A crown is often an

emblem An emblem is an abstract or representational pictorial image that represents a concept, like a moral truth, or an allegory, or a person, like a king or saint. Emblems vs. symbols Although the words ''emblem'' and '' symbol'' are often use ...

of a

sovereign state A sovereign state or sovereign country, is a political entity represented by one central government that has supreme legitimate authority over territory. International law defines sovereign states as having a permanent population, defined ter ...

, usually a monarchy (see

The Crown The Crown is the state in all its aspects within the jurisprudence of the Commonwealth realms and their subdivisions (such as the Crown Dependencies, overseas territories, provinces, or states). Legally ill-defined, the term has differ ...

), but also used by some

republic A republic () is a " state in which power rests with the people or their representatives; specifically a state without a monarchy" and also a "government, or system of government, of such a state." Previously, especially in the 17th and 18th ...

s. A specific type of crown is employed in

heraldry Heraldry is a discipline relating to the design, display and study of armorial bearings (known as armory), as well as related disciplines, such as vexillology, together with the study of ceremony, rank and pedigree. Armory, the best-known bran ...

under strict rules. Indeed, some monarchies never had a physical

crown A crown is a traditional form of head adornment, or hat, worn by monarchs as a symbol of their power and dignity. A crown is often, by extension, a symbol of the monarch's government or items endorsed by it. The word itself is used, partic ...

, just a heraldic representation, as in the constitutional kingdom of

Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to ...

. Crowns are also often used as symbols of religious status or veneration, by divinities (or their representation such as a statue) or by their representatives, e.g. the

Black Crown The Black Crown () is an important symbol of the Karmapa, the Lama who heads the Karma Kagyu school of Tibetan Buddhism. The crown signifies his power to benefit all sentient beings. Similar crowns in red are worn by the Shamarpa and the Tai ...

of the

Karmapa Lama The Karmapa (honorific title ''His Holiness the Gyalwa'' ��ྒྱལ་བ་, Victorious One''Karmapa'', more formally as ''Gyalwang'' ��ྒྱལ་དབང་ཀརྨ་པ་, King of Victorious Ones''Karmapa'', and informally as the '' ...

, sometimes used a model for wider use by devotees. A crown can be a

charge Charge or charged may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Films * '' Charge, Zero Emissions/Maximum Speed'', a 2011 documentary Music * ''Charge'' (David Ford album) * ''Charge'' (Machel Montano album) * ''Charge!!'', an album by The Aqu ...

''in'' a

coat of arms A coat of arms is a heraldic visual design on an escutcheon (i.e., shield), surcoat, or tabard (the latter two being outer garments). The coat of arms on an escutcheon forms the central element of the full heraldic achievement, which in its ...

, or set ''atop'' the shield to signify the status of its owner, as with the

coat of arms of Norway The coat of arms of Norway is the arms of dominion of king Harald V of Norway, and as such represents both the monarch and the kingdom (nation and the state). It depicts a standing golden lion on a red background, bearing a golden crown and ax ...

Physical and heraldic crowns

Sometimes, the crown commonly depicted and used in heraldry differs significantly from any specific physical crown that may be used by a monarchy. File:Den norske kongekronen.jpg, Photograph of the physical

crown of Norway The Crown of Norway is the crown of the King of Norway and was made in Stockholm in 1818 by goldsmith Olof Wihlborg. The crown is a ''corona clausa'' (closed model) consisting of a ring carrying eight hoops made of gold and surmounted by a mon ...

File:Crown of the King of Norway (fictional).svg, Representation of the physical crown of Norway File:Corona Norvegica.svg, The heraldic crown for the

King of Norway The Norwegian monarch is the head of state of Norway, which is a constitutional and hereditary monarchy with a parliamentary system. The Norwegian monarchy can trace its line back to the reign of Harald Fairhair and the previous petty kingd ...

