The Flag of Europe or European Flag consists of twelve
golden
Golden means made of, or relating to gold.
Golden may also refer to:
Places United Kingdom
*Golden, in the parish of Probus, Cornwall
*Golden Cap, Dorset
*Golden Square, Soho, London
*Golden Valley, a valley on the River Frome in Gloucestershir ...
stars forming a
circle
A circle is a shape consisting of all points in a plane that are at a given distance from a given point, the centre. Equivalently, it is the curve traced out by a point that moves in a plane so that its distance from a given point is const ...
on a
blue
Blue is one of the three primary colours in the RYB colour model (traditional colour theory), as well as in the RGB (additive) colour model. It lies between violet and cyan on the spectrum of visible light. The eye perceives blue when obs ...
field. It was designed and adopted in 1955 by the
Council of Europe
The Council of Europe (CoE; french: Conseil de l'Europe, ) is an international organisation founded in the wake of World War II to uphold European Convention on Human Rights, human rights, democracy and the Law in Europe, rule of law in Europe. ...
(CoE) as a symbol for the whole of
Europe
Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...
.
Since 1985, the flag has also been a symbol of the
European Union
The European Union (EU) is a supranational political and economic union of member states that are located primarily in Europe. The union has a total area of and an estimated total population of about 447million. The EU has often been des ...
(EU), whose 27 member states are all also CoE members, although in that year the EU had not yet assumed its present name or constitutional form (which came in steps in 1993 and 2009). Adoption by the EU, or
EC as it then was, reflected long-standing CoE desire to see the flag used by other European organisations. Official EU use widened greatly in the 1990s. Nevertheless the flag has to date received ''no status'' in any of the
EU's treaties. Its adoption as an official symbol was planned as part of the
2004 European Constitution but this failed to be ratified. Mention of the flag was removed in 2007 from the text of the Treaty of Lisbon, which ''was'' ratified. On the other hand, 16 EU members that year, plus France in 2017, have officially affirmed (by Declaration No. 5224) their attachment to the flag as an EU symbol.
The flag is used by other European entities, such as unified sport teams under the rubric Team Europe.
Blazon
The
blazon
In heraldry and heraldic vexillology, a blazon is a formal description of a coat of arms, flag or similar emblem, from which the reader can reconstruct the appropriate image. The verb ''to blazon'' means to create such a description. The vis ...
given by the EU in 1996 describe the design as: "On an
azure
Azure may refer to:
Colour
* Azure (color), a hue of blue
** Azure (heraldry)
** Shades of azure, shades and variations
Arts and media
* ''Azure'' (Art Farmer and Fritz Pauer album), 1987
* Azure (Gary Peacock and Marilyn Crispell album), 2013
...
field a circle of twelve golden
mullets, their points not touching."
[ ]
Guide graphique relatif à l'emblème européen
' (1996), p. 3: ''Description symbolique: Sur le fond bleu du ciel, les étoiles figurant les peuples d'Europe forment un cercle en signe d'union. Elles sont au nombre invariable de douze, symbole de la perfection et de la plénitude''...''Description héraldique: Sur fond azur, un cercle composé de douze étoiles d'or à cinq rais, dont les pointes ne se touchent pas''.
c.f.
Symbolism
The flag used is the Flag of Europe, which consists of a
circle of twelve golden stars on a blue background. Originally designed in 1955 for the Council of Europe, the flag was adopted by the
European Communities
The European Communities (EC) were three international organizations that were governed by the same set of institutions. These were the European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC), the European Atomic Energy Community (EAEC or Euratom), and the ...
, the predecessors of the present European Union, in 1986. The Council of Europe gave the flag a symbolic description in the following terms,
though the official symbolic description adopted by the EU omits the reference to the "Western world":
Other symbolic interpretations have been offered based on the account of its design by
Paul M. Levy. The five-pointed star is used on many national flags and represents aspiration and education. Their golden colour is that of the sun, which is said to symbolise glory and enlightenment.
Their arrangement in a circle represents the constellation of
Corona Borealis and can be seen as a crown and the stability of government. The blue background resembles the sky and symbolises truth and the intellect. It is also the colour traditionally used to represent the Virgin Mary. In many paintings of the Virgin Mary as
Stella Maris she is crowned with a circle of twelve stars.
Marian interpretation
![Shield of Dom Guéranger](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/ab/Shield_of_Dom_Gu%C3%A9ranger.svg)
In 1987, following the adoption of the flag by the EC, Arsène Heitz (1908–1989), one of the designers who had submitted proposals for the flag's design, suggested a religious inspiration for it. He claimed that the circle of stars was based on the iconographic tradition of showing the
Blessed Virgin Mary
Mary; arc, ܡܪܝܡ, translit=Mariam; ar, مريم, translit=Maryam; grc, Μαρία, translit=María; la, Maria; cop, Ⲙⲁⲣⲓⲁ, translit=Maria was a first-century Jews, Jewish woman of Nazareth, the wife of Saint Joseph, Jose ...
as the
Woman of the Apocalypse, wearing a "crown of twelve stars".
[Carlo Curti Gialdino, ''I Simboli dell'Unione europea, Bandiera – Inno – Motto – Moneta – Giornata''. Roma: Istituto Poligrafico e Zecca dello Stato S.p.A., 2005. , pp. 80–85. Gialdino is here cited after a translation of the Italian text published by the ''Centre Virtuel de la Connaissance sur l'Europe'']
cvce.eu
:
Irrespective of the statements by Paul M. G. Levy and the recent reconstruction by Susan Hood, crediting Arsène Heitz with the original design still seems to me the soundest option. In particular, Arsène Heitz himself, in 1987, laid claim to his own role in designing the flag and to its religious inspiration when he said that 'the flag of Europe is the flag of Our Lady' 'Magnificat'' magazine, 1987
Secondly, it is worth noting the testimony of Father Pierre Caillon, who refers to a meeting with Arsène Heitz. Caillon tells of having met the former Council of Europe employee by chance in August 1987 at Lisieux in front of the Carmelite monastery. It was Heitz who stopped him and declared "I was the one who designed the European flag. I suddenly had the idea of putting the 12 stars of the Miraculous Medal of the Rue du Bac on a blue field. My proposal was adopted unanimously on 8 December 1955, the Feast of the Immaculate Conception. I am telling you this, Father, because you are wearing the little blue cross of the Blue Army of Our Lady of Fatima".
Heitz also made a connection to the date of the flag's adoption, 8 December 1955, coinciding with the Catholic
Feast of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary.
Paul M. G. Lévy
Paul Michel Gabriel, Baron Lévy (27 November 1910 – 16 August 2002) was a Belgian journalist and professor. He was born in Brussels and was a Holocaust survivor. He worked for many years as Director of Information at the Council of Europe ...
, then Director of Information at the Council of Europe responsible for designing the flag, in a 1989 statement maintained that he had not been aware of any religious connotations.
In an interview given 26 February 1998, Lévy denied not only awareness of the "Marian" connection, but also denied that the final design of a circle of twelve stars was Heitz's. To the question "Who really designed the flag?" Lévy replied:
I did, and I calculated the proportions to be used for the geometric design. Arsène Heitz, who was an employee in the mail service, put in all sorts of proposals, including the 15-star design. But he submitted too many designs. He wanted to do the European currencies with 15 stars in the corner. He wanted to do national flags incorporating the Council of Europe flag.
Carlo Curti Gialdino (2005) has reconstructed the design process to the effect that Heitz's proposal contained varying numbers of stars, from which the version with twelve stars was chosen by the Committee of Ministers meeting at Deputy level in January 1955 as one out of two remaining candidate designs.
Lévy's 1998 interview apparently gave rise to a new variant of the "Marian" anecdote. An article published in ' in August 1998 alleged that it was Lévy himself who was inspired to introduce a "Marian" element as he walked past a statue of the Blessed Virgin Mary.
An article posted in ''La Raison'' in February 2000 further connected the donation of a stained glass window for
Strasbourg Cathedral by the Council of Europe on 21 October 1956. This window, a work by Parisian master
Max Ingrand, shows a blessing Madonna underneath a circle of 12 stars on dark blue ground.
