Los cuatro banderas (the four flags)

I have often noticed the four flags flying over the Ayuntamiento in Altea and with the exception of number 4 on the right hand side (the flag of Europe) I have not paid too much attention to the other 3 - until this afternoon that is! I was sat opposite and had just started a new book called "Killing Kennedy - The End of Camelot" and out of the corner of my eye I noticed someone hovering nearby... When I looked up it was clearly a local Spanish man who immediately engaged me in a conversation (in Spanish of course) about my book then somehow we moved on to the flags and he explained that Flag 1 is the flag of Altea, 2 is that of Spain, 3 is Valencia(the regional capital) and 4 of course is the flag of the European Union. Then miraculously we moved on to King Jaime 1st, of Aragon who seized Altea back from the Moors. This brought in a connection to Catherine of Aragon and thus to Henry V111 and his penchant for chopping people's heads off. All the time his conversation was interesting, informative and completely understandable (less to do with my Spanish capabilities - much more to do with his patience and clarity). He was very passionate about his Catalan roots and his knowledge of history - including ours and I kept thinking "thank goodness he didn't get on to the Spanish Armada!"