(1905 pattern)

As a display of rank

If the bearer of a coat of arms has the title of

baron Baron is a rank of nobility or title of honour, often hereditary, in various European countries, either current or historical. The female equivalent is baroness. Typically, the title denotes an aristocrat who ranks higher than a lord or kn ...

or higher (or

hereditary knight A knight is a person granted an honorary title of knighthood by a head of state (including the Pope) or representative for service to the monarch, the church or the country, especially in a military capacity. Knighthood finds origins in the Gr ...

in some countries), he or she may display a

coronet A coronet is a small crown consisting of ornaments fixed on a metal ring. A coronet differs from other kinds of crowns in that a coronet never has arches, and from a tiara in that a coronet completely encircles the head, while a tiara doe ...

of rank above the shield, usually below the helm in British heraldry, and often above the crest (if any) in Continental heraldry. In this case, the appearance of the crown or coronet follows a strict set of rules. A royal coat of arms may display a royal crown, such as that of

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of ...

. A princely coat of arms may display a princely crown, and so on.

Naval, civic, mural and similar crowns

mural crown A mural crown ( la, corona muralis) is a crown or headpiece representing city walls, towers, or fortresses. In classical antiquity, it was an emblem of tutelary deities who watched over a city, and among the Romans a military decoration. Later ...

is commonly displayed on coats of arms of towns and some republics. Other republics may use a so-called people's crown or omit the use of a crown altogether. The heraldic forms of crowns are often inspired by the physical appearance of the respective country's actual royal or princely crowns. Ships and other units of some navies have a naval crown, composed of the sails and sterns of ships, above the shield of their coats of arms. Squadrons of some

air force An air force – in the broadest sense – is the national military branch that primarily conducts aerial warfare. More specifically, it is the branch of a nation's armed services that is responsible for aerial warfare as distinct from an ...

s have an

astral crown The Astral Crown is a gold crown surmounted with eight low points. The centrals and laterals points are topped with a star, with an unspecified number of points, between two wings. In heraldry, an astral crown is mounted atop the shields of coa ...

, composed of wings and stars. There is also the Eastern crown, made up of spikes, and when each spike is topped with a star, it becomes a celestial crown. Whereas most county councils in England use mural crowns, there is a special type of crown that was used by Scottish county councils. It was composed of spikes, was normally shown ''vert'' (green) and had golden wheat sheaves between the spikes. Today, most of the Scottish unitary authorities still use this "wheat sheaf crown", but it is now the usual gold. File:Corona_Navalis.svg , A depiction of a naval crown File:Astral Crown.svg, A depiction of an

File:Spanish_Mural_Crown_(Common).svg, A depiction of a

File:Celestial Crown.svg, A depiction of a

celestial crown The celestial crown is a modified version of the Eastern crown. The celestial crown is a representative badge or headdress consisting of a gold fence usually adorned with pointed points or rays topped with stars of the same metal. It usually has ...

File:Heraldic eastern crown.svg, A depiction of an eastern crown File:Heraldic vallary crown.svg, A depiction of a

camp crown In Ancient Rome, a camp crown ( la, corona castrensis, "crown of the castrum"), also known as a vallary crown, was a military award given to the first man who penetrated into an enemy camp or field during combat. It took the form of a gold crown ...

Commonwealth usage

In formal English, the word crown is reserved for the crown of a monarch and the Queen consort, whereas the word

is used for all other crowns used by members of the British royal family and peers of the realm. In the

British peerage The peerages in the United Kingdom are a legal system comprising both hereditary and lifetime titles, composed of various noble ranks, and forming a constituent part of the British honours system. The term '' peerage'' can be used both c ...