The overall design of the Madonna is inspired by the banner of the cathedral's ''Congrégation Mariale des Hommes'', and the twelve stars are found on the statue venerated by this congregation inside the cathedral (twelve is also the number of members of the congregation's council). The Regional Office for Cultural Affairs describe this stained glass window called "Le vitrail de l'Europe de Max Ingrand" (The Glass Window of Europe of Max Ingrand).
Specifications
![EU Flag specification](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/74/EU_Flag_specification.svg)
According to graphical specifications published online by the Council of Europe in 2004, the flag is rectangular with 2:3 proportions: its
fly
Flies are insects of the Order (biology), order Diptera, the name being derived from the Ancient Greek, Greek δι- ''di-'' "two", and πτερόν ''pteron'' "wing". Insects of this order use only a single pair of wings to fly, the hindwing ...
(width) is one and a half times the length of its
hoist (height). Twelve yellow stars are centred in a circle (the
radius
In classical geometry, a radius ( : radii) of a circle or sphere is any of the line segments from its center to its perimeter, and in more modern usage, it is also their length. The name comes from the latin ''radius'', meaning ray but also the ...
of which is a third of the length of the hoist) upon a blue background. All the stars are upright (one point straight up), have five points and are spaced equally, like the hour positions on the
face of a clock. The diameter of each star is equal to one-ninth of the height of the hoist.
[ "PANTONE REFLEX BLUE corresponds in the web-palette colour RGB:0/0/153 (hexadecimal: 000099) and PANTONE YELLOW corresponds in the web-palette colour RGB:255/204/0 (hexadecimal: FFCC00)."]
The colours are regulated in the 1996 guide by the EC,
[ and equivalently in the 2004 guide by the Council of Europe.][ The base colour of the flag is defined as ]Pantone
Pantone LLC (stylized as PANTONE) is a limited liability company headquartered in Carlstadt, New Jersey. The company is best known for its Pantone Matching System (PMS), a proprietary color space used in a variety of industries, notably graphic ...
"Reflex Blue
In biology, a reflex, or reflex action, is an involuntary, unplanned sequence or action and nearly instantaneous response to a stimulus.
Reflexes are found with varying levels of complexity in organisms with a nervous system. A reflex occurs ...
", while the golden stars are portrayed in Pantone "Yellow":
The 2013 logo of the Council of Europe has the colours:[Council of Europe's new visual identity- Guide]
Council of EUrope, 2013.
Adoption and usage
The twelve-star "flag of Europe" was designed in 1950 and officially adopted by the Council of Europe
The Council of Europe (CoE; french: Conseil de l'Europe, ) is an international organisation founded in the wake of World War II to uphold European Convention on Human Rights, human rights, democracy and the Law in Europe, rule of law in Europe. ...
in 1955. The same flag was adopted by the European Parliament
The European Parliament (EP) is one of the legislative bodies of the European Union and one of its seven institutions. Together with the Council of the European Union (known as the Council and informally as the Council of Ministers), it adopts ...
in 1983. The European Council
The European Council (informally EUCO) is a collegiate body that defines the overall political direction and priorities of the European Union. It is composed of the heads of state or government of the EU member states, the President of the E ...
adopted it as an "emblem" for the European Communities
The European Communities (EC) were three international organizations that were governed by the same set of institutions. These were the European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC), the European Atomic Energy Community (EAEC or Euratom), and the ...
in 1985. Its status in the European Communities was inherited by the European Union
The European Union (EU) is a supranational political and economic union of member states that are located primarily in Europe. The union has a total area of and an estimated total population of about 447million. The EU has often been des ...
upon its formation in 1993. The proposal to adopt it as official flag of the European Union failed with the ratification of the European Constitution
The Treaty establishing a Constitution for Europe (TCE; commonly referred to as the European Constitution or as the Constitutional Treaty) was an unratified international treaty intended to create a consolidated constitution for the European U ...
in 2005, and mention of all emblems suggesting statehood
A state is a centralized political organization that imposes and enforces rules over a population within a territory. There is no undisputed definition of a state. One widely used definition comes from the German sociologist Max Weber: a "sta ...
was removed from the Treaty of Lisbon
The Treaty of Lisbon (initially known as the Reform Treaty) is an international agreement that amends the two treaties which form the constitutional basis of the European Union (EU). The Treaty of Lisbon, which was signed by the EU member sta ...
of 2007, although sixteen member states signed a declaration supporting the continued use of the flag. In 2007, the European Parliament
The European Parliament (EP) is one of the legislative bodies of the European Union and one of its seven institutions. Together with the Council of the European Union (known as the Council and informally as the Council of Ministers), it adopts ...
officially adopted the flag for its own use.
1950–present: Council of Europe
The Council of Europe
The Council of Europe (CoE; french: Conseil de l'Europe, ) is an international organisation founded in the wake of World War II to uphold European Convention on Human Rights, human rights, democracy and the Law in Europe, rule of law in Europe. ...
in 1950 appointed a committee to study the question of adopting a symbol.
Numerous proposals were looked into.
Among the unsuccessful proposals was the flag of Richard von Coudenhove-Kalergi's International Paneuropean Union
The International Paneuropean Union, also referred to as the Pan-European Movement and the Pan-Europa Movement, is the oldest European unification movement.
It began with the publishing of Count Richard von Coudenhove-Kalergi's manifesto ''P ...
, which he had himself recently adopted for the European Parliamentary Union
The European Parliamentary Union (EPU) was a private organization set up by Richard von Coudenhove-Kalergi, who was also its Secretary General.
It held its preliminary conference on 4–5 July 1947 at Gstaad, Switzerland, and followed it with its ...
.
The design was a blue field with a red cross inside an orange circle at the centre.
Kalergi was very committed to defending the cross
A cross is a geometrical figure consisting of two intersecting lines or bars, usually perpendicular to each other. The lines usually run vertically and horizontally. A cross of oblique lines, in the shape of the Latin letter X, is termed a sa ...
as "the great symbol of Europe's moral unity", the Red Cross
The International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement is a Humanitarianism, humanitarian movement with approximately 97 million Volunteering, volunteers, members and staff worldwide. It was founded to protect human life and health, to ensure re ...
in particular being "recognized by the whole world, by Christian and non-Christian nations as a symbol of international charity and of the brotherhood of man", but the proposal was rejected by Turkey
Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a list of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolia, Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with ...
(a member of the Council of Europe since 1949) on grounds of its religious associations[Council of Europe](_blank)
fahnenversand.de in spite of Kalergi's suggestion of adding a crescent alongside the cross to overcome the Muslim objections.
Other proposals included the flag was the European Movement, which had a large green E on a white background,
a design was based on the Olympic rings, eight silver rings on a blue background, rejected due to the rings' similarity with "dial", "chain" and "zeros", or a large yellow star on a blue background, rejected due to its similarity with the so-called Burnet flag
The flag of Texas is the official flag of the U.S. state of Texas. It is well known for its prominent single white star which gives the flag its commonly-used name: "Lone Star Flag". This lone star, in turn, gives rise to the state's nickname: "T ...
and the flag of the Belgian Congo.
The Consultative Assembly narrowed their choice to two designs. One was by Salvador de Madariaga
Salvador de Madariaga y Rojo (23 July 1886 – 14 December 1978) was a Spanish diplomat, writer, historian, and pacifist. He was nominated for the Nobel Prize in Literature, and the Nobel Peace Prize. He was awarded the Charlemagne Prize in 197 ...
, the founder of the College of Europe, who suggested a constellation
A constellation is an area on the celestial sphere in which a group of visible stars forms Asterism (astronomy), a perceived pattern or outline, typically representing an animal, mythological subject, or inanimate object.
The origins of the e ...
of stars on a blue background (positioned according to capital cities, with a large star for Strasbourg
Strasbourg (, , ; german: Straßburg ; gsw, label=Bas Rhin Alsatian, Strossburi , gsw, label=Haut Rhin Alsatian, Strossburig ) is the prefecture and largest city of the Grand Est region of eastern France and the official seat of the Eu ...
