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The Austrian eagle, also known as the coat of arms of the Republic of Austria, has been in use in its first form by the First Republic of Austria since 1919. The eagle is a symbol of Austria's sovereignty. The eagle's right talon holds a sickle, which represents the farmer or peasant class, and its left talon holds a hammer, representing the working class. The eagle also wears a mural crown, which stands for the middle class or bourgeoisie. The use of the hammer and sickle has triggered discussions about the arms due to their association with communism, but the symbols were introduced in 1919, before the official approval of the Soviet coat of arms.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Eagle | Austria's sovereignty |
| Escutcheon | Emblem of Austria |
| Mural crown | Middle class/bourgeoisie |
| Hammer | Working class/workers |
| Sickle | Peasants/agriculture |
| Broken chains | Austria's liberation/freedom |
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What You'll Learn
The eagle represents Austria's sovereignty
The eagle is a central feature of the Austrian coat of arms and has been since 1919. It symbolises Austria's sovereignty. The eagle's chest is covered with a red shield, crossed by a silver crossbar. The eagle wears a golden mural crown, with three visible battlements, on its head. The mural crown represents the middle class or bourgeoisie.
The eagle holds a hammer and a sickle in its talons. The hammer and sickle are a widely recognised symbol of communism, representing proletarian solidarity between agricultural and industrial workers. However, the Austrian coat of arms was introduced in 1919, before the official approval of the Soviet coat of arms in 1923. The sickle and the bundle of wheat symbolised agriculture, and the hammer the tool of the worker. The eagle's hammer and sickle, therefore, represent the economically active people of Austria.
The eagle also holds a broken iron chain in its talons, which was added in 1945 to symbolise Austria's liberation and the restoration of Austrian independence. The coat of arms was banned during the German annexation of Austria from 1938 until liberation in 1945.
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The hammer and sickle are common symbols of communism
The hammer and sickle is one of the world's most recognisable symbols, evoking the former Soviet Union and communism. It is a symbol of proletarian solidarity between agricultural and industrial workers, with the hammer representing the working class and the sickle representing the peasants. The symbol was first adopted during the Russian Revolution at the end of World War I, and it quickly became a symbol for world communism.
The hammer and sickle remains commonplace in self-declared socialist states, such as China, Cuba, North Korea, Laos, and Vietnam. It is also still used in some former Soviet republics, such as Belarus and Russia, where it adorns buildings and monuments. Many communist parties around the world use the symbol, including the Communist Party of Greece, the Communist Party of Argentina, the Communist Party of Chile, the Communist Party of Brazil, and the Communist Party of India, among others.
The symbol typically features a two-dimensional format, with the hammer crossed over the curved blade of the sickle, and a red star often appears just above the tip of the sickle. The symbol has also been modified by some parties, such as the Workers' Party of Korea, which includes a hammer, a hoe, and a brush.
The widespread use of the hammer and sickle as a symbol of communism has led to some interesting variations and interpretations. For example, the flag of Chama Cha Mapinduzi, the ruling political party of Tanzania, features a hammer and a hoe instead of a sickle to represent the most common farm tool in Africa. The election symbol of the Communist Party of India consists of a horizontal sickle, vertically crossed by ears of corn.
While the hammer and sickle is a common symbol of communism, it is not the only one. Other communist symbols include red or yellow stars, open books, factories or industrial equipment, natural landscapes, torches, swords and shields, and portraits of communist leaders.
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The eagle is based on the legions of the Roman Republic
The Austrian eagle, introduced in 1919, is based on the legions of the Roman Republic. The single-headed eagle is not to be seen as a reduction of the old, double-headed Habsburg eagle. In fact, it is an important aspect that this kind of eagle was already the symbol of the legions in the Roman Republic. The eagle symbolises Austria's sovereignty.
The eagle's design was composed quickly due to the need for a seal at the peace talks after World War I. The eagle wears a mural crown, which stands for the middle class or bourgeoisie. The eagle's right talon holds a sickle, which represents the farmer's class or peasants. The left talon holds a hammer, representing the working class. The eagle also has a broken iron chain, symbolising the restoration of Austrian independence and the state in 1945.