, the design of a coronet shows the rank of its owner, as in German, French and various other heraldic traditions. The coronet of a

duke Duke is a male title either of a monarch ruling over a duchy, or of a member of royalty, or nobility. As rulers, dukes are ranked below emperors, kings, grand princes, grand dukes, and sovereign princes. As royalty or nobility, they are r ...

has eight

strawberry The garden strawberry (or simply strawberry; ''Fragaria × ananassa'') is a widely grown hybrid species of the genus '' Fragaria'', collectively known as the strawberries, which are cultivated worldwide for their fruit. The fruit is widely ap ...

leaves, that of a

marquess A marquess (; french: marquis ), es, marqués, pt, marquês. is a nobleman of high hereditary rank in various European peerages and in those of some of their former colonies. The German language equivalent is Markgraf (margrave). A woman ...

has four strawberry leaves and four silver balls (known as "pearls", but not actually

pearl A pearl is a hard, glistening object produced within the soft tissue (specifically the mantle) of a living shelled mollusk or another animal, such as fossil conulariids. Just like the shell of a mollusk, a pearl is composed of calcium carb ...

s), that of an

earl Earl () is a rank of the nobility in the United Kingdom. The title originates in the Old English word ''eorl'', meaning "a man of noble birth or rank". The word is cognate with the Scandinavian form ''jarl'', and meant " chieftain", particu ...

has eight strawberry leaves and eight "pearls" raised on stalks, that of a

viscount A viscount ( , for male) or viscountess (, for female) is a title used in certain European countries for a noble of varying status. In many countries a viscount, and its historical equivalents, was a non-hereditary, administrative or judicia ...

has sixteen "pearls", and that of a peerage

or (in Scotland) lord of parliament has six "pearls". Between the 1930s and 2004, feudal barons in the baronage of Scotland were granted a chapeau or

cap of maintenance Typical of British heraldry, a cap of maintenance, known in heraldic language as a ''chapeau gules turned up ermine'', is a ceremonial cap of crimson velvet lined with ermine, which is worn or carried by certain persons as a sign of nobility or ...

as a rank insignia. This is placed between the shield and helmet in the same manner as a peer's coronet. Since a person entitled to heraldic headgear customarily displays it above the shield and below the helm and crest, this can provide a useful clue as to the owner of a given coat of arms. Members of the British royal family have coronets on their coats of arms, and they may wear physical versions at

coronations A coronation is the act of placement or bestowal of a crown upon a monarch's head. The term also generally refers not only to the physical crowning but to the whole ceremony wherein the act of crowning occurs, along with the presentation of ot ...

. They are according to regulations made by King Charles II in 1661, shortly after his return from exile in France (getting a taste for its lavish court style;

Louis XIV Louis XIV (Louis Dieudonné; 5 September 16381 September 1715), also known as Louis the Great () or the Sun King (), was List of French monarchs, King of France from 14 May 1643 until his death in 1715. His reign of 72 years and 110 days is the Li ...

started monumental work at Versailles that year) and Restoration, and they vary depending upon the holder's relationship to the monarch. Occasionally, additional royal warrants vary the designs for individuals. In Canadian heraldry, special coronets are used to designate descent from

United Empire Loyalist United Empire Loyalists (or simply Loyalists) is an honorific title which was first given by the 1st Lord Dorchester, the Governor of Quebec, and Governor General of The Canadas, to American Loyalists who resettled in British North America ...

s. A military coronet signifies ancestors who served in Loyalist regiments during the

American Revolution The American Revolution was an ideological and political revolution that occurred in British America between 1765 and 1791. The Americans in the Thirteen Colonies formed independent states that defeated the British in the American Revoluti ...

, while a civil coronet is used by all others. The loyalist coronets are used only in heraldry, never worn. File:Tudor Crown (Heraldry).svg, Monarch: Tudor Crown File:Royal Crown of Scotland (Heraldry).svg, Monarch:

Crown of Scotland The Crown of Scotland ( gd, Crùn na h-Alba) is the crown that was used at the coronation of the monarchs of Scotland. It is the oldest surviving crown in the British Isles and dates from at least 1503, although it has been claimed that the c ...

File:Crown of Saint Edward (Heraldry).svg, Monarch:

St Edward's Crown St Edward's Crown is the centrepiece of the Crown Jewels of the United Kingdom. Named after Saint Edward the Confessor, versions of it have traditionally been used to crown English and British monarchs at their coronations since the 13th cen ...

