Town of Olivenza (Extremadura, Spain)

Badajoz Province

Last modified: 2008-08-30 by eugene ipavec
Keywords: extremadura | badajoz | olivenza | irredentism | portugal | gironny | coat of arms (wall: yellow) | coat of arms (tower: yellow) | coat of arms (tree: olive) |
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  image by António Martins

• Presentation of Olivenza
• History of the flag

See also:

• Badajoz Province
• Extremadura (Spain)
• Spain
• Portuguese Irredentist Groups of Olivença

Olivenza is a 600 sq.km. border municipality which has been under Spanish control since 1806 but this has never been recognized by Portugal. In Portuguese official maps the border is unmarked in that region (left bank of Guadiana river south of Badajoz). Although the annexation is still unrecognized (a matter brought every now and then in diplomatic circles), the question is far from being a major problem between both countries, and has even an anecdotical flavour among Portuguese public opinion.

António Martins, 13 January 1998

In 1991, the Spanish Royal Academy of History (Real Academia de Historia) asked the Portuguese Heraldry Institute (Instituto Português de Heráldica, I.P.H.) for an opinion about how the (new) flag of Olivenza should look like. It is weird that this proposal is gyronny and bears a mural crown of 5 towers (distinction of municipalities in Portugal with city status), as the usual status attributed to Olivenza is that of town. The Spanish Royal Academy of History took the design proposed by the I.P.H., but omitted the scroll and instead of a mural crown used a closed royal one.

António Martins, 13 January 1998

Portuguese Heraldry Institute proposal
image by António Martins