, the seat of the council). He had circulated his flag round many European capitals and the concept had found favour.
The second was a variant by Arsène Heitz, who worked for the council's postal service and had submitted dozens of designs, one of which was accepted by the Assembly. The design was similar to Salvador de Madariaga's, but rather than a constellation, the stars were arranged in a circle. Arsène Heitz was one of several people who proposed a circle of gold stars on a blue background. None of his proposals perfectly match the design that was adopted. Paul Levy claims that he was the one who designed the template for the flag, not Arsène Heitz.
In 1987, Heitz would claim that his inspiration had been the crown of twelve stars of the Woman of the Apocalypse, often found in Marian iconography
Iconography, as a branch of art history, studies the identification, description and interpretation of the content of images: the subjects depicted, the particular compositions and details used to do so, and other elements that are distinct fro ...
(see below
Below may refer to:
*Earth
*Ground (disambiguation)
*Soil
*Floor
*Bottom (disambiguation)
Bottom may refer to:
Anatomy and sex
* Bottom (BDSM), the partner in a BDSM who takes the passive, receiving, or obedient role, to that of the top or ...
).
On 25 September 1953, the Consultative Assembly of the Council of Europe recommended that a blue flag with fifteen gold stars be adopted as an emblem for the organisation, the number fifteen reflecting the number of states of the Council of Europe. West Germany
West Germany is the colloquial term used to indicate the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG; german: Bundesrepublik Deutschland , BRD) between its formation on 23 May 1949 and the German reunification through the accession of East Germany on 3 O ...
objected to the fifteen-star design, as one of the members was Saar Protectorate, and to have its own star would imply sovereignty
Sovereignty is the defining authority within individual consciousness, social construct, or territory. Sovereignty entails hierarchy within the state, as well as external autonomy for states. In any state, sovereignty is assigned to the perso ...
for the region. The Committee of Ministers (the council's main decision making body) agreed with the Assembly that the flag should be a circle of stars, but opted for a fixed number of twelve stars, " representing perfection and entirety". The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe
The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) is the parliamentary arm of the Council of Europe, a 46-nation international organisation dedicated to upholding human rights, democracy and the rule of law.
The Assembly is made up o ...
on 25 October 1955 agreed to this. Paul M. G. Lévy
Paul Michel Gabriel, Baron Lévy (27 November 1910 – 16 August 2002) was a Belgian journalist and professor. He was born in Brussels and was a Holocaust survivor. He worked for many years as Director of Information at the Council of Europe ...
drew up the exact design of the new flag. Officially adopted on 8 December 1955, the flag was unveiled at the Château de la Muette
The Château de la Muette () is a château located on the edge of the Bois de Boulogne in Paris, France, near the Porte de la Muette.
Three châteaux have been located on the site since a hunting lodge was transformed into the first château for ...
in Paris on 13 December 1955.
File:Former Flag of the International Paneuropean Union.svg, Kalergi's Paneuropean Union proposal
File:Europe flag proposal 3.svg, "eight rings" proposal, redolent of the Western Union Standard
File:Europe flag proposal 4.svg, "single-star" proposal
File:Salvador de Madariaga Flag Proposal (01 December 1951).svg, Madariaga's "constellation" proposal
File:Council of Europe flag 1953.svg, Fifteen-star proposal adopted by the Consultative Assembly in 1953
For the flag of the Council of Europe, many stylistic proposals were made in regards to colours and symbolism. These first proposals were made 19 January 1950 by Paul Levy in a letter to the Secretary-General. He proposed that the flag should contain a cross for several reasons. Firstly, the cross symbolizes roads crossing, and also represents the east, the west, the north, and the south with its arms. Furthermore, the cross appears in most of the European Council members' flags, and it is the oldest and most noble symbol in Europe. Moreover, the cross depicted Christianity. As far as the colours are concerned, he proposed them to be white and green, colours of the European Movement, which was of great significance since 1947. Green also depicted hope, and the green cross over a white background was a design that had not been used yet. Finally, Levy proposed that the arms of Strasbourg was an important element to be added as it represented where the council would be, and being located in the heart of the cross meant that the council was the point where the European roads met.
Shortly after this design considerations by Paul Levy, on 27 July 1950, Richard Coudenhove-Kalergi, president of the Pan-European
Pan-European can refer to:
* Pan-European identity
* Pan-European corridors
** Pan-European Corridor X
** Pan-European Corridor Xa
* Pan European Game Information
* Pan-European Institute
* Pan-European nationalism
* Pan-European Oil Pipeline
...
movement wrote a memorandum which contained some rules that a flag for such union should follow. The rules he stated where:
* It should be a symbol of our common civilisation.
* It should present a European emblem.
* It should not provoke any national rivalry.
* It should represent tradition.
* It should be beautiful and dignified.
After these statements, Coudenhove-Kalergi proposed that the Pan-European movement flag would be the perfect one to fit these criteria
15 July 1951, the consultative assembly put forward a final memorandum on the European flag. The symbols proposed where the following
* A cross: Symbol of Christianity, Europe's crossroads, reminiscent of the crusades
The Crusades were a series of religious wars initiated, supported, and sometimes directed by the Latin Church in the medieval period. The best known of these Crusades are those to the Holy Land in the period between 1095 and 1291 that were i ...
, and present in half of the member state's flags.
* An "E": Used by the European Movement.
* A white star in a circle: Symbol used in 1944–45 by the armies of liberation.
* Multiple stars: Each star could represent a member. They could be green on a white background, white stars on a red background, or silver stars for associate members, and golden stars for full members.
* Strasbourg's Coat of Arms: To symbolize the official seat of the Council of Europe
The Council of Europe (CoE; french: Conseil de l'Europe, ) is an international organisation founded in the wake of World War II to uphold European Convention on Human Rights, human rights, democracy and the Law in Europe, rule of law in Europe. ...
.
* A sun: It would represent dawning hope.
* A triangle: It would represent culture.
Furthermore, several colours were also proposed:
* Multi-coloured: It was proposed that the flag could contain all the colours the flags of the member states had.
* Green and White: These were the colours of the European Movement.
* Sky Blue: Symbol of peace and neutrality, as other colours were already used for other movements such as black for mourning, red for bolshevism, or green for Islam.
In the end, the flag of Europe was chosen to have 12 five-pointed golden stars in a circle over a blue background, probably inspired by the Pan-European flag and other designs such as Salvador de Madriaga's and Arsène Heitz's proposals.
1983–present: From European Communities to European Union
Following Expo 58
Expo 58, also known as the 1958 Brussels World's Fair (french: Exposition Universelle et Internationale de Bruxelles de 1958, nl, Brusselse Wereldtentoonstelling van 1958), was a world's fair held on the Heysel/Heizel Plateau in Brussels, Bel ...
in Brussels, the flag caught on and the Council of Europe lobbied for other European organisations to adopt the flag as a sign of European unity.
The European Parliament took the initiative in seeking a flag to be adopted by the European Communities
The European Communities (EC) were three international organizations that were governed by the same set of institutions. These were the European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC), the European Atomic Energy Community (EAEC or Euratom), and the ...
. Shortly after the first direct elections in 1979 a draft resolution was put forward on the issue. The resolution proposed that the Communities' flag should be that of the Council of Europe and it was adopted by the Parliament on 11 April 1983.
The June 1984 European Council
The European Council (informally EUCO) is a collegiate body that defines the overall political direction and priorities of the European Union. It is composed of the heads of state or government of the EU member states, the President of the E ...
(the Communities' leaders) summit in Fontainebleau
Fontainebleau (; ) is a commune in the metropolitan area of Paris, France. It is located south-southeast of the centre of Paris. Fontainebleau is a sub-prefecture of the Seine-et-Marne department, and it is the seat of the ''arrondissement ...
stressed the importance of promoting a European image and identity to citizens and the world. The European Council appointed an ''ad hoc'' committee, named "Committee for 'a People's Europe'" (Adonnino Committee).