File:Imperial Crown (Heraldry).svg, Monarch:

(medieval) File:Coronet of the British Heir Apparent.svg, Heir Apparent File:Coronet of a Child of the Sovereign.svg, Child of a Sovereign File:Coronet of a Child of the Heir Apparent.svg, Child of Heir Apparent File:Coronet of a Grandchild of the Sovereign.svg, Grandchild of a Sovereign File:Coronet of a Child of a Daughter of the Sovereign.svg, Child of daughter of a Sovereign, if styled

Highness Highness (abbreviation HH, oral address Your Highness) is a formal style used to address (in second person) or refer to (in third person) certain members of a reigning or formerly reigning dynasty. It is typically used with a possessive adje ...

File:Coronet of a British Duke.svg, Duke File:Coronet of a British Marquess.svg, Marquess File:Coronet of a British Earl.svg, Earl File:Coronet of a British Viscount.svg, Viscount File:Coronet of a British Baron.svg, Peerage Baron/Lord of Parliament (Scotland) File:Cap of Maintenance.svg, Feudal Baron (Scotland) File:Military Coronet of a Loyalist.svg, Loyalist military coronet (Canada) File:Civil Coronet of a Loyalist.svg, Loyalist civil coronet (Canada) File:Crown of a British King of Arms.svg, King of Arms (

College of Arms The College of Arms, or Heralds' College, is a royal corporation consisting of professional officers of arms, with jurisdiction over England, Wales, Northern Ireland and some Commonwealth realms. The heralds are appointed by the British Sover ...

)

Continental usages

Precisely because there are many traditions and more variation within some of these, there are a plethora of continental coronet types. Indeed, there are also some coronets for positions that do not exist, or do not entitle use of a coronet, in the Commonwealth tradition. Such a case in French heraldry of the

Ancien Régime ''Ancien'' may refer to * the French word for " ancient, old" ** Société des anciens textes français * the French for "former, senior" ** Virelai ancien ** Ancien Régime ** Ancien Régime in France {{disambig ...

, where coronets of rank did not come into use before the 16th century, is the

vidame Vidame () was a feudal title in France, a term descended from mediaeval Latin . Like the ''avoué'' or ''advocatus'', the ''vidame'' was originally a secular official chosen by the bishop of the diocese—with the consent of the count—to ...

, whos
coronet (illustrated)
is a metal circle mounted with three visible crosses. (No physical headgear of this type is known.) Helmets are often substitutes for coronets, and some coronets are worn only on a helmet.

Andorra

Bulgaria

France

Ancien Régime ''Ancien'' may refer to * the French word for " ancient, old" ** Société des anciens textes français * the French for "former, senior" Virelai ancien Ancien Régime ** Ancien Régime in France {{disambig ...

Napoleonic Empire

July Monarchy

Georgia

German-speaking countries

Holy Roman Empire

Liechtenstein

Austria

Austrian Empire

Germany

German Empire

Greece

Hungary

Croatia

Italy

Kingdom of Italy (1861-1946)

Kingdoms of Naples, Sicily, Two Sicilies

Grand Duchy of Tuscany

Other Italian states before 1861

Low Countries

Netherlands

Belgium

The older crowns are often still seen in the heraldry of older families.

Luxembourg

Monaco

Poland and Lithuania

Portuguese-speaking countries

Portugal

Kingdom of Portugal (until 1910)

Brazil

Empire of Brazil

Romania

Kingdom of Romania

Russia

Nordic countries

Denmark

Finland

During the Swedish reign, Swedish coronets were used. Crowns were used in the coats of arms of the historical provinces of Finland. For Finland Proper, Satakunta, Tavastia and Karelia, it was a ducal coronet, for others, a comital coronet. In 1917 with independence, the

coat of arms of Finland The coat of arms of Finland is a crowned lion on a red field, the right foreleg replaced with an armoured human arm brandishing a sword, trampling on a sabre with the hindpaws. The coat of arms was originally created around the year 1580. Back ...

was introduced with a grand ducal crown, but it was soon removed, in 1920. Today, some cities use coronets, e.g.

