[1] The coat of arms was formally adopted by King William I of Württemberg on 30 December 1817,[2] lasting between 1817 and 1922, and occasionally seen on state flags of this period.

[2] This version derived from the escutcheon found in the centre of the much larger and more elaborate coat of arms that was used when the Electorate of Württemberg was elevated to the status of a kingdom in 1806.

This caused the need to choose something much simpler, and the 1817 arms had the two essential elements – three lions for the whole region of Swabia, and three antlers for its largest ruling dynasty.

After the abdication of the last king in 1918, the Free People's State of Württemberg in the Weimar Republic continued to use the three antlers motif and the former kingdom's flag on its coat of arms.

Today, the larger version of the Coat of arms of Baden-Württemberg includes the three Swabian lions and a small shield on top with the three antlers of Württemberg.