In the summer of 2021, the Union of European Football Associations rejected a request to light up Munich's Allianz Arena in the colors of the rainbow during a match between Germany and Hungary. UEFA asserted that the gesture was seen as a deliberate critique of Hungary's anti-LGBTQ legislation. Their decision, they concluded, was based on their belief that "the rainbow is not a political symbol." Focusing on an early seventeenth-century emblem designed for a Stuart king and prince, this presentation will demonstrate how, to the contrary, rainbows have always been political. They were and remain signs of hope, justice, mercy, and political power. This talk is moderated by Getty Research Institute director Mary Miller.