordure of the shield is charged with three bezants inscribed
with the interlaced initials of the three villages of the
municipality: top, "VI" (Vega de Infanzones), dexter, "G" (Grulleros),
sinister, "VS" (Villa de Soto).
The shield is placed on a blue parchment.
Ivan Sache, 20 June 2011
![[Flag]](../images/e/es-le-gs.gif)
Flag of Grulleros - Image by Blas Delgado, 23 October 2005
The village of Grulleros (356 inhabitants in 2007; village webpage) is named for the grullaros, who once captured cranes (grullas) from the local wetlands, raised them and eventually sold them on the markets of the town of León. Cranes were at the time an expensive food, mentioned by Enrique de Villena (1384-1434) in his Arte Cisoria (1423).
The flag of Grulleros, as seen on photos, is horizontally divided purple-green-purple-green-purple.
Blas Delgado & Ivan Sache, 28 August 2010