As long as I know the spanish flag's horizontal red bars come from the Habsburg Dinasty's flag. That is the reason behind the similarities of the spanish flag and the austrian flag. Aragon Crown's flag and spanish flag have different origins (though they are quite similar, at least in the colors).

Fernando

And to ilustrate what we are al talking about:







Fernando

Well their is a huge diference between the relationship between Alaska and the US then the Relationship of the autonamous communities of Spain because Spain is completely made up of autonamous communities. I think Spain needs a new constitution with emphasize on the unity of the Spanish state because we can't have this talk about seperation of regions just enjoy your culture and be Basque but stop trying to set up a endipedent Basque state because it will never ever ever ever happen. Just face reality it hasn't in the past few hundred years and its not going to happen in the next few hundred years.

I don't really agree with you. I, and many of the spaniards, think that every people or land have the legitimicy to be independent but...
inside a democratic system, intentions and freedom. For that reason I agree too that it's impossible now even only to speak about independence of Basque Country existing a terrorist group, ETA that only want to get their proposals killing innocent people and with ideas totally distanced from the democracy. Basque Country now is one of the only places in Europe where isn't settled a plain democratic system because of that. The only way to speak about their independence is that Eta doesn't exist ever more. Remember that the percentage that agree and don't is more or less 50% - 50% seeing the autonomic votings. No doubt, in this conditions we can say that is not enough too to pay attention about this possibility. It's a pity that a fantastic land like Basque Country have a mafious group deciding what the people should do really.

Un fuerte abrazo

Fori Turolii

I have read with relish the many fascinating posits here on the subject of the spanish national flag. I hope no one takes offence at this, but I am compelled to repeat the comment of some socialist friends when I asked them whatever happened to the big black eagle that no longer appears on the flag. They all gave a curious mixture of shudder and laugh and said that the eagle was a hated relic of the Franco era, and they called that eagle "el buitre". Wow! Controversial, but there you have it.
If I step on anyone's toes by repeating this, please excuse me, but I think it is worth reporting...

I also noticed two diferent Spanish flags with an Eagle one of em looks kinda like a two headed Eagle but I think to Eagles with their backs facing each other. And then the one with just one Eagle. Is the one with two Eagles the Spanish Imperial Flag? Any body know?

Correction it is actually a two headed eagle any one know now?

Aunque no dice si el "pollo" es mutante (bicéfalo), en esta página: dedicada a la bandera de España- podeis ver que la única águila que aparece es genéticamente sana.

Spanish flag colors were elected by army men because are simply visible over the sea and in times of Isabel and Fernando, so there aren't politics on this topic, the shield is the kings shield who represent the kingdoms they (Fernando and Isabel) ruled, Castilla, León, Navarra, Aragón, Granada, etc...

Hey, Espe...what did you mean in your 8/6 post where you said you disagreed with something I never said? I'm still baffled. What did I say?

The idea of a two-headed eagle comes from the Hapsburg family coat of arms. If the Spanish flag had an eagle, one-headed or two-, it would most likely be a derivative from that. The Hapsburgs would get their real start ruling Spain under Charles V, HRE [or I, depending where you lived in the early 1500s].

It is accurate that the eagle was used on the flag, and not offset from center, but right in the middle, during the Franco dictadura [and on into the dictablanda, too! ]