Pori ) , website www.pori.fi Pori (; sv, Björneborg ) is a city and municipality on the west coast of Finland. The city is located some from the Gulf of Bothnia, on the estuary of the Kokemäki River, west of Tampere, north of Turku and north- ...

has a mural crown and

Vaasa Vaasa (; sv, Vasa, , Sweden ), in the years 1855–1917 as Nikolainkaupunki ( sv, Nikolajstad; literally meaning "city of Nicholas),

a Crown of Nobility.

Norway

Sweden

Serbia

Spanish-speaking countries

Spain

Mexico

Chile

Non-European usages

Bahrain

Bhutan

Cambodia

Central African Empire

China

Egypt before 1953

Jordan

Morocco

Oman

Siam and Thailand

Tonga

Other examples

Ecclesiastical Hats

Anglican Communion

File:External Ornaments of an Anglican Bishop.svg,

Archbishop In Christian denominations, an archbishop is a bishop of higher rank or office. In most cases, such as the Catholic Church, there are many archbishops who either have jurisdiction over an ecclesiastical province in addition to their own archdio ...

File:External Ornaments of an Archdeacon (Church of England).svg, Archdeacon File:External Ornaments of a Dean (Church of England).svg, Dean File:External Ornaments of a Canon of the Queen (Church of England).svg, Members of His Majesty's Ecclesiastical Household File:External Ornaments of a Canon (Church of England).svg, Canons, Honorary Canons, Canons Emeritus and Prebendaries File:External Ornaments of a Priest (Church of England).svg, Preist File:External Ornaments of a Deacon (Church of England).svg, Deacon

Catholic Church

File:Heraldic Papal Tiara.svg,

Pope The pope ( la, papa, from el, πάππας, translit=pappas, 'father'), also known as supreme pontiff ( or ), Roman pontiff () or sovereign pontiff, is the bishop of Rome (or historically the patriarch of Rome), head of the worldwide Cathol ...

File:External Ornaments of Primates and Patriarchs.svg,

Patriarch The highest-ranking bishops in Eastern Orthodoxy, Oriental Orthodoxy, the Catholic Church (above major archbishop and primate), the Hussite Church, Church of the East, and some Independent Catholic Churches are termed patriarchs (and in c ...

File:External Ornaments of a Cardinal Bishop.svg,

Cardinal Cardinal or The Cardinal may refer to: Animals * Cardinal (bird) or Cardinalidae, a family of North and South American birds **'' Cardinalis'', genus of cardinal in the family Cardinalidae **'' Cardinalis cardinalis'', or northern cardinal, t ...

File:Template-Metropolitan Archbishop.svg,

Metropolitan Archbishop Metropolitan may refer to: * Metropolitan area, a region consisting of a densely populated urban core and its less-populated surrounding territories * Metropolitan borough, a form of local government district in England * Metropolitan county, a typ ...

File:External Ornaments of an Archbishop.svg,

File:Biskup Ljavinec Ivan CoA.jpg,

Eastern Catholic The Eastern Catholic Churches or Oriental Catholic Churches, also called the Eastern-Rite Catholic Churches, Eastern Rite Catholicism, or simply the Eastern Churches, are 23 Eastern Christian autonomous (''sui iuris'') particular churches of ...

prelate, combining elements of both Eastern and Western ecclesiastical heraldry File:External Ornaments of an Apostolic protonotary.svg, Apostolic protonotary (

Monsignor Monsignor (; it, monsignore ) is an honorific form of address or title for certain male clergy members, usually members of the Roman Catholic Church. Monsignor is the apocopic form of the Italian ''monsignore'', meaning "my lord". "Monsignor" ...

) File:External Ornaments of a Domestic Prelate.svg, Honorary Prelate (

) File:External Ornaments of a Chaplain of His Holiness.svg, Chaplain of His Holiness (

) File:External Ornaments of a Bishop.svg,

Bishop A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is ...

