Palatine Lion
After the Second World War the Palatinate Lion re-emerged as the regional symbol of the Palatinate, for example, on postage stamps in the French Zone of Occupation. Following the creation of the state of Rhineland-Palatinate in 1946, to which the Palatinate belonged, the Palatine Lion occupied a central place in the state coat of arms of Rhineland-Palatinate. The other elements of the Rhineland-Palatine coat of arms are the Wheel of Mainz ("Mainzer Rad") and the Cross of Trier ("Trierer Kreuz"). Even the semi-official coat of arms of the Province of Palatinate, which existed from 1946 to 1968 and dated to the 19th century, bore the Palatine Lion, which after the inclusion of the former territories of Electoral Mainz and Electoral Trier, symbolised the region of the present-day Palatinate.
Middle Rhine
The Allied forces ended hostilities of the Second World War on the Middle Rhine on 19 March 1945. The French again took up the administration of the territory in its occupation zone. At end of 1946, the Americans created the State Hesse in their occupation zone; six months later the French founded of the State of Rhineland-Palatinate. Although some areas were combined in the new states that historically do not belong together, a sense of togetherness quickly appeared. The desire for state boundaries more in line with historical territorial boundaries, however, never ceased entirely.