Spain, 1977-1981

Last modified: 2026-09-05 by olivier touzeau
Keywords: spain |
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Flag of Spain, 1977-1981 - Image by Santiago Dotor, 27 November 1998

• National flag
• State flag (ca. 1977)
• 42nd "Murcia" Regiment

See also:

• Spain
• Spain: Coat of arms

National flag

Two years after General Franco's death and King John Charles I's accession to the throne (22 November 1975), a new coat of arms was approved by Decree of 21 January 1977, which replaced the coat of arms adopted on 11 October 1945. The main modifications in the design were:

• The eagle is blazoned as azorada ("rising", about to start flight, with slightly displayed wings) instead of pasmada ("closed", with closed, vertical wings).
• The motto's ribbon surrounds the nimbus (the yellow disc behind the eagle's head) around the top, instead of passing beneath it and behind the neck.
• The nimbus is smaller, so that the eagle's beak partially protrudes out of it. The Pillars of Hercules are moved onto the eagle's wings; the pillar capitals and bases are changed to gold.
• The eagle's claws held the coat of arms by mid-height (fess), instead of 3/4ths (base).
• The red ribbons around the yoke and the arrows are given the shapes of classical letters "F" (for Catholic King, Ferdinand II of Aragón) and "Y" (for his wife Queen Elizabeth - Ysabel in old Spanish spelling - I of Castile).

Santiago Dotor, 27 November 1998

State flag (ca. 1977)

(left), State Flag specimen (1977 model) from todocoleccion.online
(right), Prominent judge’s funeral, 1978 from youtube
Images located by William M. Becker, 19 August 2026

Spain had a Franco-era “state flag” which bore the eagle/arms centered within the yellow stripe. Several photos attest the state flag’s use and prominence. It bore the arms as decreed in 1938, 1945, and 1977.
It’s noteworthy that the 1977 regulations appointed the design with the larger, offset eagle as both the state flag and war flag/ensign. But previous custom tended to prevail; hence, the state flag often still bore the arms centered within the yellow stripe – though the updated flags rolled out slowly and lasted only until 1981, when the current arms were introduced.

William M. Becker, 19 August 2026

42nd "Murcia" Regiment

Colour of the 2nd "Murcia" Regiment, 1977-1981 - Image by Sergio Camero, 27 January 2006

The colour of the 42nd "Murcia" Regiment (1977-1981) bears the new coat of arms approved in 1977, surrounded by the embroidered name of the Regiment.