Officially Approved Heraldic Fantasies: The Arms of the Princes Dabija
The official collection of coats of arms of the noble families from the Russian Empire (Общий гербовник Дворянских родов Всероссийской Империи in Russian) is a veritable 'gold mine' for those passionate about heraldry! There, we also find useful information related to Romanians: the coats of arms of the families who accompanied Prince Demeter Cantemir in his exile in Russia after the Battle of Stănilești in 1711 (Bantâș-Kamenski, Vremev, Kulikovski, etc.), as well as those of some boyar families from Bessarabia, when this part of Moldova was included in the Russian Empire (Gagarin-Sturdza, Abaza, Gore, etc.).
Among these insignia, I draw your attention to the arms of the Princes Dabija, inscribed in volume XVI/1901, No. 3, of the mentioned collection.
Arms of the Princes Dabija, granted January 2, 1895, Gerbovnik
Professor Ștefan S. Gorovei has addressed the genealogy of the family in two successive presentations, demonstrating that the Bessarabian Dabija princes do not descend from Eustatie Dabija, Prince of Moldova (1661–1665): “The File of a Genealogical Imposture” (The “Nicolae Iorga” Institute of History in Bucharest, February 21, 2014), and “Impostors and Forgers. New Pages in an Old File: The 'Princes' Dabija” (The National Commission of Heraldry, Genealogy, and Sigillography – Iași Branch, March 10, 2015).
From a heraldic point of view, the composition is an example of the official endorsement of unfounded genealogical claims—the fantastical nature of these claims being evident from Professor Gorovei's explanations. Even so, the Dabija coat of arms is the product of interesting research into South-Danubian and Romanian heraldry, as we shall see below.
The main element of the shield is the silver double-headed eagle of the House of Nemanjić, a coat of arms modified by relocating the two fleurs-de-lis, from the dexter and sinister sides of the bird’s tail—as they appeared in the official version—to the eagle's claws.
Arms of the House of Nemanjić by WappenWiki
The red shield, quartered by a silver cross, placed on the chest of the double-headed eagle, is another borrowing from the state heraldry of the aforementioned Balkan monarchy. Instead of the four firesteels, the resulting quarters are filled as follows: in the first and fourth quarters, the crown with fleurs-de-lis, a central element of the seal arms of several Kings of Bosnia from the House of Kotromanić: Stephen Tvrtko II (1404–1409, 1421–1443), and Stephen Tomašević (1461–1463); in the second and third quarters, the auroch’s head with a five-pointed star between the horns, derived from the historical coat of arms of Moldavia, while the field, divided red-blue, constitutes a modification of the traditional colour scheme, probably inspired by the vexillology of early 19th century Moldavia.
Arms of King Stephen Tvrtko II of Bosnia by WappenWiki
Arms of the Principality of Moldavia by WappenWiki
The central escutcheon, crowned and containing a silver band accompanied by six golden fleurs-de-lis, originates from the coat of arms of Stephen Tvrtko I, Ban of Bosnia (1353–1377), King of Bosnia and Serbia (1377–1391), then King of Croatia and Dalmatia (1390–1391), who was followed on the Bosnian throne, between 1391 and 1395, by Stephen Dabiša (possibly an illegitimate son of Vladislav Kotromanić, father of Stephen Tvrtko I).
Arms of the House of Kotromanić by WappenWiki
The five helmets that top the shield bear the following crests: a) in the middle, a silver double-headed eagle with two red fleurs-de-lis on its chest—clearly a reiteration of the shield's principal symbol; b) in the centre right and left, a peacock tail—the ancient crest of the House of Kotromanić; c) on the right, two golden bull’s horns, between which emerges a red rampant lion, crowned with a golden crown—the crest of the coats of arms of the last Serbian despots from the House of Branković, George (1427–1456), Lazar (1456–1458) and John (1496–1502); d) on the left, a silver eagle’s wing, with a red-armoured arm between the wings, holding a silver sword with a golden hilt—apparently inspired by the eagle’s wing crest of a coat of arms attributed to Stephen Tvrtko I in the Belgrade Armorial (a work compiled in the first half of the 17th century), to which a sword-wielding arm has been added, likely inspired by the historical arms of Bosnia.
The two angels holding the shield wear garments and carry flags decorated with the arms of the House of Kotromanić. The motto, ТАКО ХОЩЕТ БОГ (= THUS GOD WILLS) could possibly refer to the surname Dabija, explicable through the Slavic phrase Дай Боже.
The closed crown and mantle indicate the princely rank of the family.
Despite the beauty of this composition and its nature as a synthesis between South-Danubian and Romanian heraldry, the coat of arms of the Princes Dabija remains just a splendid... soap bubble!
