Orla (derived from

Polish Polish may refer to: * Anything from or related to Poland, a country in Europe * Polish language * Poles Poles,, ; singular masculine: ''Polak'', singular feminine: ''Polka'' or Polish people, are a West Slavic nation and ethnic group, w ...

'' orzeł'' 'eagle') is a distinct

armorial estate and

heraldic clan A heraldic clan (''ród herbowy''), in Poland, comprised all the noble ('' szlachta'') bearers of the same coat of arms. The members of a heraldic clan were not necessarily linked by consanguinity. The concept was unique to Polish heraldry. Hi ...

coat of arms adopted in

Polish heraldry Polish heraldry is the study of the coats of arms that have historically been used in Poland and the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth. It treats of specifically Polish heraldic traits and of the Polish heraldic system, contrasted with heraldic sys ...

since the Crown of the Kingdom of Poland. It was vested upon several

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 ...

ly families of Poland's

nobility Nobility is a social class found in many societies that have an aristocracy. It is normally ranked immediately below royalty. Nobility has often been an estate of the realm with many exclusive functions and characteristics. The character ...

situated in the historical region of Greater Poland,

Silesia Silesia (, also , ) is a historical region of Central Europe that lies mostly within Poland, with small parts in the Czech Republic and Germany. Its area is approximately , and the population is estimated at around 8,000,000. Silesia is split ...

and

Lesser Poland Lesser Poland, often known by its Polish name Małopolska ( la, Polonia Minor), is a historical region situated in southern and south-eastern Poland. Its capital and largest city is Kraków. Throughout centuries, Lesser Poland developed a ...

from about the 14th century, where it was first historically known in Poland as the coat of arms of 'Saszor' zaszor later 'Orla', and subsequently conferred on the

ennoblement Ennoblement is the conferring of nobility—the induction of an individual into the noble class. Currently only a few kingdoms still grant nobility to people; among them Spain, the United Kingdom, Belgium and the Vatican. Depending on time and reg ...

of several individuals.

History

Orla is one of the oldest Polish coats of arms. The coat of arms was naturalised into Polish heraldry during the

Jagiellonian dynasty The Jagiellonian dynasty (, pl, dynastia jagiellońska), otherwise the Jagiellon dynasty ( pl, dynastia Jagiellonów), the House of Jagiellon ( pl, Dom Jagiellonów), or simply the Jagiellons ( pl, Jagiellonowie), was the name assumed by a cad ...

; it is a derivative of its Roman-German origin-precursor attributed to the personal coat of arms borne by the House of Saszowski and its branch scions. The Polish ''Orla'' coat of arms was subsequently borne as well by several unrelated Polish knightly families and individuals connected by

heraldic adoption Heraldic adoption ( pl, adopcja herbowa), was in the Kingdom of Poland a legal form of ennoblement and adoption into an existing heraldic clan; along with assuming the coat of arms of that clan it took place as a result of an act issued by the King ...

, and as frequently found with Polish coats of arms, by some supposed members misattributed to the

by error or usurpation.

Blazon

Silver (

Argent In heraldry, argent () is the tincture of silver, and belongs to the class of light tinctures called "metals". It is very frequently depicted as white and usually considered interchangeable with it. In engravings and line drawings, regions to ...

), an eagle displayed headless red ( Gules), on the neck a star of six rays red (gules); N.B. the star, as well as the eagle claws, are often found represented (rightly or wrongly) as gold ( Or) tincture in Polish heraldic literature.

Notable member bearers

From the classical Polish heraldic reference ''Herby rycerstwa polskiego'' (Armorials of Polish Knights) published in 1584 by

Bartosz Paprocki Bartosz Paprocki (also ''Bartholomeus Paprocky'' or ''Bartholomew Paprocki'', pl, Bartłomiej (Bartosz) Paprocki, cs, Bartoloměj Paprocký z Hlahol a Paprocké Vůle; ca. 1540/43 in Paprocka Wola near Sierpc – 27 December 1614 in Lviv, P ...

, bearers shown in order of precedence: * House of Saszowski zaszowski(historically equally written as Schaschowsky, Saschowsky et al.), and its branch scions alias Palczowski and Gierałtowski. ** Jakub Saszowski of Gierałtowic (equally known as Gierałtowski),

Burgrave Burgrave, also rendered as burggrave (from german: Burggraf, la, burgravius, burggravius, burcgravius, burgicomes, also praefectus), was since the medieval period in Europe (mainly Germany) the official title for the ruler of a castle, especia ...

Kraków Kraków (), or Cracow, is the second-largest and one of the oldest cities in Poland. Situated on the Vistula River in Lesser Poland Voivodeship, the city dates back to the seventh century. Kraków was the official capital of Poland until 1596 ...

and

Wawel Royal Castle The Wawel Royal Castle (; ''Zamek Królewski na Wawelu'') and the Wawel Hill on which it sits constitute the most historically and culturally significant site in Poland. A fortified residency on the Vistula River in Kraków, it was established on ...

Dokumenty pergaminowe Oddziału I Archiwum Państwowego w Krakowie do 1600 r. (Parchments until 1600, Department of State Archives in Krakow); Data: 1569.07.11, Miejsce: Lublin, Sygnatura: W 028

** (equally known as Palczowski), (b. 1530, d. 1587), Burgrave of Kraków and Wawel Royal Castle ** (b. about 1507, d. 1565) ** (b. about 1568, d. 1627) ** (b. about 1570, d. about 1609) * House of Barski * House of Chobienicki ''and the individuals:'' * Jorogniewski * Kełbowski * Ligocki

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Orla Coat Of Arms Polish coats of arms Silesian nobility

History

Blazon

Notable member bearers

See also

References