When Christopher Columbus (and those who closely followed) ventured to the New World, he sailed on a Spanish vessel, and he probably flew the ensign of the Catholic Sovereigns Ferdinand and Isabella.
This banner is divided into four quarters, with lions occupying two diagonal spaces and with castles sitting in the other two. These symbols glorify the union of the kingdoms of León and Castilla—the beginning of the consolidation of the Iberian city-states and kingdoms which would eventually be Spain.
This is a beautiful standard, with two of the fields being a bright red and home to two gold castles. The other fields are the purest white and contain bright red rampant lions with gold crowns. This symbol of unity is inherently important to the people of Spain, and it appears on all public buildings as plaques, tiles, or elaborate engravings in the stones themselves…even today!
This emblem is also familiar to collectors of coins and stamps originating from Spain or its overseas empire. (Excerpted from an article by Director Ernie Richards in the PLVS VLTRA Newsletter, First-Quarter, 1998).
Centering our 1715 Fleet Society logo in the space between the castles and lions completes the design of the banner which the Fleet Society is adopting as our own.
This banner was designed with some minor modifications by Fleet Society Director Ernie Richards, who deserves all the credit for our new flag.
If you’d like to read more about the genesis of our official logo visit the page titled 1715 Fleet Society History.
