The civil flag of Hesse, Germany consists of a bicolor of a red top and a bottom white stripe, in the proportion 3:5. The state flag is similar, except it is emblazoned with the state coat of arms in the centre, and may only be used by government departments and services. The colours red and white are based on that of the

Ludovingian The Ludovingians or Ludowingians (german: Ludowinger) were the ruling dynasty of Thuringia and Hesse during the 11th to 13th centuries. Their progenitor was Louis the Bearded who was descended from a noble family whose genealogy cannot be pre ...

coat of arms, showing a lion with a ninefold horizontal white and red division. The coat of arms was inherited by the House of Hesse upon its split from the Duchy of Thuringia in 1247, and the flag came into use in the early modern Landgraviate of Hesse; the modern

Grand Duchy of Hesse The Grand Duchy of Hesse and by Rhine (german: link=no, Großherzogtum Hessen und bei Rhein) was a grand duchy in western Germany that existed from 1806 to 1918. The Grand Duchy originally formed from the Landgraviate of Hesse-Darmstadt in 1806 ...

used a flag with two red stripes, as did the People's State of Hesse until 1933. The

flag of Thuringia Both the civil and state flag of the German state of Thuringia feature a bicolour of white over red. Introduced with the formation of the state of Thuringia within the Weimar Republic in 1920, it is the reverse of the flag of Hesse, both flags ul ...

was introduced in 1920, with its formation out of the fragmented Thuringian states (the Duchy of Thuringia had been absorbed into Saxony in 1400), as the reverse of the flag of Hesse. The civil flag of Hesse resembles that of Monaco's and, particularly, Indonesia's. It also resembles one of the flags of Alsace. The Hessian Ministry of the Interior designated several official flag days. On these days, the flag of Hesse (alongside with the Flag of the European Union and Germany) must be flown on all official buildings. These days include: On the Commemoration Day for the Victims of National Socialism and on People's Mourning Day, flags are flown at half-mast. Additionally, flags must be flown on days to the election to the European Parliament, the Bundestag, the Hessian Landtag and municipal elections.

History

File:Flag of the Free City of Frankfurt.svg,

Free City of Frankfurt For almost five centuries, the German city of Frankfurt was a city-state within two major Germanic entities: *The Holy Roman Empire as the Free Imperial City of Frankfurt () (until 1806) *The German Confederation as the Free City of Frankfurt ...

File:Flag of Isenburg County.svg,

Principality of Isenburg The County of Isenburg was a region of Germany located in southern present-day Hesse, located in territories north and south of Frankfurt. The states of Isenburg emerged from the Niederlahngau (located in the Rhineland-Palatinate), which partitio ...

(1806–1815) File:Flag of the Kingdom of Westphalia.svg, Kingdom of Westphalia (1807–1813) File:Banner of the Electorate of Mainz.svg, Grand Duchy of Frankfurt (1810–1813) File:Flag of Hesse.svg, Electorate of Hesse File:Flag of Nassau-Usingen.svg, Nassau-Usingen File:Flagge Herzogtum Nassau (1806-1866).svg, Duchy of Nassau (1806–1866) File:Flagge Großherzogtum Hessen ohne Wappen.svg,

(1806–1918) File:Flag of the Free State of Bottleneck.svg,

Free State Bottleneck The Free State of Bottleneck (german: Freistaat Flaschenhals) was a short-lived quasi-state that existed from 10 January 1919 until 25 February 1923. It was formed out of part of the Prussian province of Hesse-Nassau as a consequence of the occupa ...

(1919–1923) File:Flagge Preußen - Provinz Hessen-Nassau.svg, Province of Hesse-Nassau (1868–1944) File:Hessen KS flag.svg, Province of Kurhessen (1944–1945) File:Flagge Preußen - Provinz Nassau.svg, Province of Nassau (1944–1945)

References

Flags of states of Germany

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 ...

Red and white flags {{europe-flag-stub de:Landeswappen Hessen