This committee submitted a substantial report, including wide-ranging suggestions, from organising a "European lottery" to campaigning for the introduction of local voting rights for foreign nationals throughout Europe.[Regarding The "Adonnino Report" – Report to the European Council by the ad hoc committee "On a People's Europe", A 10.04 COM 85, SN/2536/3/85]
Under the header of "strengthening of the Community's image and identity", the Committee suggested the introduction of "a flag and an emblem", recommending a design based on the Council of Europe flag, but with the addition of "a gold letter E" in the center of the circle of stars. The European Council held in Milan
Milan ( , , Lombard: ; it, Milano ) is a city in northern Italy, capital of Lombardy, and the second-most populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of about 1.4 million, while its metropolitan city h ...
on 28/29 June 1985 largely followed the recommendations of the Adonnino Committee. But as the adoption of a flag was strongly reminiscent of a national flag
A national flag is a flag that represents and symbolizes a given nation. It is flown by the government of that nation, but usually can also be flown by its citizens. A national flag is typically designed with specific meanings for its colours ...
representing statehood
A state is a centralized political organization that imposes and enforces rules over a population within a territory. There is no undisputed definition of a state. One widely used definition comes from the German sociologist Max Weber: a "sta ...
and was extremely controversial with some member states (in particular the United Kingdom, as the proposed flag closely resembled the Queen's personal standard), the Council of Europe's "flag of Europe" design was adopted, without the letter E, only with the official status of a "logo". This compromise was widely disregarded from the beginning, and the "European logo", in spite of the explicit language of giving it the status of a "logo", was referred to as the "Community flag" or even "European flag" from the outset.
The Communities began to use the "emblem" as its ''de facto'' flag from 1986, raising it outside the Berlaymont building
The Berlaymont () is an office building in Brussels, Belgium, which houses the headquarters of the European Commission, the executive branch of the European Union (EU). The structure is located on the Robert Schuman Roundabout at 200, rue de l ...
(the seat of the European Commission
The European Commission (EC) is the executive of the European Union (EU). It operates as a cabinet government, with 27 members of the Commission (informally known as "Commissioners") headed by a President. It includes an administrative body o ...
) for the first time on 29 May 1986.
The European Union, which was established by the Maastricht Treaty
The Treaty on European Union, commonly known as the Maastricht Treaty, is the foundation treaty of the European Union (EU). Concluded in 1992 between the then-twelve member states of the European Communities, it announced "a new stage in the ...
in 1992 to replace the European Communities and encompass its functions, has retained ''de facto'' use of the "Community logo" of the EC. Technically and officially, the "European flag" as used by the European Union remains not a "flag" but "a Community 'logo' — or 'emblem' — ..eligible to be reproduced on rectangular pieces of fabric".
In 1997, the "Central and Eastern Eurobarometer" poll included a section intending to "discover the level of public awareness of the European Union" in what were then candidate countries in Central and Eastern Europe. Interviewees were shown "a sticker of the European flag" and asked to identify it. Responses considered correct were: the European Union, the European Community, the Common Market, and "Europe in general". 52% of those interviewed gave one of the correct answers, 15% gave a wrong answer (naming another institution, such as NATO or the United Nations), and 35% could or would not identify it.
In 2002, Dutch architect Rem Koolhaas
Remment Lucas Koolhaas (; born 17 November 1944) is a Dutch architect, architectural theorist, urbanist and Professor in Practice of Architecture and Urban Design at the Graduate School of Design at Harvard University. He is often cited as a re ...
designed a symbol, dubbed the "barcode", which displayed the colours of the national flags of the EU member states in vertical stripes. It was reported as a replacement for the European flag, which was not the intention. It was not adopted by the EU or any other organisation at the time, but an updated version was used in the visual identity of the Austrian EU Presidency
The official title President of the European Union (or President of Europe) does not exist, but there are a number of presidents of European Union institutions, including:
* the President of the European Council (since 1 December 2019, Charle ...
in 2006.
The official status of the emblem as the flag of the European Union was to be formalised as part of the Treaty establishing a Constitution for Europe
The Treaty establishing a Constitution for Europe (TCE; commonly referred to as the European Constitution or as the Constitutional Treaty) was an unratified international treaty intended to create a consolidated constitution for the European U ...
. However, as the proposed treaty failed ratification, the mention of all state-like emblems, including the flag, were not included in the replacement Treaty of Lisbon
The Treaty of Lisbon (initially known as the Reform Treaty) is an international agreement that amends the two treaties which form the constitutional basis of the European Union (EU). The Treaty of Lisbon, which was signed by the EU member sta ...
, which entered into force in 2009.
Instead, a separate declaration by sixteen Member States was included in the final act of the Treaty of Lisbon stating that the flag, the anthem, the motto and the currency and Europe Day "will for them continue as symbols to express the sense of community of the people in the European Union and their allegiance to it."["Belgium, Bulgaria, Germany, Greece, Spain, Italy, Cyprus, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Hungary, Malta, Austria, Portugal, Romania, Slovenia and the Slovak Republic declare that the flag with a circle of twelve golden stars on a blue background, the anthem based on the 'Ode to Joy' from the Ninth Symphony by Ludwig van Beethoven, the motto 'United in diversity', the euro as the currency of the European Union and Europe Day on 9 May will for them continue as symbols to express the sense of community of the people in the European Union and their allegiance to it." Final Act]
Official Journal of the European Union, 2007 C 306–2, p. 267
/ref>
In reaction to the removal of the flag from the treaty, the European Parliament, which had supported the inclusion of such symbols, backed a proposal to use these symbols "more often" on behalf of the Parliament itself; Jo Leinen
Jo, jo, JO, or J.O. may refer to:
Arts and entertainment
* ''Jo'' (film), a 1972 French comedy
* ''Jo'' (TV series), a French TV series
*"Jo", a song by Goldfrapp from ''Tales of Us''
*"Jo", a song by Mr. Oizo from ''Lambs Anger''
* Jo a fictio ...
, MEP for Germany, suggested that the Parliament should take "an ''avant-garde
The avant-garde (; In 'advance guard' or ' vanguard', literally 'fore-guard') is a person or work that is experimental, radical, or unorthodox with respect to art, culture, or society.John Picchione, The New Avant-garde in Italy: Theoretical ...
'' role" in their use.
In September 2008, the Parliament's Committee on Constitutional Affairs proposed a formal change in the institution's rules of procedure to make "better use of the symbols". Specifically, the flag would be present in all meeting rooms (not just the hemicycle) and at all official events. The proposal was passed on 8 October 2008 by 503 votes to 96 (15 abstentions).
In 2015, a set of commemorative Euro coins was issued on the occasion of the 30th anniversary of the adoption of the emblem by the European Communities.
In April 2004, the European flag was flown on behalf of the European Space Agency, by Dutch astronaut André Kuipers
André Kuipers (; born 5 October 1958) is a Dutch physician and ESA astronaut. He became the second Dutch citizen, third Dutch-born and fifth Dutch-speaking astronaut upon launch of Soyuz TMA-4 on 19 April 2004. Kuipers returned to Earth abo ...
while on board the International Space Station
The International Space Station (ISS) is the largest modular space station currently in low Earth orbit. It is a multinational collaborative project involving five participating space agencies: NASA (United States), Roscosmos (Russia), JAXA ...
, in reference to the Framework Agreement establishing the legal basis for co-operation between the European Space Agency
, owners =
, headquarters = Paris, Île-de-France, France
, coordinates =
, spaceport = Guiana Space Centre
, seal = File:ESA emblem seal.png
, seal_size = 130px
, image = Views in the Main Control Room (1205 ...
and the European Union.
Following the 2004 Summer Olympics
The 2004 Summer Olympics ( el, Θερινοί Ολυμπιακοί Αγώνες 2004, ), officially the Games of the XXVIII Olympiad ( el, Αγώνες της 28ης Ολυμπιάδας, ) and also known as Athens 2004 ( el, Αθήνα 2004), ...
