Acrown is often anemblem of asovereign state, usually a monarchy (seeThe Crown), but also used by somerepublics.

A specific type of crown is employed inheraldry under strict rules. Indeed, some monarchies never had a physicalcrown, just a heraldic representation, as in the constitutional kingdom ofBelgium.

Crowns are also often used as symbols of religious status or veneration, by divinities (or their representation such as a statue) or by their representatives, e.g. theBlack Crown of theKarmapa Lama, sometimes used a model for wider use by devotees.

A crown can be achargein acoat of arms, or setatop the shield to signify the status of its owner, as with thecoat of arms of Norway.

Sometimes, the crown commonly depicted and used in heraldry differs significantly from any specific physical crown that may be used by a monarchy.

If the bearer of a coat of arms has the title ofbaron or higher (orhereditary knight in some countries), he or she may display acoronet of rank above the shield, usually below the helm in British heraldry, and often above the crest (if any) in Continental heraldry.

In this case, the appearance of the crown or coronet follows a strict set of rules. A royal coat of arms may display a royal crown, such as that ofNorway. A princely coat of arms may display a princely crown, and so on.

Amural crown is commonly displayed on coats of arms of towns and some republics. Other republics may use a so-calledpeople's crown or omit the use of a crown altogether. The heraldic forms of crowns are often inspired by the physical appearance of the respective country's actual royal or princely crowns.

Ships and other units of somenavies have anaval crown, composed of the sails and sterns of ships, above the shield of their coats of arms. Squadrons of someair forces have anastral crown, composed of wings and stars. There is also theEastern crown, made up of spikes, and when each spike is topped with a star, it becomes a celestial crown.^[1]

Whereas most county councils in England use mural crowns, there is a special type of crown that was used byScottish county councils. It was composed of spikes, was normally shownvert (green) and had golden wheat sheaves between the spikes.^[2] Today, most of theScottish unitary authorities still use this "wheat sheaf crown", but it is now the usual gold.

In formal English, the word crown is reserved for the crown of a monarch and theQueen consort, whereas the wordcoronet is used for all other crowns used by members of theBritish royal family andpeers of the realm.

In theBritish peerage, the design of a coronet shows the rank of its owner, as in German, French and various other heraldic traditions. The coronet of aduke has eightstrawberry leaves, that of amarquess has four strawberry leaves and four silver balls (known as "pearls", but not actuallypearls), that of anearl has eight strawberry leaves and eight "pearls" raised on stalks, that of aviscount has sixteen "pearls", and that of a peeragebaron or (in Scotland)lord of parliament has six "pearls". Between the 1930s and 2004,feudal barons in the baronage of Scotland were granted a chapeau orcap of maintenance as a rank insignia.^{[citation needed]} This is placed between the shield and helmet in the same manner as a peer's coronet. Since a person entitled to heraldic headgear customarily displays it above the shield and below the helm and crest, this can provide a useful clue as to the owner of a given coat of arms.

Members of the British royal family have coronets on their coats of arms, and they may wear physical versions atcoronations. They are according to regulations made by KingCharles II in 1661, shortly after his return from exile in France (getting a taste for its lavish court style;Louis XIV started monumental work at Versailles that year) and Restoration, and they vary depending upon the holder's relationship to the monarch. Occasionally, additional royal warrants vary the designs for individuals.

InCanadian heraldry, special coronets are used to designate descent fromUnited Empire Loyalists. A military coronet signifies ancestors who served in Loyalist regiments during theAmerican Revolution, while a civil coronet is used by all others. The loyalist coronets are used only in heraldry, never worn. A new royal crown, derived from the shape of the Tudor crown but with distinctly Canadian elements, was unveiled at a ceremony in Ottawa to mark theCoronation of Charles III.^{[citation needed]}

Precisely because there are many traditions and more variation within some of these, there is a plethora of continental coronet types. Indeed, there are also some coronets for positions that do not exist, or do not entitle use of a coronet, in the Commonwealth tradition.

Such a case in French heraldry of theAncien Régime, where coronets of rank did not come into use before the 16th century, is thevidame, whosecoronet (illustrated) is a metal circle mounted with three visible crosses. (No physical headgear of this type is known.)

Helmets are often substitutes for coronets, and some coronets are worn only on a helmet.^{[citation needed]}

During the Swedish reign, Swedish coronets were used. Crowns were used in the coats of arms of thehistorical provinces of Finland. For Finland Proper, Satakunta, Tavastia and Karelia, it was a ducal coronet; for others, a comital coronet. In 1917 with independence, thecoat of arms of Finland was introduced with a grand ducal crown, but it was soon removed, in 1920. Today, some cities use coronets, e.g.Pori has a mural crown andVaasa a Crown of Nobility.^{[citation needed]}

Inheraldry, acharge is an image occupying thefield of acoat of arms. Many coats of arms incorporate crowns as charges. One notable example of this lies in theThree Crowns of the arms of Sweden.

Additionally, many animal charges (frequentlylions andeagles) and sometimes human heads also appear crowned. Animal chargesgorged (collared) of an open coronet also occur, though more often as supporters than as charges.

The older crowns are often still seen in the heraldry of older families.

Kingdom of Ruthenia

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