File:External Ornaments of an Abbot.svg,

Abbot Abbot is an ecclesiastical title given to the male head of a monastery in various Western religious traditions, including Christianity. The office may also be given as an honorary title to a clergyman who is not the head of a monastery. Th ...

File:External Ornaments of a Priest.svg,

Priest A priest is a religious leader authorized to perform the sacred rituals of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and one or more deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in partic ...

Eastern Orthodox Church

File:Protodeacon.svg,

Protodeacon Protodeacon derives from the Greek ''proto-'' meaning 'first' and ''diakonos'', which is a standard ancient Greek word meaning "assistant", "servant", or "waiting-man". The word in English may refer to any of various clergy, depending upon the us ...

File:Deacon.svg, Deacon File:Hierodeacon.svg,

Hierodeacon A hierodeacon ( Greek: Ἱεροδιάκονος, ''Ierodiákonos''; Slavonic: ''Ierodiakón''), sometimes translated "deacon-monk", in Eastern Orthodox Christianity is a monk who has been ordained a deacon (or deacon who has been tonsured monk) ...

File:Hieromonk.svg,

Hieromonk A hieromonk ( el, Ἱερομόναχος, Ieromonachos; ka, მღვდელმონაზონი, tr; Slavonic: ''Ieromonakh'', ro, Ieromonah), also called a priestmonk, is a monk who is also a priest in the Eastern Orthodox Church an ...

File:Hieromonk with advanced titles of honor.svg, Hieromonk with other titles and honours

Multinational

As a charge

, a

is an image occupying the field of a

. Many coats of arms incorporate crowns as charges. One notable example of this lies in the

Three Crowns Three Crowns ( sv, tre kronor, links=no) is the national emblem of Sweden, present in the coat of arms of Sweden, and composed of three yellow or gilded coronets ordered two above and one below, placed on a blue background. Similar designs are f ...

of the arms of Sweden. Additionally, many animal charges (frequently

lions The lion (''Panthera leo'') is a large cat of the genus '' Panthera'' native to Africa and India. It has a muscular, broad-chested body; short, rounded head; round ears; and a hairy tuft at the end of its tail. It is sexually dimorphic; ad ...

and

eagles Eagle is the common name for many large birds of prey of the family Accipitridae. Eagles belong to several groups of genera, some of which are closely related. Most of the 68 species of eagle are from Eurasia and Africa. Outside this area, jus ...

) and sometimes human heads also appear crowned. Animal charges ''gorged'' (collared) of an open coronet also occur, though far less frequently. File:Vestfold våpen.svg, A golden crown appears prominently in the arms of

Vestfold Vestfold is a traditional region, a former county and a current electoral district in Eastern Norway. In 2020 the county became part of the much larger county of Vestfold og Telemark. Located on the western shore of the Oslofjord, it bordered ...

, a county in

. File:Wappen Kreis Biedenkopf.svg, A crowned lion head in the arms of Kreis Biedenkopf, a county in

Hesse Hesse (, , ) or Hessia (, ; german: Hessen ), officially the State of Hessen (german: links=no, Land Hessen), is a state in Germany. Its capital city is Wiesbaden, and the largest urban area is Frankfurt. Two other major historic cities are ...

, Germany (1832-1974) File:Armoiries medievales d Eric de Poméranie 1382-1459.svg, The

, as well as lions and leopards crowned, in the arms of Eric of Pomerania File:Herb wielki Czech (1990-1992).svg, Both lions and eagles crowned appear in the

coat of arms of the Czech Republic The coat of arms of the Czech Republic () is divided into two principal variants. Greater coat of arms displays the three historical regions—the Czech lands—which make up the nation. Lesser coat of arms displays lone silver double-tailed lion ...

. File:Badge of the Unicorn Pursuivant.svg, Badge of the Unicorn Pursuivant, a unicorn gorged of a coronet

Notes

References

{{Heraldry Heraldic charges