, President Romano Prodi
Romano Antonio Prodi (; born 9 August 1939) is an Italian politician, economist, academic, senior civil servant, and business executive who served as the tenth president of the European Commission from 1999 to 2004. He served twice as Prim ...
expressed his hope "to see the EU Member State teams in Beijing ">iz., the 2008 games carry the flag of the European Union alongside their own national flag as a symbol of our unity".
Use of the flag has also been reported as representing the European team at the Ryder Cup
The Ryder Cup is a biennial men's golf competition between teams from Europe and the United States. The competition is contested every two years with the venue alternating between courses in the United States and Europe. The Ryder Cup is named af ...
golf competition in the early 2000s, although most European participants preferred to use their own national flags.
The flag has been widely used by advocates of European integration
European integration is the process of industrial, economic integration, economic, political, legal, social integration, social, and cultural Regional integration, integration of states wholly or partially in Europe or nearby. European integrat ...
since the late 1990s or early 2000s. It is often displayed in the context of Europe Day
Europe Day is a day celebrating "peace and unity in Europe" celebrated on 5 May by the Council of Europe and on 9 May by the European Union.
The first recognition of Europe Day was by the Council of Europe, introduced in 1964. The European Un ...
, on 9 May.
Outside the EU, it was used in the context of several of the "colour revolutions
Colour revolution (sometimes coloured revolution) is a term used since around 2004 by worldwide media to describe various anti-regime protest movements and accompanying (attempted or successful) changes of government that took place in post ...
" during the 2000s. In Belarus
Belarus,, , ; alternatively and formerly known as Byelorussia (from Russian ). officially the Republic of Belarus,; rus, Республика Беларусь, Respublika Belarus. is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe. It is bordered by R ...
, it was used on protest marches alongside the banned former national flag and flags of opposition movements during the protests of 2004–2006. The flag was used widely in a 2007 pro-EU march in Minsk
Minsk ( be, Мінск ; russian: Минск) is the capital and the largest city of Belarus, located on the Svislach and the now subterranean Niamiha rivers. As the capital, Minsk has a special administrative status in Belarus and is the admi ...
. Similar uses were reported from Moldova
Moldova ( , ; ), officially the Republic of Moldova ( ro, Republica Moldova), is a Landlocked country, landlocked country in Eastern Europe. It is bordered by Romania to the west and Ukraine to the north, east, and south. The List of states ...
.
In Georgia, the flag has been on most government buildings since the coming to power of Mikheil Saakashvili
Mikheil Saakashvili ( ka, მიხეილ სააკაშვილი ; uk, Міхеіл Саакашвілі ; born 21 December 1967) is a Georgian and Ukrainian politician and jurist. (2007), who used it during his inauguration, stating: " he Europeanflag is Georgia's flag as well, as far as it embodies our civilisation, our culture, the essence of our history and perspective, and our vision for the future of Georgia."
It was used in 2008 by pro-western Serbian voters ahead of an election.
The flag became a symbol of European integration
European integration is the process of industrial, economic integration, economic, political, legal, social integration, social, and cultural Regional integration, integration of states wholly or partially in Europe or nearby. European integrat ...
of Ukraine
Ukraine ( uk, Україна, Ukraïna, ) is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the second-largest European country after Russia, which it borders to the east and northeast. Ukraine covers approximately . Prior to the ongoing Russian inv ...
in the 2010s, particularly after Euromaidan
Euromaidan (; uk, Євромайдан, translit=Yevromaidan, lit=Euro Square, ), or the Maidan Uprising, was a wave of Political demonstration, demonstrations and civil unrest in Ukraine, which began on 21 November 2013 with large protes ...
. Ukraine is not a part of the EU but is a member of the Council of Europe. The flag is used by the Cabinet of Ukraine
The Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine ( uk, Кабінет Міністрів України, translit=Kabinet Ministriv Ukrainy; shortened to CabMin), commonly referred to as the Government of Ukraine ( uk, Уряд України, ''Uriad Ukrai ...
, Prime Minister of Ukraine, and MFA UA during official meetings. It was flown during the 2013 Euromaidan
Euromaidan (; uk, Євромайдан, translit=Yevromaidan, lit=Euro Square, ), or the Maidan Uprising, was a wave of Political demonstration, demonstrations and civil unrest in Ukraine, which began on 21 November 2013 with large protes ...
protests in Ukraine,
and in 2016 by the pro-EU faction in the EU membership referendum campaigns in the United Kingdom.
The flag has also been adopted as a symbol for EU policies and expansionism by EU-sceptic
Euroscepticism, also spelled as Euroskepticism or EU-scepticism, is a political position involving criticism of the European Union (EU) and European integration. It ranges from those who oppose some EU institutions and policies, and seek reform ...
s.
In an early instance, Macedonian protesters burned "the flag of the EU" in the context of EU involvement in the 2001 insurgency in the Republic of Macedonia
The 2001 insurgency in Macedonia was an armed conflict which began when the ethnic Albanian National Liberation Army (NLA) militant group, formed from veterans of the Kosovo War and Insurgency in the Preševo Valley, attacked Macedonian se ...
.
In the 2005 Islamic protests
against the ''Jyllands-Posten Muhammad'' cartoons, the Danish flag
The national flag of Denmark ( da, Dannebrog, ) is red with a white Nordic cross, which means that the cross extends to the edges of the flag and the vertical part of the cross is shifted to the hoist side.
A banner with a white-on-red cross i ...
was most frequently burned, but (as the cartoons were reprinted in many European countries), some protesters opted for burning "the EU flag" instead.
Protesters during the Greek government-debt crisis of 2012 "burned the EU flag and shouted 'EU out' ".
Burning of the EU flag has been reported from other anti-EU rallies since.
By the 2010s, the association of the emblem with the EU had become so strong that the Council of Europe saw it necessary to design a new logo, to "avoid confusion", officially adopted in 2013.
The EU emblem ("EU flag") is depicted on the euro banknotes
Banknotes of the euro, the common currency of the Eurozone (euro area members), have been in circulation since the first series (also called ''ES1'') was issued in 2002. They are issued by the national central banks of the Eurosystem or the Eur ...
. Euro coins
There are eight euro coin denominations, ranging from one cent to two euros (the euro is divided into a hundred cents). The coins first came into use in 2002. They have a common reverse, portraying a map of Europe, but each country in the eurozone ...
also display a circle of twelve stars on both the national and common sides.
It is also depicted on many driving licences
A driver's license is a legal authorization, or the official document confirming such an authorization, for a specific individual to operate one or more types of motorized vehicles—such as motorcycles, cars, trucks, or buses—on a public ...
and vehicle registration plates issued in the Union. Diplomatic missions of EU member states fly the EU flag alongside their national flag. In October 2000, the then-new British Embassy in Berlin
The British Embassy in Berlin (german: Britische Botschaft, Berlin) is the United Kingdom's diplomatic mission to Germany. It is located on 70-71 Wilhelmstraße, near the Hotel Adlon, in Berlin. The current ambassador is Jill Gallard.
Palais Str ...
sparked controversy between the UK and Germany and the EU when the embassy did not have a second external flagpole for the EU flag. After diplomatic negotiations, it was agreed that the outside flagpole would have the diplomatic Union Flag while inside the embassy, the EU flag would accompany the UK flag. Some member states' national airline
A flag carrier is a transport company, such as an airline or shipping company, that, being locally registered in a given sovereign state, enjoys preferential rights or privileges accorded by the government for international operations.
Hist ...
s such as Lufthansa
Deutsche Lufthansa AG (), commonly shortened to Lufthansa, is the flag carrier of Germany. When combined with its subsidiaries, it is the second- largest airline in Europe in terms of passengers carried. Lufthansa is one of the five founding m ...
have the EU flag alongside their national flags on aircraft as part of their aircraft registration codes, but this is not an EU-mandated directive.
A number of logos used by EU institutions, bodies and agencies are derived from the design and colours of the EU emblem.
