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Three Crowns (Swedish: Tre Kronor) is a national emblem of Sweden, present in the Coat of Arms of the Realm of Sweden, and composed by three yellow or gilded coronets ordered two above and one below, placed on a blue background.

The emblem is often used as a symbol of authority by the Swedish government and by Swedish embassies around the world, but also appears in other less formal contexts, such as the Swedish national men's ice hockey team, who wear the symbol on their shirts and hence are called "Three Crowns", and atop the Stockholm City Hall built 1911-1923.

Contents 1 Origins 2 Unsourced hypothesises and various usages 3 Other three crown designs 4 See also 5 References

The origin of the symbol have been much debated throughout history and various more or less well-founded theories have attempted to shed some light on the matter.

The symbol is known to have been placed atop the mighty central tower of the castle Tre Kronor in Stockholm, destroyed by fire in 1697, no later than the early 16th century. The symbol, however, is known to be quite older. One of several traditional explanations have suggested Albrekt of Mecklenburg (1338-1412), who ruled Sweden 1364-1389, brought the symbol from Germany as a sign of his reign of Sweden, Finland and Mecklenburg. This theory have, however, been refuted by later research, namely, the announcement in 1982 of the discovery of a frieze in Avignon in southern France, estimated to date back to 1336. The frieze was painted for an international congress lead by the Pope and contains the symbols of all participant countries, including Sweden. This discovery suggests the symbol was introduced by Albert's precursor Magnus Eriksson (1316-1377). ^[1]

• A representation of the three wise men, also known as the three kings, that came to visit Jesus at the epiphany.
• The three old kingdoms that joined to later form Sweden — "Three crowns one kingdom". However, that theory is less widely accepted.
• Leftovers after yet another failed attempt at creating a Scandinavian union and that the crowns represent the royal families of Sweden, Denmark and Norway.
• The three crowns are on the 1397 seal of Margrete I, who united Denmark, Sweden and Norway into the Kalmar Union to defend baltic sea trade routes against the threat of the German Holy Roman Empire.
• The symbol is also featured on the University of Oxford seal originating from the same period.
• It also appears on the first masonic seal of York. The founding values of these three organisations all using an example of the three separated crowns may also symbolise a Protestant opposition to the coronation of the Pope as, among other titles the ruler of the world. The Pope's Triregnum featuring three crowns, although not separated.
• A later usage of the three crowns refers to the Union of the Crowns, the accession to the thrones of England and Ireland of King James VI of Scotland in March 1603.

Practically identical to the three crowns of Sweden, is that of the flag and crest of the Province of Munster, a region in the south west of Ireland. Like the Swedish model, it comprises two crowns above and one below. These represent the three great duchies of the province, Desmond, Ormond and Thomond. The design was used as the flag of the Lordship of Ireland between 1171-1541 following the Norman invasion of Ireland until being replaced by the flag of the Kingdom of Ireland.

A similar three crowns design is the crest of the city of Kingston-upon-Hull, a large port in Yorkshire, England. This design sees the three crowns stacked vertically and relates back to the Royal charter of 1299. The emblem is used by the city council and also the cities two rugby league teams.

Three crowns also form the logo of Coutts & Co, the London based private bankers, but in this case the design comprises one crown at the top, with two below.

• Mother Svea
• Flag of Sweden

1. ^ Rune Lindgren (1992). "Varifrån härstammar Tre Kronor-symbolen?", Gamla stan förr och nu (in Swedish). Stockholm: Rabén & Sjögren, 17. ISBN 91 29 61671 9.