The Bavarian Ministry of the Interior, Coat of Arms

Why "Free State"?

Is Bavaria any more free than other German states -- or what can Free State mean otherwise? Actually, this description does not mean that Bavaria is dispensed from following federal laws or the like. On the contrary, the word Freistaat is the same as saying Republic, and suggests a form of government that is not a monarchy, i.e., that no longer has a crowned head at its summit. This is only intended to express clearly that the monarchy has been abolished in Bavaria. The term Freistaat (Free State) was chosen so as to avoid the foreign word Republic.

If many Bavarians (and more recently the Saxons, who also have a Free State) tend to empasize the Free State with a glint in their eye, it is generally to point out the strong position of their state in the commonwealth of German states.

Coat of arms of the free state of Bavaria

Great Bavarian coat of arms

The great Bavarian coat of arms with its heraldic symbols is profoundly rooted in Bavaria's history.

The golden lion in the black field of the coat-of-arms was originally the symbol of the count palatines near the Rhine and after the investiture of the Bavarian duke Ludwig in 1214 with the county palatine served as a common hallmark of the ancient Bavarian and Palatine Wittelsbachs. The palatine lion today recalls the governmental district of the Upper Palatinate.

The Franconian rack first appeared around 1350 as the coat of arms of some of the towns in the Bishopric of Würzburg and since 1410 in the seals of the Prince-Bishops. The three white (silver) spires on a red background denote the three Franconian governmental districts of Upper Franconia, Middle Franconia, and Lower Franconia.

The blue panther on the white (silver) field of the shield was originally charged in the coat of arms of the counts palatine of Ortenburg, who resided in Lower Bavaria (12th century) and was later taken over by the Wittelsbachs. Today, this symbol stands for the ancient Bavarian governmental districts of Lower Bavaria and Upper Bavaria.

The three rampant lions standing atop one another are the old shield of the Hohenstaufen dynasty (originally of 1216), who were the onetime Dukes of Swabia. They now represent Swabia in the state's coat of arms.

The white and blue heart shield at the fess point (center) of the coat of arms was once the coat of arms of the Counts of Bogen (since 1204) and was adopted as an inescutcheon by the Wittelsbachs (1247). Today it represents the state of Bavaria as a whole as a "small coat of arms."

The people's crown, which appeared in the coat of arms in 1923 for the first time, represents the sovereignty of the people after the collapse of the royal crown. The two rampant lions holding the shield are the continuation of a tradition going back to the 14th century.

The small Bavarian state coat of arms consists of white (silver) and blue lozenges leaning to the right of the shield upon which rests the people's crown.

Who may use the Bavarian state coat of arms?

Not anyone can just use the Bavarian state coat of arms, for instance on their letterhead or homepage. The large and small Bavarian coats are in fact state emblems reserved for governmental use. Besides that, they can only be used for artistic and scientific purposes, in handicrafts, for teaching, or in civic education. Any other use requires permission of the State Ministry of the Interior (and that according to the decree on the implementation of the law "coat of arms of the Free State of Bavaria"). Permission can only be granted in especially well-founded exceptions. Moreover, in order to counter the danger of abuse, unauthorized use of the coat of arms or parts thereof can result in a fine.

In order to address requests that appear justified, the Bavarian State Ministry of the Interior granted the following general permission in 1987:

The white and blue lozenges, the heraldic symbol of the small state coat and of the escutcheon in the large state coat and the "Franconian rack," may be used in any desired form, that is even in the form of a heraldic shield, for purposes that are in the spirit of and proper to this symbol. The white and blue lozenges may be linked to the terms "Free State of Bavaria" or "Bavaria," and the rack with the term "Franconia." What is prohibited, however, is to charge the lozenges or the rack with the people's crown of the state coat, other crowns, heraldic animals, shield-holding animals or figures, or similar symbols, or to use them in such a way as to give a governmental impression.

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