Other emblems make reference to the European flag, such as the EU organic food label that uses the twelve stars but reorders them into the shape of a leaf on a green background. The original logo of the European Broadcasting Union
The European Broadcasting Union (EBU; french: Union européenne de radio-télévision, links=no, UER) is an alliance of Public broadcasting, public service media organisations whose countries are within the European Broadcasting Area or who ar ...
used the twelve stars on a blue background adding ray beams to connect the countries.
There was a proposal in 2003 to deface national civil ensigns with the EU emblem. The proposal was rejected by Parliament in 2004.
The flag is usually flown by the government of the country holding the rotating presidency Council of Ministers
A council is a group of people who come together to consult, deliberate, or make decisions. A council may function as a legislature, especially at a town, city or county/shire level, but most legislative bodies at the state/provincial or natio ...
.
In 2009, Czech President Václav Klaus
Václav Klaus (; born 19 June 1941) is a Czech economist and politician who served as the second president of the Czech Republic from 2003 to 2013. From July 1992 until the dissolution of Czechoslovakia in January 1993, he served as the secon ...
, a eurosceptic
Euroscepticism, also spelled as Euroskepticism or EU-scepticism, is a political position involving criticism of the European Union (EU) and European integration. It ranges from those who oppose some EU institutions and policies, and seek reform ...
, refused to fly the flag from his castle. In response, Greenpeace
Greenpeace is an independent global campaigning network, founded in Canada in 1971 by Irving Stowe and Dorothy Stowe, immigrant environmental activists from the United States. Greenpeace states its goal is to "ensure the ability of the Earth t ...
projected an image of the flag onto the castle and attempted to fly the flag from the building themselves.
Extraordinary flying of the flag is common on Europe Day
Europe Day is a day celebrating "peace and unity in Europe" celebrated on 5 May by the Council of Europe and on 9 May by the European Union.
The first recognition of Europe Day was by the Council of Europe, introduced in 1964. The European Un ...
, celebrated annually on 9 May.[ On Europe Day 2008, the flag was flown for the first time above the German Reichstag.][
The flag has also been displayed in the context of EU military operations ( EUFOR Althea).
File:KOD demonstration, Warsaw May 7 2016 21.jpg, A KOD demonstration in ]Warsaw
Warsaw ( pl, Warszawa, ), officially the Capital City of Warsaw,, abbreviation: ''m.st. Warszawa'' is the capital and largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the River Vistula in east-central Poland, and its population is officia ...
, Poland
Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populous ...
against the ruling Law and Justice
Law and Justice ( pl, Prawo i Sprawiedliwość , PiS) is a right-wing populist and national-conservative political party in Poland. Its chairman is Jarosław Kaczyński.
It was founded in 2001 by Jarosław and Lech Kaczyński as a direct su ...
party, on 7 May 2016
File:Euromaidan Kyiv 1-12-13 by Gnatoush 005.jpg, Ukrainian and EU flags at Euromaidan
Euromaidan (; uk, Євромайдан, translit=Yevromaidan, lit=Euro Square, ), or the Maidan Uprising, was a wave of Political demonstration, demonstrations and civil unrest in Ukraine, which began on 21 November 2013 with large protes ...
, December 2013
File:Pride in London 2016 - A man in a kilt with the European flag during the parade.png, European flag upside down at the Pride in London
Pride in London is an annual LGBT pride festival and parade held each summer in London, England. The event, which was formerly run by Pride London, is sometimes referred to as London Pride.
Pride in London celebrates the diversity of the LGBTQ ...
parade, just after the Brexit referendum
The United Kingdom European Union membership referendum, commonly referred to as the EU referendum or the Brexit referendum, took place on 23 June 2016 in the United Kingdom (UK) and Gibraltar to ask the electorate whether the country shoul ...
in June 2016
File:The Europa series 100 € obverse side.jpg, Flag of the EU in the top left corner of a 100 euro banknote (second series)
File:Logo European Central Bank.svg, European Central Bank
The European Central Bank (ECB) is the prime component of the monetary Eurosystem and the European System of Central Banks (ESCB) as well as one of seven institutions of the European Union. It is one of the world's Big Four (banking)#Intern ...
logo
File:Saksen-Anhalt license plate 02.JPG, The EU uses the emblem in a number of ways, here on vehicle registration plates. The "D" in this photo indicates Germany (Deutschland).
File:Mrs. Laura Bush and daughter, Barbara Bush, are greeted by Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi.jpg, In Italy the European Flag must be displayed alongside the national flag in official ceremonies and over public buildings.
File:Flickr - Πρωθυπουργός της Ελλάδας - Angela Merkel - Αντώνης Σαμαράς (9).jpg, Order of precedence at the state visit of Greek prime minister Antonis Samaras in Berlin (24 August 2012): The Greek flag takes the first order of precedence, followed by the German flag on the right (seen on the left when facing the building
A building, or edifice, is an enclosed structure with a roof and walls standing more or less permanently in one place, such as a house or factory (although there's also portable buildings). Buildings come in a variety of sizes, shapes, and fun ...
) and the European flag in third order, on the left.
File:BadElster Grenze4383.JPG, German border sign
Sixteen out of twenty-seven member states in 2007 signed the declaration recognising "the flag with a circle of twelve golden stars on a blue background" as representing "the sense of community of the people in the European Union and their allegiance to it."
In 2017, president of France Emmanuel Macron
Emmanuel Macron (; born 21 December 1977) is a French politician who has served as President of France since 2017. ''Ex officio'', he is also one of the two Co-Princes of Andorra. Prior to his presidency, Macron served as Minister of Econ ...
signed a declaration endorsing the 2007 statement,
so that, as of 2018, 17 out of 27 member states have recognised the emblem as a flag representing "allegiance to the EU":
Austria
Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...
, Belgium
Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...
, Bulgaria
Bulgaria (; bg, България, Bǎlgariya), officially the Republic of Bulgaria,, ) is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern flank of the Balkans, and is bordered by Romania to the north, Serbia and North Macedon ...
, Cyprus
Cyprus ; tr, Kıbrıs (), officially the Republic of Cyprus,, , lit: Republic of Cyprus is an island country located south of the Anatolian Peninsula in the eastern Mediterranean Sea. Its continental position is disputed; while it is geo ...
, France, Germany, Greece
Greece,, or , romanized: ', officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the southern tip of the Balkans, and is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Greece shares land borders with ...
, Hungary
Hungary ( hu, Magyarország ) is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning of the Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Croatia a ...
, Italy, Lithuania
Lithuania (; lt, Lietuva ), officially the Republic of Lithuania ( lt, Lietuvos Respublika, links=no ), is a country in the Baltic region of Europe. It is one of three Baltic states and lies on the eastern shore of the Baltic Sea. Lithuania ...
, Luxembourg
Luxembourg ( ; lb, Lëtzebuerg ; french: link=no, Luxembourg; german: link=no, Luxemburg), officially the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, ; french: link=no, Grand-Duché de Luxembourg ; german: link=no, Großherzogtum Luxemburg is a small lan ...
, Malta
Malta ( , , ), officially the Republic of Malta ( mt, Repubblika ta' Malta ), is an island country in the Mediterranean Sea. It consists of an archipelago, between Italy and Libya, and is often considered a part of Southern Europe. It lies ...
, Portugal
Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic ( pt, República Portuguesa, links=yes ), is a country whose mainland is located on the Iberian Peninsula of Southwestern Europe, and whose territory also includes the Atlantic archipelagos of ...
, Romania
Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern, and Southeast Europe, Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine to the north, Hungary to the west, S ...
, Slovakia
Slovakia (; sk, Slovensko ), officially the Slovak Republic ( sk, Slovenská republika, links=no ), is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east, Hungary to the south, Austria to the s ...
, Slovenia
Slovenia ( ; sl, Slovenija ), officially the Republic of Slovenia (Slovene: , abbr.: ''RS''), is a country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the west, Austria to the north, Hungary to the northeast, Croatia to the southeast, an ...
and Spain.