The coat of arms of the Republic of Austria consists of a free-floating, single-headed, black eagle with golden arms and a red tongue. The eagle's chest is covered with a red shield crossed by a silver crossbar. The mural crown on its head has three visible battlements. The eagle's two talons are enclosed by a broken iron chain.
The coat of arms of the First Republic of Austria was not influenced by any Communist ideas. The attempt to unite the bourgeoisie, workers, and peasants in one image manifested itself as early as the first provisional national coat of arms dating to 1918. The gold coins issued after World War II depict the coat of arms of the First Republic of Austria, with the eagle uniting the three estates of the bourgeoisie, working class, and peasantry.
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The eagle is not a symbol of the Habsburgs
The double-headed eagle was initially adopted by the Holy Roman Empire, which saw itself as the successor to the ancient Imperium, and took the eagle as its heraldic beast. The Holy Roman Empire, also known as the Habsburg Empire, initially retained only one head. The double-headed eagle reappeared in the late Middle Ages, signifying the distinction between royal and imperial authority. The two heads were commonly interpreted as representing the Austrian and Hungarian halves of the monarchy.
The double-headed eagle became the symbol of the Habsburgs in Madrid and Vienna, becoming universal with the global expansion of the Spanish Empire. After the dissolution of the Holy Roman Empire in 1806, the double-headed eagle was retained by the Austrian Empire. The eagle was also used by the German states of Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt and Schwarzburg-Sondershausen until they were abolished after the First World War.
The single-headed eagle of the Austrian coat of arms holds a hammer and sickle in its talons, which are symbols of the working class and peasantry, respectively. The eagle also wears a mural crown, which stands for the bourgeoisie. The current version of the arms is often regarded as reminiscent of the double-headed eagle of the Habsburg monarchy.
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The eagle represents the unity of social classes
The eagle on the Austrian coat of arms is a powerful symbol of Austrian sovereignty and unity. The eagle was introduced in 1919, and its symbolism is twofold. Firstly, it represents Austria's sovereignty, and secondly, it is a symbol of unity between the social classes. The eagle's mural crown stands for the middle class, or bourgeoisie. In its right talon, the eagle holds a sickle, a symbol of the farmer or peasant class, and in its left talon, it holds a hammer, a symbol of the worker or economically active people.
The eagle, therefore, unites these three social groups in a single image, and this attempt to unite the bourgeoisie, workers and peasants in one image manifested itself as early as the first provisional national coat of arms dating to 1918. The coat of arms of the First Republic of Austria was not influenced by Communist ideas, as some have suggested, but rather, it was an attempt to represent the three estates of society. The gold coins issued after World War II depict the coat of arms of the First Republic of Austria, with the eagle uniting the three social classes.
The eagle itself was based on the "symbol of the legions of the Roman Republic", the Aquila, and not on the double-headed eagle of the Habsburgs. The single-headed eagle was chosen to represent a break from the old monarchy and to symbolise the new republic. The eagle's chest is covered with a red shield crossed by a silver crossbar, and it wears a golden mural crown with three visible battlements or pinnacles on its head. The eagle also has a broken iron chain enclosing its two talons, symbolising the restoration of Austrian independence and the state in 1945.
The coat of arms of the Republic of Austria has been in use in its first forms by the First Republic of Austria since 1919. Between 1934 and the German annexation in 1938, a different coat of arms was used, which consisted of a double-headed eagle. The establishment of the Second Republic in 1945 saw the return of the original arms, with the broken chains added to symbolise Austria's liberation.
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Frequently asked questions
The eagle on the Austrian coat of arms holds a hammer and sickle to represent the unity of the bourgeoisie, workers, and peasants. The hammer represents the working class, and the sickle represents the farmer or peasant class.
The eagle on the Austrian coat of arms represents Austria's sovereignty. The single-headed eagle was chosen over the double-headed eagle, which was a symbol of the Habsburgs.
The Austrian coat of arms also includes a mural crown, which represents the middle class, and a broken chain, which symbolises the restoration of Austrian independence in 1945.