Italy has incorporated the EU flag into its flag code. According to an Italian law passed in 2000, it is mandatory for most public offices and buildings to hoist the European Flag alongside the Italian national flag (Law 22/1998 and Presidential Decree 121/2000). Outside official use, the flag may not be used for "aims incompatible with European values
European values are the norms and values that Europeans are said to have in common, and which transcend national or state identity. In addition to helping promote European integration, this doctrine also provides the basis for analyses that charac ...
".
The 2000 Italian flag code expressly replaces the Italian flag with the European flag in precedence when dignitaries from other EU countries visit – for example the EU flag would be in the middle of a group of three flags rather than the Italian flag.[The Rules of Protocol regarding national holidays and the use of the Italian flag]
(2001) Presidency of the Council of Ministers, Department of Protocol (2001). LAW No. 22 of 5 February 1998: "GENERAL RULES GOVERNING THE USE OF THE FLAGS OF THE ITALIAN REPUBLIC AND THE EUROPEAN UNION". In Germany, the federal flag code of 1996 is only concerned with the German flag, but some of the states have legislated additional provisions for the European flag, such as Bavaria
Bavaria ( ; ), officially the Free State of Bavaria (german: Freistaat Bayern, link=no ), is a state in the south-east of Germany. With an area of , Bavaria is the largest German state by land area, comprising roughly a fifth of the total lan ...
in its flag regulation of 2001, which mandates that the European flag take the third order of precedence, after the federal and state flags, except on Europe Day
Europe Day is a day celebrating "peace and unity in Europe" celebrated on 5 May by the Council of Europe and on 9 May by the European Union.
The first recognition of Europe Day was by the Council of Europe, introduced in 1964. The European Un ...
, where it is to take the first order of precedence.
In Ireland
on occasions of "European Union Events" (for example, at a European Council
The European Council (informally EUCO) is a collegiate body that defines the overall political direction and priorities of the European Union. It is composed of the heads of state or government of the EU member states, the President of the E ...
meeting), where the European flag is flown alongside all national flags of member states, the national flags are placed in alphabetical order (according to their name in the main language
Language is a structured system of communication. The structure of a language is its grammar and the free components are its vocabulary. Languages are the primary means by which humans communicate, and may be conveyed through a variety of met ...
of that state) with the European flag either at the head, or the far-right, of the order of flags.
In most member states, use of the EU flag is only ''de facto'' and not regulated by legislation, and as such subject to ''ad hoc'' revision. In national usage, national protocol usually demands the national flag takes precedence over the European flag (which is usually displayed to the right of the national flag from the observer's perspective). In November 2014, the speaker of the Hungarian Parliament László Kövér ordered the removal of the EU flag from the parliament building, following an incident in which a member of parliament had "defenestrated" two EU flags from a fourth story window. In November 2015, the newly elected Polish government under Beata Szydło removed the EU flag from government press conferences.
Derivative designs
The design of the European flag has been used in a variation, such as that of the Council of Europe mentioned above, and also to a greater extent such as the flag of the Western European Union
The flag of the Western European Union (WEU) was dark blue with a semicircle of ten yellow five pointed stars, broken at the top, with the organisation's initials in the centre. Although it is the flag of a military organisation, it has rarely bee ...
(WEU; now defunct), which uses the same colours and the stars but has a number of stars based on membership and in a semicircle rather than a circle. It is also defaced with the initials of the former Western European Union in two languages.
The European Parliament
The European Parliament (EP) is one of the legislative bodies of the European Union and one of its seven institutions. Together with the Council of the European Union (known as the Council and informally as the Council of Ministers), it adopts ...
used its own flag from 1973, but never formally adopted it. It fell out of use with the adoption of the twelve-star flag by the Parliament in 1983. The flag followed the yellow and blue colour scheme however instead of twelve stars there were the letters EP and PE (initials of the European Parliament in the six community languages at the time) surrounded by a wreath. Sometime later, the Parliament chose to use a logo consisting of a stylised hemicycle
In legislatures, a hemicycle is a semicircular, or horseshoe-shaped, debating chamber (''plenary chamber''), where deputies (members) sit to discuss and pass legislation. Although originally of Ancient Greek roots, the term and modern design de ...
and the EU flag at the bottom right.
The flag of Bosnia and Herzegovina, imposed by High Representative Carlos Westendorp
Carlos Westendorp y Cabeza (born 7 January 1937) is a Spanish diplomat and former politician. He is the former Minister of Foreign Affairs and also served as High Representative for Bosnia and Herzegovina succeeding Carl Bildt and was powered wit ...
, after the country's parliament failed to agree on a design, is reminiscent of the symbolism of the EU flag, using the same blue and yellow colours, and the stars, although of a different number and colour, are a direct reference to those of the European flag.[
]
Likewise, Kosovo
Kosovo ( sq, Kosova or ; sr-Cyrl, Косово ), officially the Republic of Kosovo ( sq, Republika e Kosovës, links=no; sr, Република Косово, Republika Kosovo, links=no), is a partially recognised state in Southeast Euro ...
uses blue, yellow and stars in its flag, which has been mocked as a "none too subtle nod to the flag of the European Union, which is about to become Kosovo's new best friend as it takes over protector status from the United Nations".
The flag of the Brussels-Capital Region
The Flag of the Brussels-Capital Region consists of a stylized yellow, grey and white iris on a blue background. Note that this is the flag of the whole Brussels Region, and the City of Brussels municipality has a different flag.
The first flag w ...
(introduced in 2016) consists of a yellow iris with a white outline upon a blue background. Its colours are based on the colours of the Flag of Europe, because Brussels is considered the unofficial capital of the EU.
File:Flag of the Brussels-Capital Region.svg, The blue and yellow colours of the Brussels flag are those of the European Union
The European Union (EU) is a supranational political and economic union of member states that are located primarily in Europe. The union has a total area of and an estimated total population of about 447million. The EU has often been des ...
, of which Brussels is the ''de facto'' capital city.
File:Flag of Bosnia and Herzegovina.svg, The flag of Bosnia and Herzegovina
Bosnia and Herzegovina ( sh, / , ), abbreviated BiH () or B&H, sometimes called Bosnia–Herzegovina and often known informally as Bosnia, is a country at the crossroads of south and southeast Europe, located in the Balkans. Bosnia and H ...
was partly based on the European flag
File:Flag of the European Coal and Steel Community 6 Star Version.svg, Flag of the European Coal and Steel Community
The flag of the European Coal and Steel Community was a horizontal bicolour flag defaced with stars which represented the European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC) between 1958 (six years after the ECSC was founded) until 2002 when the Community wa ...
(1958–1972)
File:Flag of the European Coal and Steel Community 9 Star Version.svg, Flag of the European Coal and Steel Community
The flag of the European Coal and Steel Community was a horizontal bicolour flag defaced with stars which represented the European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC) between 1958 (six years after the ECSC was founded) until 2002 when the Community wa ...
(1973–1980)
File:Flag of the European Coal and Steel Community 10 Star Version.svg, Flag of the European Coal and Steel Community
The flag of the European Coal and Steel Community was a horizontal bicolour flag defaced with stars which represented the European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC) between 1958 (six years after the ECSC was founded) until 2002 when the Community wa ...
(1981–1985)
File:Flag of the European Coal and Steel Community 12 Star Version.svg, Flag of the European Coal and Steel Community
The flag of the European Coal and Steel Community was a horizontal bicolour flag defaced with stars which represented the European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC) between 1958 (six years after the ECSC was founded) until 2002 when the Community wa ...
(1986–2002)
File:Flag of Kosovo.svg, The flag of Kosovo was partly based on the European flag
File:Flag of the Western European Union (1993-1995).svg, Flag of the Western European Union
The flag of the Western European Union (WEU) was dark blue with a semicircle of ten yellow five pointed stars, broken at the top, with the organisation's initials in the centre. Although it is the flag of a military organisation, it has rarely bee ...
(1993–1995)
File:Flag of the Western European Union.svg, Flag of the Western European Union
The flag of the Western European Union (WEU) was dark blue with a semicircle of ten yellow five pointed stars, broken at the top, with the organisation's initials in the centre. Although it is the flag of a military organisation, it has rarely bee ...
(1995–2011)
File:Flag of the Assembly of the Western European Union.svg, Flag of the Assembly of the Western European Union
File:Flag of the European Parliament (1973-1983).svg, Flag of the European Parliament (1973–1983)
File:Organic-Logo.svg, EU emblem for certification
Certification is the provision by an independent body of written assurance (a certificate) that the product, service or system in question meets specific requirements. It is the formal attestation or confirmation of certain characteristics of a ...
of organic agricultural products
Heraldry
The coat of arms
A coat of arms is a heraldry, heraldic communication design, visual design on an escutcheon (heraldry), escutcheon (i.e., shield), surcoat, or tabard (the latter two being outer garments). The coat of arms on an escutcheon forms the central ele ...
of the Chairman of the European Union Military Committee
The Chairman of the European Union Military Committee (CEUMC) is the four-star rank officer representing and presiding over the European Union's (EU) Military Committee (EUMC), composed of the chiefs of defence (CHODs) of the EU member states. ...
(CEUMC), the highest-ranking officer within the EU's Common Security and Defence Policy
The Common Security and Defence Policy (CSDP) is the European Union's (EU) course of action in the fields of defence and crisis management, and a main component of the EU's Common Foreign and Security Policy (CFSP).
The CSDP involves the deplo ...
(CSDP), depicts the European emblem as a coat of arms, i.e. emblazoned on an escutcheon
Escutcheon may refer to:
* Escutcheon (heraldry), a shield or shield-shaped emblem, displaying a coat of arms
* Escutcheon (furniture), a metal plate that surrounds a keyhole or lock cylinder on a door
* (in medicine) the distribution of pubic ha ...
. In heraldic terms, this makes the European flag is the banner of arms
A banner of arms is a type of heraldic flag which has the same image as a coat of arms, ''i.e.'' the shield of a full achievement (heraldry), heraldic achievement, rendered in a square or rectangular shape of the flag.
The term is derived from t ...
, i.e. the flag form of this coat of arms. In English blazon
In heraldry and heraldic vexillology, a blazon is a formal description of a coat of arms, flag or similar emblem, from which the reader can reconstruct the appropriate image. The verb ''to blazon'' means to create such a description. The vis ...
, the arms is ''On an azure field a circle of 12 golden mullets, their points not touching''.
Several EU publications related to the CSDP generally, and its prospective development as a defence arm, have also displayed the European emblem in this manner, albeit as a graphical design element rather than an official symbol.
File:Informal meeting of defence ministers (FAC). Arrivals Michail Kostarakos (36892148436).jpg, Chairman Michail Kostarakos
General Michail Kostarakos ( el, Μιχαήλ Κωσταράκος, February 1956 – 2 June 2023) was a Hellenic Army officer who served as Chief of the Hellenic National Defence General Staff in 2011–2015 and as Chairman of the European Unio ...
wearing the heraldic badge
File:Coat of arms of Europe.svg, Heraldic badge
File:EUBAM logo.svg, Moldovan and Ukrainian flags displayed as supporter
In heraldry, supporters, sometimes referred to as ''attendants'', are figures or objects usually placed on either side of the shield and depicted holding it up.
Early forms of supporters are found in medieval seals. However, unlike the coro ...
s, symbolising the EU's border assistance mission since 2005
File:EU Roma Musei Capitolini close-up crop.jpg, The European emblem emblazoned on a chair at the occasion of the 2004 signing of the European Constitution
The Treaty establishing a Constitution for Europe (TCE; commonly referred to as the European Constitution or as the Constitutional Treaty) was an unratified international treaty intended to create a consolidated constitution for the European U ...
in Rome
File:Blue Eiffel Tower 00003 (2744637971).jpg, The European emblem emblazoned on the Eiffel Tower
The Eiffel Tower ( ; french: links=yes, tour Eiffel ) is a wrought-iron lattice tower on the Champ de Mars in Paris, France. It is named after the engineer Gustave Eiffel, whose company designed and built the tower.
Locally nicknamed "'' ...
in 2008
File:European Court of Human Rights, courtroom, 2014 (cropped).JPG, The European emblem emblazoned on the carpet in the European Court of Human Rights
The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR or ECtHR), also known as the Strasbourg Court, is an international court of the Council of Europe which interprets the European Convention on Human Rights. The court hears applications alleging that a ...
Incorrect versions
File:European flag, upside down.svg, The stars are upside down.
File:European flag, incorrect star rotation.svg, The stars point outwards instead of in one direction.
File:European flag, incorrect star positions.svg, The stars should be arranged like a face of a clock
A clock or a timepiece is a device used to measure and indicate time. The clock is one of the oldest human inventions, meeting the need to measure intervals of time shorter than the natural units such as the day, the lunar month and the ...
, which is not the case in this flag.
File:Flag of Europe.svg, Correct flag.
See also
* Symbols of Europe#Flag
* Symbols of the European Union
The European Union (EU) uses a number of symbols, including the Flag of Europe, Anthem of Europe, Motto of the European Union and Europe Day.
These symbols have no official status based in the EU treaties, but they are in ''de facto'' use by t ...
* Mariolatry
Protestant views on Mary include the theological positions of major Protestant representatives such as Martin Luther and John Calvin as well as some modern representatives. While it is difficult to generalize about the place of Mary, mother of Je ...
* Novalis
Georg Philipp Friedrich Freiherr von Hardenberg (2 May 1772 – 25 March 1801), pen name Novalis (), was a German polymath who was a writer, philosopher, poet, aristocrat and mystic. He is regarded as an idiosyncratic and influential figure of ...
– ''Christendom or Europa'' (german: link=no, Die Christenheit oder Europa)
* European Fisheries Control Agency#Pennant
; Flags of the European Union's precursors
* Flag of the Western Union
* Flag of the Western European Union
The flag of the Western European Union (WEU) was dark blue with a semicircle of ten yellow five pointed stars, broken at the top, with the organisation's initials in the centre. Although it is the flag of a military organisation, it has rarely bee ...
* Flag of the European Coal and Steel Community
The flag of the European Coal and Steel Community was a horizontal bicolour flag defaced with stars which represented the European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC) between 1958 (six years after the ECSC was founded) until 2002 when the Community wa ...
; Flags of other European unification movements
* Flag of the Paneuropean Union (adopted 1922)
* Hertensteiner Cross
The Hertensteiner Cross (Hertensteiner Kreuz) was used as a flag by the federalist movements from 14 to 24 September 1946 in Hertenstein, Switzerland.
The symbol was designed by the Sculptor Hedwig Frei, and was the first sign used when the Swiss ...
of the federalist movements (used in 1946)
* Federalist flag
The federalist flag, also known as the Flag of the European Movement, is a flag commonly used by groups or individuals promoting European federalism, consisting of a large green "E" upon a white field. It was designed as the flag of the European Mo ...
of the European Movement (adopted 1948)
; Other continental flags
* Flag of the African Union
The current flag of the African Union was adopted at its 14th Ordinary Session of the Assembly of Heads of State and Government, which took place in Addis Ababa on 31 January 2010.
History
During the 8th African Union Summit which took place in ...
* Flag of the Eurasian Economic Union
Notes
References
External links
Council of Europe on the flag
*
Council of Europe historical files on the flag
The symbols of the European Union: The flag of the Council Europe
Virtual Centre for Knowledge on Europe
*
Memorandum on design and designer of European flag
{{DEFAULTSORT:Europe
Flag
A flag is a piece of fabric (most often rectangular or quadrilateral) with a distinctive design and colours. It is used as a symbol, a signalling device, or for decoration. The term ''flag'' is also used to refer to the graphic design empl ...
Flags introduced in 1955
Flags of Europe
Flags of international organizations
Flag
A flag is a piece of fabric (most often rectangular or quadrilateral) with a distinctive design and colours. It is used as a symbol, a signalling device, or for decoration. The term ''flag'' is also used to refer to the graphic design empl ...